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Ralph's Indie Show.
No 1: Mildred's Dairy
Mildred's Dairy have the feel of a grown-up Orange Juice, Aztec Camera and Deacon Blue throughout this release with well-crafted, well-written tracks immaculately played and produced. Then there's the relatively tongue-in-cheek nature of the sleeve notes and the band's ambiguously anonymous bio. Possibly self-explanatory when you think more about the album's title which is based on The Helsinki Bus Station Theory.
No 2: Jess Kemp
In that time, her star has very much come into its ascendancy, especially with her video of Stars (one of the Videos Of The Week on ralphslife.co.uk last year) which was one of the musical highlights of 2015. All the more blatantly obvious due to the release of her debut EP Camden which is being launched in Manchester's Academy 3 on the 29th of April.
No 3: Véloniños
One of the finest slices of Americana-esque music to hit the kennel's juke box of late is the eponymous album by Véloniños which was released on Monday.
It's steeped in Rockabilly and Rock 'n' Roll, which is hardly surprising as it's the work of former Shakin' Pyramids duo Davie Duncan and Kenny McLellan, ably assisted by Shug Jamieson and Laurie Cuff (formerly of the infamous Cuban Heels).
No 4: HIGH/LOW
Ralph's given Essex based fuzzy post-grungesters HIGH/LOW a spin previously on his Radio KC Indie Show, so his attention piqued when news of a recently released,12 track, second album hit the kennel.
The self-produced AUTOSPY is their first recording as a full band with new drummer Dave Pankhurst. All previous releases were recorded by Guitarist/Vocals Steve Weston and Bassist Lee Yates.
No 5: The Roscoes
Some old school rocking it out is on the way from Liverpool band The Roscoes
They release a double A-side single on Friday and Skin/The Wall is a full on assault on your aural sensibilities. The two tracks have been produced by Pete Robertson, The Vaccines drummer, and mastered by Russell Cottier of the Grammy award winning Parr Street Studios
No 6: Scout Killers
The band draws its influence from the likes of Rage Against the Machine, Q.O.T.S.A, Pearl Jam and Red Hot Chili Peppers. Their powerful live sets are defined by viscerally expressive vocals, atmospheric and foreboding guitar swells and shadowy rhythmic undertones which shine through when it comes to Scout Killers songwriting.
No 7: Stu Rawle
London-based singer/songwriter Stu Rawle releases his Portland Pill EP this week, and it should see him go from strength to strength this year. His self-styled 'electro-acoustic, funky soul is exemplified in one of the strongest tracks from the EP called Lightspeed which is extremely easy on the ear and eminently radio-friendly. Ralph gave it a preview spin on the Radio KC Indie Show two weeks ago.
No 8: Bad Mood
Formed in the latter part of 2015 Liverpool band Bad Mood have been working hard to release their debut single which was recorded in the city's Crash Studios
Well, March 26th sees the release; ironically, of May 2nd which is a relatively mean and moody initiation into their work. Doom-laden vocals and menacing guitar make this a deliciously dark listen.
No 9: Mountain Jam
It's psychedelic, 'Madchester-esque' guitar driven sound is quietly addictive and sure to be a firm favorite with their fans at gigs, the next of which is in Hinckley on March 25th.
No 10: Cold Summer
Ralph's got a very short attention span of 15 seconds which he uses as a guide to picking music to feature on the blog. So when a new single drops in the kennel with a title as long as A Time Imagination Forgot To Inspire it might just have missed the cut. However the track by Leeds outfit Cold Summer made the grade due to its burgeoning intro which grabs the attention from note one before daring you to stop listening with driving guitar, punchy drums and commanding vocal.