Dublin artist James Lonergan is set to release his new single ‘Braid’ on January 29th. Lonergan joined his first band, aged 10; since then, he has steadily fronted bands – most notably as the vocalist, guitarist, and principal songwriter of the recently disbanded progressive band, Synk.
‘Braid’ is an elegantly evolving work of art. Exuding rich folk textures and lush melodies the mystical atmosphere created by Lonergan is masterful as he takes a nimble guitar hook and builds a compelling soundscape around it. An array of rhythms flutter through the track as Lonergan unravels grand orchestral arrangements to create an expansive and ethereal wall of sound. As the guitars freely dance through the song, the atmosphere meanders from a celestial earthy nature to moody dark brought on by a swift key change.
A gravitational pull within the song seems to lure the listener into the bewitching and vibrant psychedelic soundscape as Lonergan’s smooth vocals drift with ease upon the folk hued melody while haunting harmonies wisp in the background.
‘Braid’ is an absolute treasure that displays Lonergan’s mesmerising musical ability and production skills. Lonergan proves he is one to watch with this beautiful and compelling track. Love it!
Edinburgh-based musician Craig McMorrow has announced the release of his new electro-acoustic single, ‘These Times’ on January 29th. The single, which follows McMorrow’s debut ‘Home’ was written and produced over Zoom during the lockdown.
‘These Times’ is an emotive uplifting number of electronic pop from Craig McMorrow. Through his country- esque vocals and motivational lyrics McMorrow oozes charm and emotion and shows strong musical growth from his debut ‘Home’. Soft acoustic guitar and elegant keys chime through a warm ethereal soundscape as beats bubble in the background. The use of pulsing expressive electronics creates a passionate and expansive soundscape that is both soothing and vibrant. With a catchy anthemic chorus and moving verses, ‘These Times’ is well crafted and wonderfully presented.
‘These Times’ is set for release on January 29th for more you can follow Craig McMorrow on Facebook here
Manchester indie band Provocateurs have recently released their new single ‘Tallulah’. This dynamic indie rock track travels on a driving bass groove. At the same time, blistering guitars soar and ricochet off the punchy drum foundation to create an adrenaline-inducing anthem that is a joy to listen to. Provocateurs take their passionate songwriting to new ethereal heights—the catchy chorus and brooding verse surge with heartfelt lyrics as sharp guitars jab and whirl throughout. The airy quality and dreamy melody allow the track to flow delicately on the ears, while the indie-rock backdrop gives the song a dash of edge and grit.
As the song reaches its epic crescendo, the band provides compelling instrumental builds while smooth vocals maintain a tender and velvety tone throughout. ‘Tallulah’ is a gripping and powerfully emotive single brimming with Provocateurs’ refined and passionate musicianship.
Dublin based singer-songwriter Tommy Cullen has released the latest song, ‘Put Me Down’ in a series of home-recorded singles. The track continues Tommy’s collaboration with Marcus Jay and Ivan Jackman on mixing and mastering duties, respectively, and the single’s artwork features photography by Bobby Zithelo.
‘Put It Down’ is a warm, easy listening number. Cullen spreads his wholesome songwriting over intricate beats and sweet melodies to create a mellow emotive track. By blending positive vibes and bright textures with darker rhythms, ‘Put It Down’ provides remarkable contrasts and engaging soundscapes for the listener to indulge in. Using twinkling keys that create moments of innocence between the sullen shuffling drum machine grooves and supple bass, Cullen crafts a song that is immersive, engaging, and soothing all at once.
Cullen’s vocal’s coo over tight backing harmonies as the smooth pop melody flows over the bubbling backdrop with ease. With a bright chorus and soft mellotron flutes, the track maintains a sweet and uplifting tone while the poetic lyrics delve into deep reflection, “are you strong like the trees you tend, will you break or can you bend.”
‘Put It Down’ is a catchy, charming single that displays Cullens tender, rich musicianship and deft songwriting.
Bath-based band Caravella have released their second single, ‘Internet bby’.
Beautifully crafted and peppered with a light dusting of indie this retro ditty is a dream-pop gem. Mellow guitar lines jangle atop a buoyant rhythmic foundation as Caravella strips back the instrumentation to create a charming persona within the track, aided by the warmth of Jack Spooner’s velvety croon.
Laid back and sweet, there is no denying the intricate element that exudes the track’s effortless appeal – the soothing, funk-esque bass groove which wriggles its way through the track’s fluctuant foundation. Once it starts you can’t help but bop along.
Displaying strong musical growth, Caravella have created an indie- pop delight with ‘Internet bby’. Looking forward to hearing more from Caravella.
Tallaght hard-rock trio Dead Manifest have released their new single ‘Blood’. No beginners to the Dublin rock scene, Dead Manifest have been playing music together, on and off, for ten years. The band consists of Aaron Nestor (vocals & guitar), Andy Rudd (bass), and Cathal Cullivan (drums).
Consumed in a vigorous concoction of metal, grunge, and alternative rock, ‘Blood’ boasts Dead Manifest’s refined and impressive musicianship. The track is a mammoth of slick, frenzied instrumentation as the trio take harsher elements of their music and blend these aspects with strong melodies to create a fantastic ruthless sound that is catchy as hell and utterly invigorating.
A raw bassline runs rampant through the track’s beefy foundation as Nestor’s vocals curdle and scream throughout unabated by the maelstrom of aggressive riffs and pummeling drums which rise and fall with each verse and chorus.The listener is simply left in awe and inspired by the brazen instrumentation and deft production within this thrilling single.
Dripping in dark melodic grunge, this raucous track is a prime example of the all consuming sound of Dead Manifest. Love it.
Following on from the unveiling of their singles ‘Can’t Feel Anything’ and ‘Red Run Cold’ in late 2020, fast-rising duo World’s First Cinema tease what’s to come from their debut EP with their new offering ‘Cold Sets In.’
I caught up with the band to chat about the new single, their brave decision to start a band in the middle of a pandemic, and what we can look forward to from the EP.
Fil Thorpe and John Sinclair began releasing music as World’s First Cinema last year in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic. This difficult task meant the band had to engage with their audience differently, considering live shows were not an option anymore, and live streams can be challenging to arrange.
“It’s so hard to say for sure, but it’s tough not to imagine what it would’ve been like to release in a world, not under a pandemic. I don’t think it helped as much as it harmed our release. In our opinion, live streams are a really, really tough venue to force people into. They are killer for established artists, but we’re in these critical moments of building our project from scratch and establishing a very specific theme. It just hasn’t felt right for a live stream yet.”
The duo combines expressive orchestration with melodic pop vocals and unique rock production to create an utterly compelling and emotive sound. Within their tracks, the band creates incredible cinematic builds filled with explosive hair raising crescendos and sublime melodic flows. It is no surprise the inspiration that sparked the duos sound is movies.
“Thank you! We work hard to get that sound out of each and every cut. We originally met to make music for film, but it was immediately clear that we had something more on our hands. It was so fun working together that things really just spiraled out of control. We want to put the theater back into popular music. That’s where that explosive energy comes from. We both have such different backgrounds, but they combine in that unique way. A lot of soul-inspired vocals and orchestral strings, blending with Fil’s completely epic rock/EDM production. We both play heavy parts in writing and production, so the two halves blend almost completely. “
A remarkable aspect of World’s First Cinema is the band’s use of strings which glide and swoosh through the tracks with an elegance that highlights the surging and sometimes dark electronics. A wonderful example of this is ‘Red Run Cold.’ The violin has become a vital element in the duo’s songs
“Strings just fit too well with the sweeping, cinematic palette we wanted to work with. And John plays violin. So it was a natural fit. “
World’s First Cinema recently released their new single ‘Cold Sets In,’ a tender track showcasing clean cinematic production and refined heartfelt musicianship. The song’s emotion can carry you away into a world entirely created by the duo as they discuss emotional themes through the medium of majestic arrangements.
“Cold Sets In” is inspired by shared turmoil. The song explores how such heartache can bring you closer to loved ones. Through the lens of pain, we watch how starting over can become the most impactful part of a relationship. Strife can shepherd in both meaning and perspective as its silver lining.
One of the coolest things about our process is that we start every cut with a pretty open mindset. It could go anywhere – we know what we like, and what fits in the world of World’s First Cinema, but each song gets to sort of write itself. Love that.”
The track follows on from World’s First Cinema’s singles ‘Can’t Feel Anything’ and ‘Red Run Cold,’ which were released in late 2020, and have since amassed more than a million streams, with the latter topping the billing on Spotify’s Pop Rock Shot playlist since their release. Excitingly the duo have an EP planned for this year
“We do – can’t say too much, but it’s coming in a matter of weeks. It’s meant to lay a foundation – setting the stage for what’s to come from World’s First Cinema. “
Both Fil and John have a lot of experience in the music industry. Fil was a founding member of Neck Deep, the multi-award-winning rock outfit that also cracked the #2 spot on the US album charts. John (alternatively known as Saint Claire) has previously collaborated with Macklemore on his 2017 single ‘Excavate’.I asked them for some words of wisdom for an emerging songwriter and producer who wishes to pursue a career in music
“Don’t be afraid to pivot and change. You really have no clue what can come next, if you let it.”
World’s First Cinema are a genre-defying and exciting duo to keep an eye on. The deft musicianship, skillful production, and emotion they pour into their songs is impressive and makes for one hair-raising listening experience. I’m looking forward to this mysterious EP they have planned to release this year.
You can stream their new single ‘Cold Sets In’ below
Reading-based alternative three-piece doops have released their new EP ‘deflections.’ In true doops manner, the band weaves their refined alternative indie into a first-rate tapestry of musical mastery.
Simmering in dark, ominous soundscapes, ‘The Things We Are,’ and ‘Shangri-La’ set the EP’s tone. Psychedelic, sweet, and shrouded in mystery, the band blend 60’s dreamy melodies with ethereal guitar and reverb vocals to create a whimsical intro before the tracks unfold into a punchy punk rock display. Almost rap-like vocals rapidly spit over rolling, fuzzed bass lines and snappy drums. There is a sense of innocence in ‘The Things We Are,’ which is enhanced by the vibrant instrumentation, whereas ‘Shangri-La’ takes on a more sultry tone. These two wonderfully dark tracks are meticulously layered and announce doops new EP with triumphant vigor.
Perhaps my favourite track on the album is ‘Loopholes’; deep brooding vocals croon over a building disoriented instrumental while a tearful guitar laments in the background. The guitar mirrors the lyrics’ theme of entrapment as it wriggles in panic through the chorus while the sweet melody and steady beat succumb to the hazy musical bewilderment.
Just as the ghostly waft of ‘Loopholes’ reaches a cinematic end, the brash drone of ‘Rehash’ enters like a fire-spewing demon of alternative rock. The buzzing on guitar builds, becoming more distorted and harsh as the bass stomps with destructive tendencies in the backdrop. The vocals are urgent and race with an echo of drama and mania as the track spirals to its explosive crescendo. The song is a mesmerising display of deft musicianship.
Filled with cinematic soundscapes and impressive guitar hooks, doop’s ferocious alternative sound is well crafted. They allow it to blossom and venture down a path of sweet psychedelia in ‘Pull Back The Shades’ before firmly wrenching it back into a shredding maelstrom of emotional chaos.
There is a residue of electronic dance within the haunting ‘F.W.W.M’ before the harrowing strides on guitar billow out into a more funk impulse. This lighter tone contrasts the haunting vocals and lyrics, “It’s killing me. Is it killing you. So who’s killing who”. Building to a compelling guitar solo, the track is a fantastic and prodigious finale to the EP.
doops have knocked it out of the park with ‘deflections’. The EP is a breathtaking display of proficient musicianship. The pacing, attention to detail, and sheer beauty within this EP is captivating. The songs are confident, slick, and riddled with tangled emotion. ‘deflections’ is a magnificent glimpse into the artistic mind of doops.
Since forming a little over a year ago, London’s desert-rockers The Howlers have quickly identified themselves as one of the UK’s must-see live acts. I caught up with frontman Adam Young to discuss the release of their upcoming EP and their UK tour set for the Spring.
The London-based three-piece have become known for their old school, gritty, desert sound reminiscent of Spaghetti Westerns. Their tracks feel like they could be the soundtrack to a Sergio Leone movie with an indie rock twist. Even their fashion sense reflects their musical style. An impressive impact to have for such a young band and movies is where this sound originated from.
“I don’t think it was a decision we made, it was natural to us. It was something that we were drawn to. We were all drawn to the iconography of the fashion and things like the 60s and 70s, and you know, spaghetti westerns are just comical and hilarious. It’s just the pageantry. When you watch a film like that, you know, that was filmed in the 60s and 70s, and it’s badly synced up with how the audio and the film is, and the story is rubbish. It’s almost like a parody of life. We really like the film scores from those movies, you know, Sergio Leone movies and Ennio Morricone soundtracks. They are just so emotive and we, as a band use our music to express how we’re emotionally feeling. We try and stay away from politics as much as possible because we think, every band at the moment thinks that to be a musician, you’ve got to be angry at the government. We’re all angry at the government, but people need a little bit of hope. So singing about, how we deal with our mental health or how we’ve gone through some of the most horrendous things we would never wish on anybody, I think is a refreshing take on it and so I guess it naturally falls into a sound that no one else is doing. Plus it’s pretty cool, to create an atmosphere on stage is a very hard thing to do. Everyone can go up there and jump around like they are at Wembley Stadium, but to create something that is emotive… bands like The Murder Capital, they do it amazingly well. They get on stage and express emotion in a very visceral way and I guess we’re trying to do that in a slightly different way.”
Snugly wrapped within this western – esque indie rock sound is the band’s emotive lyrics. The listener gets a glimpse of the pain and emotion Adam is working through. In particular ‘In My Apologies’ captures this perfectly.
“When it came to writing lyrics. Up until the more recent tunes that we’ve written which haven’t been released yet, they are being released in a couple of weeks, couple of months. I used to write by myself, I’m on the autistic spectrum, I have dyslexia and so how my brain works is a complete mess. I use songs as a way of expressing how my mind is just absolutely crushed or, you know, it’s quite a lonely place to be sometimes, and the boys often say that I pulled songs like ‘My Apologies’ and ‘County Lines’ out my ass. They just come out of nowhere but I just sort of walk into a room and go, what do you think of this I wrote this last night, and it was just one of those things.”
“Our songwriting, especially now, for the new material, we’ve taken the songwriting I had and was doing, and the rest of the boys have got involved as well and now it represents all of us and it is miles better. So, with ‘My Apologies’, I wrote that song the day before we recorded it in the studio and, I recorded it in one take. The lyrics came from a time in my life where I was realizing that I wasn’t happy and I met someone that changed my perspective of it and I gambled everything to chase that feeling. I wanted it to be quite raw. There’s a track that we’ve recorded that is as dark but I don’t know, sometimes I find it really hard to talk about my songwriting and art. I like for people to be able to just listen to it, feel moved in their own way. I think that’s quite important to let people understand our music differently.”
The Howlers have gained widespread praise from radio royalty, including BBC 6 Music’s Steve Lamacq, KEXP’s Cheryl Waters, and BBC Radio 1’s Jack Saunders, Sophie K, and Huw Stephens. In under 10 months, all 3 of their singles debuted on BBC Radio 1. It’s a fantastic achievement for an unsigned band to get such recognition. However, it wasn’t easy. The band had a tough time and a lot of fast learning to do within the industry.
“Yeah, unfortunately, because we had a bit of success that obviously attracts the more horrible people in the industry and we’ve been through a lot. People took advantage of that and we’ve just recently got back to ourselves. We built a team around us now, the most amazing individuals. The achievements we have with no major label backing, you know, it is amazing, but we’re always striving for the next thing. We’re not egotistical, we don’t go ‘yeah we’ve had this, we’ve made it’. It’s almost like, ‘we’ve got it that’s good, let’s go bigger.’ We will put in a good show and we’ll come offstage and we’ll beat ourselves up for like 10 minutes going ‘Nah that’s rubbish’ and that’s how we keep moving forward. Some of the best shows we’ve ever played, some of the shows where we got some of the best opportunities we’ve ever had, we came off stage and were depressed for like 10 or 15 minutes. It was just one of those things where I think as a band we appreciate everyone’s time. We want to keep giving people something that they appreciate and the same with radio and stuff, it’s nice to have that recognition. “
Since the beginning of 2020, The Howlers have been working on a series of records with Theo Verney (Traams, Fur, Egyption Blue, Pip Blom) and Tarek Musa (Spring King) producing and mixing as well as Third Man Records (The Black Keys, YAK, Jack White) conducting the Mastering. This collection of tracks sees the band deal with some heavy topics through the wonderfully expressive musicianship the band is known for.
“To understand it a little better. I lost a family member to COVID-19. We dealt with it the only way we knew how to, which was to lock ourselves away in a North London factory, a windowless room and we just spent 9,10 hours a day in that room just writing music together expressing the grief and the emotion and helping us go through that period. It just happened to be at the same time that the Black Lives Matter protest was going on. So, we would go to and from the studio every day to sirens and chanting and people queuing outside shops in masks. It was this time when we realized we were going to be who we want to be and we just tore up everything and went ‘let’s be ourselves, let’s get back to being who we are’. We were already close anyway we’re unbelievably tight both as musicians and more like family than friends, we’re like brothers to each other, and the new tunes represent that. It is the first time that Cam helped with songwriting in terms of lyrical content. He writes poetry and I said let’s use some of your poetry. Let’s get it in there. It’s the first time that we worked on every bit of a song together. We are unbelievably proud of what we’ve done.”
“It follows the same line, what we’ve done before, same sort of sound, that desert-y sound. It has gone a little bit more, West Coast. So, you know bands like the Allah-Las, Night Beats, Black Keys, things like that. We’ve just gone, ‘you know what, f*ck it let’s just do our thing’ and from the demos that we created, we managed to get this team around us, which is unbelievable. I still pinch myself and go how the bloody hell did we get there. The tracks were mastered and worked on by Third Man Records in America and it was the same guy who did Jack White’s debut album, The Black Keys’ albums, The Kills and he’s working on our records and that’s amazing. So yeah, I think people are gonna like it. It is miles better than what we’ve done before. So if you like what we did before you can’t, not like it.”
With no live gigs 2020 was a challenging year. However, The Howlers have scheduled a UK tour this Spring. The prospect of seeing The Howlers live I’m sure has excited many, considering the band is at their most raw and compelling in a live setting. Although it’s difficult for Adam to be hopeful for the shows to go ahead.
“I mean, it’s definitely getting postponed. So, yeah, it WILL happen. When it will happen I don’t know, it’s probably gonna get postponed to the end of the year. All the tickets will remain valid because I think it’s right to honor the people that supported us when we really needed them to, but we’ll see. We are known as a live band and I’m buzzing to get back to it”
Adam explained the difficult times the band had within the industry with people mistreating them. It is a scary journey sometimes for a new band to find their feet. Budding artists don’t know much about management or the industry and that does leave them open to people taking advantage. From his experience, Adam gave advice for anyone who might like to pursue a career in the music industry.
“As a band, we’re not stupid. We’ve all studied music and we’re very clued on. Unfortunately, we have been through some stuff that made us very vulnerable and people took advantage of that and as a result, we’ve got ourselves out of those situations and now we’re back to what is important… us. My advice for an artist is, you don’t always need to have the big goals that people strive for like a label or a publisher or anything like that sometimes you can do things on your own. We’re very fortunate that we’ve got a really good publisher behind us and that’s all we need really at the moment. Be prepared for it to be shit. You know, we’re sold this Hollywood dream that it’s champagne and cocaine and it’s more like pot noodles and cans of coke. That’s literally it, it’s one of those things, but it’s the best experience you’ll ever have and it’s the best job in the world. I’m very fortunate. It comes with tears and breakdowns and unbelievable happiness and frustration, but at the same time, I wouldn’t change it for the world. So, yeah, I just advise people to know what they’re entering into, realistically.“
The Howlers create intoxicating tunes bursting from the seams with emotion. Blood, sweat, and tears go into every song to make the blistering, infectious desert-soaked sound we have come to love from the band. The upcoming EP is no exception. After listening, I was blown away by the band’s proficient musicianship. Keep an eye out for the upcoming EP. It’s a doozy.
Hopefully, the bands live dates can go ahead if so you can catch The Howlers Live at
Grey Whistle Test are due to release their new track ‘Nylon’ this month. The track, which is set for release on January 22nd, was inspired in part by the feelings brought on by the first lockdown. The lyrics tell the story of the band getting bogged on a camping trip and facing a “bad fate,” later to be rescued by a heroic local who advised them: “don’t get rope, get nylon.” This expression has stayed with the three-piece for years, becoming a metaphor for the need to surround yourself with good people and form genuine connections.
‘Nylon’ is a bright burst of indie as Grey Whistle Test spread their warm music over a fluctuant soothing backdrop. The band use tropical beats to create a rippling backbone as the song unfolds with glistening, cosy guitar embellishments and soulful backing vocals. The dreamy melody caressed by the nonchalant vocal provides a sweet sense of comfort, allowing the beat to create a hypnotic pacifying haze. The entire track is submerged in tranquility as Grey Whistle Test use their mellow tones and rich, intricate textures to create a wonderful nostalgia-soaked delight.
