Round-up Tracks: Foo Fighters, Liars & More

Foo Fighters are never afraid of a bit of rocking out; that much is evident from the latest track to be revealed from their forthcoming ‘Sonic Highways’. Inspired by their time in Austin, Texas, the band’s latest offering comes in two parts: there’s the rollicking guitar-driven bounce of ‘What Did I Do?’ - which is guaranteed to have you humming Whitesnake for the rest of the day - before the heartfelt crooning of frontman Dave Grohl takes over for the booming, spine-tingly crescendo of ‘God As My Witness’. If there’s even been a time to close your eyes, clench your fists and raise them high to the sky, it’s for this rock-and-roller. (Sarah Jamieson - @sarahjamieson_)

Liars, for the most part, are a rare survivor of that dying breed of bands who use the b-side as a pseudo-secret canvas to try out something new. Among the seven tracks that make up their latest EP, ‘I’m No Gold’, though, they manage to cram in no less than three remixes of the title track alongside a totally head-scratching instrumental, and a classic EP in the vein of Buzzcocks’ ‘Spiral Scratch’ or Pixies’ ‘Come On Pilgrim’ this most certainly is not. ‘Poison Bender’, however, is a sparkling diamond in the relentless rough, and it’s as close as you’ll get to hearing these three gentlemen create a lighters-in-the-air anthem, a rousing Sunday Night Glasto-closer. As Angus Andrew’s always-on-the-edge-of-fracturing falsetto lullaby sleepwalks its way into a steady wall of feedback, ‘Poison Bender’ hits that strange sweet spot between euphoria and finesse. After grappling with electronics on ‘WIXIW’ and ‘Mess’, it feels as though Liars have created something approaching the perfect marriage of man and machine. (David Zammitt - @davezambo)

Right from the very beginning, Little Boots always came off as an experimentation-first pop artist. But with each step she takes, she claims to be claiming more creative control. 2013 LP ‘Nocturnes’ landed her a DIY cover, all eyes on an artist breaking three from label demands and striding onwards to a perfect final destination. As she approaches album number three, however, Victoria Hesketh is only now claiming that she’s “truly in control” of her career “both creatively and logistically.” Meaning, in a sense, that everything waiting round the corner is her doing. Hence the title of her new EP, ‘Business Pleasure’, which places power in her decision making, from the sharp suit she sports in its artwork to the similarly sophisticated breed of synth pop defining lead track ‘Taste It’. “Now the wheels are in motion,” she claims atop a playful, unorthodox beat. Perhaps everything that’s come before is just a hint of how far Hesketh can go in experimental pop. Mind you, fancy tricks will never outdo a hook like the “can you taste it on your lips like liquorice?” head-turner that seals the deal on this track. No doubt Little Boots is still combining two very different worlds - a oneupmanship of creativity alongside a pop sensibility. (Jamie Milton - @musicfansmic)

Back with the creepy and knowingly obsessive ‘I Followed You Home’, Eliot Sumner is riding a (new) wave of synth pop; namely of the falling apart in the corner of the disco variety. “I guess I never really knew, the lengths that I would go for you,” she sings, and Sumner’s androgynous, concentrated vocals only add to the relentless intensity of that driving bass line and twinkling synths that could be plucked straight on loan from Ultravox. When the surface tension snaps, and Eliot Sumner cracks – just ever so slightly - into rawer, more exposed vocal territory, it’s electric to listen to. (El Hunt - @whattheel)

For a relative newcomer, Tei Shi makes it sound like she’s been doing this since the womb. The Brooklyn-via-Columbia singer’s forte is silky smooth electro-pop, preened and primped to perfection. She’s hopped, skipped and jumped over the awkward finding-your-feet stage and plunged straight into the deep end. ‘Bassically’ set her up for big things, but follower ‘See Me’ proves Tei Shi is more than capable of stringing together a bit of a hit. Tei Shi’s latest endeavor - produced by Dave Bayley of Glass Animals - frolics through textures. Flitting from the fluidity of bubbling synths to the staccato of all the clicks and clacks so symptomatic of Bayley’s style, ‘See Me’ is immaculate. Tei Shi’s vocals skate delicately over its surface, guiding the track through its ebbs and flows, placating and exciting at the same time. It’s early days yet, but if ‘See Me’ is anything to go by then Tei Shi’s debut full-length is going to be one to keep an eye out for in 2015. (Charlie Mock - @charlie_mock)

Lets face it, Raleigh Ritchie has always had a gift for crafting rhythmic drive out of thin air. He’s also got a talent for relentless forward drive with the extra of a welly of a drum machine – also out in force on ‘You Make It Worse’ – but it’s his lyrical ducking and diving that really steals the show this time. “Bait is on the hook, I don’t even wanna bite, I don’t wanna give them one cos I, can’t keep you back can’t bring you in,” he sing-speaks, soaring above thudding horror show levels of super-bass. By the time ‘the drop’ occurs, ushered in with a slightly tongue-in-cheek “get ‘em” sample, the foundations are already laid in concrete, and Mr Raleigh Ritchie’s vision is as assured as ever. (El Hunt)

Smashing through the speakers with the subtlety of Thor’s hammer and striking more fear into the hearts of ancient Greeks than the threat of Zeus’ Trident is a brand new colossus from Turbowolf. ‘Rabbits Foot’ opens in a chaotic upward spiral before crashing into a relentlessly methodical and precise rhythm. Surrounding and engulfing on all sides, a tight, chainsaw-esque guitar and bass powerhouse creates more than enough energy to tear down civilizations. It also provides the strongest of platforms for their charismatic frontman to speak of tales of woe and persistent bad luck. One thing is certain; you’re going to need some kind of voodoo to remove this earworm from your brain. Currently warming up the crowds for chart topping Royal Blood on the UK leg of their current tour, this is a band you wont need to see in a gig guide: you’re going to hear them coming. (Joe Dickinson - @DickinsonSound)

Tags: Foo Fighters, Liars, Listen, Features