New music round-up This Week In New Music (7th March 2015)

DIY rounds up the week’s best premieres, tracks and discoveries, featuring Demob Happy and The Magic Gang.

Words: Jamie Milton
7th March 2015

DIY and Neu’s new music round-ups arrive in two forms - first there’s all our Have You Heard’s from the past week, where the biggest tracks get another seal of approval. Then there’s This Week in New Music, where Neu takes a look at the early days excitement; debut tracks that turned heads; brand new discoveries; premieres that landed first on DIY. All that stuff.

In no time at all, some of 2015’s big hopes have put their first foot forward - as James Bay’s quest for world domination looks increasingly unlikely (top of the hat charts, but that’s about it), more leftfield prospects continue to make waves. Shamir’s all-everything perspective on pop is racing ahead. He announced his ’Ratchet’ debut this week, and it’s out just in time to set the tone for the rest of the year. Fellow XL signing Lapsley further-established her curious dance-pop hybrid with a video for ‘Brownlow’, capturing the club energy that’s more out-of-sight on record. There’s also Yak - our big recommendation in this month’s issue of DIY, they’ve just been booked for The Strokes’ Hyde Park tour and Peace’s October run around the country. Schedules are packed, and while they’re bringing out covers of Karen Dalton for fun, there’s clearly plenty more in their locker.

Below, we rundown others highlights from the last seven days. Here’s the best of what happened this week in new music:

THIS WEEK IN DIY PREMIERES:
Demob Happy, Bruising, California Carpool

Beech Coma’s ‘Vol. 3’ compilation (above) is an absolute, diehard essential for anyone remotely curious about the more ‘out there’ strands of bedroom pop. The label claims its latest release is more indebted to bands hitting the live circuit, but there’s an unhinged quality linking every track, from Bruising’’s brutal take on DIY to California Carpool’s murky in-between.

We also debuted the new video from Brighton force Demob Happy. Garish, nightmare-heavy, they brought blood and guts to their already sinister sound. No doubt about it - they’ll be one of the most talked about bands at their home city’s Great Escape Festival. Just don’t ever accept an invite to their isolated, haunted house cottage in the country.

TRACK OF THE WEEK:
The Magic Gang - No Fun

There’s no use rushing The Magic Gang - the Brighton bunch are still making their baby steps, despite being hyped to the heavens - but there’s been a thirst for ‘No Fun’ for the past twelve months. With each show they play, it sounds sharper and more capable of being cast on thousands, and with this final, bolshy, recorded piece, the game’s upped even more. Weezer comparisons are rife, and that’s largely because Jack Kaye and co. make such a feast out of one, simple hook. They make the mundane sound vital.

DISCOVERY OF THE WEEK:
The Japanese House

A new signing to Dirty Hit and Zane Lowe’s last ever Hottest Record - things haven’t exactly started in a low-key fashion for 19 year old The Japanese House. On curious debut ‘Still’, everything out of place is given a spotlight. If it’s slightly broken, it’s worth including. Pop’s strange territory’s been covered like this before, but you sense there’s something even more striking around the corner with this newcomer.

Tags: Demob Happy, Features, Neu

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Records, etc at

<strong>Demob Happy - Divine Machines</strong> (Vinyl LP - blue)

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Demob Happy on their latest album ‘Divine Machines’

Demob Happy: Space Invaders

Rooted in the gnarly tangle of modern society but heading into intergalactic new sonic airspace, ‘Divine Machines’ is Demob Happy’s most adventurous album yet.

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