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The Caress are a London-based alternative five piece, taking the wall of sound guitars of shoegaze, harmonies of 60s girl groups, and the kitchen sink lyrical sensibilities of Ray Davies to create their own brand of melodrama.
Formed in 2018, and off the back of support shows with Fontaines D.C., Talk Show and Far Caspian, The Caress’ string of self-released singles to date have received airplay on Steve Lamacq & Gideon Coe’s 6 Music drive time and recommends shows, editorial playlisting on Spotify and press coverage in the likes of Clash, culminating in a slot at 2019’s All Points East Festival.
Written whilst listening to The Beach Boys’ ‘Pet Sounds’, their latest release, ‘The Grave’, sees the band take their sound in an expansive and atmospheric direction. Lyrically, the song reflects on childhood memories of visits to the resting place of a family member.
Following the release of ‘The Grave’, the band will release two EPs in 2020, with the first collection of songs to be unveiled in May.
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Dutch singer-songwriter Marle Thomson is one to watch! With her warm and colorful voice and guitar sound, she brings soulful songs about longing, vulnerability and having the courage to open yourself up. Soulful Space Pop, as Thomson calls it herself.
Marle Thomson already made fame in The Netherlands with prominent performances and a well-received 8 track debut EP. She played live on Dutch national radio, prime time Dutch national television, performed at various festivals and stages such as Amsterdam Fashion Week, internationally acclaimed festival Eurosonic-Noorderslag and also as opening act for British singer Heather Peace and Australian singer Mark Wilkinson. In 2018 Marle went on her first ever UK tour.
Previous single ‘Satellites’, an unprecedented, striking song written, recorded and produced by Marle herself, was immediately picked up by UK blogs Music Week, Guestlist and Clash Magazine. Castles is the second single from the long awaited and much anticipated new EP that will be released this spring. The soulful sound of Castles creates a unique universe full of beats, loops, guitars, keys and vocals: a mix of power and vulnerability.
Marle Thomson about her new single: "Castles is a song about dreams. Future dreams that might fade and maybe turn out to be different than dreamed. Do we dare to accept that? Dreams might crumble and are formed into something new, like sand castles. It can be difficult to let go of the image we had, or to say a loving goodbye to someone, without knowing what the future will bring."
When we fall, we fall
Your name in the palm of my hand
We let go, we’re letting go
Crumbling castles made of sand.
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Brighton’s alt/indie bedroom whizz kids Thrillhouse return with their second single, Lesser. Lesser follows debut single One of These Days, which grabbed all who heard it, including Radio X’s John Kennedy, half of the DJs at KEXP, and Amazing Radio.
About ‘Lesser’ - Now the attention turns to Lesser. The song is a reflection on the ups and downs of life and how it can often feel like an uphill struggle - “I’ve been swimming under water, against the tide, for a long time”.
There is sincerity in the words, but a sense of playfulness in the music that reaches its joyful peak in the gaudy (but glorious) synth solo at the end of the song (a nod to Talking Heads’ exuberant live performances). The honesty in the lyrics and optimism in the music come together to create a truly uplifting and moving listening experience.
Released on Seymour Butz Records, the track was recorded primarily at home, and then completed at The Silk Mill, Staffordshire.
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The new Ani Glass album, MIRORES is finally released today (6th of March). With its tapestry of electronic sounds, elliptical melodies and samples threaded into a song cycle, MIRORES is based around the idea of movement and progress - one which takes us on a journey around her hometown of Cardiff. You can hear Ani’s recorded sounds of the urban landscape throughout; the movement of traffic and people and the magical yet infrequent sounds of nature coming together to create the score of a city’s symphony.
MIRORES also represents Ani’s first foray into production. Having been inspired by her experience of working with Martin Rushent during her time as member of indie-pop group The Pipettes, Glass has spent the past few years teaching herself the art of recording and production.
Glass' sound is inspired by many leading electronic and avant-garde artists and producers of the 1980s including Martin Rushent, Giorgio Moroder, Vangelis, Jean-Michel Jarre and Arthur Russell whilst the album’s wider themes are inspired in part by the works of abstract painter Agnes Martin and the author and activist Jane Jacobs. Despite some of the album’s heavier themes, Ani maintains a strong pop sensibility throughout, most certainly cemented during her time as member of R&B pop group Genie Queen – managed by OMD’s Andy McCluskey.
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Husband and wife Americana duo, The Danberrys, officially released their single “The Mountain” in February. The song quickly drew praise, with American Songwriter noting their musical shift to an “...outlaw country style with pivoting riffs and beats.” Now, The Danberrys slow it down and explore the weight of trauma in their latest single, and album title track, “Shine”, out this Friday on all streaming platforms.
“Shine” lyrically delves into the process of healing from childhood trauma. The Danberrys carefully crafted the track to convey the mining for one’s innate divinity by mending the pain from the darkness. Reflecting on the creation of the single, Dorothy Daniel says, "'Shine' is about finding forgiveness when there has been no justice, no apology, no explanation - forgiveness for the sake of releasing yourself. It's about journeying steadfastly towards the tiny seed of light within and setting it on fire. The lyrics reflect the hard-earned skill of existing in more than one place within yourself once, learning to accept and even embrace the dichotomy of darkness and light."
Not only is “Shine” the title track off The Danberrys’ upcoming album, releasing May 8, 2020, but also the second official track release from the project. With 12 new tracks, "Shine" departs from their signature acoustic sound to capture elements of rock, blues, and folk. This new musical direction lets the pair venture into a darker atmosphere as well as allowing their self-written lyrics to stand tall. Shine will mark The Danberrys’ third full-length album.
Currently, The Danberrys are elated to release "Shine". To continue exploring the meaning behind “Shine”, The Danberrys will be releasing a music video for the track. Directed by Scot Sax, and filmed on Dorothy Daniel’s family’s land in Charlotte, TN, the music video will depict the story of a child escaping and healing from a nightmare. Be sure to check out The Danberrys on social media and check out "Shine", once available on all streaming platforms.
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Tourists share their enveloping and driven new single Smokescreen today. It’s the second single following Align (Oct 2019), to be taken from Tourists’ long-awaited debut album Another State, mixed by producer Daniel Schlett (The War on Drugs, DIIV, Here We Go Magic), and set for release late 2020.
Tourists are a five-piece from Torquay whose sound is a distinctive strand of dark melodic dream-pop which combines elements of shoegaze and synth-pop with a deeper-rooted post-punk influence.
New single Smokescreen is indicative of the band’s more driven, darker side, created with a deliberate urgency emphasised by its persistent drum beat and siren-esque guitar riff. The song explores the Western world’s consumerist culture, one that controls and distracts us from what is important. The song took inspiration from Graham Hancock’s banned TED talk ‘The War on Consciousness’ which explores the hypocrisy of drugs laws, and what Tourists describe as “the repression of our rights to a meaningful experience that gives us an alternative perspective on our lives and our true meaning.”
Prior to the release of Align and Smokescreen, Tourists released a string of singles to introduce their sound to the world. Their Cut and Run (2016) single landed in the Spotify Global Viral 50 chart earning over 500,000 plays, receiving support from tastemakers such as DIY and Clash, culminating in Tourists playing to a packed-out tent at Glastonbury Festival on the BBC Introducing stage in 2017. The band spent the following year writing and then recording their debut album Another State, with aforementioned Daniel Schlett in his Brooklyn studio.
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