Wyndow - Seafoam Green - Birdtalker - Ewan MacFarlane

Wyndow - All Cameras Gone.

Ahead of the release of their eponymous debut album, Wyndow (Laura J Martin and Lavinia Blackwall) return with new single 'All Cameras Gone'. The songs on Wyndow exist in the space between waking and sleeping, hazy tales that unfurl and engulf the listener in a slightly uncanny sense of familiarity. New single, ‘All Cameras Gone’, is a paean to the dust and crackles of the analogue age and the shadows of a lonely projectionist leaving the booth and memories for the final time.

The project was ignited by a love of Robert Wyatt and an off-hand idea of collaborating on a version of his song ‘Free Will and Testament’. In a time of weird interludes, the self-examination of the song’s lyrics opened the pathway to themes examined throughout the record, that of being and wanting and the battle between knowledge and knowing. Who am I and do I see myself the way others see me?

What followed was an exploration of the uncertain and the impermanent.  According to Martin, they are “tunes for whacked out worriers lifting weights in the worry gym,” where “feeling uneasy never felt so easy." Reflections flit between two pendulums as the pair wrote and recorded remotely and exchanged these dog-eared musical postcards to see each others’ responses.  Eschewing the “band in a room” aesthetic out of geographical necessity they focussed on maximising the sonic palette of each song, doing exactly what each piece demanded without thinking about who had to play each instrument.

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Seafoam Green - Maggie.

Seafoam Green’s sophomore album ‘Martin’s Garden’ was released in June to huge critical acclaim including 8/10 from Classic Rock Magazine and a glowing 4-star review from MOJO who described it as ‘a near faultless album’.

Produced by Tedeschi Trucks Band’s Tyler Greenwell, the album is a colourful melting pot of Americana, rock, folk and psychedelia with Seafoam Green’s and own musical identity, by way of their Irish & Liverpool roots, fully stamped over it. The album is available to now on CD, vinyl or download here: https://www.diggersfactory.com/vinyl/240136/seafoam-green-martins-garden

Seafoam Green’s next single from the album, is perhaps the album’s most indie-pop leaning track. Shining electric guitar chords, emotive piano and Muireann McDermott Long’s stunning vocal set out a powerful ballad as the band ponder, “What if your love is not enough?”.

On the new single, the band said, “Maggie is based around the notion that just because someone loves you, it doesn't mean you have to sacrifice your own happiness to spare their heart. It's a song about new horizons; taking control of your situation and not looking back.”

If you weren’t aware of Seafoam Green yet, now is the time to get your ears on their music. Combining the best of the old with the best of the new, they are a quality outfit, serious about continuing to make a mark on the music world. ‘Maggie’ is yet another example of the band’s top notch songwriting, superb versatility and and why ‘Martin’s Garden’ has been so highly lauded.

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Birdtalker - Taking Control.

Nashville-based indie/folk group Birdtalker released their emphatic new single "Taking Control." The song is the latest peak at their forthcoming self-titled sophomore album (out October 8th via AntiFragile Music) and follow-up to their 2018 critically acclaimed debut One. With "Taking Control," Birdtalker kindly commandeer their instincts and shed their self-consciousness with driving bass, acoustic rhythms, and playful synth flourishes.

"It's a silly lil tune about codependence - moving from a place of caring more about how I am perceived to a place where I can rediscover what motivates me and what my instincts are," the band told The Boot, who featured the track. "I love how the chorus peeks out of the co-dependent headspace by starting with 'I hope you don't mind,' but finishes with 'I'm taking control of the skin I'm swimming in.' The bridge plays with timing and it feels like it reveals a bit of hesitation behind the lyrics."

"Taking Control" follows the release of the breezy duet "Tides" and "Old Sob Story," a rollicking song full of bravado and sass that Rolling Stone called "at times evoking the dramatic flair of the Decemberists' Colin Meloy, at others the bravado (and glammy tones of Marc Bolan." Lead single "Better Days" is also out now, a tranquil yet stirring song that finds the quintet reawakening and optimistically looking forward.

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Ewan MacFarlane - Underneath Your Spell.

When Ewan MacFarlane, the charismatic former Grim Northern Social frontman and long-time member of electro maestros Apollo 440, states “Its high time I stepped out and made the music I always needed to make,” then you’d better believe it, as he boldly embraces a whole new sound.

Following debut solo single ‘Stirrin’ In The City’, which picked up BBC Radio Scotland & Amazing Radio airplay, MacFarlane returns with second single ‘Underneath Your Spell’ out 10th Sept. Both tracks are standout works from MacFarlane’s superb forthcoming full-length album ‘Always Everlong’ due out October 29th. Whilst the trademark socially insightful lyrics and biting vocals of his previous recorded output remain very much part of the DNA, it’s safe to say that stylistically speaking, MacFarlane has mellowed; for he has spent the intervening time embracing his inner melodic troubadour, en-route to an uncharted destination. Sporting more than a touch of Americana in his new material, he honours the revered rock’n’roll songbooks of his songwriting heroes Bowie, Petty, and Springsteen.

Whilst the new songs may take inspiration from some legendary songbooks though, their origin remains, very much a thing of its time. Challenging himself mid lockdown to write and upload one tune per day to Youtube, the songs mostly tell tales of tension with pledges of eternal love.

‘Underneath Your Spell’ is a classic rock belter that brilliantly expresses the euphoria that love brings being captured underneath your lover’s spell. On the track’s themes MacFarlane says, “It’s both about a lust and love for life and for each other. It’s about endless boundaries, about taking the good with the bad, the happy with the sad, the laughter and the tears, but not least it’s about kicking down the walls of constraint and living life exactly how you choose. Free to be what you want to be without judgement.”

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Gustaf - Alice Hubble - Alphanaut - stores - Family Time

Gustaf - The Motions.

Brooklyn art punks Gustaf are sharing the final single from their highly anticipated debut album Audio Drag For Ego Slobs. "The Motions" follows previous tracks "Best Behavior" and the NPR-approved "Book" and is the latest track from one of New York’s “hardest working…and most reliably fun bands” (BrooklynVegan) before their album comes out on October 1st via Royal Mountain Records.

Ahead of an extensive of touring schedule that sees them traversing the US, UK and Europe alongside IDLES, Pillow Queens, and Osees, vocalist Lydia Gammill explains, "I always envisioned "The Motions" as our ‘walking around New York City’ song. The cadence is great for trudging across a bridge or taking the subway.

The song is about snapping between the perspective of your chaotic inner narrative while following the precut path of the world around you. Like when you’re strutting down the sidewalk to a song and your headphones slip off for a second to reveal the natural soundscape you’d been ignoring, realizing the world you had been wrapped up in is not the one shared by everyone else. 

Then you see that everyone with headphones is jumping between their own personal world and the reality they’re actually living in. I’ve found that if you walk around New York City without headphones, the streets are surprisingly silent. It’s us that add the cacophony of our own personal soundtracks.

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Alice Hubble - Hexentanzplatz.

Hexentanzplatz the new album by Alice Hubble will is released today September 10th, 2021 via London-based electronic-pop label Happy Robots. 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, Jane Weaver and Dubstar. Her debut album Polarlichter was released in September 2019 to much critical acclaim.

The title track of the album, Hexentanzplatz is named after the German mountain steeped in magic and legend. It translates literally to mean 'Witches’ Dance Floor' in English. An apt title for an album that dances it’s way through themes of illusion, love, feminism and protest whilst maintaining glistening, 80’s synth-pop sensibilities. “Being an eternal optimist I felt the need to write something in 2020 that was full of hope and positivity,” she says. “‘Hexentanzplatz’ is in part about the mountain, but really it's an inclusive pop song about fighting the patriarchy,” she continues. “Oh what a beautiful mountain” she sings atop euphoric, glitchy electronics. ‘Hexentanzplatz’ is a celebration of the wonders of nature, inclusivity and acceptance.

Of the other tracks on the album, perhaps the most classically pop moment is ‘Projections’ an 80’s style love song for the confused. “1,2,3 and I fall in love with my projections of you / I just see what I want to see” the chorus goes, referencing the love you project onto an unobtainable person. Second single ‘My Dear Friend’ was inspired by the discovery of a collection of love letters written by Hubble’s mother to her father around the time that they first met. “My mother passed away when I was in my teens and these letters gave me a real insight into who she was as a person, her ‘newly in love’ giddiness jumping off the page,” she says.

In contrast, Hubble found herself channelling a lot of anger into ‘Power Play’. “The track is a comment on what happens in a post #metoo world, once the worst offenders have been ‘cancelled’ and the news stories are over. Has something changed?  Does society move on and go to the next issue?” she explains, “‘Power Play’ is the closest thing I’ve written to a protest song”. The album also showcases Hubble’s talent for creating immersive electronic soundscapes. Tracks like ‘Numb’ and album opener ‘West Reservoir’ are awash with twinkling synths, the latter of which invites the listener into Hubble’s carefully curated world. ‘Gleichfalls’, a blissed out five minute instrumental, close

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Alphanaut - Young, Wild And Beautiful.

We have a new single from Palm Springs music collective, Alphanaut! Coming in hot before the release of their album on October 15th, they are sharing “Young, Wild & Beautiful,” another smooth delivery from the band that showcases their flare for new wave rock laced with electro-synth sweetness. With founding member Mark Alan’s warm and inviting vocal delivery, I call it soul food for the ears.

Alphanaut is a true passion project of ringmaster Mark Alan, along with the creative contributions of family and friends. As musicians with a shared purpose and common love of Bowie, Talking Heads, and Roxy Music. 

Upcoming album “On Some Planets This Is Pop” is a rose tinted exploration of inclusivity, praising the unordinary while championing what it means to shine as your true self.

Alphanaut · Young, Wild And Beautiful

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stores - bones.

The debut single from Merseyside based stores, 'bones' has already caught the attention of the likes of Speedy Wunderground founder Dan Carey, who gave the song a spin when sitting in for Steve Lamacq on BBC Radio 6 Music. The single has also found it's way on to a range of playlists including Spotify's 'Melomania', Birp FM's Indie, The So Young List and others.

The band have announced the music video for 'bones', directed by Existential Pleasures, will be released today Friday 10th September. "A story regarding the complexities and imbalances of a toxic relationship, a perpetual loop of virulent tendencies in which each consort feels like a sacrificial lamb on the altar"

The CGI animation created by Existential Pleasures Studio manifests the duo digitally in a contorted digital dreamscape. Presenting the themes of toxic relationships with the imagery of lambs for the slaughter, peace offering flowers and rabbits in the headlights.

About Existential Pleasures - Existential Pleasures are a multi-faceted creative studio formed in 2015 by Fionn de Buitlèar and Joseph Wyness. Their output of work intertwines various artistic disciplines including graphic design, 3D animation, product design and art direction. The studio looks to constantly push boundaries in its work through the use of the newest technologies to form new ways of storytelling.

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Family Time - New Positions.

Spanish duo Family Time share ‘New Positions’, their first release since 2019s experimental pop-opera album ‘The Great Abismo’  and their first with US indie label 22Twenty. They also announce an exclusive showcase with Oracle Sisters, in partnership with Primavera Sound and an extensive run of EU dates this Winter.

Trading the humid backdrop of holiday resorts that illuminated their last work for a snow-stormed makeshift studio-shelter in Berlin, they have been working on new material, of which we are now offered an opening taste. ‘New Positions’, with a certain fin-de-siècle allure and cinematic poise, is a reflection on the mathematics of intimacy. How does any relationship fare when faced with cold, rational scrutiny? What happens when we poke at love with our anxieties? And will our numbers hold, we are asked, by the time we get to morning?

Opening with gentle piano, the track is tinged with jazz inflections that underpin it’s captivating but laid back atmosphere. Dreamy saxophone lines enter and leave the musical conversation like guests at a dinner party, both fleeting but punctuated with meaning.

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Spunsugar - Reb Fountain

Spunsugar - Rodan.

Following on from the release of their highly-praised debut album ‘Drive-Thru Chapel’ last October, fast-rising Swedish trio Spunsugar return once again with their shimmering new effort ‘Rodan’.

Continuing that trend of sweet and euphoric dream-pop textures they have earned a reputation for, ‘Rodan’ sees the group return in stellar form. With its rich and soaring aesthetic married perfectly with smooth and seductive vocals, they are keeping both a tight hold over their progressive sound and pushing the boundaries of it as far as it will go.

While also a danceable-but-sad pop/shoegaze song, Rodan is of course a Kaiju, a Japanese movie monster like Godzilla. “That’s who I felt like while writing the lyrics” guitarist Cordelia says. Rodan was the first Kaiju movie made in color, and that’s a fitting symbolism to Spunsugar’s new material. With glittery guitars, synthwavey drums and Felix’s thumping railroad bass the song is equally yesterday, today and tomorrow in its sound. Elin’s vocals are clear, controlled and encourages you to listen. It solidifies a new direction for the band who feels they’ve come into their own as a unity more than ever.

Spunsugar is an alternative rock band with shoegaze influencers based in Malmö, Sweden, with roots in the small town bible belt country side. The trio has different musical backgrounds which has led media to express praise for their elaboration and new take on the dark and pulsing nature of the post-punk sound and deliver it through a completely new and diverse contemporary lens, incorporating both goth and electronic elements. After an EP and some introductory singles they 2020 released their thunderous and anthemic debut album ‘Drive-Through Chapel’. The album put them on the map as one of the most exciting bands coming out of the scene and Scandinavia with media support from Steve Lamacq at BBC 6Music, The Independent, The Line of Best Fit, Nothing but Hope and Passion and much more.

Adrian Recordings · Spunsugar - Rodan

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Reb Fountain - Foxbright.

The fourth single ‘Foxbright’ is shared from Reb Fountain's forthcoming album IRIS out via Flying Nun Records on October 1st, 2021. The new single serves as a mesmerizing slow-burner, brimming with delicate piano, acoustic guitar and a stunning string section that guides the listener through its tender and understated production, with Reb’s enchanting vocals complimenting the music masterfully.

'Foxbright' is a reminder that there’s love to be found even when we can’t find it in ourselves. Reb wrote 'Foxbright' on the piano in one day, but as with all songs, it’s made up of what has come before; wild fragments in total eclipse. The simple verses, the declaratory motif and extended mid-section were connected by a chorus with a repeating melody.

"When I played Foxbright to Dave Khan he said, ‘that melody is the bass line’. I love that about the chorus; it’s a subtle and hypnotic imprint fully formed.”

We’ve all had a turn at hiding of late; the burrow’s the place we head to when in headlights. Lola Fountain-Best and Reb created an unadorned video landscape in which to observe the state of play. Dressing the set like a re-imagined blanket fort they borrowed a 16mm film projector to project industrial film footage from the 1950’s onto Reb’s body. The result is a beautiful and intimate expression of our nature.

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Dahlia Sleeps - Guyville

Dahlia Sleeps - Too Good To Hide.

London based duo Dahlia Sleeps today announce their long-awaited debut album, Overflow. Two years in the making and almost 6 years since their debut single, producer/writer Luke Hester and singer/writer Lucy Hill will release Overflow in two parts – the first of which will be out on October 19th, with the B-side to follow early in 2022.

Accompanying the album announcement is new single "Too Good To Hide". The track unfurls beautifully; partnering smoky atmospherics and soaring guitars with rich live percussion and a haunting string section, "Too Good To Hide" dissects how mental ill-health can hold us back and keep us repeating the same painful patterns, as the song builds elegantly towards its stunning crescendo.

Of the new single, singer Lucy Hill said: “Too Good To Hide is a song about running towards turmoil instead of towards the light. So often it is a battle to build the life we want because trauma or mental health issues keep us where we are. This is the first song on the record that touches on mental health, a theme that features heavily in forthcoming songs. And as with all these songs, this one ends with hope, something that exists for all of us as we learn to love ourselves and overcome our pasts.”

With eclectic influences ranging from electronic acts including MOVEMENT, Autechre and Burial to the lyrically poetic works of Florence + the Machine, Radiohead and The National, Dahlia Sleeps shift seamlessly between genres; from dance to electronic to pop.

Dahlia Sleeps' new material and forthcoming full length brings a new weight sonically, depicting a new kind of freedom for the duo – from managing and coming to terms with mental health problems to experiencing love in all its forms despite them.

 

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Guyville - Nothing.

Guyville is a Los Angeles based duo comprised of its founding members, Kat Hamilton and Emily Hulslander. The pair craft songs that combine elements of 90s rock, pop and country. As their name suggests, the legacy of Liz Phair brought these two powerful women together in songwriting bliss. The duo strikes the perfect chord with Hulslander's intelligent pop approach and Hamilton’s confessional lyricism.

Guyville was formed during your usual Los Angeles writing session in the Valley. What was unusual, was the easy flow and chemistry between the two prolific writers. Within a few hours, the duo had written their first song “Should’ve Never Dated”. Emily Hulslander had already made a strong name for herself in LA songwriting circles, but was struggling to find another writer who she could relax into the process with. Kat Hamilton was newer to LA, but felt unfulfilled as a writer. On that pivotal day, Emily and Kat found common ground in their failed relationships, artistic journeys and the women of the 90s.

This connection is highlighted in their debut Guyville single, “Nothing”. The end of summer jam combines elements of indie rock and 90s girl anthems with a sprinkle of Shania Twain. “Nothing” celebrates the wonderful post- breakup feeling of absolutely nothing for your ex. In the music video, Hamilton and Hulslander frolic in rose gardens and dance along sandy beaches. The result is a bubbly, tongue in cheek ode to getting over it and moving on.

 

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Favours - Susto - Seasurfer

Favours - Call Me.

Favours are made up of Jacq Andrade and Alex Zen. They released their first LP, Made to Wait, in 2020. It was recorded at Candle Recording Studios in Toronto. Their song “Stowaway” was featured on Netflix and CBC Gem. 

Recently, Favours joined forces with Jacq’s brother, Mark Andrade and built a home recording studio in a former halfway house in Mimico. Throughout the pandemic, Favours tracked a ton of music in their home studio. Their EP, Left Behind, will be released in 2021 and it features a fresh dreampop, new-wave sound inspired by their shared love of the DIY post-punk feel of Robert Rental. 

The band collaborated with a strong team for this upcoming EP. They enlisted the talents of Broken Social Scene’s Brendan Canning who plays bass on the EP, the engineering chops of Tallies’ Dylan Franklin who engineered the drums and bass, and the mixing prowess of Alexandre Bonenfont.

Favours · CALL ME

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Susto - Summertime.

Susto will return with Time in the Sun on October 29th via New West Records. The 11-song set was produced and engineered by Wolfgang Zimmerman (Band of Horses) in the band’s hometown of Charleston, South Carolina. Time in the Sun follows their critically acclaimed 2019 studio album Ever Since I Lost My Mind which Paste raved was “a resounding triumph.” 

The joy of birth, the closure of death, the warmth of true friendship, and the future rotate on the axis of the band’s New West Records debut. Frontman Justin Osborne distills this ebb and flow into songs underpinned by lyrical eloquence, unpredictable dynamics, and a thoroughly alive rock and roll spirit.

Prior to entering the studio, Osborne became a father and midway through recording, lost his own father to cancer. Osborne says, “Because I had begun writing when I found out I was going to be a dad, these events were the biggest inspirations for the record. It felt like I was in between the beginning and end of life. Up until my own father passed away, I felt like it was an album about new life and becoming a parent. His passing shifted the narrative towards the cyclical nature of life, death, and new births.”

 

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Seasurfer - Drifting.

Shortly after Seasurfer’s acclaimed third album “Zombies” has also been released on vinyl in addition to the earlier CD edition, the Hamburg-based dream pop duo comes up with a new version of the song “Drifting”. The track turned out to be one of the fan’s favourites on the record, so Dirk Knight and Apolonia decided to produce an alternate mix.   

However, the song still captivates due to the rich atmosphere and the dark elegance of the floating synth sounds which reveal a blissful 80s feeling. This applies all the more so for the “Extended Single Mix” – almost 12 minutes long and probably one of the most impressing reworks in the band’s history.

Dirk Knight explains: "For me “Drifting” is the song with the coolest bass of the whole album “Zombies”. For the first time I recorded all the basses by myself and learned to love playing this instrument. Basses are extremely important to us and determine the harmonies and melodies, similar to how Simon Gallup (The Cure), Peter Hook (Joy Division, New Order) and Simon Raymonde (Cocteau Twins) are doing it. For the single and the extended mix we let the drums run straight through to make the song even more mesmerizing.

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Helven - Áine Rose Daly - Juniper Stone - Sitrekin

Helven - u my homie.

Emerging Norwegian alt-pop artist Helven has announced that she will release her debut EP volume 1 via Jansen Records on Jan 14th 2022. Hailing from the Norwegian countryside, Helven, aka 21-year-old Jenny Bakke,  recently moved to Oslo to pursue her career in music. The up-and-coming musician has a talent for fusing together honest, true and contemporary lyrics with inspiration from pop music of the past, capturing the experience of life as a 21-year-old woman in the 2020’s.

Inspired by the many lessons her brother, who has autism and Landau-Kleffner Syndrome, has taught her, Helven is on a mission to wear her heart on her sleeve. Each of the five tracks that make up volume 1 focuses on a different emotion that she has struggled to express in the past: envy, care, love, sadness and frustration. Attaching a particular feeling to the autobiographical stories she tells in her music has helped her find a true sense of self. Her message to her generation is simple. “In order to survive in this increasingly chaotic world, we need to listen to our feelings more, and express them proudly.”

On lead single ‘u my homie’, Helven delivers her signature smoky vocals atop laidback trip-hop beats. The lyrics were pulled from text messages and notes Helven wrote whilst helping her childhood friend through a tough time. "It's about the journey we had together, what it is like to help a friend, the ups and downs, and the strength of the friendship in adversity" she explains. "I used texts from that period to write the lyrics. It's all the things we used to say to each other during the toughest times, without anyone else understanding what they meant. Instead of saying 'I love you, you'll get through this', we said 'I know you, u my homie'".

Jansen Records · Helven - u my homie (9AM Records

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Áine Rose Daly - Places.

Having already made her mark in the acting world of late, earning a regular part in the hit Amazon Prime series Hanna, emerging singer and songwriter Áine Rose Daly is now staking her claim on the music world as she delivers the wonderfully bright and uplifting new single ‘Places’.

Channelling a rich and dynamic alt-pop aesthetic throughout, ‘Places’ sees the artist deliver a bold and shimmering new offering, layered in rich and euphoric textures. With a light and atmospheric production embedded around her sweet and soaring voice, her new offering showcases her as a strong and powerful artist, brimming with stellar potential.

Speaking about the new release, she said, “I wrote this song a long time ago about my struggles with my mental health and how, at the time, I felt like it was holding me back from doing what I wanted to do with my life.”

Áine Daly is a London-based actor/singer/songwriter. Born and raised in Jersey, Channel Islands to Irish parents and coming from a long lineage of musicians and creatives, Áine has always been surrounded by music and arts.

The last few years have seen Áine’s acting career flourish, having been cast in multiple feature length films and most notably playing a series regular in Amazon Prime's “HANNA”. Outside of her acting career however, Aine has always maintained her love for songwriting and considers it a major creative outlet for herself.

Áine Rose Daly · Places

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Juniper Stone - Patterns.

Juniper Stone is the solo musical project of Brisbane based singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Damien Vincent. His musical style has been described as a blend of Lo-Fi Indie Pop and Neo Soul.

After collaborating with many acts in the Brisbane music scene and graduating from Musical Industry College, Damien is now focusing his efforts into his own project with his upcoming debut singles “Patterns” and “Moonchild.”

With plans to release a follow-up EP and play live in 2021, Juniper Stone is set to be an exciting journey.

 

 

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Sitrekin - Open Chest.

Danish artist Kirstine Stubbe Teglbjærg is off to an historic start as she launches a new project under artist name Sitrekin. She is the voice behind US Grammy nominated Twilight Saga soundtrack hit song ‘Eyes on Fire’, which has racked up close to 100m streams, and now releases her debut solo track in English since her departure from the award-winning Danish group Blue Foundation. The track is entitled ‘Open Chest’ and is a spellbinding, infectious love song. Earlier this year, the track was chosen to be the perfect sonic launchpad for Apple Music’s new lossless format available on iTunes using Dolby Atmos.

‘Open Chest’ was released exclusively for Apple Music on July 1st in their new revolutionary Spatial Audio/Dolby Atmos format and now gets a full release via all other major digital platforms. The track was mixed by Dyre Gormsen in the legendary West London Eastcote Studios – one of the most important and influential of music studios in the world, where artists such as Massive Attack, Depeche Mode, Adele and Arctic Monkeys created some of their greatest works.

Dyre explains, “Open Chest is mixed by myself and was the first track I put into Dolby Atmos as an experiment to begin with, but it became clear that it was a perfect media for Kirstine’s music and what we were looking for all the time, as a way to demonstrate how you are able to move objects around as the music is very element based. We used the mix to play for Dolby who were instantly very excited by what they heard and gave approval for this to be the launch track for this new groundbreaking format.”

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The Ninth Wave - The Catenary Wires - Adna - Yes

The Ninth Wave - Piece and Pound Coins.

Glasgow's The Ninth Wave release new single "Piece and Pound Coins", a new taster of their next full length body of work, due 2022.

A compelling piece, "Piece and Pound Coins" was produced by the band themselves and mixed by Max Heyes (Massive Attack, Doves, Lucia & The Best Boys, Primal Scream). Amidst a distinctly chilling atmosphere, rolling piano lines weave their way through chugging percussion with the track standing as a stark examination of grief and loss.

Speaking on the release of "Piece and Pound Coins", singer Haydn Park-Patterson said: "I wrote this song about a friend who passed away a number of years ago. I’ve never really felt like I wanted to/could write about him for a number of reasons, but I guess the main one was because that for a long time, I wouldn’t have known what to write. Writing about death is a world away from writing about heartache/love/friendships because there’s nobody to listen to the song and wonder “is that about me?”. It’s a strange feeling, to write a song about someone that you know can’t ever hear it. 

The song also touches on the thought of wondering what he’d be up to now, 5 years on in his life, and how weird a thought it is that we’ve all continued on with our lives but his had a start and end point, and that’s it. No more memories to be made. The song also lets out a bit of confused anger that I felt not long after he passed, as I watched how a few people reacted to his death and the way in which they talked about it. That’s the meaning behind the line 'death makes some people sad and some people ugly / and some people took your name for their own sake'. I like to think that he’d like the song, as he was one of the most supportive and positive-minded people I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing."

The track is released alongside a stunning video directed by Rianne White. She commented: "I feel completely in awe of this song and Haydn’s ability to frame such an immense feeling. Embraced by the catharsis of nature, the heights of grief and identity are expressed through a journey of Haydn’s internal growth accompanied by a symbolically poignant lone wolf. I like to think of Hayden and the wolf as one, both finding their way back to their truest states of being with wild untamed hearts of companionship and eternal loyalty. "

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The Catenary Wires - Always On My Mind.

Taken from their acclaimed album Birling Gap, The Catenary Wires’ new single is accompanied by a brand-new video. The Catenary Wires combine Amelia Fletcher and Rob Pursey (both ex-Heavenly, Talulah Gosh) with Fay Hallam (Makin’ Time) Andy Lewis (The Paul Weller Group, Pimlico) and Ian Button (Death in Vegas, Papernut Cambridge).

'Always On My Mind' is a track for late summer.   It’s a love song full of warmth and emotion.  An old photograph taken on a late summer holiday transports us back to a perfect moment when a relationship first started.  But there’s bittersweet regret in there too.   In the photograph, the sun’s rays were still warm, but they were getting longer; the colder Autumn evenings weren’t far away.  Did the relationship survive the winter?  And now, is it that person in the photo the one we are still in love with, or are they long gone – leaving us with just a memory embedded in a faded old picture?

The song and the video are celebrations of the fact that The Catenary Wires have evolved from a duo into a five-piece band, where everyone contributes to the rich instrumentation and the blissful vocal harmonies.  The video was filmed by all five members of the band, taking it in turns in the practice room – the first time they’d all been together since the start of lockdown.

 

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Adna - Darkness Born in Youth.

Following on from the release of her stunning 2017 full-length ‘Closure’, an album which was lauded across numerous outlets, Swedish-born but Berlin-based singer songwriter Adna has now unveiled the details behind her next LP ‘Black Water’ with the release of her latest single ‘Darkness Born In Youth’.

Much like her work to date, ‘Black Water’ sees her channel a rich and ambient direction, filled with warm and textured aesthetics. With her smooth and seductive voice layered over a heady mix of bright and enticing production, her latest collection looks set to become one of her most praised to date.

Adna’s latest offering follows on from the unfiltered emotion of ‘Don’t Know’, giving us a clear insight into the understated balladry that we can expect on this forthcoming full-length. Conjuring up more of the raw and poignant direction she is known for, ‘Darkness Born In Youth’ spotlights her soulful presence. Recorded in one-take, the track is accented by softly plucked guitar and her trademark soaring vocal.

Speaking about the new release, she says, “It’s hard not to sound pretentious about it, but this is really just a very honest improvisation that I recorded for my own memory in case I would forget about it. The title refers to the sensitivity I often find myself thinking of as a burden… I guess most people have had to end relationships, wishing it could have been with someone else instead.”

To date, Adna has made three beautifully woeful albums; 2014’s ‘Night’, 2015’s’ Run, Lucifer’ and the album ‘Closure’ in 2017. Supporting ‘Closure’, Adna played a packed Eurosonic showcase in 2017 and toured throughout Germany, UK, France and Scandinavia in the months since its release. Adna’s music has had more than 50 million streams on the large DSPs, and has had her melancholic, lo-fi work compared to the likes of Bon Iver and Daughter.

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Yes - Dare To Know.

Yes, who are Steve Howe, Alan White, Geoff Downes, Jon Davison and Billy Sherwood, recently announced they will release their new studio album The Quest on InsideOutMusic/Sony Music on 1st October 2021. 

The album was produced by Steve Howe. "Much of the music was written in late 2019 with the rest in 2020. We commissioned several orchestrations to augment and enhance the overall sound of these fresh new recordings, hoping that our emphasis on melody, coupled with some expansive instrumental solo breaks, keeps up the momentum for our listeners,” said Steve.

Steve Howe comments: “Dare To Know presents a guitar theme played within many different arrangements, with different chord structures and altered textures. The 'idea' mentioned in the first verse gets described later as an awakening to the subtle goings on within our bodies and mind, all geared to nature's scheme of things, all fluctuating and rearranging according to the principles of life, as we know it. The centrepiece leaves the orchestra alone to elaborate and develop the way the theme is heard, then augments the closing minutes of the song as it rests, with an acoustic guitar cadenza.”

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Catbells - Piper Butcher - Lisa Richards

Catbells - It's Not Hard.

Dreamy melancholic shoegaze meets alt-pop singer/songwriter Catbells engages her listeners with soft hypnotic vocals, lush soundscapes, and moody melodies that capture her deep, heartfelt emotions in the most intimate of ways. Gifted with a voice like an angel, Catbells gently immerses her listeners into a world of sweet nostalgia and velvety sentiments.

The singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist was introduced to the piano at age five, and by the 7th grade she was playing the guitar and writing songs about her middle school heartbreaks. After performing in several bands throughout her early music career, Catbells recently decided to focus on her own solo project.

Catbells is a somewhat enigmatic, shy wallflower type, with her name itself being an alter-ego. Named after the popular hiking spot recited in the famous children's book The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle by Beatrix Potter, Catbells' cinematic music is influenced by the vast natural wild. Raised in New England, Catbells often revisits the times of her childhood in her music, where she reflects on fond memories of the seasons changing, swimming in the eastern lakes, canoeing down the river, and working on the family farm.

Her deeply personal and introspective single "Fade - Rainy Day Demo" is an intimate and open-hearted reflection of lost love. “The song really wrote itself and the music needed to match the feeling of how the words felt. There are few people who are lucky enough to escape the feeling of a completely broken heart, and feeling like the person you loved so much just moved on like it was nothing, leaving you left there with a hole where your heart once was” confides Catbells. This emotionally raw and poignant narrative and accompanying music video features innovative illustrations of a sad cat saying farewell in a starry evening background.  While on the single "Wilderness" Catbells’ soft-powered honeyed vocals float above stripped down melodies and dreamy lush acoustic soundscapes. The track was mixed by acclaimed producer Ali Chant (Aldous Harding, Perfume Genius, Soccer Mommy).

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Piper Butcher - September (E.P).

Australian singer-songwriter, Piper Butcher, follows on from the success of her smash hit singles with her shiny new EP, “September”. The debut offering is a five-track release, showcasing the talented young artist from the New South Wales steel city of Newcastle.

Leading the EP is “Haunting Your Thoughts” which has already generated close to 40,000 streams on Spotify. It’s a rocky anthem thriving on Piper’s passionate vocals and one that takes you through the story of when a trouble maker doesn’t clean up their own mess. “Long Road” is co-written with fellow roots act, Cassi Marie, and covers the long road of heartbreak. The lyrics provoke feelings of sorrow and frustration, but Piper ensures in song that leaving unhealthy people behind is a difficult but prosperous journey.

Hitting the middle of the EP is the current single, “Before The Thunder”. It has immediately struck a chord with fans and the industry alike, emanating from the storyline where someone tries to cross the line to get what they want. The song builds with emotion, entrancing you with whimsical guitars and strong melodies.

The very first song that Piper ever wrote is included in the form of “Not Yet”. It stems from pure feelings of staying in the moment which listeners correlate with on a personal level. It’s honest and calm, yet it has a depth in meaning owed to its simplicity. Closing out “September” is a steamy swarm of blues rock that immediately draws the listener in. “Soul Into Sand” sees Piper truly soaring - her voice driving the song with immense intensity and soul.

“September” is further proof that we are witnessing the launch of one of Australia’s most exciting new roots artists. It is testament not only to her talent, but also Piper Butcher’s hard work and passion for her music. Piper Butcher - “September” - is released Wed 1st September 2021.

Piper Butcher · september

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Lisa Richards - Dominoes.

Dominoes is the second single from the upcoming sixth album “I Got A Story” from Australian singer and songwriter Lisa Richards, the latest from the acclaimed singer and songwriter since she moved back to Australia from Austin, Texas. Last year Lisa returned to the USA to record in New York City to record with Tim Bright.

As Lisa explains: “Tim and I first worked together on my debut release, ‘Not Quite So Low’, then three albums later we did ‘Mad Mad Love’ and co-wrote half that album together.  We completed recording this new one on November 18th 2019 which seems like an eternity ago, given all that has transpired since then.  I lived in the USA for so long that it seemed logical to me to work with people I know and trust and have history with. So I combined tour dates in the USA with recording this new album in New York, which was, in retrospect, crazy. This recording was completed with partial support from ArtsACT for which I am very grateful.”

Lisa says that Dominoes is, "A song about being young and out of control. This song was written on piano, which is different for me as I don’t really play piano. Growing up in Townsville North QLD was wild. I don’t make a secret of the fact that I began drinking at 7 and that I was dosed on anti psychotic medication from when I was 4 or 5 years old. The sexual abuse started somewhere in there and continued until I hit puberty. Alcohol and drugs were my close friends and it’s no wonder I was all over the place!  I was super confused about men, women, sex and relationships. I remember having this desperate need to be loved and desired and the suicidal spiral that would come over me when I was rejected. Which happened a lot.  I hung out with a gang of equally confused people and we were like dominoes!

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Citrus Country - Moonshine - Ben Stalets

Citrus Country - This Heat.

Citrus Country is Milo McNulty, the acclaimed talent behind previous projects Morning Smoke and Method Actress. Returning under a fresh name, the London-based artist is set to release a new track ‘This Heat’.

When Milo’s writing style began to move beyond Morning Smoke’s ‘wall of noise’, he decided he needed a clean split from the group. With a penchant for experimenting with his artistry, Milo moved to London to launch Citrus Country and work on a new set of songs with Chris Zane (Passion Pit, The Walkmen) at Strongroom Studios in Shoreditch.

This Heat is the first of three singles - a unique dreamy song that layers complex electronic production with washy guitars and pensive tones. Carrying influence from Milo’s noisy post-punk days, some fuzzy guitars find their way in and there is still a great energy to the otherwise calm track. On top of it all perch Milo’s poetic lyrics that ruminate on

With previous acclaim from The Guardian, Clash, DIY, The Line Of Best Fit and BBC Radio, and experience playing some of the UK’s high-profiled shows, including The Great Escape, Citrus Country is set to make a name once again for himself as one of the most exciting new acts in London.

Speaking about the track, Milo said “This Heat was written during a period of my life where I found myself questioning my identity and purpose . The song aims to express feelings of despondency and loss however it was important to me that although the song sounded melancholy there was a sense of beauty and joy beneath it.”

CITRUS COUNTRY · This Heat

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Moonshine - IDWW.

Moonshine tell us their story, they also produce some wonderful music: "We are Moonshine, an indie-folk-pop band currently based in Israel. Our music is characterized by a combination of both acoustic and electric sounds along with thought-out lyrics and two voices trying to tell a story.

It all started in a rehearsal room at the well known “Rimon school of music”. With an old songbook that had piled up dust, we slowly found ourselves performing every week.

The band was formed by the end of 2018 by the band's lead singers Coral Oulu and Oshri Bitton and together with the other members of the band (Omer Yihye, Amit Mintz and David Frider) we released our debut E.P "Come back home”.

The E.P entered some international playlists on Spotify, the editors' choice at KAN 88 and a successful Netflix series in Sweden (Älska mig).

In the past year, between quarantines, we continued to create and finish our debut album, which was mostly funded by the "Headstart"crowdfunding project and in which we raised 50,000 NIS".

 

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Ben Stalets - Everybody's Laughing (Album).

Taking cues from 60s and 70s musical influences such as John Prine, Leonard Cohen, Warren Zevon, Todd Snider, Willie Nelson, and even Prince, Toledo native Ben Stalets addresses the thorns in his side on new record, Everybody’s Laughing, both personal and worldly. 

The songs were not written with an overarching theme in mind, but when it came time for the album art concept, it was the “cult leader” vibe that gave him a sense of what the underlying vision is: Collective suffering allows us to collectively suffer less.

The album is a reference to a quote from Mark Twain’s social commentary book, Following the Equator: “The secret source of humor itself is not joy but sorrow. There is no humor in heaven.”

“The way I look at it,” says Stalets, “everybody is laughing, which means everyone is suffering— we’re all in this together.”

 

Ben Stalets · Everybody's Laughing

Sadie Campbell - Rebecca McCartney - Mikaela Finne - Ben Heffernan - Gal Musette

Sadie Campbell - Darkroom (E.P).

Singer/songwriter Sadie Campbell has released her new EP Darkroom. Campbell wrote Darkroom about her own mental health struggle in 2020, when isolation and uncertainty gave way to despair and, eventually, healing. On three gripping songs, the Canadian-born, Nashville-based artist tracks the mind’s disorienting descent into depression. “2020 for me felt like a darkroom," says Campbell, "It was a lot of isolation and alone time, but it was a place of creativity and development."

Last month, Campbell shared the EP’s effervescent opening track “Fade,” co-written by Vinnie Paolizzi. As Campbell explains, "’Fade’ is about finding comfort in the darkness. Being able to sit in the low points of life because you know they will eventually pass."

Holler.Country recently named Campbell New Artist of The Week saying, “Country-folk is built on the beauty of lyricism, but sometimes a particular musical interlude ends up saying far more than any one verse can. That's the case with singer/songwriter Sadie Campbell's single 'Fade.’ Across a slow, and increasingly intense, opening build of electric guitar, synths and vocals, Campbell captures the difficulty of breaking out of a darker moment.”

The Tennessee Star also spotlighted Campbell recently, raving that the “singer-songwriter has a strong sense of self, and the music that pours out of her is meaningful, purposeful, and it will draw you in like a moth to a flame.”

Campbell grew up in Pritchard, BC, a town so small she says it consists of just one general store. There, she sang in the church choir before taking off for the open-mic scene in Vancouver, ultimately dropping everything to try her luck in Music City, USA. Years of couch-surfing turned to a home in Nashville where Campbell found full-time work performing in the city’s bustling honky-tonks. No stranger to odd-jobs, she has worked as a mail carrier and karaoke host, and has serviced airplanes and flagged logging roads on ATVS in Canada.

Sadie Campbell · Darkroom

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Rebecca McCartney - Remember Less.

Rebecca McCartney returns to the city where she was raised by a family of musicians and nerds, now with her own sound and much to say. She grew up immersed in NYC’s classical music world and her early songwriting eventually led to the release of an indie-folk record under the duo name Garden Party (2020) with her close friend, Jakob Leventhal. 

Now, after a college career studying jazz and playing in an R&B band, McCartney is preparing to release her genre-bending debut EP, How You Feel. Calling on her eclectic musical influences and experiences, the upcoming record generates an edgy, ethereal sound that celebrates McCartney’s buttery vocals and absorbing lyrical insights.

Here's what she had to say about it: "I wrote this song in my college house in Minnesota, thinking about the boy I had just left behind in New York, where I'm from. You can hear me working through the day-by-day loss of the tactile feeling of our time together as his memory got farther away, even as I was trying to convince myself I didn't care. 

It's a moody fusion of R&B, indie rock, and wondering whether someone's moving on faster than you. I worked with my close friend and collaborator, Jakob Leventhal, who produced the whole EP that Remember Less is on".

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Mikaela Finne - Time Stands Still (Album).

With its Telecaster leads, acoustic strums, mid-tempo waltzes and tales of outlaw women and lost love, one might naturally assume Time Stands Still, the new album from Mikaela Finne, is a product of Nashville, TN.

Truth be told, Finne was born and spent her childhood on the coast of Finland in Vaasa, and now hails from Stockholm, Sweden, where the album was recorded with producer Brady Blade (Emmylou Harris, Steve Earle and the Dukes, Jewel, Indigo Girls, Buddy & Julie Miller). Somewhat fitting for an album that’s laden with contrasts, Finne actually found as much inspiration in heavy metal as she did the country genre during her youth, the rebellious spirit she found in both prompting her to pursue her musical passion.

Like her contemporaries Sarah Shook and Lydia Loveless, Finne’s emotive vibrato is its own instrument, adding an undeniable passion to her songs and making lines like “I’ve lost count, how many times you’ve broken my heart“ even more impactful. “The country music comes from my dad,” she explains, recalling his love for Dolly Parton and Creedence. “The word ‘outlaw’, for me, [means] you do something that you love regardless of what anybody else thinks about what you’re doing. … When I was a teenager, the music and the heavy metal that I listened to were totally outlaw.”

While topics like self-awareness and confidence are certainly not new terrain for a songwriter to excavate, Finne puts her own spin on them, with lead-off track “What If I” revealing a realization that sometimes self-confidence means admitting a sense of uncertainty and taking a step back to think things through if another’s intentions don’t seem to be pure. Set to a swinging rhythm section and tasty guitar riffs, and wrapping up with a nice classic country modulation that exudes swagger and confidence, the track finds Finne “second guessing … stressing … going out of [her] mind,” but make no mistake, as she also warns the listener, she can be a bit headstrong and they best get on board or get left behind.

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Ben Heffernan - drive in movies (E.P).

Ben Heffernan’s third EP, drive in movies, sees the Canadian Folk Music Award nominated singer-songwriter move into new sonic and lyrical territory. drive in movies is a personal, cinematic collection of songs that chronicles key events in the life of a teenager: falling in love for the first time, losing someone for the first time, frustration with the world around you, and the speed in which one’s young life tends to change.

After spending the larger part of the second half of 2018 and the first half of 2019 playing over 150 shows across Canada, Ireland and the UK, Heffernan chose to record his by then well road-tested group of new songs at home. While “Drive In Movies” acknowledges Heffernan’s roots in what he describes as “classic singer-songwriter folk-pop”, it also reflects his love for 80s-inspired maximalist pop/rock productions and widescreen, stadium-sized ballads. The songs are neatly tied together through the use of vintage movie samples, which lends the EP a conceptual, unified feel.

Lead single “Movie Nights”, an up-tempo, 80s-inspired pop/rock track, reflects the frustration with the questions asked about a generation determined to see change as well as the “nagging feeling that we might just be living through the end of the world as we know it”, as Heffernan suggests. This is bookended by “When the Stars Collide”, a stadium-sized two-part singalong that leaves more questions unresolved than it answers. This is intentional, as Heffernan points out, as it “reflects the people that this EP is really about – most of us haven’t turned 21 yet. None of us have any kind of real resolution to our stories yet either.”

Ben Heffernan has become recognized as a young Canadian artist to watch over the last few years, after being nominated for Young Performer of the Year and performing at the Canadian Folk Music Awards after the release of his 2018 EP “Home”, and contributing a cover of Tom Petty’s “Angel Dream” to a Petty tribute compilation that included artists such as Matt Mays, Terra Lightfoot, and Royal Wood. Roots Music Canada called his Canadian Folk Music Award performance “a highlight”, while Spill Magazine called his cover of Angel Dream “incredible”. Among an ever-growing list of dive bars, bowling alleys, moving trains, and hair salons, Heffernan’s touring schedule has seen him play the Winnipeg Folk Festival, JUNOfest, and the Ruby Sessions in Dublin, Ireland (previous acts have included Ed Sheeran and Mumford & Sons), among other high-profile festivals and live appearances.

Ben Heffernan · drive in movies

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Gal Musette - Julia.

Gal Musette is the nom de plum of Grace Freeman, a musical prodigy who began writing piano based lyrical compositions and performing at open mics in her home city of San Clemente, CA at the age of 10. Her graceful approach to melody-driven indie-folk and French chansons has captured audiences all over Southern California. At age 14, inspired by The Magnetic Fields’ triple album 69 Love Songs, Gal recorded her own collection titled 70 Love Songs, which caught the attention of the band, and won her an opening slot on a few of their Midwestern U.S. tour dates. 

In more recent years, Gal has opened for several renowned artists such as Macy Gray, Suzanne Vega, Todd Snyder, and Donavon Frankenreiter. While her artist name is taken from bal-musette, the accordion-based, waltz-style French instrumental music, Gal’s primary inspiration is drawn from songwriters including Joni Mitchell, Regina Spektor, Bjork, Cocteau Twins, Burt Bacharach, Irving Berlin and The Cure.

In October 2021, Gal will be releasing her debut album, Backwards Lullaby, featuring a vocal duet with one of her biggest musical inspirations, Rufus Wainwright. The upcoming album explores the pangs of hopeless romances and unrequited love, what it’s like to move beyond idealized love into the acceptance of what is real and constant, as well as the cyclical nature of life and love in relationships.

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