Posts Tagged ‘London’

CROWS – ” Whisper “

Posted: March 10, 2016 in MUSIC
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Since forming in 2012, the London based group Crows have racked up their fair share of injuries. Their drummer needed to get a metal plate put in his hand after bashing around on the drums too hard; their lead singer also fucked up his hand by punching a wall. Usually those incidents wouldn’t mean much more than a trip to the hospital, but in the context of Crows, they offer an insight into the the band’s fiercely intense, exhilirating sound. This is music that drives forward with such danger it’s almost a prerequisite to smashing your head through the nearest paper-thin wall.

Having spent the last year touring with the likes of Metz, Wolf Alice, and Slaves, today the four-piece release their latest video “Whisper”. It’s loud and raw, the sort of thing that’s worth ruining your ears for. The video features a whole bunch of stuff which we could go into detail explaining, but it’s probably worth you clicking below and witnessing Britain’s most brash band for yourselves.

Unwelcome Light out March 25th on Telharmonium Records

LYVES – ” Darkest Hour “

Posted: March 7, 2016 in MUSIC
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It’s been some time since we last heard the commanding sounds of London-based singer-songwriter Lyves and it was the last single “Shelter” which was released back in February that had us enthralled. The radio silence is with good reason, though, as she has spent the last few months writing and recording her debut EP, and we are excited to premiere the first official single from it, “Darkest Hour”. Fans of Lyves’ previous efforts will instantly gravitate towards this new one, as it showcases all the strengths depicted in her previous releases, albeit, this time, with a much sharper edge. Each intricate, reverbed note plays beautifully with the sharp percussion to develop an intriguing atmosphere, and it’s one that does not detract one bit from Lyves’ arresting vocal take. We look forward to hearing what other efforts Lyves has in store when her debut EP is released, and we’ll be sure to keep this one close by until that time arrives.

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GIRL RAY – ” Ghosty / I’ll Make This Fun “

Posted: March 6, 2016 in MUSIC
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Girl Ray

London trio Girl Ray formed a year ago and quickly gained a live following with their spare, spooky sound that to me falls somewhere between Electrelane and Cate Le Bon. (They list Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci as an influence and I can hear that too.) You may have heard “Ghosty” from last year, and the band have also just shared a new song “I’ll Make This Fun” which makes its premiere in this post. Their harmonies, set against the simple but just-right arrangement, is what makes this something special.
The band have recorded a session for Marc Riley’s BBC 6Music show which will air on Thursday (3/3), and the band have upcoming UK shows with Whitney and Fear of Men.

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listen to UK trio Girl Ray’s new single “I’ll Make This Fun” picks up where last year’s Ghostly single left off; it’s just the right side of shambolic, lo-fi and bordering on home made. The prominent bass melds with the bright guitar jangling, and tight vocal harmonies, forming a glorious middle ground of Cate Le Bon, Pavement and Architecture in Helsinki. Whilst there’s no talk of albums, tours or anything much but this single right now, this track just adds to the feeling Girl Ray could be onto something very special.

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DREAM WIFE – ” Hey Heartbreaker “

Posted: March 3, 2016 in MUSIC
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DREAM WIFE EP01 Out 11th March 2016!

This ain’t your average house party. Dream Wife invite you to jump into the mosh pit. London based musicians Alice, Bella and Icelandic singer Rakel formed at art school in Brighton where the project began as a performance art piece. Dream Wife make music embracing their love for edgy pop. Oozing girl power the music juxtaposes simple pop hooks, cutting riffs and screamy dreamy vocals.

The world of Dream Wife is brought to life with; roaring live shows, an empowering attitude embracing the strength of femininity, and collaborations with vibrant creatives of the London scene.

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They comprise three musicians, two British and one (singer Rakel Mjöll) Icelandic. Actually, “musician” does them a disservice: they’re artists, and music just happens to be the vehicle for their ideas right now. They were studying, variously, fine art and visual art at college in Brighton a year ago when they had the concept of forming a “fake girl band” as an art project for a gallery exhibition. So they wrote a few songs, recorded them, made a mockumentary inspired by Spinal Tap, and performed at the opening of the exhibition. It went so well, the fake/fantasy outfit became a reality. They started getting booked for gigs around England, even playing a festival, wrote some more songs, toured Canada and signed to Enfer Records.

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The lineup: Rakel Mjöll (lead vocals), Alice Go (guitar, vocals), Bella Podpadec (bass, vocals).

CITADEL FESTIVAL – Victoria Park 17th July 2016

Posted: March 3, 2016 in MUSIC
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CAMDEN ROCKS FESTIVAL – Saturday 4th June 2016

Posted: March 3, 2016 in FESTIVALS, MUSIC
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WILDES – ” Bare “

Posted: March 1, 2016 in MUSIC
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With most modern music saturated with loud, complicated, and generic electronic sounds, sometimes its good to sit back and enjoy something more traditional but powerful still. We tend to fall hard for special voices set in a stargazing setting – think London Grammar and Daughter – so it should not come as a surprise that Wildes is sending the best of shivers up our spine with her show-stopping debut track Bare. Formerly recording as just Ella Walker, this London singer-songwriter is a fan of today’s more classic singer-songwriters like Tobias Jesso Jr and Rhodes, a list she could easily become a part of. Both the sound and her voice grow more & more towards the end, having Bare sound really aggressive yet so very vulnerable at the same time – so special, this one.

UK-based WILDES is giving us that with her debut single, “BARE”, and, as she is unfamiliar to many of us, this track is giving a great first impression. Although it’s hard to say that her sound is unique or extraordinarily one-of-a-kind, she does do a solid job in creating an emotion-drenched, delicate vibe with the help of stripped-down production alongside.

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FLOWERS – ” Everybody’s Dying To Meet You “

Posted: February 14, 2016 in MUSIC
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When we caught Flowers in Cake Shop’s basement at 2014’s CMJ Music Marathon, we were struck both by the delicate nature of the three-piece band’s sound, as well as how strongly it commanded the audience’s attention. “Intrusive Thoughts,” a deep cut on the band’s latest record, Everybody’s Dying To Meet You, captures this well. It starts with Rachel Kenedy’s hushed vocals and an undistorted guitar, building momentum to a powerful crescendo by the track’s end. Everybody’s Dying To Meet You is out today on Kanine; you can stream the entire record on Soundcloud.

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Though debut album Do What You Want To, It’s What You Should Do pleased, for personal tastes, it lacked a certain spark to fulfil its obvious potential. It was an encounter though, which certainly ensured its creators Flowers lured strong and lingering attention. Now the UK trio return with successor Everybody’s Dying To Meet You, a rousing slice of noise infused indie pop that enchants as it enthrals; a release rattling the cage of expectations and all overworked pop offerings around it.

Flowers began in 2012 after vocalist Rachel Kenedy met guitarist Sam Ayres through an advert wanting band mates to help create pop songs which were like “early Madonna through a broken tape machine”. From there a romantic and creative union ensued between them, with drummer Jordan Hockley coming in to complete the band’s line-up. With their first batch of tracks refined by Bernard Butler, debut album Do What You Want To, It’s What You Should Do emerged in 2013 to potent responses and support. It drew keen interest which is surely now set to ignite louder acclaim with Everybody’s Dying To Meet You. Everything about the release, from songwriting and sound to inventive tone has blossomed from its predecessor, emerging an eighties seeded but uniquely current kiss of tenacious indie pop.

Recorded with producer Brian O’Shaughnessey (The Clientele, Primal Scream, My Bloody Valentine), the album opens with Pull My Arm. A slim jangle of guitar with glimpses of ska revelry makes the first contact, strolling beefy rhythms soon joining it before the lively ethereal tone of Kenedy lays evocatively over the dynamically catchy sounds now in full flow. Thoughts are sparked of bands like Mo-dettes and Girls At Their Best by the track, ripe spices adding to its boisterous charm and rousing adventure.

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ISAAC GRACIE – ” Last Words “

Posted: February 13, 2016 in MUSIC
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If you’re into Jeff Buckley and Willy Mason, then look no further than Isaac Gracie. His forlorn, lo-fi tearjerker ‘Last Words’ sounds like a sadder, more blues-obsessed Jake Bugg and has racked up 65,000 SoundCloud plays despite little label help.
Every now and then a song just cuts through. Isaac Gracie’s ‘Last Words’ is a case in point.

Your name is Isaac Gracie and you suddenly have something very special on your hands.  Isaac Gracie. His beautiful, dreamy, rusty vocal and acoustic guitar sound will have you hypnotised and leave you with a warm and safe feeling. Music is supposed to be emotive, and his songs evoke emotion tenfold. His style of music has a country vibe and his vocal has a depth and maturity far beyond his 21 years. Gracie sings from a place of experience and knowing, and perfectly captures the deep emotion behind his lyrics. “We’re So Very Lost” is a political song about the sad state of humanity today which really rings true to today’s society. “I Couldn’t See You” fits with the country vibe and Isaac’s dreamy vocals have your full attention, and of course “Last Words” – the song that has launched his career. You can make your own mind up about that one.

‘Last Words’ has been quietly doing the rounds on Soundcloud for the past few months, but in the last few days things have blown up somewhat. The 21-year-old Ealing newcomer’s debut London headline show sold out on Monday – it was packed with industry heads – and a day later Zane Lowe made it his World Record on Beats 1. Isaac’s still so new he doesn’t even have a proper press shot yet (the image above was taken at that London gig), so get in on the act early.

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FIELD DAY – 11th-12th June Victoria Park 2016

Posted: January 21, 2016 in FESTIVALS, MUSIC
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Field Day has announced a handful of new names for this year’s festival, including Sleaford Mods, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Little Simz and Blossoms.

The two-day event, which takes place in Victoria Park on 11 and 12 June, will mark its tenth anniversary next year – and they already announced a stellar first handful of acts last year, including PJ Harvey, John Grant, Deerhunter and Skepta.

Now, they’ve added more acts to the bill. Girl Band, Kelela, Little Simz, Nao, Sleaford Mods, The Brian Jonestown Massacre and Blossoms are set to perform. Yeasayer, whose highly anticipated new album Amen & Goodbye is set to drop in April, are also set to perform – marking the first opportunity to hear their new material live in the UK.

Tickets for Field Day 2016 are on sale now, and you can see the full line-up below. Buy Field Day tickets and get more information here.

Field Day Saturday 11th June

Ata Kak / Avalon Emerson / Bicep – Live / Cass McCombs / Dean Blunt / Deerhunter DJ Koze / Dusky / Floating Points – Live / Four Tet / Frisco Gillbanks / Girl Band / Gold Panda / Holly Herndon – Live Jackmaster b2b Gerd Janson / Kelela / KiNK – Live / Little Simz / Mabel / Meilyr Jones Metz / Motor City Drum Ensemble / Mount Kimbie DJ Set / Mura Masa Nao / Novelist / Orchestra Baobab / Paradise Bangkok Molam International Band Plastician / Red Axes – Live / Roman Flügel / Sleaford Mods / Slimzee / Skepta SOAK / Special Request / Tale Of Us / The Black Madonna Wild Nothing / Wooden Wisdom & DJ Fitz / Yorkston Thorne Khan / Yeasayer  / Youth Lagoon

Field Day Sunday 12th June

PJ Harvey

Blossoms / Beach House / Ben Watt Band feat. Bernard Butler Cass McCombs / Daphni / Declan McKenna Formation / GOAT / Mbongwana Star Molly Nilsson / Moon Duo / Optimo / John Grant / Junior Boys / Parquet Courts Tangerines / The Brian Jonestown Massacre / Thurston Moore Band / Tourist

Not content with bringing us PJ Harvey, Four Tet, John Grant and Goat (among others) this June, Field Day have gone and unleashed a brilliant second wave of announcements. It includes – deep breath – raging Nottingham punks Sleaford Mods, psych-rock cult heroes The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Kinshasa crew Mbongwana Star, Caribou’s techno alias Daphni, excellent DJ duo Bicep, NYC indie favourites Yeasayer and Parquet Courts, ferocious Canadian noise-rockers Metz, alt R&B queenKelela and incredible young Islington MC Little Simz.

With Skepta already on the line-up, Field Day festival also bolsters its grime credentials by adding crazy talented Lewisham MC Novelist. And they’ve also added three of our top artists to watch in 2016: Nao,Mabel and Formation. We’d advise booking your ticket, like, now.

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