New Music: Be With You Tonight

           

Teenage Fanclub have released "Be With You Tonight", the latest taster of their upcoming album, Do Not Dare To Dream, to be released on 9 October. "Be With You Tonight" the the track reflecting on the happiness that singer Norman Blake finds in moving to a new house in the Glasgow countryside."I'm in a good place in terms of happiness and wellbeing, and my songs on this album are really just a reflection of that," Blake says. "I've found that the easiest thing to write about is yourself. It can be quite cathartic. It's sort of like doing your own therapy." About the video, it has been photographed on location at Black Bay Studio on Great Bernera by Donald Milne.

Rocktrospectiva: The Legedary Gen' X Anthem "Smells Like Teen Spirit" Turns 35

Released on 10 September 1991, "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by the US alternative rock band Nirvana, was the opening track and lead single from Nirvana's second album, Nevermind (1991), released on DGC Records. Having sold over 13 million copies worldwide, it is one of the best-selling songs of all time. The success propelled Nevermind to the top of several albums charts and is often marked as the point when grunge entered the mainstream. It was Nirvana's biggest hit, charting high on music industry charts around the world in 1991 and 1992, and was number one on the charts in Belgium, France, New Zealand and Spain.

The guitarist and singer, Kurt Cobain, described "Smells Like Teen Spirit" as an attempt to write "the ultimate pop song", inspired by the soft-and-loud dynamics of the Pixies. The title derives from a phrase written by his friend Kathleen Hanna, the singer of the riot grrrl band Bikini Kill: "Kurt smells like Teen Spirit." Hanna was referencing the deodorant Teen Spirit, but Cobain misinterpreted it as a revolutionary slogan.

"Smells Like Teen Spirit" was met with acclaim and described as an "anthem for apathetic kids" of Generation X. It was included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's list of "The Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll". 

It was one of several songs written following Nirvana's first recording sessions with producer Butch Vig in 1990. Lead singer and guitarist Kurt Cobain began writing it a few weeks before recording their second album, Nevermind, in 1991.He said it was an attempt to write a song in the style of the Pixies, a band he admired:

I was trying to write the ultimate pop song. I was basically trying to rip off the Pixies. I have to admit it. When I heard the Pixies for the first time, I connected with that band so heavily that I should have been in that band—or at least a Pixies cover band. We used their sense of dynamics, being soft and quiet and then loud and hard.

When Cobain presented the song to his bandmates, it comprised just the main guitar riff and the chorus vocal melody. Cobain said the riff was "clichéd", similar to a riff by Boston or the Richard Berry song "Louie Louie". Bassist Krist Novoselic dismissed it as "ridiculous"; in response, Cobain made the band play it for an hour and a half. Eventually, Novoselic began playing it more slowly, inspiring drummer Dave Grohl to create the drum beat, which drew from disco artists such as the Gap Band. As a result, it is the only song on Nevermind to credit all three band members as writers. 

The title derives from a phrase coined by Cobain's friend Kathleen Hanna, singer of the riot grrrl band Bikini Kill: "Kurt smells like Teen Spirit." Hanna and Tobi Vail, Cobain's then-girlfriend, had been at a grocery store earlier in the day, discovered Teen Spirit deodorant, thought the name was funny and joked that various things "smelled like Teen Spirit". Later on, Hanna wrote the phrase in sharpie on Cobain's wall. Cobain said that he was unaware of the deodorant until months after the single was released, and had interpreted it as a revolutionary slogan, as they had been discussing anarchism and punk rock.

Prior to the album recording, the band sent Vig demos for songs including "Teen Spirit". While the sound was distorted due to the band playing at a high volume, Vig felt it had promise. Vig and the band recorded "Smells Like Teen Spirit" at Sound City Studios in the Los Angeles, California neighborhood of Van Nuys in May 1991. Vig suggested changes to the arrangement, including moving a guitar ad lib to the chorus and shortening the chorus. The band recorded the basic track in three takes, and used the second take. Vig corrected some timing errors created by Cobain switching between his guitar effects pedals. Cobain recorded only three vocal takes; according to Vig, "I was lucky to ever get Kurt to do four takes

The lyrics to "Smells Like Teen Spirit" were often difficult for listeners to decipher, both due to their nonsensicality and because of Cobain's slurred, guttural singing voice. This problem was compounded by the fact that the Nevermind album liner notes did not include any lyrics for the songs aside from selected lyrical fragments. This incomprehensibility contributed to the early resistance from radio stations towards adding the song to their playlists; one Geffen promoter recalled that people from rock radio told her, "We can't play this. I can't understand what the guy is saying." MTV went as far as to prepare a version of the video that included the lyrics running across the bottom of the screen, which they aired when the video was added to their heavy rotation schedule.

The book Teen Spirit: The Stories Behind Every Nirvana Song describes "Teen Spirit" as "a typically murky Cobain exploration of meaning and meaninglessness". Azerrad plays upon the juxtaposition of Cobain's contradictory lyrics (such as "It's fun to lose and to pretend") and states "the point that emerges isn't just the conflict of two opposing ideas, but the confusion and anger that the conflict produces in the narrator—he's angry that he's confused". Azerrad's conclusion is that the song is "alternately a sarcastic reaction to the idea of actually having a revolution, yet it also embraces the idea". Additionally, the "famously obscure couplet" in the chorus—"A mulatto, an albino / A mosquito, my libido"—is, according to Azerrad, "nothing more than two pairs of opposites, a funny way of saying the narrator is very horny". In Heavier Than Heaven, Charles R. Cross' biography of Cobain, Cross argues that the song is a reference to Cobain's relationship with ex-girlfriend Tobi Vail. Cross cites the line "She's over-bored and self-assured" and states the song "could not have been about anyone else". Cross backs up his argument with lyrics which were present in earlier drafts, such as "Who will be the King & Queen of the outcasted teens".

The music video depicts a high school pep rally which ends in chaos, inspired by Jonathan Kaplan's 1979 film Over the Edge and the Ramones' film Rock 'n' Roll High School. It won two MTV Video Music Awards, and was in heavy rotation on MTV during the 1990s. Amy Finnerty, formerly of MTV's programming department, said the video "changed the entire look of MTV" by giving the channel "a whole new generation to sell to". 

Smells Like Teen Spirit" was released to radio on August 27, 1991. On September 10, it was released as the lead single from Nevermind, Nirvana's major label debut on DGC Records. The song did not initially chart, and it sold well only in regions of the United States with an established Nirvana fanbase.

The single was intended to be a base-building alternative rock cut from the album, and was not expected to be a hit; the follow-up "Come as You Are" was planned as the single that could cross over to mainstream radio formats. However, campus and modern rock radio stations placed "Smells Like Teen Spirit" on heavy rotation. Danny Goldberg of Nirvana's management firm Gold Mountain said: "None of us heard it as a crossover song, but the public heard it and it was instantaneous ... They heard it on alternative radio, and then they rushed out like lemmings to buy it."

The video received its world premiere on MTV's late-night alternative rock program 120 Minutes on September 29, and proved so popular that the channel began to air it during its regular daytime rotation. MTV added the video to its "Buzz Bin" selection in October, where it stayed until mid-December. By the end of the year, the song, music video, and the Nevermind album had become hits. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and Nevermind became a rare cross-format phenomenon, reaching all the major rock radio formats including modern rock, hard rock, album rock, and college radio.

"Smells Like Teen Spirit" was also a critical and commercial success. The single peaked at number six on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart the same week that Nevermind reached number one on the albums chart. "Teen Spirit" hit number one on the Modern Rock Tracks chart and in April 1992 it was certified Platinum (one million copies shipped) by the Recording Industry Association of America. However, many American Top 40 stations were reluctant to play the song in regular rotation and restricted it to night-time play.

Smells Like Teen Spirit Track List: 

US 7" single (DGCS7-19050)

1. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" 
2. "Even in His Youth"

US/Australian/Australasian cassette single (DGCCS-19050)

1. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" 
2. "Even in His Youth" 

US & Australian CD single (DGCDS-21673)

1. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" 
2. "Even in His Youth" 
3. "Aneurysm" 

UK 7" single (DGCS 5)

1. "Smells Like Teen Spirit"
2. "Drain You"

UK 12" single (DGCT 5)

1. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" (LP Version)
2. "Drain You"
3. "Even in His Youth" 

UK picture disc 12" single (DGCTP 5)

1. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" (LP Version)
2. "Drain You" 
3. "Aneurysm" 

 UK CD single (DGCTD 5)

1. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" 
2. "Drain You" 
3. "Even in His Youth"
4. "Aneurysm" 

New Music: Billy

           

Sports Team are back with their first new single since 2025's Boys These Days. "Billy," the new single from the London-based rockers, arrives alongside a music video by Kris R that features a masked character bearing a squint-and-you-see-it resemblance to Michael Fassbender's Frank from the movie Frank. Regarding about the track, songwriter Rob Knaggs shared: "It's a love letter to getting desperately, insanely drunk at a carpeted pub on a Tuesday night. We recorded it live at RAK studios over the first weeks of summer with Seth Evans and Adele Phillips. It felt like a return to how we made the first album. Fast, and loose and loud."

New Music: Touching From A Distance Too Far

           

The Inspiral Carpets have shared their new single "Touching From A Distance Too Far" taken from the band's first studio album in 12 years "Burn Like The Sun," due to be released on January 29th next year. Touching From A Distance is another classic Inspirals track, Said the band. "A nice blend of 60's psychedelia, 50's rock 'n roll and cool 21st century contemporary vibes." The lyrics, written by Graham, are a nod to one of the Inspirals' favourite and most influential bands, Joy Division. A song about regret and never truly knowing someone.

Rocktrospectiva: The Italo Disco Classic "Shy Like And Angel" Turns 40

Released between 1985-1986 "Shy Like an Angel" by New Romantique was a synth-pop track with a terrific blend of italo disco and new wave produced by The Feldman Brothers.

 

Originally released in 1985 as 7-inch and 12-inch in Germany and France. A series of limited editions such as the Hong Kong pressing were available in 1986. 

 

The track featured key contributions from vocalist and songwriter, Alex Elena, and producer, Jack Anderson. As a contemporary representative of the synth-pop genre, "Shy Like an Angel" blended nostalgic elements of 80s new wave with modern electronic music production techniques. 

 

The song grabbed attention for its dreamy, atmospheric soundscapes and introspective lyrics, which explore themes of love, vulnerability, and self-discovery. Historically, "Shy Like an Angel" is notable for its contribution to the current resurgence of interest in synth-pop and new wave music, influencing a new generation of musicians and fans.

New Music: Mona Lisa

           

Wishy have shared "Mona Lisa," the final pre-release single ahead of the arrival of their new album Nature’s Pill, arriving October 2nd. The forthcoming LP, is the follow-up to the band’s 2024 debut Triple Seven. Singer/guitarist Kevin Krauter says of the track: A courtroom drama starring love and apathy. Was all that pleasure worth all that pain? Will the opposing witness withstand cross-examination? You be the judge!. Video by Nate Kahn.

New Music: Bad Zoo Rescue

           

Jesus Jones have released their latest single "Bad Zoo Rescue", the third track previewed from their forthcoming eighth studio album Twilight, the track follows ‘Shot In The Chevy’ and ‘All Falls To Me’, giving listeners another indication of the musical range of the British alternative rock band's first studio album in eight years. A video for ‘Bad Zoo Rescue’ was filmed between May and August 2026 at Doddington International Studios and in Alan' Bathroom

Rocktrospectiva: The Confident Return To Form "Get Ready" Turns 25

Released on 27 August 2001 "Get Ready" was the 7th., studio album by English rock band New Order. It was the band's first studio album in eight years, following 1993's Republic. The album spawned the singles "Crystal", "60 Miles An Hour" & "Someone Like You."

New Order reformed to make a comeback record. That comeback record became 2001’s Get Ready, peaking at number six in the UK album charts. The recording process was a long-awaited reunion for the estranged Peter Hook and Bernard Sumner, and the two Joy Division founders put aside their differences to enjoy a fruitful, intimate recording process together — even if drummer Stephen Morris and guitarist/keyboardist Gillian Gilbert were largely absent. According to Hook’s ‘Substance: Inside New Order’ memoir, he and Sumner enjoyed the best working relationship they’d ever had, and made a record that they were both immensely proud of.

The album opened with "Crystal" back when the band reformed after almost a decade of absence and side projects, it was obvious that something big was needed for the Manchester veterans to successfully get back on the horse and this track was exactly what the band needed: a deliriously infectious electronic-rock single that catapults the group into the gargantuan sheen of modern production. "60 Miles An Hour" was an adrenaline-fuelled, guitar-heavy romp it was confident, and it was considered one of the best of New Order's track, "Turn My Way" featured Billy Corgan who duets with Sumner, playing the part of repressed, tortured conscience for Sumner’s straight-talking Mancunian pub-goer. Corgan croons ethereally, like a ghost of partying past, as Sumner stumbles between past regrets and confused ambitions. Although firmly anchored in the New Order canon by Hook’s mastery of the bittersweet bass line, Turn My Way was one of the most unique cuts in the group’s whole catalogue, "Vicious Streak" considered one of the songs of the set, the track swayed with a simple, hypnotic combination of Kraftwerk-esque sequencer patterns and lo-fi drum machine riffs. Hook’s trademark bass swoops in with all the discipline of an acrobat: the high-fretted melody braces itself against the steel, swings up into the clouds, composes itself in mid-air limbo, before landing with grace. 

Next was "Primitive Notion" considered New Order’s most apparent call to their proto-goth past since 1981’s Movement, it was a 1979 post-punk track gone modern. Sumner and Hook led the frock with aggressive string-playing. Galloping behind is a drum pattern with a subtle delay effect, always a millisecond off the melodic leads, "Slow Jam" was one of the most laddish recordings the band has ever released, the only thing separating Slow Jam from being a 00s Oasis track is a Peter Hook bass line. It’s really that close to mediocrity, "Rock The Shack" featuring Bobby Gillespie moved away from synth-pop, or post-punk, there’s was no tense mix between electronica and rock ‘n’ roll here. It sounded like a band not quite sure who they are anymore. "Someone Like You" was like the odd gem a true dance rock tune in every sense pure New Order, it had everything that fans have come to expect of the band through decades of electronic misadventures: an insistent drum pattern that shifts between the analogue and the synthesised, an ear-worm lead bass hook, and nonsensical lyrics of the 3am sleep-deprived brainstorm variety. 

The final tunes "Close Range" was a cautionary warning from one to friend another, it was a surprinsingly cut exploring drug abuse, it has a sort of disco synthesisers, guitar but it lacked of certain sense, and finally "Run Wild" it was somewhat confusing, cause Bernard Sumner delivered on this by attempting to write a New Order folk song.  

 

The album received generally and positive reviews back then by calling a stunning and confident return to form, they never sounded stronger or more vigorous and it deemed as the band's best album in 15 years at the time, the album was the sound of a great band breaking free of their past before your ears.

 

Get Ready Track List:

 

1. Crystal

2. 60 Miles An Hour

3. Turn My Way featuring Billy Corgan

4. Vicious Streak

5. Primitive Notion

6. Slow Jam  

7. Rock The Shack featuring Bobby Gillespie  

8. Someone Like You

9. Close Range

10. Run Wild  

New Music: Break Out

           

Swiss electronic legends Yello release their new single "Break Out," a funky electronic dance anthem that captures the delightfully unique charm of the Dieter Meier and Boris Blank-led duo. With bouncing electronic synths, Dieter’s gravelly vocals and hypnotic lyrical hooks, Break Out is a glistening gem from the Zurich-formed duo. Break Out follows their previous 2026 single Around the Sun, with both tracks set to feature on Yello's upcoming new studio album Time Lab. The duo said:"Time begins where it ends, or vice versa. This applies to the cover as well as the music of the upcoming album Time Lab. The album marks the return of Zurich-based graphic designer and artist Ernst Gamper, who was responsible for the unforgettable sleeves of You Gotta Say Yes to Another Excess and Stella."

Rocktrospectiva: The Fiercely And Emotional "Ten" Turns 35

Released on 27 August 1991 "Ten" was the debut studio album by the US rock band Pearl Jam.  Following the dissolution of their previous band Mother Love Bone in 1990, bassist Jeff Ament and guitarist Stone Gossard began rehearsing with new guitarist Mike McCready. The group recorded a five-song instrumental demo tape featuring Matt Cameron on drums. Copies of the demo were eventually given to drummer Dave Krusen and vocalist Eddie Vedder, both of whom were invited to audition for the band in Seattle. Many of the songs on Ten began as instrumental jams or Mother Love Bone songs for which Vedder composed new melodies and lyrics.

Despite its reputation as a quintessential grunge album, Ten was noted for displaying a stronger classic rock influence than other contemporary grunge releases, drawing comparisons to the work of Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin. The album is also characterised as having an anthemic, rich sound. Ten was not an immediate commercial success, but by late 1992, it had reached number two on the Billboard 200. The album produced three hit singles: "Alive", "Even Flow", and "Jeremy".

Beyond its role in consolidating the mainstream success of grunge rock in the early 1990s, Ten is generally considered to have been instrumental in the rise and dominance of alternative rock throughout the decade.

Guitarist Stone Gossard and bassist Jeff Ament had played together in the pioneering grunge band Green River. Following Green River's dissolution in 1987, Ament and Gossard played together in Mother Love Bone during the late 1980s. Mother Love Bone's career was cut short when vocalist Andrew Wood died of a drug overdose in 1990, shortly before the release of the group's debut album, Apple. Devastated, it took months before Gossard and Ament agreed to play together again. Gossard spent his time afterwards writing material that was harder-edged than what he had been doing previously.

After a few months, Gossard started practicing with fellow Seattle guitarist Mike McCready, whose band Shadow had broken up; McCready in turn encouraged Gossard to reconnect with Ament. The three then went into the studio for separate sessions with Soundgarden drummer Matt Cameron and former Shadow drummer Chris Friel to record some instrumental demos. Five of the songs recorded—"Dollar Short", "Agytian Crave", "Footsteps", "Richard's E", and "E Ballad"—were compiled onto a tape called Stone Gossard Demos '91 that was circulated in the hopes of finding a singer and drummer for the trio.

San Diego musician Eddie Vedder acquired a copy of the demo in September 1990, when it was given to him by former Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Jack Irons. Vedder listened to the demo, went surfing, and wrote lyrics the next day for "Dollar Short", "Agytian Crave", and "Footsteps". "Dollar Short" and "Agytian Crave" were later retitled "Alive" and "Once", respectively. Gossard and Ament heard the demo with Vedder's vocals and lyrics, and were impressed enough to fly Vedder out to Seattle for an audition. Meanwhile, Vedder had written lyrics for "E Ballad", retitled "Black". Vedder arrived on October 13 and rehearsed with the band for a week, writing eleven songs in the process. Vedder was soon hired as the band's singer, and the group signed to Epic Records shortly thereafter.

The band started to work in March 1991 with producer Rick Parashar to record its debut album. After working with Parashar on Temple of the Dog, Stone and Ament asked him to co-produce and engineer Ten. Parashar also contributed piano, organ, percussion, co-wrote vocal harmonies and co-wrote the intro/outro of the album. A few tracks were previously recorded at London Bridge in January, but only "Alive" was carried over from that session. The album sessions were quick and lasted only a month, mainly due to the band having already written most of the material for the record. "Porch", "Deep", "Why Go", and "Garden" were first recorded during the album sessions; everything else had been previously recorded during demo sessions at some point. McCready said that "Ten was mostly Stone and Jeff; me and Eddie were along for the ride at that time."

Ten has been described as a grunge, alternative rock, and hard rock album. Several of the songs on the album started as instrumental compositions that Vedder added lyrics to after he joined the band. Regarding the lyrics, Vedder said, "All I really believe in is this fucking moment, like right now. And that, actually, is what the whole album talks about." Vedder's lyrics for Ten deal with subjects like depression, suicide, loneliness, and murder. The album also tackles social concerns such as homelessness on "Even Flow" and the use of psychiatric hospitals on "Why Go". The song "Jeremy" and its accompanying video were inspired by a true story in which a high school student shot himself in front of his classmates.

Many listeners interpreted "Alive" as an inspirational anthem due to its decidedly uplifting instrumentals and chorus. Vedder has since revealed that the song tells the semi-autobiographical tale of a son discovering that his father is actually his stepfather (his real father having died long ago), while his mother's grief turns her to sexually embrace her son, who strongly resembles the biological father. "Alive" and "Once" formed part of a song cycle in what Vedder later described as a "mini-opera" entitled Momma-Son. 

The album's cover art features the members of the band at the time of recording in a group pose and standing in front of a wood cut-out of the name "Pearl Jam", with their hands risen high and holding one another's. The wood cut-out was constructed by Jeff Ament who later said, "The original concept was about really being together as a group and entering into the world of music as a true band...a sort of all-for-one deal." Ament is credited for the album's artwork and art direction, Lance Mercer receives credit for photography, and both Lisa Sparagano and Risa Zaitschek are credited for design. Pearl Jam's original name was taken from the professional basketball player Mookie Blaylock. It was changed after the band signed to Epic Records, as record executives were concerned about intellectual property and naming rights following Blaylock's inking of an endorsement deal with Nike. In commemoration of the band's original name, the band titled Ten after Blaylock's jersey number.

Since its released, the album has been met with widespread critical acclaim. Some praised Ten, saying that Pearl Jam "hurtles into the mystic at warp speed." Others called it "raucous modern rock, spiked with infectious guitar motifs and powered with driving bass and drums," and said it "may well be the face of the 90's metal." Others defined the album as "introspective and charged with a quiet emotional force". Althought others reviews were less enthusiastic, and called the band as a mere derivativ of Soundgarden, Alice In Chains & Mother Love Bone, even NME accused Pearl Jam of "trying to steal money from young alternative kids' pockets." 35 years later, the album has been regarded as arguably the greatest rock debut record of all time and even included the album in the site's list of "4 Grunge Albums That Are Way Better Than Nevermind"

 

Ten Track List:  

 

1. Once

2. Even Flow

3. Alive

4. Why Go

5. Black

6. Jeremy

7. Oceans

8. Porch

9. Garden

10. Deep

11. Release