Hotline tnt

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Reviewed by Andi Bridges

Album released 20th June 25

 Having read the Hotline TNT PR blurb before listening to the album I was struck by the phrase, “Will Anderson amplifies everyday heartbreak with towering shoegaze and supersized power-pop anthems that demand to be played loud.”. A quote from Pitchfork magazine. I’ll be honest, the word shoegaze put the fear of God into me. However, any record released on Third Man Records is going to have a mountain of fuzzed up guitar on it, so I needn’t have worried. 

Opener, Was I Wrong – comes across all Indie, and for the first minute and a half looks to be heading towards shoegaze. Then the band kick in, and suddenly the song is propelled by a fuzz guitar riff. A melodic solo introduces itself towards the end of the track which bleeds into track two, Transition - a short instrumental of off kilter psych guitar and keyboards. 

This becomes, The Scene – which gives off huge Jane’s Addiction vibes, thanks in part to drummer Mike Ralston. The song was written in the studio after a fit of pique by Anderson. Will, as previously, wanted to record the album as he has always done. That is decamping to a studio with just himself and a producer to put his songs together piece by piece. The rest of the band, who had been touring as Hotline TNT for the last 10 months had other ideas and turned up at the studio. 

When Anderson and Lucky Hunter couldn’t get their guitars to gel on one of Anderson’s demo tracks, cue aforementioned strop as Anderson took himself off and wrote the track. What is a band to do when your frontman has thrown a wobbly? Written at the same time is Break Right - arranged around a subdued/muted riff with Haylen Trammel’s bass much more to the fore. This song started life as an instrumental jam by the other three members of Hotline TNT whilst left alone in the studio and finished off when Will returned.

Lead single, Julia’s War – has probably the simplest chorus in American Indie rock. “Na Na Na Nah”. When the band stress-tested it during the writing process, the ‘try not to sing along challenge’ came back with a 100% fail rate.” I can confirm it is impossible not to join in with it. If you get a chance, check out the video for it on YouTube. It pokes gentle fun at Military Bootcamps. 

Set closer, Where U Been – starts with an almost trip hop drum pattern and then a guitar imitating a siren brings the band in. On the chorus Will sings “Don’t tell me where you been, we’ll find some time to talk about it, Would I do it all again, come to find I just don’t fit in”.

There is a cohesion across the tracks that I guess comes from a band contributing to the songs rather than a lone artist building the songs from scratch and then hired musicians having to learn the parts for touring purposes. Vocal phrasing and harmonies, at times, remind me of a cross between Bare Naked Ladies and They Might Be Giants. 

There are traces of The Pixies and even a touch of early Weezer, in some of the music. Hotline TNT are threatening to tour over here in November. Did I follow Pitchfork’s advice and play it loud? Of course I did………..and I hope the neighbours enjoyed it as much as I did.

Prescription PR

Reviewed by Levi Tubman

Album released 4th July 25

Some live albums end up becoming more iconic than many polished studio efforts. 

Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison, The Who’s Live at Leeds, and Nirvana’s MTV Unplugged come to mind. These albums succeed because they strike the perfect balance: raw but tight, authentic but sonically impressive. They avoid the pitfalls that often plague live recordings, such as the sound muddy and noisy to the point the listener cant hear details. Live in Studio 3 sidesteps this pitfall, and then some.

Rather than being captured in front of an audience, this live album from Marisa and the Moths was recorded at the legendary Abbey Road Studios with the full band playing together in real time, the way records used to be made, and it shows. Having recently seen their impressive set at The Brudenell Social Club, I was curious to see whether that same electricity could be bottled in the studio or whether it would turn out too dry.

Opening the album is Needy, a favourite to open or finish a live set, starting with guitars being tuned and background chatter, its quieter intro leaves every breath on display, were getting the recording in its entirety. Marisa’s vocals have more grit than the studio recordings, the clean power is still there, but the edges have that little croak that gives it an edge. You’re just getting into the song, expecting the guitars and rest of the band to come in hard but here the guitars are an onslaught of sound, not over loud or over distorted just pushed hard and wide encompassing everything. The twin guitar solo’s give way to just bass and vocals, again with every rattle and plectrum stroke laid bare with perfect tone before the guitars come back but it’s still there underneath rumbling away.

Following this up with Skin and Who Are You Waiting For, the drums go from being a part of the band on the studio version to leading it, the kick thumps through perfectly complimented by the crisp snap of the snare I’m on my third listen through before I even notice the vocals. Recorded at the same time in the same studio, the two songs are so different to the first with the live environment amplifying the differences. These are for the rhythm section the drums and bass working with each other with cymbals washing over the mix running down the toms while rich basslines provide the melody and hook, coupling this with some of the best guitars and vocals on the album they particularly stand out for me.

SAD loses its presumably intentional playfulness, with the vocals taking on a more sombre tone in keeping with the song’s lyrics and meaning. Toning down the vocal façade of happiness does nothing to lessen the songs impact, its quitter sections help to highlight show off the bands individual skills again coming in and out when needed all under the watchful gaze of those ever-present vocals, especially with the outro vocalised oooh’s brought loud and up front instead of quietly in the background. 

Rounding off the album is Borderline, a track that stood out for me live, starting with its quiet picked guitar and fragile vocals, it’s an angst-tinged anthem. Mixing calm mellow verses with angry guitar bite, while not straying that far from the original the more dynamic recording amplifies the differences in the sections hammering the choruses home.

Live they’re a force to be reckoned with, a wild unabashed energy and sound that is often hard to capture in the studio, with band members recording parts one at a time, but this record manages to capture the live essence without sacrificing sound quality. If you already own their studio albums, this live record still deserves a spot in your collection. And if you pick it up on vinyl or CD, you’ll also get bonus recordings from their headline shows, a nice little extra for fans. 

The little extras such as announcing take one before a song or chatting just after while tuning up add to the feel of the album, dropping a barrier and help bring the audience in, to add to the live feel. This is a fantastic album, get it, and then complete the experience by seeing these guys live as soon as you can.

Track Listing:

Needy

Skin

Who Are You Waiting For?

SAD

Get It Off My Chest

Choke

Pedestal

Borderline

Reviewed by Dave Flerin

Album released 25th July 25

Four-piece indie guitar boys The K’s are back with their second album, hot on the heels of taster single, “The Bends (Here We Go Again)”. And they’ve been busy little bees (sorry, K’s) of late, having completed a UK tour in June to publicise “Pretty on the internet”. They’ll be hoping to raise things up another notch with a series of festival performances this summer, no doubt hoping to gain some momentum and actually make a proper living out of this whole music lark.

So, it’s with anticipation that I hit play on Windows Media Player and they immediately attempt to seduce me with “Before I Hit the Floor”. On first listening, it’s melodic and completely inoffensive indie guitar muzak, which back in the day would feel a bit like an insult for any self-respecting indie band, but indie is a different beast these days. From its title, “Rat Poison” sounds like it’s going to break the mould already established but it’s another up-tempo pogoing crowd-pleaser, and I’m starting to get a clear picture of what they’re about. There’s no revolution or incitement to riot within this album. 

This is the sound that indie pin-ups for today’s teens make, and they’ll probably go down a storm at something like Leeds Festival, which is overrun with joy-seeking teens and those in their early twenties. In fact, if “Friends” was still on, they’d probably feature in an episode called "The One Where Rachel Missed Seeing The Ks”. It’s all very innocent, and your friends would have no objections if one of the band went out with their offspring, unlike the bands of yesteryear.

The current single is in the same mould as the rest. To me, that means if you really like one song here, then they’re absolutely the band for you, and vice versa. “Helen, Oh, I” is their best song title, and a nice little tearjerker it is too, with strings for added gravitas; a very welcome antidote to the endlessly upbeat tunes which populate the rest of the record.

On “Sold It, Own It” Jamie sings about being “one step away from reaching my dreams,” and you know this is utter rubbish. He’s actually living the bloody dream! Writing music other youngsters like, touring, frequenting recording studios, releasing music, experiencing the excitement of hearing your music on the radio, etc. He obviously needs some miserly old frustrated musician music reviewer to set him straight. Wake up and smell the coffee, Jamie!! You’re winning at life!

“Running Away Now” then finds him sounding a little like Alex Turner at the start (or maybe his distant cousin from a nicer part of town), before future festival bouncer “Gravestone”, and the ballad-y “Perfect Haunting” close out the album.

Ideologically, I really want to dislike them, but I’ve not got it in me to do that. To combat my natural cynicism, they manage to throw in an unexpected twist of a melody here, and a surprise guitar riff or resonant lyric there, with the result that I begrudgingly can’t help but like them. 

They’ve not got the scary power of My Bloody Valentine, neither have they got the sauciness of CSS or Wet Leg, they’ve certainly not got the artiness of Stereolab, and unlike the members of The Brilliant Corners, they probably can get girlfriends. Ahh, how indie has changed... But, they are fun, and they’ve got a wholesomeness that for some, will be irresistible. It’s music for today's uncomplicated young to soundtrack their lives with.

“Pretty On The Internet” is out now on all the usual formats, and you can catch them doing the festival rounds this summer.

Sonic PR

Reviewed by Huw Williams

Album released 1st Aug 25

Hot on the heels of his Grammy win for co-writing Saturn with SZA, Cian Ducrot’s hotly anticipated new album - out August 1st - delivers exactly what fans might expect: raw honesty, the kind that defined his debut. This time, though, it’s paired with sleeker production and the assured voice of a songwriter who’s truly hitting his stride.

But first things first, if you’ve ever wondered how to pronounce “Cian,” the opening track clears it up with a nod to his frustration. “It’s KEE-an, bitch!” he snaps, leaving no room for doubt.

Introductions out of the way, we’re taken on a journey that shows how Ducrot has grown over the past few years. This is an album that wears its influences proudly. Take Who’s Making You Feel It?, for example: the opening piano recalls Elton John before launching into a soaring chorus. Lyrically, it’s playful and laced with sarcasm as Ducrot questions whether his ex’s new guy measures up. It’s relatable, but rather than diving headfirst into heartbreak, there’s a sharper, more defiant wit here.

The title track, Little Dreaming, is a refreshing shift, giving us a bright, upbeat moment that contrasts with the heartache-heavy tone Ducrot’s known for. It’s a welcome breather early in the record, underpinned by a Queen-esque harmonic bridge that lifts us back into an unrestrained, hopeful chorus.

Tracks like The Book of Love and God Only Knows return to familiar ground. Aching, lovelorn ballads reminiscent of Sheeran and Capaldi. They’re solid enough, but a bit predictable.

What About Love? explores society’s obsession with wealth and appearance.  “I wanna be rich, I wanna be skinny, I wanna be happy /  I wanna be yours, I wanna be theirs, but where would that get me?” 

Ducrot questions the value of chasing these ideals, even when some are within reach. It’s a quiet critique, asking whether all this striving is truly fulfilling.

Shalalala invites audience participation with a call-and-response structure. There’s an attempt at social commentary in the opening verse, touching on the state of the world, but the sentiment lacks real bite. 

“I guess that’s just the state of things /
But we don’t know what life will bring /
With our voices we can sing Shalalala.” 

It’s no Bob Dylan or Billy Bragg, but it’s easy to imagine this track becoming a crowd-pleaser live, or lending itself to a flash-mob singalong reminiscent of Ducrot’s early rise.

Midway through, there’s a lovely nod to Ducrot’s Irish roots. A tin whistle solo and stripped-back production give Kiss and Tell the feel of a traditional folk tune. It’s a pretty little track that transports you directly to the Emerald Isle.

My Best Friend shows that he still has the ability to pull hard on your heart strings. A raw, deeply emotional track, the power is in its simplicity. Heart on sleeve, this feels like the follow up to Part of Me, his 2023 tribute to a best friend lost to suicide. When that song surfaced, Ducrot promised to use his platform to make sure his friend was never forgotten and as he pledges in this new track “I promise that I’ll sing of you everyday / Till everybody in this world knows your name”. Devastatingly clear and concisely put.

The album closes on an uplifting note. Your Eyes beams with contentment earned through struggle. Ducrot acknowledges the material gains he’s made, but it’s the people around him who make life meaningful. This gratitude carries into the final track, See It to Believe It, another ode to love, happiness, and connection. Though the upbeat tracks are fewer, they leave us with a sense of balance, a touch of light after the emotional weight of earlier songs.

So where does that leave us? There’s something for the early fans, the tales of heartbreak and loss are still the crux of the album. But there’s hope, humour and optimism to balance. As the title track says, and in more ways than one, “There’s nothing wrong with a Little Dreaming”

Chuff Media

Reviewed by Neil Milner

Album released 1st Aug 25

Two decades on, Coles Corner remains what it always was: a masterclass in musical time travel and emotional candour, wrapped in the kind of sonic tailoring so refined it might just out-drape Sinatra’s lapels. It is a love letter to Sheffield wrapped in velvet, nostalgia, and perfectly timed reverb. To call it “excellent” would be like calling Champagne fizzy; it’s true, but woefully reductive. 

Richard Hawley, Sheffield’s melancholic crooner and resolute romantic, distilled the soul of an entire city into this record. Coles Corner is a storied local meeting place for loves old, new, and on the verge.

The album offered a cocktail of early rock and roll, rockabilly, 1940s pop, jazz, blues, and country. This is retro, not by mimicry, but by identity. Coles Corner doesn’t flirt with nostalgia; it marries it, then takes it dancing under the moonlight. Yet Hawley isn’t peddling pastiche. He’s no Shakin' Stevens in disguise, and this is not some kitsch jukebox jaunt, although I know he owns a jukebox, and it may or may not be kitsch! What we have here is a borderline masterpiece that gracefully commandeers the adult contemporary lane and then politely reinvents it, adding polish without pretension, although pretension has occasional benefits.

Take the title track The Ocean, which could easily have slipped from Burt Bacharach’s desk and into Sinatra’s repertoire had time bent differently. It shimmers with beautifully. And ballads like Hotel Room and Darlin’ Wait for Me positively beg for Roy Orbison’s quiver or Presley’s velvet growl, especially the endings, which feel like open windows into forgotten eras.

Part Two, the bonus round of single edits and B-sides, is more for Hawley completists. Covers like the Jesus and Mary Chain’s Some Candy Talking arerendered with reverence, while Kelham Island and other instrumentals offer moody slide guitar vistas. 

Admittedly, a few tracks tiptoe towards filler, single versions and acoustic retakes. But even these, like weathered polaroids, possess charm in their imperfections. In summary, Coles Corner is brazenly retro, achingly beautiful, and continues to disarm with every note. Hawley doesn’t live in the past; he simply visits there and brings back gifts for the knowing masses to swoon over.

Track listing:

Part 1:

1. Coles Corner

2. Just Like the Rain

3. Hotel Room

4. Darlin' Wait for Me

5. The Ocean

6. Born Under A Bad Sign

7. I Sleep Alone

8. Tonight

9. (Wading Through) The Waters of My Time

10. Who's Going to Shoe Your Pretty Little Feet

11. Last Orders

Part2:

1. The Ocean (Single Version)

2. Just Like the Rain (Single Version)

3. Born Under a Bad Sign (Single Version)

4. Hotel Room (Radio Edit)

5. Long Black Veil

6. Room with a View

7. I'm Absolutely Hank Marvin (feat. Hank Marvin)

8. Dark Road

Sonic PR

Reviewed by James Fortune-Clubb

Album released 1st Aug 25

'The New Eve is Rising' is the title of brand new debut album from Brighton four-piece, The New Eves, due to be released on 1 August 2025 (via Transgressive).

The New Eves (first impression - terrible and lazy band name) are a four-piece, comprising Violet Farrer (guitar, violin, vocals), Nina Winder-Lind (cello, guitar, vocals), Kate Mager (bass, vocals) and Ella Oona Russell (drums, flute, vocals), 

The album starts somewhat unpromisingly with opener The New Eve, mainly spoken word sixth form poetry, which is by all accounts what it actually is.

Therein in however, things take a steep turn upwards to deliver what turns out to be a really strong album (debut or otherwise) - it's that opening track which belies and detracts from the excellence of the rest of the album.

The New Eve is Rising has a great late punk/post punk/DIY feel to many of the tracks as well as the production stylings throughout. Bearing in mind the brief description I was aware of regarding The New Eves and the list of instruments used - rather than the anticipated Pogues or The Men They Couldn't Hang expected influences here we have much.moreso and very welcomely - definite echoes of The Raincoats - particularly on tracks such as 7 and 9.

It's a really well delivered and played album with great tracks throughout (opener notwithstanding) and I hope the band pursue the sound and style of this album and don't bland down that sound, because it's those DIY rough edges that make this debut album work so well.

I'm looking forward very much to seeing what The New Eves do next, hopefully if live dates are planned, it will be great to see how the album translates into a live setting - optimisticly they'll hopefully be more than capable of delivering a  suitably DIY, partially controlled, shambolic wall of chaotic noise perchance? Here's hoping, because it's definitely those rough edges where they excel - more of the same please next time.

Track listing for 'The New Eve is Rising' as follows:

1.⁠ ⁠The New Eve

2.⁠ ⁠Highway Man   

3.⁠ ⁠Cow Song   

4.⁠ ⁠Cricles

5.⁠ ⁠Mary

6.⁠ ⁠Mid Air Glass

7.⁠ ⁠Astrolabe   

8.⁠ ⁠Rivers Run Red  

9.⁠ ⁠Volcano

Stay Golden PR

Transgressive Records