Brian ‘Bordello’ Shea’s Reviews Roundup – Instant Reactions. All entries in alphabetical order.
The Conspiracy ‘Dungeness’
EP (Metal Postcard Records) 23rd November 2025
The Conspiracy are back with another fine EP of post-punk art rock; a band that are as British as watching cricket on a summer’s day. The Fall, The Kinks, The Only Ones are all lovingly stroked and warped into a mesmerising shuffle of old man’s fancy. This is the sound of modern-day England as seen through the eyes of middle-aged men who can remember when rock ‘n’ roll had a meaning and need to the young, and soundtracked young rebellion, and was not just something they streamed from their phone as they nip down to Nando’s to ignore their friends as they watch videos on tic tok together but apart.
I Am Hands ‘Lastings’
Single 5th December 2025
This is the debut single by I Am Hands and it is no hands, feet and bumps a daisy but a lovely sail down the river of peaceful tranquillity, a song of the supreme confidence of knowing that your supreme confidence has never been painted in such a blue shade of subtly. It really is a rather lovely track that fans of the first Trembling Blue Stars album might clutch to their cardigan encrusted breast.
The Last Sound ‘All That’s Missed’
Album (Cruel Nature Records) 28th November 2025
This is the sound of candy filled sugar pop, the kind that you might see on Top Of The Pops in the glory madness days of the 80s when Strawberry Switchblade seductively swooned from your transistor radio and pop could be both wonky and bliss like and whisper sweet nothings into your ear like an ethereal Green Gartside. All That’s Missed is an album that really is not to be missed. It’s yet another off-kilter pop wonder released by Cruel Nature Records, a label that certainly specialises in releasing off-kilter pop and or just plainly the off-kilter.
The Lounge Bar Orchestra ‘E.N.D.A.N.G.E.R.M.E.N.T. & The Room of Wrong Reflections’ Album (Self-Release) 26th November 2025
E.N.D.A.N.G.E.R.M.E.N.T. & The Room of Wrong Reflections is a collection of the tracks that made two-vinyl only releases on The Heavens Lathe label. The Lounge Bar Orchestra, who I have written about a number of times in the past, make a magical concoction of easy listening splenditude. The sort of thing one may hear on old sixties spy thrillers or takes you back to the golden age of seventies tv: you can easily imagine Bruce Forsyth willing on contestants on The Generation Game as they attempt to mold a mug in the shape of Anthea’s backside as “The Girl with Golden Hips Plays”.
Once again, The Lounge Bar Orchestra magically transports me back in an aural time machine to the days of Texan chocolate bars, Saturday night bath time, and watching Cilla duet with Marc Bolan as my dad eagerly awaits Starsky And Hutch and Match Of The Day. Yet again The Lounge Bar Orchestra proving why music is the most magical of all arts.
The New Tigers ‘Off The Wall/Butterfly’
Single (Soliti) 21st November 2025
These two tracks are a catchy foray into indie rock/pop, sounding not unlike The Bluetones with just a hint of what Teenage Fanclub might have produced during their heyday. All semi fuzz guitars and delightful melodies, and there is nothing wrong with that, let me tell you.
Origami Horses ‘Scenes’
EP (Metal Postcard Records) Released 23rd November 2025
I do not know if this EP was released to prove that post punk, garage rock, prog and psych can be melded into a hardy brew of rock ‘n’ roll finery. If not, it should have been as in fact that is what this EP is; one wonderful sparkling concoction of all the aforementioned, and track two, ‘Access Denied’, is an eight-minute gem that proves the point, and really needs to be heard by all, and takes one back to those hot summers days in 1989 when Madchester ruled the airwaves. The Scenes is another gem to be added to the aural crown that is the criminally ignored Metal Postcard Records label.
Sir Robert Orange Peel ‘A Man Dressed Up’
Single (Metal Postcard Records) Released 22nd November 2025
‘A Man Dressed Up’ is a beautiful Christmas symphony of seeing the magical time of the year through children’s eyes. A track filled with memories and nostalgia and an innocence to life that we all at one point in our life will lose. The perfect song to soundtrack sipping a sherry and watching the Christmas lights reflect from the baubles hanging from the tree and wishing you or your kids were young again.
Toxic Chicken ‘Quirky & Perky’
Album (Earthrid) 7th November 2025
Toxic Chicken is insanely brilliant and brilliantly insane. And Quirky & Perky is a fine introduction to his crazy world.
TC takes dance electronica and game music to new and unexplored levels of madness, and quite wonderfully tuneful melodious instrumental shenanigans are oozed from one’s speakers.
I would love Toxic Chicken to have made an album with Jim Morrison as for some reason his keyboard skills had me thinking this is what The Doors may have sounded like if they were brought up with the Game Boy and not the blues. A truly great fun listen.
Vlimmer ‘Hintersommer’
Album (Blackjack Illuminist Records) Released 21st November 2025
Ah yes, Vlimmer is back to offer all those lovers of Gothic Euro disco with a hint of post punk synth shoegazery a new Vlimmer of light. Those who’ve never tasted such a shot of pulverising gothic industrial tuneage since members of Fields Of The Nephilim, Smashing Orange and Depeche Mode were chased through the streets of a rain paved Wigan by an angry mob of spotty faced chavs on undersized bikes all holding out for sponsorship by the North Face clothing company whilst waving knocked off vapes into the air like an ancient Greek Olympian wielding his flaming torch. Yes indeed, Deliveroo has never witnessed such a wave of free advertising.
Hintersommer gets around the snag of being sung in German by both Vlimmer being German and myself not really giving a fuck as the tunes are blissfully dark and encouraging enough to imagine that what he is singing about is a worthy subject. So yes, an album I entrust will soon be in the collections of all you old and young goths who still roam this earth.
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Our Daily Bread 626: JAMC, Dar Disku, Moreish Idols, Brevity…
September 18, 2024
BRIAN ‘BORDELLO’ SHEA’S REVIEWS ROUNDUP – INSTANT REACTIONS.
bigflower ‘Criminal ii’
SINGLE (Self-Release)
There are things we can always rely on a weekly/monthly basis, such as Everton being shit, and on a brighter note, a new track by bigflower. This new instalment is called “Criminal ii” and is an upbeat harmonic drone of a gem, a song with a spring in its step, a song with subtle guitar whiz etched over its grinning face.
Beauty Stab ‘Words (b/w ‘Avé Maria’)’
SINGLE (Self-Release)
Another new single from Beauty Stab [this time Bandcamp only], again taken from their forthcoming album, and only coming a few weeks after the Synth pop dance romp that was “Bring Me The Boy”. “Words” is a different affair altogether, much darker, a synth goth track that will appeal to fans of their old band Vukovar, one that is more Black Celebration era Depeche Mode than Bronski Beat.
As good as “Words” is, the real gem is the B-side, a cover of the Roland S Howard song “Ava Maria”. A beautiful stroll through the 50’s Film Noir soundtrack, coming all reverb breezy guitar and Roy Orbison come early Elvis Sun Session era vocals; a track so sublime that if David Lynch heard it I’m sure he would be tempted to make a new film just to include it. How this band has no record deal is a great musical mystery.
Brevity ‘Home Is Where Your Dog Is’
ALBUM (Think Like A Key)
The wonderfully named “Home Is Where your Dog Is” is the unreleased album, plus some demo recordings, by late the 60’s early 70’s Chicago rock band Brevity, a band who never actually got to release anything at the time but had interest and encouragement from both Island Records and Frank Zappa’s Bizarre/Straight Records. Truth be told, released here for the first time by Think Like A Key Records, it is indeed a bit of a lost and now found musical treasure.
There is a bit of the Bill Fays about the songs – again another artist who spent years in obscurity -, and of course touches of all the usual suspects: The Zombies/Beatles, especially on the gem of the song “Come See Paris In The Fall” and the equally beautiful “Lullaby”, which has a rather fetching harpsichord chiming away in the background, and “Cakewalk” could have easily fitted on the proto punk sounding Pink Fairies debut “Never Never Land”.
“Home Is Where Your Dog Is” is one of those rare lost albums that actually deserves to be labelled a lost classic, and the added demos actually have an indie/post punk feel to them that reminded me strangely of very early Pulp in their more acoustic like days. Yes, one of my favourite albums I have had the pleasure to listen to this year: a true Gem of an album.
Dar Disku ‘Sabir (Feat. Billur Battal)’
SINGLE (Soundway Records)
Now then I do like this, it is damn funky in fact. It has a lovely 70’s vibe; part psychedelic part let’s get down and boogie funk and disco. Baccara and Funkadelic join forces to make the feel-good summer disco swaggabond hit of 2024. A gem of a single.
Derrero ‘Breezing Up’
ALBUM (Recordiau Prin)
“Breezing Up” is Derrero‘s 6th album and is indeed another fine collection of pop songs. Songs with a beautiful 70’s MOR/AOR feel; the opening track “Ride On Rider” could have easily stepped off one of The Beach Boys early to mid 70’s masterpieces, and also “The Drive Home” and “A Line In Space” have a lovely laidback 70’s vibe. The title track “Breezing Up” is a Hawkwind like instrumental, and the lovely “Cosmic Shift” successfully mines the same terrain as Mercury Rev. The whole album is a wonderful relaxing laid back pop triumph of a listen.
I Do You Do Karate ‘Peanut Carter’
SINGLE (Half A Cow Records)
I Do You Do Karate rewrite Ash’s “Girl From Mars” and call it “Peanut Carter”. And it’s not a bad little power pop /alt pop guitar jangle. For all lovers of Teenage Fanclub and the already mentioned Ash and other bands of that ilk and such will no doubt enjoy the little slice of guitar pop fun.
J Pump And The Bulldozers ‘The Mudshark Incident Presents: In Memory Of Duncan Black’ ALBUM (link2wales)
What we have here is a tribute to the late Duncan Black an extremely talented guitarist who sadly passed away in August – all the money raised will go The End Of Life Palliative Care Team. And this is his last performance, recorded live at the Skerries in Bangor in 2023.
It is a fine recording as well. J Pump and The Bulldozers are in fine form offering songs of psych folk and folk punk. “Fishing For Cats” and “My Head Is Full Of Rats” are unhinged gems of songs and gems of performances when it comes down to it. The latter wouldn’t sound out of place on the Monks “Black Monk Time” album, which of course is high praise indeed. As I have already said, this is a really fine album and is for an extremely good cause. So please check it out.
The Jesus And Mary Chain ‘Pop Seeds’
SINGLE
The brand-new song single from the JAMC is upon us and is actually pretty good. A commercial tuneful Mary Chain like pop song, a sweet nostalgic melodious look back at their beginnings and their love of music and defiantly a step up from the all-round averageness of their last album.
The legless Crabs ‘Piercings and Tattoos’
SINGLE (Metal Postcard Records)
The rock ‘n’ roll extravagance of split back fury is back and shinning to the lamplight of the ghost of Mark E Smith, and the rumblings of John Peel trying to dig his way out of the coffin so he can give The Legless Crabs a radio session. Yes, the power of the crabs, powerful enough to resurrect your favourite dead DJ … Scratch, scratch, scratch…can you hear him? He is coming for the Crabs, I tell thee.
Moreish Idols ‘Pale Blue Dot’
SINGLE (Speedy Wunderground)
Speedy Wunderground have reached their landmark 50th single release, which in this day and age, and with the current state of the music industry, is some feat. So congratulations to them. What is the 50th single, and what is it like I hear you all cry. Well, it is a rather fetching catchy indie rock number by the Moreish Idols, and is a fine Pavement like slice of misadventure, a song with a bee in its bonnet, but a laid-back pleasant Bee with only good intentions.
Neon Kittens ‘Lika Like’
SINGLE (Metal Postcard Records)
A new single from the Neon Kittens and I Lika Like a lot. A track that reminds me of what a soundtrack of 60’s spy film might sound like if Joseph K had laid their mighty jangle all over it. Both sexy and beguiling and one I feel the need to get my black polo neck jumper on and climb through a neighbours bedroom window holding a box of Milk Tray chocolates after listening to the short gem of angular velocity. The power of the Neon Kittens should not be underestimated.
The New Tigers ‘Saba’
SINGLE (Soliti)
Now this is a bizarre one. If I spoke Finnish, it may make sense, but as I don’t it really does not. This track “Saba” is by the Finnish band The New Tigers and has a spoken in Finnish monologue running all the way through it. Instrumentally it reminded me of the mighty Orange Juice in the latter end of their existence with a smooth layer of indie jangle funk. So imagine if you will the Chef out of the Muppets being backed by Edwyn and his gang of merry mischief makers: defiantly worth a listen.
Rogers & Butler ‘Studio 3’
ALBUM (Think Like A Key Records)
“Studio 3” is so named in tribute to the studio where it was recorded, in probably the most famous recording studio in the world: Abbey Road. Recorded live in two days, trying to capture the magic of bygone days and the music the famous walls have no doubt soaked up, Rogers & Butler indeed succeed in their mission, with twelve well written and performed songs, each recalling memories and celebrating the art of the crafted melody and pithy lyrics. Songs that recall the golden days of 60’s “Soho Beat” or the Stones like 70s pub rockery of “Jigsaw Puzzle”, which could easily have been a lost track from an early Graham Parker & Rumour album. Or the excellent Ray Davies like “Teddy Boys”.
None of this album is cutting edge or tries to be current, and that is the charm and beauty of it. This is an album that sounds like an album and not a selection of singles thrown together like a Spotify play list. It sounds like an album to be played on a record/cd player and not on a smart phone at full volume by some spotty teenager trying to get the attention of the boy/girl they fancy sat at the other end of the bus. “Studio 3” is a gracefully crafted album which could have been recorded anytime in the last 50 or so years and is good fun and a good listen.
SIB ‘Swelling Itching Brain’
ALBUM (Other Voices)
If post-industrial synth cosmic gothic madness is your thing, then this is indeedy the album for you. An album to help you as you eagerly await the coming new Cure album. Although this sounds nothing like the Cure except in the parts when it does. “Swelling Itchy Brain” is an enjoyable cool and cold slab of alternative eastern European metallic industrial magic, an album that fans of Skinny Puppy and Front Line Assembly will no doubt cherish and hold close to the sledgehammer beats of their hearts.
Various ‘Tales Of A Kitchen Porter: A Tribute To The Cleaners From Venus’
COMPILATION (Dandy Boy Records)
I adore the songs of Mr “Cleaners From Venus” Martin Newell so this album is a bit of a godsend to my ears. For what we have here is fifteen covers of Newell’s songs by fifteen extremely wonderful bedroom pop bands.
Tales Of A Kitchen Porter is a bit of a rarity, for normally on albums like this there is normally a hot potch of tracks differing in quality. But all the tracks on this comp are of the highest quality, which both tells of just not the quality of the songs but also of the quality of the bands performing them, from the power pop of The Sob Stories version of “Victoria Grey” to the excellent almost Bay City Rollers sounding “He’s Going Out With Marilyn” by Inflatable Men and the lo-fi beauty of the Flowertown‘s version of “Clara Bow”. All in all, fifteen tracks of pop seduction and melodious delight.
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