Georgia State Line - Melissa Sullivan - Tautologic - Charm Of Finches

Georgia State Line - Every Time.

Honest, agile, and refreshingly self-assured, Georgia State Line’s unique brand of country-infused melancholy yields music that’s equal parts heartsick and hopeful.

The stage moniker of Australian singer/songwriter Georgia Delves, Georgia State Line blends both vintage and contemporary sounds to craft songs steeped in Tennessee sunsets. Delves’ voice is effortlessly colourful, lyrical and textural with a depth and grace to rival even the most revered of talents.

“Every Time” is the first single lifted from Georgia State Line’s highly anticipated new album due later this year. Georgia says “it’s a song about making friends with the consistency of change; acknowledging what isn’t meant for you and celebrating the courage it takes to let it go. It highlights the quiet strength found in choosing to feel joy for what once was, and the power that comes with putting yourself first”.

The visuals were shot in Victoria’s beautiful Wimmera region on Wotjobaluk Country, the atmospheric single capturing the triumph of heartbreak.

“Every Time” was recorded at James Cecil’s studio, Super Melody World in Macedon, Victoria over 2019. It features some of Australia’s most celebrated Americana musicians: Tom Brooks on electric guitar and pedal steel, Laura Baxter on bass and backing vocals, Patrick Wilson on drums, percussion and piano, and of course Georgia Delves on lead vocals and acoustic guitar.

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Melissa Sullivan - Marcella.

American singer-songwriter, Melissa Sullivan announced the animated music video for the song “Marcella” from her debut album Late Last Night (Daring Sparrow). Directed by Gabriele Fabbro and Illustrated/Animated by Serena Viganò in Milan Italy, the “Marcella” lyric video that follows an adventurous bird who travels through city and space to find his love. The song and video for “Marcella” takes its inspiration and theme from love being the key to create change. With everything happening in our world today; the pandemic, climate change, the division in countries, the goal was to create a video with hope. 

What started as an original song Sullivan used to sing to her husky dog Anastasia was then brought to Jimmy Edwards for lyrics. Her melody envisioned a bird flying over the ocean for love, which Edwards lyrics fit perfectly. It was then transformed into a Brazilian influenced Bossa Nova beat when fleshed out in the studio and made its way onto her debut album. 

“I have always been inspired by Gilberto Gil, Antonio Calos Jobim and the Bossa Nova sound,” said Melissa Sullivan. “My album Late Last Night is an ode to some of my favorite music and is a blend of jazz, pop, and blues of original songs and covers. Gabrielle & Serena’s video beautifully embodies the song’s theme of love being the key to create change via their imagery of lost connections between imaginary lovers.” 

Sullivan’s Late Last Night album combines both original songs and newly realized standouts from The Great American Songbook and was recorded at Sir Tiger Studio and produced by Peter Adams, Will Gordon, Ed Maxwell and Melissa Sullivan.

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Tautologic - Wheels Fall Off (Album).

 Tautologic is in its third decade (plus or minus a hiatus or two) of making “perfectly normal music for slightly odd people.”

Wheels Fall Off is the first Tautologic album to feature a line-up of the band still intact at the time of its release - Ethan Sellers (keys/vocals/production), Patrick Buzby (drums), Nathan Britsch (bass), Chris Greene (saxes), Emily Albright (violin, vocals), and Jay Montana (guitar). “New guy” Montana has - at the time of the album’s completion - been with the band for 10 years, making this the longest-lived line-up in Tautologic history.

Tautologic had some help from special guests - Tom Culver (cello), Johnny Showtime Janowiak (trombone), John Moore, Jr. (trumpet), and Sellers’ own children. Sellers kept the guest list limited, otherwise - preferring to celebrate the band’s talents and stage-honed interplay.

Tautologic completed most of Wheels Fall Off even before releasing its 2018 album Re:Psychle. Determined to capture their live chemistry, Tautologic recorded roughly half of the album at a single live full-band session with Rick Barnes at Chicago's Rax Trax Recording in late 2013. Sellers recorded overdubs at his home studio, culminating in a COVID-19-inspired recording binge in the spring and early summer of 2020. An Illinois Arts Council grant generously defrayed the cost of Barnes mixing the album and provided a more urgent timeline to complete the album.

The music for Wheels Fall Off is an organic mash-up and a study in contrasts. Sellers’ composed pieces leave openings for in-studio improvisation. Male and female vocalists trade leads and harmonize. Short vocal-centered songs co-exist with long instrumental epics. Prog-rock and fusion workouts share space with Afro-Caribbean, zydeco, funk, blues, and samba grooves. There are organic whole-band recordings, and layers of one-man-choir vocals, one-woman string sections, guitar armies, horn sections, synthesizer mini-odysseys, and post-production audio mangling.

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Charm Of Finches - Gravity.

We have the new single from Australian eclectic chamber indie folk sister duo Charm of Finches. Entitled “Gravity” the track follows the tremendous success of their recent single “Treading Water” and is part of their upcoming full-length album to be released later this year.

“Gravity” reflects on the many dangers of “toxic positivity” and how this can cause people to avoid the inner-work of dealing with painful and uncomfortable feelings, such as sadness and grief.  The song features the sisters’ gorgeous emotion-laden and harmonious vocals, with sublimely beautiful instrumentation composed of cello, ukulele, banjo, violin, harp and guitar, and a tender smooth, stripped-down melody laced with bittersweet nostalgia and deep melancholia.

The duo are signed to AntiFragile and have been acclaimed by the likes of NPR, and have been added to popular Spotify playlists including Fresh Folk, Lush + Etheral and Infinite Acoustic.

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Alice Hubble - Big Little Lions - Jesse Roper - Gawain and the Green Knight - Rvrside - Lipstick Jodi

Alice Hubble - Power Play.

London-based synth-pop artist Alice Hubble has shared her comment on the #metoo movement in the form of new single ‘Power Play’ alongside news that her new album will be released later this year. Described as the work of ‘one lady at home with her enormous collection of synthesisers’, Alice Hubble mixes melancholic pop, layered vintage synths and elegant vocals, reminiscent of Ladytron, Ashra and Goldfrapp. 

Her debut album 'Polarlichter', inspired by the 70’s recordings of Tangerine Dream and Sally Oldfield was released in September 2019 to much critical acclaim. Earning the project support from the likes of BBC Radio 6 Music’s Lauren Laverne, Steve Lamacq and Gideon Coe as well as acts like Damo Suzuki, Advance Base, Pram and Beak> with whom she played live.

Where ‘Polarlichter’ offered a soundscape of pastoral solace, new single ‘Power Play’ is a much more direct offering. Written in March 2020, Alice found herself channeling a lot of anger into the single. “The track is my comment on what happens in a post #metoo world, once the worst offenders have been ‘cancelled’ and caught and the news stories have been had. Has something changed?  Does society move on and go to the next issue?” explains Alice. 

The song references the mass hex of Brock Turner, when witches around the world joined together to hex the Stanford swimmer convicted of sexual assault. “I am fascinated by this form of collective digital activism,” she says. “In honoring this, Power Play is the closest thing I’ve written to a protest song”. ‘Power Play’ wassout on 19th May on Happy Robots and is available to download and stream via all digital platforms, with a new album to follow this Autumn.

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Big Little Lions - Only A Friend Like You

Big Little Lions have been described as ‘a blissful marriage of new folk and sophisticated pop’. Prolific songwriting, infectious folk-pop style, and an offbeat, memorable live show. 

This award winning duo consists of Helen Austin and Paul Otten who, despite living thousands of miles apart, have found a way to connect and create music together. Despite being in two different countries, they have found common ground to share their message. Call it destiny, or call it fate, call it a necessary progression for these modern times. 

Helen lives in British Columbia, Canada and Paul lives in Cincinnati, OH. But the distance provides the necessity to create in a new way. Using technology as their ally and their differences as their strength.  Their monthy single releases are their way of getting through this pandemic while all the usual album cyle release plans don’t make sense anymore. Their music is jam-packed with emotion and tight harmonies, the sound of two people working side by side.

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Jesse Roper - Does Anybody Know.

Canadian rocker Jesse Roper continues to tease music from an upcoming album due later in 2021, dropping a serendipitous, Motown-infused new single, “Does Anybody Know” this week. Roper hit the studio earlier this year with JUNO nominated producer Gus Van Go (Arkells/Sam Roberts Band/The Stills) in Brooklyn, NY.

Discussing how the track came about Roper, notes, "It was kind of funny how the song came about. I’d been listening to a lot of Leon Bridges at the time and it was just a matter of time before I wrote something in that fashion. The song is about a guy who’s been dumped and is confused and looking for his ex all around town. I was in a relationship when I wrote it, so it had no particular meaning to me. But months later, after I got home from a long tour, my girlfriend met me at her door and informed me that she no longer wanted to be in a relationship with me. I was shocked and hurt and suffering from all those feelings. The song now felt like foreshadowing to my own future, and I was almost embarrassed to sing it.

But Gus loved it, and went straight to it. The song came together quickly and it was my introduction to his way of doing things,  which I immediately loved.  The tones were rich and the song ended up being really groovy. It was also the first song that Josh Dion played drums on. That guy is next level pro and my mind kind of blew watching him lay it down in one take.

It’s one of my favourites off the upcoming album. I’ve since played it to the girl who broke up with me. She loves it too. And now we’re actually back together. Maybe because she liked the song. I don’t know."

“Does Anybody Know” follows the March single “Horizons,” showcasing a new side to Roper's musicality with a focus on his powerhouse of a voice. Roper is quick to give credit to working with Van Go, who pushed him to explore new musical directions. “Recording with Gus helped take things to a whole new level. Everything was broken down to the finest details and nothing was allowed to sit at just ‘ok’. He really cared where the songs were headed and that they ended up just right. It was all about getting the vibe right.” And right it is.

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Gawain and the Green Knight - Fingers.

Leading up to the June 11th release of their new EP, A Sleeping Place, Gawain and the Green Knight have released the single, “Fingers.” Filled with allegory and inspired by literature and mythology, the duo calls their sound, “folk for people who like to listen to music while pacing mournfully yet poignantly through the streets, pretending they’re the protagonist in a very beautiful film.” 

“Fingers” is “a love song for my soon-to-be husband [bandmate Mike O’Malley], simple as that,” says singer/guitarist Alexia Antoniou, and one of her only auto-biographical songs. She found inspiration in an unusual place - on an airplane, when they were unable to get seats together. “I had been reading Madeline Miller’s Song of Achilles and finished it mid-flight and was just completely emotionally devastated. I wasn’t just teary-eyed, I was outright weeping- so much so that the woman next to me took one look at me and started turning up the volume on her little headrest TV,” Antoniou recalls. “I managed to make meaningful eye contact with Mike across the aisle, and with a few gestures of the head, he agreed to meet me near the airplane toilets so I could cry some more on him. ‘Fingers’ was inspired by that whispered conversation.”

O’Malley produced the song with that same intimate, hushed atmosphere. “I wanted to ride the line of all-the-way-in-love and all-the-way-scared. And I wanted Alexia to sound like she was alone in the dark with a torch,” he says. “Sparseness and reverb seemed the order of things - a little Rhodes piano here, a little bowed bass there.”

Inspired by the etymology of the Greek word for cemetery, which simply means “a sleeping place,” the EP sits comfortably in the deep, sometimes dark, parts of the subconscious, arranged in such a way that you remember why life can be so joyful in the first place, its tempo anything but sad. “I think of this EP as a love letter, full of desperate affection, to anyone who has ever been alive and been scared to die,” Antoniou states.

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Rvrside - Beautiful Life.

Indie-rock band, RVRSIDE, release their debut EP, Bullet With Butterfly Clips, today May 21, 2021.

Consisting of front-woman Jessica Vaughn, a songwriter and vocalist whose music has been heard on a variety of top networks, including Netflix, MTV, NBC, ABC and more, songwriter and producer Curtis Peoples, who has a storied musical past as a songwriter for artists like Pierce The Veil and Third Eye Blind, and producer Colin creeV, who has produced big names like Jez Dior, hot up-and-comers like Traces, and even Third Eye Blind (of which he is a band member), Rvrside came together over a love of grunge, pop, and dirty synths.

Taking inspiration from the spirit of the 90s, Bullet With Butterfly Clips welcomes listeners into RVRSIDE’s world, “a little dark but not too self-serious,” with a mix of originals and a few choice covers. Three new songs from RVRSIDE appear alongside hypnotic reimaginings of quintessential 90s hits. The next single, “Beautiful Life” (out 4/23), turns the Ace of Base bop into a sinister alternative pop anthem, while “Love Me Like The End Of The World,” is “a love song for the apocalypse.”

Rvrside · Beautiful Life

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Lipstick Jodi - Don't Wanna Know.

Lipstick Jodi, the Grand Rapids trio led by powerhouse non-binary songwriter, vocalist, guitarist Karli Morehouse, want you to know who they really are with their latest single, “Don’t Wanna Know.” Out now, the track is featured on More Like Me, Lipstick Jodi’s sophomore album due June 4 via Quite Scientific.

Discussing the single, Morehouse stated, “The first demo I made of ‘Don’t Wanna Know’ was the first spark of Lipstick Jodi's renewal for me. It seemed like the light at the end of a really long tunnel. I was feeling stuck in time in the eyes of the people around me; like I was being judged constantly for my past. I felt like no one wanted to know me past surface level, or know me for who I really was and who I would become.” 

With More Like Me Morehouse closes the books on everything that got them to this place. All the raw emotions and experiences of childhood, teenage complexity and early adulthood angst are explored and expressed in depth - soundtracked by adrenaline rush of synths, guitar-fuzz and propulsive drums. When Morehouse sings, they blast through the sounds in triump.

Listening to More Like Me is like thumbing through a journal of self-improvement, self-doubt, self-preservation, and self-celebration - words sometimes written in a steady hand and sometimes scrawled angrily on the page. Through their music Morehouse explores the deepest valleys of their mind, celebrating small victories, right after a big fight, or driving fast yelling out the car window on the treacherous road of trying to do better. While the songs contained are wildly infectious, Morehouse could not be more clear what this album means to them. A little more mature, a little wiser, a lot more confident about what they want from their music, what they want to say as a queer artist, and what they want from life. More Like Me is just that.

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Edouard Landry - Diane and the Gentle Men - Semihelix

Edouard Landry - Words.

’Edouard Landrys songs are a mix of pop, rock, folk and catchy melodies. 

The Sudbury, Ontario artist was nominated for the ‘Best Male Performer’ category at the Gala des prix Trille Or (2017), ‘Francophone Artist of the Year’ at the Country Music Association of Ontario Awards (2020). 

His albums Pomme plastique II and L’escalade were nominated ‘Best Album by a Francophone Artist’ at the Northern Ontario Music and Film Awards (2017 and 2019). 

Ed will be releasing his first full-length English-language album, Be Here Now, on June 4, 2021.

Edouard Landry · Words

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Diane and the Gentle Men - The World is a Goner.

“The World is a Goner” is the first single from the newest album coming from Diane and the Gentle Men. Written at home during a pandemic, she says “the song came about from looking for alternate ideas for creativity, while dancing around my house by myself in an effort to feel alive and well. We sometimes take for granted that when we are out and about on a daily basis, inspiration is endless. 

Being forced to stay indoors for a longer period of time allowed me to venture down a rabbit hole of podcasts, You Tube documentaries, old radio programs and television programs of yesteryear. The song emerged when I was feeling content about being locked in and lonely, seeing the world through a window and being grateful I wasn’t sleeping on the street. Like the cover, the crooked dilapidated house not wanting to fall, I found Influence from old films like King Kong, Mad Max, American Graffiti and songs by Diana Ross and the Supremes, Otis Redding, and of course, The Kinks. 

I got to work this song up with Derek Cruz (Jesse Malin band) for a live broadcast I was working on and then when things felt a little more safe, we went out to Atomic in Brooklyn with the other guys in Jesse Malin’s band and put down the song. My other players were unavailable at the time because of the pandemic (they have kids). I am grateful to Derek Cruz, James Cruz, Randy Cover Art Gillian Stoll Schrager and Rob Clores for their musicianship and of course for Malin and his never ending generosity not to mention Merle Chornuk and Geoff Sanoff for their genius. 

Lastly, Don Dilego, producer, writer and friend at Velvet Elk Records who tirelessly puts out my records while delivering great tunes himself. I feel very lucky to be a part of a beautiful music community.” The video for the new single was filmed by Photographer/Artist Dina Regine in an afternoon in an apartment in NYC and edited by Dave Stekert, with whom Diane has often collaborated.

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Semihelix - Recoil.

“Recoil” by Austin, Texas based dreampop trio Semihelix, including Geannie Friedman-guitar and vocals, Kevin Martin- bass, and Valdemar Barrera-drums, was produced and mixed by Matt Gerhard (Spoon, Future Islands, !!!) at The Hen House in Austin, and mastered by Max Lorenzen (Shearwater, A.Sinclar, Spoon). Video artwork and production by Via Nuon.

The story behind the stop animation storyline involves the 1993 movie Ruby in Paradise where Ashley Judd in the movie leaves in her car to pursue a new life. It coincides greatly with the story behind the song "Recoil." The song has to do with resilience from going through a hard time and building yourself back up to heal and move on from the bad situation.

It’s also about finding close friends who have your back and how important it is to show the people close to us gratitude. After being bullied in her life in various situations, Geannie speaks about the importance of being your own best advocate, having other people’s backs and reaching out to close friends when things get hard.

In the lyrics “I am going down, I am coming around,” it’s about how time heals all wounds, and how we may feel down now but things will turn around and get better.  In the lyrics “you are going down, you are coming around,” it’s about how we are not alone. We all struggle, and we all get through tough times. The knowing we’re not alone makes it a bit easier to reach out to a friend when feeling down, we are never a burden. We help each other out, that’s what real friends are there for.  We recoil from a dark place with our own support for ourselves and the support of others.

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Yndling - Little Arrow

Yndling - Cotton Candy Skies.

Yndling is the dream pop project of Norwegian artist Silje Espevik. This musical endeavour is the result of wanting to take complete creative control over her music. Through delicate soundscapes and oscillating synths, Yndling invites listeners into her own world, offering a place of escapism and resonance through her lyricism.

Following the release of her debut single “Childish Fear,” Yndling is unveiling the sweet and euphoric “Cotton Candy Skies.” After feeling sad and a bit heartbroken for a while, Yndling found herself in a state of self pity she couldn’t pull herself out of, almost taking comfort in the familiar feeling of being down. She confides, “The idea for the song came as I was walking home one evening and the sky was really brilliant with pink clouds all over. Normally I’m quite good at making small moments like that lift my mood and feel better, and it kind of struck me that I hadn’t really been doing that well on being present in my life lately.”

The first lyrics of the song goes, “Cotton Candy Skies, my life is floating by, and with the fear of no surprises, my mind it’s in the thinnest of slices”, touching on her feelings at that moment in time and how life seemed to be slipping through her fingers. The song acts as a reminder to shake yourself out of the funk, and to recognise your emotions without being overwhelmed with them. Through whimsical synths, an intoxicating groove and deliciously breathy vocals, Yndling draws us into her dreamy, pastel-coloured paradise.

Yndling takes influences from artists and bands such as Beach House, Tops, Crumb, Hatchie and Mazzy Star. When it comes to songwriting, the Norweigan artist often allows her feelings or experiences to engross her for a while in order to fully submerge herself in the reality of the emotions. She explains, “I think there is so much power in letting a feeling or experience be all-consuming, just for a little while, and I really need that to write music.”  Along with always trying to be as honest and vulnerable as possible, Yndling has an understanding that when writing, it is important to “throw away the fear of being too honest or maybe telling a truth that’s not recognized by everyone else and that may feel a little too close for comfort.” Yndling offers a kaleidoscope of imagination and feeling throughout her music and ensures her lyrics are just as positively affecting

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Little Arrow - People Of The Volcano (Live Greenman Session, 18/08/2014).

It’s been 10 years since Little Arrow emerged with their debut album, ‘Music, Masks & Poems’ way back in 2011. In marking this monumental milestone, we also celebrate the life and music of frontman, William Hughes, who we sadly lost to cancer in December 2018.
Available for the first time on vinyl, and accompanied by a raft of bonus digital tracks, ‘Music, Masks & Poems’ completes the collection of existing fans, but also acts as the perfect introduction to a stellar, much-missed songwriting talent. Alongside the original album, the release will also include the following digital tracks:

Vessel of Fear - Winter Villains
People of the Volcano - Ben Sharpe
The Viewers Are All Human – Sky Barkers
Poetically Diseased – Quiet Marauder
One Helium Balloon - Callum Duggan
Beneath The True Blue - Ivan Moult
Easy Now - Farm Hand
Loss Um (Remix) - Echoes
People Of The Volcano (Live Greenman Session, 18/08/2014)
Poetically Diseased (Live at Four Bars, Cardiff, 18/12/14)
Boat (Live Campfire Version, 27/08/2011)
Loss Um (Live Greenman Session, 18/08/2014)
Flat Earth (Live at Gwdihw, Cardiff, 21/04/2015)
War Drones (Live Field Recording, 13/09/2016)
Medicine Moon (BBC Radio Wales Session, 24/09/2014)
Pier Mountain (BBC Radio Wales Session, 24/09/2014)
Flat Earth (BBC Radio Wales Session, 24/09/2014)
Government Bodies (Live Field Recording, 02/04/2014)

With ‘Poetically Diseased (Live from Four Bars, Cardiff)’ released last month, next up, out 26/04, is ‘People of The Volcano’, a previously unheard live session recorded for a Greenman session back in 2014.

Brimming with themes of hope, love and community, the album remains an expansive, airy and understated folk-tinged gem. Label owner and Little Arrow drummer Rich Chitty elaborates in his accompanying liner notes:

“From the tranquil opening of ‘Bitten Blues’ to the vivid imagery in ‘Aeroplane’; the lyrics felt old-worldly but familiar. Full of hope, but tragic. Wetting its toes amongst the mayhem, as Will puts it in ‘Poetically Diseased’. It was intimate, strange and personal yet somehow relatable, as though it talked of your pain and your joy, all through metaphors nearly lost to time. ‘Easy Now’ and ‘Beneath the True Blue’ were haunting and heart-breaking. ‘People of the Volcano’, ‘Boat’ and ‘Poetically Diseased’ were optimistic but borne of that same curious cloth. To this day, it remains my favourite part of Will’s back catalogue.”

The release charts some of the many aspects of Will’s artistic life with a ‘Words & Art’ booklet showcasing his sculptures and lyrics; all accompanying the heavyweight, marbled blue vinyl of music. The digital reissue will also include bonus live recordings spanning Little Arrow’s career alongside interpretations of the album tracks re-recorded by some of Will’s closest friends.

bubblewrap.collective · Little Arrow - People Of The Volcano (Live Greenman Session, 18/08/2014)

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Lucy Grubb - Bandicoot - Claire Whitehead

Lucy Grubb - You Don't Do Anything.

Norfolk-born songwriter Lucy Grubb is excited to announce the release of her long awaited third EP ‘Waste My Time’ due for release this summer - 4th June 2021, including first single ‘You Don’t Do Anything’ out now.

Known for blending of modern Americana with Country undertones, Lucy has built a prestigious reputation with the release of two previous EPs. 2017’s debut ‘18 Miles’ was named Best UK EP of the Year by country website Belles & Gals, followed by second EP ‘Dear Walter’ receiving a 5* review from Maverick Magazine.

After years of honing her skills at UK festivals such as Glastonbury, Red Rooster and Latitude, Lucy most recently headlined The Den Stage at Cambridge Folk Festival to a ‘rapturous reception’ - Nic Rigby, BBC News. Lucy has also showcased at 2020’s AmericanaFest UK and was set to perform at the renowned Country2Country Festival at the O2 London in March, which has now been postponed until 2022.

Recording began in late 2019 in a countryside recording studio in North Norfolk; a home from home for the band, also doubling as their rehearsal studio. Subsequent recording sessions resumed in pockets of lockdown freedom throughout 2020, with the process becoming flexible and adaptive, and comprised of many ‘band zoom calls’ using the treacherous countryside broadband.

“When we started this process I wasn’t sure what to expect at the end of it. Now I can quite confidently say that these songs sound like me, and they sound like my band, and it is my sound. At 23 I know I have plenty more to learn, and my music will change as I grow, but these songs are a product of the last year of my life.” Lucy Grubb

The tracks on Waste My Time explore elements of relationships with ourselves and others, opening with the title track representing the strength and resilience shown by friends facing difficult times and being OK with not being in control of everything. You Don’t Do Anything takes the EP to another level musically with almost tongue in cheek ode to Lucy’s beloved Country music. The pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, closing track When It Rains is a raw and openly emotional song; and despite its undeniable focus on sadness, it also shows it is perfectly normal to feel that way and one day you will get out of it.

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Bandicoot - Worried Blues.

For Bandicoot "Worried Blues inhabits a world of paranoia, born from a fear of lost love. It carries you down labyrinthine streets like a nightmarish memory, with a contagious strutting rhythm which never lets you stop moving along with it.”

Never missing a beat or taking time to catch their breath Bandicoot are back with a new and impressive single.

‘Worried Blues’ starts with forceful piano chords and an anguished emotional vocal from Rhys Underdown, channeling John Lennon’s Plastic Ono Band primal scream as a voice from the dark. When ‘Worried Blues’ intro releases into a riff full of Talking Heads strutting art rock/ dance punk directness it leaves no doubt, Bandicoot are ‘The Sound of Young Wales!’.

Libertino · Bandicoot - Worried Blues

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Claire Whitehead - No Right Way, Louise.

Canadian folk-country songstress Claire Whitehead whisks listeners on a journey with her latest project, Thelma: A Country Opera — available now! And if the name sounds familiar, it should… Built through interpretation of the character Thelma of Thelma & Louise, Whitehead has churned a fable into a nine-track release about the fearlessness of the human spirit — including album closer, “No Right Way, Louise.”

“Thelma: A Country Opera is a ‘coming-of-agency’ story,” Whitehead explains. “It’s about the transformation of self and relationships when someone becomes disillusioned with the rules of our world.” As a storyteller, Whitehead commiserates with the protagonist through a series of emotion-driven songs that speak to Thelma’s internal journey, and the album’s live performance features video clips from the film to cue songs.

For its part, “No Right Way, Louise” chronicles Thelma’s ongoing dedication to her best friend. Whitehead’s delicate but piercing vocals churn out a near-plea to Louise as our heroine succumbs to the inevitability of failure to live a life of restraints, and rules. “And they’ll chase us down,” Whitehead coos, “And they’ll spit from a truck. So hand me that gun, cuz i’m I'm all out of luck.”

To tie the song together, Whitehead has self-produced a subsequent music video — a first in her lengthy career. “To make this video, I tried to celebrate the song’s theme of prioritizing female relationships, while working under the constraints of the pandemic,” Whitehead reveals. “This was the first official music video I’ve made, or released, and I did it completely DIY on camera phones and editing on my laptop.

“I was lucky enough to have my sister, Anne, to film the footage and a friend and vocalist from London Ontario, Imogen Wasse, who sings live with me and fosters a lot of positive energy in our performances. “The result has me feeling comfortable being silly on camera, while capturing the power of women working creatively together to make great things.”

For this track and album, Whitehead’s transfixing vocals, well-established melodic harmonies, authentic country twang with the truth bleeding in between the lines transports the listener into an entirely different place and time. “No Right Way, Louise” has Thelma declaring the final lessons of her journey, celebrating friendship, love, and resistance to the wrongs of our world. A multi-instrumentalist and veteran songwriter, where the album shines is Whitehead’s power to transcend you into the character’s story. Whitehead urges you to let go of reality for just a moment, while you walk Thelma’s path with her.

And as her journey unravels track by track, Whitehead grants the listener permission to read the finest print of detail on the most sacred part of a woman’s heart — her spirit. Whitehead’s ability to fully immerse herself into the arms of Thelma’s character and expose her layers far beyond what the silver screen wanted us to watch, is a testimony to this songstress’ uncanny ability to transform into whomever she needs to be to get the song right.

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BOI - Abigail Lapell - Wild Earp & The Free for Alls

BOI - Ribidires.

New Welsh outfit 'BOI' have announced their highly anticipated debut album entitled 'Coron O Chwinc' which will be released on the 25th June via new Welsh label Recordiau Crwn.

'BOI' create a big, melodic, unapologetically drum and guitar driven sound, with lyrics and melodies that explore the big issues of our times and the human state. These 10 songs off “Coron O Chwinc” were recorded in various spaces around Wales, and were then mixed in the capable hands of Dafydd Ieuan (Super Furry Animals).

Band Members/Aelodau'r Band
Keyboards/Allweddellau - Osian Gwynedd
Lead Vocals/Canwr - Rhodri Siôn
Guitar/Gitâr - Ifan Emlyn
Bass/Gitâr Fas - Heledd Mair Watkins
Drums/Drymiau - Dafydd Owen

Osian Gwynedd and Rhodri Siôn were members of Beganifs/Big Leaves for 15 years and more, and recorded several albums and EPs under various labels, with their hits including Seithenyn, Meillionen, Cwcwll and many more. The group gained huge success in Wales during the 1990 and 2000s and performed throughout the UK and further afield with bands such as Catatonia and Super Furry Animals. Their English-language single Racing Birds was Single of the Week on Mark and Lard’s Radio 1 show.

Recordiau Crwn · BOI - Ribidires

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Abigail Lapell - Fortunate Son.

Call it prairie noir or Canadiana desert rock: Toronto’s Abigail Lapell sings haunting, gorgeous modern folk songs. Her solo albums have won two Canadian Folk Music Awards—Contemporary Album of the Year (2017) and English Songwriter of the Year (2020)—reaching #1 on Canadian folk radio and over 11 million Spotify streams.

“Fortunate Son” is Abigail Lapell’s intimate rendition of Creedence Clearwater Revival’s protest song about the Vietnam war with the lyrics touching on the wider power structures and class dimensions behind that conflict. 

In today’s context, Lapell relates the message to the movement for climate justice; how the pain caused by the climate crisis or the coronavirus pandemic are distributed so unevenly throughout society between the haves and the have-nots.

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Wild Earp & The Free for Alls - Ain't It a Shame (When Your Horse Goes Lame).

With a respectful nod to the old masters of classic country and a defiant scoff at the purists, Wild Earp & The Free for Alls mix pensive trail songs with jumping rockabilly, spirited bluegrass, rowdy rock, and, occasionally, the dark corners of folk. Tales of heartache, sinful living, and celebration abound in the new album, Dyin’ for Easy Livin’, an infectious 12-song collection served up with a load of wit, wisdom, and a wild streak that keeps you guessing.

With his long, curly, locks, thick handlebar ‘stache, and of course, wide-brimmed cowboy hat, Earp exudes a look that’s far more quintessential Austin than Chicago, where he and the band are based.

“It turned out to feel really organic,” Earp says of the process of making the album, adding that he continues to enjoy the challenge of playing with traditions and classics and pushing them in a direction that uniquely reflects the essence of Wild Earp. “There's a little country, a little rock, a little swing … a whole lot of whatever,” as Earp describes it, shying away from the oft-used term “Americana.” “Everything we do is at least adjacent to country and western.”

From the first note — or rather, horse’s whinny — of … Easy Livin’'s lead-off track, “Ain’t It a Shame (When Your Horse Goes Lame),” Earp and his band of masterful musicians take the listener on a smile-inducing, toe-tapping romp through barrooms, casinos, fairgrounds, and bedrooms. Throughout, tasty Telecaster licks (courtesy of Jed Taylor, with George Hurden on jaguar), velvety pedal steel (Brian Wilkie, and on the rocking, catchy “Playin’ With House Money,” Robert Daniels), and perfectly-placed piano runs (Sean Hughes) provide an awesome accompaniment to Earp’s vocals, delivered with a knowing wink and a smile that pulls you right into the punch lines. 

But before you go thinking this is another cheeky, novelty throwback act, know this album is far from one-note. There’s a good balance here, between barroom, three-minute rousers and introspective thinkers. The endearing backing and sometimes-lead vocals of Kiley “Sweet Sassy Molassey” Moore add a nice sweetness to the surly, particularly on the stunner “Two ‘Til Midnight,” written by bassist Charlie Malave.

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Lavender Diamond - Riley Downing - Runnner - Lou Heneise - Ida Maria

Lavender Diamond - Turn Around.

Los Angeles-based chamber-pop band Lavender Diamond just released a new song “Turn Around,” a bonus track from the digital re-release of Now Is The Time, their first studio album in more than 8 years out now via Petaluma Records.

“This song is about reversal - the experience of finding the end - of being in the free fall of loss and despair - and that end point being a beginning through the turning,” explains Becky Stark.  “When we were making the record I didn’t think this song should be part of it, but sometime after we were finished I realized it was my favorite one. It had seemed so raw that I couldn’t bear it.  But isn’t that the way? It can feel impossible to see the beauty in what is full of pain - but new joy can be created and found in the turn around.”

Now Is The Time was written and produced entirely by Lavender Diamond, the trio of Becky Stark, Steve Gregoropoulos and Ron Regé, Jr., and mixed by Tucker Martine at Flora Recording & Playback in Portland, OR. The album features contributions from Nathaniel Walcott (Bright Eyes), Sasami and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame guitarist Josh Klinghoffer.

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Riley Downing - Start It Over.

Riley Downing of The Deslondes will release his debut solo album Start It Over tomorrow via New West Records. The 12-song set was co-produced by Andrijia Tokic (Alabama Shakes, Hurray for the Riff Raff) & John James Tourville of the Deslondes. On Start It Over, Downing, Tokic, and Tourville are joined by an incredible backing band including Jack Lawrence of the Raconteurs as well as session players for the likes of Dolly Parton, Elvis Costello, Jason Isbell, Blaze Foley, Yola, and more. Start It Over has been met with critical acclaim with Uncut Magazine in the U.K. describing his voice as “...like Johnny Cash with a hangover,” and exclaiming “His brain...is abuzz with sounds and ideas, which makes his solo debut a thrill.” 

No Depression said “No matter how well Start It Over fits into the current realities of the world — and it does — Downing’s voice and lyrics will continue speaking for generations to come, and in one way or another will keep conjuring memories of bygone eras” and in their 8 out of 10 Star Review, Holler stated “Once you’re on board with Downing’s elusive, often entrancing vibe, you’ll wonder why it took a pandemic for him to hit center stage.”

The Boot recently premiered the video for the album’s title track, saying “Start It Over” harnesses the beauty and power of music.” The “Start It Over” video, was directed by Joshua Shoemaker and filmed in part at Grimey’s New & Preloved Music in Nashville.

Downing has also added additional tour dates in support of Start It Over, beginning this Saturday in Athens, GA. Five special performances in Louisiana and Texas will feature his Deslondes bandmate Sam Doores as well as the Athens, GA based cosmic country band The Pink Stones.

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Runnner - Awash.

Runnner—the project of the now LA-based songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Noah Weinman—has signed to Run For Cover Records, which will release his new album Always Repeating on July 16th,  2021. A 10-track collection composed of five re-recorded versions of songs that appeared on his 2017 debut, Awash, and last year’s One of One EP, Always Repeating serves as a fresh introduction to the artist and his enchanting musical world, where he balances intimate and melancholy songwriting through the lens of hi-fi/lo-fi dynamics.

“Awash,” the album’s sweeping first single out now, embodies the feeling of being lost and adrift through its aching melody, and builds on the track’s early demo with lush choral harmonies, banjo, trumpet, slide guitar, and more. “I wrote this song in about 15 minutes, though I had been kicking the title around for a bit,” Runnner explains. “It felt like the word I was looking for, but I couldn’t get past it. I was feeling so lost & distant from everything, but I would choke on the language anytime I tried to elaborate. I eventually was able to let the song come simply and not stress the specificity too much.” 

Self-produced and recorded wherever Runnner called home at the time, Always Repeating documents a cycle of looking back and moving forward, of alienation changing to reconciliation. After leaving college, his friends, and his beloved life in Ohio, Weinman made the reluctant decision to move back to his hometown of Los Angeles; not because he wanted to, but because he wasn’t sure where else to go. It was an extremely isolating time and that existential dread pervades throughout his debut for Run For Cover Records. “I began to feel like all of the people I knew and had met maybe never really existed,” Weinman says. “I fell out of touch with everyone. It was really lonely. I wrote these songs as a way of reaching out and trying to reconnect.”

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Lou Heneise - Trial & Error (E.P).

Lou Heneise is an American singer, songwriter with roots in the city of Chicago, the rolling farmland of the midwest, and the Bible Belt of the South. All of which can be heard influencing her Electro-Acoustic-Folk-Americana EP Trial & Error

Her debut EP, Trial & Error is delicate, charming, vulnerable, and honest, merging the haunting delivery of Lou's live show with the driving force of full instrumentation.

Trial & Error is as introspective and earnest as it is catchy. Lou has captured the American heartbeat in this collection of songs.

Lou currently spends her days with her tender and wild toddler, making music, reading books and contemplating the meaning of life with her fellow artists, activists, philosophers, and poets.

Lou Heneise · Trial & Error

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Ida Maria - Dirty Money.

The opening to "Dirty Money" will immediately grab listeners and confirm that this indisputable viking punk Queen Ida Maria has retained the same rebellious attitude that got her in the game, while referencing the lifestyle of an industry's enabling that took her out of the game for a brief time.

Featuring a punk blast of garage guitar, 'Dirty Money' carries the high-energy punk-pop Ida's been widely acclaimed for with cheeky lyrics that are sugar-coated with a highly addictive chorus, addressing much more serious topics that are frustrating to her. Ida's personal experiences with greed and corruption are detailed with a racket of petulant screams, among them "Pay me all your Dirty oney/I'm your favorite monkey/watch me go!!!"

A pointed critique of capitalism, "Dirty Money" looks at the ways that money and greed corupt us all on some level, despite our best efforts to the contrary. “Everybody wants to be/Full make up and on TV/Talking ‘bout your jealousy/Mom I know I look insane/But they all promised me champagne/Swear they want me for my brain,’ Ida Maria belts out, infusing her innocent fury with snarky giggles that are reminiscent of a taunting childhood chant, as if to say, “Look at me now.”

When she’s not writing or recording music, Ida is head of her local Green Party, devoting herself to spreading a politically urgent message of ecological sustainability, which references her underlying themes to “Dirty Money” –-  making this song not only truly relevant, but also timely.

"Dirty Money” "is about stolen land and Bitcoin. It’s about the oil wars in Nigeria. It´s the mining in Congo, slavery for iPhones. Anything that the greedy human mind  turns to to try and fulfill that hole of nothingness, it’s about the Matrix. Get off the grid! Let's do something that doesn't cost money. The best things in life are for free!” Ida Maria exclaims.

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Stephanie Erin Wittmer - dawn-Song - Alyssa Joseph - Mia Baron - Steve Paul Simms - Julia Bardo - Spud Cannon

Stephanie Erin Wittmer - Pilot.

While the name Stephanie Erin Wittmer might be a new one amongst fans of modern country music, one listen to her debut EP Pilot reveals songwriting and vocal chops on par with seasoned professionals. Recorded at Modern Electric Sound Recorders in Dallas, TX with Jeff Saenz and Beau Bedford at the helm (known for their impressive output with the likes of Texas Gentlemen, Paul Cauthen, Ruby Boots, David Ramirez and more), Pilot merges 90s country influences with modern folk-pop flourishes that make for an inspired journey along open roads and past tumbleweeds, “only stopping for good views” — or news, depending on the chorus.

Equipped with metaphors aplenty, Wittmer takes her musing about relationships full circle in “The Great Ones,” comparing the rarity of an epic love to that of an epic song. “All of the great ones don’t come that easily / It takes a little patience and some fine tuning,” she affirms. She tackles self-discovery and finding solace in the aptly-named title track, dives headfirst into a fast-moving crush on “Always Been a Sucker,” and explores heartache and pain in EP standout “The Difference.” Repeated listens to the short yet spirited collection might recall such iconic voices as Trisha Yearwood, Alison Krauss, and Shania Twain, but fans of modern Americana faves such as Margo Price and Dori Freeman will find something amongst Pilot’s four tunes to love as well.

Growing up in small-town, rural Illinois, Wittmer was exposed to country music and performing at a very young age; she recalls putting on performances for her parents when she was three or four years old. Like many children, she took piano lessons, wrote poetry in her journal, and then finally thought to merge the two when she was a teen. Her post-college life took her to LA, and the road from there to her present sound has been a winding one. Before going back to her roots or “finding the flame” that she once knew, as she sings in the EP’s title track, she teamed up with some friends for a bedroom electronica project and also spent some time writing singer-songwriter tunes on the piano. “I had all these ideas for songs, that I just had to get out … too many,” she says. “I started writing all these country songs and realized I really love this genre."

A fan of Bedford’s work, particularly with Paul Cauthen, Wittmer recalls meeting him while visiting family in Texas and reaching out to him with demos. He responded favorably, which led to the two discussing working together, and ultimately Bedford assembled a rock solid band that knocked out the four songs in just a couple of days, recording live with minimal overdubs. The EP features the talents of McKenzie Smith (Midlake) on drums and percussion; Texas Gentlemen Charley Wiles and Scott Lee on guitar and bass, respectively; and Parker Twomey (Paul Cauthen) on piano and organ. Esteemed pedal steel player Will Van Horn’s embellishments put a flawlessly-placed bow on the glowing, fresh, rootsy package, with instrumental touches that add just the right flair to Wittmer’s sweet-yet-sassy vocal stylings.

Stephanie Erin Wittmer · Pilot

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dawn-Song - Heartbeats of my Son.

"Third tune from my album "for Morgan" released on Ffynnone Recordings at the end of May 2021. A song attempting to convey the depth of feeling looking into your newborn sons eyes for the first time, the overwhelming joy and the impulse to introduce him to your own father who is no longer alive. The video fillmed and edited by Jose Carballal inhabits the songs sentiment perfectly. A meditation on, nature, time, and the dialogue between generations."

Released physically via Ffynnone Records on the 28th of May, 'For Morgan', the beautiful debut album by Dawn-Song will be available on Limited Edition Vinyl and Compact Disc.

Come with us on an epic journey from Dark to Light, an extraordinary tale of total excess to finding ones inner calm, a musical time-capsule 'For Morgan' is an audio letter from Father to Son. Welshman Nick Evans originally from Penarth, South Wales found himself in the centre of London's consuming Music Business in the 90's. His Elemental Records a pioneering Label was home to Alabama 3, Rocket From The Crypt amounst others.

"I made an album of my songs with some wonderful collaborators over the last couple of years. When I’m gone I wanted to continue to be able to sing for my son Morgan if he needed me. My father published a small book of poetry before he died and if I’m missing him a lot I read a bit of it and I feel reconnected. I also wanted to make something my mother could enjoy. So the record is for Morgan" - Nick Evans AKA Dawn-Song

"When we were young We dreamed of creating a better future We Screamed, We Shouted We Loved, We Lost But We Lived Sometimes Together, Sometime Apart And Now I hear my friend talking from a future to his son I hear my friend imploring the world to do and to be better I hear the same song with a different sound I hear the Byrds, I hear Crass The shoutings gone, replaced with fragility and love I hear dawn Song" - Ffynnone Recordings

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Alyssa Joseph - easier.

Indie-rocker and self-identified “grungy sadgirl” Alyssa Joseph released a deliciously creative lyric video for her song “easier”. .

From bagels to baked beans, the lyrics in the video are made entirely from diner breakfast food! The lyric video, created by videographer Max Sternlict, reflects the meaning and lyrics of the song in a distinctly unique way. The song is about a relationship that neither member is truly willing to exit, as it opens with the lines “We say that it’s breakfast, nothing more. Even though I know you want an open door so we meet at different diners.” Holding nothing back on this garage-tinged rocker, Alyssa Joseph presses her powerful voice and growling guitars to describing someone struggling to swallow the lies they tell themselves to get through the day.

Alyssa Joseph opened up about the meaning behind this gut-punch of a song, saying  "easier is a nod to my New Jersey roots and just an honest song where I call out an ex and myself. We’d meet up once a month at diners after we dated to keep the door open since that was easier than finding someone new. Writing this song forced me to take a hard look at how I cope with heartbreak and isolation." The lyric video, which only came together last-minute, started with writing the lyrics in ketchup and moved on to other breakfast foods in an ode to Jersey diners. Describing the process of creating the video, Joseph says, “not everything happens for a reason, but nothing is a mistake.”

A New Jersey native and recent East Nashville transplant, Alyssa draws influence from contemporary songwriters like Julia Jacklin, Sharon Van Etten, and Big Thief. Prior to the pandemic, Alyssa had spent the last few years cutting her teeth touring up and down the east coast, where she became a familiar favorite at Sofar Sounds in NYC, Philly, Boston, and DC. Pairing carefully candid guitar playing with intensely confessional lyrics, Alyssa finds power in her own vulnerability. Her writing is tender and honest, even blunt at times, but always deeply personal - proof that she’s still figuring it out, just like the rest of us.

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Mia Baron - Hide And Seek.

Focused, fearless, and fierce. Mia Baron is a 13 year old force to be reckoned with. Not only is she an outstanding young songwriter but she has already one several singing competitions in her short life, most notably one of which was recorded by the “Reel T.V.” network and judged by Shawn Desman. Yet another first prize award was presented to her by the Toronto City Mayor John Tory and other noticeable city council members.

In November 2019, Mia was honored to perform at the Israel Cancer Research Foundation at the prestigious Koerner Hall in Toronto alongside other incredibly talented singers such as Tony Vincent, Yvan Pedneault, Stacy Kay, Justin Guarini, with whom she sang a beautiful duet.

Another project Mia was humbled to take part of was producing and recording an original Hebrew song written in honour of a Fallen IDF Soldier. This video, following Mia’s interview, made its debut live on Israeli Prime Time News programming in July 2020.

Mia will be releasing her original song Hide and seek in May 2021, and will be releasing several other originals she has written these past few months, with Matt Kahane and Quin Kiu, in the near future. Mia is excited to keep the momentum flowing into 2022 and beyond.

Mia Baron · Hide And Seek- Mastered JCarv MB06APR21

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Steve Paul Simms - No Money Comin' In.

Raw, real, and authentically blues, “No Money Comin’ In” is the latest confessional from Canada’s own Steve Paul Simms.

With “No Money Comin’ In,” the blues riff conquers your groove, willing your body to move. Available now, the grungy rock and blues anthem is a toast to a commonality we’re all facing in the height of this global pandemic — a lack of the benjamins. And Simms bets it all on this track, getting right to the heart of the matter with the truth —  the good, bad and ugly of it all.

“Written at a challenging time, when love ultimately won out over financial hardship, the song allows the listener to imagine their own ending to the story,” Simms explains, adding that the track is “dedicated to the triumph over life's hardships.

“There's a lot of light and laughter here too.” A travelin’ troubadour with a melody on his sleeve and a song on his heart, Simms is a natural-born performer with a knack for telling stories that humanize life experiences in ways we all understand. Born in Wales, Steve Paul Simms’ repertoire refutes the boundaries of genre; the singer/songwriter fluidly intertwines his tracks between pop, ragtime, jazz, blues, soul, country, Broadway, and old-fashioned rock and roll.

For more than 20 years, Simms has spent his life spinning yarns, performing on stages as both an actor and a musician. He boasts a collection of more than 200+ written tunes across his tenure of performing arts, and has honed his craft through years of busking, contributing to the Tranzac Club in his now-hometown of Toronto, private and public concerts on Zoom, having performed in more than 60 theatrical productions across Canada, and more. “No Money Comin’ In” is the latest to land from Steve Paul’s fourth album, Ingrid and the Messenger Boy — a 12-track collection of fables, homages, and testaments to the human experience, pop culture, love, and everything in between.

Recording in Toronto, Simms brought together a host of talent to flesh out the track; the song boasts Bob Cohen on guitars and bass, organ and piano from Ed Michael Roth, drums by George Morellato, moaning vocals compliments of Chantale Groulx and Linda Elaine Lucas, in addition to SPS on lead vox and rhythm guitar. “Nothin' will ease your mind like money — poets are paid to tell lies,” croons Simms, and that’s how to tell fact from fiction. A musician ready to bare it all, and lay our crosses out to dry. Steve Paul Simms isn’t here for poor excuses. He came to gamble on the richness of a song that paints the picture of our times.

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Julia Bardo - Do This To Me.

Manchester-via-Italy singer, songwriter and guitarist Julia Bardo has shared her new single and video Do This To Me, which follows recent single release It’s Okay (To Not Be Okay). She has also announced her eagerly awaited debut album Bauhaus, L’Appartamento will be released on 10th September via Wichita Recordings and shared details of a new Autumn headline tour, which is on sale now.

Do This To Me is like losing yourself in a daydream. An introspective song with personal lyrics about growing up, its charming and laid-back melody builds to a lush and emotive alt pop chorus with a catchy refrain. The video, directed by Georgie Brown, sees Julia glamorising a mundane routine and losing herself in another life.

Julia says; “Do This To Me is a very personal song about feeling abandoned, growing up and family.”

Julia’s debut album follows the release of two EPs, Phase and The Raw EP, both released last year, which saw her experiment further with her wistful and mysterious sound to become the alternative pop artist she is today. Whilst Bauhaus, L’Appartamento will mark her first full length release and the finale of this part of her musical journey, it is also just the beginning for the authentic and curious talent that is Julia Bardo.

With her candidly open lyrics illustrating her world through journal-like observations and poetic visions, her debut album is an intimate and expressive body of work. Named after the apartment complex she lived in when demoing the album’s recordings, but with an Italian twist, it features previous single It’s Okay (To Not Be Okay) and new single Do This To Me and can be pre-ordered here.

“The album is a collection of emotions and feelings; loneliness, solitude, separation, but also unconditional love. Family, emotional dependency, mental health issues, feelings of emptiness and numbness, feelings of not being enough, inability to be in control of my own emotions, self-doubt, self-reflection, past traumas and dealing with them.”

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Spud Cannon - You Got It All (NOT).

NY-based group Spud Cannon are debuting "You Got It All (NOT)," the lead single off of their forthcoming new album, Good Kids Make Bad Apples.

Meg Matthews (lead vocals), “This song DROVE ME CRAZY!!! I spent hours singing along to the voice memo in my car to work out the melody, and even longer trying to figure out lyrics back in Summer ‘19… After trying night after night by myself, I had pages of loose lines, rhymes, and ideas, but it took a group effort with Lucy and Ari to actually solidify anything.”

Ari Bowe (keys, vocals), “Since we collaborated on this song, I followed Meg’s lead when it came to the concept behind the lyrics. To me, it’s about these back-and-forth feelings for someone who is lovable yet stubborn and difficult to deal with. Kind of like an internal conflict between caring for this person while also grappling with their inability to be emotionally mature.

Jackson Walker Lewis (guitar), “Instrumentally, this was by far the one we spent the most time on…The song in total is just a hybridization of many influences—for the intro, I wanted to draw inspiration from “This Charming Man”/”Wouldn’t It Be Nice,” whereas the verse mimics the sequence from The Jam’s “A Town Called Malice”…While it felt like a wrestling match the whole way through it, I refused to give up on it because I fervently believed it to be the indie magnum opus of the album, almost a crystallization of all we had done previously.”

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