Tashaki Miyaki - Livia Blanc - Odd Couple - Emma Ballantine

Tashaki Miyaki - Out Of My Head.

Background - The Los Angeles-based duo Tashaki Miyaki will release their highly anticipated debut album The Dream on April 7 via Metropolis Records. This week the band wrapped up their residency at the Echoplex in LA and now shares the album's third single "Out Of My Head". Here's what the band's Paige Stark said about the track:

"It's a song about wanting to shut off my mind. I suffer from various anxieties and depression that can become exhausting. As John Milton says in Paradise Lost,  'The mind is its own place and in itself, can make a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven.' Musically I wanted it to feel the opposite, soothing and expansive...like a daydream."

Tashaki Miyaki have toured and played festivals across North America, Europe and the UK. The band has also performed at art museums around the world, including The Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona and MoMA, New York.

Tashaki Miyaki has spent the past couple years writing and recording their debut LP, The Dream, produced by Singer/Songwriter/Multi-Instrumentalist Paige Stark and engineered by Dan Horne (Cass McCombs, Allah Las). As a writer for The Fader once observed of the band’s hypnotic sound, “It's so pretty I’m afraid saying anything else might diminish it". Facebook here, Bandcamp here.

'Out Of My Head' is the third track we have had the privilege of sharing this year from Tashaki Miyaki. With the album due out this coming week it's another reminder of what a fabulous collection of songs is in store from the band.

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Livia Blanc - Amour Amour.

Background - Brooklyn-based French artist Livia Blanc releases her debut single ‘Amour Amour’ on Friday, March 31st. 

Swimming in a dreamy sonic world that pulls reference from French icons, Brigitte Bardot and Francoise Hardy, Livia opens her heart in ‘Amour Amour’ singing about pain, gain and seduction in the game of love.

'Amour Amour' is written as a love letter, spoken with simple and disconcerting sincerity and sung in her native French. Love hurts - we have all been there, but no matter how bad it gets, just one kiss and all is forgiven.

‘Amour Amour’ is the first of several releases, scheduled for the first half of 2017 along with several live dates. Facebook here.

She might be based in Brooklyn, however that has done nothing to diminish Livia Blanc's beautiful French pop sensibilities. 'Amour Amour' is full of the imagination and vivacious I associate with female French pop artists going right back to the 1960's. Love it!

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Odd Couple - Am I Evil.

Background - Free from the artificial processing that most rock go through nowadays, and possessed by an attitude many thought was fading from music like a dream in the light of morning, ‘Am I Evil’ is a septic jaunt back to a time when things weren’t so mercilessly sanitised and lobotomised. Dinosaur riffs abound, the likes of which maestros like Jimmy Page or Jack White have dedicated their lives to searching out, and Odd Couple use them to question their unhealthiest and most intrusive thoughts.

Since arriving in Berlin six years ago to a revolving circus of hepcats, drugs, and trendy hangouts, Odd Couple duo Tammo Dehn and Jascha Kreft, (two kindergarten pals from Ostfriesland), still feel out of place. Perhaps it’s typified in their name - an assertion of strange outsiderness, but together the duo weave a kind of art that dredges up the nuggets of rock’s dinosaur past and infuses it with a thoroughgoing modern approach to recording sound. When the duo started working on their debut It’s A Pressure To Meet You, released two years ago, their style was still very much in its embryonic stages. Now for second album Flügge (meaning “independent” or “to spread one’s wings” in German), the band feel like they’re taking another shot at the start. 

Shearing their sultry garage-rock archaisms in favour of a grander, looser, style that takes influence from hip hop and the kosmische musik experimentation of West Germany in the seventies, Flügge is a different beast entirely, and one which Germany, and the wider world, hasn’t heard the likes of yet. A mouthpiece for millennial disaffection, Odd Couple’s new album brims with introspection and self-discovery. It’s a clever dissection of the things making our generation unhappy, and a nod towards the possible solutions in store. Mostly though, it’s a profoundly hard-hitting and deftly-delivered sonic assault that paves the way for a new rock renaissance. Odd Couple are everyman and everywoman, living in these dangerous times with the fear of uncertainty, but hell bent on spreading their wings and soaring high. Website here, Facebook here.

Our second featured track from Odd Couples soon to be released 'Flugge' album is 'Am I Evil'. It's another riff fronted, guitar meets thundering drums track, with the vocals immersed in the mix and adding to the real rock feeling.

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Emma Ballantine - Through Your Eyes.

Background - Emma Ballantine launches full Somebody's Story EP. A project to bring to life true stories from people around the world has been completed today with the release of a new track from British singer songwriter Emma Ballantine.

Through Your Eyes - the fourth and final track from Ballantine's Somebody's Story EP, offers a glimpse of the world as seen by 14 year-old James, who has autism. Based on a story submitted by James' mother Nancy, the song credits James as a co-writer and features samples from his own music, created with Baltimore-based producer and beat-boxer Max Bent.

Released ahead of World Autism Awareness Day (2nd April), the track combines elements of James' track Don't Bore Anyone's Ears with layered synths and subtle backing vocals to create a powerful and expansive soundscape to conclude the four-track record. Emma adds "From the moment I read James' story and heard his music, I knew I had to write a song that captured the wonderful way he sees the world. I hope it challenges preconceptions and shows that perhaps people with autism have a clearer appreciation of things and a deeper wisdom than people without. »

The EP, recorded with Brixton-based producer Moseley, will be released via iTunes, Spotify and other digital platforms, and Ballantine will mark the launch with a performance at The Green Note in Camden, London, on Sunday 9th April. The previous three tracks in the series have brought to life stories including a 7,000 mile journey to Kenya, inspired by love at first sight (Astronaut); a chance encounter in a dive bar in Chicago (Harmonise); and a young girl's determination to move on with her life after a harrowing court case (Secret Tunnel).

The full stories behind the tracks can be found at www.somebodysstory.com. Somebody's Story EP is now available on all digital and streaming services. Website here.

Somebody's Story is a beautiful EP, from which we can share 'Through Your Eyes'. The song has a modern folk feel to it, melodic and gentle and incredibly personal.

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Weekend Wonders: Hollow Everdaze - Tashaki Miyaki - Gayle Skidmore - Kathryn Claire - Henke Wermelin & His New Love - The Man From Managra - The Holiday Crowd

Hollow Everdaze - Catastrophe.

Background - Hollow Everdaze have thrust back into gear for 2017 with new single "Catastrophe", an infectious slice of psychedelic-pop carved from their forthcoming album Cartoons (due for release later this year via Deaf Ambitions). Featuring a rollicking, garage-indebted hook, "Catastrophe" trades swirls of violin present in previous single "Still Ticking" for flourishes of keys and guitar-fuzz -- at times recalling moments of Dutch shoegazer Jacco Gardner.

Drenched in reverbed lushness, Hollow Everdaze have been reimagining psychedelic pop since they began in 2007 by lead vocalist, Dan Baulch and bassist, Jackson Kay in their small town hometown of Bacchus Marsh in Western Victoria.

Having spent the last year working on the release of their debut full length album, recorded by rising Melbourne producer, John Lee (known for his work with Beaches, Lost Animal, The Ocean Party), mastered by David Walker (NUN, Beaches, GOAT, Jen Cloher) at Stepford Audio, and with video and art collaborations from James Thomson, Niv Bavarsky and Micheal Olivo, the band are set to unveil their newest work to the world.

Hollow Everdaze capture the urgency of a band who have traced their own weird, divergent path through the haunted backwoods of songwriting.  It shows through in their stunning debut EP, released in 2013 which received rave reviews from Australia’s most highly respected journalists and earned them support spots for international artists including The War On Drugs (US), Unknown Mortal Orchestra (NZ), and Wavves (US), plus saw them join American Football (US) on their East Coast tour of Australia in 2015. Facebook here.

The is no shortage of bands enjoying psychedelic pop influences from years gone by and Hollow Daze clearly have a knack for this as 'Catastrophe' demonstrates. With that said there is enough of a modern slant and production to give the song a fresh feel.

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Tashaki Miyaki- City.

Background - The Los Angeles-based duo Tashaki Miyaki will release their highly anticipated debut album 'The Dream' on April 7 via Metropolis Records. This week the band shares the album's second single "City."  The cinematic video for the track was directed by Kelsey McNamee. "The song brought to mind the image of a woman who feels disconnected, someone who floats through spaces and life," McNamee explains. "I was inspired by the portrayal of a lonely woman in Barbara Loden's film Wanda and the dynamic in Paper Moon. As well as Los Angeles and the way it can make you feel isolated."

Tashaki Miyaki have toured and played festivals across North America, Europe and the UK. The band has also performed at art museums around the world, including The Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona and MoMA, New York. 

Tashaki Miyaki has spent the past couple years writing and recording their debut LP, The Dream, produced by Singer/Songwriter/Multi-Instrumentalist Paige Stark and engineered by Dan Horne (Cass McCombs, Allah Las). As a writer for The Fader once observed of the band’s hypnotic sound, “It's so pretty I’m afraid saying anything else might diminish it". Facebook here.

Our second feature for Tashaki Miyaki this year with the second single from the soon to be released album.  'City' is a dreamy and lush song with intricate layers of sweeping sound. The video catches the mood and feeling, the album is awaited with interest.

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Gayle Skidmore - Pale Ghosts.

Background - Amsterdam-by way of San Diego, CA-based singer-songwriter Gayle Skidmore is excited to announce the release of her latest full-length, The Golden West.  The album will be available nationally on Friday, April 7, 2017. She'll also be touring in support of the album.  The tour, and the album release, are the culmination of nearly two years of both heartache and mind-clearing revelations.  The Golden West would test her perseverance, but ultimately help her grow as an artist.

"The week before my wedding I was still finishing vocals for the album, which was pretty insane," says Skidmore, discussing The Golden West, her twentieth independent release overall, and her third to feature an adult coloring book with the album, each picture depicting a different song. But, with an impending wedding and a new album on the horizon, Skidmore was able to purge some of her past ghosts and let go of a lot of stuff she was still holding on to.  Throughout the ten-track collection, The Golden West details Skidmore's personal journey to leave the past where it belongs, a journey that took much longer than planned.

"I have spent the last several years touring the country in my tiny car, cramming in up to five instruments just for me, making coloring books, baking cookies, and knitting hats for fans.  I’ve driven to New York and back several times by myself and have had countless adventures.  I was once an opener for a Juggalo show in Buffalo.  I played a house show in a basement in Boise and on the same tour played the EMP museum in Seattle for Ninkasi Brewing’s Ground Control Launch.  Once I drove fourteen hours from Chicago to Denver to play a show and was certain I had poisoned myself with energy drinks.  I’ve slept in my car, been in accidents, been harassed in the South for looking ‘alternative,’ had a few stalkers, and have had all kinds of funny adventures with tour mates.  I’ve opened for my musical heroes, performed in a castle in Denver, toured in Europe, recorded twenty independent releases, and been sponsored by a fantastic brewing company [Ninkasi].  The last few years of performing have been an intense and incredible journey and I can’t wait to see where this new album takes me." Website here, Facebook here, tour details on our tour page.

The first of ten tracks on the album due for release next month, 'Pale Ghosts' is a beautiful song where melodic music and vocals equally seek out your attention. 'The Golden West' drifts into differing moods and styles, the constant reference is refined and beautiful vocals alongside considered and intelligent musical arrangements.

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Kathryn Claire - The Fugue.

Background - Portland, Oregon's Kathryn Claire is gearing up to celebrate the release of her fourth full-length album, Bones Will Last, a ten-track collection of chamber/folk music encompassing her classical music upbringing with her formative folk influences.  With five instrumentals and five vocal tracks, Bones Will Last places Claire’s violin and voice at the forefront of the album.

Claire spent years cultivating her own style and approach to music as a violinist, guitarist, singer, and songwriter.  The result is an album that features arrangements that are sparse, with the lyrics residing confidently in the music; the violin weaving seamlessly through the album, bringing the instrumental and lyrical compositions together.  She will release Bones Will Last nationally on March 24, 2017.

“When I decided to put instrumentals and lyrical songs on the album, I knew finding a cohesive sound could be problematic," admits Claire.  “That interweaving was so profound.  I have played violin on many albums, and have worked as a side person with incredible performers.  Each artist and genre I worked in taught me something.  One of the most important gifts I learned as a side person was how to listen.  When I made this album I applied that gift to myself.  I wanted to capture what I heard in my head with the violin.  I went deep within myself to find those melodic or lyrical lines that I kept hearing.” Facebook here, website here.

'Bones Will Last' is a mixture of  instrumental and vocal tracks evenly split. I thought sharing 'The Fugue' one of the instrumental pieces would give some idea of the musical quality which underpins the entire collection. Kathryn Claire has a very melodic voice ensuring that the entire collection is one of refined quality.

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Henke Wermelin & His New Love - When We Move Back Home.

Background - Swedish americana artist Henke Wermelin dreams of moving out in the countryside and releases the gospel sounding When We Move Back Home as the second single from his forthcoming album Accolades!

When We Move Back Home praises the countryside. A song about yearning to find one’s place in life and strike root. Or to express it as Henke Wermelin puts it in the song itself: “When you walk through towns where people know who you are even if you don’t, that's how it will be when we move back home”.

In the video of the song Wermelin takes help from a psychologist in order to come to terms with his craze and longing for the countryside – of little use however… Is it just an illusion that the countryside is better!? Is it all just a naïve dream that will fall together as a house of cards? Henke Wermelin ignores all of the objections made and sings the lead motive of the song as a mantra and continues his hunt for a rural life.

Henke Wermelin from Gothenburg, Sweden made his debut in 2013 with the album The New Black Is Blue which received fine reviews and was mentioned as rootsy indie, americana and 70s inspired pop. Henke Wermelin performs live with His New Love - a band occasionally including as many as nine musicians! When We Move Back Home is the second single off of forthcoming album Accolades due out later this spring. Facebook here.

I think I might have run out of original things to say regarding Swedish Americana. Perhaps it's a case of stating that once again just how good these artists are at making such fine music and songs this time the case in point is 'When We Move Back Home', or maybe I just say it's Scandinavian Americana, and everyone knows that means very good.

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The Man From Managra - Saviours Of This World.

Background - The Man From Managra is the Athens based Alternative/Folk project of  Greek musician, composer, sound engineer and music producer Coti K. He began his career in the mid-80s and he has played with various bands such as Film Noir, In Trance 95, RAW, Mohammad and as a producer he has worked, among others, with: Raining Pleasure and Tuxedomoon. As a film and theater composer, he has worked with directors such as: Dimitris Papaioannou, Yorgos Lanthimos.

Three years have passed since the release of the first album "The Man From Managra". During this time Coti turned fifty (half a century of life), became a father, haven’t managed to learn surfing yet and continued to write songs, this time with a more extrovert attitude and with an expanded number of guest musicians.

The album was written and recorded over a period of two years (2015, 2016) somewhere between Tinos island and Athens. Besides his close collaborator, Panos Galanis, on drums, the album features: Jim R. White (Dirty Three, Peaches) on drums, Blaine L. Reininger (Tuxedomoon) on viola and vocals, Hristos Lainas on bass and guitar, Rena Rasouli (Venus Volcanism) on vocals, James Whylie and George Avramidis (G.Aggelakas and 100º) on wind instruments.

"The Man came a long time ago from Managra island. It was a small forgotten isle in the backwaters of the Mediterranean, or was it somewhere in the Indian sea? No one seems to remember, or care. Some say a nearby volcanic eruption wiped all traces of the Man's homeland." Website here, Facebook here.

'Saviours Of This World' is taken from the latest album 'Half A Century Sun' and what an album it is.The featured song, is just a small taste of something very special, alt folk at it's finest with original, moving and melodic songs throughout.

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The Holiday Crowd - Cheer Up.

Background - The Holiday Crowd debut second video "Cheer Up" from their current LP "The Holiday Crowd" (Shelflife). Following the debut of the record's first single "Cheer Up," Shelflife is proud to release The Holiday Crowd's self-titled full length -- the sophomore offering from the finest indie-pop band north of the border. The past few years kept the group occupied with various projects ranging from gigs like Berlin Pop Fest in 2012 and a European tour in 2013 to covering Duran Duran's 1981 track "Friends of Mine" for the charity tribute album Making Patterns Rhyme.

Now, at last ready to follow up their debut Over the Bluffs, you'll soon be reminded that The Holiday Crowd is carrying on the jangle-pop torch of the eighties' premier bands better than anybody else. Their new album will be released this fall on limited clear vinyl and classic black vinyl with download code, and won't fail to both win over new fans while making longtime listeners fall only deeper in love.

The Holiday Crowd finds singer Imran Haniff embracing a cool swagger that highlights just how tight the band's songwriting is from cover to cover. Tracks like "Cheer Up" and "Of All Places" feature some of Roberts' most fun and punchy basslines to date, while "Rosy Lies"- which pays clear homage to Johnny Marr -- has some of the most memorable guitar work written on this side of the eighties.

It's rare that a band sounds this comfortable in and in tune with its sound so early in their discography, but upon hearing The Holiday Crowd's origin story it begins to make more sense: "Lead singer Imran Haniff first met Colin Bowers in high school, where a conversation about Colin's Stone Roses t-shirt developed into a strong bonding friendship and songwriting partnership." It seems that from the very inception of the group there was a shared vision for where their sound would explore, and now, six years after the band's formation, it's paying off in the biggest of ways. Facebook here.

A fascinating video deserves at least a good song and 'Cheer Up' goes beyond the call of duty. Distinct vocals and punchy rhythmic music run alongside intriguing lyrics, what else do we need for a song!

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Seven On Saturday: Redspencer - Lio Nicol - Imaginary People - Tashaki Miyaki - King Ropes - The Weeks - Hannah Lou Clark

Redspencer - Ride It Out.

Background - Redspencer shares a new music video for "Ride It Out". Despite only having a four-track EP to their name, Redspencer have already garnered avid praise from the likes of NME, CMJ, Triple J, Indie Shuffle, and Time Out New York with ‘Ride It Out’ included at #14 in their Best Songs of 2015.

The four-piece’s eponymous debut EP is a hark back to the band’s humble beginnings, evoking images of balmy, mid-summer drives along the coast with the windows down. The sunny, reverb-swathed guitar- pop of lead single ‘Happy Slow Riverbends’ captures that image to a tee, rousing comparisons to the likes of Spoon and Real Estate.

With festival appearances at Brisbane’s Big Day Out, By The Meadow, Camp Casual, and Laneway Festival’s annual Live Music Safari – not to mention tour supports with Guantanamo Baywatch, The Preatures and Holy Holy – to their name, Redspencer are soon to be firing on all cylinders as they gear up for the release of their keenly anticipated debut album. Facebook here. Amazon mp3 here.

Our second feature for Redspencer this time with the new music video for 'Ride It Out'. Musically this is a bright yet peaceful indie song with a bags of melody, the video reflects all of this with a retro "days gone by" feel.

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Lio Nicol - 1 (EP).

Background - Lio Nicol is both sage and sass. With honest yet quirky lyrics, she has found a way to reflect her sense of humor while maintaining her grace, setting her apart from other singer-songwriters.

After a few semesters of studying biology at the University of Montana, Nicol left her hometown of Missoula and relocated to California in 2010 to pursue a career in music. A talented pianist and guitarist, Lio Nicol has found her greatest passion lies within songwriting. Inspired by the legendary Diane Warren, Nicol’s songwriting is a reflection of her thoughts, heartbreak, and love. Her powerhouse vocals and catchy indie-pop melodies have led to her being describes as an early Mariah Carey meets Florence and The Machine.

Lio Nicol has toured and recorded with some of the industry’s top musicians as well as Grammy award-winning producers. She has performed all over North America in a variety of concerts including the Dragon Boat Festival, Durango Expo, House of Blues San Diego, The Mint in Los Angeles and many others. Music fans have recognized her 4-octave range and impressive stage presence and continue to come back to her shows again and again. Website here, Facebook here. Buy EP here.

The new EP simply called '1' features four tracks. We featured the fourth song (Blame) back in early November last year describing the track as "pristine indie pop". Well with another three songs making up the EP, I personally think that was a fair enough observation, with even more variety and style to enjoy.

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Imaginary People - Mr Hesitance.

Background - Imaginary People shares "Mr. Hesitance," a song about an incompetent politician. Following 2014’s critically acclaimed opening volley EP, composed of espionage-themed singles, and their 2015 politically tinged full-length debut Dead Letterbox,  New York’s Imaginary People return with their second full-length release, entitled October Alice, due in April 2017. The album was again produced by Kevin McMahon (Swans, Titus Andronicus, Real Estate), reprising his role from their debut LP.

The band swings for the fences on their sophomore LP, recorded in a barn in upstate NY, via a grittier approach, with an eerie, reverb-laden wall of sound abundant throughout, cannily crafted via the use of a second drum kit inside a silo. It mirrors the morbid subject manner of the album, easily their most disarmingly personal material to date. Imaginary People is Dylan Von Wagner (vocals), Mark Roth (guitar), Justin Repasky (keys), Kolby Wade (drums) and Bryan Percivall (bass). Facebook here.

Once again Imaginary People combine musical power and passionate committed vocals and arrive with so much more. 'Mr Hesitance' is our second song feature for the band and again they impress. Time to check out their back catalogue!

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Tashaki Miyaki - Girls on T.V.

Background - The Los Angeles-based duo Tashaki Miyaki will release their highly anticipated debut album 'The Dream' on April 7 via Metropolis Records. This week the band shares the first taste of the upcoming release with the single "Girls On T.V." "This track emerged out of observing fame culture," Paige Stark explains. "Things like the emergence of reality TV stardom and social media celebrity have elevated fame culture to a new sphere. We are living in Andy Warhol meets Orwellian vision of the future and I find it terrifying. It's all about "likes" and numbers and now our country is being run by a monster who was created by this very machine. The title is playing on the perspective I'm singing from a media brainwashed girl that only wants to be famous like the girls on tv."

The band was born out of a late night jam session in early 2011, when local legend Joel Jerome recorded what would become the band's first original song, "Somethin' is Better Than Nothin" and a cover of the Everly Brothers' classic, "All I have to do is Dream." Within a few weeks of posting the songs to Bandcamp, the band was invited to London where they played their first ever live show to a packed crowd at the legendary 100 Club.

Tashaki Miyaki has spent the past couple years writing and recording their debut LP, The Dream, produced by Singer/Songwriter/Multi-Instrumentalist Paige Stark and engineered by Dan Horne (Cass McCombs, Allah Las). As a writer for The Fader once observed of the band’s hypnotic sound, “It's so pretty I’m afraid saying anything else might diminish it". Bandcamp here, Facebook here. Pre order album here.

'Girls on T.V.' is a multi layered song that is steeped in richness. With melodic chord changes and a powerful soundtrack, the vocals are kept up enough in the mix to add further feeling to the piece.

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King Ropes - Dirt.

Background - On King Ropes' debut album Dirt, frontman/guitarist Dave Hollier writes deeply expressive songs rooted in the highs and lows of human experience.  Layered with sonic textures and melodic hooks, these songs resonate with hard-won insight and timeless emotional struggles while reflecting life's beauty, terror and complexity.

King Ropes—the name is borrowed from a Wyoming saddlery store, generates musical and emotional fireworks throughout Dirt, with such insistent tunes as "Dogleg Boy," "Lurch on Sister," "International Shortwave" and "Shovel and a Pickaxe" exemplifying Hollier's vivid songwriting and the band's infectious punch, maintaining a gritty, organic vibe that underlines the album's title.

"After years of working with my hands, I was at a place in my life with a severe lack of dirt under my fingernails," Hollier explains.  "So I guess that calling it Dirt is a bit of an incantation, hoping to attract more of it back into my life.  Musically, I felt pretty strongly about balancing out the pretty, sweet elements with the raw, gritty stuff, both in the sounds and the lyrics." Website here, Facebook here. Amazon mp3 (album) here.

The debut album 'Dirt' comprises of ten creative and varied songs. The band pack plenty of natural feeling into their music, whilst taking their core sound in a variety of directions. Sometimes full on rockers, occasionally softer and reflective, they are always consistent in imaginative song writing. A very fine album.

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The Weeks - Talk Like That.

Background - 'Easy', the highly anticipated new album from rising Nashville-via-Mississippi band The Weeks, is set for release April 7th on Lightning Rod Records. The new video for “Talk Like That,” the album’s first track, debuts today featuring live footage shot entirely by the band’s own drummer, Cain Barnes.

The Weeks recorded 'Easy' over the course of two weeks at Memphis, TN’s Ardent Studios with producer Paul Ebersold. The band left Nashville to record in order to disassociate themselves from their everyday routines in the city, and to find a halfway point between their two homes old and new, Mississippi and Nashville. "Memphis has always been the capitol of North Mississippi to us", says guitarist Sam Williams. "We went there to be at Ardent. We knew Paul had learned everything from John Frye and John Hammond so we figured that was the spot. It’s important to keep those historic studios alive and not let them become museums."

Of the record, frontman Cyle Barnes says, "We called it Easy because every time I make music with these guys, it’s easy. It feels good. But the other side of it is there’s nothing easy about being in a band. There’s nothing easy about staying together for ten years and still wanting to make music. We have the hardest and easiest job on the planet. But it works for us." Thematically, Easy explores new ground for the band. Bassist Damien Bone explains, "We just wanted to make a rock record. We weren’t as concerned making it a southern rock record. The southern thing is always going to part of what we do." Pre-order here, Website here, Facebook here. Talk Like That mp3 here.

'Talk Like That' is a punchy, full on rocker, with powerful vocals supported by some feisty musicians who clearly want their share in matters. The video kind of underlines all of this, and with some good old rock'n'roll hooks thrown in, I cannot help but like the song.

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Hannah Lou Clark - Don't Sweat It.

Background - Hannah Lou Clark has announced her brand new EP ‘The Heart And All Its Sin’ will be released through Quatre Femmes Records / PIAS on March 24th. Hannah has also unveiled the first single, ‘Don’t Sweat It’, which was premiered on Huw Stephen’s BBC Radio 1 show. 

‘The Heart And All Its Sin’ has been mixed and co-produced by Tarek Musa from Spring King and is a collection of songs exploring the complexities of love and loss. Hannah has laid her soul bare in these songs in a way that others would never do.‘Don’t Sweat It’ bravely addresses the yearnings of the heart in times of turmoil; with lines like “champagne takes the edge off me” she can see that whilst giving into our vices can’t help the heart heal, it can be a welcome distraction.

Recorded in Urchin Studios, ‘The Heart And All Its Sin’, focus has been on giving space to the guitar, creating emotion and drama by exercising restraint. With the encouragement of Tarek and appreciation of artists such as Steve Reich, Hannah has also developed the drum machine side of things, creating her own loops from a variety of recorded sounds.

‘The Heart And All Its Sin’ points to a painful understanding of what drives and degrades real love. Having shared stages in 2016 with the likes of Ezra Furman, Thurston Moore and Gaz Coombes as well as headlining her own tours, Hannah Lou Clark is excited to announce details of her 2017 tour (see our tour page). Facebook here. Amazon mp3 here.

Hannah Lou Clark is another artist receiving a second feature on Beehive Candy this time with the new song 'Don't Sweat It'. Guitars and vocals both pack plenty of energy, each teasing out some more hooks and melody.

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