Emerging from the leafy heart of Nottingham, Hurtsfall have  delivered a jewel of a debut single; ‘Lucid’. Hurtsfall formed in 2017, with  three band members Mike Sinclair, Jamie Laws, and Dave Perkins, but it was not  until January 2018 when the final piece of their crown was found with Sam  Harrison-Emm adding his vocal talents to the mix.

‘Lucid’ was the natural choice for the band to pick as  their first single as it is well established and staple of the bands live set  list. You get the feeling that because this track has had decent exposure and  time to mature it has become polished enough to enjoy its time in the  spotlight.

It is a dark post-punk track with an easy manner, which  allows for a dance feel to creep in and influence the tempo of the record. The  instrumental sounds add a settled free flowing layered texture to the song  which allows the haunting gothic tones of Sam’s voice to come across clearly  as a focal point of the track.

Fans of ‘The Cure’ and ‘Savages’ will easily find a place  for ‘Lucid’ in their Spotify playlist as Hurtsfall have developed a sound that  takes the amazing qualities of these two band and blends them together to make  a unique sound of their own. The great thing when listening to this track is  the sense that this is only the beginning of the journey for the band. It is  an exciting and solid track with a clear vision of the direction of where the  band are headed. We are sure there will be more good material to come from  Hurtsfall which will grow from this first track!

3 out of 5 Hooks 

Written by Kess Anthony  

CLT DRP are an exciting electro punk trio based in Brighton who have been spending most of their time out gigging and perfecting their unusual sound. Now Annie, Scott, and Dauphine are ready to unleash this well crafted sound, in the form of their new single ‘Speak to my’.

The track starts with a thumping electromechanical beat, which instantly feels like something new and different. Then out of nowhere Annie starts to demand your attention with her comforting and emotive lyrics, which are used intelligently to draw the attention of the listener to the meaning behind the words. Lyrics like “Speak to my fat” and “you don’t own me” are stinging and raw statements for people to think about the gender equality message being driven home from the bands music.

When the track is steadily building its platform there is a blast of electro punk crashing around you and engulfing you in a sound which would be at home in the soundtrack of The Matrix, for those of you too young to remember, it is well worth a watch! Just like the film this track is refreshing and offers a new perspective to the real world and the voices that need to be heard.

After this intriguing musical salvo Annie goes back to the lyrics that underpin this track and immediately goes back to hitting out at an establishment view of how you should present yourself, this time directing the aim towards mothers with “Look at me now mum”. This is the realisation of a sound that is so current the genre hasn’t been created yet, and this is what makes CLT DRP so exciting. Keep it up!

4 out of 5 Hooks

Written Kess Anthony 

 “Some good old, head nodding, alternative rock” - Off The Hook Music Reviews

Black Lakes have all the ingredients to deliver some good old, head nodding, alternative rock. If like me, you grew up on a diet of Kerrang in the early noughties, then you will find much to like about their sound. It puts you in mind of a whole host of bands whose patches were sewn onto my ridiculously baggy ‘Bleubolt’ jeans. If this is blowing away some cobwebs in your memory then Black Lakes are well worth checking out. Dissident, the second single from their debut EP is a great place to start.

Beginning with an interesting, almost oriental, arrangement of guitars and programmed drums, ‘Dissident’ quickly breaks into a big chunky riff backed up with pounding drums with some nice work on the snare. The opening guitars return as the vocals kick in and it really should be stated that vocalist, Will Preston has a great voice for this kind of music. Whether on a gruffer growl or the more melodic, Preston’s delivery is certainly among one of this bands many strengths. From here the song is driven by a catchy chorus that will rattle around your head for hours after listening.

At this stage it would be fair to say that this is not the most original work but there are plenty of reasons to think that as Black Lakes grows in confidence that their sound will grow with them. If they could start to incorporate the intriguing sounds that feature at start and end of  ‘Dissident’ more fully into the song as a whole, then this would certainly make it stand out.

If alternate rock is not your thing then this will not be the song to change your mind but if like me you love something that is catchy, heavy and dark then give Black Lakes a go. You will find a band that is already much accomplished and well worth keeping an eye on.     

Four hooks out of five!

Written By Jimmy Rock

As soon as we heard Busted were making a comeback and releasing their new single, Radio, we hoped our radios would be broken. This is partly because we never got the craze first time around and 13 years later it seems a little cringe worthy watching three men in their 30’s pretending to be teenagers. We’ve grown up with Busted but they seem to have done very little growing with their sound.

The other reason is because like most of Busted’s other tracks it’s Charlie Simpson’s rustic voice which is their saving grace, you’ve got to feel sorry for Charlie his strong sounding voice deserves a song with better lyrics and music than Busted’s current offering. James (Bourne) seems to have slipped into the background, with Matt (Willis) and Charlie  taking the majority of the vocals, which begs the question do the two main members really need their backing singer?

The band have also seemed to have left their guitars at home for this track and gone with a sound which most generic pop acts have harnessed recently. Maybe this is Busted’s way of showing us a different more developed style or maybe they are showing a willingness to adapt to where the money is in the industry.

‘Radio’ is very much a pop track with a catchy chorus, but it's pushed on you so much, you can find it tedious after a few listens. No matter what we say here at Off The Hook Music this track will over excite boy band fans and harden the views of Busted’s die-hard fans, and all they really want is more of the same.

This is a song which that will be totally forgotten by the year 3000 and more than likely by the end of 2019.

2 out of 5 hooks

Written by Kess Anthony 

Single Name: Tide Wave 

Release Date: 11/January/2019  

Hailing from Finland, the ascending Cyan Kicks are on single number five and the album is tantalisingly close. And as you might expect from a song whose main refrain goes "Hit me like a tidal wave!", this one kicks in with a powerful rush to your veins. 

The thunderous claustrophobia of the chorus is nicely balanced by a more serene and spacious verse. And during the breakdown you're able to kick back to the surface before that chorus thrashes you one last time.

Also offering a nice counter balance is the live instrumentation with more synthetic effects. But though the production values are high, the whole thing is underpinned by an impressive melody. 

Mainly written by lead singer Susanna Aleksandra and guitarist/producer Niila Perkkiö; the pair have described how their songs production develops almost simultaneously to its melody and lyric: " it’s crucial for us to start building the soundscape right from the start (and) drive it towards our vision." 

All of which ensures - for a band so new - Cyan Kicks big sound is close to being the finished product.

Written by Matthew Nicholson