Brooke Bentham - Glass Heart String Choir - Bray and The Dens - David Cronenberg’s Wife - Weird Milk - David Philips

Our third feature for Brooke Bentham ahead of her  debut album 'Everyday Nothing' which will be released on AllPoints on the 28th of February, is 'Control' a song that if anything raises expectations even further! === Glass Heart String Choir a Seattle based duo have just released their beautiful new single entitled 'Stars', it's fabulously arranged and exudes warmth and natural emotion. === Ahead of the bands fourth studio album 'Stingray' due in March we have the latest taster from Bray and The Dens called 'Enemy Lines', a slick alt pop rocker, that's potent and addictive. === We have a video for the title track from David Cronenberg’s Wife new E.P namely 'Hannity Comes Home'. It's a simmering mixture of flowing rock and in your face vocals and oh boy! does it pack some determination and passion. === North London indie band Weird Milk share a video for 'Time Machine' where keeping a straight face was a challenge for some of the band, not that it takes anything away from this triumphant piece. ===  === We finish today with folk singer David Philips and his new song release 'In Focus' a gentle, personal and intrinsically beautiful musical work.
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Brooke Bentham - Control.

Brooke Bentham releases ‘Control’, the explosive third single from debut album Everyday Nothing which will be released on AllPoints on the 28th of February.

‘Control’ examines the connected age’s anxiety-inducing phenomenon of ghosting: “It’s about when someone cuts you off entirely. It’s weird when someone does that,” she explains. “I got blocked out with absolutely no reason why, and it makes you question yourself and you just can’t stop thinking about it. you’re just talking to a wall; it’s bouncing back and you end up with this mess in your head.”

Images of loneliness and anxiety pervade the accompanying video, which is helped along by the introspective ambience of Brooke’s songwriting. The song’s explosive chorus is a relentless chiming of internal doubts and insecurities in the wake of being cut out. Like with anything Brooke writes it’s not without a subtle and dry sense of humour, images of her burying her head in a cereal bowl or under curtains give it levity, but the song’s message is unequivocal.

Everyday Nothing was engineered and produced at Yawn studios with Bill Ryder-Jones mixed at Dean St studios by Charlie Russell. Brooke writes sharp and eloquent songs about her experiences as she understands them, using words and music to resolve and record the tensions of young adulthood. Confronted with the mundanities of life and caught between two jobs in London, she finds intense lyricism in the struggle for purpose and direction.

There is so much frustration in being young and unsure of what you want, especially when your path is creative,” says Brooke. “You can only hope that it leads you to something fulfilling, so you cling on to the everyday details - burning candles in your bedroom at three AM aged sixteen, or having a bath in the evening at twenty three, or watching your breath when you step outside in winter. I was reflecting a lot when I wrote these songs, romanticising those moments.”

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Glass Heart String Choir - Stars.

We have the new single from Seattle based duo, Glass Heart String Choir. their new song, and first since 2018, is a grand, cinematic arrangement that pairs rustic acoustic guitars with sweeping strings, adding a widescreen intensity to their longing vocals. In the self-directed video for "Stars", the band explore the elasticity of time, meticulously cutting together hours of timelapsed footage in the sprawling Seattle forest. At times they are superimposed over the shifting landscape, and at other times they are transported along with it.

At first listen, one might assume that the intricate interplay between honeyed vocals and any variety of violin, cello, or harp of a Glass Heart String Choir song would require careful discussion between musical partners, but songs are the one thing Ian Williams and Katie Mosehauer never talk about.

Verbose when discussing the nuances of nature (especially birds) or poetry (especially Russian), Ian is a person prone to long pauses while searching for the perfect word or metaphor to describe his own inner mechanics—a listener may wait indefinitely for sentences that never finish or metaphors that remain unfound. It is songwriting that allows him ample time to plumb the more faceless emotions of life and dredge for exactly the right words to capture them. Recipient of the prestigious Richard Rodgers Award in musical theater, Williams is adept at telling others’ stories, as well as his own through song.

For Katie, music presents a wondrous, wordless reprieve. Spending much of her time crafting public policy, words are a high-stakes game with far reaching implications. “I spend a lot of time in other arenas parsing the meaning of individual words and their intention. When it come to our songs, we seem to have found our own language—Ian never needs to tell me what they mean, and I never need to ask.” Composing allows her to think only in sound and shape and color, to fill in spaces not with what must be said to make the world more just but with what could be heard to make it more beautiful.

In their first release since their project’s debut EP in late 2018, the release of singles "Stars" and "It’s Never Enough" scheduled for early 2020 move on from Light’s themes of leveling doubt to trade in absolutes. Both songs apply surging vocals over baroque musical sheets, weaving together intricate stories with cinematic soundscapes, but to different effect—"Stars" bursts toward the future with a knowing, formative, certainty while "It’s Never Enough" looks back with an equally certain sense of devastation. This paired couplet of songs is day to each other’s night, full of contrast and compliment.

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Bray and The Dens - Enemy Lines.

Eclectic alternative rock artist BRAY & THE DENS proudly announce the release of the band’s fourth studio album, Stingray, on March 20.

“Enemy Lines,” is a cut from the album The Aliens are Here, which was released in 2019. The song was produced with Bray’s longtime friend Cam Perridge, and the video was directed by Brazilian filmmaker Piettro Garibaldi and filmed in Dresden and Budapest.  “The theme surrounding this video is betrayal,” Bray explains. “In the video, I’m chasing a ghost, which is something I’ve actually done in real life and wanted to address.  We aimed to tell this story using layers (hinting at duality or duplicity) and by filming in the goddamn coldest weather! While working on songs for “Aliens,” I decided this song fit the concept of isolation, and reworked it with a much heavier treatment,” he reveals. “The lyrics are pretty straight-forward. I was deeply hurt by a friend, which I now realize was my own part in, which was me believing what I wanted to believe. Still, when our heart longs for something, it hurts when we are denied that thing; when the rug is pulled out from what we thought was real.” Sample lyric: “No power of detection. I was lost in your affection. Upon closer inspection, I couldn't see my own reflection. Behind enemy lines, we looked each other dead in the eyes. Behind enemy lines, you lied.”

Singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Bray Gurnari is the principal of his band, employing a rotating array of musicians to round out the Bray & the Dens trio. San Francisco-based Bray’s unique brand of alt pop rock is a mix of Bowie-esque hooks and crisp, driving grooves à la Queens of the Stone Age. The band’s music is a blend of syncopated propulsion, sly hooks and poignant lyricism. It’s rhythmic, hooky guitar-driven rock, to be sure…but it’s also cinematic and clever, with funky beats and lush pop sensibilities thrown into the mix. Bray’s music is heavily influenced by David Bowie and Prince, and has been compared to the Foo Fighters and Arctic Monkeys. “Our sound is more sensual than the Foo Fighters, yet still packs the punch. Perhaps more accurately, it’s the Arctic Monkeys-meets-Matisse; it’s The Police-meets-Zoolander,” he laughs.

“I’m influenced by Renaissance people who make a mark through giving and creating; artists who follow their own muse without apology.” Be sure not to miss Bray & the Dens next upcoming single/video, “Be Your Own Surgeon” due out in mid-February, the release of the full album Stingray on March 20, and stay tuned for U.S. touring news to be announced soon!

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David Cronenberg’s Wife - Hannity Comes Home.

David Cronenberg’s Wife release brand new EP Hannity Comes Home via Blang Records on 31st January. The follow up to 2018’s The Octoberman Sequence EP (‘A perfect 10’ - Norman Records), title track Hannity Comes Home is taken from forthcoming 4th album The Ship (Necrologies), while the new EP also features ‘a song written for a play we did the music for and two different versions of old songs we recorded up a mountain in Norway’.

Led by singer, composer, anti-corruption campaigner and 7-fingered guitarist Tom Mayne, DCW’s songs swing between the sweet and the disturbing, with influences ranging from The Birthday Party to Jonathan Richman. The Ship shows the band at their idiosyncratic best, showcasing their flair for cleverly-crafted songwriting, black humoured lyrics and off-the-wall themes.

A key band in the early 2010s UK Antifolk scene, contemporaries of Fat White Family on the Antiantifolk scene, and an influence on current South London guitar bands (Goat Girl, Shame), DCW have supported The Fall, The Nightingales and Jeffrey Lewis, played numerous BBC 6music sessions (Marc Riley, Cerys Matthews), and recently featured on John Oliver’s Last Week Tonight. Their live shows are visceral, vital, and whether playing twisted acoustic lullabies or in-your-face electric hollers, they never play the same set twice.

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Weird Milk - Time Machine.

Edging towards the forefront of the emerging indie landscape, North London dreamers Weird Milk share the visuals for pulsating new single Time Machine, out now via American, Austin-based label Big Indie.

Arriving towards the end of a whirlwind 2019, the quintet’s latest effort followed acclaimed singles Anything You Want and Honey, I’m Around, having received widespread praise across the BBC Radio 1/6 Music airwaves (Annie Mac, Jack Saunders, Steve Lamacq) and growing support throughout the online community (NME, DIY, The Line Of Best Fit, Dork) as their profile continues to soar.

With plans already taking shape for 2020, including a support tour alongside fellow risers APRE next month and their debut trip stateside for SXSW & New Colossus Festival (incl. support dates with The Orielles), Weird Milk are certainly primed for the spotlight and look set to take full advantage.

Discussing the visuals, the four-piece explained: “We took a wonderful trip to Wales to film this one. It’s not Paris but it is Abergavenny. Went to a bakery and then pranced about for a bit on camera".

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David Philips - In Focus.

In Focus" is a modern folk ballad, written especially for the Spanish romantic comedy "Te quiero, imbécil."

It's a classic tale of not appreciating what you have until it is gone. Co-written by David Philips with Spanish film score giants Lucas Suarez and Javier Bayon.

David Philips is a singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer from the UK. So far we released six albums and a few singles from David.

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Emmrose - The Pairs - The Know - Big Fox - Ben Watt - Ducks Unlimited - Brooke Bentham - Lilla Parasit

Emmrose has a new single entitled 'Hopeless Romantics'. With hints of Latin music and Emmrose's melodic and engaging vocals this is feisty and catchy affair. === The Pairs have shared 'Will And A Way' where beautiful vocals and harmonies are accompanied by a gentle acoustic backdrop on this mesmerising track. === Formed in late 2018 The Know have a new video for '143', a dreamy and atmospheric song that seemingly glides along. === Folk singer-songwriter Big Fox has just released 'All I'm Trying' the Sweden based artist's vocals are sublime on this gentle song. === We featured 'Sunlight Follows The Night' back in September and Ben Watt returns with another video, this time for 'Balanced On A Wire' that once again suggests his forthcoming album 'Storm Damage' is going to be rather special. === We first featured Ducks Unlimited back in July and they return now with 'Gleaming Spires' which is another vibrant, melodic and charming song. === It's just over a month since we shared 'All My Friends Are Drunk' by Brooke Bentham who now returns with 'Perform For You' a fabulous track, and another massive teaser for next February's album release. === Rounding off today's musical round up we have Lilla Parasit with 'Feather Soul' where the bands brand new track exudes originality, plenty of hooks and a refined indie rock feel.
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Emmrose - Hopeless Romantics.

Darkly emotive pop artist Emmrose returns with another single “Hopeless Romantics”. As the title suggests, it delves into the frustrations of modern dating and unrequited love – hoping for something more, and feeling hopeless as a result. Though just sixteen years old, NYC-native Emmrose delivers intense, self-reflective lyrics, and cleverly catchy pop melodies that keep listeners coming back for more.

“The song is about a hopeless ‘relationship’ I had last year,” shared Emmrose. “I’d wonder whether or not it was real the entire time. On some days he’d say the nicest things and then I’d hear nothing at all. I felt used, really.” The lyrics reveal the heart-break of the story, opening with a question, “Is this it? Is this all we’re gonna be?” It’s the hope of a budding relationship, that becomes crushed when the feelings and expectations of one side are raised, teased, and left unreturned; dashed against the rocks in inevitable hurt. Emmrose’s lyrical honesty cuts deep, in hurtful anger stating, “I think you knew, I was never good enough for you.” She went on to share, “When I had first written this song, the lyrics were what I was afraid of. That I ‘wasn’t good enough’ and that we were’t going to be anything more than ‘friends with benefits’ or whatever that means. Of course, all this then happened – and it took me forever to get over it.” Continuing in the vein of previous singles, her lyrics are deeply introspective and poetically written. Relatable, yet never predictable, her music explores the swells and depths of love, relationships, and emotion with stunning finesse. Emmrose never shies from being her honest self, even if that means admitting feeling like a hopeless romantic in the modern world.

“Being so connected with phones and social media can definitely get your hopes up,” mused Emmrose, reflecting on her own experiences as a high school junior. “People can text you at any time, and be in touch so much that it begins to make you think ‘wow this person must really like me’ even though in reality they might just be stringing you along.”

Sonically, the track continues Emmrose’s exploration of a dark pop palette, but also pulls in uptempo, Latin-inspired flair. “When I first began writing this song my dad mentioned that it sort of sounded like a Spanish bull-fighting song,” laughed Emmrose. “I originally wrote it on the ukulele, and kept going with that vibe because I thought it was fun and felt really natural to try something new.” Producer/engineer Michael Abiuso (Behind the Curtains Media) commented further on the development of the single. “I recall Emmrose having such fantastic melodies and lyrics floating around; at the time she was just learning new chords on ukulele. The easiest thing I could think of to play along with her on guitar was just moving one major chord back-and-forth a half step, giving a very Latin-esque feel to the track. I could see a look of excitement on her face and that she was internally cooking up some ideas! She returned to the studio within a few days with “Hopeless Romantics” fully structured with chords, melodies, and lyrics that I absolutely adored. I then showed her some Bjork tracks such as “Hunter” to get some sonic pallet influences and the rest is history.”


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The Pairs - Will And A Way.

The Pairs don’t quite fit any particular genre and they like that! With three unique songwriters at the helm, The Pairs create a diverse repertoire using their individual lives as inspiration. Employing music as a tool for sharing stories of life’s challenges, hope and hilarity, The Pairs inherently connect with their audience through their emotion-full performances. Powered by 3 classically trained vocalists and a former punk rock drummer, their unique blend of harmony and rhythm will hug your eardrums and inspire you to dance!

The album “Noise” is a collection of songs written from a place of hope, hilarity, tragedy and questioning. With lyrics, unique interpretations of rhythm, and unpredictable, sometimes haunting harmonies, this album articulates the idea that at any given moment a multitude of perspectives exist. The word “noise” is representative of the often chaotic experience of human life— whether it’s the noise of the world around us, the internal noise we try to make sense of, or simply the noise we can’t help but make as we fumble our way through our own beautiful journey.

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The Know - 143.

The Know began in late 2018 when Daniel Knowles suggested to his wife, Jennifer Farmer, that instead of traveling home for the holidays (to the UK and Texas respectively) that the LA based transplants stay put and try to create music together, just the two of them. This would be the married couple’s gift to themselves. For the next few weeks, they isolated themselves in their home studio with no real plan except a mutual love of Beach House, Julee Cruise, Ye Ye, The Jesus and Mary Chain, 60's girl groups, and the evocative storytelling lyricism of Patsy Cline and The National.

The first result was lead single '143.' Inspired by Tom Waits’ ‘(Looking for) The Heart of Saturday Night’, the dream pop song melds autobiographical with fantastical lyrics and unfolds as a series of conversations, images, and hazy recollections of a night out. Their love for ethereal, dreamy atmospheres is shown in ‘143’, glistening with warm melodies, thick soundscapes, and quirky spontaneous flares. Four more songs quickly followed in the wake of 143, tracks that provide an unflinching look at the couple. The EP often delves deep into the duo’s personal lives by honestly narrating stories from their relationship and life experiences against a kaleidoscopic sonic palette.

Recording together wasn’t entirely new to the couple, a few years prior they had made an album as “Ghostel” with a friend providing vocals. Knowles, previously a producer and guitarist for UK shoegaze band “Amusement Parks on Fire” and live sound engineer for bands like Cigarettes After Sex, Sharon Van Etten, and Phoebe Bridgers, recorded the project while Farmer became a co-writer and bassist for the first time. They’d later have one of their songs featured prominently in the trailer for Oscar nominated film, “Mustang.”

The debut EP which was produced, mixed, and mastered by Knowles while Farmer handled the band’s visuals further reiterates their wish to craft something wholly their own. In addition, Knowles solely played all of the instruments while Farmer, for the first time, took on lead vocals. With a strong desire but no professional training and a deep seated fear, so intense in fact that previous attempts had reduced her to tears, Farmer’s voice emerges as courageous and powerful.


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Big Fox - All I'm Trying.

Malmö, Sweden-based artist Charlotta Perers AKA Big Fox returns six years after her last album release with fourth single lifted from upcoming full-length “See How the Light Falls”. Initially due for release in May 2018, Charlotta received some news which derailed the campaign. “A few weeks before the album was supposed to be released, I was diagnosed with Lymphoma,” she says. “It all happened very quickly and it was almost like entering a parallel world with a different time scale, rules and priorities.” The process permitted a much deeper sense of perspective to come to light for Perers; “Life suddenly became very intense, very here and now - but that amplified positive experiences too. But it felt good to know that the album was waiting for me on the other side. It was a reminder of something else, the someone I was outside the hospital.”

18 months down the line, Charlotta is better and “slowly reclaiming my life back”. The period of gestation gave the finished album more gravity and significance for the songwriter. “When I listen to it now, I actually like the album even more,” she says. “I have some distance from it. When you’re in the middle of the process, it's easy to get caught up in the details and not really hear the song anymore.” Following sync placements on Charmed, You’re the Worst and MTV’s Catfish, Big Fox’s 2013 single “Shadows” has surpassed 2million+ streams on Spotify alone, while her total streaming numbers exceed 3.6million. Charlotta didn’t allow “See How the Light Falls” to be rushed. Taking two and a half years to finish, and five years to release the album, Perers laboured over it, allowing it to unravel and accumulate organically.

“My experience of creativity is that I get this vague feeling of being pointed in a certain direction,” she says. “It rarely explains itself more than that. But I’ve learnt that if I give it time and attention then things slowly start to move and grow into something, like with the lyrics, I can search for the right lyrics for a long time, even give up, and then some months later it’s as if the missing words find me rather than the other way around.” Produced by Tom Malmros (Alice Boman, This is Head), the full-length explores varying sonic avenues, showcasing instrumental eclecticism in the form of subtle brass blasts, swelling cello and scintillating synthesisers.

At times new single ‘All I’m Trying’ can feel aurally reminiscent of Cate Le Bon or a deeply deconstructed Aldous Harding. Big Fox comments that she found it difficult to pen the lo-fi feat; “Some songs are hard to write about. They just move like a slow train, as if they had no intention of causing any big fuss or drama. But they are sincere, honest. Every word is carefully selected, every synthesizer questioned. And the more time you spend with them, the more you start loving them. That’s how I feel about “All I’m Trying”.”

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Ben Watt - Balanced On A Wire.

Award-winning musician-writer-DJ Ben Watt releases a new song "Balanced On A Wire" ahead of his forthcoming new album Storm Damage (out Jan 31) together with an atmospheric performance video filmed at the legendary RAK Studios in London where the album was recorded in April earlier this year. The video and track, which BlackBook called "...one of the most visceral pieces of music he's ever recorded," gives a flavor of Watt's powerful new "future-retro trio" which will tour in support of the album. Additionally, Watt's first US dates in almost three years are also announced today. The US tour kicks off on March 31 in Washington, D.C. and will make stops in New York, Minneapolis, Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles and more.

"My kids were teenagers leaving home for the first time when I wrote it,' says Watt of the new song. "I was moved by their mixture of anxiety and determination. It reminded me of being nineteen myself, standing on the edge of something new, how you cope, how you need to open up when the other half of you is screaming 'no'. And I realised I still felt like that now sometimes. Perhaps that feeling never really leaves you."

Recently, Watt released the single "Sunlight Follows The Night" and "Irene," featuring Low's Alan Sparhawk on electric guitar and harmony vocal. Stereogum called Sparhawk "...an ideal accompaniment for the song’s central substance, which amounts to Watt crooning with earthy singer-songwriter gravitas over a finger-picked metal resonator guitar and a synthetic tape loop." Following the release of "Irene," Flood Magazine published an in-depth and inspiring conversation between Sparhawk and Watt.

Storm Damage - a hybrid contemporary acoustic-electronic set - completes a compelling trilogy of albums since Watt's late-flowering return to solo songwriting and singing six years ago after ten years as an acclaimed DJ-remixer-label boss and seventeen in best-selling duo, Everything But The Girl with Tracey Thorn.

"My closest half-brother died unexpectedly in 2016, only four years after my half-sister," he says of events surrounding the album's origins. "I got stuck for a year, angry inside and angry at the political world casually detonating around me. I felt half powerless, half driven. When the songs finally came, some were dark, yes, but there is always room for light. Always. I just tried to put that across." Emotional and inventive, Storm Damage is released on Unmade Road through Caroline International.


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Ducks Unlimited - Gleaming Spires.

Ducks Unlimited are sharing their breezy new single, ‘Gleaming Spires’ – this is the latest to be taken from their debut EP, ‘Get Bleak’ which is due out next Friday (Nov 29) via Bobo Integral.

‘Gleaming Spires’ follows hot on the heels of last month’s ‘Anhedonia’ release, as well as the Brooklyn Vegan and Paste-tipped EP-titled track. It’s an effervescent new C86-tinged cut that rides the buoyant jangle-pop twang of Sarah Records and Postcard-signed acts – The Chills, Orange Juice, The Go-Betweens, etc. The new tracks –self-recorded and produced by the band in guitarist, Evan Lewis’s bedroom – add to previous singles (produced by Josh Korody, also Dilly Dally, Weaves) that found the quartet support Rolling Blackouts CF, The Goon Sax and Weyes Blood.

Speaking about the single that thematically addresses hometowns and the push-pull relationships we share with them, frontman Tom Mcgreevy says: "It’s about the emotional energy that gets put into hating a place. I feel like the manic intensity with which I've heard friends sometimes shit on the town they live in is often pretty transparently an exercise in the displacement of issues in other parts of their lives.”

“There's also this thing I've always found oddly charming about Toronto where, as a colonial leftover it has a bunch of streets named for various royal things, but normally in a vague way,” he continues. “‘King Street’ and ‘Queen Street’ being the major ones, but there are also some other names that either reference British history ('Victoria Street') or just have a kind of Camelot vibe (at least in my head) like 'John Street’.”


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Brooke Bentham - Perform For You.

Brooke Bentham has announced the release of her debut album Everyday Nothing on AllPoints on the 28th of February. She also shares a second single, ‘Perform For You’, a melancholy meditation on the power dynamics in toxic relationships. Inspired by novels that Brooke was reading at the time. She probes beneath the surface of a doomed romance from the get-go.  “It’s like surrendering to something, even though you know it’s never going to work, realising you’re so dependent on someone and knowing your presence in that relationship. It’s love in the worst way.” she says.

“‘Perform For You’ is probably my favourite, because it reminds me of lots of the music I love. Once we’d recorded that, I knew we were making an album. Musically it was exactly where I wanted to be.” Everyday Nothing follows two EPs of music shored up by intense reflection, which has earned the 23 year old many admirers and a rapidly growing fanbase.

Brooke writes sharp and eloquent songs about her experiences as she understands them, using words and music to resolve and record the tensions of young adulthood. Confronted with the mundanities of life and caught between two jobs in London, she finds intense lyricism in the struggle for purpose and direction. The album is, in her words, “in part an ode to the little moments in life, the frustration of being young and unaware of what you want, but getting older and realising you still don’t know. It’s an album I searched for myself in, filled with questions I asked myself."

Written entirely by Brooke, with a few contributions from producer Bill Ryder-Jones (who’s own album Yawn was showered with 4 and 5 star reviews last year), Everyday Nothing documents a fast-rising 23-year-old looking to make sense of her existence. So impressed was Ryder-Jones with Brooke’s observational lyricism that he said: "I've worked with some amazing songwriters in my career. I think Brooke at 23 is well on her way to being up there with Alex (Turner), Saint Saviour, Mick (Head) and James (Skelly). Her lyric writing will be overlooked because of her voice but it is her words that will set her apart from others.”

"Perform For You" follows "All My Friends Are Drunk" released early October which was the first taster of Everyday Nothing. A looser indie rock sound than her previous EPs pitched somewhere between Mazzy Star, Yo La Tengo, Sparklehorse and early Angel Olsen and nods to the ‘90s rock bands she was listening to leading up to the album being written, notably Low, Yo La Tengo and Broadcast.


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Lilla Parasit - Feather Soul.

Earlier this fall, Lilla Parasit signed with Stockholm label family Rama Lama Records (Chez Ali, Steve Buscemi's Dreamy Eyes, Julia Rakel etc.) and introduced themselves with the excellent Gaslights. Today, new single Feather Soul is released on all platforms, the second cut from the band's forthcoming, self-titled debut album which is out early 2020.

Lilla Parasit may be a new band, but the members are no strangers for fans of the Swedish psychedelic and indie scene. The band is lead by Are, who's band Melby released their debut album this spring to great acclaim, and made complete by Amanda Lindgren (Systraskap), David Svedmyr (Me and My Kites) and Jessica Klingsell.

The project started out three years ago and has since changed both names and members before finding both the perfect setting and sound. The band's grand semi-psychedelic lo-fi folk is now finally ready to reach the world's ears. Feather Soul showcases the band's softer and more melodic sides and is a beautiful piece taken from the upcoming mini album Lilla Parasit, out in March 2020.

"Feather soul is the second single from our upcoming album. The first one, Gaslights, was a mishmash of everything from the record, while this one is probably the song that stands out the most. It is much more straight-forward, both lyrically and musically. Perhaps so much so that it feels a bit off in the whole of the album, but it just had to be like that. I wrote it to my sister when she had a kind of hard time. She, and the rest of my family live in the north of Norway, almost 24 hours away by train. That was extra strange to relate to when she was unwell. So I guess that is what the song is about. "

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Dad's Fastest Swimmers - Right Hand Left Hand - Manou - Brooke Bentham - Balsam Range

Dad's Fastest Swimmers have just released their second single 'Scream My Name'. The bands bright indie pop song includes fine vocals and harmonies along with a refreshing vibe throughout.

Opening with a chunky riff Right Hand Left Hand track 'Chacabuco' which features Taliesyn Kallstrom, gradually builds in power and momentum the guitars and breathy chant acting as a prelude to Taliesyn's fabulous vocals that fit perfectly to this creative piece.

Manou shares 'kleines großes Mädchen' a song sung in German, it's gorgeous even if you don't understand a single word, everything from her vocals to the beautifully arranged music just excel.

Brooke Bentham released 'All My Friends Are Drunk' a couple of days ago, described as "a song for lost youth and young adulthood" it still resonates well with the considerably older me, the vocals are sincere and very likable the song is very catchy and Brooke is understandably getting noticed.

We finish with a gorgeous country song from Balsam Range entitled 'Angel Too Soon'. A classic country piece the band give it their own style and feeling, I'm particularly struck by the musicianship, the vocals are on the money as well.
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Dad's Fastest Swimmers - Scream My Name.

Already the ‘fastest’ indie-pop band, Brisbane’s Dad’s Fastest Swimmers are now on track to be the catchiest thanks to their energetic and thought provoking second single ‘Scream My Name’. Paired with the announcement of their debut EP Hard To Swallow and EP launch show, the Brisbane based swimmers have packed up their boardies and picked up their guitars for the Summer to come!

A pool of slick guitar riffs, sharp piano hits and striking basslines, ‘Scream My Name’ is a vivid glimpse into the group’s indie-pop talents. Paired with an array of addicting harmonies, singer Lucky delves into the uncertainties of modern relationships and the mixed emotions one can face.

"'Scream My Name’ is about a friend of mine who was in one of those casual relationships where it was pretty obvious that he wanted more from it,” Lucky explains, “It’s about putting all your cards on the table and questioning whether the person you’re with is there for you or just there for their fix.”

Brisbane's favourite seven-piece band with ‘Dad’ in their name, the septet are still yet to receive any accolades in the swimming pool besides a participation ribbon.  Their debut single 'Mixed Messages' on the other hand has racked up a combined 15,000 streams across the track and music video.

The final taste of their debut EP set for release October 25th, Hard To Swallow builds upon their previous themes of modern dating and hookup culture, voicing the internal thoughts that so many of us experience: the doubts, the emotions and the questions that go unspoken. Celebrating the long awaited launch of the project, Dad's Fastest Swimmers will be taking to The Old Museum on release day to perform all the tracks live!

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Right Hand Left Hand - Chacabuco (feat Taliesyn Kallstrom).

Right Hand Left Hand are back with a brand new album. Following on from their self-titled, Welsh Music Prize-nominated second album, their third offering, ‘Zone Rouge’ released on the 15th of November, tells the story of humanity's contempt for the earth beneath us, the air above us and the people around us.

Our fractured planet lays the groundwork for the 11 new tracks on 'Zone Rouge'. Each referring to a location on Earth where something bad has happened: An act of corruption against the planet, an act of evil against fellow humans and occasionally both.

Recent single 'Chacabuco' features former Estrons front-woman Taliesyn Kallstrom on vocals. A simmering, brooding post-rock dark cloud full a gathering menace, the taut rhythms and an extraordinary vocal performance swirling into explosive crescendos.

Recorded and produced by Charlie Francis (Future of the Left, REM, Robyn Hitchcock) at Cardiff’s Musicbox Studios, Andrew Plain (drums/guitars) and Rhodri Viney (guitars/vocals/ drums) 'Zone Rouge' continues to build and develop their trademark sound: looped and layered guitars and driving powerful drums that are intercut with atmospheric ambience.

'Zone Rouge' is released on the 15th November, 2019. It will be available digitally, on CD, and on limited edition double clear vinyl.  They launch the album with a show at Clwb Ifor Bach in Cardiff on the 13th of November.

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Manou - kleines großes Mädchen.

Multi-voice life - this is how Manou describes her music. Having grown up as a musician, she tries out many instruments and almost every style of her life throughout her life, but she finds her true musical home late.

A stroke of fate finally brings them to transform their lives into their own tunes and experiences of any kind in their own songs with German lyrics. From sarcastic to wistful, from exhilarating to moving, she takes her audience eloquently on a journey of her own.

Career and life in the dutiful mode of functioning and at some point sitting, looking back on his life and wondering where all the dreams and desires of that time have remained. Those little moments full of naive eternities, in which Mommy's blow could heal all wounds.

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Brooke Bentham - All My Friends Are Drunk.

Brooke Bentham releases a new single, ‘All My Friends Are Drunk’ - a song for lost youth and young adulthood and the second with Bill Ryder-Jones. It follows two EPs of music shored up by intense reflection which has earned the 23 year old many admirers and a rapidly growing fanbase. The young singer/songwriter writes sharp and eloquent songs about her experiences as she understands them, using words and music to resolve and record the tensions of young adulthood.

New single ‘All My Friends Are Drunk’ captures “that wishful longing for what was” in the self-destructivity of her and her peers, and is an exemplary display of Brooke’s talents. Creamy overdriven guitars combine with driving rhythms, giving it a Sonic Youth-esque feel.

"I wrote the lyrics about growing older, and growing apart, and learning about yourself”, Brooke says. “I was one year out of university and a lot of the lyrics on the album sound a bit lost because I realise I am so existential every day, and I’m so constantly aware of myself.” All My Friends starts by talking about your “Sunday self” which is “kind of this state where you float around and nothing is too heavy, but it quickly descends into this like... train of thought: what happened? When did that happen? You know?"

So impressed was Ryder-Jones with Brooke’s observational lyricism that he said: "I've worked with some amazing songwriters in my career. I think Brooke at 23 is well on her way to being up there with Alex (Turner), Saint Savoir, Mick (Head) and James (Skelly). Her lyric writing will be overlooked because of her voice but it is her words that will set her apart from others.”

Brooke’s raw and emotive sound has already gained her serious plaudits from the press. NME and Loud & Quiet were early champions whilst The Times calls her music “austerely beautiful” and DIY Magazine “bewitching”. She has recently been announced as the main support on Sam Fender’s sold out tour, with Bill joining her live band.

Brooke has been working on a full body of new music with Bill Ryder-Jones who she is touring the UK with as main support across the next few weeks. ‘All My Friends Are Drunk’ is the first taster of that, a looser indie rock sound pitches somewhere between Mazzy Star, Yo La Tengo, Sparklehorse and early Angel Olsen. Her music shines a light through the mistier parts of youth and identity.

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Balsam Range - Angel Too Soon.

With a hauntingly restrained, delicately soulful performance, Balsam Range expresses the sorrow and regret felt after the death of a child in their latest single, “Angel Too Soon.” The lyrics of the song, written by William M. Maddox and Paul Thorn, tell of two parents’ trying to move on after the death of their daughter and the void her loss created. Her room still looks the same with “heart throb posters on the wall and a Barbie make-up case,” but she’s “a pretty flower that never bloomed.”

“Angel Too Soon” challenges listeners’ hearts with the hardest of subjects, but is cathartic, relating that believing in life after death can bring relief.

Balsam Range vocalist and fiddler Buddy Melton remembers the first time he heard this song. “I was at Darren Nicholson’s house and we were listening to music in search of potential material for Balsam Range. When Darren played Paul’s version of this song, it hit me hard,” says Melton. “Being a father of a young girl, I could not get home fast enough. It was late and my daughter was in bed asleep. I went into her room and sat on the edge of her bed and as I watched her sleeping and peacefully dreaming, I thanked God for my blessings and prayed that he would help me be the best father I could be. I prayed he would watch over her and walk beside her every day. Life is unpredictable and all too often we are faced with unexplainable circumstances, for life has no guarantees. In time God’s plan is revealed.”

As this song can reach deep into listeners’ souls and touch calloused emotions, Melton hopes it will help open hearts and minds and lead people to view life as a gift though it is fragile. Said legendary songwriter Kris Kristofferson when he first heard it, “‘Angel Too Soon’ is either the saddest pretty song or the prettiest sad song I ever heard,” and now Balsam Range’s glistening rendition will have listeners wondering which it is themselves.

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