The Sunshine Underground

I admit I hadn’t heard much of The Sunshine Underground when I first saw them live but I am so glad I made the leap of faith to go and see them. The band spawned from Telford and Shrewsbury originally however honed-in on their skills and sound in Leeds and have played alongside the likes of the Klaxons and New Young Pony Club. The vocals have that northern twang of familiarity to them, reminiscent of The Courteeners, but more subtle, the rise and falls, how he holds his voice up for taking, begging to be copied.

Put You In Your Place came on with a teasingly long introduction, it would keep building up only to return to that same rhythm, the scratchy guitar, the funky bass and the undeniably indie-sounding drum, with the kick drum giving the audience around me something to clap to, and clap they did. The band genesis has seen a more dancey, electronic feel to their later stuff I think it works really well, it’s allowed them to explore new territory and highlights the versatility of the band. The songs had a self-sustaining energy of their own as if the sound would continue even if no one was there.

White Lies (formerly Fear of Flying) is the best English punk band ever! I'll admit part of the reason I have this opinion is I'm just crazy this band is because I adore Harry McVeigh, the lead singer and guitar player. McVeight is a talented musician and song writer and I was so happy when I heard White Lies would be playing near me.

I saw them at The New Parish in Oakland, California, in April of 2014. The New Parish was the perfect venue because it's small, quaint, and intimate. From the minute they hit the stage, they had the audience going. The played songs from all three of their albums, To Lose My Life..., Ritual, and Big TV. The audience was screaming and going crazy! The band made sure to keep their audience with them, talking to people, pointing at people, jumping up and down and whatever else it took to put on a good show.Their first song was one of my favorites, "First Time Caller." From there, it was non-stop entertainment, right through to the last song, "Unfinished Business." The show was so good that it almost seemed like being in one of their music videos - not a small feat considering how difficult it is to go from sounding good recorded to sounding good live.It was definitely a great show and I would love to see them again!

When lad-rock suddenly underwent a major revival in the mid-to-late noughties, it was Hard-Fi who were largely at the forefront of the movement; their debut record, Stars of CCTV, spawned a slew of hit singles, including ‘Living for the Weekend’, ‘Cash Machine’ and ‘Hard to Beat’, and installed them as one of the biggest indie bands in the country, crossing over pretty neatly between the standard, beer-swilling followers of lad-rock and those mainstream indie rock fans who saw something promising in Hard-Fi’s sound. In fact, they even played rooms as big as Manchester’s cavernous G-Mex at one point, although this really proved to be the apex of their career. Their follow-up LP Once Upon a Time in the West, with its try-hard ‘lack’ of cover art, was also lacking something else - a big single - and marked the beginning of the band’s decline as a result. 2011’s Killer Sounds saw them receive mixed reviews and fail to make a serious dent on the charts. They’re set to make comeback tilt soon, though, with a greatest hits compilation marking a decade together as a band and new live shows planned; they’ll need to recapture the raw energy of their early gigs, though, if they’re going to manage it.

On the one hand, it’s easy to be tempted to think that any band best known for a cover version are probably of dubious worth creatively, but that couldn’t be further from the truth where The Futureheads are concerned; sure, the track they’re most readily associated with is Kate Bush’s ‘Hounds of Love’ after they put their own stamp on it back in 2004, but in the following decade, they’ve continued to push the envelope artistically - not least on their fifth album, Rant, which was entirely a capella, with just vocals and no conventional instrumentation of any kind. In support of the album, they toured a capella, too, playing at concert halls rather than conventional rock clubs and extending the concept to their back catalogue, reinterpreting old tracks according to the new album’s concept; the gigs met with a strong critical response. Since then, they’ve gone back to what they know, playing standard rock shows as they prepare material for album number six; they still have a fervent cult fanbase, and remain a popular festival booking, turning ‘Hounds of Love’ into an exercise in mass audience participation and defying the demise of the scene they emerged from with tight, high-energy sets.

Being a Brummie born and bred myself, you could say my love for The Twang is a little biased. Since their 2007 debut, ‘Love It When I feel Like This’ their steady indie anthems and that loveably Brummie “twang” to the lyrical content and vocal deliverance have been the soundtrack to many Birmingham town centre nights out, especially at local indie haunt, SNOBS. Favourite tracks from the album are “Wide Awake,” “Two Lovers” and “Either Way,” all odes of some sort to failed or failing relationships, but the songs still retain some elements of hope and sweetness. The lyrics may be realistic and colloquial, but it’s the harmonies and guitar melodies that lift the tone of the dismal tales of bittersweet romance told on this album. I managed to finally see The Twang live in May 2013 at the O2 Academy Bristol after five years of listening to their recorded tracks. It must be said, I was a little sad I wasn’t seeing them in my hometown but the crowd of loyal fans sang along to every lyric nonetheless, and all six members managed to fill the venue with their special brand of West Midlands indie rock. Of course, “Either Way” was stand out moment of the night but they played a range of songs from their debut and their two other studio albums, ‘Jewellery Quarter’ and ’10:20.’ These albums didn’t quite grab me as much as their first, (perhaps due to a lack of emotional ballads?) and didn’t receive all that much critical praise, but at least they show the band’s dedication to working hard and getting their music out there! If you like you’re honest indie anthems, I would highly recommend catching The Twang live.