Welcome all to šš¼š»š»š¼š¹š¹šāš šš¼šæš»š²šæ, a series of weekly reviews by Charles Connolly – an artist in his own right. Here, Charles delves into the greatest brand new singles brought to you by the best unsigned artists on our electrifying and eclectic set of ššš¬ š¼š§š©ššØš© šš„š¤š©š”šššš© playlists.
š¼ššššš©šš š©š¤ šššš”šŖš§š – šššæššššš
Charles is umming and erringā¦
Welcome to the wonderful world of Health and Safety. Where a nick or a scratch is a thing of the past. Well, thank GOODness. Why, a scratch is liable to get infected. Which could lead to sepsis. Which could lead to death! Iād better replace that dangerous blade back in its silicone sheath, pronto. Oh, but I must wash the knife first for fear of evil bacteria seeping throughout the country, creating the latest in widespread pandemics. But how then do I wash the inside of the sheath? Ya know, it might be best if I treat them as disposable – Iām sure thereās an automatic subscription plan on Amazon for such things. Yes, thatāll do it. But then again, this is very bad for the environment; that plastic waste will pile up underground, pushing us closer and closer to the sun. And donāt get me started on the dangers of the sun. All in all, itās probably best if I cut these raw potatoes (dangerous in themselves) with a blunt spoon. I like to err on the side of caution.
Itās quite the phrase, donāt you think? āTo err on the side of cautionā. And itās one that we use ad nauseam these days, be it in words or in definition. It runs alongside āBetter safe than sorryā. These phrases slip off the tongue with rope and carabiner, so as to be safely rescued for future use. āSafety Firstā – thereās another one. It seems sensible to me that the first priority in life should be safety. I mean, none of us wants to die. But then again, it also seems rather peculiar. As if the meaning of life is simply to manage to get through it unscathed. āLook at me, Iāve done nothing, experienced zero, achieved zilch, and not a single broken bone!āā¦ But then of course, thereās the cheeky classic: āAlways wear protectionā. Okay, so it keeps the population down. It calms parents of teenagers. It appeases whorey diseases. Butā¦ā¦ āALWAYSā?? If you heed this advice ad infinitum, you might never finally find out the wherecumfromence of babies. Besides, you could always err on the side of ābortion.
While bubble wrap has its uses, it should never be the only wearable. Besides, until Gore-Tex bubble wrap is invented, weāll quickly sweat and suffocate. Risk is what got us where we are today. Trial and error is at the heart of everything. āIf you donāt try, you wonāt succeedā. Now, THEREāS a phrase I can cower behind! To err on the side of caution, is to curl up and give up. Itās also one of the main reasons that people are so inherently lazy these days. Theyāre well aware that if they try something new, they will probably fail – so they donāt try at all. Great. Thatās one numb, dull, and frankly pointless population. It is not only great inventors, scientists and artists that should be striving and trying new things; it should be a mandate for every man, woman and child on the surface of this potentially great earth. And it is that vital word āpotentiallyā that I wish for you to see. The potential is there in all of us. Well, to an extent, anyway. Most of us, then. If we keep on being content with an output and success rate of 50-60%, then we might never come close to that ideal 100%. A change will (potentially) do you good – thank you, Sheryl Crow. But a random ill-thought-out change could make things worse. A change will do you bad. I donāt mean for people to change for the sake of change (another common phrase); a random punt is indeed a waste of time, effort and energy. I mean a calculated risk. Calculated to the extent that the probability or likelihood is success rather than failure. We donāt WANT to fail, but sometimes failure is easier and less stressful than the potential of success.
And so, to guitars and all that. This week brings a relative newcomer on the scene; he only started releasing last year in 2025. Now, I know some of you might be thinking thatās a warning sign for HAL (A.I.), but we really canāt start thinking like this, or weāll end up like old fogeys, moaning that you canāt trust anything new – or anyone young. Because, letās face it, newness tends to come from the young. We NEED the young, and weāve all got to start releasing at SOME point. This artist is also a relative newcomer in the community, having only joined at the very end of April. But from what Iāve seen so far, he aināt one of those āIāll just stay in the shadows until the end of timeā types, but neither is he one of those āLook at me, look at me, Iām so bloody brilliant and Iām such a geniusā types. Heās modest, heās attentive, heās got a brain, heās extremely kind and supportive, but most all heās genuine. Heās also got great taste; by which I mean he likes my music. And just so you know, we have not yet spoken a word to each other. Yet. His is a jib most styled. Please welcome LUDIOSIS, with his brand new shebang, āAddicted to Failureā! LUDIOSIS – aside from being yet another member of that ruthless UPPERCASE GANG – is actually an English lad named Daniel Frew. I canāt quite decide if he looks like a Dan or a Daniel. Heās probably fine with either, depending on whoās speaking, but I think Iāll stick with Dan. āDanielās the maniel who canielā slips off the tongue quite without any rope or carabiner, falling face down on the carpet – no motion: itās dead. So, Dan it is.
I have quietly been watching this artist for a while – God, that sounds creepy; as if Iām rubbing my thighs while drooling a little. Anyway. He has always been good, but I was waiting for him to truly come out of his shell with a bright pride. Heās done it. This chap aināt addicted to failure. The thing is, itās not quite failure we mean. No one can really be addicted to failure (except perhaps masochists). Itās more a borderline pass with no merit and certainly no distinction. A certain āthatāll doā attitude. I find this to be common in indie music. Hell, I find this to be common in mainstream music – at least when it comes to writing. But more to the point, I find this to be common in people in general. Theyāre not wanting to fail, but rather simply not wanting to improve, for fear that it all goes bosom skyward. Itās the risk that puts them off. And – I believe – it is THIS that Dan is portraying in āAddicted to Failureā; the inability to change oneās ways for the better. Or: the blindness in people, where they simply donāt see their own flaws.
The drummer hol- wait a sec. Dan does everything, so all that you hear is just this one man. Iāll start again. Standing tall (yes, standing), the drummer holds one stick aloft – pointing to the answer in Heaven – as the audience whoops and spills beer on purpose (despite the extortionate price) – YOLO. His other stick slams down repeatedly on the snare, interjecting occasionally with a hoof to the pedal to the skin of the kick drum. He sits, maintaining poise, energy, balance and rhythm, just as the first guitarist gets the spotlight, centre stage. It is Lennonās āRevolutionā intro – Iām sure you know it well. Mono turns to stereo as double-tracked guitars (and bass) complete the ensemble, hard-panned left and right. Itās reminiscent of Franz Ferdinand and early Bloc Party, but with more ārockā and less 2004 trendy quirk. This is high energy stuff. At 0:45, things go a little more metal, before settling back into the initial vibe. Verse 1 starts at 0:57ā¦ That means that the first whole minute is instrumental. Does this mean the song is indeed instrumental? Or does this maybe mean that the song is approximately 43 years long? Nope and nope. The song is under 4 minutes. Meaning we get less than 3 minutes of actual song (excluding the ravishing intro) – which I love. Fast rock songs should generally be pretty short – it keeps the punch and the energy, while our full attention never wanes. I must say, the unusual very long intro is a fabulous choice and works perfectly. Verse 1: welcome to the voice of Dan. But also, welcome to a sound not too dissimilar to early Queens of the Stone Age. In fact, much of the song feels a little like a happier, more energetic take on Interpol and Queens of the Stone Age. Of course, plus many other influences, such as Blondie and even our very own Mal FantĆ“me and Unobliterated (Dan, youāre not Garyās long lost brother, are youā¦?). As I must always say, though, despite all influences, there is that quintessential original LUDIOSIS sound. I absolutely adore the three-part harmony āoohsā running in and out of the piece – it gives things a slightly brighter pop feel with a smile. All in all, the drums are tight, the guitars and bass are supoyb, and Dan has one HECK of a voice. Exquisition incarnate!
Danās the man who can.
Do you only ever boil eggs – you donāt even particularly like boiled eggs – because youāre concerned that if you crack the shell, the yolk will split as soon it hits the skilletā¦? If at first you donāt succeed, fry, fry again.
Listen to š¼ššššš©šš š©š¤ šššš”šŖš§š on the šš¼š»š»š¼š¹š¹šāš šš¼šæš»š²šæ Spotify playlist HERE!
Listen to š¼ššššš©šš š©š¤ šššš”šŖš§š on the šš¼š»š»š¼š¹š¹šāš šš¼šæš»š²šæ Apple Music playlist HERE!
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