The Best Indie Songs of 2015 - The Courteeners

Wow that voice. Those lyrics. The Courteeners Has He Told You That He Loves You Yet (Aug’14) has a wordy title and quite rightly. It’s a tune that paints an aural masterpiece of being the third wheel to the wrong kind of love. Not just that, it evokes the north of England and the people. Patently something special.

Has He Told You That He Loves You Yet? is a mild, swinging, pop song evocative of The Smiths or even The Housemartins. A song that men everywhere are thanking for making them think more deeply about how their selfish actions affect others. Yeah right. Big hearts in hairy chests are pounding and vaginas gushing listening to this track. No word of a lie, this is one of the best indie songs of 2015.

“The velvet rut looms large
And stands tall
A pelvic strut and then watch
His eyes crawl…”

The Courteeners are an indie rock band from Manchester formed in 2006. Has He Told You That He Loves You Yet ? is the fourth single from their fourth album Concrete Love (Aug’14).

Shit you need to know:

Of the song Has He Told You That He Loves You Yet? The Line Of Best Fit said it “trundles in a sort of faux-psych haze of vocal hums and reverberating tambourine” and is “cringingly sweet”. Another reviewer thought the tune is "custom-made for crowds to sing a long to." 

Concrete Love was produced by Joe Cross who has done the same for Kid Astray and Hurts.

The Courteeners were compared to Bastille and The 1975 by NME in a scathing review (5 out of 10 stars).“Concrete Love is nothing to beat their own drum about.” While another bitchy review (5 out of 10) said The Courteeners have, “a knack for writing catchy radio-friendly indie pop."

The Courteeners main influences are The Smiths, The Kinks and Oasis.

Morrissey is a big fan of The Courteeners, tipping them for breaking the American market. That was in 2008. Yeah don’t think they’re a household name yet Mozzer. 

Bono popped a zipper over  The Courteeeners saying they were the best band in ten years. And if that's not enough they were big upped by Stone Roses guitarist John Squire.

The band have described themselves as the, “…biggest underground band in the world”.


Check out Next Time You Call, How Good It Was and Are You In Love With A Notion for more great Courteeners. But especially Next Time You Call.

It's a real double up today as we've got another Courteener's tune but it's them doing a cover of The Smith's There Is A Light That Never Goes Out. So yeah, fucking awesome. Natch.

“Take me out tonight,

Where there’s music and there’s people,

Who are young and alive”

The Best Indie Songs of 2015 - Wulf

 

The first thought listening to Wulf's Fire (Nov’14) is that there is an epic grandeur created by this piano to the fore indie rock song. It’s spectacular. Like One Republic maybe. Remember Apologize? No me neither. How about J Roddy and the Business, Don’t Break The Needle? Well you fucking should, that’s gold right there son. Well piano, on rare occasions, works a fucking treat in indie tunes, as observed in that Boxed In song reviewed last week, and it sure as shit works here. This is on a par with Jerry Lee Lewis and Fats Domino for piano awesomeness.

 

Back to the song in hand. A stomping beat kicks Fire off with great piano sweeps and then the song drops to a whisper, wringing the alternating quiet loud dynamic for every drip of sweaty goodness. A song dealing with depression it sure is all encompassing and that may just be the point. Don’t be put off, in every life a little rain must fall, and if it creates amazing songs like this, thank fuck, cos this is one of the best god damn indie songs of 2015.

“If I burn all these bridges to ground
Now would you come find me?”

 

 

Wulf are an indie rock band who come from London and have been destroying it since 2013. Fire comes charging off their debut short player Lairs (Feb’15). They describe their genre as “Hammering Pianos”.

Shit you need to know:

Listening to Fire Indie Shuffle were minded of good Jack White songs and said the band are “…akin to any stadium rock band a’la Arctic Monkeys or early Muse”.

The band themselves simply said their song is, “Gospel. Rocking. Piano!”

The band have been compared to early Cold War Kids and Clash Music said they are “rooted in pop classicalism” and are “strident, confident…” Clash Music also felt the song Lairs was heavily influenced by Paul McCartney.

Wulf supported the New York indie rock band American Authors in 2014.

The trio have all taken Wulf for their last name, at least on their Facebook page, possibly in homage to The Ramones or just for camaraderie, either way it's a hot stepping move.

If you want to check out more Wulf Waves is pretty good.

 

 

Stirring the porridge today is the indie rock band American Authors. Hard to choose between all their good tunes but for pure fun try Hit It (2013).

"Up and down, jump off the deep end..."

 



 

 

The Best Indie Songs of 2015 - Satellite Stories

Satellite Stories The Trap (Dec’14) comes bursting out of the traps with brass, a military drum beat and the chorus upfront. There’s a ska feel to the verses and a few changes of pace in the third minute but on the whole song is like an Eskimo having sex outside. Hard pumping to the finish line.

 

 

 

The Trap is a song about staying true to your heart in a relationship against the pressure to conform to societal norms, the horns are what make this song stand out from the others. And it does stand out from the others. The Trap is the best Satellite Stories song and one of the best indie songs of 2015.

 

 

“See the only road I know and off I go"

  

 

Satellite Stories are from Oulu, a progressive university city in Northern Norway. They have been on the job since 2008. The Trap is the first single off Satellite Stories third album Vagabonds (March’15).

Shit you need to know:

Indie Shuffle said The Trap sounds like Two Door Cinema Club and Walla. These characters called it , “...a blaring call to arms.”  I was thinking of Of Monsters And Men but I’m simple so of course I am.

The new album was produced by Simon ‘Barny’ Barnicott who has previously worked with the Arctic Monkeys, Kasabian, Bombay Bicycle Club and The Preatures.

Satellite Stories have mentioned a fondness for The Wombats, Vampire Weekend and Two Door Cinema Club. One of the bands favourite bands is The Royal Concept.

The band describe their music as, “always danceable indie rock” while others have said it is “upbeat, enthusiastic in nature”.

In 2012 Satellite Stories were the second most blogged about band in the world.

The special Satellite Stories songs are Heartbeat,  Lights Go Low and Vagabonds.

 

The dodgy double dip comes courtesy of Swedish indie rock band The Royal Concept as Satellite Stories mentioned they have a hard on for them and their anthemic singalong track On Our Way (2013).

 

 

The Best Indie Songs of 2015 - Freedom Fry

There is a vaguely tribal feel to the percussion in Freedom Fry’s Shaky Ground (Hey Na Na Na)(Jan’15) that was fashioned by beating on the floor and furniture. Whatever works. The tune minds of Katie Herzig if only because of the title and with Marie Seyrat and Bruce Driscoll swapping vocals minds me also of Of Monsters and Men. Not a bad starting point. It’s definitely middle of the road indie pop with enough talent to elevate it above the plebs.

 

Shaky Ground (Hey Na Na Na) is a loose, playful and joyful tune with drum and vocals leading and enough stomp in the chorus to get toes tapping and crowds singing. A song with that ‘everything will be alright’ optimism exemplified in lyrics like “Everyone’s time will come” and “Nothing in my world is wrong”. But y’know how seriously can you take a song with Hey Na Na Na in the title and that sounds suspiciously similar to one of their other outings, Wilder Mile? Just sit back and enjoy one of the best indie songs of 2015.

“Nothing in my world is wrong, oho
At least I'm not the only one, oho”

 

 

 

Freedom Fry are an American/French husband and wife duo from Los Angeles making music together since 2011. Shaky Ground is a single and so far they have only singles and short players to show for their efforts, albeit many of them.

Shit you need to know:

This ball sack called Shaky Ground a “Cowboy pop song” while The Revue preferred to call it, “Pure audio sunshine”.

Freedom Fry's influences are 60’s surf rock, The Ventures and Serge Gainsbourg. Their favorite bands are The Smiths and Sia.

It’s been said Freedom Fry sound like Of Monsters And Men (super sleuthing Watson), The Lumineers and Beach House.

Indie Shufflecalled them, quite accurately,“whimsical and uplifiting folk pop”.

Freedom Fry's music is making money, being used in various commercials, TV shows and franchise playlists.

The Freedom Fry songs that don't suck coke dick are Yeah You, Wilder Mile and Earthquake.

Next up is American folk rock singer/songwriter Katie Herzig because she is the best.

And of fucking course it's Hey Na Na (2009).

 

 

 

The Best Indie Songs of 2015 - To Kill A King

Love Is Not Control (Jan’15) is an indie rock song that starts with a light weight groove and sounding like Bahamas. The guitar gets a few flicks in the verses and builds up in the hypnotic choruses. There are a few changes of pace, in particular an intense breakdown, but all told the repetitive singing is the bump of this song.

 

 

Love Is Not Control is a no frills chippy indie rock tune with a take home message about the nature of love. The verses pop like an elderly nuns cherry and the chorus bites like pubic crabs and so it passes muster as one of the best indie songs of 2015.

“You tripped her in, you clipped her wings
Forced her sing and the gage that brings
No love, no joy, no can, no soul”

Love Is Not Control is the first single off their second self-titled album To Kill A King (March’15). The English indie rock band came kicking and screaming into the world in 2010 and call Leeds and London home.

Shit you need to know:

The new long player was recorded with Mark Crew, famous for doing the hard yards with Bastille and Rag’n’Bone Man.
 

The bands aim in recording the new album was to create something,“…more optimistic and life-affirming”.

Gig Slutz discussing the album threw around words like “anthemic indie”, “the passion shines through,” and called it “stadium ready”.

The Guardian called the new album To Kill A King, “instantly, insanely catchy, with feverish rhythms and call-and-response routines.” They also mentioned it didn’t reinvent the wheel.

To Kill A King have been described as similar to The National, Grizzly Bear and Frightened Rabbit. Or a blend of the Black Keys and Fleet Foxes.
The band are bossom buddies with Dan Smith lead singer of Bastille and you can find tunes they play together and a Batille remix of one of their tunes Bloody Shirt.

One of the band members, Josh Taffel,  had a hard night on the piss with a couple of oil workers in Texas and ended up with a tattoo of Texas on his back.

More murderous tracks from To Kill A King are Compare Scars and Cold Skin.
 

Poking a hole in the smoke is left to the English lads Bastille and their worldwide indie pop hit Pompeii (2013).

 

 

 

The Best Indie Songs of 2015 - Boxed In

Piano driven. Big bubbly bass. Funky as a leper’s love muscle and a smidgeon quirky. I mean outside the box. No guitars. A mite transcendental in part. Those are just a few of the reasons to love Boxed In's Mystery(Jan’15).

 

 

Mystery is an indie pop song about exploring the depths of a romantic relationship, it’s jiggy as a porn stars tits when she's on top and as much fun as a ferret down your pants, and dollars to dimes one of the best indie songs of 2015.

“Complicated sighs but in all the right directions
I look this way, and there you are”

 

 

Boxed In are a four piece band with Oli Bayston, a singer slash songwriter and producer, at its creative centre. Boxed In popped out of London in 2013. Mystery is one of a few singles from their debut album Boxed In (Jan’15).

Shit you need to know:

Lonely is the motherfucking blogger who didn’t punch plastic after hearing this ditty.

Click music described Mystery as “electric funk”. Sounds like what robot girls swallow. Stereogum said Mystery has, “atmospheric sweeps which swell and recede".

Clash music called it, “psychedelic,” fucking adjective of the year for the English, “idiosyncratic” and “whimsical.” Others mentioned "classical undertones" and a "craftsmanship and complexity worthy of a Thom Yorke or Aphex Twin".

Finally Barry Gruff opined Mystery has “an undeniably infectious groove and more than a hint of electronica.” Which does sound better than ‘stickier than a Gypsy’s gash on dole day’.

Oli Bayston played in a Manchester band Keith for years and has done grind for many bands or singers including Lily Allen.

The big man says hepitches a tent for 70’s motoric Kraut rock and House and likes The Bohicas, Little Cub and Zola Blood.

Oli has written tunes for 2 Bears, produced The Voyeurs and The Bohicas.

Boxed In's music has been described as similar to 2 Bears and poppy Hot Chip tunes.

The band have performed fluffer duties for La Roux and Django Django this year.

 

 

 

 

 

The double dip is Kiwi indie folk band Avalanche City and their New Zealand number one song, Love Love Love (2011).

Which is as happy as the title sounds. Superb video too.