More albums, there are always more albums, such a mountain, cut one’s head off and another five grow and put on boots all made for walking all over the time needed all, albums, music, more more, more and over there in South East London, a most explosive thing awaits…

Fat Concubine – Empire (Cruel Nature) – We did mention this a couple of weeks back didn’t we? ORGAN: Five Music Things – Xplosivedevice, Jazz-tinged post hardcore quartet Millpool, more Pili Coït and Les Exocrines, Ireland’s Just Mustard and Fat Concubine, one of South East London’s most explosive underground… Do we need to feed their dogs a little? We’re told Fat Concubine are one of South East London’s most explosive underground dance acts, don’t ask us, we rarely venture overseas, we’ll wait until they have the decency to come to East London with their fusing of rave euphoria and sometimes almost tribal mosh-pit chaos that they say comes with raw precision (they’re right bout that). Fat Concubine do kind of back all this up with their recordings as well as their swagger and their walking boots that clearly will walk all over you. Rather like their sense of ritual that comes with more than a touch of menace, the edge they clearly like to walk along… Find some more via the Fat Concubine Instagram and this here Linktree thing with live dates and such… Here’s the Bandcamp

The Loved Drones – Fooled Again – “Belgian psych-rock explorers The Loved Drones return with their sixth album, Fooled Again — a bold, nine-track journey recorded at Brussels’ legendary Jet Studio, the oldest in the city, once graced by the Rolling Stones”. Can’t get with all the join us in the cosmic evolution nonsense on here, but when they do step away from that side and grab hold of the punkier (dare we say more cynical) side or when they fire up the Kraut rock flavoured bits then yes, this is damn good. Right now they’re flowing in a gentle way through an instrumental piece, Un point positif sur l’avenir a breezy ride along a sunny autobahn, and now they’ve gone all space rock and well it is all a little hit and miss and bit too much of  all that cosmic flying around whole universes found inside grains of sand for me at times but then at other times, it really is good. Does that opening track has a touch of New Model Army about it, the way the phrasings, or maybe a Levellers feeling?    

“A kaleidoscope of sounds unfolds: melancholic rock ballads, raw garage-punk bursts, sprawling Krautrock voyages drenched in synths, and the band’s trademark rough energy. Produced by Benjamin Schoos and engineered by Maxime Wathieu, the album embraces contradictions with rare confidence. “The Drones also take a daring step with two radical covers: Dylan’s Subterranean Homesick Blues, reimagined without imitation, and the Velvet Underground’s Sister Ray, stretched into a hypnotic, guitar-driven sonic cathedra” alas, both covers are not avaiable on Bandcamp and that is where we’re tuning in to listen to this latest album.

And yes, lyrically, Brian Carney cuts deep with sharp, darkly humorous observations on societal collapse, the cynicism of the entertainment industry, and visions of humanity’s cosmic future – yes that’s your Northern voiced one time Poisoned Electrick Head is fronting it all, he’s not from Begium, he’s from that nomansland between Manchester and Liverpool (he’s lived in Begium for years). All over the place then, they are rather all over the musical place, most of the time they’re somewhere near the right place. Both retro and now, both good and at times not so good, mostly good though… Bandcamp

Abigail Hopkins – Stardust – This is a very honest album, it isn’t an easy album, it is a brave album, a raw album, at times a rather beautiful album. I don’t know anything about Abigail Hopkins or her history as a singer or songwriter (if indeed she has one?) “Stardust was recorded at home, for charity, as an autobiographical album, charting Abigail’s healing journey and survivorship of Stage Three Bowel Cancer. Proceeds from sales after processing fees go to The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity”. Stardust feels both fragile and strong, it is a laid bare feeling of cautious optimism. Just a singer, a guitar, some songs,  sometimes rather fragile, breathy, quiet, rather personal, rather gracious songs that kind of tell their own rather delicately beautiful stories of stardust and things of unknown origin, songs that take a little time to unwrap so do take the time… Bandcamp

The Garage – Constantinople – “I went into the studio with two old friends recently and came out with some worthwhile instrumental music” said Jim; “first time we played together as a trio since probably the 80s, when we were not much more than kids”. The Garage are Peter Altenberg (keyboards), Stephen Asma (guitar and bass) and Jim Christopulos (drums), they began performing improvised music together in high school. Following decades of independent musical activity, the three have reconvened to record a new album of what they say is “atmospheric spontaneous music” and what we have here is indeed just that, some really enjoyable atmospheric Hammond driven jazz rock flavoured instrumental goodness. Sometimes very mellow and laid back, sometimes blues flavoured, right now there’s some rather nice slide guitar flowing by. Moody instrumental rock, with anti-jazz and blues elements indeed, it jsut really works… Bandcamp