Posted on Friday 15th January 2021 at 17:08
This week sees the return of some of our favourite artists - shame have released their huge second album 'Drunk Tank Pink', musical royalty Tom Jones releases the first single off his forthcoming album, plus a great new EP from Beach Bunny and ace track from Greyson Chance.
Check out our round up of this week's freshest releases below.
shame - Drunk Tank Pink
There are moments on 'Drunk Tank Pink' where you almost have to reach for the sleeve to check this is the same band who made 2018’s 'Songs Of Praise'. Such is the jump Shame have made from the riotous post-punk of their debut to the sprawling adventurism and twitching anxieties laid out here. The South Londoner’s blood and guts spirit, that wink and grin of devious charm, is still present, it’s just that it’s grown into something bigger, something deeper, more ambitious and unflinchingly honest.
The genius of 'Drunk Tank Pink' is how these lyrical themes dovetail with the music. Opener 'Alphabet' dissects the premise of performance over a siren call of nervous, jerking guitars, its chorus thrown out like a beer bottle across a mosh pit. Songs spin off and lurch into unexpected directions throughout here, be it 'March Day'’s escalating aural panic attack or the shapeshifting darkness of 'Snow Day'. There’s a Berlin era Bowie beauty to the lovelorn 'Human For A Minute' while closer 'Station Wagon' weaves from a downbeat mooch into a souring, soul- lifting climax in which Steen elevates himself beyond the clouds and into the heavens. Or at least that’s what it sounds like.
From the womb to the clouds (sort of), Shame are currently very much in the pink.
Tom Jones - Talking Reality Television Blues
What a treat! Tom Jones has announced that a new album is coming our way in 2021, on 23rd April to be exact. This news is only made better by the release of his cover of American country-folk singer Todd Snider's "Talking Reality Television Blues". Tom Jones proves his versatility on this track, which oozes cool, by taking on a spoken-work approach to his own rendition and executing with great aplomb.
The track, which checks in at over 6 minutes long, features a highly stimulating video chock-full of television moments gone by, if not edited together so neatly it would run the risk of a sensory overload but instead is a feast for the eyes.
The forthcoming album is to feature cover versions of songs by Bob Dylan, Cat Stevens, Terry Callier, Michael Kiwanuka, Tony Joe White and The Waterboys. We can't wait to hear it in April, and we can't wait to see the great man live on stage this year at Telford's QEII Arena.
Buy your Tom Jones tickets here.
Beach Bunny – Blame Game
Beach Bunny's new EP 'Blame Game', via Mom+Pop Music, follows the band’s 2020 Billboard Top 10 debut album Honeymoon, which received 4 STARS from Rolling Stone - and a print profile - a multi-page critic’s essay from The New Yorker and features with The Cut, i-D, Paper, Nylon and many more. Where Honeymoon centered on the highs and lows of new love, Blame Game takes aim at toxic masculinity, sexism and the emotional labor of unreliable relationships. Blame Game was written in quarantine and recorded in Chicago over a week in August. The four new original songs are produced by Joe Reinhart (Hop Along, Joyce Manor, Modern Baseball, Remo Drive).
Buy your Beach Bunny tickets here.
Greyson Chance – Holy Feeling
When Greyson Chance released his tender new single 'Holy Feeling' last night it had us hooked. As he revealed early this week on Twitter we are about to see a new side of Greyson Chance, "This upcoming body of work is different than anything I’ve ever released as an artist."
What's more the new video release was accompanied by a luscious and emotive live piano rendition that you can watch right now below. This latest release has got us beyond excited for what is coming next, and we're sure it's going to add to his already special live performances, so make sure you have tickets to see him in Manchester or London this year.
Buy your Greyson Chance tickets here.
