“Peach” by Burning House

“Peach” is tucked away at the end of a 2019 album called “Anthropocene” by Southampton band Burning House. It’s the first song of theirs I have heard and it wouldn’t have sounded out of place on Teenage Fanclub’s “Bandwagonesque” .

Having started at the end of the 15 track double album it’s only right and proper to start at the beginning and see what’s on offer. Turns out there’s a lot of rather gloriously noisy and melodic grungy atmospheric shoegaze and nothing else sounds much like Teenage Fanclub at all.

Sometimes the songs pack the dense visceral sonic punch of My Bloody Valentine (“Mirror Song” and “Forever”), but there’s also a gentler, lighter swirling woozy dreamy element at play (“Langour”). Frequently here multiple sonic elements are incorporated into the same song to disorienting effect.

The band are Aaron (Vocals/Guitar), Ruby (Guitar/ Vocals), Dominic (Drums) and Patrick (Bass).  The sounds on “Anthropocene” may take some influences from the past but there’s a sense of adventure and originality here showing their influences won’t define them or limit them.

 

 

 

“Arrow” by BEACHES

BEACHES (photo by Darren Sylvester)

Continuing the heavy psych theme, here’s a blissful Sunday Psych-out fuzzfest called “Arrow” from Melbourne five-piece band BEACHES:

BEACHES have just released (September 2017) a double album of ultra-melodic psychedelic rock called “Second of Spring”. Actually, it’s a bit more than *just* psych rock, as the double LP format allows the band to mix their usual 60s/ 70s psych-rock via German 70s experimental motorik and 80s New Wave goodness with even more shoegaze melodic pop stylings to great effect, as “Arrow” here shows.

Some songs may even remind anyone who has established a long-running relationship with Australian alternative guitar music (guilty here) of the fuzzy melodic power-pop goodness of the likes of 80s/ 90s bands The Hummingbirds or Someloves. To my ears BEACHES more natural propulsive and joyful psychedelic stylings are way more preferable than the over-worked self-indulgent noodling of some of their much more vaunted Australian psych-rock contemporaries. Enough said!

BEACHES are Antonia Sellbach on guitar and vocals, Alison Bolger on guitar and vocals, Ali McCann on guitar and vocals, Gill Tucker on bass and vocals and Karla Way on drums and vocals.

They’ve been playing and releasing singles, EPs and albums as BEACHES since 2008. You really ought to dig back into their catalogue for stunning gems like the 2013 release “She Beats” which features even more motorik psych+melodic fuzzrock wonders.