Loaver - Dolls - Zooni

Loaver returns here just four weeks after we featured 'Bloom With Me' with another gorgeous song 'Forget All About' upping the anticipation for her debut album 'Fern' due at the end of October. === We have already shared two songs from Dolls E.P 'Eggshells' and today we have another video, this time for 'Secret Ugly Baby' along with the full E.P. === It's been over a year since Zooni last graced our pages, so welcome back with the new song 'Cascara' which is a stylish and intimate art pop song.
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Loaver - Forget All About.

Malmö, Sweden, based singer-songwriter Linnea Hall started her solo project Loaver with a desire to be able to showcase all sides of her experiences and inspirations. On October 30th, debut album 'Fern' is released via Rama Lama Records. 'Forget All About' is the third single to come from the album and is out now.

In 2019, she put out her self-titled debut EP on Birds Records. The music – experimental, smooth and dark pop at its finest – was written and recorded in Italy during 2017, in close collaboration with artists such as Giovanni Ferrario (PJ Harvey, John Parish etc.), who produced the tracks, and Emanuele Maniscalco. Through the six tracks we were drawn between the uttermost boundaries of emotions – love, hate, dreams, doubt, chaos and naivety. The new record is once again recorded in Italy but this time in collaboration with Emanuele Maniscalco and Carlo Poddighe.

Loaver on Forget All About: "I wrote Forget All About with Emanuele Maniscalco in Italy last spring. It was a time when nothing seemed to be right. I guess it’s a song about the abrupt changes that arose in the gap between what was gone but at home and the present absence, or perhaps it was the other way around. The horses ran astray in the city. "

Early 2020, Loaver returned with new single 'Drömmeri (om döden)' on Rama Lama Records (Melby, Chez Ali, Julia Rakel, Steve Buscemi's Dreamy Eyes). The single, a pendant to Debussy's Reverie, is a memoriam to Linnea's grandmother that was released on her death day. This was the first taste of the upcoming album that's packed with highly unique and instantly memorable tracks, like the slow burner 'Bloom With Me', the shapeshifting 'Forget All About' and captivating 'Apart'.

The debut LP 'Fern' sees Loaver develop her creative pop and experiments with trip hop, singer-songwriter, dream pop, jazz and bedroom pop elements that together with Hall's splendid vocals and personal lyrics create a hauntingly beautiful soundscape.

Besides Loaver, Linnea Hall is the singer of Swedish experimental indie rock group Kluster B. The band have put out two records since 2018 that besides positive reviews in some of Sweden's biggest music magazines, have received international attention from Line of Best Fit, BBC Radio 6, NBHAP and more, with The Revue calling them one of the most innovative bands in the world as well as opened for Frankie Cosmos, Omni and more.

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Dolls - Secret Ugly Baby (Video) / Eggshells (E.P).

Two piece power-pop makers Jade and Bel, aka Dolls, release new single/video 'Secret Ugly Baby' and make their 'Eggshells' EP available to stream.

At the end of June Dolls physically released their long-awaited second EP ‘Eggshells’ exclusively as part of the Love Record Stores.  It was once again released with iconic soundtrack labels Mondo/Death Waltz on a beautiful limited edition multi-coloured and etched vinyl LP and digital.

This week they have released that EP digitally, plus reveal a video for latest single ’Secret Ugly Baby’.  Talking about the song, Jade explains "Secret Ugly Baby is your own anxiety, it’s born one day and evolves as you grow up. It’s not pretty and it’s not something that you always want to show to the world”.

She goes on to talk about the video, explaining "The stop-motion video by Michael Foxwell is a fun play on the lyrics. Highlighting the pressures we have from social media and our constant desire to appear like we are ‘living our best lives’... whilst simultaneously falling over!"

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Zooni - Cascara.

A powerful yet fragile mix of poetic lyrics and transcendent textures ... Brighton art-pop makers Zooni today release their latest single ‘Cascara’. Produced
with Mercury and Brit award winning producer Charlie Andrew (Alt J, London Grammar, Marika Hackman), and released via Square Leg Records, it is taken from their forthcoming ‘Familiar Ground' EP is (out October 2nd).

Talking about the song, singer Peter Martin explains that “Cascara is a bit of a downer to be honest. Its about feeling overworked and powerless to change anything. Living alone I realised I would come up with all sorts of wacky theories for happiness that bore no relation to reality and the song kind of makes fun of that.’

The track comes supported by a beautifully monochrome animated video from director Patrick Atkins.  Explaining his inspiration for the video, he explains "There's so much texture and mood layered into this song, it was a pleasure to try to and mirror that on screen and see where it took me. As with the previous video for ‘Dissolve', I knew I wanted to take the viewer on a bit of a journey on this one, and capture what felt to me like real moments of wonder and awe running through a track that's otherwise got a slightly dark mood to it. Something about falling through space seemed to fit, and the rest evolved from there".

The band today announce a special online performance recorded live at Iguana Studio where they recorded both of their EP’s. The set will include the EP and some special surprises. It’ll be broadcast live 8pm October 1st on the bands facebook and instagram pages.

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Derw - Shelley Thomas - Slow Soak - Dolls - Katie Boeck

Derw have released 'Ble Cei Di Ddod I Lawr' today, the Welsh language song conveys genuine emotion and the musical arrangement is stylish and a fine accompaniment. === Shelley Thomas shares 'Mirror' a piece that's described as world chamber pop (a good description), it's refined, imaginative and gorgeous. === Slow Soak impressed us back in May and today's release 'Moon' sees the band deliver another stunning indie rocker. === Dolls have released their 'Eggshells' E.P online today from which we have a video for 'Hot Bodies' that typifies this delicious indie rock collection. === Katie Boeck shares 'Making Some Room', a personal song that is sung with notable passion, her refined vocals immersed in a superb musical backdrop.
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Derw - Ble Cei Di Ddod I Lawr.

Derw started as a project between songwriter Dafydd Dabson and his mum Anna Georgina, a lyricist, after they got to the final of S4C songwriting competition Can i Gymru in 2018 and decided to keep writing together. The band is fronted by Welsh/Iranian singer Elin Fouladi and their debut EP 'Yr Unig Rhai Sy'n Cofio' involves musicians from Welsh acts Zervas and Pepper, Afrocluster and Codewalkers.

Drawing on chamber pop influences like The National and Elbow, the band has a strong connection with the past and their family history and is named after Anna's father - Derwas. Their family is full of interesting stories and 'Yr Unig Rhai Sy'n Cofio' (The Only Ones Who Remember) is about making sure these stories are recorded and remembered.

The track 'Mikhail' is about a friend Derwas met while studying in Jerusalem in 1926. Mikhail grew up in Russia and his father was part of the imperial navy. One night in 1917, when Mikhail was nine and his mother was away, the Bolsheviks came to his house, took his father into another room and shot him. Mikhail then moved to Palestine with his mother and, when he was 19, met Derwas, a student from Oxford. They then spent years exploring the wilderness together and trying to find peace.

The lyrics for 'Silver', the final track of the EP, are taken from a poem written by Anna's mother in the 1930s. She loved writing and had notebooks full of poetry she'd written. She tried several times to get them published but never managed it so it gives Anna and Dafydd a huge amount of pleasure to be able to make use of one of them now.

Derw’s first single, ‘Dau Gam’, came out in May on CEG Records. It was made ‘Track of the Week’ on BBC Radio Cymru as well as getting airplay on BBC Radio Wales.

Derw · Derw - Ble Cei Di Ddod i Lawr

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Shelley Thomas - Mirror.

World Chamber Pop performer-composer Shelley Thomas is set to release her new single, “Mirror” on August 28th, 2020. “Mirror” explores duality and shadow psychology in the quest for integration of the true self, interlacing diverse threads of culture through sounds of oud, qanun, piano, drums, bass, violin, and cello from a ten piece microtonal chamber ensemble.

The self-produced track was recorded by Jesse Selleck and Eric Oulundsen at Banyan Studios.

Shelley Thomas blends elements of Balkan, Arabic, Hindustani, West African, Pop-Soul and Classical styles with cinematic arrangements and emotive power to create a new genre called World Chamber Pop.

Having studied and performed World Music and voice in over fifteen languages for the last sixteen years, Shelley Thomas is no stranger to the arts.

Shelley Thomas · Mirror

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Slow Soak - Moon.

Close your eyes. And suddenly it comes back: the magic moment from the last weekend in July when Slow Soak played a concert on a roof in their hometown Basel. Romantic red evening sun. Long shadows. Cool drinks. In this atmosphere Slow Soak's haunting songs developed their magic.

They're inspired by heroes of the indie folk scene such as Conor Oberst and David Bazan, as well as by Radiohead.

But sun was out yesterday. Now the «Moon» is shining again. Slow Soak are a Who's Who of the Basel indie scene: featuring members of Don't Kill The Beast or the (now disbanded) Sheila She Loves You – two names that which known far beyond the cantonal borders.

Do you see any possibility of including «Moon» into your program and introduce Slow Soak? We are convinced that whoever writes such an intense song deserves to be heard. The band is available for interviews and live sessions.

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Dolls - Hot Bodies.

The 2-piece, comprising Jade (guitar and vocals) and Bel (drums and vocals) packed out Rough Trade East in London to launch their first EP ‘Pop The Bubble’, however in current circumstances will be operating solely online for this release, in part because Jade is in home town of London and Bel is back in Spain. The EP was produced and mixed by Margo Broom at Hermitage Studio Works in North London.

Jade explains that the ‘Eggshells EP’ is more auto-biographical than Dolls have ever been in the past and that it is “about the struggles that we have faced in our 20’s. Losing friends, creepy men, the strive for perfectionism and day-to-day anxiety. We have written about what we feel is really important as we get older. Musically we have evolved with this EP and although the gritty garage rock is still there we’ve broadened our sound with synths, percussion and multiple vocal layers.”

The “Eggshells EP”, was released as part of Love Record Stores Day alongside releases from the likes of Arctic Monkeys, Oasis, Caribou, Belle and Sebastian, Beach House, New Order, Jungle and John Grant.  Head of Doll’s label Mondo & Death Waltz Spencer Hickman explains “We're thrilled to be releasing the new Dolls EP on limited edition vinyl for the Love Record Stores event on June 20th. Record stores are suffering right now and this event is a great way for the music community to come together safely  & without worry, celebrate music culture and help stores through a difficult finical time”.

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Katie Boeck - Making Some Room.

"Making Some Room is about rebirth and personal transformation, about the moment after you hit rock bottom. I wrote this song in Nashville (with my friend Cheyenne Medders) after the death of my father, the birth of my son, and the dissolution of my marriage. This series of major life events triggered a dark night of the soul and landed me in such a state of codependency and victim consciousness I didn't know how to get myself out of.

I knew I would never be happy until I cleared space for new patterns of thinking and that meant I had to stop grieving the life I wished I'd had, and start creating the one I wanted. I made a commitment to never abandon myself or my dream again.  Stepping into an entirely new vision for my life-free from anyone else's limiting expectations-I gave my heart and mind permission to soar."

Katie Boeck has careened through several musical careers in the past decade. Shortly after graduating from UCLA with a degree in Musical Theater, Katie Boeck formed a band and began playing open mic nights on Sunset Boulevard and LA's West Side. This led to a surreal gig as the lead singer of an all-female Bollywood-Pop group that spent several months touring across India--an Eat, Pray, Love-esque experience that inspired her first EP, Speaking of You.

Her acting career took her to NYC with the cast of Deaf West Theater Company's production of Duncan Sheik's musical, Spring Awakening, sharing the starring role of Wendla with deaf actress Sandra Mae Frank, for whom she voiced, sang and played guitar, garnering television features on Late Night With Seth Meyers, NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt, and culminating in a Tony Nomination for Best Revival of a Musical and a performance at the 2016 Tony Awards. She was featured performing her acoustic rendition of Ave Maria in the final season of HBO's critically acclaimed television show The Newsroom.

She’s known to audiences in LA, Nashville and in NYC where she’s become a regular with Broadway Sings and Élan Artists and in 2018 made her Carnegie Hall debut. Her song What Are We Waiting For was covered by Tony-winner Leslie Odom Jr. and performed at Lincoln Center. Katie resides in Nashville, TN with her 3 year old son.

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Heads Or Heads - Dolls - Katherine Abbott - Mojo JNR

Heads Or Heads shares a video for 'Lake' the song is beautiful dreamy psych pop and the images add a little extra to the atmosphere. === Dolls share the title track to their much anticipated second E.P 'Eggshells,' the track itself is a fresh sounding and energised indie rocker. === From Katherine Abbott we have 'Lullaby for Lucas' a gentle and tender folk song, from a talented and pleasing artist. === The solo project of Josh David-Read Mojo JNR has a new song called 'Miles Away' which is a really fine mixture of Folk and Bedroom Pop.
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Heads Or Heads - Lake.

Kansas City-based psych pop producer Heads or Heads has a new video for "Lake," the closing song from his latest record, Low Angles.

Filmed by the project's Alex Harbolt (who is also a filmmaker by day), "Lake" is a idyllic snapshot of the lake that inspired the song coupled with Harbolt's friends shot before COVID-19 made tight-knit barbecues and swimming a temporary impossibility.

The song fittingly concludes an album built on idealism, framed around a trip to Los Angeles Harbolt took with his girlfriend in 2018.

"It was the first time in LA for both of us and I remember being there and so many crazy things kept happening that in my head, I was going 'I can make an album out of this," he says. "I grew up in rural Missouri and always wondered what places like LA would be like; it's sort of been a dream to live there for a while now. And being there in person was a very surreal experience."

Low Angles is out now on cassette and all digital platforms.

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Dolls - Eggshells.

Dolls have announced their long-awaited second EP ‘Eggshells’ will be exclusively released as part of the Love Record Stores event on Saturday June 20th. Again released with iconic soundtrack labels Mondo/Death Waltz on a beautiful limited edition multi-coloured and etched vinyl LP and digital.

The 2-piece, comprising Jade (guitar and vocals) and Bel (drums and vocals) packed out Rough Trade East in London to launch their first EP ‘Pop The Bubble’, however in current circumstances will be operating solely online for this release, in part because Jade is in home town of London and Bel is back in Spain. The EP was produced and mixed by Margo Broom at Hermitage Studio Works in North London and the first track to urace from the session is the EP’s title track ‘Eggshells’

Jade explains that the ‘Eggshells EP’ is more auto-biographical than Dolls have ever been in the past and that it is “about the struggles that we have faced in our 20’s. Losing friends, creepy men, the strive for perfectionism and day-to-day anxiety. We have written about what we feel is really important as we get older. Musically we have evolved with this EP and although the gritty garage rock is still there we’ve broadened our sound with synths, percussion and multiple vocal layers.”

The “Eggshells EP”, set for release on 20th June 2020 as part of Love Record Stores Day which is the music coming together aiming to get music-lovers to support their favourite independent record stores by shopping online on June 20, when exclusive and limited edition vinyl releases from a range of artists and labels will be made available to purchase on the websites of various record stores.

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Katherine Abbott - Lullaby for Lucas.

Katherine Abbott is a free spirited folk singer/songwriter from England. Growing up in a musical household, she has been singing all her life and began writing songs as a teenager which led to pursuing a musical career through busking & performance. Influenced by the likes of Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, and Bon Iver and inspired by the quest for freedom and the contrast between reality and dreams; Abbott composes songs on guitar that display poetic and thought provoking lyrical content and a haunting, soulful and soaring vocal delivery. Abbott’s songs blend contemporary subject matter with classic folk songwriting to create something truly unique & captivating.

Abbott began busking at the age of 16 and gigging in working mens clubs in Coventry and the West Midlands. After moving to the seaside town of Brighton, she started to play local shows and small festivals regularly, where she met and began touring with a band throughout Europe in 2010. This set alight her love of travelling which she pursued alone a year later, busking throughout Spain, living out of a rucksack and camping out. Later her travels took her further afield to India, New Zealand and Australia where she busked and played shows along the way. Tales of Abbott’s travels and the people she’s met on the road have greatly influenced her writing. Her lyrics are inspired by observing the contrast between people’s dreams and their realities. The shortcuts we take in order to reach the highs we’re hungry for and the loneliness that comes from lost dreams and the pitfalls along the way that block you from achieving your potential.

Her highly anticipated single “Lullaby for Lucas” is a song about forgiveness and not being so quick to judge others. Written after a man named Lucas, who she met whilst walking the Camino de Santiago, Abbott felt compelled to tell his story of an opera singer turned nomad.  She explains, “Lucas was an opera singer in Vienna but had lost his voice and had taken to living a nomadic existence. We had a jam in a bar one night and he tried to sing but his voice just came out as this croak which brought him to tears.”

Recorded with the talented producer, composer, multi-instrumentalist and friend; Jonathan Fletcher, “Lullaby for Lucas” glows with warm guitar melodies providing the backdrop for her delicate, ethereal vocals and storytelling lyricism. The minimalist arrangement allows for Abbott to demonstrate her ability to craft authentic music, creating a poignant and euphoric emotion. The songwriter confides, “I would hope in the moment the music may help someone to feel lighter in spirit. There’s so much beauty that exists inside our own minds and we can combat our daemons with it. I’m always dumb-struck by the transformative power of music.”

Abbott has performed up and down the country playing acoustic sets at festivals including Glastonbury, Rollright Fayre and Secret Garden Party and some of her personal highlights include playing in venues of great renown including Ronnie Scott’s & The Troubadour in London, as well as being invited to perform at the commemorative Nick Drake Gathering. Abbott is set to embark on a year of touring in 2021, showcasing her latest work with an array of releases lined up for the coming year. The cinematic and dreamlike “Lullaby for Lucas” is currently available worldwide.

Ray Dawg Records · Lullaby for Lucas - Katherine Abbott

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Mojo JNR - Miles Away.

Mojo JNR is the solo project of Josh David-Read (Singer and Songwriter for Cactus Haus). Writing more mellow folk and also bedroom pop inspired tracks.

About the Song - This was written at the beginning of the UK Covid-19 lockdown (although you’ll be pleased to hear the song is not about that specifically).

I wrote, played and recorded all the parts for Miles Away in a student bedroom with a terrific view over Swansea Bay, this helped set the scene for my mood and attitude and can easily be translated in the laid back approach to my musical style.

The music was inspired by my fascination with bands like Big Thief, Courtney Barnett and Phoebe Bridgers all of whom I am a massive fan. The lyrics were influenced by a book called Pan by Knut Hamsen.

Mojo JNR · Miles Away

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Frigga - Dolls

Frigga - Flower Flower.

Background - Frigga the British-Norwegian artist formerly known as Sasha Siem - returns with her most cosmic and sensual single to date, ‘Flower Flower’. Conceived in her home studio in Brooklyn NYC shortly after giving birth to her son, Dylan. The song was recorded in Queens Park, London with the UK producer Danton Supple. 

‘Flower Flower’ is a bold celebration of desire, the human body and the pure pleasure of being alive. With her wizard-like word-play, Frigga courageously leads us into the darkest and most challenging of truths while at the same time being radically celebratory and empowering. 

Using sacred objects - (crystals, runes, tuning forks etc.) - to create unique percussion sounds and beats, the album also marks Frigga’s return to her first instrument - the cello. Recorded at 432 hertz - otherwise known as ‘the Love Frequency’ - the vibrations and sounds of the record are intended to ‘awaken, restore, uplift’.

Frigga studied music and poetry at Cambridge University and Harvard University. She has written music for the London Symphony Orchestra, The Royal Opera House, The London Philharmonic Orchestra and was the youngest person to receive a ‘British Composer Award.  Her first two critically acclaimed albums – ‘Most of the Boys’ and ‘Bird Burning’ - were recorded in Iceland with renowned producer Valgeir Sigurðsson and have been remixed by the likes of  Matthew Herbert, Susanne Sundford, HighasaKite, East India Youth, and Rabit. She has performed at festivals and sold-out shows across Europe and the US, including; The Forum, The Ultima Festival, (Le) Poisson Rouge, Latitude Festival, by:Larm, Barbican & Southbank Centre as well as a special album premier performance at Sadlers Wells this year. WEBSITE.

The musical backdrop is rich with detail and intriguing enough within it's self, however on 'Flower Flower' it's Frigga's vocals that really captivate and standout. Like an additional musical instrument played to perfection her singing is something to behold on this charming track.


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Dolls - Pink Bones.

Background - Dolls spent the summer working with Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds / Grinderman drummer Jim Sclavunos on their new “Pop The Bubble EP”, having spent the previous year relentlessly gigging in and around the capital, packing out venues and being heavily championed by Radio X & BBC Introducing. The 2-piece, comprising Jade (guitar and vocals) and Bel (drums and vocals), can now reveal new single ‘Pink Bones’.  It builds into a hit of their infectious brand of grunge-punk.

‘Pink Bones’ was one of the first songs they wrote together, when asked about the meaning behind it Bel explains “I believe this song is like one of those abstract paintings, it can mean many different things to whoever listens to it; and we like keeping it that way. Otherwise it ruins how far your imagination can go!”

The “Pop The Bubble EP”, set for release in September 2018, marked the first time the band have worked with producer Jim Sclavunos whose production credits include The Horrors, The Wytches and Du Blonde. The result is 4 garage-pop anthems with as much sass as they have bite. Duel vocals bounce off each other effortlessly, capturing some of the awesome chemistry these two bring to their raucous live performances.

The "Pop The Bubble EP" will be released by iconic soundtrack labels Mondo/Death Waltz on a beautiful limited edition multi-coloured and etched vinyl LP and digital. The band launch the EP at Rough Trade East with an instore show on Monday 24th September. WEBSITE.

Live Dates:
Sept 24 - Rough Trade East, London
Nov 4 - The Underworld, London.

Last month we featured 'Sugar Free' from Dolls and the follow up 'Pink Bones' is another hook fuelled song from this feisty and energised rock and roll duo, as their brand of grunge-punk sparkles again.

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Dolls - Scott Lavene - Pure Bathing Culture - Jeen O'Brien - Basement Revolver

Dolls - Sugar Free.

Background - Having spent the last year relentlessly gigging in and around the capital, packing out venues and being heavily championed by Radio X & BBC Introducing, Dolls have spent the summer working with Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds / Grinderman drummer Jim Sclavunos on their new “Pop The Bubble EP”.

The 2-piece, comprising Jade (guitar and vocals) and Bel (drums and vocals), can today reveal lead single “Sugar Free”.  A riotous example of their infectious grunge-punk, it’s a song on the bands views about “the use-and-throwaway society around us today, how superficial people's lives can be, and how rapidly people's values and what's on-trend can change” 

Drummer Bel goes on to further explain, “It was a spontaneous song that came out of Jade's improvised guitar riff. When we were writing lyrics I had a sugar free drink and started thinking how people can get so peed off when they ask for diet coke and get regular. So it represents those kind of first world problems & concerns about how our worst nightmare could be something so shallow that it's just ridiculous”.

The “Pop The Bubble EP”, set for release in September 2018, marked the first time the band have worked with producer Jim Sclavunos whose production credits include The Horrors, The Wytches and Du Blonde. The result is 4 garage-pop anthems with as much sass as they have bite. Duel vocals bounce off each other effortlessly, capturing some of the awesome chemistry these two bring to their raucous live performances. "Pop The Bubble EP" will be released by iconic soundtrack labels Mondo/Death Waltz on a beautiful limited edition multi-coloured and etched vinyl LP and digital. The band launch the EP at Rough Trade East with an instore show on Monday 24th September.

Dolls have all the feisty flair a rock duo should have, and with their garage and punk leaning the attitude and determination is also present. So 'Sugar Free' is a two minute blast of expectation, delivered to specification, and some!

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Scott Lavene - My Kinda Girl.

Background - Scott Lavene has released a new single, My Kinda Girl, along with a wonderfully psychedelic video featuring multiple Scott Lavene’s. The single will be out physically 27th September and supported with a 11 date UK tour including a date at The Slaughtered Lamb in London.

In Scott’s own words, “‘My Kinda Girl’ is a song about the early stages of romance when you’re noticing small quirks about each other’s personalities. You think “oh she loves pastries and jeans and so do I. We must be meant for each other.” Love is sick like that.  It’s the most honest love song I’ve ever written.”

Born in Essex, Scott Lavene was raised on power ballads, punk and swearing. In bands since his teens, Scott travelled about, scratching out a living with deadbeat jobs trying to find something to cling to. After couple of years in France and a brief stint in New York, including a playing at the infamous CBGB’s Scott returned to London and came close to a major label deal with his sordid songs.

Instead Scott disappeared on a rusty old boat, a floating shed, for five years. Hiding from the world. Broke and bemused. Solitude and lonely debauchery. After five years of this Scott went kaput, so spent some time in a house for the bewildered where he emerged full of life and songs. A self released album in a band called Big Top Heartbreak led to being signed to Funnel Music as a solo artist. WEBSITE.

For all that Scott Lavene might have been through, he comes across as gregarious and outgoing on 'My Kinda Girl' a lovable song, with just a touch of cheekiness, something the video builds on further.


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Pure Bathing Culture - Downtown Lights.

Background - Pure Bathing Culture have shared “Downtown Lights” (featuring Death Cab for Cutie’s Ben Gibbard on backup vocals), ahead of a highly anticipated run of West Coast dates. The song comes from their full album cover of The Blue Nile’s Hats, recorded for Turntable Kitchen’s Sounds Delicious vinyl subscription series. OPB praised the new release, calling Pure Bathing Culture “virtually synonymous with glowing and bittersweet romantic songs.” This weeks release follows “Saturday Night,” the only other Hats track available outside the subscription series.

Pure Bathing Culture’s decision to cover The Blue Nile was beyond natural, nearly inevitable. Sarah Versprille and Daniel Hindman attribute their initial infatuation with the Scottish synth-pop heroes to Richard Swift, who produced the Portland duo’s debut EP. Sarah elaborates, “One morning before starting the session he asked us if we had ever heard The Blue Nile and played us a few tracks. We became immediately obsessed with their world of nostalgia and longing and the way the songs were simultaneously extremely sad at times but also intensely romantic and modern. It made us feel like the music we wanted to make was validated in some way by the fact that their music had already existed in the universe.”

Pure Bathing Culture boast a longtime reputation for spellbinding live shows. Sarah and Daniel played in the beloved Pacific Northwest band Vetiver before forming PBC. Since, they've released two full-lengths and toured alongside The Shins, Death Cab for Cutie, Father John Misty, Lucius, CHVRCHES and more. Next week, they’ll bring the infectious performance to the cities listed below, with a live band including Zach Tillman on bass and keys, Chris Icasiano on drums, and Justin Chase on keys. The West Coast shows will feature both Hats highlights and fan favorites from the full PBC catalogue, and hint at brand new, unreleased material. WEBSITE. 

Gently flowing and melodic 'Downtown Lights' is a dreamy song that exudes intimacy and plenty of "late night vibes". The production is superb, this is one of those tracks that just draws you into the emotional feeling and refuses to let you go.

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Jeen O'Brien - Medicate Me.

Background - The track, Medicate Me' is from Jeen's upcoming album titled Gift Shop which is set for release this September.

The LP was produced by Jeen herself and is titled "Gift Shop" because she's coming to terms with the necessity to put herself on display as an artist.

"Medicate Me" was "inspired by medical marijuana and also the fact that I'm pretty antisocial. This can be a challenge in the music industry when the whole point is to put yourself out there, so i guess it’s a bit of an ode to introverts too." - Jeen. TWITTER.

We featured 'Any Moment' by Jeen exactly a month ago to the day. Describing the previous track as a "feisty indie rocker," 'Medicate Me' if anything ups the power even more as it packs in a driving rhythm with the vocals melodically flying above.

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Basement Revolver - Heavy Eyes.

Background - Canadian indie-rock trio Basement Revolver share the title track from their debut album, Heavy Eyes, which encapsulates the air of weariness pervading the band’s sound. The sleepy title “Heavy Eyes” sums up a general exhaustion right down to the bone, as well as hinting at a heavier direction as they deftly merge 90s infused indie rock with fuzzy dreamy pop and poignant, yearning lyrics. As songwriter and singer Chrisy Hurn explains; “Heavy eyes is about feeling really tired. And life is hard when you are really tired.” 

The trio of Chrisy Hurn (vocals, guitar), Nimal Agalawatte (bass, synth) and Brandon Munro (drums) embarked on their first tour of the UK earlier this year, with a tremendous set at The Great Escape Festival. Previous single "Baby" has been made Amazon UK’s Week One, added to Apple’s Nightcap playlist, and Spotify’s Indie Highlights. While "Knocking" was added to New Music Friday Canada, and “New Alternative” and “Melancholy Moods” on Deezer. 

Basement Revolver’s ascent to the spotlight has been a steady trajectory, capitalising on the success of their debut single “Johnny” in 2016. The track garnered endorsements from DIY Magazine and Exclaim! as well as respected tastemakers Gold Flake Paint, who hailed it a “‘favourite song of the year” contender.  They were signed by Memphis Industries’ UK sub-label Fear Of Missing Out, who released their debut self-titled EP in 2016 with “Johnny” and their second single “Words” reaching the higher echelon of the Hype Machine chart and the EP flagged up in several end of year lists. They followed this up with the Agatha EP in 2017 where the single “Bread & Wine” reached the B-list on Radio BBC 6 Music and also garnered support from John Kennedy at Radio X. The band have racked up over one million plays on Spotify across the two EPs.

To record their debut full-length, the band returned to local studio TAPE where they had recorded both their EPs. They had build up a solid relationship with producers Adam Bentley and Jordan Mitchell, as they continued to hone their signature sound. It’s really the songwriting that makes Basement Revolver stand out from the rest. Assured yet open, beguiling yet honest, heartfelt yet playful. Unable to disguise the emotion in her voice, songwriter Chrisy Hurn shares intimate stories and personal wounds from her past. TWITTER.

The title track from the forthcoming album 'Heavy Eyes' is a solid rocker, with an aural assault that is the most powerful I have heard from Basement Revolver. Even with all of that the vocals manage to convey emotion and feeling.

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