We'll be taking a late May break in a few days time, so we'll wrap things before then up by trying to cover a few albums released in the last few months that we haven't yet had chance to cover in detail, with just a few succinct words on each. We'll start off on in Norway and a band we covered last year, 'Spielbergs', when they released their blistering single 'We Are All Going to Die'.
So these guys are from Oslo, and they write high energy, guitar driven Indie Rock, which should have widespread . appeal, and in line with that, their music has received attention from websites and all over Europe. They've made it across to the UK for some dates here too, have festival appearances booked with a further extended tour booked in for September - they're even coming to the newish 'Yes' club in Manchester.
Anyway the new album 'This is Not the End' is pretty much exactly what I expected to hear, and the highlights include the anthemic 'Distant Star', the almost insanely intense 'NFL', which has some great instrumental sections and of course that first single we covered' We Are All Going to Die'. But actually the stand out favourite song for me is 'Familiar', which does have a different feel and tempo (and reminds me a little of Bob Mould, which is always a good thing), a melancholic atmospheric feel and which builds with an impressive crescendo of noise. Straight after 'Familiar' is the enjoyable 'You All Look Like Giants', and it's impossible not to give a mention the astonishingly named 'McDonald's (Please don't F*ck up my order'), even if it's not really my favourite song musically.
It's understandable why these guys have got some traction behind them, relentless, guitar driven indie rock, which is pretty impossible not to like. But in tracks such as 'Familiar' they're able to demonstrate a depth in songwriting that I wasn't quite expecting and as a result this is an album which has really grown on me in recent months. The attention on 'Spielbergs' is definitely justified, and I'm really looking forward to seeing these guys in Manchester in September.
Find them on Facebook or Instagram, and don't forget to check out their UK tour dates.