Cat Nap - Free In Anarchy

 

Today's 3 Reviews have all had one thing in common, that being female lead singers. There's no reason for this, the three albums have been what I have been listening to recently and all three are different. Cat Nap benefit from an appearance on the LTTW Playlist, meaning I dug out the album, very pleasing.

The quartet from Amesbury Massachusetts are more Alt at times, but incredibly melodic and engaging at times. The title track is one of the best songs that I've heard all year and is great UK New Wave Guitar Pop, I can't stop listening to it.

But compare that to Lip Filler which is much heavier, more crunchy, a little Post Punk, a little 90s Rock. Toxic Feminity is a little more Garbage like with a sweeter vocal. Fight builds and builds around a killer heavy riff.

Joyride is another song built around a wonderful riff, a little more grunge. Apathy Killer is a great opener, the vocal again contrasting with the heavier rhythm and lead. All in all, a cracking listen. Few can be as melodic vocally and noisy instrumental. A great listen.

You can listen to and buy the album here.

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The Corner Laughers - Concerns Of Wasp And Willow

 

The Corner Laughers first album in almost 6 years is a reason to celebrate. The follow up to 2020's Temescal Telegraph which was our album of the year. You can read my review here. It would always be some going to equal that album and they have.

I suspect many would label the quartet as Indie Pop and Karla Kane's dulcet tones underline that. But there is far more to the band that that with ventures into Folk, Americana and Jaunty Pop. Talking of the latter, Crumb Clean is Indie Pop excellence.

There is a mellowness that washes over you addictively. They are as ease with the dark or the light. The arrangements are superb, allowing the songs to breathe. The shuffle on Red Yarrow, Yellow Yarrow is partly let's do the song right here, but the arrangement shows the work that has gone into the song.

Rainbow Cardigan is troubadour Folk and even gives an inkling of The Seekers. Dusking is Easy Listening Joy, wonderful Pop. Dark Matter is all 60s Studio Pop with hints of the groovy. Victoria Sponge is splendid West Coast harmonic Pop.

My two favourites (and you will have different ones) are the dream like intensity of Larkspur Landing that has a stunning gentle Psych like arrangement. Then there is the arrangement of The Harvestman, a song that builds and builds with another stellar arrangement.

These are days when everything seems 100 mph, attention spans are short. Thank goodness for The Corner Laughers who provide a release that has to be listened to from start to finish. A release that underlines the benefit and strength of the album.

You can listen to and buy the album here. It is available on CD and as a download.

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Plastic Tones - Can You Keep A Secret?

The second album from Helsinki 5 Piece Plastic Tones is wonderfully scuzzy. Old school maybe, but highly effective and equal to anything from the likes of Rumbar. Up and at 'em, yet incredibly melodic and thoroughly enjoyable.

Energetic, but with similarities to Power Pop in the way it uses riffs, solos and choruses, but much noisier. A little Punk at times, A little Garage Rock at others, but also able to drop in songs that are more Guitar Pop such as Dynamo and Dirty Work.

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The latter is already slated to appear on next week's Listening To This Week Playlist. The opener, We're All In This Together rocks in like something from The Motors. Very UK New Wave and all the better for it, it states intent.

I'm The One shows other skills, a longer piece, that even edges towards Classic Rock. More brooding instrumentally, less in your face. Waste Another Day has a vocal that isn't a million miles away from Stevie Nicks and has a killer chorus.

Nothing Romantic is pure Power Pop and the closer. You Can Do Whatever You Wanna Do, is like a Punk-ish anthem, a little Eddie And The Hot Rods in style. It rounds off a great listen. Can You Keep A Secret? is a great album.

You can listen to and buy the album here.

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Playlist Submissions

 

Reviews continue tomorrow, but I wanted to just make a few suggestions about submissions to the Listening To This Week Playlist. It has become increasingly popular, which is great, but is taking up more and more time, not because of the music as I happily listen to everything, but the time creating it.

There is no angst from here, but I have to create more time for Reviews and so there are some things that have to change to allow that time. I hope this is taken in the spirit that is meant. So much of the work begins after a song is chosen.

I spend so much time searching for Social Media details for the tagging after it is published. So much so, that I have to ask submitters to add any details on submission. If they are easily searchable, I will try to find the relevant information, but if I can't find it, the song will not appear in the tagging.

It has been like this for a while, but last week was the worst with details arriving just in time. There is going to be a change in the social media posting. Looking at individual site posts weekly, there is real confusion including artists that are not on a particular social media site.

So from now on if you are not on any of Facebook, Instagram, Threads or Bluesky, the song will not be listed on the relevant site. It keeps such posts focussed and relevant. I just think it helps the artists more and we are all about helping the artists.

I still get submissions that are on Spotify, a reminder that we don't do Spotify. Which means. I have to make multiple searches or contact the artist about Bandcamp, Soundcloud or You Tube. We use these three because listeners don't have to sign up to listen. 

There is still a lot of submissions that only note Spotify links when they are on the likes of Bandcamp. We have no affinity to Bandcamp, but feel it is the best way for listeners to search an artist's other releases. It is all about getting people to listen and hopefully buy.

I am still surprised to get messages that ask for details of the site after the song has been chosen. The scattergun approach rarely works, a short look at IDHAS would tell you what is likely to be of interest. That should maybe standard for anyone submitting anywhere.

Finally, a reminder that we are an artist orientated site. So it is great to see musicians sharing details of other songs on the playlist if they like them. This works really well as artists have different followers. I, personally, listen to songs that are recommended by people that have covered by IDHAS.

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Listening To This Week Playlist 6 April 2026

28 songs on this week's LTTW. As Easter ends, here is something to keep you upbeat for the rest of the week. A cracking selection that shows what we are noted for, yet offers up surprises. The weekly playlist is largely for submissions, not just the usual stuff that we dig out ourselves. 

The song order is not about song preference, but how the playlist flows.  All embeds open in new windows to aid scrolling. Links to the artists will also appear on I Don't Hear A Single Social Media sites over the next 24 hours. This will help you to discover more about those who appear here. 

Whelligan - Game Over

Cat Nap - Free In Anarchy

Dumb Crush - Had It

Soraia - Queen And Pharaohs

Rockvyn - Space Station Earth

Lavventura - Lady Bug

Conor Miley - Raise Your Red Flag

The Essence Of The Universe - Ave Maria

Uni Boys - You'll Curse His Name Again

Honey I'm Home - Hyperspace Mountain

Heir To The Squandered Millions - Thin Aspiration

Hubbell Benson - Born To Lose  

AWAIT

WISP. - Wonderland

Morvern Hum - New Patterns

Sparrowhawk - Power And The Glory

Nothing In Return - Monotony

J. Moriarty - Waste My Mind

Chorus Truly - Your Name

Paper Pools - Nightdays

The Council Gritters - The Angels Call Your Name

Radio Days - Bang Bang

Bretton Kyle - Better Man

Norwegian Blue - A Different Light

Matinée Recordings · Norwegian Blue - A Different Light

The Grimly Pleased - Right Turn Wrong Way

Dog Pops - Beige Hell

Lyons Grove - Cali's Burning

Lyons Grove · Lyons Grove - Cali's Burning

Modern Holiday - Goodbye Grand Street

Susurrus Station - Meshes Of The Afterlife

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SOFTJAW - SOFTJAW

 

I reviewed Softjaw's 2024 EP and now the splendid Dandy Boy Records label has gotten hold it for a Physical release and made it into an album by adding four songs. It is an essential listen for you Power Pop kids.

The Longbeach quartet have more than enough in common with the new breed of the genre, but primarily this will appeal to lovers of 70s Power Pop. Having said that, there is a lot of UK New Wave in these recordings.

Those five EP songs sound just as great as they did then and I've embedded the 2 songs that I chose then. But the two singles that are added are exemplary, particularly Underground Lover, which may very well be the best listen on here.

There are two covers and these coincidentally are two of my favourite songs from two of my favourite bands. The Nerves' Working Too Hard is a Power Pop classic written by Paul Collins and Playing Bogart, written by 23 Jewel's Nick Simpson.

Playing Bogart is more noted as a song from Any Trouble's debut album and Mick did an exhaustive interview with Clive Gregson here. This self titled debut album is an absolute joy. Big choruses, great riffs and pure energy.

The future of Power Pop is in safe hands, indeed the genre is as popular as it as ever been. Guitar Pop joy should be mandatory for all. The Vinyl album is available to buy from Dandy Boy in the Us and from Bachelor Records in Europe.

You can listen to and buy the album here.

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Fingerless - Repeater

 

Brisbane Trio Fingerless offer up a fine Pop Rock album. Covering a fair bit of music from Oz, I'm more used to hearing Guitar Pop or something much noisier. Repeater does seem an outlier, with its 70s tints. The music here continues to surprise here.

The stunning Guitar solo on Yes Today for instance that is Classic Rock excellence, it is a surprise and a wonderful listen. It is very different to the Piano led Charlie with its sparser arrangement and melancholic, slightly breathy, vocal.

You will, of course, have heard Portfolio on a recent Listening To This Week Playlist and it is one of the songs of the year and sounds as great as it did. More Guitar Pop than what surrounds it, the vocal harmonies and raiding of the instrument cupboard shine.

Cry A Little goes all early 60s, Roy Orbison like, yet The Same Stream gets a little more Eric Stewart 10CC, uncannily so. Grotesque is even a little Travis. More To Come mixes Brit Pop with something that could have been wrote by Billy Kinsley for Liverpool Express.

People decry some of the 70s Pop Rock, I have no idea why. This album revises that  joy. Beautifully performed, arranged and produced with a good deal of variety. Melodic great choruses ring out on a splendid listen.

You can listen to and buy the album here. It is available on CD and as a download.

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