Alfonse – After the Wave
‘After the Wave’ is a delicious new track by the Bristol-based electronic artist Alfonse. It has a pulsating bass, alluring vocals, old school synth sounds, and robot voices. It’s groovy, upbeat, and the build-up makes for a very satisfying listener journey. Alfonse loves vintage home instruments; in this case he built the track using a Korg Microkorg and Roland 909 drums, expertly using the Korg’s vocoder. ‘After the Wave’ is retro with hints of Giorgio Moroder, while at the same time new and uniquely Alfonse.
Catherine Ashby – Now
Catherine Ashby’s ‘Now’ is a stunning, ethereal track with inspired production choices. Her vocals dive deep in the verses, where her singing feels like a free flow of air on the lowest notes, akin to a wind instrument. Her distant vocals in the chorus sound angelic. Like a mantra, its elegant, repeated melody gives the song a meditative quality, enhanced by the wooden flute. ‘Now’ describes someone’s calming presence, and evokes images of nature and the sea, as the sun gently sets on a calm summer evening.
Caragh – Sky Goddess
A beautifully crafted song, Caragh’s ‘Sky Goddess’ has an elegant melody, a satisfying turn of chords reminiscent of Radiohead, and pristine, delicate vocals. Taken from Caragh’s forthcoming album ‘Pieces of Me’, which documents her journey to motherhood, she calls on the Sky Goddess for help. Perhaps referring to the Egyptian deity Hathor or the Greek Hera, who are associated with the sky and fertility. Evoking an alternative cultural context where the deity is female, ‘Sky Goddess’ is a subtle pop track with a captivating, mysterious quality.
Little Hands of Silver – Daylight Savings Time & Dick Sledge
The Glaswegian alternative rock band Little Hands of Silver have an energetic, raging live sound that is perfectly captured on their new twin singles ‘Daylight Savings Time’ and ‘Dick Sledge.’ They righteously take on the xenophobia, blatant greed, and suppression of the common people enacted by the UK government. With coarse and twisted screams, vicious guitars, and heavy drums and bass, the band sounds like a well-oiled machine that mows down everything in its way. They sound so good, it’s surprising that they’re not better known. Check them out, especially if you’re into bands like Soundgarden and Audioslave.
Megan Black – Mother. Sister. Lover.
Charismatic and vibrant, Edinburgh-based Megan Black is a rock star on her way to making it big. Her new single, ‘Mother. Sister. Lover.’ sounds like it stems from 1970s blues rock, like an edgier Fleetwood Mack, but with lyrics that tackle contemporary topics from a female perspective. Megan’s message: we may have been raised in a patriarchal society that taught women to compete with other women, but we’re stronger together. We couldn’t agree more!