Maff - The Harpoonist & the Axe Murderer
Maff - Hawaii / Desfile.Background - Chilean shoegaze quartet Maff will be releasing 'Hawaii', a new powerhouse single off their coming ‘Melaniña’ EP, slated for release in April. This is Maff’s first sonic offering since blazing a remarkable trail through shoegaze, alternative rock, and noise pop territory surrounding their debut album ‘Maff', released in 2015. This follows up the release of ‘Desfile’, their first Spanish-language single, having only released music in English before this. ‘Desfile’ is about feeling trapped in your life and being in a place you do not deserve to be, surrounded with toxic people and feelings. Gomez sings "Soporto un dia mas, con desechos me toca desfilar” (I hold on one more day...I’m in a waste parade”.
Formed in 2012 in Santiago, Chile by Ricardo Gomez and Nicolas Colombres, Maff’s music blossomed from a love affair with guitar pedals. Their sound was greatly influenced by The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Pixies, Ride, Sonic Youth, and My Bloody Valentine. The current line-up is Ricardo Gomez (vocals, guitar), Nicolas Colombres (drums), Valentina Cardenas (bass) and Martin Colombres (guitar).
Maff is also teasing the new EP with a video for ‘Act 2’. This is the sequel to ‘Act 1’ from the band’s debut album. The video was created by Pennsylvania’s Tim Busko, who also created the video for ‘Act 1’. The new album was inspired by Gomez’ first child Augusta. ‘Melaniña’ is an acronym combining the word ‘melanin’ (a group of natural pigments found in most organisms), chosen since Augusta is slightly albino, with the word ‘niña’, Spanish for little girl.
Created by Nicolas Colombres, the album cover artwork features an image of Augusta, who witnessed the whole process of creating this EP (songwriting, recording, mixing). “She has been my source of inspiration. This is my gift to her,” says Ricardo Gomez. “During our break between albums, I learned to be a father and learned to play the guitar. I started to write music surrounded by new feelings in my life. It is always fascinating to keep learning new things, and I was fortunate to have these two moment’s crash together in the same period of my life. I locked myself in my home studio and started to write music”.
Maff is virtually the only Chilean band ever to have caught the attention of Creation Records founder Joe Foster, well renowned for his knack for identifying great artists and trends, who says "Maff's music shows the worldwide spread of this particular style of very non rock electric guitar music. A whole world exists in which these guys excel. Love em". FACEBOOK, BANDCAMP.
We have two of the five tracks that make up the 'Melaniña' EP 'Hawaii' and 'Desfile'. Shoegaze might be at the heart of their music however Maff comfortably explore other musical areas from that point, and do so with some original ideas and sounds. Powerful and expansive the band are influenced by some notable artists, they do however, carve out their own styles and should appeal to many rock music lovers.
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Background - Having supported St. Paul & The Broken Bones at the O2 Forum in London and on other UK dates in early 2017, Canadian duo The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer returned to play several shows in their own right in mid-September just prior to the release of their current album, ‘Apocalipstick’.
‘Hard On Things’ is a brand new song by the band. A retro yet classy slab of R&B, blues, soul and rock, it was recorded in late 2017 following a tour to promote the album.
Framed by psychedelic landscapes and world-ending jam-outs, The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer ignite the gritty, blues-rock grooves they have been acclaimed for by adding drummer John Raham (The Be Good Tanyas) and keyboardist Geoff Hilhorst (The Deep Dark Woods) into the melting pot as well as the golden voices of Dawn Pemberton, Andrina Turenne, Alexa Dirks (Begonia), Ben Rogers, Khari Wendell McClelland, Erik Nielsen and Ricardo Khayatte. Add equal parts soulful, sweaty vocals and biting guitar and you have an album perfect for any doomsday date-night.
‘Apocalipstick’ is the follow up to 2014’s ‘A Real Fine Mess’, which received considerable recognition in their home territory for the Vancouver, Canada based duo of Hall and Rogers. This included a ‘Blues Album of the Year’ Juno nomination (2014) and wins for ‘Blues Album of the Year’ and ‘Alternative Album of the Year’ at the WCMA’s (2015). Their previous release, ‘Checkered Past’, also won them the ‘Blues Act of the Year’ gong at the SiriumXM Indies (2013). They have had songs featured on television shows such as: ‘CSI’, ‘NCIS: New Orleans’, ‘Bitten’, ‘Killjoys’, ‘The Good Wife’, ‘Blue Bloods’ and the aptly named TV movie ‘Lizzie Borden Took An Axe’. WEBSITE.
Our second feature for The Harpoonist and The Axe Murderer who first impressed us in August of last year. 'Hard On Things' is a bluesy rocker with more than a few soulful vibes along the way. The duo are potent, the hooks dig deep, this is one very gorgeous song.
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