PRIEST - THE B-SIDES EP

I make no apologies for reviewing a new Priest release almost as soon as it comes out. As you'll no doubt know by now, I'm a huge fan of this band and I genuinely think they can't put a foot wrong. This is their first full release since 2015's wonderful self titled debut, and it's a gem. There are many bands who release A-sides that don't even come close to the quality of these B-sides.

Youth, a brand new track, opens the e.p. in a blizzard of icy cool electro, bringing to mind the glorious emotional synths early OMD with a healthy dose of prime Yazoo. This track is up there with Priest's finest and encapsulates what they do best - uplifting synthpop that hits that emotional nerve that only that type of music can. We're The Same follows and, like I've said before (http://almostpredictablealmost1.blogspot.co.uk/2016/07/priest-were-same.html), it adds an edge to the band's sound which is great to hear, although it should be said that this remains a pop song and a superb one at that. The pop theme continues with Dark Sun, like Chrvches at their most bubblegum, before we end on the outstanding Don't Let Go. Imagine New Order era Confusion influenced by the Orlando sunshine rather than the New York electro club scene and you've got Don't Let Go. It's as catchy as you like and a superb end to this e.p.

And that's that. Only four songs, but four songs that immediately remind you just how good Priest are. For me, Youth is the standout here and it's proof that Priest are a band to keep an eye on. Roll on their next release I say. If Youth is the direction Priest are headed, there is surely no stopping them.

The B-Sides E.P. by Priest is available now on ITunes and Spotify. 

Priest Facebook https://www.facebook.com/xpriestxofficial/?fref=ts

MONKOORA - PALE SLOPES

Monkoora is the newest addition to Glasgow's Hot Gem Tunes, a label regular readers will know is home to some of the finest electronic music you can hear at the moment. Monkoora, a solo project of 22 year old Glasgow based multi instrumentalist Julie Crawford, is a blend of experimental sounds, ambient textures and soaring, haunting vocals all of which combine to make Pale Slopes, her debut mini album, a fascinating and quite enchanting release.

What immediately strikes you about Pale Slopes are the vocals. Throughout the record, they stand out, ethereal, powerful and incredibly striking. The brilliant opener Hiding Behind Horizons is a sparse electronic track with an organ drone running through it but layered over that are vocal line upon vocal line, intertwining with each other, creating a dark yet uplifting track that starts proceedings off wonderfully.

The standout track for me is the magnificent Catch With A Crystal Ball. Imagine Kate Bush fronting Yazoo instead of Alison Moyet - this track is what you'd get. It sounds just like that and, upon hearing it, you wonder why no-one has ever done that sort of thing before. It's certainly what you might call the album's poppiest moment and it's a track you want to hear. There are many styles whose influences you can detect on Pale Slopes. For example, To Run mixes a tribal type beat with angular detuned synths and Cocteau Twins like vocals, while Polly Anne Morris moves towards experimental electronica. The closing Dawn Mastered has the clearest vocals here ("I want to feel this heat/Again and again/With all of my friends"), emerging like a burst of sun through the haze of the preceding tracks, ending the album majestically.

For a label as young as Hot Gem Tunes, high standards have already been set and those standards have to be lived up to. Pale Slopes does just that and if this mini album is an example of what Monkoora is capable of, this is an artist to watch.

Pale Slopes by Monkoora is out now on Hot Gem Tunes and is available digitally on Boomkat, Juno and ITunes. Monkoora's debut live show will be at The Old Hairdresser's, Glasgow on 15 June

Monkoora Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Monkoora/?fref=ts

Monkoora Twitter https://twitter.com/Monkoora

LIVE: MIRACLE STRIP, LE THUG, APACHE DARLING - KING TUTS, GLASGOW 21 JULY

Over two weeks in July, King Tut's Wah Wah Hut is hosting a series of gigs under the heading Summer Nights. Throughout the month, over 50 Scottish bands and DJ's are playing at the venue, showcasing the best new music Scotland has to offer. The full list of gigs is pretty impressive and can be viewed here - click

Last night, I went along to a show to see three of my favourite new bands. Unfortunately, I had to leave before AmatrArt came on which was a pity as I'd have love to have seen them too. Before I go on to the bands, I've got to say how much I enjoyed the Podcart DJ set betI cween bands too. Superb tracks including Bjork's Violently Happy which never fails to make me make me at least consider dancing. Nice work Halina

Miracle Strip (dodgy pics above and below my own) kicked off the night and started us off well. Their Miracle Milk  is something I've been playing a lot recently and it was really pleasing to see how well the songs came across live. Took A Running Jump was a highlight for me, mainly because it's one of the best tracks I've heard in a while but the whole set worked. The band's combination of New Order and early Cure like atmospherics with vocals that marvellously bring to mind The Magnetic Fields is a winner and tracks like Lemon Sorbet  and Girl Gang were just fantastic.

Le Thug followed Miracle Strip and their set was just as good as I hoped it would be. Their Place Is ep is a stunner and it's one that I've played over and over on my clear vinyl 12" copy. I have to mention that as clear vinyl is surely the coolest of the coloured vinyls. Anyway, their set featured most of the e.p.with Pals  and Basketball Land sounding just as menacing yet noisily beautiful as the do on record. Live, the band generate a quite mesmerising sound and it was a really powerful show that I couldn't take my eyes off. There's a shoegaze influence at play no doubt but more towards the louder end of Ride or My Bloody Valentine where noise meets melody and works incredibly well. Le Thug are a special band no doubt.

Next up were blog favourites and recent interviewees Apache Darling who, despite writing about a lot, I'd never managed to see live. Like Le Thug, Apache Darling's live show more than matched up to their releases and they gave the crowd half an hour of quite marvellous synthpop. Opening with the superb More Than Me the band grabbed the crowd's attention from the off and the whole set was excellent. More Than Me aside, one song that really stood out for me was Go which was almost Yazoo like and that can only ever be a good thing. The band have recently spent a good bit of time honing their live sound and that work has paid off. The combination of their crisp electropop with Stefanie's frankly brilliant voice is a winner and you really want to catch them live if you can. The fact Andrew manages to play three live synths with no backing tracks is no mean feat either. It was a great set and it really got the whole room going, 

As I said at the start, apologies to AmatrArt who I really wanted to see but couldn't stick around for. I gather their set was unsurprisingly great and I'll make sure I catch them next time. In the meantime, if you can, try and get along to one or two of the remaining King Tut's Summer Nights and enjoy what is clearly something of a golden age for Scottish music. Keep an eye on all the bands above too as you will want to see them live as soon as you can

Miracle Strip Facebook

Le Thug Facebook

Apache Darling Facebook

AmatrArt Facebook

NEW BANDS 2015 NO. 13 - AQUAFAUX

As is now traditional on this post, I find myself apologising for this band only being "new" in the sense of being new to me. Edinburgh synthpoppers Aquafaux are a trio, formed in 2014 and they immediately caught many people's attention with their really rather catchy 80's influenced pop. Their debut e.p. Spellbound (available here https://aquafaux.bandcamp.com/album/spellbound-ep ) is an excellent debut and one you can enjoy as a free download at the address above or by streaming below

The whole e.p. is worth your time with See The Rain, which featured on this week's Almost Scottish Fiction ep, a superb example of electronic pop music. She Will Deceive You is another great track and I especially love it's Cure like guitars that have a wonderfully spiky feel to them. It's a another, really rather wonderful track. Pleasingly for these ears, Fame Game, the e.p's closer sounds a lot like a lost Yazoo track and that is a very good thing.

Aquafaux will be recording a new e.p. soon and appearing live and I for one hope to catch them soon. Keep an eye on their Facebook and Twitter pages for more information.

Aquafaux Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/Aquafaux?fref=ts

Aquafaux Twitter https://twitter.com/Aquafaux_

Aquafaux http://aquafaux.weebly.com

SALLY DIGE - HARD TO PLEASE

Continuing their theme of releasing nothing but outstanding records, Glasgow's Night School Records have just released Hard To Please, the debut album by Sally Dige, a Berlin based Canadian musician. The album is a collection of first class electropop and is quickly becoming one of my albums of the year.

Opener and title track Hard To Please sets the standard quickly with an A Broken Frame era Depeche Mode feel, especially with its Leave In Silence like baseline. Diego's vocals are captivating, both on this track and throughout and they match the music perfectly. Immaculate Deception follows and whilst I realise this is both (1) and obvious and (2) a tedious comparison, Depeche Mode spring to mind again with the track having a distinct Speak & Spell vibe, albeit one with Siouxsie on vocals if you can imagine such a thing. Trust me, it's a very good thing indeed. So Far Away has a harder sound with Pretty Hate Machine style beats and harder, less obviously poppy synths, before the superb Doppleganger finishes off Side 1 beautifully with a wonderful piece of cold wave synthpop. I say Side 1 because I managed to get my hands on one of the limited edition clear vinyl releases as you can see below

Side 2 continues where Side 1 left off with the Yazoo like Losing You. Don't let the comparisons to the early synth genius Depeche and Yazoo make you think this album is a retro sounding 80's thing by the way; that's just not the case. It takes influence from that era no doubt, but it retains a modern feel throughout. Your Girl and A Certain Beauty follow, the former following a Cocteau Twins path, the latter a more gothic one and both are a joy to the ears. The album closes with the dark Dance Of Delusion which reminds me of The Cure in the Faith and Pornography days and that can only be a positive.

Hard To Please is an album that is bound to appeal not only to fans of synthpop but also to anyone who enjoys artists who manage to combine a feel of experimentation with electronic pop which is never an easy balance to strike. Given that this is her debut album, and given that she strikes that balance so impressively, Sally Dige is an artist that I know I'm going to be keeping a close eye on. You should too.

Sally Dige Hard To Please is released on Night School Records and is available on vinyl and cd. GO to http://nightschoolrecords.com to find out more