Nite Songs

  And so we come to the bit everybody's been waiting for - it's our Top 10 albums of the year. Did your favourite make it? Read on to find out... *** 10.     THE THE - "Ensoulment" A new album from Matt Johnson definitely wasn't something I was expecting in 2024 but it's to  Ensoulment 's credit that it stands up with the best of his work from the 1980s. Casting a caustic eye over the modern climate, the likes of  Kissing The Ring of POTUS ,  Some Days I Drink My Coffee By The Grave of William Blake  and  I Hope You Remember (The Things I Can't Forget)  prove that while Johnson may have been away for many years, he certainly hasn't lost a step in terms of sharpness. Comeback of the year? Could well be. *** 9.     THE VIRGINMARYS - "The House Beyond The Fires" The fact that the Virginmarys are a band who seem to keep getting stronger with every release is especially impressive when you consider how many hurdles they've had to navigat...

  "Just 'cos I'm biting on your head, there's no need to be impolite..."  - Zombina & The Skeletones  - Nobody Likes You When You're Dead The groups we cover on Sounds From The Junkshop from this era (the early noughties) can pretty much be divided into two groups. Firstly there's the ones who were briefly being hyped up by the music press only to rapidly fade away into obscurity after one or two albums once music trends left them behind (see the Vines , the Hives , the Cooper Temple Clause , Andrew WK etc). And then there's the ones who didn't even really get that far and remained a delicious underground secret to those aware of them while the zeitgeist undeservedly passed them by. A while ago, I wrote a column on Leeds legends the Dead Pets in this column and it's somewhat apt that the first time I discovered Liverpudlian ghoul-rockers Zombina & The Skeletones was on a night out at the Well supporting Sweeney and co. It's safe t...

  Yup, you're right, it has  come around again quickly. Sod's law being what it is, pretty much as soon as I'd finished last month's Singles Bar column two weeks ago, a whole flood of new releases came to my attention so we almost instantly ended up with enough to do another column all together. So you lucky people are getting this month's singles bar instalment a couple of weeks earlier than planned this time out - hope you enjoy... Okay, first up, I demand to know how the excellent Spunk Volcano & The Eruptions  have managed to put no less than three singles out in recent months without anyone bringing it to my attention! Oh well, better late than never. Kicking off, Football In The Sun  (🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗) is a great and surprisingly touching ode to kickabouts in the park with your mates in the '80s with a great anthemic singalong chorus in the best Undertones stylee. If you missed it first time out, get a copy now and keep it on standby for next summer when hop...