The Ones To Watch
Our top tips for the coming year (and indeed the decade).
Our top tips for the coming year (and indeed the decade).
Another decade begun, another round of speculation regarding whose music will make a big impression over the next 10 years. If we were to hedge our own bets based on the most-streamed artists of 2019 – a list topped by Ed Sheeran and Ariana Grande, and utterly dominated by pop and urban music – we’d probably have to concede that rock’n’roll is… well, a bit fucked.
But of course lists like these only tell part of the story, and if we’re talking about the sort of bands and artists we like – the ones we think you like too – then things don’t look too shabby. These guys are part of the new wave of artists playing first-rate rock (of various different shades), and we reckon they have a good chance of tapping into the zeitgeist over the next decade.
With the likes of The Struts and Greta Van Fleet already blazing the trail, and Massive Wagons proving that great tunes and a passionate grassroots following can get you a Top 20 album, the resurgence is well under way. So let’s dive into the next phase, and look at some names to watch.
DIRTY HONEY
This LA-based group play “new old-fashioned rock’n’roll”; think of a beefier Black Crowes fronted by the love child of Axl Rose and Steven Tyler, and you’re in the right ballpark. In their two years as a band they’ve opened for Guns N’ Roses, The Who and Slash, and become the first unsigned band to top Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Songs chart, with the ace When I’m Gone. Their self-titled EP is full of more retro-but-fresh belters like that one, and this year they’re planning to come to this side of the pond, so watch this space.
JOHN (TIMESTWO)
If you liked the intelligent, infectious racket of Idles, but also like your metal on the roaring, doomy side, then you’ll love this duo from London. So-called literally because they consist of two guys named John, their description of themselves (“four arms, four legs, two heads, wood, metal and plastic”) gives a good idea of the bullshit-free rawness at work here. But it doesn’t really do justice to the mix of classic punk, jagged alt.rock and menacing metallic sensibilities at work on their album Out Here On The Fringes. There’s a cinematic atmosphere in places too, like the title track’s distorted refrain of ‘the bodies lined up, the bodies lined up’. It’s chilling, in a good way. They tour the UK this month and next.
YOLA
When we spoke to Rival Sons singer Jay Buchanan late last year, he singled out this lady from a small town outside Bristol as his favourite singer of the moment. Listening to her soulful, rootsy Americana debut Walk Through Fire (which has seen her scoop up four Grammy nominations and tour with Greta Van Fleet) you can see why.
It hasn’t been easy for her to get to this point. Having grown up “banned” from making music, she ended up homeless on the streets of London. Somehow that didn’t prevent her launching a songwriting career, joining Massive Attack briefly before going solo. Expect spine-tingling soul vocals, pedal-steel and fiddles with a modern twist, and, crucially, gorgeous songs.
THE GLORIOUS SONS
On their new album A War On Everything, these Canadians are assuredly slick and anthemic. On stage, however, they’re all about putting on a proper rock show; the kind that threatens to fall off the rails but never does. This is the kind of music that ought to be paired with the stages and clientele currently monopolised by the Coldplays of this world. Read more about them on p.66.
LARKIN POE
If we’re being honest, we’re a little late to the party on these guys, but we’re glad to be here now because they’re doing interesting – and fun – things with the blues. Sister duo Larkin Poe are originally from Georgia but based in Nashville. Older sister Megan plays dobro and lap steel, Rebecca sings and plays guitar (she also happens to be married to Tyler Bryant; yes, as in ‘& The Shakedown’). They come from a classical and folk background, but together they play an amped-up fusion of Delta blues and filthy, garagey rock’n’roll. More recently they’ve been nominated for a Grammy, and announced a UK/Europe tour for 2020.
ASHLEY MCBRYDE
Among the current crop of Nashville-ites shaking up country staples with the rock they also grew up listening to (Eric Church, Brothers Osborne, the Cadillac Three etc), Ashley McBryde has been something of a dark horse, quietly making significant inroads as a songwriter, and releasing her debut solo album Girl Goin’ Nowhere in 2018. But the Grammy nominee is just as deserving of your attention as anyone else in Music City right now. Funny, smart and generously tattooed, she’s a breath of gritty-but-dulcet fresh air next to her shinier country-pop contemporaries.
THE FALLEN STATE
This fivesome are flying the flag for the UK-grown NWOCR (New Wave Of Classic Rock), but their reach could soon be far more global. Having already opened for bands including Halestorm, Tremonti, Black Stone Cherry and 3 Doors Down (as well as headlining Ramblin Man Fair’s Rising Stage), they’ve developed a hefty, hard-hitting modern rock sound that feels ready for arenas, without sacrificing warmth and spark. If you enjoy Alter Bridge, Shinedown, BSC and the like, you’ll love these guys.
JOYOUS WOLF
More weapons-grade classic rock’n’roll from the West Coast now, this time from Orange County, Southern California. Joyous Wolf cherry-pick from the best bits of 70s and 90s rock and bluesy metal (Creedence, Soundgarden, Led Zep…) and mix it up with their own swaggering charisma and confidence, propelled by fireball frontman Nick Reese. They first popped up on our radar with dirty, fuzzy single Sleep Weep Stomp, and a brilliant cover of Mountain’s Mississippi Queen, before upping their game with latest EP Place In Time. Keep your eyes peeled for their full-length debut.
THE HU
If you’ve already checked out the multimillionviewed YouTube videos for Wolf Totem and Yuve Yuve Yu, you’ll know what these striking Mongolian mavericks are all about. If you’re new to them, the main thing worth knowing is that they blend the traditional music of their homeland (complete with horsehead fiddle and Mongolian throatsinging) with hooky Western rock/metal sensibilities. “It’ll never catch on,” you might say. Well, it already has, as the aforementioned YouTube success, massive worldwide tours (they’re coming to the UK for shows in February) and recent inclusion in a Star Wars videogame reflect.
CROWN LANDS
Aside from looking amazing (just look at that hair! Isn’t it magnificent?!), this duo from Oshawa, Ontario make the sort of opulent, groovy noise that Led Zep might have made if they’d jammed with Rush and Jack White. It’s not your standard guitarist/singer ’n’ drummer twosome either; Cody Bowles plays drums and sings, while guitarist Kevin Comeau also plays keyboards with his feet. And with a keen eye for stylish videos and photo-shoot concepts to boot, they’re springboarding from the tones set by the likes of Rival Sons and Wolfmother. Catch ’em at this year’s Ramblin’ Man Fair.