L.A. Guns, The Struts, Deap Vally and more: vote for your Track Of The Week

Last week, just like every week, we ran our weekly Track Of The Week poll. And millions of you voted.

Here are the results, in tension-building reverse order.

In third place, with nine votes: The Cadillac 3 - Legacy
In second place, with 4792 votes: Wayward Sons – Alive
In first place, with 8,455,729,648 votes: Ryan Hamilton & The Traitors – Smarter

To celebrate Ryan’s victory, here’s his video again. He’ll be delighted. And please don’t forget to vote for your favourite from this week’s selection by using the handy online voting booth at the foot of the page.

LA Guns - Speed

“Nobody’s gonna take my car,” sings Phil Lewis near the beginning of Speed, mimicking the lyrics from Deep Purple’s 1972 smash Highway Star. Why does he do this? We don’t know. Either way, Speed pumps along like a pump action shotgun pumping glam bullets into the warm Los Angles night. Lewis still sings with a trace of Cockney accent, which is pukka.

The Struts - One Night Only

Talking of glam bands referencing other artists, here’s The Struts, who “do” Brian May at the 30-second mark of their new single. One Night Only has a chorus that’s bigger than an adult hippo, and if someone doesn’t write a sequel to Rock Of Ages in about 30 years that climaxes with this then we’ll be more surprised than a badger accidentally caught in the spinning blades of a combine harvester.

Deap Vally - Julian

If we were to compile a list of the Greatest 1000 Blues-Rock Duos Operating In The World Today, Deap Vally would surely make the Top 10. Here, the glamorous but demented Los Angeles pair jerk and stutter and riff and clatter like mad things, while the video contains balloons and cakes and kidnappings and stuff.

Otherkin - React

Otherkin are a troupe of spiky Irish larrikins with enough attitude to fill a big bucket. We’ve covered them here before, and they’ve not let us down this time: React sounds like one of those great lost Australian garage bands like Radio Birdman or The Celibate Spiders or The Lime Rifles or whatever they were called. Very good, in a good way.

Brother O’ Brother - Sunshine

This might be the greatest T-Rex homage since The Biters’ album. Think Bang A Gong, but with the riff pumped through an effects pedal that fucks up the entire world. Also, nice “Stone Cold” Steve Austin tribute in the video. We reckon these fellas probably watched a lot of wrestling back in the day. Maybe they still do. Perhaps we’ll never know.

Prong - Divide And Conquer

One of those bands whose influence far outweighs their commercial success, Prong have now been going for 31 years, which is 71% longer than The Beatles were together. What does this prove? Probably nothing. For Prong are Prong, and Prong’s Divide And Conquer rocks like a bucking bronco sitting astride a rocking chair balanced on a see-saw. At sea.

Together Pangea - Money On It

For a second or two we thought Together Pangea had sampled Disney’s Lion King on the intro to Money On It, but it turns out that Soundcloud are now running pre-roll adverts. Whoops! Anyway, this is lovely, with the kind of shuffling, slightly shambolic feel that brings to mind lots of Flying Nun’s early bands, tacked to a gorgeous, happy-sad chorus. It’s indie but it rocks.

The Cruel Knives - Kill The Messenger

This lot feature Sid Glover and Rob Ellershaw of Heaven’s Basement, and they’re people who clearly know what they’re doing. And what are they doing here? We don’t know, but it’s exciting. It’s like riding on the roof of a train as it accelerates while being chased by an assassin with a knife. A cruel knife. And a guitar, perhaps.

Online Editor at Louder/Classic Rock magazine since 2014. 40 years in music industry, online for 27. Also bylines for: Metal Hammer, Prog Magazine, The Word Magazine, The Guardian, The New Statesman, Saga, Music365. Former Head of Music at Xfm Radio, A&R at Fiction Records, early blogger, ex-roadie, published author. Once appeared in a Cure video dressed as a cowboy, and thinks any situation can be improved by the introduction of cats. Favourite Serbian trumpeter: Dejan Petrović.