Cari Cari - Gabrielle Metz - Someone - Brenda Cay

Cari Cari - Last Days On Earth.

Cari Cari have announced that their new album Welcome To Kookoo Island due out September 16th, 2022 via Perla Nera Records. Recorded at their studio, located in an Austrian national park in 2020 and 2021, the band’s second album is a slice of psychedelic escapism.

Now Cari Cari share the newest, and last single before album release. ‘Last Days On Earth’. The new single is Cari Cari’s idea of what a 00s indie anthem would sound like if it were produced by Daft Punk or Justice. “The song started as a jam we would play while sound checking at summer festivals like Sziget and Primavera Sound a few years back,” explains Koeck, the energy of said festivals is palpable when listening to the recording.

Cari Cari is Stephanie Widmer (vocals, drums & didgeridoo) and Alexander Koeck (vocals, guitars). Since their inception, Cari Cari have been tirelessly working to create their own world, carefully crafting everything from their music to their artwork, videos to set design in-house. This meticulous attention to detail has earned the band a loyal following; Rolling Stone Magazine called them ‘the biggest discovery of Primavera Sound Festival’, their die-hard fans sold out 1000+ capacity rooms across Europe and their debut album was praised by the likes of KCRW, Rolling Stone and many more.

However, for the band, all roads have led them to Kookoo Island. The product of years of world-building, Welcome To Kookoo Island, was born from a desire to retreat from modern-day life completely. “Kookoo Island is our libertatia, the utopia of what we think the world should be like,” explains Widmer. “It seems to be cuckoo to dream of such a place right now, but dreaming of what we want the world to be like is the first step towards making it a reality,” she continues.

For their version of Utopia, the pair took inspiration from a plethora of cultural touchstones, ranging from Wes Anderson’s Moonrise Kingdom to Hermann Hesse’s novel Steppenwolf, the 17th century pirate colony ‘Liberatia’ to the volcanic landscape of the Canary Islands. On Kookoo Island there are no jobs or responsibilities, just long sunsets, winding rivers and child-like exploration.

Cari Cari · Last Days On Earth (Master)

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Gabrielle Metz - Mixtape.

The music video for Gabrielle Metz's latest single, "Mixtape," is just as fun and full of variety as the song itself. The video opens with Metz in her car, turning the radio up like we're listening to her track on the radio. Cuts of her having fun in Nashville are interspersed with shots of her playing the guitar and singing along. Metz's light parkour and other tricks throughout the video add playfulness and fun to the whole endeavor.

Metz's dog makes a guest appearance near the end of the video, leaving viewers with a warm, fuzzy, memorable feeling. Who doesn't love a good dog cameo in a music video? Overall, this video is a beautiful accompaniment to such a fun song.

Gabrielle Metz is a name that is climbing in the country music scene. Born in Fort Payne, Alabama, home to the Country Music Group, Alabama. The charming 21 year old grew up in the small, southern city of Gadsden, Alabama. “Sweet Home Alabama” embodies this ‘girl next door’ perfectly.

Gabrielle’s hard work and determination proves to be paying off. She has accrued many accolades since moving to Nashville: “Hear My Heart” was named to EJAZZ Radio’s top 20. “Thin Ice” was named to Ignition Radio’s Top 20. Gabrielle has been nominated for Alabama Music Awards Best Female Country Artist in 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021. She was also nominated for Alabama Music Awards Best New Artist in 2018 and 2019, as well as being named to Country Sway’s 2021 Artist to Watch list. She regularly performs at some of Nashville’s staple venues such as The Listening Room, Live Oak Nashville, Tin Roof, Cabana Taps, and Alley Taps.

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Someone - In Your Arms.

Someone is the moniker for Dutch/British composer, producer, and visual artist Tessa Rose Jackson. Through her art and music, she tells science-fiction inspired stories combined with stunning, cinematic music videos in collaboration with Hollywood’s rising star director David Spearing.

Following its premiere by Cerys Matthews, BBC 6 Music, Someone shares new single ‘In Your Arms’, the third to be taken from her forthcoming second album ‘Owls'. It describes love and joy in a burning world wrapped in the beguiling song writing craft of Feist and the expansive electronics of Air, whilst musically hitting an emotional, synth-fuelled high reminiscent of festival bombshells such as MGMT’s ‘Kids’ and Tame Impala’s ‘Let It Happen’.

The accompanying ‘In Your Arms’ visual, created by the LA Film Award winning duo Someone and David Spearing, is a bittersweet sci-fi vignette which evokes the mysticism and atmospheric pull of Chernobyl’s wasteland. It follows two young girls as they emerge from their subterranean bunkers for a day of adventure in what  Someone describes as “A post-apocalyptic world, where the air is toxic and terrifying six-legged creatures prowl the land.” As Someone expands “What follows is a day filled with fun and play, because no matter what the world may throw at them, kids will always find a way to just simply… be kids. It’s a celebration of the power of joyfulness and love against all odds”.

‘In Your Arms’ is the third single taken from forthcoming new album ‘Owls' following ‘Suddenly’ which dropped ahead of Someone's performance at this year’s The Great Escape and ‘Song for Slowdancing’ with its Lynchian visual. Collectively they offer up the dreamy psych-pop of Someone’s debut ‘Shapeshifter' (2021) but with a more expansive, genre spanning sound that moves from melancholic and earthy through to electronic and brooding. It hints at Someone’s love of French duo Air, with an influence also in the 90s and 00s trip-hop of Zero 7, Massive Attack and Portishead, whilst also sitting alongside the beautiful fragility and song-writing craft(wo)manship of contemporaries such as Feist and Sharon Van Etten.

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Brenda Cay - This Ain't That.

Brenda Cay’s new music video release, "This Ain't That," brings to the audience the perfect romantic energy, with sweet visuals and the song's contagious atmosphere.  

The music video for Brenda Cay’s latest single, “This Ain’t That,” provides a great visualization of the song’s lyrics while also showing Cay and the band performing the track. Viewers see a couple having coffee together and holding hands, representing the new, long-lasting romance. This video makes you feel nostalgic for that one special romance you experienced in your life when everything felt new and exciting. “This Ain’t That” by Brenda Cay will take listeners through another journey of present love that feels almost too good to be real.

Brenda’s fans are loving the energy she put into her new EP which released in April 2022. “Love or Dreams” has already reached 1.5 million streams. That followed her successful “Fragile Like a Bomb” EP, which earned twelve licensing deals, had two songs featured on Apple Hot Tracks (Country), and has amassed over 2.4 million streams.

She writes songs that can get your feet moving (1-2-3 Floor), bring a tear to your eyes (I Fish), or express that unmistakable feeling of love (This Ain’t That.) Several of Brenda’s songs have been featured on prominent playlists including the Academy of Country Music’s ACM: New Music Friday playlist.

It’s her ability to write songs with which listeners can connect that caught the attention of Heart Songs Music Group, and they signed her in 2020. Brenda has been featured in Broadway World, Music Crowns, Medium, Cowgirl Magazine, Guitar Girl Magazine, and many others.

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Shannen Moser - Sara Noelle - Sara Niemietz

Shannen Moser - Ben.

The Philadelphia-based artist Shannen Moser just released “Ben,” the second single from their forthcoming album The Sun Still Seems To Move that will be released on September 30 via Lame-O Records. Moser announced they will celebrate the album’s release with shows in Philadelphia on 9/30 and in Brooklyn on 10/7 with support from Greg Mendez & Yours Are The Only Ears.

Shannen Moser explains the story behind “Ben”: When I was in the 3rd grade I made a friend who I would ride the bus with to school for the next 8 years. We were neighbors in an extremely rural county – the kind of rural that was kids riding their family tractors to school and cow crossings holding up “highway” traffic. The streets around our houses didnt get paved until I was in middle school. They didn’t even paint the yellow road dividing lines on until after I graduated and moved away.

I would spend a lot of time with this friend on the bus. We shared a headphone splitter to listen to music, we would put sticks in the middle of the road at our bus stop to try to slow the bus down and miss school, and one time he gave me five bucks to lick the bus floor- totally normal kid stuff I thought to myself. On our route to school there was a pothole in the road that, if executed just right by the bus driver, would send whoever sat in back two rows FLYING. Ben called it “Rocket Man.” He was the first person I ever used a swear word in front of. “Shit!” He said it back and it was like we had just robbed a bank and gotten away with it. Cursing in secret, at the time, was the most romantic thing my middle school brain could ever imagine.

I moved away in 2012 and didn’t see him again after we graduated. He stayed to work at his dads construction business and passed late in 2015. I wrote this song in 2016. It was originally voice and piano only. I brought it to Tyler Bussey ( of Thank you Thank you) and we rearranged it a bit together. This song is my favorite on the record and I really love playing it for people live.

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Sara Noelle - Blooming Yucca.

Singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and actor Sara Niemietz’ fourth album, Superman, will be released on October 28th. The new album represents a reinvigorated era in her artistic continuum born from small, vulnerable moments brought on by lockdown and seismic, non-pandemic life changes. “This album is about speaking your piece, shaking off the past, and finding the superhero inside,” shares the LA-based creative polymath. 

She continues: “As a kid, I used to run around with this blanket tied around my neck and call myself ‘Super Sara.’ This is a return to that, and it’s the most representative thing I’ve done to date.” The empowering album is also a showcase for a new collaboration with co-writer and co-producer Linda Taylor, the ace guitarist on the hit ABC show Whose Line is It Anyway.

The pair met fortuitously on Sara’s last gig of 2020, a showcase with Tony Award-winning composer Jason Robert Brown, and just three days after their meeting, the world shut down. Sensing intuitive chemistry, Sara and Linda began to collaborate, tossing wildcard musical ideas and playlists back and forth.

During the height of COVID, the two began to collaborate in earnest. A feverish flow of ideas went back and forth as Linda and Sara finished tracks self-contained, with Sara handling all her vocals and vocal production and Linda layering the tracks and mixing the recordings. Soon, the pair had six songs, with Sara producing earthy and engaging videos for each one. In addition, Sara’s broad internet reach and innate marketing savvy enabled the duo to become a buzzed-about collaboration.

The twosome quickly nurtured a signature blend of soul, sonics, and story with passionate vocals and prominent guitars. Some of their artistic touchstones included Sister Rosetta Thorpe, Janis Joplin, Brittany Howard, and the early Kings Of Leon and D’Angelo. Sara says: “I’ve never been happy being tied to any genre. I grew up listening to Ella Fitzgerald, polka records, Led Zeppelin, and Steely Dan. When I was a little kid, I would plug a Fender Squier into a cheap amp, tune down to drop D, and put on concerts bashing out power chords.”

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Sara Niemietz - Locks.

"I wrote this song after a long desert drive in the summer — where the temperature and the endless road almost warps your perception of the landscape and of your own mind — the sky changes sometimes rapidly from dust clouds in the distance to bright sun to heavy rain. The one constant were the hundreds of yuccas, many in bloom, that lined the road, seen as dots in the expanse past my window."

Sara Noelle’s latest single, “Blooming Yucca,” is a surrealistic on-the-road song that winds its way through the dusty Southwest. The song was produced by Dan Duszynski in Dripping Springs, Texas. The animated, psychedelic “Blooming Yucca” video was created by Kelsey Boncato. Noelle, a singer-songwriter who creates indie folk and ambient-inspired music, is readying her third full-length LP, recorded and produced by Duszynski.

Her 2020 LP, Cover the Blue, featuring “Clouds” and “Run Sun Run,” was written at the piano and envisioned as a wandering hike between the haze of uncertainty and clarity. Noelle’s 2016 debut album, Morning Moon, plots an introspective drive up the Pacific coast, and fits somewhere between Alternative and New Age.


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Lauren Monroe - The Slackers - Maddisun - Cynthia Hamar - Cozy Slippers

Lauren Monroe - Void Of Course.

With messages of healing and exploring the multiple facets of love - both dark and light - Messages from Aphrodite by Lauren Monroe will be released on September 9, 2022. In anticipation of the album, she has released the new video “Void of Course.” 

The term “void of course” is an astrological term defining a state of the moon where it appears isolated as it transitions away from one planet and moves toward another. Monroe used this as a metaphor to explore the struggle of an unhealthy relationship. “I thought it was important to explore the shadow side of love, which is painful but has gifts for us to receive.

The lyrics tell the tale of feeling void of connection and wanting to leave a toxic partner but not having the inner power to go through with it,” she explains. “In these darker textures of emotion and pain can live tremendous potential to see oneself and become stronger.”

One of the most rock-based songs on the album, “Void of Course” offers listeners a different side of Monroe, whose previous offerings have leaned more towards Americana and roots/folk. The smoldering tune is powered by Allmans-style double drumming from Rick Allen (Def Leppard) and Beth Goodfellow (Iron and Wine, Allison Russell) and topped off by Monroe’s urgent vocals. The track derives its Physical Graffiti-like exoticism from the droning of a djembe played by Monroe, further deepened by the bowed cello and upright bass of Steve Uccello (Latin Jazz Collective, Dayan Kai) and lightning-flash guitar riffs of Tyler Bryant (Larkin Poe, Tyler Bryant & The Shakedown). These sounds deepen the mood of the astrology-inspired lyrics.

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The Slackers - Second Best.

The Slackers, whose latest "Don't Let The Sunlight Fool Ya" hit #1 on the Current Reggae Charts in the spring, have released an animated music video for "Second Best."  

The record is now available on Pirates Press Records’ web store. The band will be touring in support of the record all year long across North America and Europe.

"Spending time being the runner up. There's always a bright shiny object that is more exciting than the one who is there year in and year out. The 'impossible' is always more exciting than 'the possible' because it never happens and thus can be a perfect ideal," says saxophonist Dave Hillyard.

To create these illustrations and animations, the band enlisted the help of Brazilian designer Paulo Rocker who wanted to showcase theme of unity and peace with The Slackers playing a show in heaven.

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Maddisun - Running.

Maddisun (aka singer/songwriter Maddison Keiver) is an authentic, visceral, and magnetic artist whose unique music melds together indie-folk, soulful R&B, and electro-pop. Maddisun crafts incredibly inspiring and uplifting music true to her heart, sharing emotional journeys of love, heartache, growth, and resilience.

Maddisun's genuineness, raw vocal talent and pure musicality sparkle on her new LP, Home Is Where The Music Is, co-produced by Nick Noto and Chloe Chaidez of PSY SOUND.

Classic country and soul influences shine in the feature track “Running,” about transitioning into the next phase of her career. Maddisun is taking a chance on herself to pursue her passion; not holding back despite any obstacles, while staying true to her rural British Columbia roots.

Home is a feeling, not a place. About the album inspiration, she explains, “When I’m travelling all over and the concept of ‘home’ is a little messy, I find myself leaning towards my music and yearning to connect with that part of myself. Once I find it, I’m home no matter where in the world I am.”

Maddisun · Running

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Cynthia Hamar - Light A Fire.

With her anticipated new EP Joint & Marrow on the way, Alberta-born Métis singer-songwriter Cynthia Hamar today shares its second single "Light A Fire."

The track combines a country groove with reggae overtones, which adds extra resonance to Cynthia's unmistakable voicals. She says, "I wrote this song feeling extremely burnt out from struggling with ambition. I was thinking how a tiny spark can set a whole forest on fire and I wrote the melody attempting to kindle some fresh creative joy inside me.”

Produced by Paul Johnston, and featuring her son Zadok Hamar along with acclaimed Alberta session musicians Chris Andrews, Jamie Cooper, Paul Johnston and Toronto’s Joel Schwartz, “Light A Fire”didn’t initially come together easily in the studio.

“This song almost didn’t make it on the album. I was struggling to communicate my vision for the tune and I was close to pulling it feeling deeply exhausted," she says. "We ended up setting up the studio so the musicians could all see me and just let it fly. It ended up being one of my favorites and I’m so thankful I pushed through and allowed that spark to fire up in me again. The theme of the tune was truly manifested in the recording of it.”

Joint & Marrowcontinues to enhance Cynthia’s reputation for making hauntingly introspective songs rooted in her Métis heritage. Citing Buffy Sainte-Marie, Tom Waits and Feist as primary influences, she has performed across Canada through the VIA Rail Artists On Board program, and had her music chart on stations throughout North America, including attaining the #1 spot on the Indigenous Music Countdown.

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Cozy Slippers - Nobody Knows Me, Anyhow.

Seattle dreamy jangle-pop trio Cozy Slippers debuted their new single / video "Nobody Knows Me, Anyhow." A perfect indiepop track to help wind down the summer. A nice mix of Sundays, Sarah Records, and a guitar tone that would make Will Sergeant take notice. The video depicts a polar bear trapped in the middle of a climate change dilemma on a shrinking iceberg that transplants it all the way to a beach in Florida. Cozy Slippers debut album on Kleine Untergrund Schallplatten / Subjangle is a total treat for the anorak scene, light, breezy, topical, and catchy.  

Cozy Slippers announce their return with the release of their self titled debut album on Kleine Underground Schallplatten (vinyl) and Subjangle (CD) on October 14th, 2022. The First single from the album is "Nobody Knows Me, Anyhow", a love letter to alienation. A trapped narrator finds solace in knowing that anonymity makes space possible.

"Haunting Her" explores the tension when trying to support a friend, even as they make damaging decisions. "I Can’t Keep You Safe" is an eerie jangler that addresses major pandemic fear - that protecting loved ones was not possible.

Previously Cozy Slippers released the 7" "A Million Pieces" (Kleine Underground Schallplatten 2019), and two EPs: ‘Postcards’ (Jigsaw Record 2018) and ‘Late Night In Summertime’ (self-released 2017). In 2019, the band toured the UK, including an appearance at the Cambridge Indiepop All-dayer. The band largely recorded the album themselves, and it was mixed by Dylan Wall (Versing, Great Grandpa, and High Sunn) and mastered by Paul Gold (The Chills, Allah-lahs).

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Nora Kelly Band - La Femme - MARBLES - Little Quirks - ALASKALASKA

Nora Kelly Band - Right Now.

The Nora Kelly Band emerged this spring sharing two rip-roaring singles, “Hymn for the Agnostics” and “Change My Mind,” while destroying audiences at Canadian Music Week, NXNE, supporting Kiwi Jr., and this past Friday celebrating early with a headlining performance in their hometown of Montreal. This week they share a new single “Right Now,” and announce their debut EP, Perfect Pig, out today.

Discussing “Right Now,” bandleader Nora Kelly stated, “'Right Now' chronicles the rise and fall of a past relationship. The song was written when I was in the throes of the breakup woes, but it also has a sense of optimism about the future. It’s sort of a pep talk to myself that things will get better, while also being an honest encapsulation of what I was going through back then. I’m proud of the song for its vulnerability, and how it details my ever-shifting understanding of love. Like now when I sing it, I tell people it was once a sad song about my ex but now it’s a happy song about my dog."

When DISHPIT imploded in the early stages of pandemic - a romantic and creative relationship gone sour, which even Kelly’s ‘screw-off, I’m tough’ nurtured punk persona was unprepared for, salvation came along in railroad adjacent acoustic country cover meet-ups with a group of friends and artists, in the earliest days of being able to meet up outside once again.

From these loose collaborative connections, the Nora Kelly Band emerged. “That’s where I first played the songs that make up ‘Perfect Pig’,” Kelly notes. “And it’s where I was so lucky to meet the majority of my band. Each member brings something special to the table: Vader Ryderwood, the 6ft 5in bass player and alien enthusiast, Ethan Soil, known as the smiliest drummer in Montreal, Rachel Silverstein, with the voice of an angel and piano skills to boot, and Dylan Keating, who plays pedal steel and has a PhD in Astro-Physics. This group of musicians have become my best friends and given back my passion for music.”

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Photo - JD Fanello

La Femme - Sacatela.

French psycho-indie-rock band La Femme announces the release of Teatro Lucido, their new studio album sung entirely in Spanish. Teatro Lucido will be released on November 4, 2022.

Along with the album announcement, La Femme has shared a new music video for “Sacatela,” the first single taken from Teatro Lucido. A very classy and colored video shot in Nice, South-West of France, that features many members of the band. The video for “Sacatela” was directed by french director Ilan Zerrouki and is about unacknowledged desires and unpursued dreams also called ‘Sacatelism.’ “Sacatela” has been played all summer long on radio stations across the US, Mexico, and France and is already a streaming success for the band.

Fresh off of their sold-out US tour, the band has also announced additional tour dates in France, Greece, Italy, Netherlands, and the USA at III Points Fesitval in Miami & Levitation festival in Austin.

La Femme already holds 2 gold records in France and a Victoire de la Musique, as well as dozens of tours internationally, notably in the US, Mexico, Asia and Europe. They are among the few French artists that succeeded abroad while singing in French.

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MARBLES - Heading Out.

Earlier this summer, the Norwegian dream pop act MARBLES released a summery new jam called “Heading Out”, and now they are thrilled to share the music video, which makes literal the song’s theme of escaping city life for some much needed R&R in the splendor of nature. As the video’s protagonist (band member Ferdinand Windmer) leaves his stuffy office job and unveils the vintage car (seen above), his business suit is replaced with a superhero cape and he sets out into the open wilderness.

Hailing from Kolbotn, the black metal capital of Norway, the music of MARBLES sounds about as dramatically different from the stereotypical idea you might have of the music this nordic country tends to produce, with a colorful indie pop sound that bridges the gap between washed out guitar-driven dream pop ala Wild Nothing and Jay Som blended with the more upbeat and psychedelic pop of acts like Toro Y Moi and MGMT.  "Heading Out" is the first new MARBLES song following their self-titled debut album from 2020, and more music from the band on the way later this year

Describing their inspiration behind "Heading Out" and why they chose it as the first teaser of their new album, the band said that they hoped to encapsulate in the song the feeling of excitement and anticipation that comes with any time you get a chance to “head out” from the big city to escape; whether that be just a quick bike ride down to the river or a weekend-long camping trip. As they clarify, “It’s not just about the luxury of being able to travel, it’s about finding your own little precious moment amidst your normal day to day situation. Maybe even just in your mind and with your imagination! Being aware of a contrast between your everyday life and what you feel can be - and what you can do. Defining it is up to you.”

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Little Quirks - All My Friends Are Birds.

Little Quirks is the family that accidentally became a band. Now they are sharing their brand new EP, Call To Unknowns, via indie powerhouse Glassnote Records. Predominantly recorded in their backyard in New South Wales, Australia, Call To Unknowns combines tales of myth and magic with effortless folk-pop songwriting that unashamedly brings catchy melodies and pounding rhythms to the fore.

Along side their new EP, they have also shared a brand new video for new single 'All My Friends Are Birds’. The track is a folk-pop anthem complete with footstoms, clapping and soaring harmonies, reminiscent of US folk-rock acts like The Lumineers and Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros. The sentiment of the song was inspired by Jaymi’s father, who has always likened birds to guardian angels. “We talked about how it’s easy to forget that there are always people supporting you behind the scenes, so I think this song is a really nice, comforting reminder of that,” she says.

The stunning music video that accompanies the track was filmed in Glenworth Valley, near where the girls live. Directed by Little Quirks, the film clip is a magical, mystical visualiser featuring Abbey, Jaymi and Mia plus friends wearing brightly coloured velvet capes of red or blue, dancing barefoot around a maypole and performing rituals.

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ALASKALASKA - TV Dinners.

ALASKALASKA (pronounced “Alaska-laska”) share their new single “TV Dinners” ahead of their forthcoming album, Still Life, arriving October 14th on Marathon Artists (Lava La Rue, Courtney Barnett, Pond). Alongside previous singles “Still Life” and “Growing Up Pains (Unni's song)” – which drew support from BBC 6 Music's Lauren Laverne, BBC Radio 1's Jack Saunders, BBC Introducing's Jess Iszatt and more – “TV Dinners” finds writers and producers Lucinda Duarte-Holman and Fraser Rieley embrace a more free-form electronica, giving a taste of what's to come with this tantalizing new record produced by Jas Shaw (of Simian Mobile Disco). 

Full of digital sounds, drum machine and synth melodies cunningly sat beside rich, organic, acoustic instrumentation, it's a looping tug of war between everyday simple pleasures and existential dread, with “TV Dinners” highlighting one of the album's central themes, that of the privileges associated with modern domestic existence. Other themes on the album dive into the beautifully mundane as well as the pressures that come with technology, social media and climate change.

Lucinda says of the track: "”TV Dinners” was the only song on the album written during lockdown (the rest were written previous to Covid). I wrote it in about 20 minutes as a stream of consciousness kind of poem. Very literal. Even though, like a lot of people, I wasn't really sure what to do with myself under the circumstances, I was still really quite happy to have some time doing nothing - noticing the way the light changed in my flat and the sound of the birds and trees outside. 

I felt a real sense of privilege that I was able to enjoy a space in time that for a lot of people was incredibly testing on so many levels. And with that privilege, a sense of guilt: "What once was bliss, becomes a certain kind of ignorance." We all take part in it in some way - you can change the channel if the news becomes too much, or steer away from doom-scrolling, and I think you should as a way of protecting yourself, but I also think it's important to recognize that its a privilege to be able to do so."

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Melby - SPECTRA*Paris - Nick Kizirnis - Quilty Pleasures - Pixy Jones

Melby - Music Should Feel.

On a first, careless, listen, Stockholm four-piece Melby might seem like a charming, fun little jangle-pop band. Pay a little more attention however, and you’ll find their waters run a lot deeper than that. The band (Matilda Wiezell, Are Engen Steinsholm, David Jehrlander and Teo Jernkvist) have all the flash and sparkle of your favourite indie band, but add an ability to touch moods and feelings with a meaning beyond most of their peers. Their guitars, drums and synths rattle, roll and flicker around each other, all held together by the soul-shiver in Wiezell’s vocals, to make immaculate little guitar-pop gems, equally dusted with sadness and sugar.

Melby’s debut album None Of This Makes Me Worry was released in 2019, and took them on tour in Scandinavia, Germany and the UK, as well as earning them slots at prestigious showcase festivals like Norway’s by:Larm and Hamburg’s Reeperbahn. Now after a couple of years of beavering away, they’re back with the follow-up Looks like a map which will be released on October 21st with the new single 'Music Should Feel' available now.

Moving on can be painful, but as with a lot of feelings, Melby have a knack for making it sound pretty. That’s the case with their new single ‘Music Should Feel’, a warm, charming little pop cocktail of music and memory, that doesn’t need to shout or scream to work its way into your heart.

Listening to ‘Music Should Feel’ feels like spending time with an old friend. The song has an elegant swing to it, as it waltzes its way along, made even more cosy by little butterfly wing flutters of saxophone. There’s a little ambiguity in Matilda Wiezell’s vocals, a little sadness, a little comfort, and those gently-bubbling emotions fit in well with the song’s breezy tempo. It’s a song that’s easy to love, one steeped in its own memories, and a good companion to you getting lost in your own.

Wiezell says: “’Music Should Feel’ is a song about love, missing someone, and processing those feelings. Acceptance, a tribute to past experiences, and the hope for new good ones. The song came together over quite a long period, was forgotten for a while, and then was brought back to life, and got its chorus, after a lot of rehearsal and attempts at making a demo”.

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SPECTRA*Paris - Moondrops.

A few days in advance of the release of "Modernism", the new full-length from Elena Alice Fossi's dark electro project SPECTRA*Paris, the enigmatic Italian singer is now revealing a final video single: 'Moondrops' is a richly textured electro pop vignete somewhere in the excitingly wild space between The Human League, Visage, Amanda Lear, and Kraftwerk.

Charismatic, enigmatic, and absolutely outstanding, singer Elena Alice Fossi, who is best known for her work with Italian electro-trailblazers KIRLIAN CAMERA, presents "Modernism", the fifth album of her eclectic project SPECTRA*Paris.

"Modernism" is transfiguring electronic music through the prism of Elena’s voice and several collaborations with other musicians into a beautiful kaleidoscope of stylistic colours ranging from EBM, future pop, dark electronic, art pop, and various influences more.

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Nick Kizirnis - Way To Me (Reimagined).

“Way to Me,” Ohio-based songwriter Nick Kizirnis‘ forthcoming single, re-imagines his moody “indie noir” songwriting style with modular synth textures and electronic drums, transforming the song's original Roy Orbison/Twin Peaks vibe into strange yet welcoming territory.

For almost 20 years, guitarist/songwriter Nick Kizirnis has explored songs and styles ranging from Americana to pop, and from rock’n’roll to /experimental. He has worked with Tobin Sprout (Guided by Voices) and The Breeders (last years’ "The Dirt Eaters” single for 4AD). Since releasing his 10th album, The Distance, Kizirnis has seen his music shared across U.S. and Europe, and has now begun releasing a series of singles reimagining his diverse song-writing style.

Kizirnis and co-producer Patrick Himes decided to “re-imagine” “Way to Me” - a song that originally appeared on Kizirnis’ most recent album The Distance - after Kizirnis worked out solo arrangements of those lush break-up songs using loops and ambient guitars. The temptation to see what they could create with a fresh perspective was too great to resist.

On “Way to Me” singer Kate Wakefield’s (Lung) lush, dreamy vocals evoke a fever dream while Mark Patterson (Son Volt) manipulated drums veer from roots rock to electronica and almost back again. Kizirnis’ guitars melt down into a pile of circuits and wires, emerging almost unrecognizable.

Despite the change in sound the song’s story about a message of love across the distance remains intact. As Wakefield sings “You’ll find your way back to me” the song holds on to hope, trust, love and friendship that can endure any separation. “I’m really excited to share this new version of 'Way to Me.'" It’s a song I’m very proud of and it was a great experience to take it to a new place and see what was possible.” Kizirnis says.

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Quilty Pleasures - Four Posters.

The second single - '4 posters' from Cardiff collective Quilty Pleasures taken from the forthcoming album 'Quilty Pleasures' is a tale of two brothers still living in the same room as adults and having the same posters adorning their walls and the occasional tiffs that occur.

The track has a building anthemic feel with a psychedelic edge. 

Quilty pleasures is a collaboration based on the concept of bedding and sleep between producer - Frank Naughton and Wayne mcauliffe, Gid Goundrey, Jessica Ball, Paul Battenbough and Andy Fung.

'Quilty Pleasures' the album will be released on Friday 2nd September.

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Pixy Jones - Hold Your Tongue.

Pixy Jones third and final single from 'Bits n Bobs' entitled 'Hold Your Tongue' is released today Friday 26th August. Taken from anticipated debut album 'Bits n Bobs' released via Strangetown Records on the 16th September. 

Previous singles 'I'm Not There' and 'Maureen Dreams No More' have gathered support from Gideon Coe, BBC 6 Music, Adam Walton on BBC Radio Wales, and Pixy Jones was announced as Huw Stephens BBC Radio Wales Artists Of The Week in July. Support for the new releases have come from Music Blogs like Shindig Magazine, Circuit Sweet and Psychedelic Baby Magazine.

El Goodo guitarist and songwriter 'Pixy Jones' has announced that his debut album entitled 'Bits n Bobs' is due for release on 16th of September via Strangetown Records.

Branching away from the familiar El Goodo platform, Welsh psych scene stalwart Pixy Jones has himself compiled a truly remarkable collection of tracks that fluctuate from 60's harmony-rich psych pop, to Alt-Country with ringing tremelo guitar.

Pixy Jones · Hold Your Tongue

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