Who? Well, you know his Ma and Pa, Tracey Thorn and Ben Watt, of Everything But The Girl. This is Blake, their son, and his nom de artiste reflects, I’m guessing, a childhood listening to his parent’s record collection.

The apple has decidedly fallen pretty damn close, as this song, and indeed the whole album it forewarns, is tremendous. A paean to, I assume, the Docklands Light Railway, this is the third single and displays a seemingly effortless way with melody. Infused with fumes from both folk and country. It is easy on the ear, leaving a sense of wanting more.

Of his songwriting, Watt says:“I think my writing has been getting more pared-back as I’ve progressed. I find more and more that simple is better. I love telling a story in the simplest way or conveying a feeling in the simplest way, with not too many frills.” All views of which ATB can applaud. and does.

We’ve not heard from these Burton art-house proggers for a while, it being a jaunt since ATB last caught ear of them. This is probably explicable by Scott Milligan, being seemingly busy, setting up radio stations and newspapers. But, displaying his muse is still alive, this recently dropped, a surprise to raise the most sunstruck of hearts.

Staccato piano and sweeping cello are the first sounds heard, the contrast between the rapid-fire of the former and the sonorous bow strokes omnipresent, as other textures arise, from other strings, keyboards and percussion. A build looms and it is all rather impressive, with little wiggles of this and jiggles of that. As some propulsive drums kick in. for the final third, it becomes a glorious canter to the coast.

The cello comes from noted sideman, Ivan Massey, aka Celloman, one of Adrian Sherwoods’s On-U team, as well as innumerable sessions elsewhere. It augurs well for the new work from Milligan and co., much of which is ready in the can.

Remember Glad Town Ghost? Otherwise known as Teeside singer-songwriter Dale Husband? he’s enjoying something of a run, just at the moment, with a set of songs that relate to his personal life experiences. The experiences he sings of aren’t necessarily pleasant ones – subjects such as domestic abuse and loneliness are recurring features ion Dale’s lyrics. he doesn’t hold back, as we’re starting to discover…

A couple of months ago, we were quietly charmed by Riverside, the first song from Dale’s ongoing creative burst. And now.here comes song #2.

Flute and fluently-picked acoustic guitar provide the backing and Dales ‘Northern Nick Drake’ vocal tones are softened by light harmonies. dales lyrics are both surreal and harrowing, peppered with references to Whitby Cliffs (a notorious suicide spot) and Bowie knives. And I particularly love his use of the phrase “Newcastle Brown bread” as a rhyming slang term for ‘dead.’ And, to end, Dale’s voice slows to a slur as he delivers the payoff: “I pray you’ll never know loneliness like this.”

The first single of the year from upcoming Cardiff dram-rock quintet, Aurelia, Angelina signals the launch of a summer-long debut EP campaign. The band’s 2025 singles, Out of Sight and Get Away set the Aurelia bandwagon and motion and new single, Angelina looks set to ramp up the momentum.

The crackly ‘newsreel’ intro provides no clue to the pulsing vibrancy of Angelina. A double-headed male/female vocal sits at the heart of the song and a solid drumbeat provides the drive. Guitars and keys combine to create a forceful wall of sound. It’s the sound of the 80s, but with a healthy shot of 21st century realism added for good measure.

Liverpool has always done a good line in melodic, jangly guitar pop and that’s a tradition that’s set to continue, thanks to upcoming four-piece, Keyside. Fronted by songwriting engine room, Dani-Lee Parker, Keyside will be releasing thei`r self-titled debut album on 7th August. New single, Cocodomol is one of a series of stepping stones on the route to that release.

According to Dani-Lee: “Cocodomol explores love in Party culture. Friends-with-benefits, emotional placeholders, intimacy without permanence. It’s about waking up beside someone and being their painkiller; easing the physical hangover, while ignoring the emotional one.”

Cocodomol is archetypal jangly Liverpool pop. The guitars sparkle and Dani-Lee’s vocals are up beat and bright. I love the guitar lick that punctuates every line of every verse. Cocodomol is an ageless, life-affirming song.

Joshua Arnold and Therine are a folk duo that specialise in showcasing the darker, more macabre aspects of the British folk canon, using the drone of Joshua’s hurdy gurdy as a potent lead assault weapon. The duo’s third album is currently in the pipeline and this single – a piece that merges murder ballad Long Lankin and Yorkshire dialect funeral anthem, Lyke Wake Dirge – offers a stern warning of what Joshua and Therine have up their collective sleeve.

The nine-minute medley provides everything that those in love with the darker side of our cultural history will love. Joshua’s hurdy gurdy drone is all-pervasive, as plucked strings and Therine’s resonant drumbeat add a flavour that’s almost oriental. There is softer edge to Therine’s uncompromising vocal, but listeners have to search for it and, when Joshua brings his harmonium into play, the atmosphere chills still further.

The drama intensifies as the duo move on to their shiver-inducing version of Lyke Wake Dirge; the drone persiasts as the drumbeat sets the pace for the ghostly funeral procession. And, finally, Therine echoes the spirit of the ceremony’s fire and brimstone official as she declares: “Christ receive thy soul.”

On 28th August, The Jayhawks – long-time mainstays of the vibrant Minneapolis-Saint Paul music scene – will release their first new studio album in six years. The album arrives just as The Jayhawks celebrate their 40th anniversary and it reunites the band with famed producere Bob Ezrin. It’ll be called Sanctuary Park, and we’ll be covering it right here.

The preparations for the events and celebrations to come have been launched with Keeping Our Heads Above Water, the lead single from the forthcoming album. it’s a slice of easy-going Americana, with a gritty edge. Polished harmony vocals are sung to a backing of tinkly piano and strummed acoustic guitars. The gentle-yet-solid drumbeat sets feet tapping and the conclusion is unavoidable – this is exactly the type of song that’s immune to the vagaries of fashion or whim. Songs like Keeping Our Heads Above Water will ALWAYS be fun.

“Bruised and bittersweet” comes the blurb with this new release, an outrider for a much awaited new album from Mark Oliver Everett, aka E, the, to all intents and purposes, primary focus of Eels. And it couldn’t be more apt.

Over a repeating motif, Everett unleashes some urbane and witty world weary wordplay; tell me you weren’t doing the hand movements, yes? Part, it seems, of the travelogue of a recurring character in the forthcoming album, Cookie Happened, due in October, this taster is chockfull of trademark E rueful triumphalism. Not bad for album number 15, or 17 if you include the two as E, over a 34 year career, and counting.

Plus we have an early winner for the soon to be coveted ATB lyric competition, where “persona non grata” gets a rhyme with “we do what we gotta”. Now that’s class!