It’s that time of the week again; nine more delectable tracks for you to gorge on like a buffet of elixir for the ears. Enjoy!
Bo Milli – At the Wheel
Why we love it: ‘At the Wheel’ is so striking because of the fantastic production on a brilliant song that gives it the in-the-room feel, it seems like the guitar is on your left shoulder whilst Bo is on your right singing in your ear. Bo’s double-tracked echoey vocals with dirt-under-the-fingernails fuzz guitar evoke ’90s U.S alternative rock with a slight nod to Phoebe Bridgers. Bo Milli is from Bergen, Norway, her name being a deconstruction of her birth name, Emilie Østebø, her first single is heart on her sleeve open about struggling with mundane day to day issues overshadows her wanting to be about the larger overwhelming issues like climate change and the environment.
What they say: “It’s about how the small things feel big, and how you try to relate to the big things but the everyday stuff takes up so much real estate. There are these flashes of ‘oh fuck!’ but then you’re like… ‘wait, where’re my keys?’”
Recently signed to MADE Management (Sigrid, AURORA), ‘At The Wheel‘ was co-produced by Odd Martin Skålnes (Sigrid, Sløtface, AURORA). (Jim Auton)
Peeping Drexels – SKuNK
Why we love it: Peeping Drexels have released a new single ‘SKuNK’ out today via Brace Yourself Records. This is a track that is led by the music rather than the vocals, and what a glorious combination of instrumentation this is. Pumpingly euphoric with a beat-driven vibe and scratchy guitars which also manage to hit the funk in places. This is bass and drum-driven dance music. Is there such a thing? There is now thanks to London based Peeping Drexels. The pounding drum beats at the beginning earworm into your head. To be perfectly honest I’m not too sure what the words are about, but it really doesn’t matter. That euphoria builds as the track progresses and the electric guitar towards the end before the relentless drum beats take us to the end is the bee’s knees.
What they say: “A euphoric celebration of simplicity, the track is an ode to the vibe of chaotic old school block parties and hard Miami bass, with a lurking undertone of darkness beneath the surface.” (Julia Mason)
Lewis McLaughlin – Go With The Flow
Why we love it: The new single from Lewis McLaughlin, ‘Go With The Flow’ is the latest track to be taken from the 20-year-old Scottish songwriter’s forthcoming debut album Feel The Ground You Walk Upon which is due out on 25th March via Andy Monaghan’s (Frightened Rabbit) Monohands Records label.
What they say: “I was living on my own for a couple of months over the winter, which was pretty hard going. That time of the year is normally all about getting together with family, relaxing and eating/drinking way too much, so that definitely made it feel worse that everyone was isolated from each other. I had many days where I couldn’t find much hope, but those around me really got me through with phone calls/walks in the snow. It’s kind of just saying “yeah, it’s tough! We’ve had a s**t year, but we’ll get through it some way or another, together!”.
“Showing people around you how much they mean to you is the key to making it past hard times. I certainly feel a bit lighter every time I’m around those that mean the most to me.”
A gentle reflection upon a difficult time in Lewis McLaughlin’s life, ‘Go With The Flow’ emerges in a delicate sequence of moments that speaks of optimism and quiet confidence. (Simon Godley)
LT Wade – Unfortunately
Why we love it: The sun appears in the sky, Spring is suddenly in the air and by way of celebration, LT Wade brings us his joyous new single ‘Unfortunately’, taken from his yet to be announced new EP.
What they say: Talking about the track, the New York City-based, British musician, writer and visual artist says “This single is a bit of a new chapter for me. Over the course of the last two years, I took a bit of a step back from music. There was a lot going on for everyone and It didn’t feel right to be pushing new tunes. I started listening to a lot more pop and dance music, purely because it helped lift my spirits throughout the dark times, and in turn, inspired me to write music that was a little more light-hearted and fun. ‘Unfortunately’ is the first single in this collection. I was able to get into the studio with an amazing set of players last year, and record a new EP.”
For a little over three minutes, ‘Unfortunately’ manages to shake a lot of the torpor and gloom away from life as we currently know it. A catchy slice of dreamy-pop, the song just skips along without nary a care in the world. (Simon Godley)
Noon Garden – Beulah Spa
Why we love it: Noon Garden – aka Charles Prest (Flamingods) – has released the title track from his debut album Beulah Spa, which is scheduled for release on 1 April. British born with Nigerian & Jamaican heritage, Prest spent his childhood living in Bahrain and so it is unsurprisingly that his music has a melting-pot of influences. Charles wrote, self-produced and played all the parts on ‘Beulah Spa’. It’s a sun-kissed track, with a psychedelic groove and a wonderful lightness that, to be honest, we could do with right now to transport us to a different world in our imagination. The synths and guitars blend together creating a beautiful mix. Add in Charles looping vocals and the result is a track to close your eyes and get lost in.
What they say:“’Beulah Spa’ is a melting pot of ethio-jazz-inspired rhythms and melodies dressed up with a modern twist and taking influence from the likes Tears for Fears and classic psychedelic rock.”
“It’s loosely about my relationship to big city life. With the arts, in particular, it can be really tough to do what you love without real-life commitments and worries occupying the mind. Lyrically, it’s about addressing some of those inner thoughts on one’s relationship with money, self-worth, and the ecstatic highs and lows that life can bring to hopefully offer some perspective on it all” (Julia Mason)
Gabi Garbutt – Never Never
Why we love it: Beginning in a punchy fashion with an infectious sense of ecstasy and estuary; ‘Never Never’ is the first single from Gabi Garbutt’s second album ‘Cockerel’ (released May 20). It is an uplifting homage to her two non-contemporaneous heroes, the painter Vincent van Gogh and Lou Reed/Voidoids guitarist Robert Quine – both of whom tragically committed suicide.
Gabi says:
“Van Gogh and Robert Quine are both people that I admire artistically and who sadly took their own life, and I had this image of this last blast of sound and colour followed by a deathly silence. It’s an affirmation of their great, but troubled life, that was so brilliantly and so painfully wrought into their art, and there’s also despair at the blunt finality of their tragically premature deaths. It’s unhinged brassy punk.”
The lyrics roll off her tongue and are intertwined with a Phil Spector-style collision of lead/rhythm-guitar like the early Smiths battling it out with the late Replacements. Simply irresistible, and the backing vocals and horns are pretty damn sexy too!
Deserved credits go to Leo Garbutt who took the single’s sleeve photo, and the blue collage artwork is by Steev Burgess. (Humphrey Fordham)
Coach Party – Weird Me Out
Why we love it: Isle of Wight’s Coach Party have followed up previous single ‘FLAG’ with ‘Weird Me Out’. The 4-piece have also announced their third EP Nothing is Real set for release on 29 April via Chess Club Records.
It’s a garage punk rock track full of reverb, and with a message: “Why do I care? We’re better than that”
This line says it all in just a few words. We put so much pressure on ourselves and work towards the perfect relationship, but what is that? And who dictates it? Coach Party have delivered yet another song which, like ‘FLAG’ has so much to say, but without being morose. The music is full of garage guitars and thumping drums, and the spoken vocal mid-track states the contradictions. It progresses to have a glorious combined vocal and the energy increases as if gaining inner strength.
What they say: “If you take standards as set by the media too seriously, which is easily done, you end up with a very unrealistic idea of what a relationship should look like. ‘Weird Me Out’ is about the desire to change someone (or yourself) to fit that image you have of a perfect relationship, but also stepping back and remembering to stop comparing yourself to manufactured ideals and put yourself on a well-deserved pedestal.” (Julia Mason)
Life – Big Moon Lake
Why we love it: On the day that the Hull band LIFE announced their third album North East Coastal Town, set for release on 10 June via the Liquid Label, they also dropped their new single ‘Big Moon Lake’.
Full of swagger this is LIFE at their best. With a chaotic opening, there is an uncertainty about where the track is going but of course, we should have nothing to fear. Crashing cymbals and reverbing guitars give way to pounding drums and those twanging guitars. Lead singer Mez Green is more melodic than we have heard in the past and his observational lyrics and speedy delivery make for a thoroughly thumping pounding track. “I’m freaking out” seems a pretty perfect set of words to scream in unison at the moment to relieve some of the tension we must all feel at the current state of the world we live in.
What they say: “Hull and the surrounding area runs through our DNA and has shaped us, weathered us, empowered us, embraced us and made us feel accepted. North East Coastal Town is our love letter to the city. The album is an ode to kinship and relationship with its musical and lyrical spine picking out themes of love, desire, beauty, horror, chaos, pride and most importantly the sense of belonging.” (Julia Mason)
Prima Queen – Invisible Hand
Why we love it: Prima Queen are an all-female band fronted by songwriting duo and best friends Louise Macphail (Bristol, UK) and Kristin McFadden (Chicago, USA). Their new single ‘Invisible Hand’ is awesome, embodying the feeling of being out of control of your mental health, like a hand is around your neck squeezing out all of the joy from life. Simmering from brittle introspection guided by stompy drums and spiralling riffs before swelling into a majestic anthem, that has a Cat Power-like cathartic quality, replete with some brutal imagery. Despite the themes, it still retains a hook laden, life-affirming quality through its sheer release of frustration. Screaming to the heavens has never sounded so good.
What they say: “Invisible Hand was written at a time when I was struggling with my mental health. It’s about the experience of blaming yourself for your lows and the exhaustion that comes with trying everything in your power to feel better. Depression is never your fault or your choice – it’s this outside force that isn’t you” (Bill Cummings)
