POST CATEGORY : Introducing

Introducing: Stoat

20424015_1574304385959440_5739287509699390241_o

With an extensive back-catalogue, an indie/post-punk sound similar to HMHB meets Sultans of Ping FC and Irish to boot, it is a mystery how Stoat existence remained unknown (to me at least) until very recently.

After taking a breather for a few years, so far in 2017 Stoat have been revealing new material with a view to releasing an LP called Try Not To Think About It later in the year. The latest single lifted from the forthcoming record is the title track, providing a welcome introduction to both band and LP. Spearheaded by militaristic drums, jerky and somewhat jagged punky-reggae guitars and wry, sardonic lyrical quips. Delivered with hawkish precision, they tap along in perfect time regaling tales of the downside of fatherhood, domesticity, and steady employment. Striking a balance between bashing out a memorable jam and being light-hearted is a tough ask, many have tried and many have failed. But thankfully – like the aforementioned HMHB & Sultans – Stoat deliver the goods. Hopefully there’s more to come from Stoat in 2017, an excellent – if somewhat belated – discovery.

Check out ‘Try Not To Think About It’ & other recent single, ‘Talk Radio Makes Me Feel Alone’ below.

Introducing: Little Glass Men

14731283_1417617688268198_1934336912258701542_n

Little Glass Men is the moniker of San Francisco-based musician/producer Ryan Claus.

Describing his sound as a blend of sampling and synthesis, with live instrumentation, echoing the likes of Mt. Kimbie, Bonobo and Flying Lotus, Claus creates beautiful sound palettes that gently washes over you with ease, leaving you feeling all the better for it. ‘Be So Love’ is both beautiful and tranquil as gently dripping, liquid sounds, dreamily twinkling keys, shimmering synths, flickering clutches of angelic vocal and stuttering percussion that will transport you into the very depths of chill. The beautifully compelling ‘Crystal’ meanwhile, does much the same, transfixing with harmonically rich soundscapes, encapsulating rhythms but with a selection of heavier-hitting beats; this is music that whisks you away, to a place to inspire peace-of-mind. Beautiful, slick and tranquil: ‘Be So Love’ and ‘Cycles’ are both taken from the recent Until It’s Gone EP and demonstrates Little Glass Men’s prowess for world’s of absorbing and relaxing electronic sound.

Check out the two aforementioned tracks below. The EP can be found here.

 

Introducing: Joy Downer

17952592_1410874405617924_5512935858017578886_n

Joy Downer is husband/wife duo Joy Bishop and Jeff Downer, originally from San Diego but now based in Los Angeles who are cooking up all manner of gorgeous indie-pop.

Inspired by themes of duality; light and dark, man and woman, mind and matter which collide to set the backdrop of the sound. And on another matter of duality, the creative chemistry between the pair is such that, from the outside at least, ideas and songs seem to flow with an effortless ease. ‘Stranger Places’ has a decidedly easy and breezy feel, the gentle buoyancy of its bass grooves floating away to joyful hand claps and whirring synths are only anchored steady drums and groovy rhythms. Meanwhile, Bishop’s saccharine vocal would bring cheer to the most despondent among us, on the bluest day of all. It is a delicately balanced dynamic done with a hooky, shimmery, smile-inducing sounds. Latest single ‘Goddamnit’ is more impassioned and intimate with immaculate storytelling as a tale of broken hearts is recanted in a world that is slowly falling apart. The soft and aching vocals are imbued with a powerful sense of emotion while the instrumentation is superb; this pop song for the brokenhearted is buoyed by the flourishes of the horns. This pairs talent’s has served us with an irresistible and irrefutably infectious indie-pop – and long may that continue.

You can listen to ‘Goddamnit’ & ‘Stranger Places’ below, both of which are taken from Joy Downer’s latest EP Radio Dreamer – listen to it here.

Introducing: Best Friend

13220726_586997361474965_623351186877803891_o

Best Friend are a production trio from London, who slice up old 12 inches and Youtube videos and reassemble them into summery, soulful chill hop beats.

The trio’s taste for epic cut and pasting takes us on a gorgeous, colourful and sampladelic adventure. Our intrepid excursion begins with their new record Weekend With Best Friend; a sample-driven gem with scenic production and a hazy, tranquil vibe fit to lift the spirits of even the most glum among us. ‘Spotlight’ is a lavish, cool and irresistible blend of hip hop beats and slick, shimmering samples, leaving us in a state of blissful relaxation. ‘Colourful’ meanwhile marries a beautiful vocal with dazzling flourishes of glistening strings and gentle percussion for a wonderfully hypnotic feel. Throughout Weekend With Best Friend, the trio explore a world of genres, styles and eras to serve up a record which manages a real sense of familiarity without having heard it before – and all done with immense skill, style and substance.

Check out ‘Spotlight’ & ‘Colourful’ below & the full record is available here. This production trio are definitely ones to watch – keep tabs!

Introducing: Miles Dismond

avatars-000265547754-i4ninz-original

For those of us who fell head over heals for the hazy psychedelia of Lonerism-era Tame Impala, Miles Dismond is a name definitely worth getting acquainted with.

Miles Dismond is a DIY singer/songwriter based out of Berkeley, CA, whose sound lands somewhere between the lo-fi psych-pop of Ariel Pink and hazy psychedelia of early Tame Impala. Having release an 6-track record last year, Dismond has a new album Girl in the Window on the horizon. Latest single, ‘She Doesn’t Care At All’ demonstrates Dismond at his mesmerising best. It is hypnotic from the off, as the track’s title is repeated over washed-out synth, frazzled electronics, fuzzy droning guitar and eerie vocals meeting every melodic turn or rhythmic surge as ‘She Doesn’t Care At All’ spirals into a stunning colourful climax. Previous single ‘She’s In My Head’ continues the proliferation of the spaced-out psych vibes, with an added dose of sunshine and slinking, super smooth groove. A beautiful blend of sunshine vibes, psych tones, fuzz and meandering melodic sensibilities; Miles Dismond is a name to remember.

Listen to ‘She Doesn’t Care At All’ & ‘She’s In My Head’ below, and keep those eyes peeled for details of his forthcoming LP. His previous record is available here.

Introducing: Strange Cages

strangecages-e1496058284490-770x375

Strange Cages are a Brighton trio who don’t mess about; their sinister, sleazy psych-rock sound is compelling, intense and hypnotic.

Taking parts post-punk, surf rock, garage, krautrock and psychedelia Strange Cages stitch it all together to form a dangerous sounding gritty psych-punk. The Brighton trio are gearing up to release new EP The Cracks, out on June 16, ahead of which come title track and ‘Leader Of A Cult’ to whet the appetite. The latter fully realises their dark sinister tenancies with spine chilling effect. Punchy drums and jangley, off-kilter riffs are smothered with an eerie sense of dark perilous menace, with foreboding vocals adding to the sense of a paranoid nightmare. ‘The Cracks’, still somewhat wonky and weird, pushes infectious guitar riffs, driving drum beats and anthemic roars through a sea of distortion and psychedelic imagination. Two phenomenal tracks, on the back of which, there are plenty of reasons to be excited for the forthcoming EP.

The Cracks EP is out June 16. Listen to ‘The Cracks’ & ‘Leader Of A Cult’ below now.

Introducing: Blue Movies

10960213_653445464782499_2970138675777797987_o

Blue Movies is the musical and songwriting pairing of London-based artists Mat Eric Hart and Tom Ball, who have a preference for slow, mellow and relaxing psych-infused indie lullabies.

These beautiful berceuse’s emanate from an enchanting playground of woozy, undulating soothing sounds, that is hauntingly melancholic yet also blissfully hypnotic. The pair’s recently released debut album, Disenchantment, is a treasure trove of such wondrous delights. Lead single ‘Caramel Dreams’ with its slow, ruminating rhythmic development and lush vocals is perfect case in point. The vocals begin to rise, to meet the gorgeous unfolding instrumental soundscape and elegant and melodic guitar work. As with the rest of the record, it is an elegant, captivating and slow brewing dream; juts like the aptly titled ‘Relax’.

Check out ‘Caramel Dreams’ and ‘Relax’ below. Two sublime snippets from the soothing, mellow vibes of Disenchantment.

Introducing: Nia Wyn

18491401_1663566303655963_4864933938739272230_o

It’s never a bad day when you discover a precocious music talent, especially when it’s going to fill a soulful void in your life.

With that in mind, open yourself to the powerful, raw and soulful sounds of London-based North-Walian artist, Nia Wyn. Wyn has a canny ability for raw and powerful storytelling, set within a kind of unorthodox, rich and engrossing vocal, it immediately marks her out as something rather refreshing. She introduced herself with stunning, folk-tinged blues debut, ‘Help Me’, and actually goes one better with latest single, ‘Do You Love Enough’. The music, as with her voice, channels old blues and soul with a modern twist. These are timeless tales of broken hearts at home and in society, told with her unique and powerful voice. Both singles conjure up a very exciting, defiant charisma that’s simultaneously streetwise, witty, hard and warm. A unique and captivating talent, and one to keep your eye on this year, and beyond, for sure.

A debut EP is in the pipeline for a June release, so keep an eye out for that in the coming weeks. In the meantime, make sure and check out ‘Do You Love Enough’ & ‘Help Me’ below.

Introducing: Loco Ono

16177816_1482214381819173_6935485121531496302_o

First things first, if there was a competition for the best named new band of 2017, Loco Ono would be way out in front with the shortest odds possible.

Handles aside, there are many more reasons to get excited about this London trio of Grace Zacarias, Pieter Stone & Nathan Edmonds. For one, with their ’90s inspired, lo-fi grunge hybrid, they make a hell of a convincing racket. Fuzzed-up, meaty riffs are driven by ferocious and insistent drums, all delivered with breakneck speed and electrifying intensity. There is dreamy quality too, in part due to Zacarias breathy, haunting vocals on ‘Black Hole’; and in the case of ‘Grizzly’, there’s an added dreamy feature of a ukulele interlude. Drawing inspiration from ’90s lo-fi and modern power pop, Loco Ono effortlessly blends fuzzed-up, buzz-saw guitars, catchy melodies with a fierce and fiery energy.

You can sample some choice cuts from their recently released debut EP Dog Massage, below.

Introducing: Patchwork Guilt

15025657_594414344098882_8927708383716168355_o

Patchwork Guilt was born in a bedroom in Bristol, in 2014, through the late-night tinkerings of songwriter Phoenix Mundy.

Now based in Liverpool, she has since recorded and self-released two albums (2014’s Punch Bowl & 2015’s Dreaming on the Internet) and three EPs; it is a back catalogue which exudes beauty, invention and class. Latest single ‘Unwind’ follows in a similar vein; it is an intimate and imaginative, charming and infectious slice of lush, lo-fi dreamy indie-pop. Mundy’s unforgettable smokey vocals carve through layers of guitars, synths and any manner of lush sounds, to leave us utterly bewitched by this bubbly, fizzy gem that sparkles and glistens like summer sun the tranquil blue sea. Now, ‘Unwind’ should be enough to convince you but you will be left similarly smitten by the hushed, hazy and spaced-out psych-pop of ‘Get to Rest’ and the undulating manoeuvres of ‘Plastic Gazing Eye’.

If you listen to one new artist/act today, please let it be Patchwork Guilt. You will NOT be left disappointed. You can find the new single along with even more of her music, on her Bandcamp page.