Derby indie band The Mease are gearing up for the release of their highly anticipated second album and it truly delivers. It’s a bold and striking album that sets them apart from the crowd and it’s easy to see why it’s being tipped as an album of the year contender.
The 5-piece who formed in 2021 and consist of Tristan Cooper on lead vocals/guitar, Guy Smith on lead guitar, Adam Goulding on keys, Jon Wright on drums and Jack Stanger on bass/percussion, are one of the most exciting and biggest followed indie bands on the scene right now and this album will only see that increase.
The Machine Rolls On is infused with soul and funk, sprinkled with rocknroll and a little psychedelia and shoegazing thrown in for good measure. It’s an album that sees the band take their highly accomplished musicianship to another level.
Here’s the ThisIsTheMusic track by track preview
Dig A Little Deeper
Starting off in with chiming sitars and a haze of feedback, before lush piano riffs guide us into the opening verse. The guitar riffs have a Beatles vibe about them and sees the band wear their influences on their sleeve, putting them into a mixing pot and producing a sound that all indie bands would love to produce at some point. The chorus is a huge song along and it will leave your feet tapping in approval. A great start to album two.
Waiting For The Sun
Full of groove and upbeat melody’s this Waiting For The Sun captures The Mease sound perfectly. The vocal game me Beach Boys vibes when this track was released last year and I still hold that view. The soaring harmonies, layer with 6ps psychedelic effects only adds to that view. The groovy drumming is fantastic and carries the song forward which provides the song with a coolness and swagger that is hard to ignore.
So High
Is driven by a rhythmic, grooving guitar riff and pummelling drums that will instantly grab your attention. The harmonica playing that features throughout the track is sublime and elevates the song to another level and shows a band who are prepared to experiment with their sound. The chorus is one that you’ll be singing along to and those harmonies are fantastic. I can hear this song being used on a Tarantino film score.
Paint A Picture
No other song captures the genres of music on this album as much as this track. It’s a fusion of rocknroll, shoegaze, 60s psychedelic and Britpop. It’s a real stomper of a track built around a distorted guitar riff and a rumbling bass line, before exploding into the pre-chorus and chorus, which will make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. The epic guitar riff that takes us into outro is stunning and wouldn’t sound out of place on Revolver.
Where Did You Go
Is a trippy song, built around a captivating guitar hook and morphs into a swirling psychedelic march set to a looping blues riffs. A guest appearance on backing vocals from a classical singer is very much welcomed and just provides a real atmospheric vibe to proceedings.
The latest single Hypnotised is an entrancing sonic masterpiece, combining super-catchy synth-driven hooks, dreamy shoegazey guitars, and intricate finger-picking.
We’ve really kicked into top gear with this album. The musicianship is next level!
Guy Smith – Lead guitarist
The guitars and amps are very Beatles, Revolver and the songs are like nothing else
out there – with so many different influences from psych rock to shoegaze, Britpop to funk. We’ve even brought in a classical singer on backing vocals for a few tunes. There are lots of surprises, twists and turns. It’s a proper album and we can’t wait for everyone to hear it.”
Roll It In Time sees the band pour everything into the track. It’s full of groove and lyrics singing about “life is far too short to treat mistakes as a crime, so before we go we’ve got to roll it in time.” From the stunning (and surprising) saxophone in the intro to the weeping guitars and Glockenspiel, you get the feeling this is a band who are unafraid of going into unexpected places. It would be a great way to end the album, but that accolade has been given to another glorious track.
Lights Out In Longton
Provides a brief interlude to the album. It’s built around a piano riff that really sparkles.
The Machine Rolls On
What a way to end the album. The albums title track is stunning. It’s seven minutes of glorious and sensational guitar riffs. It’s initially led by an acoustic guitar, vocals and a sublime rhythms, before slowing building into an epic finale. It’s a sound ready made for stadiums
In essence The Machine Rolls On is an album that will stand the test of the time. It’s a perfect psychedelic blues rocknroll album full of skill and highly accomplished musicianship that sees The Mease at the top of their game. Ignore this band at your peril.
The Machine Rolls On is released on Friday 26th April and is available on limited CD and vinyl via Wax & Beans or The Mease Bandcamp page.
ThisIsTheMusic 
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