Mear - Tom Jenkins - Charm Of Finches - Charlotte Rose Benjamin

Photo - Jen Squires

Mear - I'll Love You.

Mear is an indie pop collaboration between singer-songwriter Frances Miller and electronic composer Greg Harrison. Together, their music combines catchy melodies and poignant lyrics with their shared love of experimental music. Their  debut LP Soft Chains was released on Friday. 

"I'll Love You," tells a make-believe story about a breakup during the apocalypse. The song itself is meant to take on a cinematic feel. Miller was inspired by blockbusters like Armageddon and Titanic. The idea of leaving someone you love behind, the idea of heroes, and the sacrifice that people make for others left a weirdly profound impact on her.

We wanted this song to take listeners on an emotional journey. The song has three distinct sections which could be best interpreted as Anticipation, Storm/Conflict, Loss/ Mourning. We also wanted to leave space for the music to tell a story when the lyrics are absent, which allowed us to emphasize the moods of these sections. – Greg Harrison

Soft Chains was self-produced and recorded in Harrison's home studio in Toronto and was a result of the band being able to experiment and explore their sound over the years. There is a prominent theme of personal struggle and growth with mental health. Mear's shared experiences allowed them to pour everything they had to offer into these songs.

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Tom Jenkins - Magic Mushroom Island.

Following his recent signing to Xtra Mile Recordings, ex-Straight Lines frontman Tom Jenkins has unveiled an anthemic new single that veers towards fresh sonic territory. Straying slightly from his acoustic folk-tinged roots, “Magic Mushroom Island” is an exhilarating new cut with larger-than-life instrumentals and an exultant earworm chorus. Building to an electric crescendo with roiling riffs and a colossal guitar breakdown that nods to the legendary works of Led Zeppelin, Jenkins is also joined at the track’s climax by esteemed Motorhead guitarist Phil Campbell.

Where previous single “Back Roads” was a softly simmering country-tinged track that paid homage to Jenkins’ affinity for agriculture, “Magic Mushroom Island” bubbles over with blistering vocals and rip-roaring riffs. Buoyant and broiling in equal measure, the track’s influences are as multifarious as its sound, with everything from cult Leonardo DiCaprio film ‘The Beach’ to hallucinogen-hungry university students and iconic rock artists of old cited as influences.

Speaking on the story behind the single, Tom explains: “When writing the new album I wanted to slightly break the singer-songwriter mould and go against the indie-folk sound of my first album. “Magic Mushroom Island” draws influences from some of my favourite rock bands, such as Fugazi, Silverchair and Manic Street Preachers.

Lyrically, the song is a celebration of strangers in the depth of lockdown. I had not left my farm in the hills of the South Wales Valleys or seen a soul for weeks, until a number of random people started showing up and scouring the fields. Apparently word was getting around a local uni that our fields were rich in Magic Mushrooms and it was quite the hot spot. It reminded me of the film ‘The Beach’ which influenced the title. This random occurrence did bring much joy and laughter with strangers to a somewhat lonely time.”

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Charm Of Finches - River.

Ahead of their first-ever UK headline tour - Charm Of Finches - are releasing a spine-tingling rendition of Joni Mitchell’s classic single: “River”. Nodding to one of the natural world’s most beautiful and life-nurturing features, the release of “River” coincided with this year’s Earth Day.

Adorned with the hymnal vocal harmonies and spacious arrangements that define the duo’s trademark sound, Charm of Finches conjure a breathtaking version that showcases the band’s singular talents, while also paying fitting homage to one of the all time songwriting greats.

Initially recorded as an exclusive for their Patrons last year, the track is now being made available as part of an upcoming acoustic EP entitled ‘Bluest Colour’, which will feature a mixture of covers and alternative versions of previously released tracks. Full release details will be revealed in due course. 

Speaking about the choice of cover, Mabel and Ivy Windred-Wornes say: “We’ve been listening to a lot of the artists from Laurel Canyon and that era for a secret project we are working on. We’ve loved diving into the lyricism of Joni Mitchell, and felt an immediate affinity with the lyrics “I wish I had a river so long, I would teach my feet to fly” - we have had itchy feet to travel with our music since forever, and now, with our UK/Europe tour finally upon us, we get to fly… Our song “Canyon” carries the same longing to leap into the unknown, to get going on an adventure. ”

 

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Charlotte Rose Benjamin - Louis.

Brooklyn-based artist Charlotte Rose Benjamin self-released her debut album Dreamtina. Taking influence from the likes of Liz Phair, Sheryl Crow and Courtney Barnett, Benjamin pairs roaring guitars with blunt and honest lyrics about love and heartache and the blurred line in between. Benjamin has also released a music video for her single “Louis.”

“My straight male friend had this running joke where he would refer to hot neighborhood girls as ‘Tina’s,’” says Benjamin, explaining the inspiration behind the album’s title. “‘Coffeeshop-Tina’ was the cute girl who worked at the coffee shop, a  girl literally riding by on a bike was ‘BLT (Bike Lane Tina).’ ‘Dream-Tina’ obviously meant dream girl,'' she continues. “The ‘Dreamtina’ concept is kind of a study on wanting  to be desirable. I’ve never felt like the cool girl at the party and as far as I’m concerned, romantic love is the most important and exciting thing in the entire  world. I still feel like a teenager in that way.”

For her debut album, Benjamin chose to go without a label, which, she says, “is an amazing amount of work and money, but I made absolutely no compromises and I’m  prouder of it than anything I’ve ever done before.” Self produced alongside her bandmates, Nardo Ochoa, Matti Dunietz and Zoe Zeeman, the album was funded by Benjamin’s day-job working as a model in New York. Under the Radar broke the news of the album in February, premiering the pyromaniac-puppet-show video for her song “Satisfied,” calling the song “an irresistible power pop hook, paired with instantly quotable lyrics.” 

Vanyaland reviewed her single “Slot Machine,” simply calling it “a catchy ass song.” The album’s singles have received praise from Clout Magazine, God Is In The TV, We All Want Someone to Shout For and more. Early singles “deep cut” and “Cumbie’s Parking Lot” were released last year and spent more than 10 weeks featured on Spotify’s Fresh Finds: Indie playlist. Most recently, Benjamin played alongside Japanese Breakfast and Weyes Blood as part of The Unfinished Fest at SXSW.

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Amelie Tobien - Ben Sures - Flamango Bay - Pillow Queens - Mear

Amelie Tobien - Ocean Girl 

Untie the knot, set sail, run away - that's her plan. If it weren't for that hand that keeps pulling the rope back ... In her indie pop anthem ‘Ocean Girl’, gently kissed by melancholy, the modern Trobairitz Amelie Tobien sings about life jackets that are too tight and lifts anchors to the surface, entangled in seaweed. Ropes get cut like umbilical cords and the compass needle is poled to freedom, the longing for emancipation breaks through Amelie's lines like cold rays of sunshine between clouds. 

‘You can't come with me,’ she says, and yet she pulls us into a sensitive river full of interpersonal flotsam. A gentle ‘... this time’ adorns the horizon as a ray of hope without sinking into false promises. With ‘Ocean Girl’ Amelie Tobien presents a gentle ballad about letting go. 

The singer-songwriter Amelie Tobien, born and raised in the mountains of Salzburg, developed her artistic work in the wine regions of Bordeaux and perfected her inimitable voice after work in Dublin's whiskey-soaked bars. After her debut album ‘We Aimed for the Stars’, Amelie Tobien is now targeting the seven seas with her single ‘Ocean Girl’, which will be released on January 21st.

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Ben Sures - Cry Like A Flood.

is a storyteller. On his poignant, natural-sounding acoustic tenth album, The Story That Lived Here, the Edmonton-based songwriter, guitarist, and author sings stories told to him by friends and fans. Songs about library ladies, yard sales and dive bars, accidents and grieving; and – because we’re living through a pandemic still – at least one song about the end of the world.

Sures’ 25-year-deep catalogue is eclectic, spanning folk, country, jazz and rock’n’roll, and borrowing from blues, Sinti swing and West African guitar. But The Story That Lived Here, recorded mostly live in Victoria, BC, with old friends Richard Moody (viola, violin, mandolin and vocals) and Scott White (upright bass), and with Rebecca Campbell adding backup vocals and percussion remotely from Toronto, is a satisfyingly cohesive and tender North Americana-tinged album with a steady heartbeat. It’s the perfect accompaniment for Sures’ funny, honest, quirkily wise and wistful tunes.

“In case it’s the end of the world, I’m gonna have a cinnamon bun…” Sures quips to kick the record off, addressing a universal desire for comfort going hand in hand with a newfound vulnerability. In “Before We Had Sarah” a couple with grown kids try to romantically reconnect (though they live in the same house); while “Boring People” is perhaps the most sparse, evocative performance of Sures’ career to date. Nearly every song on The Story That Lived Here has a strong, tender, sing-along-able chorus, including “Cry Like A Flood,” which is Kat Goldman’s story of a music career interrupted; and “No One Will Remember You,” which conjures cover bar culture.

Two of the songs on The Story That Lived Here are inspired by Sures’ relationship with his father, ceramic artist Jack Sures, who passed away in 2018 and who the album is dedicated to (along with Mitch Pololak, Michael Laderoute, and Thérèse Duffy). “We put so much stock into people at the end of their life,” Sures says about the title track. “What was the last thing they said? The person is often on the wickedest cocktail of their life and they don’t know where they are. The meaningful time is the life.” In “Father’s Shoes” Sures paints a portrait of his relationship with his father and finds an apt metaphor for grieving that could apply equally as well to his music: “They’re a funny combination of neon green and blues,” he sings. The shoe fits.

Ben Sures · Cry Like A Flood

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Flamango Bay - LA.

Flamango Bay have today announced details of their debut EP 'The Fool', set to be released on 13th May via 0800-MOSHI-MOSHI. To celebrate, they share new single 'LA', which was written shortly before moving to the eponymous city.

"Because of life circumstances and the pandemic, we really romanticized moving to LA," say the band, who are originally from the Bay Area of San Francisco. "We put a lot of expectations on the city to fix our internal problems. However, when we actually moved there, we were still the same people with the same problems."

"Musically, the song is inspired by pop artists like Harry Styles, Lady Gaga and indie acts like Surf Curse, and probably anything off the Spotify Surf Rock Sunshine playlist."

Speaking about the 'LA' video, the band said: "we came up with a storyline loosely based around this drive from the Bay Area to Los Angeles, a journey we've been doing a lot recently."

"Ligaya Chinn (the protagonist) is moving to LA, and along the way gets a mysterious invitation to a party. Once she gets to LA, she meets up with us (Flamango Bay) and, after taking in some iconic Los Angeles sights, she goes to the party. At first it's fun, but when she goes to get water, she realises everything is not what it seems. The video ends with an ominous yet silly tone, representative of our feelings towards living in LA."

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Pillow Queens - Be By Your Side.

Dublin's Pillow Queens had been quietly building momentum on their side of the Atlantic since the release of their 2017 debut EP Calm Girls. Selling out shows in their native Ireland, supporting artists like IDLES, Pussy Riot and Future Islands, and earning enthusiastic support in the UK before they independently released their 2020 LP In Waiting. 

The album was a major breakthrough for the band, earning them praise from outlets like The Guardian, who called them "2020's most exciting indie rockers," NPR, NME, DIY, and The Line of Best Fit, a Band To Watch feature from Stereogum, an Irish Album of The Year nomination, and most remarkably of all a US national television appearance on the Late Late Show w/ James Corden.

The band are returning to announce their sophomore LP Leave The Light On, which is due out April 1st on Royal Mountain Records, and sharing the first single from the new album, a track called "Be By Your Side".

"This song is about the mechanisms that are used to hide your vulnerabilities and carry on," explains singer/bassist Pamela Connolly. "But also, the feeling of being about to burst and how cathartic it could be to allow yourself to let your emotions out and feel the world around you. This was one of the first songs we finished on the album as it was the quickest to become fully realized by all of us."

The album announcement coincides with the announcement of the band's first North American tour, which will include a stop at SXSW before the band return to the UK in May and their native Ireland in October. Full details can be found below.

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Photo - Jen Squires

Mear - The Order.

From Frances Grace Miller of Mear: In 2014, I lost the ability to do a lot of things I'd previously taken for granted. 

I wrote "The Order" during my early experiences living with a post-viral chronic illness, at a time when I was grieving the loss of my health.

I found I couldn't read for more than a few minutes a day and a short walk around the block could leave me bedridden. "The Order" was an attempt to voice some of the pain and loneliness of that; of not understanding what was happening to me. This single is from our upcoming full-length album, which will be released on April 22nd.

Being diagnosed with a chronic illness is often a long and painful journey full of misdiagnosis and gaslighting, "when nothing's right and nothing's wrong." The song's title is a reference to the loss of control that comes with no longer being able to count on your body.

Mear · The Order

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