Blog: The Blue Walrus

Tom Honey didn't do himself any favours by naming his ambient project after the translated title of a Sigur Rós song - to compare his music to the work to that Icelandic band is such an obvious get-out-of-jail-free card when discussing his music. Good Weather For An Airstrike is only ever really influenced by Sigur Rós, though; let me make that clear. While they both make music that is by turns introspective and euphoric, Honey's creations are far more grounded in ambience. I know what some of you will be thinking at this point: "Ambient music is inconsequential! [...]

The forecast may be more snow outside, lucky then that boutique digital label Folkroom Records are releasing Andrew Butler 's debut EP - a record of soft, soothing, folk-pop lovesongs. Its a record to curl up with your loved one and lose yourselves wrapped up warm and staring into the open fire. Whether it's the sweet lullaby of A Thousand Words or the catchy folk-ballad of Kismet - it's delicate, but not fragile, soft, yet powerful and joyous - and its coming out on February 14th (Valentines Day). And then there's [...]

Bands who write would-be pop songs, but with that lo-fi aesthetic that sound like they recorded the whole thing on a dictaphone have always made me swoon, and Yoofs ( facebook / twitter ) are just such a band. Their carefree songs are full of the exuberance of youth and the lo-fi underproduction will make you nostalgic for a time before people bothered with such things as a recording studio. The Bournemouth-based band were previously known as AC Slater after everyone's favourite muscles in Saved By The Bell, but after the DJ with that name kicked [...]

THIS BAND ARE GOOD ENOUGH TO SHOUT ABOUT. They're called Capitals (you can see what I did there), they're a duo from Edinburgh that features an ex-member of The Cinematics, and a man who's previously made music under the banner of Araya. Both of these were excellent - I was devastated when the former split, let's just make sure we're clear on that - but I haven't been keeping tabs on new projects, so it was with great joy that I discovered that Angus Carbarns and Keir Macculloch have teamed up to produce intense, brooding electronic music with pop sensibilities. [...]

I recently saw Michael Stafford hailed as 'the new Amy Winehouse'. There's already something wrong with such a comparison: for starters, even at its best, Frank was merely a promising debut album, one that hinted at greatness, which, as we all know, arrived with Back to Black in 2007. On the evidence of Lonely Are The Brave , Stafford has already stolen a march on the late Miss Winehouse, because his debut album has delivered the goods. There's no escaping it: as an opening statement, it's simply magnificent; a supremely confident album that [...]

For such a young man to wear his influences on his sleeve is no crime - there's quite a lot of Bob Dylan in this song - but he's taken them and done something wonderful with them. Released as a single last week, Trouble Town has already been receiving support from such notable people as Steve Lamacq and Huw Stephens, which means that Jake Bugg has gotten off to a hell of a start - and well he should, because the 17-year-old from Nottingham has written a song that does far more than keep up with the zeitgeist; it captures [...]

For such a young man to wear his influences on his sleeve is no crime - there's quite a lot of Bob Dylan in this song - but he's taken them and done something wonderful with them. Released as a single last week, Trouble Town has already been receiving support from such notable people as Steve Lamacq and Huw Stephens, which means that Jake Bugg has gotten off to a hell of a start - and well he should, because the 17-year-old from Nottingham has written a song that does far more than keep up with the zeitgeist; it captures [...]

Can I be honest for a moment? There is no way in hell Lana Del Rey's album should be as good as it is. When an album is led by all the obvious singles - the title track, Blue Jeans and Video Games have already been released, and I would be completely stunned if Off to the Races didn't get the single treatment - that is never a good sign; the words 'safety net' come to mind. And yes, the first four songs on the album are the best by quite a stretch, but that is not [...]

Twitter can be a wonderful place for discovering new music - a case in point: I got up this morning to Jamie and Jamila talking about how "AMAZING" Caves is - and they are, as usual, right on the money. Caves ( soundcloud ) dropped his debut EP back in December, but his latest track Didn't I is my favourite of his to date - it's slow and deliciously intricate pop. It breaks free of any blisspop or indie sensibilities, it's open, welcoming and joyous - this is what [...]

Repetition works. I didn't particularly need any reminding of that statement - after all, certain sub-genres of music have already established repetition as their foundations, such as some forms of electronica, not to mention krautrock - but when it's used by a band to deliberately rein themselves in, it is so much more effective. Atlanta, Georgia's All the Saints [ Facebook ] would know all about that, because their impeccable sense of restraint is what makes their second album, Intro to Fractions , such a compelling listen. It's not the most immediate album around by any stretch of the [...]

I thought Wednesday would be a good time to break up the monotony of the week with a few select highlights of the numerous remixes that end up in my inbox every seven days. Some of these remixes will be official, others (like the two below) are less so - but they'll all be amazing re-imaginings of the originals. Today we start the process with remixes from some of my favourite artists from across the Channel. The young Frenchman with the midas touch, Mr NÔ , has taken Enter Shikari's Arguing with Thermometers - he's isolated the [...]

Sometimes, all it takes for a song to be great is a melody. Flourishes and additions are all well and good, but a song built on solid foundations and does exactly what it sets out to achieve is the best kind of one. A young Brighton producer who seems pretty elusive and simply goes under the moniker of Tourist [ Soundcloud ] has brought us a song like this, and it is an absolute cracker. Placid Acid is the lead track from his debut EP, which is released on March 12th, and his love of bright melodies and [...]

I may have first come across Conner Youngblood ( twitter ) with the lo-fi and bass heavy sound of Monsters , but he's not one to be kept within a genre bracket. No, we had the uplifting marching sounds of Australia back in October, and today he's put together a mixtape of his work to date in Sketches Pt.1 - a compilation of four songs we know and love, and four pieces of new material. Better Slow Down is soft and simple with just layers of voices upon a fertile ground off-kilter rhythmic [...]

I first came across Florian Lunaire ( facebook / twitter ) in his band Disappearers (we even tried to book them for our showcase), and his talent of crafting perfect pop noir tunes that are both sweeten the ear and soften the heart was apparent back then. Now he is branching out on his own with often little but a piano to accompany him and I'm swooning once more. He releases a collection of songs for each season, having just released the track Blossoming Winter - but his style can sway anywhere with influences [...]

The Midlands was once a buzzing scene that broke bands such as Black Sabbath - but of late, there is a new wave of music coming out of Birmingham that's grabbing the ears of the nation and fusing a range of different sounds. One of the most prolific names around town in the past two years has been The Arcadian Kicks ( facebook / twitter ) - a female-fronted five-piece with influences that include Fleetwood Mac, Sonic Youth and The Horrors. Their new material is a dark combination of echoing guitars and the powerful vocals of lead-singer Rebecca [...]

I first heard the gritty, lo-fi and under-produced Brown Brogues ( Bandcamp ) on a Song, by Toad Podcast (a Toadcast if you will) a good while ago, but they are a band I keep turning back to for the pop-songs that underpin it all. The Manchester two-piece describe themselves as garage/jive-o-tonic and that seems to fit with a sound that feels like it was recorded on a dictaphone and a basement surrounding some catchy-as-fuck pop charm. Compare them to The White Stripes at your peril. Italian Beach Babes [...]

There is something about the cover art for the new Twilight Sad [ Facebook / Twitter ] record that is disturbing. Even for a band who deal in almost exclusively dark imagery, the eye-catching sleeve for No One Can Ever Know is a whole other level of scary. Its intrigue is increased when paired with the album's title. The phrase 'no one can ever know' hints at dark secrets, deeds committed in the dead of night that must never be spoken of. It's just the kind of thing you'd expect them to call an album, in fact, but their [...]

CSY & Stripes have been making a name for themselves in the remix world, but February 6th sees the release of their debut EP Footsie / Speak Easy . Its being released by brand-spanking new label Body Work and is already getting love on the dancefloor from the likes of Sinden and Bang Gang DJs for damn good reason. The EP a straight up club classic lovechild of house and garage influences with some serious bassline work that should be everywhere, and we've finally got the full-length streams for you lovely lot. And just [...]

FAO Scandinavia: stop putting out so much amazing music. (Not really, y'know, but we're struggling to keep up at this stage.) The latest in a long, long line of fantastic bands to hail from the region is Norwegian sextet Team Me, who create the kind of music that is (regrettably) going to get them lots of lazy comparisons to bands like Arcade Fire. The Canadian group have set the standard for widescreen, euphoric songs, but Show Me is no pale imitation of the group's influences. It's a free download, and the first taste of their debut album To [...]

Florence and the Machine have seen worldwide success over the last year or so, and Spector have been making waves ever since their dramatic debut single Never Fade Away first graced our ears. They are both signed to the ever delightful Luv Luv Luv , so cross collaboration was always going to be on the cards with two acts whose sounds compliment each other so well - and here we have the fruits of just that. Spector have taken Florence and the Machine's sweeping, epic and alluring No Light, No Light (video [...]