NoNewWaveNoFun

  When Ukraine won the Eurovision song contest and the continued war with Russia meant they couldn't host in 2023, the UK - who finished second - were the obvious choice to step in. After an exhaustive round of bids, just two cities remain in the running. Liverpool's musical heritage is well known globally, but perhaps Glasgow doesn't have the same pull, particularly with the mainstream. A city that has the spirit of Rock n' Roll coursing through its veins and has spawned some of alt-pop and indie rock's most famous and creative names; Glasgow is very much the outsider of the great musical cities the UK has to offer.  It seems the perfect place therefore for new So Young Records signings Humour to flex their muscles. The band are still in their infancy, but is a complex mix of unhinged post-punk, unpredictable art-pop and untamed post-hardcore; a life force that is as compelling as they are disorientating. Some of their early gigs saw them play with bands like Do No

  The self dubbed i ntroverted ginger curio , Uncool Paul has returned with his new album Ip Dip. I first came across Paul in the early days of the blog when he sent me a link to his -  then newly-released - album Limon and Leme. He's  a self depricating character who has a love for a vast amount of nuances and idiosyncracies and this ultimately, fuses it's way into the work. Paul talks us through the new album telling us more about these eclectic influences, special guest performers and how cartoon villains struggle with old age.   1. Plastic Aspirations  ' Plastic Aspirations'  started as just a lyrical piece that I read over a very basic 120 bpm disco beat. It took some time tinkering about with a very Duran Duran bassline before everything pulled together. Lyrically, it's about letting go of materialism, commercialism and Love Island .  2. Hit By An Ambulance  Originally this song sounded like ' Stand'  by REM, but I sent it to my friend Shane in Cali

August Bank Holiday Weekend inspires different emotions in us at different times in our lives. As a child, it seemed like the dawning of the beginning of the age of  (Aquarius) - the sanctuary of six weeks off school; I always felt a sense of dread as it ended. For many adults, it's the ideal time to catch up with family or to get a great, no-interest deal on a sofa from a furniture shop on an industrial estate next to Nandos.  As the venom of music addiction continued to course through my veins in my late teens it meant one place: Reading Festival. Even now I have thoughts throughout the weekend, reminiscing about some of the great weekends seeing bands I love and generally behaving slightly worse than usual on a campsite. So what better way as an ageing Rock n' Roll casualty than to venture to a festival on August Bank Holiday? I've never wanted a reclining couch anyway. 📷 by iDreamofPiesPhotography Okay, it may not be headlined by Dave and The Ar

  Trigger warning - suicide and self-harm statistics are mentioned below piglet is the solo project of Irish songwriter and producer Charlie Loane, who was born and raised in Belfast before moving on to London. In the last couple of years, Loane's voice has become an increasingly prominent one in the continued fight for trans rights. New single ' it isn't fair  touches on the frustrations and despair often felt by the community as they try to go about the transitional process; often the barriers they face are inherent in the system.    Ryan Doyle Elward took a listen to the single and told us more about the powerful message contained within.   📷 Holly Whitaker  The latest single, ' it isn't fair ,   p iglet paints a fitting but unfortunate picture of the UK’s  healthcare system and its failure to serve trans individuals and the non-binary community. The  song’s emotional layout is nearly centre-split, with a hard pivot midway that conveys triumph. The first half

  There's nothing conventional about the Kent/South London-based punk weirdos Punching Swans. The very existence of the band came about by the most unlikely of circumstances. Mutual friends of Greg Webster (guitars/vocals), Joseph Wise (bass/vocals) and Pablo Pagabotto (drums/vocals) - who had played in several different bands - suggested they get together and that they would work well; it was almost like musical blind dating. Thankfully, the awkward first few dates went well and the band clicked, starting to gig not long after they started rehearsing in 2012.  The new album GAMESHOW is their fourth and was released on July 29th via Skingasm Records.   It's   a blistering collection of ever-so-slightly odd Punk Rock that brings to mind the dark-humoured antics of Mclusky, The Jesus Lizard and Pissed Jeans. The album is loosely themed around the band's imagined and sometimes disturbing vision for potential gameshows of a post-capitalist future. The band took time out to tell

Over the past half-decade Trudy and The Romance  have established themselves as a cult act with dedicated fanbase. Based out of Liverpool, they have a varied and eclectic mix of influences from the likes of Jonathan Richman, Brian Wilson and   the scores of Henry Mancini and Disney. Critical acclaim has been wide ranging and their upbeat, exhilarating live shows have seen them go down a storm at SXSW, The Great Escape, Green Man and venues all over Europe.  Recent Double-A sided single ' The Last Rodeo/Angel' were their first new material since 2019; a tender and brilliant double-whammy that felt like a necessary resurgence. We sent them over the pond to Ryan Doyle Elward and he became smitten enough to write these words.                    📷 Percy Walker-Smith With their earlier release ‘Angel’ in April and ‘The Last Rodeo’ in late June, Trudy and The  Romance put together a double A-side that is once again a bout of gorgeous, sparkling deliverables. They kept the quiver a

                                                               Hailing from a city as musically vibrant and exciting as Leeds is always a good start, but  VENUS GRRRLS  are a band causing a stir for more than just being in the right place at the right time. The band - who's roots lie firmly in Alternative Rock and Riot Grrrl influences - are on a mission to push women's issues to the forefront of the Alt Rock agenda. Their hardhitting sound pulls no punches and they immediately pricked the ears of the like-minded  Chloe Benfield -  who took a listen to their new single and shared these thoughts . 'Violet State of Mind'  intrigues me and I haven't even pressed play yet. Though I've not come across  VENUS GRRRLS  before, even reading their very cool name instantly evokes the likes of Rock n' Roll queens  The Runaways ; a sexy little bass riff opens up the track, confirming I'm on the right lines.  A couple seconds in and things are  already kicking up a ge

  Don't call it a come back! I've been here for years. The words of LL Cool J at the start of his Hip Hop classic ' Mama Said Knock You Out'  are often seen as a clarion call to his fans that's he's back to take over. But there is a vunerability in those words if you look closely. The battlecry of a survivor has to be equally as reassuring as it is confrontational; there are those who've been there all along and need to have your back after all. I'm always conscious of mixing politics and music when I write this blog, but at times like now, it seems impossible not to. Today - after a tumultuous week of running out of loyal allies to spin his haphazard approach to Government - Prime Minister Boris Johnson has finally been pushed over the edge. Of course, he was never going to go quietly. Amonsgt a flurry of Ministerial resignations he decided to sack Michael Gove, his Minister for Levelling Up and Housing. Gove has long held ambitions akin to

Here at NNWNF, we're always looking to give a platform to new writers to express themselves and share their musical passions. Today we welcome new writer Chloe Benfield, who has been to see one of Austrailia's finest imports  Courtney Barnett -  a few days after her triumphant headline set at Glastonbury's Park Stage - at Cardiff's Tramshed. I first had the pleasure of enjoying Courtney Barnett live back in 2018, at Cardiff Uni's Great Hall. A dinky little dive inside the Student's Union, it was rather conveniently across the road from my old flat; not only did I make lifelong friends in the smoking area, but truly cemented my love for the queer Austrailian rockstar. Cut to 2022 and she's on tour to support her new album Things Take Time, Take Time - which I've been listening to on repeat since it's release. Softer and more thoughtful than her previous offering Tell Me How You Really Feel  - which boasted back-to-back angry feminist anthems - it'

  Razorbraids is a Brooklyn-based, queer, female and non-binary identifying rock band that combines a heavy punk energy with an indie rock vulnerability culminating in passionate live shows and a dynamic sound anchored in a 90s alternative ethos . Led by Hollie Bynum - who taught herself to play bass  after being mostly bedridden following an accident in 2017 - the line up is made up of Janie Peacock on guitar, Jilly Karande on rhythm guitar and Hannah Nichols on drums. Ryan Doyle Elward took a listen to new single 'Megachurch' and shared these thoughts. ' Megachurch ' is a return to a brand of softer sounding self-reflection, shadowing the interminably catchy 'I’m A Blackhole (and you’ll never get out)' , which was the first song written for Razorbraids’ powerful I Could Cry Right Now If You Wanted Me To  - an album that made anyone’s Best of 2021 list unless they were oblivious. Blackhole … itself is like La Sera on Sees the Light or from their eponymous