The Go Ahead - Hot Dreams - Rosie Carney & Henry Jamison
The Go Ahead - On My Side.Background - Seven year Bay Area music scene stalwart The Go Ahead has evolved a lot from the early, funk-jam-band side project featuring a motley crew of best friends. Since their start, they have matured into a sound that mashes the glossy distortion you’d hear at The Bronze nightclub in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, while tossing out angsty harmonies that would pleasantly float around the dock of Dawson’s Creek. And in that time, they have steadily gained a following.
While there are a few eye-and-ear catching features to their sound and live shows (lead singer Kyna Wise’s gritty exuberance, for starters) The Go Ahead isn’t the vision of a singular individual with backup pieces. Rather, the band employs a more decidedly egalitarian mode of music making. Every member has equal ownership of the band: No one is the designated writer or composer, so they all, in turns, pull their creative weight and lend their unique perspective to the music. The result is work that can range from brooding, to grungy, pop-y and everything in between, all in a 45 minute set.
In Harms Way (released last week) is a collection of songs dealing mostly with the joys and anxieties of solitude, loss, and humanity. This is in stark contrast to their 2014 release Cycles which was a very specific map of the lifecycle of a bittersweet romantic relationship.
This last year has been one of heartbreak and frustrations for The Go Ahead. They lost their very close childhood friend, Jon Harms, suddenly due to exceptional complications while in hospital. The EP has been named In Harms Way to honor his life. Despite all the hurdles—mourning their friend, major surgeries, relocations—The Go Ahead has evaded the normal cycle of entropy that has ended countless other bands. They stick together like glue with one goal in mind: To make music together. For them, there is no other option. WEBSITE, FACEBOOK.
The second of six tracks on the new 'In Harms Way' EP (which has just been released) is 'On My Side'. It is a good indicator of the bands musical feel, there is a consistent level of energy throughout the EP, which features well constructed songs that are artfully developed, and where each band members input results in a catchy feel, with plenty of attention for detail.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Background - London quartet Hot Dreams are building to be one to watch after just two tracks - their debut single ‘Plungepool’ and the follow-up ‘Will You Dive’. Radio 1’s Annie Mac highlighted the band as one of her New Names while further airplay has included support from BBC London Introducing and Radio X.
Now Hot Dreams move towards the release of their debut EP by sharing its first track ‘Another Night’. The track’s majestic moody opening verse brims with emotional yearning before it erupts into flight with a soaring, anthemic chorus that deserves to grace larger stages. Produced by Ian Dowling (Everything Everything, Black Honey), ‘Another Night’ blurs the boundaries between the atmospheric intensity of post-punk and the enticing immediacy of pop.
Lyrically it’s a track which reflects the unexpected changes that come as friendships mature into adulthood. Work, life and relationships are just some of the reasons why people can sometimes find that their connections with old friends slowly slip away - and it’s an often unspoken phenomenon that seems to be particularly prevalent in big cities.
“’Another Night’ is a love song to a friend,” says drummer and lyricist Cameron Fyall. “It’s about the acceptance that friends are like any other serious relationship that experiences ups and downs. If the good times mean enough to you then it’s worth holding onto.”
Hot Dreams formed in 2016 over a shared interest in artists such as Foals, Pumarosa, Timber Timbre, and Porches. They’re completed by Kai Fennell (vocals, guitar), Aaron Clarke (bass) and Alex Bloomfield (guitar, keys). FACEBOOK.
There is a brooding atmospheric feel right from the opening moments of 'Another Night'. When the chorus eventually arrives, the track ups the emotional charge considerably and the hooks are everywhere.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rosie Carney & Henry Jamison - Hot Scary Summer (Villagers Cover).
Background - Framed by centuries' old churches, pubs, and a perpetually grey sky, "visionary" (Ladygunn) Vermont singer-songwriter Henry Jamison and Irish folk singer Rosie Carney channeled the stark, historical energy of Dublin into a live cover of Villagers' "Hot Scary Summer" while on their European tour this fall. Henry's electric, Jeff Buckley-esque chords and haunting falsetto blend with Rosie's pure, mature-beyond-her-twenty-years voice to create a cutting emotional depth that builds on lyrical themes of a relationship in it twilight.
Henry just released his synth-tinged folk debut 'The Wilds,' which has accrued more than 40M Spotify spins and scored 4 stars as The Observer’s album of the week - and he's getting ready for tours with Big Thief's Adrianne Lenker, Darlingside, and Caroline Rose in 2018.
Rosie recently released new single 'Winter', produced with her frequent collaborator Orri McBrearty in her hometown of Donegal. The song is just another part of her exciting year so far, having played shows supporting Benjamin Francis Leftwich, Saint Sister and Haux, co-headlining dates with Henry Jamison in the UK and Ireland, alongside festival slots at Latitude, Seven Layers, and the Bon Iver, National, and Cillian Murphy curated Sounds From A Safe Harbour. Henry Jamison WEBSITE, Rosie Carney WEBSITE, FACEBOOK.
Well we featured Henry Jamison a couple of times last year and as far as Rosie Carney goes, this is her fifth appearance on Beehive Candy (including the song 'Winter' that appeared last month). 'Hot Scary Summer' is a fabulous duet, that gently develops with natural live vibes, and passion. In a word, glorious!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Comments