Browsing Tag

UK Indie

Backyard Casino – Silver Tongue: UK Indie Rock Got Its Bite Back

Posted on 26 August 2022
Backyard Casino

Since their 2019 debut, Backyard Casino has been lauded for bringing their infamous live energy to their boisterously relatable indie rock releases; their latest single, Silver Tongue, due for release on August 26th, is no exception.

The cagey post-punk-tinged hit comes complete with Pete Doherty-Esque swaggy vocals and popping angular indie guitar melodies that pull their weight when crafting the hooks that take the anthemic energy to the nth degree.

If any new up-and-coming act has what it takes to rock a main stage festival crowd with turbulence last seen in the 90s, it is this indie powerhouse with their sneeringly clever lyricism, loveably rogue vocals and tight instrumentals. Get them on your radar.

Check out Backyard Casino on Facebook and Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Horatio James – they will have us: lo-fi indie just got infinitely sweeter

Posted on 5 August 2022

If you poured some sugar on Pavement or Dinosaur Jr, the result would be just as sweet as the latest single, they will have us, released by Horatio James.

With reflecting the human condition through lo-fi indie folk soundscapes as the motivation behind the singer-songwriter’s creativity, each new release is an opportunity to boost your mood and brighten your perspective. The dopamine streams are aided by the sweeping overdriven guitars, meltingly warm analog tones and his honeyed harmonies, which will teach you the meaning of expressive vulnerability.

The London-based artist is an all too refreshing taste breaker away from the superficiality that is prolific on the airwaves. For the same reason indie fans developed an affinity for the Violent Femmes and the Dandy Warhols, they will have us will leave an all too welcome synaptic imprint.

they will have us will officially release on August 5th. Check it out on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

NKem went heavy on the poetic confessionalism in his alt indie debut, Ergo Sum

Posted on 20 July 2022

NKem describes his debut single, Ergo Sum, as a short, swift pact of artistic poetry; that is exactly how the production sombrely resonates. Opening with Elliot Smith-esque softly fingerpicked guitar notes, the single seamlessly transitions into a spoken word piece, with hints of melodicism in the raw confessionalism.

Attempting to pigeonhole Ergo Sum by genre is an act of futility. NKem lets his spilt ink lyricism lead the way and lets the instrumentals contextualise the expression. For Ergo Sum, there’s a monochromatic blend of ennui pop and indie with nuances of new-wave hip hop.

Recently signed to Quartz Collective Management, the Brighton-based model and artist has a bright creative future ahead of him on the basis of the emotion-evoking capacity of Ergo Sum.

The official lyric video was released on June 23rd; you can check it out here.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Whatever the question, the affable indie-rocker, Sam Scherdel, has ‘The Answer’

Posted on 17 June 2022

As stunning as The Manics’ Gold Against the Soul album, as cinematic as the Hollywood sign, the latest single from the Britpop-inspired UK singer-songwriter, Sam Scherdel, is a slice of celestial sonic bliss.

‘The Answer’ is a humbling admission of human nature, the inability to know everything, carry intellect on every subject and find absolutes at every turn. With weary yet romantically honeyed vocals atop the orchestrally decorated indie-rock score that grips with the same gravitas as Ben Folds, I think I felt every emotion on the human spectrum on the first listen (and the 5th; it just keeps giving. I might be addicted).

With exactly the same vein of magnetism as Billy Idol’s Baby Put Your Clothes Back On, hitting play on The Answer is a surefire way of giving Scherdel permanent space in your psyche. It’s beyond an earworm; it’s an ear unicorn.

The Answer will officially release on June 17th, check it out for yourselves via Spotify. 

Check out Sam Scherdel on Facebook and Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

reharbour lay his soul bare in the melodic hooks in his debut ‘Without You’

Posted on 14 June 2022

It is one thing to release a heart-wrenchingly honest single as an established artist; doing it for a debut release is quite another. British singer-songwriter reharbour (Thomas Shearwood) was bold enough to lay it all down on the melodic hooks of his first genre-mashing single, Without You.

What starts as a sombrely intimate indie ballad starts to unravel as a massive electro indie-pop production, which will undoubtedly be a hit with the artist’s main influences,  Bon Iver, London Grammar, and The 1975,

All the way through the accordant earworm, there are affirmations of sincerity, but there isn’t a hint of earnestness in the upraisingly bitter-sweet single which takes you through euphoric electronic builds and arresting 80s rock riffs.

With an EP in the pipeline, save a space on your radar.

You can check out reharbour’s debut single via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Her Burden melded Britpop with pop-punk in their melodiously pensive latest release, Figure It Out

Posted on 2 April 2022

With their first release of 2022, the UK alt-indie rock outfit, Her Burden sent us swaggering right back to the bliss of the 90s Britpop era. Figure it Out veers from the tried, tested and endlessly repeated Britpop sound by binging a punch of raw pop-punk to the type of melody that would make any self-respecting Oasis fan swoon.

Her Burden brought just as much to the table lyrically with their narrative of the perpetual optimist that keeps going round in failed circles as they did sonically with their intimate emotional firestorm that proves they have a heady stock of nuance in their arsenal. After the various pandemics impeded their bid for pop rock domination, something tells us there’s no stopping Her Burden now.

Figure It Out is officially released on March 25th; you can check it out via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Britpop bites back with snarling teeth in JW Paris’ grungy no-wave single, Electric Candle Light

Posted on 25 March 2022
JW Paris

JW Paris, the UK-based three-piece that is quickly becoming revered for its pornographic guitars and biting Britpop swagger, have unleashed their stickiest alt-90s earworm to date with Electric Candle Light.

The Crampsy garagey prelude paves the way for surf rock meets no-wave indie hooks that won’t fail to reel you into the volatility of the sonic triumph. It easily matches the energy of Blur’s Song 2. Yet, notably, JW Paris is a caustic cut above the rest with their jarringly arrestive synth lines and subversive lyrics that acknowledges the rose-tinted glasses that nostalgia always filters through.

The single was recorded and produced at Buffalo Studios by JB Pilon and mastered by John Davis (Blue, IDLES, Foals, Primal Scream, U2). With that in mind, it never really had a chance of falling flat. Since making their debut, they’ve been a constant feature on BBC Radio 1, BBC 6 Music, Absolute Radio X, and Radio X. They’ve also shared stages with The Amazons, Skinner Brothers, Yonaka and Avalanche Party.

Electric Candle Light will officially release on March 25th. You can check it out for yourselves by heading over to Spotify.

Keep up to date with new releases and tours via Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Following the release of Electric Candle Light, they’re set to hit the road again with Dead Freights.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

John Dhali took feel-good indie-folk to stratospheric new heights with his latest single, Taste

Posted on 20 March 2022

With caressing crescendos and swells of soul by the smorgasbord, the indie-folk singer-songwriter, John Dhali’s latest release, Taste, definitely isn’t an acquired one.

What starts as a gentle and euphonic offering of indie art-pop bliss transcends into a rock-licked all-consuming aural entity as you’re left to face the untamed passion in the lyrics and vocals and the equally as robust production.

When Taste reaches its anthemic peak, it is enough to rival Mr November by The National. Yet, I’m not sure The National could get away with the sweet and lofty ukulele melodies that John Dhali uses to amplify the high vibe soul. When he says his sound marries the feelgood accessibility of George Ezra with the evocative depth of Buckley, he more than backs it up with his viscerally euphoric discography.

It comes as no surprise that the Northwest, UK-born, London-based artist has already garnered attention from BBC Radio 1 and 2 and won regional awards for the best solo artist. We can’t wait to see his career blow up after the launch of his forthcoming album.

Check out John Dhali’s latest single, Taste, on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Leroybroughtflowers cuts ties with hometown roots in his mournful wanderlust single, woodlark

Posted on 18 March 2022

The 21-year-old singer-songwriter, Leroybroughtflowers, brought a touch of cinematic neo-classic gold to his jazz-tinged alt-indie folk single, woodlark, which was released on March 18th, 2022.

The single stands as a bitter-sweet testament to his undiluted candour which attacks the more melancholic side of leaving hometown roots and relationships behind. Evocatively, woodlark is harrowing. Sonically, it’s an artfully tender ballad that almost recontextualises the minor piano keys. There is a stunning sense of innocence amongst the heavy poetic resonance that carries the breeze of summer sunsets through the minimalist progressions that prove that the Coventry, UK-based Greek artist has mastered the art of spatial effect.

Here’s what the artist had to say about his latest release:

“Woodlark is a coming-of-age ballad inspired by leaving my hometown and my first love. The protagonist has accepted his life as a wanderer, and his inability to stay for his loved ones.

It is the bitter-sweet feeling of wanting to forget but wanting to remember everything. It is a love letter to a life of endless wandering and teenage love.”

Woodlark is now available to stream via Spotify.

Keep up to date with new releases from Leroybroughtflowers via Facebook and Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

 

Post-punk meets jazz blues in The Illucid’s defiantly protestive single, Stone Cold Soldier

Posted on 2 March 2022

Taken from their debut EP, Somebody Else, The Illucid’s jazzy post-punk standout single, Stone Cold Soldier, couldn’t have fallen onto our radar at a more sobering time. The catchy rock hooks from the British Indie band almost feel like an act of defiance in today’s chilling geopolitical climate.

On the basis of the frantic bluesy piano keys, the theatrical vocal lines and their ability to squeeze euphoria from darkness, The Illucid almost becomes the thinking man’s Nekrogoblikon while they deliver their Magazine-style enigmatic energy in the single that shames the cold inhumanity behind the eyes of stone-cold soldiers.

Not many bands can convince me that they’re worthy of seeing live with just one single, but the Illucid are easily one of the best outfits to come around since Melt Yourself Down. Get them on your radar.

Stone Cold Soldier is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast