Archive for Introducing
Introducing: Mt. Wolf
May 7th, 2012 • Introducing
Tags: Akira Records, Life Sized Ghosts, Mt. Wolf, Underground, Wolf Club
A short while ago, South London quartet Mt. Wolf introduced themselves to the world with two impressive and accomplished demos, “Underground” and “Life Size Ghosts”. Reincarnated from a previous band, they arrived for round two with the same lineup – just with a new name, a new image and simply better songs. A tried and tested and often successful formula, this – see White Lies, The Vaccines and Swiss Lips before them (amongst a number of others who found the right alchemy at the second attempt).
Indeed, a few months in, things are starting to heat up. If our Twitter and Facebook feeds are to be believed, the outfit are very much the band of the moment. This bank holiday weekend just gone has seen them play two shows, one at Queen Of Hoxton, and one at XOYO, to much fanfare on the aforementioned social networks.
It’s not overly surprising – the tracks certainly live up to their venerable ‘dream folk’ / ‘folktronica’ billing – they’re beautiful, spacious compositions that call to mind people like Bjork, Ellie Goulding and James Yuill. “Underground” is a nailed-on dance floor hit, with a powerful chorus that we imagine would translate very well live, whilst “Life Size Ghosts” is one of those all-encompassing / completely-lose-your-bearings for its duration kind of tracks.
It’s Kate Sproule’s lead vocal that really sets the songs apart from the crowd, though – quirky and hypnotic and the same time, they have a real ace up their sleeve here that could potentially prove decisive in a notoriously crowded market for new bands.
Introducing: Eeves
April 20th, 2012 • Introducing
Tags: Amazing Radio, Eeves, Evolution Emerging, Generator, Middlesbrough, North East, Silhouette, Teeside
When we come across a band that reminds us of being obsessed with Interpol and Bloc Party in 2005, getting into Pixies back in the day and also a brief flirtation with American emo music back in the early noughties (your Thrices, your Something Corporates, your Ataris’), we’re pretty much sold on first listen. Nostalgia is a very powerful thing, and when music passes through our ears that gets us looking through the rose tinted glasses, the game’s pretty much up.
Middlesbrough’s Eeves, and their sterling track “Silhouette”, had this effect on us the other day, and we haven’t looked back. Some impressive guitar work that might have Daniel Kessler turning his head is on show here, as is an uplifting chorus that sounds built for an early evening / sun-going-down slot at a major festival.
The quartet appear to be generating some buzz in their North East locality (becoming the latest in a long line of new and exciting bands from the region – see Mausi, Lulu James, The Lake Poets and Polarsets of late), as a result of this arresting four and a half minutes, and as such are picking up support in the right places.
Amazing Radio have got behind the group (check out the band in session for the station here), as have the organisers of a Newcastle multi venue event called Evolution Emerging, who have booked the band to open the city’s Cluny venue on 1 June, where they’ll share a stage with Lulu James and Beth Jeans Houghton. For once, perhaps, London ain’t the place to be on that day.
Introducing: Laura Welsh
April 10th, 2012 • Introducing
Tags: 45, Ghosts, Hey Laura, Laura And The Tears, Laura Welsh
Twenty-something Laura Welsh has been on the London scene for a year or two now, under various guises: we first came across her as Laura And The Tears, and she also performed under the monicker of Hey Laura for a short while.
While strong, radio (2) friendly songs and her powerful and emotive voice have always been at the forefront, for some reason neither of these projects really catapulted her into the ether (and general public consciousness). This might well change now, however – Welsh has relaunched simply under her given names, and has posted, as well as some evocative black and white photography, two rather arresting tracks online: “45″ and “Ghosts”.
Pitched somewhere between Adele and Rachael Yamagata, both display solid production, an impressive set of pipes and a general feeling they won’t remain contained for too much longer: we’re currently envisaging A&R men donning their cloaks and daggers and preparing for battle.
Indeed, we won’t be surprised if “45″ ends up sound-tracking a tear-jerking scene in a US TV drama or an Olympic montage this year, and with its show-stopping “45 minutes to midnight” refrain, it would have been ideal for recent US flick “New Years Eve”, if only it came out sooner (this is the ballpark we’re in here). These are songs pitched unequivocally directed at the mass market, and with the legs to potentially go the whole hog.
MP3: Laura Welsh – 45
MP3: Laura Welsh – Ghosts
Spring Offensive – “Worry Fill My Heart”
March 20th, 2012 • Comment, Introducing
Tags: Carrier, Oxford, Spring Offensive, Worry Fill My Heart
Oxford’s earnest indie rockers Spring Offensive released a video this Saturday just gone for their new single “Worry Fill My Heart”.
Musically, we’re deciphering bits of Wild Beasts, Bombay Bicycle Club and fellow Oxfordites Foals in the jerky, stop-start guitars, and vocalist Lucas Whitworth’s confessional lyrics about having a shit job and not being able to stump up the rent (“I asked no one for the life I’m leading”; “I’m counting down the seconds until my shift is up”), as well as an allusion to the frightening inevitability of it all (“How dare I even think I could be any exception”), recall the likes of The Rakes and Hard-Fi, two bands who famously popularised songs about life’s banalities.
It’s an intense and captivating four minutes or so, that will certainly resonate with many of the current recession experiencing generation who might be seeking a creative outlet in the arts, and have yet to make it pay. In that sense – full marks for this lot for quite simply telling it how it is, a trait that, alongside their hard working nature, will help to build upon their already devoted fan base.
If you’d like to hear their tales of urban woe in a live setting, they’ll be on tour around the UK from the 29th March til 5th April. A short stint of German dates follows directly after. Be sure to pick up the “Worry Fill My Heart” single from iTunes too, which also includes B-side “Carrier” (below).
Introducing: The Maple Trail
March 19th, 2012 • Introducing
Tags: Aidan Roberts, Blue Mountains, Broken Stone Records, Cable Mount Warning, MGM, Sydney, The Maple Trail
Sydney / Blue Mountains based The Maple Trail is the project of Aidan Roberts, who’s been writing and recording under this particular guise for a good few years it seems – TMT’s just released album, “Cable Mount Warning”, is the outfit’s third.
Much like fellow Aussies The Sleepy Jackson, for example, the dynamic in the group appears to be one with Roberts very much at its helm, playing most instruments on the recordings (everything from vocals to celtic drums to wine glasses, he declares) and appearing as a solitary figure in the press shots, with other musicians dipping in and out and contributing various parts on certain tracks.
We came across the band very recently, and one track off the aforementioned album, “Highwire”, jumped up like a high speed bowling delivery that pitches on a bit of rough, before hitting us hard on the proverbial helmet.
Roberts has cited Bryter Later by the late Nick Drake as an inspiration, and there’s certainly something of him here in this slice of dreamy, summery and uplifting folk, and we can also hear bits of more contemporary artists such as Kings Of Convenience, Bon Iver and Broken Social Scene – the horns that kick in initially on 00:37 (before coming back triumphantly later) take us back to the BSS’ glorious 7/4 Shoreline. If it’s up your alley, check out the rest of the album here.
Introducing: In Gratitude
March 2nd, 2012 • Introducing
Tags: Bristol, Eighteen, Glastonbury, In Gratitude, Only In Youth, Only You
From what we can see, Glastonbury town’s In Gratitude were a touring and recording band back in 2010 who released an EP (“Only In Youth”) to some mild fanfare before disbanding shortly after. As of December last year, their Facebook page informs us, they’re back in action, and have two sparkly new recordings to show for it.
“Only You” and “Eighteen” are the tracks they’ve chosen to usher in their new era as a band, and both suggest a group who aren’t overly keen to be slumming it on the pub circuit for too much longer: it’s ambitious, high-sheen and widescreen indie rock, with an eye on the larger theatres of the country at the very least (and almost certainly the more lofty slots at the annual shindig that takes place in their backyard).
The four members clearly have a plethora of influences between them – everything from The Smashing Pumpkins to U2 to Delays to The Temper Trap is decipherable somewhere in their sound, with front man Matthew Guttridge’s falsetto (and slightly androgynous) vocal bearing a resemblance to the singers of these bands at different points in either song.
In any case, it’s perfectly executed, hook-filled, feel-good and enjoyable stuff – which promises much for the rest of the year. Gigs will surely be on the agenda in the not too distant future, and we strongly suspect we’re not the only party keeping a beady eye on any such announcement right now.
Introducing: Kate Martin
February 26th, 2012 • Introducing
Tags: Apples, Candle Burnin' Wax Drippin', Hand Me By Bow And Arrow, Kate Martin, Outer Records, Shock Records, The Shallow Sea Choir, Townsville
Townsville, the Australian city that brought us the wonderful The Middle East (who sadly disbanded last year), have a exciting new talent to shout about: twenty-something singer Kate Martin (and her band The Shallow Sea Choir).
Fairly innocuous by name perhaps, but certainly not by her dreamy and beautiful brand of indie-folk, which appears to be building up a steady head of steam in Oz right now ahead of the release of her second album, “Hand Me My Bow And Arrow”, which comes out next month (23 March) through Shock Records.
Her current single, “Candle Burnin’, Wax Drippin” has just been released Down Under (on Friday just gone), and possesses the ethereal, otherworldly qualities and rich harmonies we’ve come to associate with the likes of Feist, Joanna Newsom, Efterklang and the aforementioned Middle East, with Martin’s slightly kooky vocals drawing in and captivating the listener from the outset.
Previous single “Apples” is a sunnier and far more conventional indie-pop number with a gorgeous chorus that’s (hopefully) coming to a radio station near you before too long. All this bodes well for the forthcoming full length, which on this evidence, might well be one worth going out of your way to seek out upon its release.
MP3: Kate Martin – Apples
Introducing: Great White Shark
February 18th, 2012 • Introducing
Tags: Berlin, Bring Us Back Together EP, Eight Legs, Forever Cool, Great White Shark, Snowhite, Studio East
The idea of packing your bags and upping sticks to a foreign city is always an appealing one. If the city in question is Berlin, what with its reputation as a haven for the arts and an embracer of hedonistic creativity, it becomes even more so.
Great White Shark are the product of such a shift – three of its members moved over from London a little while back (“to escape their frustrating and repetitive lives”, no less) after dissolving (or putting on hiatus) their previous musical commitments, one of which included the relatively successful indie rock outfit Eight Legs. Whilst there, they met a locally based radio DJ cum drummer, and completed the GWS lineup.
Their music, particularly on their 4-track “Bring Us Back Together” EP (released through Berlin’s Snowhite label back in September) harks back to the mid to late eighties / early nineties, with bands like The Smiths, Echo & The Bunnymen, The Stone Roses and The Brian Jonestown Massacre coming across as potential founding fathers of their neo-psychedelic based sound.
Of course, they put their own spin on things by adding a current indie-pop sensibility to the songs (see the uplifting EP title track in particular, with its Johnny Marr-esque riff) which make Great White Shark a very interesting prospect for 2012. Below is a new ‘basement demo’ of a track called “Forever Cool”, which didn’t appear on the aforementioned EP. Further new recordings, according to their blog, are imminent.
Introducing: Atlantics
February 14th, 2012 • Introducing
Tags: Atlantics, Clean The Sun, How High, Nat Jenkins, Nipsy Fergus Russell, The Kooks
For those of you who remember singer-songwriter Nat Jenkins – a mainstay on the London indie scene a couple of years back – he’s now fronting a new four piece band called Atlantics, who’ve hit the ground running since their first gig at the end of last summer.
Classic British rock ‘n’ roll songwriting is at the forefront here – on their two online tracks, they display elements of everyone from The Rolling Stones to The Clash to The Libertines to The Kooks – the latter a band who Atlantics have opened for at several continental European dates in late 2011 (Paris and Madrid amongst them), subsequently building themselves a small but devoted fanbase abroad.
“Clean The Sun” is a highly charged, stomping rock ‘n’ roll number which we imagine is probably already a ‘live favourite’, whilst “How High” is a more medium paced affair with some great harmonies – reminding us of bassist Nipsy Fergus Russell’s previous band Smokey Angle Shades, one of the greatest ever groups never to have proceeded beyond the capital’s toilet circuit.
Whilst this is certainly nothing new, Atlantics are clearly (and audibly) an outfit who play with a large degree of conviction, and Jenkins’ rough and ready vocal really portrays a man who means what he’s singing – traits that will stand them in good stead in their quest to become a successful UK guitar act of the ’10s. A full length is already in the can, we read – so keep an eye out for its release this year.
Introducing: Devin
February 8th, 2012 • Introducing
Tags: Devin, Frenchkiss, You're Mine
Brooklyn native Devin Therriault – or simply Devin as he goes by musically – is a new-ish singer rekindling the feral energy of The Buzzcocks, The Undertones and The Hives with his unpolished, in-your-face rock ‘n’ roll.
His current calling card, “You’re Mine” is a high-speed adrenaline rush, and while it might be a little too much for some more sensitive souls, isn’t half short of swagger and self belief. All leather jackets, Brylcreem and Shure 55 microphones, it’s the antithesis of anything resembling a Micro Korg, and essentially, Devin is Chuck Berry for the generation who think The Vaccines, rather than The Strokes, changed rock ‘n’ roll.
Recently signed to US indie Frenchkiss (Local Natives, The Drums), Devin released a 7″ EP (which included “You’re Mine” as the lead track) through the label in November just gone, and is set to release his debut full length, “Romancing”, shortly.
He’ll be playing his first ever UK shows at the end of the month too, in short run that includes a support slot with The Drums at The Roundhouse (27/2), a headline show at The Shacklewell Arms (28/2) and one at Barfly (29/2), with our lot The Static Jacks. For a full list of dates, click here.
MP3: Devin – You’re Mine
