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As promised, Killtoys are back with “Departed,” the final instalment of the trilogy release of connected singles that includes, in order, “Blind God” and “Another Realm“. The Brisbane/Meanjin three piece, comprised of Mick Bristow, Stav Tsolakides and Bevan Bancroft, seem to be building up steam… so we are hopeful for an album release.

The guitar work, as always, is glorious, haunted by a whiff of horror inspired uncertainty, with deep sliding riffs, offset by the thrashing drums. The echoing and pained, or is it beseeching(?), vocals leave you with no doubt that the end is nigh, and Bristow welcomes the creeping shadows to come and take him.

Garry and Jess of Obscure Medium Art, have again created evocative cover art, mastered at 301 by Steve Smart in Sydney, and recorded at King Street Studio in Brisbane. ‘We are the dead,’ is the climax to the trilogy and that in the end, as humans, we come into existence, have free will to create our own destiny and that for all of us is the eventual passing into the veil, hopefully to be greeted by those loved ones that went before us. You are never alone with the “Departed” and Killtoys.

https://www.facebook.com/Killtoysband/

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Need a little extra spooky in your life since the aftermath of Halloween? Then we can offer you an extra bit of stalky stalker in the form of Ian James’s new single, “Come A Little Closer,” out on Blue FX Records.

Ah, the dulcet tones of James’s vocals creep up on you like a sexy time Jason Vorhees, with his favourite knife. The music conveys an electronic and consistently funky, going to get you honey buns attitude, rather than the old fashioned plinky plonky norm. So, “Come A Little Closer” darling, and let Ian James croon sweet icy nothing’s into your ears. Lovely!

Ian James – Come A Little Closer | Blue Fx Recording Artists (bandcamp.com)

https://www.facebook.com/IanJamesMusicUSA

https://www.facebook.com/bluefxrecords

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They say Brisbane is a place out of time, and the Killtoys are a proud Meanjin band, back with their latest track “Another Realm,” as they serve up their concoction of heavy and dark on the rocks. This track is the second of a trilogy, where the first single, “Blind God,” introduces you to the story of a human corrupted….tainted by vampiric blood and his struggle as he falls from the world he knew.

The beginning is a simple guitar and vocals, where you start to hear the unnatural joy replacing horror, as a monster realises that he is no longer constrained by human law, which is when the track rushes forth on doom laden wings. The drums and electric guitar vie for dominance, while the vocals are unsettling in their intensity.

“Another Realm” follows the tale up with the fiend, taking up the mantel of Prince of Darkness, conceding that he has lost the vestiges of humanity. The vampire staring off into the bloody night for the cover art has been created by the talented duo of Obscure Medium, whom are also based in Brisbane, and create some really rad horror toys/dollies and art pieces for those with an eye for the grimly beautiful. The track contains unholy vampires, blood/power lust, plus guitar riffs and intense vocals that early Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath would have been proud of. What is there not to like about this track? Not a damn thing!

https://www.facebook.com/Killtoysband

https://www.instagram.com/killtoys_official/

https://m.soundcloud.com/killtoys/another-realm

https://www.facebook.com/obscuremediumart?mibextid=ZbWKwL

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PTSD and depression are subjects that are often skirted around by both government bodies and medical institutions. Philadelphia band, Die Tired, want to drag the spotlight onto the subject, and so the single “Better Off Alive” addresses what, for some, has become the elephant in the room, mental health and how people can reach out to find help.

“Better Off Alive is about raising awareness of these serious concerns in our society and highlighting the available resources in our communities to those in need,” explains bassist Jim Lee.

“The additional focus on our military service members in the video hits close to home. With one of our band members being a veteran, we found it especially important to shine a light on issues with PTSD, depression, and suicide in our military communities.” – Singer/guitarist Matt DeAngelis

Even when one comes home, sometimes the war continues in our head. It’s a big, rollicking rock track, filled with sonic guitars, thundering drums, and lyrics from the heart, to find something to hold onto when everything is falling away.

Die Tired are on the label SODEH Records and consist of members Matthew DeAngelis (vocals/guitar), Sean Boyle (guitar), Jamieson (Jim) Lee (bass) and Brandon Ballantyne (drums).

Personally, I don’t have any connection to the military, but in saying that, I have lost a fair few friends due to mental health and suicide. In Australia, we have R U OK Day, which asks Aussies to check in with each other and simply ask if ‘are you okay’? Three simple words can mean a lot to another, and you can do it all year round. Die Tired are trying to normalise the conversations we should be having.

https://www.facebook.com/dietiredband?mibextid=ZbWKwL

https://dietiredband.com/

https://www.instagram.com/die.tired/

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It is hardly surprising that New Orleans is a simmering pot of shrouded bedlam, and there is nothing better than introducing a new band with a debut single. Deep Sleep Atlantic is a duo from the Big Easy, and their dark grungy rock single is “Bipolar Tendencies“.

The impending creeping doom in the beginning of the track is heightened by the singular guitar that is joined by the matter of fact vocals, and then it all takes off. A story of mental health that has coloured the storyteller’s life, conversing with the voices in his head. The drums power through, with the guitar seemingly dancing within the piece and vocals that utterly suit that track in both attitude and sound.

I haven’t moved for days
It’s not that I don’t wanna be
Outside with my friends
But why would I go out when they’re all inside my head

Deep Sleep Atlantic have a big rock sound and they remind me a lot of another US act, Queens Of The Stone Age, not only in sound but also the quirky sense of humour, even in the face of a serious subject. “Bipolar Tendencies” is a very classy first track, so now we await for what Deep Sleep Atlantic proffer next.

Bipolar Tendencies | Deep Sleep Atlantic (bandcamp.com)

https://www.facebook.com/deepsleepatlantic?mibextid=ZbWKwL

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Queensland band, Atticus Chimps, released their new single, “High At The Sight Of You” on February the 8th, The pop/punk/grunge duo from the Gold Coast Hinterland, are picking up air time on the alternative radio waves and also touring their high on life form of music.

A sonic hail of guitar noise hits your ears and it is a bit like a trip back to the 90s grunge era that spawned the wonderful Brisbane band Regurgitator. The cooed ooooo’s especially, that lapse into uplifting sound of the chorus’ gleeful announcement of being high at the sight of you. This song would have to go off live with the energy it brings.

Atticus Chimps have a huge verbosity about them for a two man band. For me, I really enjoyed this track with its massive sonic booming guitar and of course the thrashing drums that run this song at full throttle. The vocals are so utterly open and compliment “High At The Sight Of You“, giving you the taste of love’s first arrow in the modern era.

https://www.instagram.com/atticuschimps/?hl=en

https://www.facebook.com/AtticusChimps/

https://www.atticuschimps.com/

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“Burning Building” is the latest single from Lucy Kruger & The Lost Boys, out on Unique Records / Schubert Music Europe GmbH. Kruger was born and raised in South Africa but now calls Berlin home, and the creation of the single is a very international affair with the recording done in Berlin, the mixing in Cape Town and the mastering in Brussels.

Photo by Holger Nitschke

The music very much gives you the impression of a stalking cat on the prowl, looking for a cat’s paw, a plaything, while everything around them perishes, but that isn’t their concern. The angular guitars and jaunty rhythm with super sultry vocals make for a very bad-arse track.

If you will, imagine Siouxsie’s Creatures, fused with Sonic Youth and that might give you an idea of the grandiose sound of “Burning Building“. A post-punk aesthetic, married to grungy pop and Kruger’s delightful vocals definitely make this track both sexy and fun. This is the second single to be released off the next Lucy Kruger & The Lost Boys’ album, due in April and we are pretty sure that it is going to be hot.

https://lucykruger.bandcamp.com/track/burning-building

https://www.facebook.com/LucyKrugerOfficial

https://linktr.ee/lucykruger

https://www.instagram.com/lucy_kruger

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Based in the US is the alt band High Horse Cavalry, creating their own blend of post-punk madness. Their debut, self titled album features Kalvin Oudou (vocals), Ron Hayden (guitars), Christian Johnston (bass) and Mark Fleagle (drums).

The band is somewhat inspired by Killing Joke, and honestly KJ are a bench mark band for many in the alternative music industry, melding post-punk finesse with heavier industrial tones and Coleman’s vocals that can be like that of possessed, screaming madman in his pulpit. The track, “Cult Of Congregation” most certainly runs in this vein.

There are also more than just hints of punk influence, such as the tracks “Wounds Of Separation” and “Spy Song” or driving mid west heavy rock crossed with the Sex Pistols in “Last Lullaby“.

The vocals are unapologetically guttural, while the guitars churn and grind, pushing ever forward. I can say I hear the darker side of grunge in High Horse Cavalry. A nod to such bands like The Melvins, whom consistently deliver bone bruising riffs with consistent enthusiasm, not to mention lack of regard for playing by the rules. The album came across, in a way, more punk, especially in attitude. So son, get off on your High Horse Cavalry.

https://highhorsecavalry.bandcamp.com/album/high-horse-cavalry

https://www.facebook.com/highhorsecavalry?mibextid=ZbWKwL

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Ever had The Blackwater Fever? They say it does strange things to a man but in Brisbane it happens to be a three piece, dark alternative, bluesy rock’n’roll band. Previously, we have reviewed a few singles, but as of October 27th, the new album came out containing these and so much more. Temptator! is the album and the band consists of Shane Hicks (vocals, guitar, bass, keys, percussion), Trevor Gee (drums, percussion) and Jed A Walters (bass, keys). If Jed’s name is familiar, you might have come across his other fantastic project, Chiffon Magnifique.

Some albums are hard to review. Not because they are bad….well some are, but there are others that when you listen, it kind of feels a little wrong to be taking it track by track. Instead I am going to tell you that The Blackwater Fever never leave their blue roots but they do indeed traverse a lot of styles. A mixture of imagination and soul, woven around real experiences of love, loss and betrayal.

The rock’n’roll of “Love Is Strange” about a beguiling female or the bayou slow blues of “The Hurt” are examples of burning resentment of being badly treated, smouldering and flamed by pain.

Weaving immersive stories like “Ode To Ol’ John Doe“, the dumped human remains in a body of water, just below the surface, for no one to mourn as the creatures below slowly consume them or there is the gothic stirrings of “The Highway” in a world gone mad.

And one always needs at least one track about love and lust. The dulcet Stone Temple Pilot styling, of absolute need in “My Weakness” that gets you in the throat, heavy and tangible obsession with those amazing, stirring vocals. There is so much depth within Temptator!, and The Blackwater Fever dances with dark themes that make for interesting music, melded with such passion, you might find you really do have the Fever.

Temptator! | The Blackwater Fever (bandcamp.com)

The Blackwater Fever | Dark & Moody Rock ‘n’Roll

The Blackwater Fever | Facebook

The Blackwater Fever (@theblackwaterfever) • Instagram photos and videos

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Brisbane, three piece band, The Blackwater Fever, just brought out on November the 20th, their new single, “My Weakness“. The trio comprises of Shane Hicks on vocals/guitar, Jed A. Walters playing bass guitar/rhodes and Trevor Gee on drums/percussion.

The first dropping cords kick in and that blues style can’t be mistaken with its laconic guitar interludes accompanied by piano. Married with an insistent grunge sound in the chorus plus lyrics that convey a one sided love affair, bring to mind acts like Stone Temple Pilots. Hicks‘ vocals are like honey dripping into your ears as he tells you his tale of woe and want.

THE BLACKWATER FEVER

There are songs that paint pictures in your mind and are almost tangible to taste and smell. Grimy desperation, mixed with hot, sweaty lust, all in the name of a woman that would leave you to rot, if she so desired, yet they can’t let go of her. The red back spider on the cover, is an Australian member of the black widow clan, highly poisonous and will cannibalise its mate.

After five albums, these are seasoned professionals and it shows in the production as well as writing skills. This is delightfully moody and carnal, so if you have an itch that you can’t scratch, may I recommend The Blackwater Fever and their remedy, “My Weakness“.

https://www.facebook.com/theblackwaterfever/

https://theblackwaterfever.bandcamp.com/track/my-weakness

https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/album/in-stereo-remixed-remastered/id1256563616?mt=1&app=music