LISTEN: Bad Sounds - 'More Than I Can Afford'

"I bet a clean conscience costs more than I can afford."

Music inspired by the cost of living crisis? Hmm. Music inspired by the cost of living crisis by Bad Sounds? Sign me up, now. If anyone was going to put a catchy spin on a pretty dire topic, it'd be these guys. Self-produced by the band and mixed by Nathan Boddy, this one is a bit of a corker to kick the year off with. Seriously! 

Talking about the themes behind the track, the band share "Being poor and living in an expensive city. Plus trying to eat healthy, not trash the environment, buy organic foods, and support local businesses. These are all things that we try really hard to do in our everyday lives, but it kind of feels unattainable to maintain the moral standards we set ourselves. So we end up feeling really guilty all the time for not being able to live up to that code of ethics every second of every day. This problem has only really been compounded by the ever increasing financial divide in the UK. Hence "I bet a clean conscience costs more than I can afford." You just end up doing your best and lying to yourself about your shortcomings."

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LISTEN: Cj Pandit - 'I Wonder What You're Up To Now'

Happy Thursday! Shuffling back towards the keyboard after a few days of work and watching the emails in my inbox pile up. It can be a little overwhelming, but also provides so much joy when I find releases from favourite artists in there - like this from Cj Pandit!!! Just a few weeks after releasing his +44 EP, he's just shared I Wonder What You're Up To Now. What did we do to deserve this?! A dreamy slice of bedroom-pop-folk to escape into and hide from the world for three minutes. He never misses. 

On the track, he shares: "I Wonder is a song about getting lost in the daydream of the melancholy of something that's out of reach or doesn't exist anymore." 

CJ Pandit · I Wonder What You're up to Now

Cj Pandit tours in October, taking in London (12th), Leicester (13th), Bristol (14th) and Manchester (15th.) Details and tickets here. 

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LISTEN: Cj Pandit - 'If It Hurts, It's Healing'

I've been really bad at blogging lately but I promise I've been listening to lots of brill music - recently basically just Baby Queen on repeat forever... no regrets. A track I've been loving is the latest from pal of the blog Cj Pandit, If It Hurts, It's Healing. It's the third to be taken from his upcoming second EP +44, due soon (ish? maybe?) via Never Fade Records. Tender and uplifting as ever, this one is so gooooood. Love ya Cj! 

About the track, he shares: "I was going through a yearly/monthly/weekly crisis of confidence and identity and just decided to live in it for a bit, to see what I could find and put together. This song was it. Grief is just a version of love breaking down, and sometimes you've gotta let things go. Sometimes, you have to stare in the mirror to see what's going on. If it hurts, it's healing is a little adventure into self discovery and mourning your former self, or something that's been eating you up and defining your character for a big chunk of time." 

CJ Pandit · If It Hurts, It's Healing

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LISTEN: Cj Pandit - '1, 2, Free'

Ahhhhh I love this. A reminder to 'back yourself and trust your instincts' from Cj Pandit, new track 1, 2, Free is a delight. It really feels like he is at once settling into his sound and constantly pushing the envelope - finding his unique sound, moving further away from the earlier Magique days (one for the OG fans) and firmly placing himself into our hearts and our playlists with this absolute gem. Each new release has me saying "I think this is my new favourite..." and I love that. This one is from his upcoming second EP, which I can't wait for. It's Cj Pandit's world for the taking, and I'm excited to be on the sidelines cheering him on. 

On the new track, he shares: "When we're falling head first into new relationships, it's easy to second guess each other's expectations and become over reliant on approval, when maybe we should be slightly more selfish. It's not always a bad word. That's what 1, 2, Free is all about, relying on your impulses and not holding people back."

"I was so heavily influenced by the Bee Gees songwriting and recording through the whole process and wanted to cover the song in as many voices and harmonies as possible to let myself float through the messy little world inside my head. It feels like a lift off to me." 

Cj Pandit tours the UK this October - find dates & tickets here!

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WATCH: Mia Nicolai - 'Dream Go'

I've been a little bit in love with this one from Mia Nicolai since the track released a couple of months back, but didn't find time to write about it then.. loving it even more with this new video and just had to share! Born in Amsterdam to a Russian mother and Dutch father, Mia has been musical from an early age, and eager for new experiences too - this hunger took her to London, Melbourne, New York and Los Angeles (where this gorgeous video was shot.) The track and video, to me, are both bursting with personality - and I'm excited to see what Mia does next! 

Dream Go finds Mia exploring the disappointment of meeting somebody special, making plans, having dreams, and things not turning out how you'd expected. She shares "I was in pain, it felt like the dreams I had in the relationship weren't even close to coming to the right fruition, it hurt cos I really wanted it to work out but it somehow didn't seem to, no matter how hard we worked at it." 

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WATCH: Cj Pandit - 'Boyfriend'

Two posts in two days? Currently unheard of. Couldn't resist sharing this one though - pal of the blog Cj Pandit is back!!! Dreamy times. Back in May, he released the brill Just Before You Disappear EP and he's back with the follow-up and one of my fave Cj tracks - Boyfriend. Feels as if he's stepped things up a notch on this one... I'm loving it. 

On the track, he shares: "through the whole process of writing these songs, I wanted to embrace imagined personas, build scenarios and ask questions in my head that we could then leap from. 

For Boyfriend, it was what would happen if Prince, Bowie and Peter Gabriel all got fucked up and wrote a song together. And every time something would make us laugh, or question whether we were pushing things too far, we dialled them up more. I wanted to embrace the outrageous ways of performing, the escapism of the wild nights we're all getting back to. 

To me it's the song to strut around your bedroom whilst you get ready, and is playing loud whilst you walk into CBGB's for the night of your life." 

Cj is currently on tour supporting Saint Raymond, as has a sold out Leicester headliner coming up on the 26th. A headline UK tour follows in February - ticket info here. 

2nd: Stereo, Glasgow

3rd: The Night and Day Cafe, Manchester

4th: The Louisiana, Bristol

7th: Hare and Hounds, Birmingham

8th: Bodega Social Club, Nottingham

9th: Hyde Park Book Club, Leeds

10th: The Lexington, London

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LISTEN: Cj Pandit - 'Bad Bad Fun'

To be honest, I've listened to very little for the past week that wasn't the new Cj Pandit EP and I have no regrets about that. I am so so happy & proud of Christian for this. We've never actually met in *real life* but I caught him playing live once towards the end of my time in Oxford - he was supporting at a Willie J Healey show I went to with pals from the local scene, in part celebrating handing in my final assignment. That show was waaaaay back in May 2017 (another gig is long overdue) and it's been such a joy to watch his journey (if at a distance) since then. Early singles as Magique and really coming into his own creatively under his own name. I love all of his musical output so far and I am adoring this EP.

It's late as I type this and I could ramble more, but I'd rather you took the time to just soak the EP into your ears/minds/hearts - it's on Spotify here. If you'd like a taster first, the newest single to be taken from the EP is Bad Bad Fun and it has instantly become one of my favourite songs of the year. So. Much. Love. 

On the track, Cj explains: "This is the euphoric part of these times for me. Mistakes repeated, bad decisions in the name of fun, the chaos and mess, and fall out of said decisions. Apologising, making up, and breaking up. The messiness of being human. I think bad bad fun is a little slice of guilty pleasures we all crave from time to time. I just wanted it to feel like it was bursting out the speakers, a thousand voices singing from the same song sheet, holding each other up and bouncing about in the July sunshine.”

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LISTEN: CJ Pandit - 'New York Time'

It's good to be surprised, right? Cj Pandit is back with a new tune (rejoice) but he's taking a slight detour from his usual brand of indie-pop for a much more stripped back affair on New York Time. Not what you might expect but as much of a treat as ever, that's for sure, and an opportunity to show off Cj's raw songwriting and vocals on this one. He was recently tipped as an 'Essential Emerging Artist for 2021' by the NME (though CMAT has been shouting about him for a little longer...) and with a year out from touring, he's been busy writing and has plenty more to share. All in good time. For now, New York Time...

On the new track, he writes: “I never understood the idea of a song being plucked out of the ether or ‘given’ to you by some kind of higher musical power until I wrote New York Time.

I was at the lowest point in my life, I couldn’t shake New York, or a person and situation there, or the weight of my own expectations for creating. I was manic, working all over the place with so many different people, but then went up to Liverpool to write some new songs. Those few days were a real blur, filled with hallucinations and something I can still never quite put my finger on. Like watching a sunset, the knowledge to describe it never quite matches the sight or the experience of it. It’s the most honest I’ve ever been. I have little recollection of that time, but it’s a period and a song I'm incredibly grateful for that means so much more than I could ever put into words.”

 

Cj Pandit · New York Time

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LISTEN: Red Moon - 'Emotional'

"I could be still water, so calm so calm so calm in the middle of the storm." 

A couple of weeks ago, Norway's Red Moon (aka Joanna-Deborah Bussinger) shared her latest single Emotional. That's quite the word for it, but I can think of some others: powerful, passionate and elegant. In her tracks, Joanna brings together the creativity that surrounded her upbringing via her mother and grandmother, both painters, and her education at a music academy to make something truly beautiful. I was mesmerised from the first singles last year. Emotional is her second track of the year, following the equally stunning Fragile, and last year's Phase I:XI EP.  

On the track, she shares: "this song is a confrontation between yourself and someone who throws you off balance; like when things escalate in a fight or when it seems like there is no way out of a specific moment. In hindsight, you know things could have been handled differently. I'm still looking to find that "balance" of finding a safe place for communicating in the midst of a fight. Because in the heat of the moment our emotions cause us to misunderstand each other and ruin what we wanted to accomplish through our fight. It's accepting what I am feeling and still know it always takes two to want to solve a conflict." 

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LISTEN: Ella Grace - 'She Looked Like Me'

Looking through my list of things to share to the blog this morning, there's really nothing more timely to share than the brand new track from Ella Grace. She Looked Like Me is the last single to be released ahead of Ella's debut album Reverence, which is due for release on her own label ONEONEONE on 19th April, and it's no accident that this track is releasing on International Women's Day. 

Newly launched, the label is an exciting addition to years of work that Ella has put into creating a community of hundreds-of-thousands of women both on and offline through podcasts, courses and retreats; space spaces for exploration, expression, growth and conversation. Her hard work was recently recognised via a grant from the Shawn Mendes Foundation, which she is using to launch the label - through which she is continuing to create an accessible, welcoming and diverse space for artists. Watch this space, I reckon! 

Ella Grace · She Looked Like Me

On the new track, she shares: "She Looked Like Me is about how I see myself in the women around me. Even if it's just a woman I see on the tube who looks tired and done with her day, working a 9-5 and trying to keep up with the beauty standards of the 21st century I see the power she has beneath the surface and I wish for her to discover it one day. I wish for all women to be able to recognise and reconnect with their unique power and essence because outside of this Patriarchal society there is so so much more to us."  

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WATCH: Alice Phoebe Lou - 'Dirty Mouth'

I saw my first bumblebee and blossom of the year yesterday... spring is well and truly on the way! For now though, looking a little further forward, consider this a slice of summer bottled into a three minute track. Absolutely obsessed with this - and the wonderfully joyous video that comes with it too. Dirty Mouth is the brand new track from Alice Phoebe Lou, lifted from her upcoming third album Glow, due 19th March. 

Born in South Africa, Alice developed her performance skills at 18, busking through Europe, and releasing her debut EP in 2014, before her debut record a couple of years later. Paper Castles came in 2019, and - my first taste of her music - the singles Witches and Touch early last year. These tracks document the start of an analogue love affair of sorts, with the whole new album recorded using tape recording and vintage gear alongside producer David Parry at Castle Studios in East Germany. 

On the track, Alice shares: "'Dirty Mouth' is an upbeat punk banger with a badass attitude begging you to dance around your room naked and scream out what you really feel. The words are written from an uninhibited, no bullshit, part of myself that I often hide with manners, pleasantries & politeness. It's a big smiling middle finger to the men that have pulled me down, used me & hurt me in ways that took me years to heal. Asking for what I want. Saying how I feel. Not holding back." 

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LISTEN: Bad Sounds & BROODS - 'Move Into Me'

Last year kicked off brilliantly with an EP from the dream duo Bad Sounds - Escaping from a Violent Time, Vol. 1. It's such a brilliant collection of tracks. A year (ish) later, they're back, and not quite as we know them... they've just shared Move Into Me, a track featuring BROODS. A fellow sibling duo, they travelled from LA at the start of 2020 to work with the brothers, who they'd toured with the year before, and made this slice of magic.

On the track, Bad Sounds share that it is "about growing closer with someone you love. Georgia (Broods) managed to write her lyrics in a way that felt so specific to what had been happening to her, but at the same time feels like something that so many people can relate to." 

BAD SOUNDS · Move into Me (feat. Broods)

It's the first time that the pair have released a track with such a prominent vocal from another artist, but it's something they've been interested in exploring since the start of the project. Callum explains that "when we started Bad Sounds we always dreamed that it would be a collaborative project, where we'd meet a bunch of like-minded musicians and write songs together and our friends would feature on our music. But we had a lot to learn before we were able to reach that point. We really couldn't have made something like this 2 years ago." 

"Since writing and recording this song we've spent almost a whole year collaborating with other artists and friends. It really feels like the next phase of Bad Sounds, it feels like it's growing into something that's much more than we could achieve on our own, and I think that's something we really value. Especially after spending so much time away from our friends and loved ones due to the pandemic." 

Having spent the last year working from their Bristol studio with the likes of Arlo Parks (on the track Bluish from her debut album), VC Pines, Max Pope, Rose Gray (and many more) on their own music, the duo have an EP of their own coming soon, and there might be more features involved...

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LISTEN: Ella Grace - 'Unfree'

Here's something that I wanted to share before the festive break (sort of break?) kicked in and never got around to... so it's not brand new but more than worth your time if you haven't had the pleasure yet. Unfree is the latest single to be taken from Ella Grace's upcoming debut album Reverence, due on 20th April. It's described in the press release as an "endlessly playable anthem" and I can't agree more, having just listened on repeat several times while writing this post - previous single I Wonder is also a bit of a bop. In Unfree we're encouraged to embrace ourselves, to explore, to express, to grow.

On the new track she explains that it is "about my experience of throwing out the rulebook of what it means to be a woman in society and instead just following my own primal yearning for life and letting it lead me. This has often been met with judgement from people around me, especially in my younger years, no one was really doing things differently, there wasn't anything 'cool' about expressing yourself and there was such little support for it. I've gotten myself to the place I am today by breaking the rules of 'should' and trusting my heart's desires above those of anybody else." 

Ella Grace · Unfree

On the upcoming record, Ella shares "this album represents the end of pretending, it's a liberation for me, a becoming. Last year I fell in love with a woman and realised I'd been pretending to be someone I wasn't. In place of that pretending rushed in these very real, raw parts of me. The album tells that story, of falling in love with a woman, discovering myself again, and the surrender that comes with heartbreak." 

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ALBUM NEWS: Alice Phoebe Lou - 'Glow'

Quick! Grab your calendars/diaries, it's album news time. I'm loving lining up all these releases in my diary - there's a lot to look forward to. After new Tender Central, Arlo Parks, The Staves and Django Django, we'll get this treasure - Glow from Alice Phoebe Lou, on 19th March. It's her third studio-album, and, inspired by a little musical exploration through the year, it's her first that has been recorded, mixed and mastered entirely analogue, with producer David Parry (of Loving) at Castle Studios in East Germany. 

Her first single of the year was my first real taste of Alice's music - it seems impossible to believe that Witches was released this year, in March, just before the first restrictions started. It feels a lifetime ago. I love that track! Dusk is the first taste of the new record, and there's a homemade and self-directed video below. 

On the year that unfurled after the release of Witches, and on Dusk, Alice shares "I spent more time alone than I ever had. I shaved my head. Had an ego death. Fell in love. Had my heart broken. I was a raw little mess. And that was what I wrote about [...] Dusk is an ode to friendship and feeling the deepest sense of intimacy & care for another person. the kind of friendship that is uncompetitive, based in mutual respect & admiration. full of adventure & possibilities." 

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WATCH: Millie Turner - 'Eye of the Storm'

This new Millie Turner track has been on my list of things to write about for a few weeks (oh, reader, if you could see the backlog...) Since first listening it has been circling in my head intermittently. I popped it onto the new girls allowed playlist I've created where I'm celebrating some of my favourite women in music alongside new discoveries for me, in an effort to diversify my listening habits (as written about here) - but knew that I wanted to share it to the blog if I found the time. So: here it is!

The title track of Millie's forthcoming mixtape, due next March, Eye of the Storm is a four minute earworm (you've been warned.) Written after a 24 hour plane ride to the other side of the world, the track is euphoric, an emotion we haven't seen much of this year. A track to make pop fans sad (again) about the lack of festivals this year - this is sure to be a crowd pleaser once Millie gets back to the stage.

Talking about the track, Millie shares that "the entire process of writing it was a blur amongst illness, homesickness, heartache and jet lag, but for me, that's the beauty of the song. The eye of the storm is a focus point amidst the storm where everything around you feels out of control and chaotic, which is what I wanted to capture in the urgency of the drums and the chorus. There's something beautiful about chaos when you have that focal point of calm that you can grow from." 

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LISTEN: Kaisha - 'Something Else' EP

Time for something new.... something, else. Sharing music by an artist who is brand new to me is always pretty exciting, the prospect of introducing readers of the blog to a new artist, and I'm really digging this EP. Something Else is the debut EP from Kaisha, produced and mixed by James Berkeley. Born in Malaysia, she moved to Brighton in 2015 to study music - this EP works as a musical depiction of her journey of musical and self-discovery. Those vocals are silky smooth too. 

Talking about the process, Kaisha shares "this is the first time I've put together a collection of songs that truly represents an honest version of myself and my thoughts. It touches on sour relationships and the process of life we all go through. Having previously struggled with my music identity, the majority of the conflict stemmed from being unhappy with the music I was creating. I always felt like I should've been creating 'something else' - so as a way of honouring my progression in being true to my music, this project is named after that as confirmation that I'm moving in the right direction." 

Kaisha · SOMETHING ELSE

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WATCH: Japan, Man - 'Cautious'

Very glad to find this in my inbox - Japan, Man (AKA 14 year-old Beirut-based artist Leaticia Acra) just released her debut EP Bad Days, featuring the absolute tune Cautious. Having added it to the playlist back in March, I had intended to share the track to the blog itself but never got round to it, so this is a perfect opportunity - a 6-track EP and a wonderfully heartwarming animated video for the track, directed by Lily Shaul. Creating music while living and growing up in war-torn Lebanon, Leaticia's perspective is a unique one. The result is reflective music which is catchy and full to the brim with charm.

Cautious is Leaticia at her most endearing, calling for empathy and compassion atop a catchy beat - you can't help but move to the track. She describes it as a song "about desperately wanting people to understand the struggles one might experience within themselves. It's a call for emotional intelligence in our counterparts and patience when it comes to getting into any sort of relationship with another." 

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LISTEN: Cj Pandit - 'Eventually'

Eventually is back.... eventually. Hooray!! I have long adored this Cj Pandit tune. You didn't think it was getting away without being shared on the blog, did you? Such a breezy and carefree vocal and vibe... close your eyes and you're wandering along a seafront, or something. Excited to hear that there's a debut EP lined up for later in the year, too! Talking about the track, Cj writes that "Eventually is a song about the cyclical nature of life, and the magnetism we have to certain people we meet along the way. It's a song that's rolled and changed since its inception and has grown with me as an artist and a human being. I think it's been a lesson to myself to appreciate the ebb and flow of friendships and relationships as we grow up, how we can all go and do our thing, and most of the time come back together stronger, more resilient and more human because of it. It sounds like the solstice too." 

Cj Pandit · Eventually

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WATCH: Cj Pandit - 'Talk Talk Talk!'

I fell a little in love with Digital Love from Cj Pandit a couple of months back. It's more relevant than ever now and I'm not entirely over the lyric "I'm an 8-bit version of myself." Properly genius that. I'm delighted that he's back with a brand new track and a perfectly simple but effective video (complete with dancing!) Talk Talk Talk! has been stuck in my head constantly for days and I've headed towards it every time I've opened Spotify recently. Really digging this one.

Talking about the track, he explains that "it's me trying to understand what it means to feel alone in a group of people, when everything gets a little overwhelming, and the idea that it's ok to just disappear into the night. Also it's got a big piano solo that I'd hope Bruce Hornsby would be proud of." 

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WATCH: Alice Phoebe Lou - 'Witches'

Absolutely loving this one from an artist who is a new name to me (love me an ace new discovery!) Witches from Alice Phoebe Lou is currently sitting at the top of the 2020 playlist - get listening and following that here. The track arrives following the release of her second album Paper Castles this time last year, which saw Alice rack up 102 shows in four continents across the year. Trialling new tracks on the road, Witches came to life, and it is all sorts of lovely. The track, produced by Ziv Yamin in a DIY studio at home, and mixed by Noah Georgeson, is accompanied by a music video shot by Alice and her bandmates on an 8mm camera while on tour last year.

Talking about the track, Alice explains that it is "in a different world to my usual sound, a stand alone song that leans towards a punk attitude while holding on to a gentle feminine energy. After being gifted a one inch tape machine, we decided to use this song as the first try at recording in this tasty analog way. I've never been so inspired by a recording process as I have with recording to tape, especially in the DIY nature in which we did it (2 people in a living room). Watching the song come to life without a computer, listening to the tape whirring backwards [...] there's nothing quite like it!"

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