Sunday, 23 February 2020

Bleach Day - Forever Honey - Villages - Agnes Obel

Bleach Day just released 'bbs in the grass' a song that has a mixture of psychedelic vocal overtones and a creative choice of instrumentation. === Forever Honey share 'Christian' where the gorgeous melodic vocals and harmonies are accompanied by some slick guitar driven pop/rock. === The video for 'Cremation' by Villages enhances the songs story, however it's the mixing of traditional folk storytelling and more modern musical sounds that really does impress and please. === Agnes Obel hardly needs any introduction or support from Beehive Candy however ten years on and she is still testing musical boundaries and with the splendid song 'Camera's Rolling' ensuring that the new album 'Myopia' will get even more attention.
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Bleach Day - bbs in the grass.

Bleach Day released their second single “bbs in the grass” from their forthcoming album as if always, releasing March 6th via Birdwatcher Records.

The band elaborated on the track’s meaning: “‘bbs in the grass’ is the end of a cycle that comprises the full album as if always. A series of musical movements erupting into existence, the track is propelled by a multitrack orchestra of driving percussion, thick bass, hailing piano notes, and twinkling Wurlitzer.

“bbs in the grass” is reflective yet forward looking. “It is the truth learned at the end of a long introspection. It is celebratory, but accepting of the fact that you’ll soon be back in this very same spot - ending the cycle, so it can begin again.”

Their lead single “in limbo” caught the attention of Various Small Flames and Austin Town Hall, among several others, and was featured on this Cottagecore Spotify playlist, which i-D Magazine shared on their story covering the niche cultural aesthetic.

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Forever Honey - Christian.

Forever Honey is the new NYC-based project of Liv Price (vocals, guitar), Aida Mekonnen (guitar, vocals), Steve Vannelli (drums), and Jack McLoughlin (bass.) Finding common ground over a love of jangly, guitar-driven pop of the late 80s and harmony-saturated rock of the 60s, the four draw lyrical inspiration from personal experiences and self-reflection. Forever Honey's debut EP Pre-Mortem High is slated for an April 24, 2020 release.

Pre-Mortem High is the band's personal coming of age story put to music - the sound of girls and boys telling their girls and boys when enough is enough; the moment when sweet nothings whispered in the wee hours become spotlighted by sunlight, revealing holes of truth and promise.

Written on the heels of the band's relocation to Brooklyn, this record covers the anxiety of getting older, the thrill and danger of frivolous summer nights, and the pursuit of honesty. Channeling the clever, no-nonsense spirit of 90's brit pop and the jangly guitars of 80's new wave, Pre-Mortem High is their attempt at capturing the intensity of personal relationships and life in a new city, all within the confines of four songs.

About "Christian" - "Christian:" The song was actually the last to be written for our upcoming EP and came together really quickly...sort of like it's always been there. We were looking for something upbeat, and this was the result right before we went in to record. Writing it also may have subconsciously brought up some things about ourselves and the nature of our relationships at the time.

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Villages - Cremation.

Not many bands can credit a Rankin Family singalong as the impetus for their start. For Villages, it was a catalyst. In the late aughts, traditional music was the furthest thing from the minds of Matt Ellis, Travis Ellis, Jon Pearo, and Archie Rankin. Having left their Cape Breton homes for the allure of the big city, the musicians formed Mardeen – a group steeped in Halifax’s history of melodic pop- rock and anchored in the vein of their musical heroes such as Sloan, The Super Friendz, and Thrush Hermit. Long heralded as one of Atlantic Canada’s hidden treasures, Mardeen amassed heaps of praise from critics and peers alike.

Steadfast, prolific, and revered, Mardeen found themselves looking back on their heritage after an unexpected trip down memory lane. “One late night, a singalong of Rankin Family tunes broke out,” says vocalist Matt Ellis. “I remember saying to the rest of the band that we need to write something that evokes the sound of home.”

Named after an essay penned by Cape Breton illustrator Kate Beaton, Villages was born. Beginning with a song called “Hymn After Hymn”, the group parlayed their newfound appreciation for Celtic and British folk into a four-song EP with the same name. Produced by East Coast icon Joel Plaskett, the output cemented the four-piece as an entirely new entity focused on melding the melodies and lyrical influences of their deep-rooted history with contemporary instrumentation, moods, and sounds.

This turning point culminates on the self-titled Villages full-length. Recorded at their home studio in rural Nova Scotia with producer Thomas Stajcer (Joel Plaskett, Erin Costelo), the record presents a unique take on life in the Maritimes. From the opening ethereal thump of a distant kick drum and chiming distorted chords on “Awakening of Spring,” to the reel- esque drive on “Maggie of the Cove” and “Sarah’s Whistling Tune,” to the country-tinged inflections on “At Your Door,” the eight-song LP tells the story of four young Nova Scotians coming back to their traditions on their own terms. Ringing like a rural anthem, Villages serves as a reminder that while it’s easy to leave.

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Agnes Obel - Camera's Rolling.

“For me Myopia is an album about trust and doubt. Can you trust yourself or not? Can you trust your own judgments? Can you trust that you will do the right thing? Can you trust your instincts and what you are feeling? Or are your feelings skewed?” –Agnes Obel

For almost a decade, Agnes Obel has been one of the most unique and genre-defying artists in contemporary music. Last Friday, Obel released Myopia, her highly-anticipated new album which is out now on Blue Note Records in the U.S. and Deutsche Grammophon in the rest of the world.

The official music video to accompany the album’s opening track “Camera’s Rolling” is now released. Created by long-term collaborator and partner Alex Brüel Flagstad, and featuring the pair’s dog Woody, the video accompanies the themes within the album and continuously follows on from the videos for the albums’ previous singles “Island Of Doom” & “Broken Sleep.”

Following the same principles as with her previous albums (Philharmonics, Aventine and Citizen Of Glass), which she completed as a one-woman project in her own Berlin home studio, Obel has been under self-imposed creative isolation with the removal of all outside influences and distraction in the writing, recording and mixing process. “The albums I’ve worked on have all required that I build a bubble of some kind in which everything becomes about the album.”

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Saturday, 22 February 2020

Kate Kelly - Sophie Morgan - Lewin - The Stick Arounds

Kate Kelly has just released 'Quiet as a Mouse' accompanied by a video, the song itself is a gentle, melodic and quite personal indie folk piece. === Sophie Morgan makes a welcome return to Beehive Candy with 'Bar To Bar' following on from 'Marmalade' and again her alt folk is simply beautiful. === Lewin shares 'Sorrow' the third single ahead of her debut album. This is a gorgeous track from the singer-songwriter, the story around it (see below) makes it even more poignant. === The Stick Arounds recently released 'The Singles Club' album from which we have 'Connection' which typifies the quality and refreshing multi genre rock the band deliver.
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Kate Kelly - Quiet as a Mouse

Following up on her promising debut LP The Wonder of It All, Nashville-based artist Kate Kelly is back with "Quiet as a Mouse", a heartfelt new single that reveals another side of her artistry. With her two previous records, New Heartbeat EP in 2016 and The Wonder of it All in 2018 greatly influenced by jazz and soul music, "Quiet as a Mouse" marks a shift in her musical direction. Inspired by artists such as Phoebe Bridgers, Feist and early-career Ingrid Michaelson, Kate Kelly is now exploring a more indie-folk, ambient sound. Her new track could be the artist’s most personal and vulnerable song to date.

"I wrote ‘Quiet as a Mouse’ several years ago as I explored feelings of abandonment after a breakup. It was an all-consuming emotion, one that I felt in my body and in the passing of time. This song became important to write as I learned how much of myself could be regained through being left alone. It is an exploration of being left, leaving, and saying goodbye. There is strength in our endings if we honor the pain" confides Kelly.

The singer-songwriter teamed up with New-Orleans based visual artist Virginia Walcott to create a simple yet powerful black and white music video that adds another layer to the meaning of the track.

"The pain of feeling detached or unwanted in the presence of someone who once felt like home can be paralyzing. For this reason, it seemed obvious to us that the video needed to first create feelings of discomfort, rawness, disillusionment, and fear. But the song doesn’t just address the difficulties of leaving and being left — it takes you on a journey through what it feels like to fall and then rise, embracing a new beginning. There is a turn at the end of the video that sheds light on the joy, freedom, and renewal that exists if you truly move through your pain. You can find that home is not just another person, place, or feeling — it’s also yourself" explains Virginia Walcott.

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Sophie Morgan - Bar To Bar.

Sophie Morgan has announced new single Bar to Bar, which is out now and taken from her Marmalade EP out on 20th March.

Singer-songwriter Sophie Morgan has established a loyal following for her gloriously spellbinding alternative folk sound over the past few years, through the release of two EPs Sons & Daughters and Annie and stand-out tracks Above You and Hey Annie. Over the past year, Sophie has been refining her sound and her new 4-track EP Marmalade was produced at Urchin Studios in London with Matt Ingham (Laura Marling) and features co-writes with Benjamin Francis Leftwich and long-term collaborator Simon Jones (The Verve).

New single Bar to Bar follows recent release Marmalade and is an emotive track, which opens delicately before building to a gloriously upbeat chorus that showcases Sophie’s honeyed vocal perfectly. The track also features vocals from Archie Faulks, who co-wrote the track with Sophie. She says;

"Bar to Bar was the last song written for the EP, right before we were booked to begin recording. All the songs had already been decided but then this came around the corner and we couldn't ignore it. The song is reminiscing on being fourteen and beginning my musical adventures; meeting an older bartender, writing, recording, gigging across the town and falling in and out of love along the way. It was written with the wonderful Archie Faulks who lends his velvety voice to the recording and also stars in the music video."

Born and raised in Cheshire, 22-year-old Sophie began playing piano and songwriting at an early age, after being brought up on a musical education of Nick Drake and Van Morrison and later introduced to Joni Mitchell and Carole King. The influence of her father’s record collection led to recent covers of The Waterboy’s The Whole Of The Moon and The National’s Bloodbuzz Ohio, which is accompanied by a video inspired by the original.

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Lewin - Sorrow.

Lewin is the fresh musical leaf that has been turned by songwriter and musician Jara Holdert. ‘Sorrow’, the third single off Lewin’s upcoming debut album, is the most prophetic of all her tunes of goodbye. A song written while still in a relationship with her love, muse and producer Aaron Ahrends - In ‘Sorrow’ Lewin imagines exactly how her love might leave her; the small signs that point to a slow detachment, then the moving van in the parking lot, and the final scene where he’s gone, only the memory of him left.

Ironically, a year after she wrote the song, it happened exactly like she’d predicted. He moved away to Berlin without much of a warning, and it was a first step in the disintegration of their relationship. She had known it would hurt - in her lyrics, she pleaded to a personified Sorrow to try and be tender with her heart.

Half a year before the break-up, the track was recorded as one live take, to which some organ and backing vocals were added afterwards. It needed to be this way, organic and without a click-track, as Lewin lets her timing follow her story-telling, bringing her band into an emotional dynamic that slowly crescendoes to the refrain. As such, the recording captures the full arc of an musical journey and possesses the raw energy of a live performance.

Only much later did they discover that they had been filmed while playing; Aaron, the man himself, had started filming when they recorded the take. This makes for a very special document; an intimate insight into the recording process, the studio atmosphere and the focus of Lewin and her band around her. But, like in love, he disengaged before she did; Aaron puts the camera down while she’s still singing. We switch to images of a landscape flitting by; footage taken from the train to Berlin.

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The Stick Arounds - Connection.

After the release of their sophomore album ‘Ways To Hang On', The Stick Arounds found themselves with a few extra songs, and some more ideas, not to mention a hankering to continue the recording process with which they had started to find their stride. So what did they do? A single a month for all of 2019, of course! Thus the Hot Singles Club was born.

Twelve months (and 12 songs) later (seven new tunes, three covers, and studio versions of two songs from the band's live debut LP 'Mystery Garage'), they found themselves with a collection that would make a nice little LP. The resulting album highlights the band’s penchant for melody, three part harmony and crunchy guitars. There are sonic nods to Teenage Fanclub, Sloan, Guided By Voices, Yo La Tengo and The Jayhawks, but with an authenticity that could only be The Stick Arounds.

Oh, you'll also find a chimey power-pop spin on a Tom T. Hall classic, a gritty Cheap Trick number and a resurrected Beulah classic. Good stuff.

In short, “Hot Singles Club” is a snapshot of a band at the top of their game that also provides a peek at the record collection that made them what they are today.

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Friday, 21 February 2020

DOLLY ZOOM - Cormac O Caoimh - LIJO - WHOOP-Szo - Teenage Dads - Autre Monde - Chrysalism

DOLLY ZOOM are a synth pop band from Brisbane, Australia and have just released 'I Think You'd Know By Now' a mixture of warm synth vibes and atmospheric vocals. === We have to go back to 2017 for our last Cormac O Caoimh feature however 'I'm In Need' ensures that it was worth the wait, this refined song is our first taste of his new album due in May. === We are always on the look out for fresh creativity and LIJO and her new song 'Stranger Danger' does all of that with the video making for a fine companion. === With a rich expansive sound WHOOP-Szo share 'Amaruq' a gorgeous alt rocker. === From Melbourne, Australia we have Teenage Dads with the upbeat 'Adrenaline Rush' which is full of blissful sixties pop feeling. === Autre Monde share 'Brain Upon Your Pillow' a rhythmic, potent and feisty indie rocker. === North London's Chrysalism has released 'Forget Me' a short, gentle and emotion filled song that just wraps itself around you.
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DOLLY ZOOM - I Think You'd Know By Now.

Four-piece synth-pop outfit from Brisbane, DOLLY ZOOM return with their retrospective and melancholic second single 'I Think You'd Know By Now'.

Staying true to their unwavering brand of psychedelic synth-pop,  'I Think You'd Know By Now', is driven by synths, crisp guitar melodies and reverb vocals. Reminiscent and honest, the song tackles the subject of traversing romantic relationships.

"'I Think You’d Know By Now' tackles the navigation of modern love through its often-confusing landscape. Each line of the song can be understood through two polarising interpretations of affection – innocent, or disconcerting", band member Ed Pascoe explains.

Blending psychedelia with progressive rock, DOLLY ZOOM  create a uniquely tight pop package that draws influence from the likes of Daft Punk, M83, Tame Impala and Porcupine.  After their debut single release in 2019, the synth-pop quartet saw their track 'Easy For You' played across community radios nationally and voted at #29 on 4ZZZ’s ‘Hot 100 of 2019’. In addition, the band's single received a number of plays on triple j's unearthed digital radio peaking to #4 on the Pop Chart and #14 Overall.

Get your ears around 'I Think You'd Know By Now' and keep an eye out for more from the Brisbane band as its set to be a promising journey for DOLLY ZOOM.


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Cormac O Caoimh - I'm In Need.

Cormac will be launching his new album (his fifth studio album in recent years) on May 15th 2020 in the Kino. The new album (Swim Crawl Walk Run) was recorded between 2018 and 2019 with Martin Leahy at the helm. The most ambitious album yet. It features 10 songs, multi-instrumentalist Martin Leahy playing drums, bass, keys and many many more, Aoife Regan on vocals, a string quartet, accordian and big songs tackling a wide varying spectrum of emotions in both a personal and fictional setting. The first single “I’m in need” will be out Feb 21st and the album due for release May 15th.

Now everyone is supposed to say their new album is the best. It is what people do. But Cormac has never said it. This is his 5th album solo (and his 7th overall) and he has never said it. He never thought it. Largely riddled with doubt and insecurity at this stage in an album’s release, his mind normally has moved on to the next album which will be ‘the one’.  Except this time. And he is going to start talking in the first person now too….

It is the first album I actually enjoyed making. I have been playing live with Martin Leahy for over 8 years but this is my first time making an album with him (he has played on other albums). It was a joy. I loved the whole process. It was relaxed, exciting, calm, manic. Everything. And the end product is something I could not be prouder of. The songs morphed and moved and grew during the process and the end result is an album I’m not sure I can top.  It is full of singles. I want to release them all and I can’t wait for the first one to get out there. During the writing of ‘I’m in need’ I did have the simplicity and directness of The Beatles ‘Help Me’ as an influence. ‘Help me’ as a lyric is so fragile and honest and sad…but the song isn’t. The song is catchy and poppy. It works on two levels. I wanted the same for ‘I’m in need’.  I wanted it to have meaning but more so a groove and be catchy. The feeling of the song also evolves. What starts as vulnerable ends up as a celebration of our humanity. We are all in need at times. Our feelings can be shaped by our thoughts. Musically the chorus gets more emphatic and joyful as the song progresses musically demonstrating the power of positivity.

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LIJO - Stranger Danger.

Stranger Danger is the final episode of two-part ‘My Every Part’. It is LIJO’s most upbeat track so far, but with a darker undertone: it narrates about taking pride in who you are regardless of expectations or judgement, but was written to address the lack of true connection.

LIJO: “I feel everybody is on an island or in a bubble more than ever - it definitely is easier to get in touch with people, but in the meantime it is also easier to watch, compare, judge and assume without really connecting.

Though the video is quirky and has a light feel to it, it only represents the sugar coating of a more serious thing - something that I feel is going on a lot these days. I think it’s important to remain both true to yourself and open towards others.”

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WHOOP-Szo - Amaruq.

WHOOP-Szo is a force of nature, sprung from a mixed-blooded experience of Canadian history with deep Anishinabek roots. Thunderous and ground-breaking, harmonious and generative—a WHOOP-Szo show envelops audiences in an emotional weather-storm that dances conscientiously between anger and discipline, frustration and hope.

They tell us about colonial injustice loudly and punishingly, with haunting chord changes and monolithic distortion. They explore the possibility of wisdom and empowerment, with acoustic melodies that calmly find space within crushing layers of politics and sound.

On stage and off, WHOOP-Szo engages communities with a powerful synchrony that invites people to feel and to heal. They are passionate storytellers that knock loudly on the door, and reward you tenfold for inviting them in.

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Teenage Dads - Adrenaline Rush.

A breezy, blissful bop plucked right out of the 60s, Melbourne's Teenage Dads today release the giddy inducing 'Adrenaline Rush' which premiered via Home & Hosed on triple j last night.

Self-made, self managed and incredibly fun live, Teenage Dads have whipped up two EPs and a debut album full of rich, reminiscent melodies over the last two years. Their newest creates a sweet - almost hypnotic - soundscape, packed with charming vocals, honky-tonk piano and groovy basslines,

Exploring a dreamy tale of finding love, vocalist Jordan Finlay explains "Adrenaline Rush is about the head over heels feeling you might get for someone, and how it can feel like something from a dream and completely change an identity"

Teenage Dads' kinetic energy and righteous live shows have propelled the band who recently toured nationally with Lime Cordiale and performed alongside Montaigne, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, Ruby Fields and Northeast Party House. Arriving fresh from an appearance at St Kilda Festival and NYE on the Hill Teenage Dads soon join forces with The Moving Stills for a huge regional headline jaunt announced earlier this week. Tickets for 'The Antics Roadshow' featuring Teenage Dads and The Moving Stills are on sale now and Teenage Dads' single 'Adrenaline Rush' is out Now.

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Autre Monde - Brain Upon Your Pillow.

Autre Monde, a band fronted by Paddy Hanna (Girl Band back him on stage as a solo artist) – who’s name comes up regularly when talking to artists in the new Irish scene as a sort of idol to them thanks to him paving the way back into independent music when it had all but died down in the capital, are releasing “The Imaginary Museum” on Feb 28th via Strange Brew Records.

In 2018, they set themselves the task of creating a record to sound like it was made “by a band who were playing esoteric post-punk in 1979 but who are now transplanted to 1986 where a hit is demanded”. On the creation of the track, songwriter and bassist Padraig Cooney explains: "I wrote 'Brain Upon Your Pillow' as a kind of Latin-y folk ballad, all finger picked guitar. It was written in the midst of Autre Monde really finding its feet, understanding what we were as a band, and it was just natural that it would become this groove thing with a hint of desperation and drama.

That Grace Jones Pull Up to the Bumper beat, we'd be happy to play it for hours, so the song stretches out on it a bit before taking its other turns. It's a paranoid song, it's about not sleeping and the threats that torment the character at night. I always picture them as some kind of huckster made good for whom the con is over. It's Uncut Gems!"

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Chrysalism - Forget Me.

North London’s Chrysalism releases gentle, flowing new single ‘Forget Me’ ahead of debut EP ‘Your Name Here’, dropping on March 6th.

AKA Michal Vojtech, Chrysalism embraces everyday melodrama, crafting Lo-fi romantic songs set in a vintage-view futuristic world. He combines low-key RnB inflected indie-balladry with an eye for aesthetic taken from co-ownership of a visual arts collective. This spirit of collaboration is exemplified by Jakob Ogawa’s guitarist Axel Oksby appearing on the recording.

Crafting night-time vignettes as though precisely composing a photograph, ‘Forget Me’ is the latest sonic Polaroid developed in his darkroom. It’s a willowy waltz built around bubbling arpeggios, reminiscent of a lullaby in the way it drifts and becalms. There’s a solemn undertone too, as Michal expresses opaquely:

“’Forget Me’ is about car crashing with your lover at the speed of 130 BPM. It's about those few frames of saying goodbye. Like an old French movie. A small melancholic gesture. A smile. He leaves. This time for good.”

This recourse to cinematic influences is archetypal of the story-lead approach Michal usually takes. He swings from the sombre to the surreal; previous singles have taken on being haunted by the idea of love, Elon Musk stealing his girlfriend away to Mars, cult Japanese actor Tomokazu Miura, or the melancholy travails of a lonely Monday Nite DJ.

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Wednesday, 19 February 2020

Wilsen - Linaire - Brooke Annibale - Micra

Wilsen return with their new single 'Align' just ahead of the album 'Ruiner'. We have already shared a couple of tracks from the new collection and the latest again promises that we are in for a real treat. === We have to go back to October 2016 for the last time we featured Anna Atkinson, however she is back with her new project Linaire and the beautiful song 'Feeling' accompanied by her rich sounding Omnichord. === Another artist making her third appearance here is Brooke Annibale with 'I Will'. We don't feature that many cover versions but Brooke really does give this Beatles song her own stamp. === Micra have released 'Chemical Freedom' accompanied by a video, the dream pop duo really have created a gorgeous song (and it's welcome back here for a third time as well!).

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Wilsen - Align.

Today, the Brooklyn-based trio Wilsen released a new single "Align" ahead of their new album Ruiner out this Friday, February 21 via Secret City Records / Dalliance Recordings.

"'Align' is about the weight and occasional jolting effect of eye contact. That rare experience when connecting eyes throws you into a narrative," explains Tamsin Wilson. "The song was arranged with drummer Gabe Smith who helped us trim the excess and stabilize dynamics.  His involvement was crucial in our record-making process. We tracked the basics at Douglass Recordings and Johnny’s guitar overdubs at Black Lodge studio, using the original bedroom demo vocal percussion to kick off the song."

For the follow-up to their acclaimed debut I Go Missing In My Sleep, the trio comprised of Tamsin Wilson (guitar/vocals), Johnny Simon Jr. (guitar) and Drew Arndt (bass) partnered with acclaimed producer Andrew Sarlo (Big Thief, Bon Iver) and mastering engineer Sarah Register (Ariana Grande, Protomartyr, U.S. Girls).

For Tamsin Wilson, the album finds her moving towards personal self-acceptance. "I have an inherent shyness," she says. "I'm acknowledging and finding a way with it as I get older." Throughout the record, she comes to terms with her many sides, including her introversion and her inner, self-sabotaging monster to which the album title refers. On "Feeling Fancy," with her distinctively hushed vocals overpowering the track’s clamorous instrumentals, Wilson offers listeners a powerful, and celebratory, declaration that "Quiet’s not a fault to weed out."

"Making this record was somewhat of a coming of age process," Wilson explains. "We're getting older and becoming more deliberate, less precious, less measured. Overthinking less and trusting instincts more."

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Linaire - Feeling.

Linaire is the new songwriting project of Montreal-based singer, composer and multi-instrumentalist, Anna Atkinson. Linaire combines uncluttered electronic beats and ethereal synths with incandescent strings and poetically lucid lyrics to produce music that is at once spacious and full. Like plastic antiques, the songs feel both timeless and contemporary. Born out of Anna’s fascination with simple song forms and economic use of words, the songs explore themes of lineage, identity, time and anxiety.

In 2016, after a decade working as a freelance musician in Toronto, Anna took a break from performing and moved to Montreal. She took French lessons and spent months developing her knowledge of music production and live sound processing. She simultaneously began writing songs, examining the roots of her most debilitating emotions – anxiety, regret and depression. What emerged artistically was something very different from her previous records. Not only lyrically, but also stylistically, not least because of her use of the Omnichord in place of a piano or guitar. With its warm chords and simple beat box, the instrument pulled Anna in the direction of minimal electronic pop, a kind of crossing of Young Marble Giants and Harry Nilsson, two of her most significant sources of inspiration.

In the deep winter of 2019 Anna took ten songs and her Omnichord into a Montreal studio with co-producer and musician, Alexander MacSween (Bionic, The Nils). Three weeks later she emerged with an album that is certainly her most personally gratifying to date. From the very direct opener, Feeling, to the uplifting, Best I Can, and the darker meandering song, Oh Who, the album was made using a variety of synthesizers and drum machines and with an occasional appearance by Anna’s viola. The singing is at times nakedly intimate and at others almost anthemic, with floating layers of unison and harmony vocals. The album travels from beginning to end like a great collection of short stories.

In the last two years, Anna has performed Linaire in cities across Canada and in Japan and has been amassing a growing group of fans. She currently preforms solo and aims to add musicians to her live set as it becomes practical. Linaire’s eponymous album will be released later this year.

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Brooke Annibale - I Will.

Singer-songwriter/guitarist Brooke Annibale has this week released a rendition of The Beatles’ classic “I Will.” The new single arrives just ahead of her debut European tour date.

“I first learned this song over 10 years ago for my cousin’s wedding,” stated Brooke. “My cousin and his then fiancee each chose a song for one another. They kept the songs secret, until I played them during the ceremony as a part of their vows, one song from him to her and one song from her to him. It was a pretty special moment to be a part of. I’ve been covering the song ever since, every once in a while. I thought it would be cool to record and rearrange the song a bit, make it a little darker and dramatic, but still keep the song’s sweet and well, endearing qualities.

Her first ever European tour includes stops in the Netherlands, Germany, France, and the UK. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.brookeannibale.com.

Brooke’s latest album Hold To The Light has been met with critical acclaim from Billboard, Uproxx, The Wild Honey Pie, Under The Radar, and more, featuring production by Sam Kassirer (Josh Ritter, Lake Street Dive) and guest musicians Josh Kaufman (The National), Matt Douglas (Sylvan Esso) and Zach Hickman (Ray Lamontagne, Josh Ritter). Brooke is currently writing new material for her next album that she will debut on the upcoming tour.

Tour Dates:
04/15 - Amsterdam, NL @ Cinetol
04/16 - Nijmegen, NL @ Merleyn
04/17 - Cologne, DE @ Wohngemeinschaft
04/18 - Rodenberg, DE @ House Concert
04/19 - Berlin, DE @ Auster Club
04/21 - Paris, FR @ Sofar Sounds
04/22 - Laval, FR @ Le Lardin Bavarois
04/23 - Fontenay-le-Comte, FR @ La Chopine
04/24 - St-Aubin-du-Pavail, FR @ La Grange du Pavail
04/25 - Mellionnec, FR @ House Concert
04/26 - Rennes, FR @ Bistrot Cocagne
04/29 - Winchester, UK @ Railway
04/30 - London, UK @ Slaughtered Lamb.

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Micra - Chemical Freedom.

Sydney's Micra have today released their swirling and euphoric new single, 'Chemical Freedom' via Liberation Records. 'Chemical Freedom' marks the start of an exciting chapter for the rising dreampop duo and is a spellbinding example of their ability to turn a melting pot of influences into their own hallucinatory indie pop perfection.

A technicolor journey through #NSFW chemical-fuelled erotic encounters, the theatrics of 'Chemical Freedom' is presented in a stunning music video directed by Justin Ridler. Having worked in the past with Baz Luhrmann and Iraxta Ansa, Justin perfectly captures the essence of the track using motion capture animation through psych-tinged lens distortion. The song and video arrives as music lovers around Australia continue to battle with state governments over harm minimisation approaches to chemical consumption. Speaking on video, Justin said "I was really interested in Roger Penrose's theory of the fractal universe and I think that plays into the clip. There's also a kind of paradigm shift that's occurring in the contemporary cultural landscape around drug use which I wanted to reflect in the abstract narrative that plays out."

'Chemical Freedom' was recorded at the band's own studio and mixed by Grammy-Award winning producer Ben Allen (Deerhunter, MIA, Youth Lagoon). Speaking on 'Chemical Freedom', Micra said "It's been so frustrating to see the narrow minded attitude of Australian authorities towards pill testing and drug reform. We wanted to shine a light on that and highlight the ways in which the whole issue is actually bringing young people together."

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Greta Gaines - Pharmacists - Nelson Bragg

Photo - Stacie Huckeba Greta Gaines - Coming to Fruition. Greta Gaines is excited to announce the August 29th release of her new album. Bird...