WATCH: Lacuna Common - 'Window Pane'

As the creator of a blog that very much found its feet within the Oxford scene, I'll always take an opportunity to shout about a new band in the city doing brilliant things, so I'm pretty excited to share this track. Window Pane is the latest tune from Lacuna Common, a four-piece band from the Oxford area. Meeting as teenagers in the surrounding satellite towns, they bonded over their mutual love of classic British guitar music and road racing, and formed the band after a weekend at Truck Festival. A few singles in, this new track is taken from their upcoming EP It's All Talk, due for release this May. In true collaborative Oxford music-scene style, the superb video is directed by BE GOOD frontman Ash Cooke. 

Talking about the track, lead singer Alfie Frank shares: "It's a song about the feeling of that 'normal life' - cleaning your car on a Sunday, keeping up appearances with your neighbours, doing the same routine week in week out, dreaming about ways your life could be different. You can see it isn't for you and that you don't want to end up like everybody else. There's also a sense of knowing that the likelihood of this happening is very high and that it's not at all a bad thing. After all, there's still something cool in finding the romance in going shopping and locking eyes with a beautiful girl/boy and wondering what would come if you spoke to each other."

On the video, Ash Cooke writes: "In this video we wanted to explore the mundane and repetitive loops of life. Almost like Groundhog Day in a British town. We wanted to show Alfie gradually breaking out of those loops and that gave us the chance to just have fun doing stupid stuff. I've wanted to throw oranges at Alfie for a long time, so this project was a dream come true for me." 

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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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WATCH: Organ Morgan - 'Dracula's Toothache'

I've become a little bit obsessed with this since finding it in my inbox recently. What appeared visually and sonically to be just a little bit quirky at first is, in the details, a thing of intricate beauty. If you like a good slice of folk music like me, you'll most definitely love this. Accordion, double bass, wooden spoons, sublime harmonies. What more could you possibly want?

Dracula's Toothache is the debut track from Organ Morgan, released via new London Folk collective Broadside Hacks. Named after the hermetic composer from Dylan Thomas's Under Milk Wood, the project draws on the inspiration of the English countryside. Originally the brainchild of Harris McMillan and Frank Wright, they're joined by Boz Martin-Jones, Maggie Forés and Stefano Amoretti to become a five-piece to be reckoned with. Half a decade's worth of material and years of playing together at folk nights has shaped the project into what you see now. If this is their first release, I can't wait to see what they've got up their sleeves for us next!

On the track, Harris explains: "The song came from some unpleasant realisations I had about getting older - I noticed I'd shed many parts of my life that I'd always considered integral, and kept other parts that I'd rather have lost. I found the most reliable image I had of myself was in the way others saw me - it can be difficult to live outside those expectations."

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LISTEN: Lauran Hibberd - 'How Am I Still Alive?' (ft. Lydia Night)

I'm deep in the inbox, sifting through today's new releases (so much brilliant new music out today - lots on my office stereo playlist here if you fancy!) and taking a little break from getting angry about the all too familiar un-diverse festival line-up announcements to write something here. Feels like a perfect time to share a track by two artists who I would love to see at a festival (or indeed, anywhere)... I'm a little bit obsessed with this new track from Lauran Hibberd, featuring Lydia Night of The Regrettes. It's maybe my favourite of Lauran's tracks so far... seriously a brilliant collaboration. How Am I Still Alive? is taken from Lauran's upcoming Goober EP, due July 30th, and sees Lauran teaming up with producer Suzy Shinn (Panic! At The Disco, Fall Out Boy, Weezer) once again.

"How Am I Still Alive? toys with the bleakness of everyday life and makes it sound more entertaining than it actually is. Michael (Cera) becomes the focus point of getting through the mundane but plays on the idea of if I actually had him I probably wouldn't want him anyway. That, and the everyday celebration of making it through another day pretty much sums up the last year of my life." 

On working with Lydia, Lauran shares: "Doing a collaboration was something I'd always wanted to do. I've always felt it really important to work together with similar artists instead of working against them, especially in these times. I am super stoked to have Lydia sing on the track; I toured with The Regrettes in 2019 and THEY ROCK. It was so much fun, and I took so much from it, and Lydia is bad ass so YEAH!"

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WATCH: Francis of Delirium - 'Red'

I don't think that I'l ever tire of sharing new music from Francis of Delirium. The Luxembourg duo are back with Red, the latest release from upcoming EP Wading, due on April 9th via Dalliance Recordings. Originally a bedroom project of then 18-year-old Jana Bahrich, originally from Vancouver, she later invited drummer & producer Chris Hewett, originally from Seattle, to join. Their musical styles and experiences blend to make a sound that I simply can't get enough of, and Jana's vocal delivery is some of the best I've heard in a long time. So much power and passion conveyed through vocals which feel intimate yet would certainly feel at home in a stadium.... remember those?

On the track, Jana shares: "Red is the pushing away of someone and justifying it with your anger rather than rationally discussing your feelings. It's believing something you thought to be true and then that being switched. It's the loss of trust in a relationship. You're left angry and confused, unsure of yourself, or who to trust. Instead of communicating effectively, you start to push away, preemptively moving into isolation as a defence mechanism to stop yourself from more hurt."

"Simultaneously the song challenges the goodness I see in myself, as a good friend, someone filled with love is gone, which distances you from this idea of yourself even further. So you're pushing away someone else and pushing away a version of yourself you enjoy." 

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ALBUM NEWS: Chloe Foy - 'Where Shall We Begin'

Exciting album news time! Gloucestershire-via-Manchester singer-songwriter Chloe Foy has released new single Shining Star and announced news of her debut album, Where Shall We Begin, due for release via her own label on 11th June. The record represents a piece of work many years in the making, carefully thought through, releasing into the world not a minute too soon. The album was recorded at Pinhole Studios in Manchester alongside an army of musical collaborators, with Chloe co-producing alongside musical collaborator Harry Fausing Smith, who is also responsible for the string arrangements. 

Chloe shares: “For me, this album has come out of a decade of hard graft, trying to balance my craft with making a living, whilst taking my time to get it right. All whilst dealing with the fallout of a huge bereavement in my most formative years. I was finding it hard to work out who I was within this new, alien context of losing a parent. These songs are my most inner and deepest secrets. The kind of things I only express to those closest to me, but for some reason in song, I can be open with the world.”

On lead track Shining Star, Chloe reflects on her father's decision not to pursue his passion in life. She shares that: "my dad was a talented artist and potter, but instead of following that path, he worked an office job in the pursuit of money which ultimately made him very unhappy. It gave me an early life lesson to follow a creative path if it presents itself and to ignore the pressures of society to conform to a certain life. Because it won't necessarily make you happy." 

Pre-order/pre-save Where Shall We Begin here.

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LISTEN: Novo Amor - 'Haven' (from Life Is Strange)

I haven't got a press release for this one, but it would feel criminal to keep a track that has instantly come to mean so much and to bring me so much joy away from the site. It's always a lovely surprise to find a brand new track from one of your favourite artists has been released. In this case, the track is Haven by Novo Amor, written for the soundtrack of the game Life Is Strange. Ali describes it as "a personal glory for me, to make music for a game. I've always wanted to since I was a baby." 

I must have listened to this twenty or so times since it was released on Friday. For me, it's the essence of Spring rolled into a 3 minute track. Escapism in a song. It's everything I adore about Ali's music, with David Grubb's violin as ever pairing with Ali's vocals to make the most glorious of tunes. So much love. 

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WATCH: feeo - 'end song'

Oooooh, a new feeo tune! Kicking the week off in glorious style with this one. End Song is her first new music for 2021, taken from the upcoming debut EP feels like we're getting older doesn't it, due for release on 4th July via Oxford's Upcycled Sounds label. (And yes, it does. Somehow I have a 10 year-old nephew as of a couple of days ago... how?!) I loved Yeti last year and knew I'd be in for a treat with this one... so good. It's unlike anything else you'll listen to this week. A rich bed of influences from jazz, folk and reggae combine in the production of this dystopian tune. 

On the track, feeo shares: "End Song is about the stretch of time just before the apocalypse. The calm before the storm. Like a waiting room. Everyone sitting around reading magazines, checking their watches. "Shouldn't this have ended by now?" Looking around the room waiting for God to put his big sandalled foot down and blow us all up."

"Sonically, I wanted things to feel really wonky and broken. I was imagining going into a half-collapsed pub during World War 3, the air thick with dust and radiation. In the back corner is this band drunkenly playing Dub. The drummer keeps falling off his stool. The bassist is missing a couple of strings. The nuclear fallout has gone to everyone's heads. I played bess myself in order to get the jarring metallic twanging that could only be achieved by a total novice." 

And on the music video, which was directed, shot and edited by feeo herself, she adds: "this past year has led me to believe that the end of the world will involve copious amounts of pornography, Benzodiazepine, meme-based conspiracy theories and internet side scroller games; sandwiched between instagram stories full of riots, hyper-consumerism and things exploding. I spliced videos I filmed on phones and webcams with found footage from the internet, in an attempt to recreate the feeling of watching the apocalypse through a laptop screen." 

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WATCH: Maja Lena - 'Sacred Practice'

Rounding off a lovely week of new music with the brand new tune from Maja Lena. Formerly of alt-folk band Low Chimes, she is due to release her debut solo album The Keeper in July via Chiverin. It is an album created within the (understandable) worries and feelings of self doubt brought on by setting out solo - but from what we've heard so far, I'd say she has absolutely nothing to worry about. Every aspect of the project is stunning, with vocals, lyrics and instrumentation melding in the tracks to create something really beautiful. Beyond the music, though intertwined with it, the visual accompaniments - press shots, live videos and the music video below - manage to elevate things even further. The video was created by frequent visual collaborator Aloha Bonser-Shaw. 

On the new track, Maja Lena shares: "Sacred Practice is a song dedicated to some of the smaller things in life. The daily tasks and Practices that can end up becoming the most valuable, and make your mind a more peaceful place to be. It is also a musing in how sometimes missed opportunities and unwanted change can eventually turn out to be a good thing, and help you to grow as a person..." 

The Keeper is due on 23rd July via Chiverin Records.

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LISTEN: Mathilda Homer - 'Rock Bottom'

A treat for you today, with the first new music of the year from Mathilda Homer. Last year saw Mathilda bring us her gorgeous debut EP Dear Life (with the tune I Hate That I Love You So Little) and her cover of The Beatles' Do You Want To Know a Secret which you might recognise from a certain festive advert. Brand new single Rock Bottom, co-written with Matt Maltese and produced by Danny Casio, is everything you love (or will soon love) about Mathilda, but with a slightly evolved and heavier sound. It's the first in a collection of new tracks and I'm excited to see what comes next! 

The track explores the moments of a relationship during its demise, grasping 'good memories and comfort of the familiar, to avoid coming to terms with the inevitable reality'. On the track, Mathilda shares: "It's realising that it really couldn't get much worse, but something keeps you there, maybe it's the familiarity of that person. Trying to fight for something that you know can't go back to how it used to. Only talking about good memories and not making new ones but you don't want to move on, because it's all you know."  

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