Nite Songs

  I'll be honest, a new Cult album wasn't something I was expecting in 2022. It's been over half a decade since the group's last effort (2016's Hidden City  which was billed at the time as the final part of their 21st century trilogy) and with Billy Duffy seeming more preoccupied with a series of side projects of late and Ian Astbury mainly silent, I was beginning to wonder if this great beast might have breathed its last. You can't keep a good Wolfchild down though and so 2022 sees the Cult returning once more with no less than their eleventh album. It's pretty clear that they're on good form here as well, deftly treading a tightrope between the gothic intensity of their earlier stuff and the big rock dynamics of their best selling material. It's there on the opening one two of the sinister Mirror  and former single A Cut Inside  and there's no denying it still works. Overall though, Under The Midnight Sun  is a bit of a mixed bag in places - Ve...

  I have to be honest, this month's Singles Bar very nearly ended up being a EP/mini-album special - bizarrely while we've had three of those come in this month, we've really had to trawl the vaults to find some of yer regular one track efforts to make up the list. We eventually managed it though so thankfully this month's trip to the bar is good to go. Mine's a large one landlord... *** Well, at least the Speedways  have made sure it isn't a completely barren month in terms of new 45's and Shoulda Known  (🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑) is another confident shot from them, sounding like some sort of halfway house between early Elvis Costello and The KKK Took My Baby Away  era Ramones. B-side A Drop In The Ocean  is a bit more mid-paced with a bit of a Babys/Records style feel to it which is no bad thing either. New album in November apparently and rest assured we'll have a review up here as soon as it lands. Bandcamp Link We should have a review of Suede 's new Autofic...

  "Drive on baby through the electric night/All the way sister in the taxi of light"  - The Cult  - Aphrodisiac Jacket Similar to the GDR I did on fellow goths turned rockers the Mission a few weeks ago, trying to write something on the Cult caused me a bit of a headache because of that mix of trying to find an album which a) tends to be a bit underrated and b) isn't necessarily their best known one.  I think the harsh truth is that, while they've come agonisingly close on a couple of occasions (their 1994 self-titled album and 2001's Beyond Good And Evil notably), the best Cult albums are undeniably the first three - Dreamtime , Love and Electric . While Dreamtime and Love tend to get revered as seminal goth albums, Electric is a bit more of a tricky beast but there's one very good reason why I chose it... Way back when, I remember after leaving school for Uni I joined up with a group that a couple of mates of mine were in. There was just one problem - ...

  Welcome to the July edition of the Singles Bar. The weather outside's a bit scorching so come on in and we'll fix you up with a cold one. Please peruse at your leisure... *** Well I guess the big news this month is a new single from The Cult , their first in three years no less. Pleased to report that Give Me Mercy  (🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑) is a strong comeback from Astbury and Duffy with its swooping riff and haunting vocals harking back to the group's classic Love  album. New album due in September and hopefully this is a good omen for it. *** Another exciting development is news of a collaboration between Hi-Fi Sean  (aka Sean Dickson, formerly of the Soup Dragons and Nite Songs faves the High Fidelity) and David McAlmont  who have a new album out later in the year. Maybe  (🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑) is a good first salvo from it too with Dickson's chilled out electronica and McAlmont's trademark sublime vocals combining to make something good. Recommended. Bandcamp link here ...

  Originally formed as a collaboration between Mike Peters from the Alarm, Billy Duffy from the Cult, Craig Adams from the Mission and Steve Grantley from Stiff Little Fingers, this second Coloursound album has surfaced a mere 22 years after the group's first. Adams and Grantley are absent for this effort but Peters and Duffy are both present and correct having reconnected with each other during lockdown and come up with a new set of songs. I have to admit that despite being a fan of both of their day bands, I missed the group's debut so wasn't quite sure what to expect here to be honest. My honest thoughts are that this is a solid album rather than a great one. Peters and Duffy are both on good form here with the latter cranking out the riffs with relish (the grinding Eye For An Eye  being a particular highlight) and the former in full on "preacher on the hillside" mode (even if he does drift a bit worryingly near to sounding like Bono in the odd place). I think ...