David’s love of post-punk, power pop, new wave, shoegaze, Britpop, dreampop, and ambient music goes back 40 years. He’s been a fervent record collector with acts from labels like Rough Trade, IRS, 4AD, Factory, Fiction, Statik, Midnight Music, Beggar’s Banquet, Red Eye (Sydney), Flying Nun, and more. He’s seen too many bands to mention, coast to coast, having lived blocks away from The Fillmore in San Francisco, and near to Slim’s and Bimbo’s, and in decade’s past at Providence’s Living Room, Lupo’s, and The Rocket.
His love of bands is equaled by his desire to connect directly with them. Way back before the Internet, he chased after Mark Burgess (The Chameleons) and Martin Phillips (The Chills) while on tours, or in letter writing. These days he appreciatively hounds bands via social media. Stuart Adamson (the Hendrix of Scotland, said John Peel) remains his musical hero.
Reach out via email any time!
After releasing two indie rock/Britpop-soaked EPs in the 90s, The Julies have sufficiently nabbed our attention with their outstanding first full-length LP, out September 29.
”Ghost Stories” is Gareth Koch’s newest instrumental album; an evolution he says that builds off of ”Songs From Another Life” with Steve Kilbey and “Music in the Afterlife” with Martin Kennedy. Dreamy and steeped in lushly layered guitars, the album incorporates elements of classical, prog-rock, and ambient music, referencing music past and present.
Formed in late 2015, Brooklyn-based Big Bliss is back with ”Vital Return”. Composed during Covid and amidst an array of setbacks and challenges, their liberating newly released second LP brims with superbly crafted melancholic and intense tunes.
The stellar new *Cowboy Junkies” record captures the band reflecting on death and loss, while firing on all cylinders and engaging listeners with their signature sound.
I recently caught up with Ben Jones from Constant Smiles to ask him about the new LP, ”Kenneth Anger” that came out in early March. The captivating album from Ben and his “collective” of band members flows with gorgeous indie dreampop/synth-pop.
Swirling with R.E.M. —infused sparks, the powerful new single, “A Seat at the Table”, from NYC trio Big Bliss surges and uplifts musically while capturing the grim reality of daily gun violence in America.
Just out March 10th, psych-shoegaze jangle merchants, Flyying Colours, have crafted a truly outstanding new LP. Their third album delivers 10 dreampop tunes with bite that will immerse and wash over you.
In his third and most rewarding solo record to date, Radiohead drummer Philip Selway has scored with “Strange Dance”. Blending artful orchestral arrangements and outstanding songwriting, he explores life’s deepest themes with candor and curiosity.
Gareth Koch and Martin Kennedy have come together to make ”Music In The Afterlife” after collaborating separately with The Church’s Steve Kilbey. Playing to each other’s complementary strengths, the two have produced a magical new instrumental album that’s a much-needed salve for bleak and uncertain times.
bdrmm’s new single, “It’s Just a Bit of Blood” meanders and surges with epic dream pop— and shoegaze—drenched results. Now we have to wait til June 30th for the LP, “I Don’t Know”.
Hammock and The Reds, Pinks, and Purples have each recently released music around the theme of “the void.” Hammock writes of “love in the void” while RPP sings of “life in the void.” With uncannily similar themes from music released just a few days apart, the results are outstanding and dramatically different. Dive in.
Old Town Crier (aka Jim Lough) quietly put out the “You” EP last summer. Over the Christmas break I listened in enthusiastically and asked him to tell us all about it, and what’s next in 2023.
Scotland’s Modern Studies just released its latest 8-track EP “Cassandra”. Armed with vintage instruments, the band has further mapped a wonderfully fresh and somewhat uncharted niche of arty chamber folk pop.
Two albums in, The Shop Window has dived into the warm sound of jangle pop with outstanding results. The Kent, UK band’s ”A 4 Letter Word” has just been released on limited edition vinyl and is a record I can’t stop playing.
Scotland’s Trashcan Sinatras released “Lay of the Land” over the summer as a digital-only release. A new physical-format EP (12” orange vinyl or CD) with three bonus b-sides is fresh off the press.
“Sleep Paralysis” marks Big Bliss’ first new music in four years. The Brooklyn band has been biding their time through the depths of Covid and recently surfaced with their latest single. Expanding on their trademark edgy, angular post-punk exploration, I asked founder Tim Race to bring Big Takeover readers up to speed on the single and the upcoming second album.
Ireland’s Columbia Mills may not be widely known in the US, even among Big Takeover readers, but their post-punk—infused, indie-electronic music is a perfect fit. Bassist, Uisneagh Treacy, recently discussed the band and their outstanding new LP, “Heart of a Nation” with me.
Lumenette has released their debut album, “All Around My Head.” Vocalist Christine Byrd has created a sonic stunner built on the gorgeous post-rock and ambient instrumentals of her husband’s Nashville-based outfit, Hammock. This is a must listen.
Just three years out from being minted as a Rock & Roll Hall of Famer with Roxy Music, Brian Eno returns with his 22nd solo LP. Adding vocals to many of his compositions, the new record paints a thoughtful, artful, dreamy, and bleak emotional portrait of our planet at present. Listen in.
Weyes Blood (Natalie Mering) just announced her new full-length, “And in the Darkness, Hearts Aglow” (Sub Pop, 2022), out November 18th. The first track, “It’s Not Just Me, It’s Everybody” perfectly sets the tone, musically and lyrically, simultaneously balancing themes of loneliness and hope.
Brighton, UK-based Paul Thomas Saunders has come back from an extended break after his first album, “Beautiful Desolation” (Atlantic, 2014). His new LP, “Figure in a Landscape”, is out October 21st (sevenfoursevensix). The dramatic single, “Bloodlust”, was released September 1st.
The newest single from Australia’s long-running psych-rock outfit comes out in advance of their 26th album and touring. The slow-building and mesmerizing single is a standout in recent memory. Enjoy the ride.