Mick Birchall Reviews

So, this one came out of nowhere. Since I first heard Caitlin Krisko & The Broadcast in Liverpool last year ( click here to read ) I have been spinning their music consistently. I knew they had new music in the works, I was just surprised when their new EP hit my inbox. They have been bubbling under the surface for a while now. Their music is a modern rock interpretation of classic soul music, with big vocals and a smooth AM-rock feel. It’s just great music to chill out to. It’s something to experience with all of your soul. This new EP, Blueprints shines as a beacon in this new era of blues-infused rock ‘n’ roll. There are a lot of bands in this space at the moment, so it takes something special to stand out. This is an EP that I have consistently kept listening to since it landed in my inbox. This six-track EP is a solid release and does what it’s designed to do, it gives the audience a little taste and tests the water for ideas and concepts that can be taken forward onto a fu...

You know, sometimes I find bands in the weirdest of ways. Ways that start month-long obsessions with music. It’s always bands that are nowhere near me here in the UK. For the longest time, I have loved southern rock, country or anything that vaguely reminds me of the style and genre. As far as music goes it was my first love and one that I have never and will never let go. That brings me to this band, Old Heavy Hands . The five-piece rock band hailing from North Carolina has captured my imagination this year. I found them while scrolling through the new “samples” feature on YouTube Music. I quickly looked them up and found they had a new record, Small Fires . It hit me right in my soul, the first few songs played and I completely fell in love with the sound. Imagine the soul of Shooter Jennings mixed with the raw style of Drive-By Truckers and you’re somewhat imagining their sound. This new album ventures more into the rock territory of their sound but certainly has that good ol'...

Well, it’s been a big month with Canadian rockers, The Commoners . They dropped their second album Restless to mass-critical acclaim. All that work of building up to a new album and now the wait is over. I’ve had the chance to listen to it and you can read my thoughts here . I think it’s fair that I’ve become fairly enamoured with the band on this new album. So, this was a really exciting opportunity for me! This weekend I’ve had the opportunity to chat with the lead singer, Chris Medhurst about the new record, his journey from singer-songwriter to frontman of a rock band and the lessons he’s learned along the way.  With Restless being released yesterday, how have you found the reaction to the new album? The reaction has been awesome. I’ve been checking some of the streaming metrics this morning and the album’s doing really well. Considering it’s only been out for 24 hours. We’ve had a lot of really great reviews and people seem to be giving us a really great response to it, so ...

There are a bunch of bands that I would define as throwback bands. Bands that try to evoke the same rock ‘n’ roll philosophy, style and production as that decades past. Some come off as completely derivative of the genre stereotypes and never break out into their own identities. Then you have bands like The Commoners , which I feel have some real legs. Not only do they successfully capture that spirit of the classic rock era, but they modernise it in such a spectacular way. By levelling up the quality in production and writing with genre-fluidity. The super clean and punchy production that shines on record, streaming or wherever you listen to music. This is my introduction to them and may I say, what an introduction. This new record Restless is filled to the brim with golden vocals, beautiful instrumentation and quality writing. It really is the kind of music that makes you want to stand up and pay attention.  So, who are they? The Commoners hail from Toronto, Canada and comprise ...