With Just A Hint Of Mayhem

Music reviews, gig reviews, fun trivia and extra added random stuff!

“Hunting Season” – abs November 7, 2025

Filed under: Review,Single — justwilliam1959 @ 8:53 pm
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Classy UK artist abs has featured on these pages a couple of times. Earlier this year she became the 24th act to appear in the Mayhem Virgins series back in March. The following month we had the pleasure of interviewing her. Now she is back with a brand new single, “Hunting Season”. It is sultry, sexy, sweltry and sensual and is performed with a swagger of sensual lust at heights that come close to the peaks that Marvin Gaye and Millie Jackson reached in that kind of song. But it is not all about bringing sexy back (apologies to Mr. Timberlake for that) it strikes me as a song of female empowerment with the woman taking control, the prey becomes the hunter! abs is in total control on this track she is strong, charismatic with just the right level of chutzpah. “Hunting Season” sets up residence in your head after the first listen and is impossible to evict, but frankly who would want to evict such a great track? If I have any criticism it is only that at 1 minute 52 seconds it is a little short, but that is easily solved, just put it on repeat! This is a magnificent and ambitious release from abs and I bloody love it!

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“Fake I.D.” – Squangey Bobbins November 6, 2025

Filed under: Review,Single — justwilliam1959 @ 11:05 pm
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Margate based Squangey Bobbins are a phenomenally good band. Some would describe them as indie, but indie isn’t really a genre is it? For me they have the cheeky intellectual chaos of the Libertines, the wordsmithery and sharp as fuck poetry of the Arctic Monkeys and, the powerful harder edge of some of Britain’s greatest new wave bands (the Damned, the Jam). They have just released the first single, “Fake I.D.”, from their upcoming album ‘Margate Crows’ which is to be released in January.

“Fake I.D.” has a wonderfully jaunty pop rock feel with a hint of country rock styling. It drives along at a subdued frenetic pace and has some vocal “woah, woah, woah” hooks to die for. The song also features backing vocals from Billy Lunn of the Subways. The track was recorded at Farm Factory Studios and was Mixed, Engineered and Produced by the aforementioned Billy Lunn and was Mastered by Alex Wharton at Abbey Road Studios.

Squangey Bobbins are Lewis Colley on vocals, Chris Bourne on guitar, Jack Elliot on bass and, Tommy Pearce on Drums. The band have said this about the song “Fake I.D. was written to capture that feeling of misspent youth — romanticising the days when the only reason to work was to earn just enough to go out with your mates at the weekend“. The song shines with a sunburst of joyful, carefree vibes that took me back to the nostalgia of my own misspent youth!

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“The Only Good Dictator Is A Dead Dictator” – Dead Animal Assembly Plant November 5, 2025

Filed under: Review,Single — justwilliam1959 @ 11:11 pm
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Dead Animal Assembly Plant are Zach ‘Dead’ Wager (Vocals), Rebecca ‘Buzz’ Wager (Guitars), Nick ‘Nix’ Snyder (Bass) and Jason ‘Skorn’ Moore (Drums). They formed in Portland, Oregon, USA in 2007, initially as a solo project for Zach Wager. They became a full band in 2011. Their influences seem to be drawn from a wide range of iconic bands and artists; Nine Inch Nails, Gary Numan, Slipknot and Rob Zombie to name just a few. They released a new single today, called “The Only Good Dictator Is A Dead Dictator” and it is an oven ready classic. It oozes dark industrial riffs, passionate maniacal musings, huge planet splitting drums and a perfect message for these times. Is the song directed at the Orange Turd in the White House? Probably, but it would also easily apply to the likes of Putin, Kim Jog Un and many others. The lyrics are a succinct reflection on what much of this supposedly modern world has become. “Now we’re choking as they’re stoking, All the pretty wars. We can’t decide which genocide we should be rooting for” Those lines pull no punches and that is what makes this song work so well.

Zach Wager said this about the song “his song “It is aggressive from tonality to message. The song underlines society’s complicity towards totalitarianism and how we are controlled through fabricated fears and toxic vitriol spewed by those in power. The cyclical nature of humans falling for the lies and promises of dictators. It’s a tale we’ve spun over and over and yet it continues to happen. Doing the same thing over and over expecting different results. In the end – the only good dictator no matter who or where – is a dead dictator. Anyone who desires that much abusive power is a blight on humanity and the world is better off without tyrants.” There is no doubt in my mind that Zach Wager is bang on and this song nails the message home wonderfully. This will be one of the first songs I play when I hear the news that the vile orange arsehole a.k.a. Captain Bone Spurs has died.

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“XS” – Celeste Corsano November 4, 2025

Filed under: Review,Single — justwilliam1959 @ 10:05 pm
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Last month US artist Celeste Corsano, who is based on the border between Pennsylvania and New Jersey, released a quirky, off the wall new song, “XS”. Now, with some excellent and endearing work from Brother JT the song has a curiously eccentric and haunting animation the song is accompanied by a compelling animated message to enhance the songs impeccable and meaningful lyrics. The song questions the pressure to achieve perfection and leading to a symbolic release or escape, embodying freedom through transformation. It explores feelings of insecurity and the meaning of success, often driven by media and external standards. This is highlighted by lines like “But the Execs say, I’m either fitting in or not at all“.

Celeste said of the song “it is about feeling like an outsider and trying to fit in, insecurities about body image and the trap of perfection. These mindsets come from my own insecurities based on my personal experiences, examples of women I’ve seen growing up and by outside sources such as the media and the entertainment industry”. Corsano has an individuality reminiscent of Kate Bush, Tori Amos and Lene Lovich. The song is available through Magic Door Records and was produced, recorded mixed and mastered by Ray Ketchem (Guided by Voices, Elk City, Gramercy Arms, Luna) at the Magic Door Recording Studio in Montclair, NJ.

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“Keeping On” – away//fans November 3, 2025

Filed under: Review,Single — justwilliam1959 @ 8:56 pm
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Indie rock band from London away//fans have a banging new song out. “Keeping On” is a celebration of percussive danceable rock music with a great pop twist. The repetitive chorus refrain of “come on home” is one of the strongest earworms that has inhabited my head in ages. If you are able to just sit and listen to this track without even thinking of dancing there is clearly something seriously wrong with me. For the first time the band have collaborated with SEY.MOUR who provides some sublime, ethereal backing vocals. Soundwise they remind me of the Beloved, HardFi, Lost Trends and LCD Soundsystem.

The band’s lead vocalist Tom Fisher had this to say about the track “The song is about that moment post-argument with your partner, when the initial anger has faded and you just wanna sort things out but don’t know how. That sort of malaise when you’re desperate to get back to how things were but aren’t quite sure how to get there“. In respect of where the band took some inspiration Fisher said “We took inspiration from bands like Primal Scream and The Prodigy, who managed to keep the live feel of a band, whilst still fitting in with the rave and party scene“. I am new to this band and I bloody love them!

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“Monster To Me” – The Suncharms November 2, 2025

Filed under: Review,Single — justwilliam1959 @ 9:36 pm
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One of Sheffield’s finest bands, the Suncharms have returned with a new two track single featuring “Monster To Me (Halloween Version)” and “Tuesday Afternoon Séance”. The first song, “Monster In Me” is a beautifully crafted slice of indie pop rock with a sublime shoegaze overlay. At times it made me think of some of the best Beatles outtakes on the Anthology series. The brass sounds, (actually is that real brass or synth emulation?) add a moving depth to this frankly marvelous easy going song. Meanwhile “Tuesday Afternoon Séance” has a similar, but sometimes darker, musical vibe with some wonky fuzzed riffs and an ethereal vocal refrain that is reminiscent of Donovan at the height of his hippie powers. If this band is not in your life yet, then do something about it! The Suncharms have featured regularly on these pages since 2018 and I am sure they will appear more in the future too.

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“Toys That Bite” – Toys That Bite November 1, 2025

Filed under: Review,Single — justwilliam1959 @ 10:06 pm
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UK band Toys That Bite have just released their eponymously titled debut single, via Dr John’s Surgery Records, and it is a rifftastic barrage of powerful rock. The band have described the song as “a superb track that takes you back to the good days of rock, with a twist that’s uniquely theirs“. Frankly it would be hard to disagree with that. The band was formed by Karl Bauers on guitars and vocals (former Metal Gods) and Adam Stanley on lead vocals and drums (former Whailtale, King Walrus & Communicators). They are joined by Jason Shepard (Bass Guitar), Terry Anderson (Drums) and Dave Rivett (Guitar/Vocals). Their sound draws on a wide range of old school influences and could be the bastard child of the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal from the early 80s. I can hear elements of Iron Maiden and Judas Priest in this track to name just a couple. The bands fans are called biters and maybe that is because this band bites fucking hard when they hit top gear, as they do on this track. This is an awesome song from an awesome band! You might not know it yet, but soon you will know that you need Toys That Bite in your life!

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“Freak On” – Brooke Law

Filed under: Review,Single — justwilliam1959 @ 12:33 pm
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London born singer songwriter has just released a new single and it has the makings of a classic. Brooke Law is new to me but this won’t be the last time I listen to her music. She has a great voice which draws on the likes of Alannah Myles and Alanis Morissette. The song has a perfect blues rock vibe with an injection of 21st Century country styling and makes you want to move. There is a powerful rawness to her delivery and she knows how to write a great song. Lyrically it is top class, my particular favourite lines are “Love is a messed up circus, The world is a bowl of a goldfish, We’re all freaks in a freak show” This song was written a few years ago with Ben Earle of the Shires. While it has had a few outings at her full band shows it has not been recorded and released until now. I need to see her playing live now!

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“Justin’s Funeral” – Hand Gestures October 12, 2025

Filed under: Review,Single — justwilliam1959 @ 8:02 pm
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With a title that names someone’s funeral this new song from Brooklyn’s Hand Gestures was never going to be a supremely happy musical ride, but in many ways it is. I have always seen a funeral as a celebration of someone’s life. I believe that the titular Justin’s life is being celebrated and is particularly clear in the line “I guess that Justin gets to crowd surf for one more night“. The framing of “teenage moments that shaped me” gives it a narrative quality that many listeners can relate to, especially if they have their own past regrets or pivotal adolescent experiences. This is a delicate and gorgeously ambient lo-fi track which took me back to some of the softer moments from Mark Everett.

This is the latest single from their forthcoming self titled album which is out on 31st October on Campers’ Rule Records. On the strength of this one song, and a sneaky listen to some of their other stuff I now count myself as a fan of Hand Gestures.

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“None The Wiser” – Ava Renn September 21, 2025

Filed under: Review,Single — justwilliam1959 @ 3:19 pm
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The second single from Ava Renn’s debut album ‘Lightning Child’ is called “None The Wiser” and is a glorious dark, bluesy, garage, warped pop song. In simple terms the phrase ‘none the wiser’ means “to not understand something, even though it has been explained.” But as far as Ava Renn’s new song goes I completely understand that it is an absolute cracker of a song and deserves to be heard. To my ears there are elements of Meredith Brooks and Alannah Myles in Renn’s delivery. But this is a million miles from any kind of copy, Ava Renn will become a musical force to be reckoned with after her album is released in November! Get on the Ava Renn journey now, you will not regret it!

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