Round-up Tracks (Jaws, Kings Of Leon, Zack De La Rocha & more)

Between their shiny, alt-pop debut tracks and their eventual first full-length ‘Be Slowly’, Birmingham group JAWS were clearly evolving. ‘Swim’’s twinkling synths were a far cry from the strung-out gloom of ‘NYE’. 2015’s follow-up single ‘Bad Company’ was an even sharper switch - a floor-shaking turn that deserved to be turned up a few more notches. So many different directions, it was obvious that even as close as last year, JAWS were still discovering exactly what they were about.

‘Right in Front of Me’ is by no means the final step in their evolution, but it’s the best realisation yet of their jagged, atmospheric grunge. Contrasted to their buzzy demos, this sounds like a completely different band. Driven, exploratory, emotionally-charged; JAWS’ frazzled current state suits them best. If the stars align, they could go on to become a show-stopping band, new album ‘Simplicity’ being the next step. (Jamie Milton)

Main-stage mainstays, Kings Of Leon have never been ones to shy away from a “woah-oh” or seventeen. Anthemic and bombastic, their schtick remains firmly stuck on ‘Waste A Moment’.

Soaring chord progressions built for night-closing fireworks and a melody so memorable it’s like it was implanted in the brain at birth, it’s perfect fodder for the BBC Sport montages it’s destined to back. Hardly likely to blow anyone away, perhaps, but it’s an accomplished return, if not a reinvention of any kind. Consider Kings Of Leon’s festival headliner status cemented for at least another few years. (Tom Connick)

Less an awareness anthem for the plight of the honey bee, and more a chiming, richly textured slab of magical incantation, Pumarosa’s latest sees them trading in the industrial onslaught of ‘Priestess’ and the yelping staccato of ‘Cecile’ for something far more airborne. “God gave us honey, oh he gave us honey…. oh you stupid son of a bitch,” chants ringleader Isabel Munoz-Newsome, intermingling with urgent waves of abrupt guitar.

Pumarosa – sharply-honed and armed with diamond edged precision – simply don’t have a duffer in ‘em. Switching it up endless gears, reinventing the template every time, and chasing new territories with the tenacity of an intrepid, khaki-clad explorer, this is as golden and viscous as its sugary namesake. Winnie the Pooh’s a big fan of ‘Honey’ already – chances are you will be, too. (El Hunt)

There isn’t a voice-box on earth that holds the bile Zack De La Rocha can fire forth. Like a man with a perpetually stubbed toe, he’s raging every second of every day. It’s never sounded as vital as it does in these shitty, shitty times, though.

On ‘Digging for Windows’, it’s as gripping as they come - that fight, fuck but never fly instinct that made Rage Against The Machine such a force to be reckoned with pitched front-and-centre. El-P’s industrial production is the perfect pair up, but make no mistake; on his debut solo track, Zack’s taking the stage all for himself. (Tom Connick)

It’s perhaps no coincidence that ‘Hannover Square’ shares a fair few letters in common with a fear-inspiring Saturday morning condition - hangover. Drifting languidly through the glazed-eyes haze of one too many lagers the night before, The Wytches’ latest sees them singing of waking up confused and lethargic in the square that gives the song it’s name.

Everything - even the foot scuffing guitar solos - is muffled and held back here, intentionally so. The shadowy negative print of many of this band’s most biting moments, ‘Hannover Square’ is the sort of psychedelic swirling that a simple Nurofen won’t help you snap out of. (El Hunt)

Tags: Features, JAWS, Kings of Leon, Listen, Pumarosa, The Wytches