With roots in Montreal, the band Cola was formed by ex-Ought members Tim Darcy and Ben Stidworthy. Evan Cartwright, an in-demand session musician and collaborator in Toronto’s vibrant jazz/experimental scene with acts such as U.S. Girls and Brodie West, joined after their first practice in 2019. From their inception, they’ve expanded on the d.i.y. ethic of the Dischord and SST eras, creating potent sounds from a minimal palette of drums/bass/guitar and lacing their songs with winsome one-liners and societal commentary. What’s another word for commentary? Gloss, apparently.
The Gloss is the second album from Cola. From their inception Cola have expanded on the d.i.y. ethic of the Dischord and SST eras, creating potent sounds from a minimal palette of drums/bass/guitar and lacing their songs with winsome one-liners and societal commentary. What’s another word for commentary? Gloss, apparently. Never basic, the lyrics reward repeated listening for deeper meanings. David Berman’s poetry-via-garage light pennings are an inspiration, as equally so are the lighter side of UK first-wave New Wave and the Dunedin sound.
The results are in the pudding: at times sparse and poetic, at others a thrilling, hook-laden good time, as with the cheeky romantic sketch of a one-night stand that is so overflowing with innuendo-cum-journalism talk that it almost teeters over into self-parody. But the results are the right combination of lightheartedness and sincerity. Romanticism is never far from laughter, and equally never far from righteous anger in the music of Cola: “Pulling quotes now in the dark/Our outlook is restrained/Your tongue might weaken to be-fit your smile/Til nothing ill remains.” ‘nuff said. It's an album bursting with energy and wit and ideas–filled to the margins. Out June 14th 2024 on Fire Talk.
M(h)aol
Based in Dublin, Belfast, and London, Irish intersectional feminist firebrands M(h)aol — Constance Keane (She/Her), Jamie Hyland (She/Her), and Sean Nolan (He/Him) — have built a reputation for thrilling live performances, fostering an atmosphere that encourages community and catharsis regardless of where they play. Signed to Merge after an electric SXSW set, the unit follows the North American reissue of Attachment Styles and February single “Pursuit” with “Snare”, a noisy and driving song that springs loose from gender expectations with sneering wit.
“‘Snare’ is about countless conversations I’ve had since my first drum lesson on my ninth birthday about how bizarre it is that I play that instrument, or how I should be doing it differently,” recalls lead vocalist and drummer Constance Keane. “The idea of society gendering an inanimate object like a drum kit, when it’s something that brings me so much joy and release, has always frustrated me hugely, and I thought it was time to sing about it.”
M(h)aol’s acclaimed full-length debut Attachment Styles is about social connection, queerness and healing. Upon its release, Attachment Styles received 4* reviews from both Arena on RTÉ Radio 1 and The Guardian, was profiled by Rolling Stone UK, received 8/10 from Hot Press, and the band were featured on the cover of The Thin Air.
Junk Drawer
Incorporating the imprint of Krautrock, post-punk, and psychedelia, Belfast's Junk Drawer's intuitively loose and idiosyncratic brand of indie rock mines anthems from their crate-digging tendencies. Featuring four multi-instrumentalists fluid in their roles, they cast a singular shadow, inspired by Ulster's many lost futures, and the harmony and discordance of a sibling creative partnership.
They have won 3 Awards at the Northern Ireland Music Prize, for Best Live Act & Best Video in 2022, plus Best Single for 'Year of the Sofa' in 2019 (described as a 'slo-mo guitar pop jewel' by CLASH), making them the most awarded band in the history of the prize. The band have spearheaded the grassroots Irish music community with their part in curating regular sell-out independent vinyl compilation A Litany of Failures.
Junk Drawer played SXSW 2023 and supported Superchunk across their 2023 UK Tour, and have shared stages with acts like Built To Spill, Suuns, Temples, Mclusky & Jeffrey Lewis. They have been positively reviewed and featured in The Quietus, Stereogum, Bandcamp, Paste, Clash, and Brooklyn Vegan, and have been played by the likes of KEXP, BBC Radio 1 & BBC 6Music. They’re soon set to release their second LP produced in the Meadow, Wicklow, with Chris Ryan (Just Mustard, Robocobra Quartet, NewDad).
