Kindelan has a new single, called “Cigarettes” and it is once again her best yet! It is a dark tale of break up and maybe being spurned. There is anger in Laura’s strong R & B style vocals which skim wonderfully over a funky, jazzy sound with some great folk injections. The lyrics are deep and buzz with an otherworldly electricity fuelled by a solid and powerful fury. Lines like “I’m a ball that’s been thrown You picked me up then let go. How can you blame where gravity makes me fall?” sum up those feelings of loss, passion, pain and revenge. This song is first class and if there was any justice in the world would be all over the airwaves.
The video sums up the mood of the song perfectly and is simply darkly glorious. The track is available alongside a song called “Wish I Wrote A Love Song” which is a ‘before’ to “Cigarettes” ‘after’ theme on a 7 inch vinyl release called ‘After Before’. I have ordered my copy, why don’t you do yourself a favour and order one for yourself. You will not regret it! Just click here and buy it via Bandcamp.
If you have enjoyed this article, feel free to follow the blog.You can also follow us onInstagram, Bluesky, and Linkedin.
Are you interested in writing and reviewing for With Just A Hint Of Mayhem? If so then please get in touch via EMail.
Delilah Bon is back after locking herself away in her Princess Castle and now she is out she is fucking angry. This time mostly with those misogynistic arseholes. Those kind of men really won’t like her when she is angry because Delilah becomes the She-Hulk of brat metal rap and fights the fight for fairness and equality for all. Well except for a few stupid men who will always consider themselves superior and who constantly prove themselves to be pathetic human specimens. “Princeless Princess” is up there with the best of Delilah’s extraordinarily great canon of work.
It opens with an echo of “Stand And Deliver by Adam And The Ants. After that it is pure, unadulterated Delilah. It has anger, passion, venom, care and intellect she hits misogynists not just with a double barreled attack but with a whole infantry of heavy gunners. The riffs on this track are huge as is the driving bass. Delilah sings “I don’t need no Prince to save me” and she is right, but the world needs Delilah Bon to help save it! She sings in a wonderfully venomous style that she is a “motherfucking Princeless Princess” and actually she probably is, but I reckon she ranks higher than that, Delilah is the motherfucking Queen! The song is a taster of her forthcoming EP and on the strength of this song that EP will blow the balls off every misogynist that comes close to it!
She has a European Tour coming in October, but before that, in August, she will be unleashing the power of Delilah on the USA. Hopefully the Mango Mussolini won’t have destroyed it by then!
If you have enjoyed this article, feel free to follow the blog.You can also follow us onInstagram, Bluesky, and Linkedin.
Are you interested in writing and reviewing for With Just A Hint Of Mayhem? If so then please get in touch via EMail.
The wonderful and super talented singer songwriter that is Molly Rymer has a new release. It features a couple of different versions of “Say The Same” which was originally included on her ‘All You Can Eat’ EP from October last year. The first is a spacious and stripped back acoustic version in which every emotion is palpable. The lyrics deal with toxic relationships and karma and those deep dark words suit the pared down instrumentation perfectly. This is a live recorded version which was created with the help of the mightily talented Fin Vallance.
The second take was recorded live at Mollie’s inaugural headline show at Oporto in Leeds last year. Sadly I was unable to make that gig. At its very essence “Say The Same” is a beautifully constructed pop song with some delicious folk overtones. This was Molly with a full band made up of Angus Bates on drums, Joe Wilkes on double bass, Luca Vitale on cello Sam Cooper and Gabbie Clarke supplying backing vocals. Overlaying it all is Molly’s ethereal, soulful vocal performance. While the song seems dark from a lyrical perspective Molly really seems to be enjoying performing it. The Tasting Menu collection is rounded of with the track in the form of its original release from last years EP. Get this collection into your life, it really is a bewitching and wonderful collection of takes of a beautiful track.
If you have enjoyed this article, feel free to follow the blog.You can also follow us onInstagram, Bluesky, and Linkedin.
Are you interested in writing and reviewing for With Just A Hint Of Mayhem? If so then please get in touch via EMail.
Sleuth Gang are a fucking awesome live band and with every release they prove that they are fucking awesome in the studio too. New single “Safe Bet” is their best yet, it deserves some live festival exposure. Reading/ Leeds are you listening? It has their signature three pronged vocal attack and an incessant heavy groove with riffs that could power a Saturn V rocket. I bloody love this track!
The video is superb. It has the band introduced to a sparse, bored and almost silent crowd at a Working Men’s Club by a wonderfully camp drag queen before they go on to perform “Safe Bet”. So many videos these days are dull and generic, this one is neither dull nor generic!
If you have enjoyed this article, feel free to follow the blog.You can also follow us onInstagram, Bluesky, and Linkedin.
Are you interested in writing and reviewing for With Just A Hint Of Mayhem? If so then please get in touch via EMail.
York’s Drop Dead McPhee are back with a delightful new single. It reminded me of a classy acoustic style indie band spliced with the Byrds. Vocally it is their best yet and shows that they have an ability to move in any style or genre. There is a bonus B Side too, “Opposite Day” which has a great early 70s McGuiness Flint style vibe. These boys certainly know how to write a decent hook!
If you have enjoyed this article, feel free to follow the blog.You can also follow us onInstagram, Bluesky, and Linkedin.
Are you interested in writing and reviewing for With Just A Hint Of Mayhem? If so then please get in touch via EMail.
I must confess that until my good friend and colleague introduced me to the music of Leo Middea I had no idea who he was. Eva had discovered that he was playing a gig in York and having heard some of Leo’s songs on Spotify I jumped along with my wife Catherine (a.k.a. Catwoman) at joining Eva and Mollie (another colleague) at the Basement in York last month. Leo has a huge following across the world and exceeds 150,000 monthly listeners on Spotify. He has released four well thought of and wonderfully sounding albums and was the first Brazilian artist to reach the finals of the renowned “Festival da Canção” in Portugal. He also received an invite from Portugal’s Prime Minister to perform at the celebration of the Bicentenary of Brazil’s Independence. Middea is Brazilian, born in Rio De Janeiro, and currently lives in Europe, spending his time in Lisbon and Barcelona. In 2024 he finished third in the contest to select Portugal’s entry for the Eurovision Song Contest with his song “Doce Mistério”. Still relatively young, at 30 years old you have to wonder how much bigger he can become in the music world.
The set in York, which was part of a reasonably extensive 12 date UK tour, was both intimate and inclusive. Armed with just his acoustic guitar and ethereal and mesmerising voice he captivated the audience from the first note. He is abundantly talented and overflows with charisma and energy. The audience, many of whom were Brazilian or Portuguese, mostly sang along to every song. Me being one of the small band of people that are monolingual did my best but obviously didn’t know the words, although joining in with the non-linguistic vocal hooks was easy. The music has a gorgeous Latin feel and could be used to samba to. It is folk based but 21st century style rather than old school and leans nicely to a joyful funky jazz sound. Leo’s guitar playing is rooted in a kind of classical Spanish style and he shows expertise and prowess with his instrument. All of his songs are in Portuguese, apart from one which is his only attempt to write in English to date. But regardless of language I believe his songs show that music is truly universal. Leo’s songs are simply great pieces of music and he is one of the finest performers I have seen recently. If you get a chance to see him live then do it! You will not be disappointed. If you are anywhere near Montreux next month Leo Middea is playing a set at the world famous jazz festival on 6th July.
If you have enjoyed this article, feel free to follow the blog.You can also follow us onInstagram, Bluesky, and Linkedin.
Are you interested in writing and reviewing for With Just A Hint Of Mayhem? If so then please get in touch via EMail.
It is always sad when a great band decides to go their separate ways, especially one as good as York’s Everything After Midnight. But this parting last year was clearly amicable as Steph and Jacob from the band are now performing as After Midnight and the rest of the band turned up to show their support at the duos debut gig in York last month. Sadly the talented support act, Kitty VR was unwell and unable to play. However we were treated to two sets, one by Steph and Jacob as After Midnight followed by another from the pair with friends. It was great to hear so many great songs from the Everything After Midnight catalogue. “Still Sleeping” was the best of the night for me. But the cover of “There Are Worse Things I Could Do”, Stockard Channing’s key song moment in the 1978 blockbuster movie, ‘Grease’ ran a very close second. I should add that this venue is incredible, a bakery and cafe by day and a gig paradise by night. A bit like a super hero with a secret identity. But most importantly it was great to see at least some of Everything after Midnight back on stage. If the pair of them go solo what happens to the name? Will one be called Midnight and the other one After?
If you have enjoyed this article, feel free to follow the blog.You can also follow us onInstagram, Bluesky, and Linkedin.
Are you interested in writing and reviewing for With Just A Hint Of Mayhem? If so then please get in touch via EMail.
I recently read and reviewed Mike Batt‘s autobiography ‘The Closest Thing To Crazy‘. Mike has had a career full of stellar highs and Stygian lows and he has come through it all and continues to produce some great music. I am sure that many casual music fans will think of Mike as the bloke behind the Wombles incredible collection of hit songs. They would be right, however he has achieved so much more than that. He has worked with such a talented range of people in the rock and pop world, including David Essex, Art Garfunkel, Family, Roger Daltrey, Cliff Richard, Captain Sensible, Hawkwind, Olly Murs, Justin Hayward and the Kursaal Flyers.
I had the privilege of chatting with Mike about the book and his musical career and life journey. Click here to take a listen to the interview. You should check out Mike’s social media presence too, it is always entertaining and incredibly informative.
I love a good music related autobiography, but I love a great one even more. Mike Batt‘s autobiography, ‘The Closest Thing To Crazy – My Life Of Musical Adventures’, is out now in paperback and it is a truly great read. I put this up there with my favourite musical tale of life ‘Rod : The Autobiography’. Mike Batt has had a career full of stellar highs and Stygian lows and he has come through it all and continues to produce some great music. I am sure that many casual music fans will think of Mike as the bloke behind the Wombles incredible collection of hit songs. They would be right, however he has achieved so much more than that. He has worked with such a talented range of people in the rock and pop world, including David Essex, Art Garfunkel, Family, Roger Daltrey, Cliff Richard, Captain Sensible, Hawkwind, Olly Murs, Justin Hayward and the Kursaal Flyers.
His song writing credits would come close to filling a book in their own right. How about “Bright Eyes” (Art Garfunkel) and “A Winter’s Tale” (David Essex) for starters. He also produced one of my all time favourite singles, “Little Does She Know” by the Kursaal Flyers. But it doesn’t stop there he is a renowned classical conductor and composer who has worked with some of the world’s biggest and most respected orchestras. He has helped break Vanessa Mae and Katie Melua into the mainstream, effectively launching their careers.
He is the man who created a fabulous musical odyssey from Lewis Carroll’s nonsense long poem “The Hunting Of The Snark”. The recording of these songs from the 80s have stood the test of time perfectly, and if it wasn’t for the perhaps jealous bunch of bastards that call themselves theatre critics the stage musical version might well have been a huge success. For me what shines through in this book is Mike’s positivity, even in the face of adversity. Although he has faced some incredibly hard times dealing with the black dog of depression. Now in his eighth decade he is showing no signs of slowing down either.
As a teenager I felt that the Wombles songs just weren’t cool enough for me, but as I got older I realised that I probably wasn’t cool enough for the Wombles. Every Wombles hit has aged incredibly well in my opinion. Particularly “Remember You’re A Womble”. That one sits perfectly in any glam rock playlist from 73-74. I have listened to a massive range of Mike’s work while reading the book. The Wombles of course, but also ‘The Hunting Of The Snark’ and his solo work, I loved delving back into his early solo albums ‘Schizophonia’ (1977) and ‘Caravans’ (1979).
He is a man who once said no to the Queen and still received a very special honour from her. You will find more details of those escapades in the book! He has been a board member on the BPI, the PRS and the Ivors. The world of music is most definitely better off with people like Mike Batt in it. This book is testament to his grit, determination, creativity and talent.
I have followed some of Mike’s activities on social media and as in the book his sense of humour shines through there too. His profile description on Twitter is classy and amusing. “Artist/Singer/Songwriter/Producer/Composer/Director etc. I’ve conducted more orchestras than you can shake a stick at“. There are way too many wonderful anecdotes in the book to mention. But a couple of Womble ones spring to mind. His Mum hand made all the Wombles costumes and he and his wife once dressed as wombles to go to a party at Rod Stewart’s where they serenaded the guests with Christmas carols. Also the piece about not knowing how to do coke at another Rod Stewart party made me chuckle out loud.
If you read just one autobiography this year I strongly recommend that you make it Mike’s book ‘The Closest Thing To Crazy’. You will not regret it! It is an easy read and I finished it in two days, so I suppose Mike can add writer to his long list of credits now! You can order the book from Amazon, just click here! Also I had a wonderful chat with Mike about the book earlier today. The audio of that conversation will be appearing here very soon!
If you have enjoyed this article, feel free to follow the blog.You can also follow us onInstagram, Bluesky, and Linkedin.
Are you interested in writing and reviewing for With Just A Hint Of Mayhem? If so then please get in touch via EMail.
With Just A Hint Of Mayhem 