We were delighted to see Tax The Heat return to action after what appears to have been a difficult few years, so we were further thrilled when their comeback single Celebrate Imitate clambered to the top of the Tracks Of The Week mountain like a sherpa on steroids, effortlessly leaping over various dangerous crevices and icefalls.
Accompanying Tax The Heat on their journey to the summit were Alter Bridge, whose new single Playing Aces fell just short of the peak, and prog rock's very own Big Big Train, whose Sharpest Blade offering left base camp but got tired and returned to whence it came.
This week, we have another eight climbers eager to scale Tracks Of The Week's craggy face. We hope you'll accompany them on this adventure.
Tigercub - Fall In Fall Out
Roaring out into your earholes with a monster chest-thumper of a hook, the Brighton power trio make a mighty opening case for their next album (Nets To Catch The Wind, coming in April 2026). “Our last record, The Perfume of Decay, was our midnight confession,” frontman Jamie Hall explains. “A gothic heavy-metal record steeped in anxiety and noise. Nets To Catch The Wind is the dawn that follows…the white light record set in the space between dreaming and waking. We built whole worlds out of darkness. This record is about learning to live in the light even when you know it will not last.”
Starbenders - Somebody Else
Kimi Shelter and her young band of rock mavericks lean into dark, smoky 80s dancefloor vibes as they drop this latest single. The first track they cut in the studio with new drummer Qi Wei (戚 唯), it’s a stylishly atmospheric taste of this next phase in their journey – think catchy 80s popstar sensibilities enveloped in menacing, deep-set guitars and nocturnal ambiance. Nice!
DeWolff - The Fan (feat Joe Bonamassa)
Taken from the Dutch trio’s new covers EP Fuego, this 1974 Little Feat tune gets a loose yet blistering, on-the-money facelift – both honouring the louche allure of the original and injecting it with extra fire. Capped off with a particularly fine solo from Joe Bonamassa, it does Lowell George and co proud. “We’d been trying to play The Fan by Little Feat for years, usually during rehearsals or soundchecks,” the band say. “But we never made it past the first few bars. It’s such a tricky tune: complex, laid-back, and just impossibly and effortlessly cool.”
The Virginmarys - Trippin New York City
Lifted from the Macclesfield firebrands’ brilliant House Beyond The Fires record, Trippin’ New York City gets the full single treatment complete with a brilliantly weird music video – chains, teapots, microphones and even a giant octopus tentacle retrieved from frontman/’patient’ Ally’s stomach, the latter grabbing drummer/’surgeon’ Danny in a kind of death lock… I mean, what says ‘heavy, blistering yet light-footed rock’n’roll’ like that? A snappy, effective pairing of laser-eyed intent and committed silliness.
The Imperfected - Lemmy Made Me Do It
With Motorhead-isms all over the place and Fast Eddie Clarke’s nephew jumping in for a guitar solo, Chris Catero’s love-letter to Lemmy and all who sailed in him is an affably hairy, boozy barrel of torn denim, high times and bar floors sticky with Jack Daniels. Doesn’t quite come with its own fruit machine, but it might as well. “Fun seems to be a devoid concept in a lot of rock music nowadays,” Chris notes. “This is for people like me who love Motörhead, and there are tons of 'tip o' the cap', Easter egg-like references littered throughout the tune. It's pretty geeky, really.”
Dan Byrne - Saviour
Former frontman with Liverpool's NWOCR-approved Revival Black, Dan Byrne hits a new, beefed up stride with this first taste of his new solo album, This Is Where The Show Begins. With a voice full of ragged soul-infused heft and sincerity, strapping guitars and a big, oomphy chorus, it’s a gut-punching hard rocker sure to delight the fans he’s already been accumulating – and bring in some new ones.
Stanley Simmons - Body Down
Gene and Paul's sons get their career underway with a song that sounds like Marilyn Manson's Beautiful People reimagined by Crosby, Stills and Nash. If that doesn't sound like an enticing prospect, give it a listen, because Body Down is very, very good. There are close harmonies, chiming guitars, swirling keys, rattling percussion, a great guitar solo, and a chorus that sounds like it rode in on the Californian breeze circa 1969. We are truly not in Detroit Rock City any more.
Violet - Somewhere, Somehow
The latest in our occasional series of songs that sound like they've arrived via pneumatic tube from a previous decade, Violet's Somewhere, Somehow is a perfectly formed replica of the kind of triumphant AOR smash that brightened our lives in about 1985, coming on like a combination of Heart circa Alone and Starship circa that song no one admits to liking but secretly we all do. With all the right sonic triggers in place and a chorus that's bigger than several of Earth's continents, it's little wonder the band say, "One thing is for sure: This song will stick in your head!"
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
