Andy J Gallagher – Boy Racer / I Don’t Wanna Be Like You

andy-j-gallagher-pic-5_RingMasterReview

If Andy J Gallagher, once of punky avant-Britpop band The Shopkeeper Appeared, sparked real anticipation for his new album with previous double A-sided single Because We Are/ Sheena’s Big Night Out, he has brought real lust to the wait for Ego with its successor. Again offering two tracks which leap from the speakers with relish, Gallagher’s new proposal is as fresh as it is nostalgic with punk and new wave instincts colluding with indie nurtured rock ‘n’ roll daring.

Though it has been seven years since releasing his well-received debut album Helicopter, Dolphin, Submarine, Gallagher has stayed busy playing live and creating in the studio. The past months have seen him link up with like-minded talented musicians for the upcoming Ego and also ex-The Damned member Roman Jugg who produced, as its predecessor, the album. As mentioned, the last single alone awoke an eagerness for the forthcoming full-length which the twin attack of Boy Racer and I Don’t Wanna Be Like You only concentrates.

Boy Racer traps ears with its opening hook, a delicious lure soon joined by punchy beats and a groaning bassline. Opening up its vocal and melodic enterprise, the song teases and flirts like a mix of Television Personalities, BabyShambles, and Ste McCabe; continuing to surprise and entice with whiffs of seventies punk pop and rock ‘n’ roll for extra spice of Buzzcocks meets Showwaddywaddy like mischief.

The track is pure infection, minimalistic in body and sharp in touch and swiftly matched by I Don’t Wanna Be Like You. With a rawer breath and more forceful attitude, the song similarly springs inescapable hooks amidst rapacious riffs and rhythms. Like the ringleader to the devilry, Gallagher further stirs attention vocally in the midst of the forcibly magnetic and enjoyably dirty romp with its uncompromising persuasion. Again it is a fusion of eras and styles honed into something unafraid to bare its inspirations but present a unique temptation; both tracks sharing that success.

Fair to say Ego cannot come soon enough with the promise of some more great adventures to relish. Andy Gallagher has not really been away but certainly he is back in the public ear thanks to two mighty singles providing a quartet of irresistible treats, the latest two set to draw bigger spotlights for creator and album all on their own.

Boy Racer / I Don’t Wanna Be Like You will be released March 17^th.

http://www.andyjgallagher.com/ https://twitter.com/andyjgallagher

Pete RingMaster 21/02/2017

Andy J Gallagher – Because We Are/Sheena’s Big Night Out

Dec6

andy-j-gallagher-pic-3_RingMasterReview

It has some major anticipation to live up to thanks to one spectacular appetiser but if Ego the forthcoming album from Andy J Gallagher can match the promise of his new single, a major treat is on the way. Double A-sided Because We Are/ Sheena’s Big Night Out is simply one irresistible teaser; two tracks which inspires body and spirit alike with their punk infused rock ‘n’ roll and leaves an eager hunger for their upcoming source.

andy-j-gallagher-art_RingMasterReview It has been seven years since Gallagher released debut album Helicopter, Dolphin, Submarine, a proposition produced by ex-The Damned member Roman Jugg who upon hearing Gallagher’s new demos at the time insisted on working with him on the album. As lyrically sharp and irresistible as ever and with Jugg again producing Ego, Gallagher enlisted a host of musicians to help bring the 2017 album to life and before it two songs which leap upon the listener with the raw defiance of punk, the anthemic prowess of old school rock ‘n’ roll, and the instinctive insight of folk.

Because We Are accosts ears with rampant rhythms and melodic tenacity from the start, Gallagher’s raw harmonic cries pure bait to match the persuasive virulence of the sounds brewing and erupting around him. Hitting its insatiable stride within a few more seconds, the track romps and stomps like a mix of Glenn Hodge Banned, Ste McCabe, and The Sums, drawing the listener into and enslaving them with its relentless creative revelry.

There is no let up with Sheena’s Big Night Out either, the song less imposing in its energy but as ridiculously catchy and involving physically and vocally. There is a touch of Captain Sensible to it which does no harm while as its companion, lyrically and vocally Gallagher sublimely hooks the imagination and an ever keen appetite for descriptive humour.

Punk, pop, folk punk, rock ‘n’ roll; all are involved in a pair of tracks which ensure that Ego just cannot come soon enough.

Because We Are/ Sheena’s Big Night Out is out now on iTunes and other stores.

http://www.andyjgallagher.com/ https://twitter.com/andyjgallagher

Pete RingMaster 06/12/2016

Darkside Of Innocence: Xenogenesis

May10

As the album dawns on dramatic brief intro Lux there is an immediate feeling that something striking is going to emerge within Xenogenesis the latest release from Portuguese progressive black metallers Darkside Of Innocence. Striking and perpetually intriguing it is intrusive and at times a formidable challenge but with strong rewards and an unexpected mesmeric appeal. Xenogenesis is an album that will find many casualties in its wake but will inspire many with its imagination and skilled maelstrom of ideas and sounds.

Formed in 2005 the description within their bio states that “Darkside of Innocence can be known as a solemn voyage through the universal consciousness; an introspection that reaches the higher levels of reasoning. It is enlightenment that bestows hence, the self with some awareness regarding its own core – it’s the path eternal of one, seeking to express its inner essence within art.” They bring an intense and to us lesser intellects a confusing path with their ideology, something their music matches. It also adds a depth and adventure to their creativity as it inspires individual thoughts and interpretations through their provocative sounds. Their debut album Infernum Liberus EST was released in 2010 following a previous demo Bloody Mistress which was an internet stream only in 2007. Now down to a one man project in the shape of Pedro Remiz, Darkside Of Innocence moved on to signing with Infektion Records for the release of Xenogenesis earlier this year.

After the intro Airian collapses upon the ear with a familiar black metal vehemence and invasive swarm of intensity. The vocals of Remiz scraping flesh with his rasping delivery as the melodies of the guitar brand and scorch the ear. Midway the song veers into chaotic and perpetually unpredictable avenues with female vocals soaring within the blackened spiralling energy and the track absorbing sounds and ideas from afar to twist them into a vindictive and provocative blistering of the senses. It is harsh and hard to break free from but within the attack there are some quite unique and striking elements unleashed.

It is from the following Dulcifer Tragoedia that unpredictability becomes the life force of the album and wonderfully enterprising it is even if almost impossible to keep up with and at times endure. Many bands venture into avant garde metal to widely diverse results but few are as deeply impactful as here, the track rupturing synapses and swiping away any safety net you might have in place. Challenging and emotively exhilarating it is a glorious flurry of unconnected yet suitably akin sounds and ideas.

If the previous track was a flurry of sound Nox Omega offers a dehabilitating bedlam of creativity, from its haunting nasally sax sounds to the streaming flood of venomous spite it splinters and thrashes feelings impressively and is the best track on the album. Multiple plays do not lessen the surprises and unexpected storm of musical contortions, just thrust them forth with more impact and malice, something applying to the whole album.

The excellent female vocals return in Eros to add a symphonic metal breath though the song cannot be labelled as such. It is hard to describe exactly the genre Darkside Of Innocence and Xenogenesis most represent such the striking sounds and craft and very good to see too. The more straightforward metallic thrust of Thanatos adds another turn with its direct and less complicated journey though it still crafts a disturbed atmosphere and corruptive intensity.

Completed by the equally absorbing and testing Ego and closing disturbed ambient instrumental piece D’eus , the album leaves one struggling to gain a firm footing but having enjoyed the startling experience even if the ear and senses claim different. Xenogenesis is an impressive album which will appeal to far fewer than it deserves but all should at least give it a try. With a new single in the works from Darkside Of Innocence it will be interesting to see now with a single mind behind the project how things develop but more of the same would not be unwelcome.

RingMaster 10/05/2012