LTW Newsletter 97

Dear Warriors,

A stitch in time saves nine may or may not be an anagram for ‘this is meant as incentive’ but we like to live by those kind of phrases here at Louder Than War as we open up our trusty laptops on yet another brand new day to try and describe the ever diversifying and sprawling musical landscape that is thrust front of us.

This past week has seen a lot of new bands releasing debuts as they tentatively strike out in the much changed musical world that combined with the departure of old musical friends who have contributed so much has dominated our thoughts. This includes the great Mike Peters -widely recognised as the nicest person in rock whose warmth and lust for life defied the dreaded cancer he had been struck with for thirty years. It truly felt like Mike was going to live forever, so it was with a mixture of shock and sadness when we heard that he had died last week. Dave Jennings wrote this great appreciation of the heroic fellow Welshman.

The Flaming Lips' lysergic, life-affirming and long trip has been lasting forever….I remember meeting the upcoming band in New York back in 1989 when they played a half full club gig and their manager was a Joe 90 lookalike who carried around a small briefcase full of important ‘stuff’. The band were hustling for a record deal at the time, and their psychedelic set was a thing of wonder. There was little sign that 35 plus years later they would be filling Brixton Academy with their gonzoid dayglo shenanigans and still blowing people's minds.

Propagandhi have been ruling the punk rock undergound for quite some time and the progressive thrash band have been m[pushing he musical and lyrical agenda for quite some time and still finding new ways to say stuff. Their latest album shows the band’s maturity as their fire and ire is tempered with resignation at the state of the world, but not without a glimmer of hope.  Expect the usual intelligence, twists, turns and a mix of punk, metal, hardcore and melodies.

Billy Idol has managed to retain his iconic status for decades since he was the ‘punk Elvis’ sneering his way into the mainstream in the USA. He made such an impact in his superstar years that he has traded off it ever since. Now 70 years old, he could easily continue into the sunset with Las Vegas shows and sell out greatest hits jukebox tours, but like all artists, is still on the quest to create the new…his new album is out, but is it actually any good?

Melvins and Napalm Death is some mighty combination that would demand triple ear plugs! when the two titans ot tectonic volume combined what was the outame? Was it mind numbing loud or did it spark its own creativity? The two behometh bands teamed up for a six-track soundtrack to Armageddon: Savage Imperial Death March. Spoiler Alert: It’s HUGE. Sean Millard dons his leaden diving boots and sinks to the depths of Hell itself to see how the end of the world plays itself out.

We were sorry to hear of the passing of American singer-songwriter Jill Sobelle, who died in a house fire while staying at someone's home on tour. As the tribute articulates, not only were we sorry to lose such a talent, but we were shocked to find out that the economics of touring for even a successful artist like Jill still meant that she had to stay on people's floors to make ends meet on the road.

Humour continue to bring the hardcore with another loud as fuck tune after the paint stripping Neighbours threatened to beat us into submission with its glorious noise. New tune Plagiarist won’t let you down and bites your ankles like an angry Jack Russell with added barking melody. Read on…   https://louderthanwar.com/humour-announce-debut-album-learning-greek/ (Abre numa nova janela)

Debut full-length album by collaborators Mark Pritchard and Thom Yorke, and featuring visuals by multi-disciplinary artist Jonathan Zawada, Tall Tales is a delirious hymn to the history of electronic music and its ever-expanding future. Simon Tucker reviews. https://louderthanwar.com/mark-pritchard-thom-yorke-tall-tales-album-of-the-week/ (Abre numa nova janela)

A heady mix of sweat, incense, and low-end frequencies clung to the air like mist. Greentea Peng grooved through it, but the weight of the warmth was not lost on her,  https://louderthanwar.com/greentea-peng-albert-hall-manchester-live-review/ (Abre numa nova janela)