Taking a quick detour away from the sad folk and into some queer pop goodness today. A little bit in love with God Knows from Brighton's alt-rockers ARXX. The track is taken from their debut album Ride or Die, which is coming out at the end of this month (31st). The track was produced by Steve Ansell and mastered by Katie Tavini and is described by the pair as "one of the most adventurous tracks on our record". It's a bit of a departure for the duo, building on inspiration from some of their favourite pop artists - "we really pushed ourselves to step into Dua Lipa's shoes. We were able to live our Cher dreams and dive into the world of auto tune and swoopy synths."
I for one am really digging this one! Wrap your ears around it, won't you?
New Wallice!! Yessssss. Fresh from touring the US with Still Woozy, she's back with new single 90s American Superstar, the title track from her forthcoming second EP, releasing via Dirty Hit on 6th May. Written and recorded with friends at Wallice's grandparents house in Southern Utah, the EP is "a hypothetical look into the celebrity life that lots of musicians and the LA entertainment industry crowd seeks. It's fun to think about, "what if I was famous?" and how fame can change people. Especially since I grew up in LA - I love it here, but it's a strange place and it can feel like everyone is just looking for their big break. To me, the EP plays with that perspective and the way people think about that dream."
The title track (which is brill) introduces us to the protagonist of the EP at the height of their fame... Wallice explains that it "is about a fictional relationship in which my partner is showing very LA 'dating a musician' type behaviour. It's kind of a part two to the saga from a track on my last EP called 'Hey Michael'. The chorus makes it sort of a breakup song, and the verses make it a diss track. The first verse has six 90s movie references, and looks inwards at a breakup and what I did wrong. The second verse is blaming the other person - so it's kind of a rollercoaster of emotions."
Wallice is playing at Brighton's The Great Escape, with showcases at Glasgow and Dublin, and her first London headline show at The Lexington on May 17th.
Some tongue-in-cheek indie-pop for your Tuesday, arriving courtesy of Irish artist EFÉ. A new name for me, EFÉ - AKA 21 year-old Dublin based Anita Ikharo - came onto the scene in 2020 with the release of her self-made debut EP What Should We Do This Summer? Her return sees the track KIWI, the first from forthcoming EP VITAMIN - C, set for release this June. The new track was co-produced with her best friend who.killed.romeo and mixed by Ben Baptie.
In the video, which was thought up, directed and edited by EFÉ herself, alongside a group of close friends, we see... "a girl who goes camping, she's brought her laptop, fairy lights and cute magazines, but she can't light a fire or even hunt for food. She is super scared cause she sees a bear but then she falls in love with the bear."
On making the video, EFÉ adds: "I came up with the concept and directed the video. It was definitely hard to make because it was very necessary that the right location was chosen as well as the right bear costume and right people to work with. I did cry a whole lot, scared nothing would come out right. I had so much fear around the video because of the huge pressure I put on myself to make it good. I also worked on some of the editing and colour grading so there was a lot I had creative control over. I think it was worth it in the end though and shows hard work and the right people around can really pay off!"
It's a bit of a dreary day so how about something to bring a little joy and comfort? A new Matilda Mann song always does the trick for me. Four Leaf Dream is her first new track since the release of the Sonder EP last year, and arrives just ahead of her first UK headline tour kicking off later this month. More to follow I hope...
On the track, Matilda writes: "Four Leaf Dream is about letting go of the idea of someone. Sometimes we mould people and relationships to fit this idea we created in our heads - that they're perfect, that this is definitely right. Sometimes it stops you from seeing what they're actually like, and that it's best to let them go. I wrote this a few months ago with Rich Cooper in his studio. It was one of those songs that just so effortlessly came together."
Alright, not to alarm anybody... but I'm going to an actual gig today. Ahhh!! Rescheduled three times thank to *everything* - White Tail Falls' gig at St Pancras Old Church is finally happening and I am very excited. So I'm writing this... yesterday? Time travel, obviously. Trying to keep up the momentum I'm feeling with a string of beautiful tracks shared this week from Prima Queen, Baby Queen and Sunflower Thieves. Another brilliant one today, Wisdom Tooth from Wallice.
It's been a pretty solid year for the 23 year-old, and she's heading into the new year (can we talk about that yet? too soon?) having just signed to Dirty Hit. The new track is her first release on the label, following the recent Off the Rails EP - superb if you haven't heard it yet!
On the new track, she shares: “I wrote this song in a session with my long-time collaborator and best friend marinelli the day before I got my wisdom teeth out. The doctor had just called to say that I’d also need a bone graft to fill in the space in my jaw where the tooth used to be. It really shook me up and there was no way we could write a different song after that. Getting your wisdom teeth out is an event that many people have to go through, it's a physical sign of growing up. In the song ‘Wisdom Tooth’, I conflate this experience to getting rid of a person in your life as a milestone of growing up too. It shows that sometimes people can grow apart and though it can be hard, it might be better to leave a relationship or friendship rather than keep on trying to make it work. It also talks about how there are little reminders in your life that can bring you back to that person mentally, even though you have moved on.”
How about a completely joyful new music video to start your week off? I've been a fan of Matilda Mann for a while now, and it's a delight to see her going from strength to strength with each new release. The Sonder EP is gorgeous, I can't get enough of it! I'm loving this video for closing track Glass Ceiling, shot and directed by Jay Seba. Following a recent string of shows with Dodie and a headline show at London's Lafayette, Matilda has announced her debut UK headline tour for this March and April.
Occasionally, you get that feeling that it's genuinely exciting to be there as a fan quite early on in a project. A palpable sense that they're probably about to do incredible things. I'm getting that feeling with dexter, AKA 18 year-old South West London based artist/human Charmaine. She's been self-releasing singles over the past year, using a moniker and keeping the project somewhat of a secret, but the cat is out of the bag, and she's got an EP (the delightfully named I Do Love A Good Sandwich) due on August 4th. I Like Me is the painfully relatable second track from the EP, for which you can watch the video, directed by Amity Bloc, below.
On the track, she shares "I Like Me is about me feeling like I have to be a certain way to make boys like me or to feel more 'like a girl'. I was inspired by a period of time in lockdown where I found myself trying to buy a bunch of clothes that would make me feel more feminine and girly but I didn't even like half the stuff I was buying. I would like it to let listeners know that girls shouldn't have to act a certain way to feel like they are still feminine or worth people liking them and that it's cool to be both girly and not girly."
"I'm doing fine, stop asking me what's wrong. I live my life like I'm the only one going off the rails."
It feels like mere days since Hey Michael and 23 (both absolute tunes) were released into the world but Wallice is back with a new tune which is guaranteed to brighten up your Thursday. Off the Rails is the title track taken from her forthcoming debut EP, due to be released independently on 4th June. Lyrically, this one looks at the choices we make and their consequences, which we might try to blame on external forces. The music video, directed by L.A. photographer and creative Jerry Maestas, reflects the lyrics, and sees Wallice in a Sims-esque game being placed in situations that she can't control.
"Off the Rails is about feeling like you don't have any control over your life and that the world is against you - and that you're the only one that feels that way. Sometimes there are periods in your life when it's easy to think your life is falling apart, and there's nothing you can do to stop it or fix it. I think sometimes it's okay to sit in that self pity, but also at the same time you have the power to control it and take responsibility for your actions, at least to an extent. Sometimes there are just rough patches, and you have to do your best to get out of them, roll with the punches, and try not to be a shitty person."
In my *other life* I work in a bookstore, and as the UK starts to open up again, I've been back at the shop setting up the store with all of the shiny new books and welcoming aaaaaall the customers back. It's strange after so much time spent at home watching birds and pottering around in the garden, and I miss being able to spend so much time on the blog when I'm there. Luckily, there is almost always a recent discovery stuck in my head - this one has been there a lot over the past few days. New from 23 y/o US artist Wallice, the track is Hey Michael. It arrives with news of her debut EP Off the Rails this Summer, and features her close friend and producer marinelli, assuming the role of 'Michael' for a verse.
On the track, Wallice shares: “Hey Michael’ is a revenge anthem for anyone who has encountered a gaslighting, manipulative person. It’s what I wish I would have said to all the ‘Michael’s’ I have met in my life. It can be substituted by many names, we all know or have met a ‘Michael’ though. Somehow the world revolves around them and they just can’t catch a break, because they never do anything wrong and it’s usually your fault. You should have listened to your gut instinct and swiped left on this Michael. This isn’t a man-hating song, it’s just something many people can relate to. Sometimes it’s embarrassing to admit just how bad a friend, date, or romantic partner was and a lot of the time, I would just smile and laugh off stupid remarks but when I think back, I wish I had told them off. But at the same time, my persona in the song is not the best person either. I literally say “I think I want to start a fight, which one is your girlfriend?” The whole song is funny because I am so focused on how shitty Michael is that I don’t even think about how shitty I might be as well."
I love the video - directed by Phil Stillwell, it shows Wallice stuck at a houseparty, encountering various 'Michaels'. Playing on the lyric "hey Michael, you American Psycho" Wallice herself is dressed in a Patrick Batemen-esque business suit, channeling his comically dark (oh, very dark) energy. Watch for yourself above.
Instant favourite alert. For you, and for me. New John Myrtle is just as dreamy as recent single Get Her Off My Mind. The track arrives alongside news of John's debut album (!) Myrtle Soup, due via Sad Club Records on 18th June. The beauty of the track is in the contrast of bright and cheery instrumentation with the confusion and anxiety portrayed in the lyrics. So goooooood. It's a genuine ray of sunshine in the shape of a 2 minute track. Get the repeat button at the ready.
On the track, John shares: "I guess the song is about being sure of the relationship you're in - you can never really be certain you're doing the right thing, you've just got to trust yourself. It's not like you can get a tape measure or complete a questionnaire to tell you if what you're doing is right. This was the first song I had written since I had moved to London. I remember feeling quite alone when writing it, and just really unsure about all the decisions I had made up until that point."
"I had just broken up with a long term girlfriend who I had partly moved to London to be with, and I had just begun seeing someone who told me she only wanted a casual type of thing going. I remember feeling like everyone I had known always seemed to doubt love in some way, and I wrote the lyrics to this song with that in mind. I was unsure of what the future held for me, and I felt like singing this song was quite cathartic, at least it screamed out that I wanted certainty in my life and answers!"
The video for the track was shot in the model village of Bournville in Birmingham, and made by Bristol-based duo Marie Dutton and Benjamin Saunders. On the thoughts behind it, John writes "we thought it'd be sweet to do it there, quite literally, as I grew up nearby and so it felt very much like I was 'coming home' in a way. We could smell chocolate whilst we filmed as the Cadbury factory is directly opposite, so it was a pleasure for the senses making this video - and I hope it's a pleasure for yours too!"
"You and me are always going to have a place called home."
One of my favourite discoveries of last year, MF Tomlinson has been gradually releasing singles for a few months now, and has just released the final piece of the puzzle, You & Me, Babe, alongside the full Last Days of Rome EP - listen to the EP here. On the track and the EP more widely, this project calls on a community of collaborators - with MF travelling from London and LA to his homeland of Australia, with Japan's Ami Koda on flute, UK's Connie Chatwin on violin and backing vocals, Finland's Viljam Nybacka on bass and Turkey's Yigit Bulbul on guitar and percussion. It's a big old family, and it sounds lovely. MF adds "during my time in London I've been lucky enough to meet all these amazing people - it's an honour that they wanna play music together."
Talking about the final track, he explains that it is "a story of how I (and many others) live now in love, surrounded by people they love - about how people, not places, are your real home no matter where you are. About the happiness we find in each other, romantically, and in friendship. Some of the most powerful & important feelings we have aren't ruled by the big forces that shape the world, they're sparked and expressed by little moments. That's what I'm trying to capture."
"I wrote this song about my wife, each line in the song relates to something specific but I wrote in broad strokes because I like to think that everyone has someone close to them who this song could be about. I want whoever is listening to be able to think about their own memories and fill these moments in with their own details."
In the latest in a flurry of exciting EP/album announcements (keep them coming, artists!) MF Tomlinson has announced news of his debut EP Last Days of Rome, due for release 13th March. The EP is his response to uncertain times, a mixture of humorous and hopeful, and the title track captures this mood, with relatable lyrics about our modern times, as he asks questions like "what is the point after the point of no return?"
Talking about the track, MF explains that "the seed of this song was formed many years ago - sadly, it felt like the song only became more relevant as years went by. Now, in 2020 my homeland of Australia has been consumed by fire, Brexit looms and in the US the situation worsens with strikes in Iran. Yet somehow, our lives continue - this song is made up of all the thoughts that whirl around in the back of our minds as we go about our days, haunted by the knowledge that this might be the end."
To celebrate the launch of the EP, MF Tomlinson brings his incredibly dynamic and well loved performance back to London's The Lexington on 30th March - tickets here.
The ever wonderful Low Island have just shared one of my favourite releases of the year in the shape of Low Island 17-18.Not quite an album, it's a collection of tracks from the three EPs they've released in the last couple of years - including the likes of Holding It Down, Anywhere and Too Young. They've also snuck in a brand new track, Hot Air, which I'm enjoying a lot on the first few listens! The band's Carlos Posada explains that the release is an "opportunity to take stock of our journey so far" and that it presents a "snapshot of our first chapter as a band." For a band who are still in reasonably early days, this release is incredibly strong, and shows huge promise for them in the future. They're a hardworking, collaborative and incredibly friendly bunch who deserve all the success they've been getting this year, with slots at various festivals, and a triumphant local return to the stage with a show at the O2 Academy in Oxford over the weekend. They've got more shows coming up in Glasgow, Cardiff, Oxford & London - check out the dates on their site here, and stream/buy Low Island 17-18 here.
