DRKHRT – Wild Dreams
Similar artists: Black Mountain, Dead Meadow, Ty Segall, Thee Oh Sees
Genre: Stoner Rock, Psychedelic Rock, Alternative Rock
In times of uncertainty, like the ones that we’re living through at the moment, everyone tries to find themselves. One of the greatest things about music, its rock varieties, in particular, is how well they lend themselves to getting lost. DRKHRT is a new band inspired by heavy psych-rock and by the endless possibilities of mind wandering.
Pop music is cyclical, we are often told. And if this happens to be true, then, certainly, guitar-drenched psychedelic music is due to make a comeback. This was, after all, the defining sound of the misty sound of the early 60s. Long before fancy production techniques and electronic instrumentation had taken over, audiences used to glance at the lead guitarist as if staring at a shaman.
DRKHRT’s “Wild Dreams” is a song brought directly from the rehearsal space into the recording studio. This is a new band. Their love is with the resonance of the distorted guitar signal coming out of a healthy, large amplifier. DRKHRT love nothing more than hiding before the cloud of sound that this creates and are hoping you’re willing to take the same journey with them.
Cathal Nally – Niafunké
Genre: Post Rock, Alternative Rock
Similar artists: Tommy Guerrero, Allman Brothers Band, Tinariwen, Santana, Grateful Dead
Why do most people desire to become rockstars anyway? The obvious reasons have to do with money, fame and interest from the opposite sex, sure. But the opportunity to travel and see the world has to rank highly on that list as well. You’d imagine that the best songwriters managed to soak up the influences of the lands that they visited and bring it to their art, just like Ireland’s Cathal Nally has managed to do.
Still, it’s not always so. Most rockstars confess that the most that they see of a country that they visit are the trees zipping past their car as they make their way to another hotel room. Worse still, many rockstars aren’t even all that interested. As with anything in life, it takes a desire to step out of one’s comfort zone in order to learn anything.
Cathal Nally’s “Niafunké” is a remarkable piece of music that straddles the line between African folklore and Western alternative rock. The Mali-inspired groove is immediately gripping, as is the song’s main theme. And, whether you are familiar with West African music, or you are not, it’s likely that you’ll feel how this is the work of someone who has earnestly tried to douse their music in the atmosphere of the place.
