Monolith Cocktail Blog

Brian ‘Bordello’ Shea’s Picks

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Swans ‘Paradise Is Mine’
(Mute)

The taster track of the new Swans album is upon us and is a track of longitude, going on for nine minutes. Maybe going on is the wrong description. Maybe gently floating, drifting like a thought on the edge of a maelstrom of seduction and unease; a song that in noway outstays its welcome. In fact it kindly invites you in for tea and biscuits, offers you a choice of what you want to watch and then twiddles its moustache in a Dick Dastardly way when your back is turned. Yes, “Paradise Is Mine” is a crafty little bugger of a song. I wonder, have the Swans pieces of high quality art been described as “a crafty bugger”? Probably not. I would not describe it like that to their faces as they are a bit scary; as in fact is this seduction of unease.

Halo Maud ‘Catch The Wave’
(Heavenly Records) Available Now

‘Catch The Wave’ is a rather beautiful song, especially the Dawn Version, which is the same beautiful song with mostly just vocals and guitar and without the aural sugar coating of synths and vocal effects. The gift without the wrapping dear friends as Halo Maud really does not need any wrapping or enhancing: it is like putting eyeliner on the Mona Lisa, she really does not need it. She’s perfect as she is.

Night Noise Team ‘Little Shocks’
17^th March 2023

‘Little Shocks’ is a delightfully beautiful slice of well-written electro pop; intelligent lyrics and beautiful melody with quirky catchy synth lines, which nowadays is indeed a bit of a rare thing. Yes indeed this in fact a song (did you notice I said song and not a track) that is worthy to be released and not dropped, which is sadly the modern way; in my old days the only experience of being dropped by a record label was when I was being kicked off their roster. But this is a lovely little release, and I expect if the Night Noise Team releases an album it will be equally as lovely.

Ghosts On TV ‘Sunshine’
(Soliti) Available Now

A palette wash of sonic endeavor; a throw away memory caught in the wish of a recurring dream, Ghosts On TV supply us with a brief glimpse of daylight in these dark times with the appropriately titled “Sunshine”. A Flying Saucer Attack like pop covered chocolate delight of sadness and hope; a whispered sweet nothing sound-tracked by heavenly feedback, this is a lesson in how to write alternative pop.

The Mary Onettes ‘Pearl Machine’
(Welfare Sounds) Available Now

The Mary Onettes have just released a new track and it is indeed a bit of a gem, a pearl in fact. Maybe it is why they have titled this Cure like stroll of instrumental solitude “Pearl Machine”, a work of beauty and retreat that promises great things for their forthcoming album.

bigflower ‘Anything’
(Self-Release) Available Now

Another month another slab of hypnotic dark dense guitar beauty from bigflower, and “Anything” is indeed a thing of great beauty; the sound of sinking hope; a soundtrack of loss and remembrance that once again screams out to be included in some movie blockbuster. For Ivor makes music that has such a wide cinemascope to it, that completely engulfs you, and leaves you in a state of blissed out bohemia.

Lucy Kruger & The Lost Boys ‘Howl’
(Unique Records) Available Now

I love this track. It’s an unhinged point of no return of a song. A track that is adventurous, sexy and is willing to argue its own point of view; song that takes great pleasure in poking you with a phallus shaped slice of no wave glamour. A track that will bewitch you and entice you into its lair, before happily hacking you to little bits with its pure originality and individuality. A gem.

Man/Woman/Chainsaw ‘Backburden’
(Big Richard Records) Available Now

Another blast of jerky punk rock: yes another. There seems to be a deluge of jerky punk rock coming my way lately, and 90% of it is very good. And this is one of the 90%, so I will indeed take the time out and cast my appraisal. Not that anyone really cares what I think. And why on earth should they, as everyone has their own musical taste, and me saying that I like it a great deal does not mean that you will. But I enjoyed Daisy Chainsaw and Elastica and The Slits and this is in the same ballpark – as an American would say. But with myself being British I will say Cricket ground. And this is very British and very quirky and lovely and punky, and I love it.  

//ALBUMS-EPS//

Heartworms ‘A Comforting Notion EP’
(Speedy Wunderground) 24^th March 2023

Have you ever watched a cat admire itself in a mirror and slowly become freaked out and scared of its own reflection, backing off as slinkily as possible, giving an air of nonchalant sexiness, purring seductively as it turns and leaves the room to go and make a kill in the cold and wintery back garden. You can do nothing but admire the blackness and beauty of nature unfurling its wonderous inner self; leaving itself naked and open. Well this four track EP is an aural equivalent; it’s dark, bewitching and beautiful, and leaves an uneasy tingling in your soul. The sound of Portishead visiting itself in an insane asylum, wonderfully unhinged, and unhingedly beautiful.

LMNOP (aka dONW7) ‘LMNO3’
Available Now

Everybody needs some lo-fi power pop in their lives. Well they do when it is simply as life affirming as this album is. 22 tracks of analogue tape beauty; songs that dazzle and twirl and make you remember the joy of a pop melody and the classic guitar riff, be it the “Heatwave” break of “Semi Circular”, or the Thin Lizzy like soloing on “Y”, or the Big Star worthiness of “Wanna Write A Letter To You”, truly a pop gem, and believe me this album is full of pop gems including the wannabe rock stardom of the excellent “Garbage”. LMNOP are truly a marvel of pop.

Smashing Red ‘II’ EP
(Metal Postcard Records) Available Now

Now when an EP is kicked off with a track that borrows a hybrid riff off Ringo’s “Back Off Boogaloo”, Warrants “Cherry Pie” and “Number 1 Dominator” by Top (remember them? An unsuccessful band from Liverpool once tipped for great things) you know it is going to be good. And indeed it is; five tracks that dip their toes in indie, folk and pop, at times making one think of the excellent Comet Gain, especially on “I Luv U” – a rather fetching song about trying to make in the music industry. And at other times, a mellow Kinks “Magic Garden” and the Ray Davies tribute “He’s No Angel”. So if you are looking for five well-written songs about life …please look no further.

$t33d$_uv_LUV ‘Ballads For Bros’
(Metal Postcard Records) Available Now

$t33d$_uv_LUV is maybe the worst band name I have ever come across. In fact, is not even a good password. Well, it is a good password safety wise, but one you have no chance in remembering and most bands want to be remembered; it’s not a name that will slip off the tongue of any alt DJs out there, and in fact could well put off blog writers writing about you as you really do not want to be typing that out in a review. Luckily I’m of sterner stuff and do not mind typing it out on occasion, and that is a shame, as Ballads For Bros is a good album and could actually gain some attention.

It’s an album I’ve listened to a number of times and is as strange as the band name. It’s not often an album starts with a AOR ballad; ‘Next To Me’ is quite lovely and is something that Lennon might have recorded for his Plastic Ono Band album if he had had a happy childhood, or something Todd Rundgren might have released in the early 70s. It’s a bit of a stunner.

The next track ‘Rock (Your City) Tonight’ is a delight of Royal Trux madness. It’s funny and it rocks. And those two stunners are the best two tracks on the album.

The third track ‘Brothers In Arms (Pt.2)’ thankfully does not sound like Dire Striates or have anything to do with their tastefully plucked guitars. But saying that, the track does actually have tastefully plucked guitars, and is another well-written ballad. Then the album gets a bit strange with music that could be lift music from Dr Who (‘D2TD’), and Add N To X like porn music for computers  (‘Zoom On The Can’). So a strange and enjoyable listen overall and if they went down the AOR path further could be the next Journey or Chicago.

A word about the Author of these reviews::

Brian ‘Bordello’ Shea joined the Monolith Cocktail team in January 2019. The cult leader of the infamous lo fi gods, The Bordellos, has released countless recordings over the decades with his family band of hapless unfortunates, and is the owner of a most self-deprecating sound-off style blog. Far too many projects, asides and oddities to mention, but his latest album is Songs For Cilla Black (released on Think Like A Key Music) threatened to trouble some online alternative chart for a week on Amazon – so things must be looking up.

Each week we send a mountain of new releases to the self-depreciating maverick to see what sticks. In his own idiosyncratic style and turn-of-phrase, pontificating aloud and reviewing with scrutiny an eclectic deluge of releases.