We are being truly spoiled at the moment, with wonderful new sounds appearing relentlessly from all angles. Here’s a few of my favourites…
Tara Clerkin Trio – On The Turning Ground (World Of Echo, out now)
Crafting the kind of beautifully skewed avant-pop soundscapes that could only come from the vibrantly creative city of Bristol, Tara Clerkin Trio follow up 2021’s In Spring with a new EP for World Of Echo. Across five compelling tracks the band create whole worlds for the listener to lose themselves in, with three vocal cuts loaded with intricate melodic flourishes bookended by two dub-infused instrumentals that dazzle with their shifting tones and textures. Measured and moving, On The Turning Ground is the perfect introduction to the Tara Clerkin Trio’s gently intoxicating and ever evolving blend of fractured folk and shimmering electronics.
The Smashing Times – This Sporting Life (K Records/Perennial, out now)
Baltimore based but with Children Maybe Later related links to the Bay Area underground, The Smashing Times are back with their third long player This Sporting Life, following on promptly from last years Bloom. A winning combination of classic pop melodicism and contemporary lo-fi weird, this album sounds like the favourite, dustiest corner of your record collection cut up and reassembled into a kaleidoscopic, psychedelic collage of freakbeat nowness. A perfect blend of the sublime and the surreal, This Sporting Life is a giddy, life-affirming trip.
The Laughing Chimes – A Promise To Keep (Slumberland Records, out now)
A few months on from the glistening pure pop best of 7” that collected highlights from their 2021 debut album In This Town and subsequent Zoo Avenue EP, Southeast Ohio trio The Laughing Chimes return with a marked change of style and mood on new single A Promise To Keep. Riding in with a reverb-laden pulse that could haunt a thousand indie dancefloors, the distant howls of lonely feedback and subtle melodic shifts add new found space and depth to their songcraft. Channeling the Bunnymen-esque sound of the UK indie underground, this single is yet another irresistible step forward from one of the most exciting new bands out there doing it right now.
Dot Dash – 16 Again (Country Mile Records, out now)
Taking its title from the Buzzcocks song of the same name, 16 Again collates fifteen of Washington DC power-pop trio Dot Dash’s finest moments on this new compilation for Country Mile Records, with a stray Television Personalities cover (Jackanory Stories) making up the difference. A self-proclaimed ‘Greatest Hits by a band with no hits’, this release marks the bands first appearance on vinyl following seven albums for Canadian based label The Beautiful Music stretching back to 2011. Armed with relentless energy and a whole-hearted devotion to the thrill of the indie-rock chase, 16 Again is sure to introduce this fine band to a wider, enraptured audience.
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