It's been another ferocious week in the Tracks Of The Week trenches, with battles being fought hither and thither and casualties falling by the wayside until a victor finally emerged. That victor? The Cold Stares, and their newly presidential song Automobile.
Staring ruefully at the podium were the vanquished: The Hellacopters, whose Do You Feel Normal fell fractionally short, and Sons Of Silver, whose Running Out Of Words ran out of steam and fell slightly shorter still.
Our latest eight contenders are lined up below, like the suspects in some sort of rock-related crime. Please don't hesitate to vote for your favourite.
The Wanton Bishops - Gonna Be Fine
Kicking off a European tour (concluding with one UK show at London’s Camden Assembly) Beirut maverick Nader Mansour combines the delta blues of TWB’s debut with the heady mystique of his motherland. Expect expansive beats, harmonica streaks and eloquently livid lyrics, creating something dreamy and clever that’s also hooky in a brilliantly primal way. “Gonna Be Fine is the sarcastic realisation that contrary to popular belief: it is the world that’s fucked up, and we’re genuinely doing the best we can!” Mansour says. “What’s a bloody mantra gonna do to someone living in a war torn country? Zilch, nothing.”
Thundermother - Can’t Put Out The Fire
There’s really one word to sum up the energy of this classic-est of classic rockers: triumphant. Charging forth in a barrage of denim-jacketed camaraderie and fat, juicy riffage (with a whisper of Georgia Satellites’ Keep Your Hands To Yourself in the chorus guitars), "Can’t Put Out The Fire is Thundermother's love letter to rock n' roll and more specifically - KISS!” says singer Linnea Vikström Egg. “It's a trip down nostalgia lane to the time where our childhood rock n' roll dreams were made.” If you’re going to do something this brazenly old-school, you need to do it well – and Thundermother do it well.
Nite - Crow (Fear The Night)
These Bay Area dudes turned our heads with this culty yet toe-tapping banger. Charged with ultra-riffy guitar oomph that says ‘dance party’ almost as much as ‘mosh pit’, its smoky industrial mystique comes with a generous sense of heavy metal theatre. Kind of like hearing Meliora-era Ghost, with a touch of Rammstein at their most melodic. Like the sound of that? Their new album, Cult of the Serpent Sun, is out in March.
Dirty Blonde - Polly
Manchester alt.rock duo Dirty Blonde dive into 2025 with this raw, heartbroken yet surprisingly sweet fuzzbomb – all L7-meets-Nirvana angst and swagger, facing the messy dark sides of love with confidence *and* vulnerability. “We wrote Polly about that messy, crying on your bathroom floor, unpredictable side of falling in love that no one talks about,” they explain. “Someone can give you all the reassurance in the world but how do you know that it won’t all come crashing down?”
Those Damn Crows - No Surrender
After two years of festivals, chart success, big-shot support slots and mahoosive stages on career-topping headline shows, these Bridgend boys continue that upward-shooting energy on this big, moody hard rocker. Leaning further into the American-heavy-hitter end of their arsenal, No Surrender has the sort of heart-on-sleeve grit that would sit comfortably on a Black Stone Cherry record – or on any rock radio playlist. Watch out for the new album God Shaped Hole, from which this one’s taken…
Skunk Anansie - An Artist Is An Artist
Okay, this is probably what we all need today, if you buy into the whole Blue Monday thing – and even if you don’t, An Artist Is An Artist is a bloody good musical arse-kick for this grey, skint time of year. Riding on a spiky, dancey wave of 90s hedonism, gunfire lyrics and even an avant-garde sax solo (yes a sax solo, and it sounds totally natural here), Skunk Anansie’s opening taste of their next album is rock’n’roll with ravers' energy, whipsmart humour and sharp set of teeth. A biting and joyful celebration of all life’s artists, seen and unseen.
Close Enemies - Sound Of A Train
Determined to keep busy after being retired from his dayjob in the Aerosmith mothership, bassist Tom Hamilton is back with a new band, Close Enemies, who probably aren't named after the identically titled 2018 Belgian-French crime drama. The lineup is completed by drummer Tony Brock (The Babys, Rod Stewart), guitarists Peter Stroud (Sheryl Crow, Don Henley) and Trace Foster, and singer Chasen Hampton. Debut single Sound Of A Train sounds equal parts Tuk Smith and Aerosmith, with a pleasingly gritty rock'n'roll sheen, and Hampton can squeal like Hamilton's old boss. Solid.
Billy F Gibbons - Living It Up Down In Texas
In which Billy F Gibbons dives into his box of electronic gizmos and returns with a typically tweaked slice of modern blues, where the sounds are both other-worldly (his voice, and on highly processed drums) and typically Texan (on the guitar parts, which sound like the edited highlights of a ZZ Top supercut). Taken from the Paramount+ series Landman, Living It Up Down In Texas is allegedly the first track from what will be Billy F's fourth solo album, and his first since 2021's Hardware. Have mercy!
