Sister Wives - KiKi Holli - Shannen Moser

Sister Wives - Ticking Time Bomb.

Inspired by Welsh mythology, thread throughout a cavernous mix of psychedelia, folk, post-punk, garage and 70s glam rock, Sister Wives recently announced their debut album will be released on 28th October via Libertino Records, sharing first single and video ‘Greater Place’. Now the band share new single “Ticking Time Bomb” - a track which sees them react to the societal pressure to bear a child; the ticks mirroring the biological clock.

The track's simmering verses give way to a lively, electric hook; it’s simultaneously a protest song and a party song that celebrates freedom and choice. “We wanted to expose the absurdity of having our bodies and choices so heavily monitored and managed by society, and laugh in the face of it,” the band explain. “We know our worth isn’t changed by child bearing, we are not disposable or “geriatric” after age 35, and we refuse to partake in the shaming of ourselves or others for our/their choices. And we deserve autonomy over our bodies, always!”

Y Gawres, the album’s title, is inspired by the ancient burial site on Anglesey, Barclodiad y Gawres, which translates to “The Giantess’ Apronful”. While giants are central to the nation’s folklore, it’s rare to hear of female giants. The idea led the Sheffield-based band — consisting of Donna Lee (vocals/keys/synths), Rose Love (vocals/bass), Liv Willars (vocals/guitar), Lisa O’Hara (vocals/drums) — to picture a devastating, nurturing, awe-inspiring, and most importantly feminine force of their own.

The lyrics are divided between English and Lee’s native Welsh, and the country is deeply present across the album. It’s important to Lee to represent the Welsh language outside of Wales, with the band often making connections with Welsh audience members and showing others that singing in the language is viable and meaningful.

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KiKi Holli - Sun Playing Tricks On Me.

Los Angeles indie-pop vocalist KiKi Holli creates stunning and soulful music woven with intricate emotive storytelling for a truly captivating and cathartic listening experience with an eclectic musical aesthetic. Holli draws on inspiration from her rich theatrical background, as well as from iconic artists such as PRINCE, Dusty Springfield, The Cure, Stevie Nicks and Siouxsie and the Banshees.

Her latest single "Sun Playing Tricks On Me" is a sultry fever dream in a mirage of lost love. "Sun Playing Tricks", produced and mixed by Grammy nominated Ethan Allen, is an exciting alt-pop song with a soulful vibe. Recorded at Royal Triton Studios in Silverlake, CA. Mastered by Grammy winner, David Collins. The song is layered with warm sun- dripped vocals full of depth. With a new EP in the works, KiKi Holli creates relatable music that culminates into a diary of hope for listeners across the globe.

Originally from Pittsburgh, PA, Holli was drawn to the arts from an early age, with her passions gravitating towards music and theater. Subsequently, she found solace in these disciplines and later earned her BFA in voice and theater for further exploring her unique talents. In addition to being a trained vocalist, Holli also grew up playing the guitar, saxophone and viola. Theatrically she has appeared on stage in the plays Of Mice and Men, Three Sisters and Twelfth Night, and also played the lead role in the Rocky Horror-channeling indie film Isle of Lesbos, celebrated by Swampflix as “a politically angry, deliberately offensive, post-John Waters, queer-as-f*ck movie musical with deep roots in drag & cabaret traditions.”

Most notably, Holli co-wrote and starred in Forever Dusty, a stage musical based on the life of British pop star Dusty Springfield. The production opened off-Broadway in 2012 at New World Stages in New York, garnering coverage from The Village Voice, Reuters, The New York Times and Out Magazine. From there, the play went on to run in Los Angeles and London, as well as other cities in the U.S. and U.K.

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Shannen Moser - Oh My God.

The Philadelphia-based artist Shannen Moser has just released a new single “Oh My God” from their forthcoming album The Sun Still Seems To Move that will be released next Friday, September 30 via Lame-O Records. Moser will celebrate the album’s release with shows in Philadelphia on 9/30 and in Brooklyn on 10/7 with support from Greg Mendez & Yours Are The Only Ears.

“Right before writing ‘Oh My God,’ I had just moved back to Philly after spending the summer in Berks County. I was working on farms and greenhouses that summer and spent a lot of my time outside. I had just ended an important relationship in my life. I was taking care of a sick parent. Everything felt unfamiliar and strange. I had spent the summer shape note singing, driving around and really exploring a natural world that I hadn’t been around in almost a decade,” explains Moser.

“Oh My God’ is a song that recognizes the multiple truths surrounding change and the timeline of our lives. It’s overwhelming and painful, but there’s also a hilarity to it. Like throwing your hands up in the air to concede that no matter how we might try, as the world turns things will change in an endless exchange of joy and sorrow".

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Rachael Dadd - KiKi Holli - Lukka

Rachael Dadd - Heads Down.

This week, the wildly creative free-form songwriter, Rachael Dadd is sharing her new single, "Heads Down". The track is taken from her forthcoming studio album, Kaleidoscope, out October 14 via Memphis Industries – “a terrific album of upbeat but off-beam English folk-pop” (Uncut).

Premiering on Lauren Laverne’s show on BBC 6 Music, "Heads Down" came out of a playful music session with Rachael's youngest son, as she explains: "Having just bought my new Gretsch guitar and Wem amp, and cranking it up in my front room with Oto on the harmonica, the chords and rhythm felt fun and energizing. The words followed, inspired by someone on the radio recounting being chased by a gang with baseball bats after naively offending the gang leader. Cockiness and misjudgment are qualities of brazen teenagers and arrogant politicians alike. But rather than just waggle my finger at the others, I looked inward to find that I too have a part driven by impulsive feelings and misguided strong will. After crashing we might hopefully be able to learn and grow by practicing self-discipline and self-compassion alike."

Kaleidoscope is Rachael’s second album for Memphis Industries and follows 2019’s Flux which was released to much acclaim and which Rachael was touring when the pandemic struck. “This album is a lot more honest and personal than Flux" she shares, “but I feel the songs are universal as they are largely rooted in truth and love. If I had to pick a favourite album it would be this one because of the magical rekindling of human connection when me and my band got back in a room together again. All that magic went into these songs."

Co-produced by Rachael and Rob Pemberton (The Staves, Emily Barker, Maja Lena), ‘Kaleidoscope’ includes musical collaborators such as Maja Lena (Low Chimes), long-time collaborator Emma Gatrill (Willy Mason) and ‘Flux’ producer Marcus Hamblett (Villagers, James Holden, The Staves).

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KiKi Holli - Play To Lose.

Los Angeles indie-pop vocalist KiKi Holli creates stunning and soulful music woven with intricate emotive storytelling for a truly captivating and cathartic listening experience with an eclectic musical aesthetic. Holli draws on inspiration from her rich theatrical background, as well as from iconic artists such as PRINCE, Dusty Springfield, The Cure, Stevie Nicks and Siouxsie and the Banshees.

Crafting a unique sound, KiKi Holli’s music is beautifully vulnerable and nurturing, with themes of connection, healing, personal growth, and living in the moment. If her delivery seems genuine, empathetic even that’s because it is. She’s been there. “You know, Amor fati — love your fate, love whatever is in front of you and embrace the moment,” she says.

Holli’s debut single was a breathtaking cover of Roxy Music’s “More Than This”, a raw and intimate version of the celebrated 80’s hit. Collaborating with acclaimed producer Ethan Allen (Throwing Muses, Tricky, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club), she was inspired to release her own version of the song in the midst of dealing with intense grief and loss.

Her first original song, “NEW HIGH” is a celebration of simple pleasures, finding solace in your happy place and a returning to love after a time of hardship. With soaring vocals singing sunshine-dipped melodies over lush and blissful pop rock soundscapes, “NEW HIGH” is a welcome sonic escape, collaborating again with Allen to create a landscape of music that pulls the listener into the neon glow of a surreal joy ride down the coast of Malibu.  The track received praise from the likes of Earmilk, Atwood Magazine and Buzzbands who proclaimed it "a day-brightener in which her crystalline vocals ooze optimism with every note".

In her new single “Play To Lose”, KiKi examines leaving a toxic relationship and finding your voice and confidence in the end. With layered vocals full of confidence and depth, and acoustic guitars dripping with nostalgia, “Play To Lose” is a radiating groove-infused roots pop single. “Play To Lose” reminds the listener to know your own worth and find your power even in the most hopeless of situations.

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Photo - Jen Meller

Lukka - People Of Light.

Lukka, the brainchild of German-born, New York City-based artist Franzi Szymkowiak, released her latest single “People of Light” yesterday, from her sophomore album, Something Human out this Friday, August 26. The single release is accompanied by a stop-motion lyric video.

Discussing the lyrics, Lukka shared, "the meaning of the title generally refers to all that we are and who we see is a reflection of the light. The song itself indicates that certain situations and circumstances we experience through the times causes us to change and reincarnate to different people. One can never know what kind of person they will be in 10 years from now as no one can really foresee the future."

Something Human speaks to both the head and the heart. The album’s essence is perfectly captured in its first two singles “Wisdom of the Sun” - a yin-yang ode to finding positivity in even the darkest of situations, and “Life In Reverse” where Lukka finds herself closing one chapter, to start the next. At once an escapist psychedelic synth-rock odyssey and a timely shot of science-based spirituality like the philosophical belief of reincarnation described in “People of Light,” the 10-song LP wraps messages of oneness and self-determination inside multi-layered melodicism, cultured retro-electronica, and tastefully effected guitars. “Transmitting the message of love and oneness through music is very important to me,” stated Szymkowiak.

Recorded at Brooklyn’s Transmitter Park Studio and co-produced by Franzi and Abe Seiferth (Guerilla Toss, Nation of Language) – who also engineered and mixed – Something Human’s ten tracks traverse heady psychedelia, nostalgic ‘80s new wave, and experimental pop. Lukka’s singular throughlines are Franzi’s crystalline timbre, a disarmingly sunny pre-punk melodicism, and recurring lyrical themes exploring our role in the universe and the meaning in our lives.

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Bar Pandora - KiKi Holli - Quasi Qui - Julianna Riolino

Bar Pandora - Vice Vice Vice.

Ahead of the release of her debut self-titled EP on July 5th, Bar Pandora has shared new single 'Vice Vice Vice'. Bar Pandora is the alt-pop project of Coventry based artist Charlie Tophill, who has previously released music under her own name and also plays in York band The Howl & The Hum. The project owes its name to a literary cafe in La Latina, Madrid, where in 2017 she used to hang out with her friends talking literature, life and feminism over red wine and fizzy sweets.

Drawn to the idea of collaborating with a producer who works outside of the musical world she usually inhabits, Tophill began working on her debut EP with jungle producer Simply Dread. The result is deliciously off-kilter yet melodious alt-pop, playfully sewn together from the offcuts of personal experience; field recordings, journal entries and improvised fragments which bop along to a rich undercurrent of harmonic synths, guitars and dynamic beats.

New single ‘Vice Vice Vice’ is an unapologetically catchy pop anthem. “The song is a remonstrance to a neglectful lover. It’s about that push and pull you feel when you’re putting everything into a relationship and still being taken for granted," says Tophill. "It’s a crazy-making situation that I know too well, so it’s fun to be able to sing it out loud along to a pop beat and shout a bit at the end,” she continues.

The songs that make up Bar Pandora’s debut EP are penned with mischievous frankness, delivering confessional composites of personal histories, inner monologues and self-building proclamations which are simultaneously singular and familiar. "My lyrics are made up of my inner voices,” explains Tophill, who regularly uses lines from her diary in her songs.

Bar Pandora · Vice Vice Vice

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KiKi Holli - New High.

Los Angeles indie-pop vocalist KiKi Holli creates stunning and soulful music woven with intricate emotive storytelling for a truly captivating and cathartic listening experience with an eclectic musical aesthetic. Holli draws on inspiration from her rich theatrical background, as well as from iconic artists such as PRINCE, Dusty Springfield, The Cure, Stevie Nicks and Siouxsie and the Banshees.

Crafting a unique sound, KiKi Holli’s music is beautifully vulnerable and nurturing, with themes of connection, healing, personal growth, and living in the moment. If her delivery seems genuine—empathetic even—that’s because it is. She’s been there. “You know, Amor fati — love your fate, love whatever is in front of you and embrace the moment,” she says.

Holli’s debut single was a breathtaking cover of Roxy Music’s “More Than This”, a raw and intimate version of the celebrated 80’s hit. Collaborating with acclaimed producer Ethan Allen (Throwing Muses, Tricky, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club), she was inspired to release her own version of the song in the midst of dealing with intense grief and loss.

Her new release, her first original song, “New High” is a celebration of simple pleasures, finding solace in your happy place and a returning to love after a time of hardship. With soaring vocals singing sunshine-dipped melodies over lush and blissful pop rock soundscapes, “NEW HIGH” is a welcome sonic escape, collaborating again with Allen to create a landscape of music that pulls the listener into the neon glow of a surreal joy ride down the coast of Malibu.

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Quasi Qui - Directorial Debut.

British alt-pop duo Quasi Qui has shared new single ‘Directorial Debut’ via Parisian tastemaker label microqlima records (Isaac Delusion, L’Impératrice, Pepite, Fils Cara). The now Paris-based duo, comprised of acclaimed music producer Yehan Jehan and his sister Zadi, have released two singles so far, both shimmering alt-pop gems and new single ‘Directorial Debut’ continues in the same vein. Quasi Qui describe the composition of these songs as dreams, "collages of cinematic films".

On their new single and video, Quasi Qui say: “‘Directorial Debut’ is a manifestation of hair-pulling frustration. A galloping attempt to escape one's demons (as portrayed by the ominous white sphere). A realisation occurs when the enemy was merely self-inflicted and what was in fact happening, was the ego’s movie script, being witnessed by the true self. Now it may be re-written.”

For years now, Yehan has turned heads with his production nous, making a plethora of bands sound more expansive and technicolour, though he’s more than just a slick producer. Before joining forces with Zadi in Quasi Qui, Yehan released three solo EPs earning him kudos from tastemaker publications like The Guardian, The Sunday Times and Clash as well as radio play from Elton John on his Apple Radio show.

The pair have a knack for taking sophisticated musical ideas and chord progressions and making them accessible. As well as extending the lineage of classic songwriting, drawing inspiration from everything from British synthpop to the great American songbook, Quasi Qui’s influences are modern and eclectic: Zadi loves Frank Ocean, Blood Orange and Sade, while Yehan is a disciple of the great and the good of production: Trevor Horn, William Orbit, Nellee Hooper and Bjork. “Everyone in our family is musical,” says Zadi, “and the list goes way back.”

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Julianna Riolino - Lone Ranger.

Toronto-based artist, Julianna Riolino has just shared her new single, "Lone Ranger" alongside announcing her debut full-length record, All Blue which is out via You've Changed Records on October 14, 2022. While also moonlighting as part of Daniel Romano's The Outfit, Riolino has slowly but surely been building a solo career of her own over the past few years with this debut LP following on from her 2019 EP, J.R. which helped to establish Julianna's musical direction while finding her open for the likes of Julie Doiron, Daniel Romano and Born Ruffians across North America.

Riolino knows how to capture and highlight beauty before it fades. She spent her days running up to the recording of her solo debut album helping restore the stained glass windows at St. Michael’s Cathedral in Toronto. Surrounded by symbols configured in bits of 19th-century French glass, Riolino couldn’t help but reflect on her own past and the memories of pains, healing, and love strewn through it. “It made me think about life as a balancing act, and we're all just trying to do our best to navigate it,” she says. That focus on morality and the stretch of time seeped naturally into Riolino’s Americana-indebted songwriting, resulting in the golden, fluid All Blue.

The true religious fervor both in Riolino’s life and in the LP is directed towards icons like Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, and The Band. Inspired by those artists, Riolino asked for a guitar as a child, and began teaching herself how to bring similar life to the melodies in her head. And while she honed her voice by participating in school musicals, songwriting remained a deeply personal venture. “I sang at every opportunity, but I didn’t share my songs with people until I was 18 or 19,” she says. The first song she decided to play for friends was “Lone Ranger”, a reimagining of which now acts as the lead single for her debut solo album ten years later.

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