Bo Milli - Margo Cilker - Montao - The Breath

Bo Milli - Come After Me.

Bergen, Norway-based indie-rock starlet Bo Milli has announced her long awaited debut EP will be released this autumn and has released its latest taster, new single "Come After Me".

Tipped by many to be one of the next breakout Norwegian artists, Bo Milli's new single "Come After Me" follows recent track "Making Friends" and arrives ahead of a coveted slot at Øya Festival this Saturday.

Blending richly textured dream-pop with surging indie rock, Bo Milli's new single "Come After Me" is adorned with an irresistibly youthful edge. "I'm on my own / overthinking" Milli cries in the track's exhilarating chorus; punctuated by crushing guitar strums and propelled forward by a zestful rhythm section.

Co-produced by Odd Martin (Sigrid, Sløtface) and co-written with Henrik Michelsen (Maisie Peters, Little Mix), "Come After Me" is again emotionally fuelled by the cold Bergen night life - a recurring theme across her debut EP - with Bo Milli this time specifically overthinking on her journey home from a party...

Speaking more on "Come After Me", Bo Milli said: "I'm fantasising about a big romantic gesture from someone I'm worried might not be that interested. I'm walking home from a party they're still at, overthinking the whole night and feeling that if they come after me, that'll somehow prove we're on the same page. Although I haven't told them how I feel, I hope they'll know to leave the party and run after me like in the movies."

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Margo Cilker - With The Middle.

Margo Cilker is set to return with her highly anticipated second album Valley Of Heart’s Delight on September 15 via Loose. In anticipation of the release, she is sharing the record’s final single, “With the Middle,” a stirring ballad about the all-too-familiar struggle for self-care. Holler praises "'With The Middle' is everything we’ve come to expect from Margo Cilker, one of the most distinctive and self-assured voices to have stepped out of the world of American country-folk in the last few years". Of the track, Cilker offers:

"After hearing 'With the Middle' about 30 times on a video shoot, my friend Bart texted me, 'Regarding your middle song. Have you considered napping?' I guess this is a song for those of us who can’t nap. It takes me to a time when I felt incredibly fragile. I like the way Sera’s production bolsters the song; the track was almost unbearably lonely before the drums, bass, piano and steel."

Cilker initially announced Valley Of Heart’s Delight with opener “Lowland Trail,” which saw Rolling Stone exclaim, “The singer-songwriter is poised to have a breakout year.” They went on to name the track one of the "20 Best Country Songs of 2023 So Far" listing Cilker among standouts like Megan Moroney, Zach Bryan, Luke Combs, Miranda Lambert, Leon Bridges, Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit, Ashley McBryde, Morgan Wade, Lainey Wilson, and more.

The forthcoming 11-track set was produced by Sub Pop alum Sera Cahoone (who also contributes drums) and recorded by John Morgan Askew (Neko Case, Laura Gibson) with studio players from The Decemberists, Band Of Horses, and Beirut. The title Valley Of Heart’s Delight refers to a place where Cilker can't return: California’s Santa Clara Valley, as it was known before the orchards were paved over and became more famous for Silicon than apricots. She is the fifth generation of her namesake born there, and in this new collection of songs, family and nature intertwine as guiding motifs, at once precious and endangered, beautiful and exhausting.

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Montao - Costa Del Mersey.

Oh this is really good and it's an opportunity for Beehive Candy to add some more genre traveling under our belt! For me it's a mixture of 'Old School Meets Today' and it's done with creativity and style, so enjoy, as we add the background story. As a homage to his home town of Liverpool, Montao has returned with a dreamy sun drenched track, lovingly named after the coastline along Merseyside. The track interweaves amidst a variety of nuances and musical suggestions, whilst slapping a massive smile on your face.

The head nodding laid back vibe transcends the picture being painted with simple instructions...to kick back, spin this over the summer months, and to simply have some fun! This hazy ray of trip hop brings Montao back onto the scene, and Costa Del Mersey is a welcome addition to his collection

After decades of experience as a multi instrumentalist, recording artist, music publicist, artist manager, and everything else in between, these aspects have fused together and spawned a new musical landscape in the world of Montao. Following the incredible success of his single releases to date, including a plethora of international radio support, multiple blog features, and playlist placements, Montao returns with string of releases dropping throughout the rest of 2023 under the umbrella of Def Pressé Records.

His up coming collaborations will include tracks featuring Slug (Atmosphere), Copywrite, Koncept, RoQy TyRaid, and Lane Shuler. His music transcends from the depths of quirky samples, sofa style beats, and paints a cinematic story based around all the elements of the stories he creates combining elements of Trip hop, Hip hop, and Lo-fi influences. Encapsulated amidst the terrain of a curious and sometimes confusing world, Montao is putting things right…one beat at a time.

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The Breath - Don't Rush It.

The Breath announce details of their new album, ‘Land Of My Other' and share new track "Don't Rush It". Ten original tracks of raw, gorgeous, acoustic-minded music. Songs that tell stories in ways that soothe, stir, exalt, and touch emotional chords that will bring tears of lamenting joy, to your eyes. ‘Land of My Other’ is set for release on vinyl, CD and digital via Real World Records on 13th October 2023.

"If it all falls tomorrow, be glad of today" …sings Ríoghnach Connolly, on "Don’t Rush It", the first song to feature from the album. It might be about the toll we pay for leaving home, the mistakes we make by hurrying grief or something else… it’s the opening track of an album where Connolly’s emotions run the gamut: righteous, sorrowful, joyous. Authenticity is at a premium. Shame is cast aside.
‘Land of My Other’ is written and performed by the sublime partnership of Ríoghnach [Ree-uh-na] Connolly and guitarist Stuart McCallum.  For the widely acclaimed duo, this is the third album under their moniker The Breath.

"We work like two halves of a single songwriter," says McCallum, the Manchester-based composer and producer. "Imagine a guitarist and a singer who are not separate but are separate people. We just have this really special connection that lets us listen, adapt and evolve a piece of music together."

Connolly nods her agreement. "Stuart is the yin to my yang," says the BBC Folk Singer of the Year, her north of Ireland accent un-tempered by two decades of Manchester living. "He has one face. I have many. He's very measured. I'm not. I like mayhem. He doesn't. I know where I am with him."

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McDermott & North - Hunny Buzz - Margo Cilker - The Ready-Mades

McDermott & North - The Hollywood EP.

McDermott & North, the captivating indie folk duo known for their heartfelt sounds and irresistible melodies release 'The Hollywood EP'. Released yesterday via Weirder Together Records, the EP is a beautiful celebration of love, connection, and the beauty of everyday moments.

Since bursting onto the scene in 2016, McDermott & North have been winning hearts with their busking performances and beautiful songs. The duo already have a stack of singles and an EP, countless tours and hundreds of hours of performing under their belts, including having played at Bluesfest, BIGSOUND and Ted X Brisbane.

The unknown slow boil of 'The Hollywood EP' began in 2021 when the duo caught the attention of acclaimed Australian singer-songwriter and producer Ben Lee, who stumbled upon the two stylish troubadours singing in perfect 60s folk harmony. Little did they anticipate that this serendipitous encounter would pave the way for a remarkable collaboration resulting in the creation of this EP and one of the first releases for the new label Weirder Together Records run by Lee and his partner, Ione Skye.

After supporting Ben Lee at a show in Brisbane, he invited them to record with him in LA. Though recording in Los Angeles wasn't feasible, McDermott & North entrusted Ben Lee with their guitar and vocal stems to complete the EP. Ben Lee rallied an exceptional team to contribute their expertise, including Joey Waronker on drums (Beck, Roger Waters, REM), Roger Manning Jr on keys (Jellyfish, Glen Campbell, U2, Broken Social Scene), and Mike Viola on bass (Panic at the Disco, Dawes, Ryan Adams). It is a credit to McDermott & North that their songs were enough to draw a team like this together.

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Hunny Buzz - Now I can get over you.

Budding Bristol-based band, Hunny Buzz, share their brand new video to their punchy surf-pop banger “Now I Can Get Over You” released only a few days ago. Drenched in a rich layer of grungy guitar with lead singer’s Lyd Read’s personality and panache spilling out across every second of the track. Today’s new track is the first of many in the build-up to their forthcoming Pacific Wax EP out later this year.

Speaking about the track's narrative-driven lyrics and melancholic nature, Lydia Read explains “‘Now I can get over you’ is a blow-by-blow account of when a relationship goes so wrong, there can be relief in accepting the romance is dead and moving on.”

2023 is the year to keep an eye on Hunny Buzz, who are already super tight live since they formed in 2020, and possess the vitality of British tour successes Black Honey, Dream Wife and Wet Leg. The Group is made up of singer-songwriter Lydia Read, guitarist Rowan Barfoot, drummer Billy Pedrick and songwriter, producer and bassist Ewan Base.

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Margo Cilker - Keep It On A Burner.

Margo Cilker is set to return with her highly anticipated second LP Valley Of Heart’s Delight on September 15th via Loose. The upcoming record sees Cilker with the same group of collaborators (and a few additions) as her widely acclaimed 2021 debut Pohorylle. The 11-track set was produced by Sub Pop alum Sera Cahoone, who also contributes drums, and recorded by John Morgan Askew (Neko Case, Laura Gibson) with studio players from The Decemberists, Band Of Horses, and Beirut. Cilker and her touring band will take the new songs on the road this fall for an extensive run throughout the United States.

“‘'Keep It on a Burner’ is a stream-of-consciousness reflection,” Cilker offers. “Fittingly, I started writing it while floating down the Salmon River on a whitewater rafting trip full of rattlesnakes and wildfire smoke. I think of it as a song about playing the long game and pursuing your heart’s delight, despite life's winding waterways.”

Valley Of Heart’s Delight refers to a place where Cilker can't return: California’s Santa Clara Valley, as it was known before the orchards were paved over and became more famous for Silicon than apricots. She is the fifth generation of her namesake born there, and in this 11-song collection, family and nature intertwine as guiding motifs, at once precious and endangered, beautiful and exhausting. Cilker moved from California to the Pacific Northwest in her mid-twenties and wrote much of Valley Of Heart's Delight while living in Enterprise, Oregon, a small town near the Snake River and powered by the river’s massive, publicly-funded hydroelectric dams. The dams (part of the same system Woody Guthrie was hired to write about) provide clean electricity to much of the western United States but make it extraordinarily difficult for anadromous fish (such as Steelhead Trout) to return from the ocean and spawn in their native streams. Valley Of Heart’s Delight feeds off of this tension - how we live in and off of nature, how we live within and without family, and why we return to the places we were born. Of the forthcoming record, Cilker explains:

“I wrote these songs surrounded by the wild landscapes of the Northwest, but I was leaning toward the place I’d come from. I felt cut off from my family and the valley that held them. I spent hours thinking about my sense of belonging. I’d traveled through many places and then, when the travel stopped, I ruminated on where I had ended up. Where were you when the music stopped? I was in Enterprise, OR. And there in Enterprise, my mind drifted back to the Valley of Heart’s Delight. I wrote about family — about death and rebirth, and the arcs of love and art through a family line. There are songs that hint at missteps and redemption. There are songs about trees: in orchard rows, family trees, redwoods. And water: agricultural runoff, wild rivers, dammed rivers, baptismal flows. And there’s a [cover] song about a fish, cause it’s a damn good song and I wanted to record it.”

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The Ready-Mades - Tumbling Walls (Album).

Many of you know Badasonic from it's many sweet Reggae releases. We think you might enjoy their newest offering something a little different and wonderful!

Recorded on analog tape at the Retromixer studio in Châlons-en-Champagne, France, “Tumbling Walls” blows on the incandescent embers of 60's beat and soul, ignites minds and sets bodies ablaze, brings awareness and a contemporary outlook.

5/5 - "This is dope. Thank you! Love the rawness and the recording style makes this even more beautiful." - Hober Mallow - 2SER 107.3 FM - Sydney, NSW, Australia

"Brilliant update of that groovy 60s French pop sound!!" - Jeffrey Jones - WJOB 88.9 FM - Reserve, WI, USA

5/5 - "Some GROOOVY stuff from this French group! Vintage and yet modern... No synth sounds to be heard!" - Dr. StrangeDub - KFAI-FM 90.3 / 106.7 FM - St. Paul, Minneapolis

"We really like the sound of The Ready-Mades. Ready made for us here at CIUT-FM, Toronto." - Ken Stower - CIUT 89.5 FM - Toronto, ON, Canada

"Loving on this sound. Ready Made for listening." - Mister G - WSUM 91.7 FM - Madison, WI, USA.

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Margo Cilker - Dubmatix - Annie Bartholomew - Madeline Kenney

Margo Cilker - Lowland Trail.

"Lowland Trail" is the first song to be taken from the eagerly anticipated follow-up to her acclaimed debut Pohorylle which Uncut described as "one of the most auspicious debuts of recent times" back in 2021.

The new album "Valley Of Heart’s Delight” is released on September 15th and sees Cilker working with the same team of Sera Cahoone on production duties with John Morgan Askew recording the album at his Bocce Studio just outside Portland, Oregon.

Cilker says of "Lowland Trail": I wrote this song living in a place where a rise in elevation paid off spectacularly.  And I would climb. Yet, I began to crave just placing one foot in front of the other; a more meditative wandering. Less risk, less reward.

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Dubmatix - The Ska Sessions (Volume 1). 

For the past few years I’ve had an idea bubbling around my head - could I create a song a day, and for how long? In December 2022, I decided to test this concept out and see what would happen starting January 2, 2023. As it turns out, a lot of things can happen and this is just one of them - a full-length Ska album. Over the past 20 years, I had never thought about creating a ska album, but sometimes when you dive into fresh waters, your perspective can be altered and new opportunities appear. That is how this all began.

Starting on January 2, I set out to produce an 8-bar song idea each day, which gradually evolved into sharing 30-second videos and eventually creating full-length songs and videos over the first four months. To date, over 125 song ideas have been created so far, choice ones that resonated with me became full-length songs in the ska style. This adventure has garnered a positive response from an enthusiastic audience, particularly in the ska genre, which I love but have not previously produced much music in.

Delving into it headfirst, I built tracks that pay tribute to the originators of the genre and the 2nd wave movement of Two Tone. What began as a bucket list idea has turned into something wonderful that Dubmatix has thoroughly enjoyed sharing with people and connecting with in a new way.

The vocals used in the album are from loop packs since I work fast daily on new music to achieve this goal. Although there needed to be more time to work with singers, I felt it was important to share their names and give them credit as they are unique and well-known and help to bring these songs to life: The Ragga Twins and Dennis Alcapone plus Double Tiger - Jesse.

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Annie Bartholomew - All For The Klondike's Gold.

After nearly a decade of performing in Alaska’s rowdy bar scene, Juneau folksinger Annie Bartholomew became haunted by the stories of sex workers during the 19th century after touring the brothel museum at Skagway’s Red Onion Saloon. This week, Bartholomew shared the new single and music video for “All For the Klondike’s Gold” from her debut album Sisters of White Chapel.

After conversations with her friend, Arkansas songwriter Willi Carlisle, the scope of the project came to include a play and stage show. The result is her debut album Sisters of White Chapel, out June 16. The music accompanies a play that she wrote Sisters of White Chapel: A Short But True Story, which premiered to acclaim in Bartholomew’s hometown of Juneau. The first single will be “Sisters of White Chapel,” referring to the red light district in Dawson City.

“All For the Klondike’s Gold” is accompanied by driving guitar and fiddle, and is sung by women, abandoned by their male companions but now joining together to survive the gold rush. Annie says, “’All For the Klondike’s Gold’ is adapted from a 1901 miner’s poem anonymously published in the Klondike Nugget, that empathizes with women left behind in the Northland due to the deaths of their male companions. These were the tragedies and very real economic realities that made women turn to sex work.”

In contrast to the art created for tourists, Annie envisioned a musical work that would share these omissions of Alaska’s mining past, and embody the stories of women in Victorian-era Alaska. Through archival materials, personal history, and Alaska’s stringband traditions, Bartholomew brings these women to life, extracting the emotional truth of who they were, why they risked everything to follow a gold rush, and their subsequent journeys and misadventures along the way.

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Madeline Kenney - Superficial Conversation.

In the quiet surrounding the pandemic, Madeline Kenney made sonic sketches in the basement studio she shared with her then-partner. She arranged phrases that called her—the sharp knife of a synth cutting a path along a blooming arpeggio, drums stuttering firm and tight. Working this way, she amassed a collection of songs she had no particular aims for. Some formed her 2021 EP Summer Quarter, others languished.

But in 2022, Kenney’s partner left suddenly and without warning, plunging her into the solitary act of untangling what happened. In the wake of her ensuing depression, she revisited these songs and found in them something prescient. She’d already laid the foundation for A New Reality Mind, her fourth LP (due out July 28th via Carpark Records) which she is announcing today with the album's first single "Superficial Conversation," alongside the track's self-directed video.

That her relationship’s end came without warning is only half true, though. The warnings were in the feelings and fears that inspired Kenney’s critically-acclaimed third album, Sucker’s Lunch (2020), which was co-produced by Jenn Wasner (Flock of Dimes) and centered around the idea of flinging oneself freely into the seemingly-assured destruction of new love, come what may. If sonically Sucker’s Lunch was letting yourself be pulled into the warm bath of a good story, A New Reality Mind reflects the harsh light of truth coming to break the spell. But as sobering as morning light can be, there’s brilliance to it, too. To see in the clarity of day is a gift. A revolution.

This is Kenney’s most expansive work, while also her most solitary. Produced and recorded alone in her basement, these songs are manifestations of what it feels like to be transformed by pain. Textures collide and collude; sonic ornaments emerge and dissipate capriciously; saxophones soar untamed. There's a propulsive power in the album, and there’s also acceptance, self-forgiveness, and a willingness to move forward into life, with all its ways of making a sucker of you. “That way of living, I’m over it,” Kenney declares of the habits that hold her back on "Superficial Conversation." “I do not need to be reminded of what I did,” she assures, the song opening wide and beaming, like a smile expanding to taste a new breath of air.

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