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Fatmowf created an odyssey of romantically die-hard soul-pop fantasy with ‘Imaginary Lover’

Posted on 3 August 2023

Get lost in the romantically die-hard soul-pop odyssey, Imaginary Lover, from the up-and-coming San Diego artist Fatmowf, who established himself as a rap artist before wearing his heart on his hazy RnB vocal lines in this pastel-hued daydream of a release.

Just as we constructed imaginary friends in childhood, who helped us to feel more assured and connected in an alienating world, the tendency to create idealised romantic relationships as our needs become more amorous is more prevalent than we acknowledge.

Who can truly say that the mere idea of someone has never created an obsessive tailspin that becomes all-consuming as a perfect future is depicted while the other person is completely unaware that they’re the co-creator of your sticky-sweet fantasies that will never materialise?

We’ve all been there, and we’ve all dealt with the subsequent disappointment when we note the disparity between idealism and realism. Fatmowf is just in the minority of people willing to admit it. The breezy indie R&B euphonic melodicism of the track is just the added bonus to his vulnerably magnetic candour. Ironically, we are now obsessed.

In his own words:

“I made the song after I met this girl at Starbucks. I got her phone number and started daydreaming about her…. a lot. Probably way too fucking much to be honest. But I did. And the crazy part was I barely even knew her! I knew her name, what she did for work (obviously) and the fact that she likes cats. She could have been a serial killer for all I knew but I was so attracted to her. Wrong, I was attracted to the idea of her, and the person I wanted her to be…”

Check out the official video for Imaginary Lover, which premiered on July 7th on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Abyssal Voyage arrived as juggernauts in the hardcore scene with their debut single, Time

Posted on 16 July 2023

The Floridian experimental outfit, Abyssal Voyage, arrived as juggernauts in the hardcore scene with their debut single, Time. The short but by no means sweet hit pays homage to the hardcore pioneers Agnostic Front and Minor Threat; to punctuate the aggressive blast beats, gnarled riffs guttural vocals, there are punchy pop-punk-esque choruses, which goes to show how versatile and committed to authenticity the up-and-coming four-piece is.

With the promise of more catchily hard-hitting singles to come, the future looks promising for the synergistically tight outfit, which comprises Andres Ruiz, Colten “Verb” Snyder, Cory Schubert, Dylan “Dyl-Pick” Rimart, and Todd Shown.

If the recorded material hits as hard as their debut single, fans may end up leaving the venue in a stretcher after experiencing Abyssal Voyage live.

Watch the official music video for Time by heading over to YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Go down the rabbit hole with Observe the 93rd’s histrionic alt-rock anthem, Mad as a Hatter

Posted on 2 June 2023

Observe the 93rd created the ultimate contender for the histrionic alt-rock anthem of the year with their latest single, Mad as a Matter. If you could imagine what it would sound like if Highly Suspect veered into the spooky symphonic cabaret arena, you’ll get an idea of what you are in for when you hit play, but bank on getting more than you bargained for with this maniacally exhilarant hit.

With whirling dervish-esque symphonic keys contorting into gyrating progressions and the industrial rock descent into deeper obscurity, Mad as a Hatter takes a common trope and stretches it out on a tightrope of experimental innovation. The syncopated pseudo-trap hit will be hit with fans of Tallah, Wage War, Stolen Babies, Fable Cry, Poppy, and Schoolyard Heroes.

Mad as a Hatter is as un-archetypal as tracks get, which makes it all the more impressive that Observe the 93rd effortlessly implanted earwormy choruses. So far in their career, they’ve been voted Best Alternative Rock Band and Best Male Vocalist at the Central Pennsylvania Music Awards in 2021. And they’ve supported Three Days Grace, Stone Temple Pilots, Seether, Puddle of Mudd, Drowning Pool, Saliva, Joyous Wolf, From Ashes to New, and P.O.D.

Stream the official music video for Mad as a Hatter on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Mikey Vee invites you inside the mind of ‘The Artist’ with his visionary rap track.

Posted on 25 May 2023

If you have ever wondered what it is like inside the mind of an artist, the latest single, The Artist, from the hip-hop luminary, Mikey Vee, will fill you in on the struggle behind the success.

By touching on complicated relationships with perfectionism, the flow states that allow hours to slip by like seconds, and the essentiality of egos, it is safe to say that Mikey Vee hit all the right notes and painted with all the right strokes in his uninhibitedly candid rap track, which pulls in melodic guitars to amplify the rhythm of the 808s.

With a touch of playful zeal to his rap bars, it is all too easy to get on the hook of The Artist. Forgetting about the urban earworm is another thing entirely.

The official music video for The Artist premiered on May 12; catch it on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Pop-Punk trailblazer, Brooklyn Belton, unveiled the ultimate adversity aftercare anthem, Just Fine

Posted on 27 April 2023

Starting with an instant hook that sounds like it came straight out of the Bowling for Soup arsenal, the debut single, Just Fine, from the Ohio pop-punk trailblazer, Brooklyn Belton, effortlessly became one of our favourite alt-rock earworms of 2023 so far.

With an instrumental arrangement so tight it is practically corseted, Brooklyn Belton polished the punk rock genre with her anthemic slice of stellar songwriting, which won’t fail to leave you galvanised for the way the exhilarant guitars wrap around her lyrics that compel you to pick yourself up, dust yourself off and deal with the cards of adversity your autonomy has dealt you.

When the chorus comes around, you’ll lose yourselves in the euphoric energy while simultaneously finding yourself in the candid introspection that perceptibly oozes from the wounds of a personal battle.

Just Fine hit the airwaves on April 14. Check it out on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Nethermead delivered darkwave decadence in his latest alt-pop hit, Bodysnatcher

Posted on 22 April 2023

Sam Smith’s music video for I’m Not Here to Make Friends has nothing on the latest filmic masterpiece from the alt-electro-pop artist, Nethermead; neither does Eyes Wide Shut, for that matter. The baroquely fetishistic aesthetics in Bodysnatcher amplify the tribally entrancing rhythmics of the track that makes a serpentine meal of carnal pleasure.

South Louisiana has spawned innumerable southern gothic icons, but few pertain the same scintillating allure of the artist and producer who genre-bends industrial, darkwave and alt-pop to set salacious scores that have never been settled before. If you want to empower your libido while feeling the sharp hooks of a catchy chorus, hit play and never look back. Closer by Nine Inch Nails may go down as one of the sexiest singles in history, but Bodysnatcher is hot on its lascivious heels.

The official video for Bodysnatcher is now available to stream on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Spotlight Feature: Slip into the indie synth-pop sanctum of Aquarium Drinker’s reflectively melodic single, By Design

Posted on 24 February 2023
https://.youtube.com/watch?v=Cf0WRBEbE94&feature=youtu.be

Finding the synthesised middle ground between Alan Vega and Beach House, the up and coming Seattle-based alt-pop artist Aquarium Drinker created a sentimental synth pop haven with their latest single, By Design, which is due for release on February 24th.

After the strobing synths in the prelude feed the euphonic energy, the indie singer-songwriter introduces his quiescently deadpan vocals. Despite their laidback attitude, it is all too easy to connect with the soul of the reflectively poignant release, which ponders how much control we have over our lives and how much was brandished on a blueprint from our first breath.

By Design is beyond anything we have ever heard before. Yet, through the resonant intimacy, few soundscapes we have heard this year are satisfyingly sweeter.

Here’s what Aquarium Drinker had to say about his latest single:

“Many of my songs, like this one, are about being disappointed in others. The sole theme of By Design is on the points of contention in a relationship with one of my exes. We had differing opinions about a political issue; I couldn’t bring him into my frame of mind because that is how he was raised to think… By Design.”

Stream the official music video for By Design by heading over to YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

NY’s JShell teamed up with rock royalty for his post-punk spliced hit, Haunted

Posted on 25 January 2023

To kick off 2023, rock-inclined NY multi-instrumentalist, JShell, will be releasing 15 music videos in 30 days from his hotly anticipated audio and visual album, IN MY HEAD, featuring members of rock royalty, including Steve Hackett (Genesis) and Katie Jacoby (The Who).

We were lucky enough to get a sneak preview of Haunted, featuring Karen Abrams, Fernando Chirinos, and Sofie Jane. The single starts with a dramatically suspenseful horror score before giving way to the gravelly post-punk basslines and vocals that flow in the same biting vein of PIL and Magazine to bring in a nuclear explosion of rock.

The female vocals bring a shot to the heart of Joan Jett glamour before the maniacal riffs extend the progressive nature of the hit that throws curveball after curveball. It’s not rock n roll as you have known it before, but anyone with an affinity for experimental rock will want to get acquainted with this riotous feat of ingenuity.

The official video for Haunted will premiere on January 25th. Catch it on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

solos has unveiled his innocently sweet star-crossed indie-pop single, only mine

Posted on 17 January 2023

Recently, there has been a lot of demonising rhetoric about people crushing on their friends; the up-and-coming Boston-based artist and producer, solos, proved that it is completely possible to respect the friend you want to go further with through his single, only mine.

The melodic indie-pop single that pushes the accordance from the acoustic guitars to the front of the mix is an extension of resonance to everyone who finds themselves lamenting over the lack of mutual attraction but maintaining gratitude for the friendship.

The ornately mellow short and sweet track, complemented by the music video, is one of the purest things you will see and hear all year. His crystal-clear RnB-tinged pop harmonies against the mellifluous flow of the instrumentals are wholesomely transcendent.

The official video for only mine premiered on January 13th; watch it yourself on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

LUCID LIP unveiled their end of the beginning smoky alt-rock odyssey ‘Room to Grow’

Posted on 1 January 2023

We couldn’t get enough of LUCID LIP’s soulfully seminal single, Who Would Notice? Hearing they are back on era and genre-amalgamating form in their single, Room to Grow, was a rare reason for exhilaration in the age they lament in this timely, smoky, synth-driven hit.

Horror films have made us accustomed to the odd ghosts dotted around a creepy building. The NYC outfit explored the infinitely more tangible phenomenon of nothing being left in our sightline but phantasms of everything and everyone that has given up the ghost in “the end of the beginning”.

It is as isolated and lonely as Bowie’s Space Oddity. But the feeling of estranged detachment needn’t be miles from the earth’s surface when life on earth has almost turned into a paranormal investigation as we look back on everything that these torrid times have torn away from us.

Still pertaining to some of the beauty of the world that we seem hell-bent to obliterate as the bombs drop, the forests burn, and tensions run high, the humanistically pure single becomes infinitely more evocative.

For anyone who finds it hard to express their deep, dark sadness for the collective state of the world. Or anyone with no one left to confide these complex feelings in, Room to Grow is an essential hit that is sure to inspire a few cathartic tears. I know I shed a few.

Room to Grow will officially release on January 1st. You won’t want to miss it. Stream it on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Music.

Follow LUCID LIP on Instagram and Facebook.

Review by Amelia Vandergast