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Sunday, May 26, 2019

Old Flame's - blues rock hybrid "Smoke Show" stirs in iconic sounds heavy on storytelling


























Smoke Show by Old Flame (based out of Northampton, MA) starts with a kinetic percussive energy stirring in so many emotional and musical genres. There is a kind of romantic Americana rock / 70's-ish blues rock thing happening but with Emma Ayres compelling vocal performance there is also an art rock theatricality pushed by an almost 60's chamber pop vibe. This blend is drenched with story telling too and I love that. The vibe (to me) almost hearkens back to vast big rock sound of songs like Blondie's doo-wop punk of Union City Blues or the garden rock of Free Money by Patti Smith. 

Old Flame is Emma Ayres (Vocals), Sam Perry (Guitar), Nate Mondschein (Bass), Ken Birchall (Drums) and Hannah Rose (Synth & Wurli). Their debut full length "Young And In Debt" just dropped on May 11th.


-
Robb Donker

PRESS NOTES:

Old Flame is born in the Western-MA DIY scene, spinning grit and honey rasp vocals into an art rock nostalgia with a shoegaze afterglow. In the words of ‘Ear To The Ground Music’: "Love this sound, retro and brand new all at the same time. Toes the line of vintage & psych rock. Addictively good." Your crush is Emma Ayres (Emma June), Sam Perry (Dios Trio), Ken Birchall (Eric Culberson band), Hannah Rose (Sodada), and Nate Mondschein (Trot Fox). Since forming in 2017, Old Flame has been nominated by The Deli Magazine as “New England Artist of the Month,” and released two EPs “Wolf In The Heather,” lauded by The Valley Advocate for its “acid-tongued lyrics that rail against corporate capitalism and capture the spirit of proto-punk in a bottle; a rollicking anarchistic flair for damning it all to hell,” and “Hush Money,” “...evoking  the intensity of The Bends and OK Computer-era Radiohead with lead vocalist singing with ethereal subtlety that’s reminiscent of Stevie Nicks from Fleetwood Mac.” You can’t get enough.

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