Navigated the pop/rock underground 2007-2012
The Soft Pack – The Soft Pack
No hard hits from San Diego's The Soft Pack, just bland indie rock with some scant memorable moments.
Blue Roses – Blue Roses
Blue Roses may not exist in nature but there's nothing artificial about Yorkshire songsmith Laura Groves.
Jonneine Zapata – Brisbane – 8 October 2010
Jonneine Zapata's Cast the Demons Out came out of nowhere and managed to do what it said on the tin. And all indications were that live was where she excelled. Comparisons were bandied around from PJ Harvey and Patti Smith for there strong vocal ranges to Jim Morrison and Mick Jagger for their bold sexual stage presence. Apart from the smoldering mic stand gripping, her onstage persona also alternates between standing still with an ice cold stare, holding her arms aloft swaying like an eagle, and my favourite, lurching around the stage like a drunken marionette. Unsettling? Maybe but never boring.
The Honeys – Honeys’ Not Dead (2008)
All my favourite bands break up too soon. Some dissolve and leave no trace they ever existed, others leave behind a body of work, be it that beguiling debut or just one crucial single that
The Charlatans – Brisbane – 10 November 2010
It's been a long time time between drinks for The Charlatans and Australia. Fresh from playing their Some Friendly 20th Anniversary shows around the UK The Charlatans were down under recently with a more conventional touring schedule. It's certainly not the fan fest that they are used to back home but a rapturous welcome still greets the band. With a set drawn mostly from their very early material honed through recent tours, and the obligatory new songs that every band pulls out, it's a different set to what fans might expect but shows the depth of quality over their long career.
Fruit Bats – Tripper
Chicago's Fruit Bats return to their familiar "effortless and sweet" indie folk ways on their fifth album, Tripper.
Mumford & Sons – Copenhagen – 11 April 2010
A great band once sang “I’m beginning to like country music. They say that’s the first sign of age” and during the last few years I have seen more and more friends go over to the side of banjos, boots and beards. Maybe age is catching up with us but it could also be that country has sneaked its way into the indie scene more and more, being mixed with folk, rock and pop.
Broken Records – Until the Earth Begins to Part
If the news makes you sad, don't watch it rather listen to Broken Records' dazzling debut.
Various Artists – Dark Was The Night
North America's finest show their charitable side with this awe-inspiring collection. Just call it "No Alternative Part 2".
Faker – Be the Twilight
Capitol/EMI, 2007 [rating:9/10] There is a litany of bands that make the decision to pack their bags and move to Los Angeles to try and catch a spark of what makes the town such a