Browsing Tag

Acoustic Pop

Jessamine Barham exhumed a ‘Shallow Grave’ to speak on the violent oppression of women in her latest single.

Posted on 12 October 2023

Jessamine Barham released her most striking single to date when she read the harrowing tale in her latest single, Shallow Grave. The haunting vocal harmonies atop the staccato acoustic guitar strings and as the centrefold within the quiescent orchestral swells of chamber pop strings brought the solemnity within Shallow Grave to spectral life in a way that assures us that even though Jessamine Barham’s dark pop stylings are niche, her talents of a sonic narrator of feminine tragedy should never be underestimated.

The days of the Salem witch trials and being sectioned with hysteria may be behind us, but the violent oppression of women will always be a tale as old as time. It was no feat of hyperbole to lyrically infer that feminine acts of rebellion can incur the death penalty. Some may say hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, but life hath no tyranny like the men determined to keep us chastised.

Shallow Grave was officially released on September 24; stream it on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Alexander Joseph illuminated the airwaves with his elevated folk-pop single, Guiding Star

Posted on 3 September 2023

If your folk-pop playlists need a boost, the evocatively uplifting latest single, Guiding Star, from Alexander Joseph will elevate them until they reach a new plateau of accordant soul.

If you know all too well how it feels to fear fading into obscurity, Guiding Star will deliver illuminating resonance. Traversing themes of desperation to escape while having no sense of direction was the ultimate affirmation that the singer-songwriter crafted this compassionately melodic single straight from his jaded soul.

There may not be any way to abstract the complexities and uncertainties of life, but hitting play on a track and knowing you’re not the only dog in the disjointing fight is as close to a sanctuary this society can provide.

If you can’t get enough of Alexander Joseph’s consoling lyricism, you don’t have long to wait for the UK artist’s EP, Stop and Breathe, which is due out in October. The EP will be used to raise funds for the charity One Tree Planted, which is combatting the impact of global warming through vital reforestation work.

Guiding Star was officially released on August 25; stream it on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Millie Kirkpatrick spoke for us all with her disdain of flattering fallacies in her latest single, Lies

Posted on 4 August 2023

Suffolk-born singer-songwriter Millie Kirkpatrick is heartrate-quickeningly sensational on her melodious triumph of an indie-pop single, Lies. Lotharios with an aversion to truthful sentiments be damned in the revelation of an easy-chord-driven vignette of a protagonist that has reached their limit of endurance with flattering fallacy.

The simple yet razor-sharp hooks establish Lies as a song that you’ll hum along to on the radio until the emboldening lyrics tattoo themselves in your mind and become as much of a permanent fixture in your temporal lobe as the melodies that apply a sensuous touch to all of your senses while the progressions are in motion.

It is only a matter of time until Millie Kirkpatrick becomes infamous outside of the local Suffolk scene. She’s already well on her way after gaining support from BBC Introducing. Watch this space.

Lies hit the airwaves on July 21st; stream it on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Ro Jordan has released her narratively Elysian acoustic pop hit, Asking Heaven Questions

Posted on 26 May 2023
https://soundcloud.com/user-310885324/asking-heaven-questions/s-sUbv3cO0KfA?si=339d7f4e20564fdeb6773405d895316c&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

The title of Ro Jordan’s latest single, Asking Heaven Questions, isn’t the only thing sonically Elysian about the evocative indie pop release, which will throw you right back to the empowering soul of 90s pop as it establishes the BBC-lauded songstress as one that could define the future of the genre.

Her narratively immersing approach to lyricism has been honed to the nth degree in the single, which effortlessly evades cliches while traversing the well-trodden landscape of heartbreak pop hits. If there is anything that will leave the impious calling out to higher powers, it is being torn from a dynamic that you were once so eager to place the lion’s share of your faith. In its wake, there’s little more than grief and uncertainty, which Ro Jordan so eloquently alludes to in the metaphorical dream of a dark acoustic production.

Asking Heaven Questions will release across all major platforms on May 26; hear it on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Mike Marnelakis laid bitter-sweet affection intimately bare in his pop hit, I Can’t

Posted on 25 January 2023

Greek singer-songwriter, Mike Marnelakis, released the most superlatively bitter-sweet love song with his latest pop hit, I Can’t – definitively proving that the line of light and dark appears within us all, every emotion, and every phenomenon.

Starting with an acoustically strummed and stripped-back intro, the prelude and first verse laid affection down with intimately bare candour. His loaded with emotion vocals harmonically drift into the chorally polished tones, allowing you to drink in every ounce of apathy that inspired the carresively pensive single.

After the proclamation that there is no truth without pain, the progressively seamless single builds into an 80s jangle pop hit that will swell the hearts of The 1975 fans.

I Can’t is now available to stream on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Acoustic pop raconeteur Jack Holler disarms with the rugged charm in his single, The Foolsong

Posted on 8 January 2023

Acoustic pop raconteur Jack Holler won our hearts and minds while arresting our rhythmic pulses with his stripped-back acoustic single, The Foolsong. It’s just as humbly disarming as the title implies.

It’s always immediately obvious whether an artist aims for sincere expression or shoots for the lofty unattainability of perfection. Holler has clearly pitched a tent and started a fire in the former camp with this everyman-indie-folk-blues-pop serenade which traverses the very human inclination to become love’s fool once the fabled cherub locks and draws his arrows.

Between Glenn Hansard and Jack Johnson, you will find Holler’s ruggedly affectionate charm within The Foolsong. We can’t wait to hear the full LP from Holler and his band, who have been around since 2018, with their debut EP, Not Even Close, hitting the airwaves the same year.

The official music video for The Foolsong is available to stream on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Emmett McGrath brought light to the darkened world with his acoustic single, Little Guy

Posted on 16 October 2022

What does it mean to be human in perpetually unprecedented times? You will get a pretty good idea by hitting play on the latest single, Little Guy, by the San Francisco, Bay Area singer-songwriter Emmett McGrath.

The single, inspired by his grandson, captures the necessity and fundamental nature of love as a light in a darkened world. To be honest, I was already tearing up with the single synopsis, when I heard the gentle Cat Stevens-Esque melodicism of the acoustic guitar and his reassuringly gentle vocal timbre, I was emotionally floored.

Emmett McGrath is more than worth his weight in gold in times like these. The pandemic may be behind us, but with the threat of societal precariousness in every news segment, he’s a breath of fresh optimistic air in an atmosphere stifled with anxiety.

Little Guy is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Bluebyrd weaved a timeless folk pop serenade with their latest single, Crystals

Posted on 12 October 2022

The Folk-pop visionary duo Bluebryd entwined modernism with an air of 70s and 80s folk in their latest single, Crystals, mused by a fragile soul traversing a chaotic world with spirituality as a guiding force.

With reminiscences of Ralph McTell and Richard Thompson and melodic echoes of Cash’s Ring of Fire, the lyrically delicate protest to unsettling times will undoubtedly resonate with anyone that has felt at a loss in the current climate of ennui and disillusion. It’s a touching serenade from the folk-pop duo, who are fresh from supporting The Christians and Ian McNabb; they have also been in regular rotation on UK and international radio, with over 200 plays across 2021 and 2022.

Crystals was officially released on October 3rd; check it out on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Kathleen Elle weaves alchemy into the romanticism of her latest soul-pop single, Magic

Posted on 10 February 2022
Kathleen Elle

The award-winning viral singer-songwriter, Kathleen Elle, is set to bring the alchemy in her latest piece of ear candy, Magic. The soul-pop single follows on from her single, Nervous, which saw her go viral in 2021 with her Taylor Swift-reminiscent sound and resounding lyrical intimacy.

Magic contains enough panoramic emotion and sonic panache to make it fitting in a Blockbuster feature soundtrack. Yet, Elle’s indie roots still pull through in the Grammy-worthy production.

What I can’t help but admire about Kathleen Elle is her ability to pour romanticism back into the world which rivals her talents in lyrically cutting close to the bone. She’s also earned a sentimental place on our radar through her mission to see 5-minute pop singles prolific on the airwaves. She certainly made a case for them with the narrative structuring of Magic.

Magic is due for official release on February 10th. You’ll be able to check it out for yourselves via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Spotlight Feature: Castle KYD pulls visceral emotional punches in ‘The Mess You Left Behind’

Posted on 1 December 2021

On November 26th, Idaho indie singer-songwriter Castle KYD brought accountability in trend with his artfully expressive single, The Mess You Left Behind. In the Waitsy intro, there is little but solemn vocal notes and the quiescent murmurs from the acoustic guitar; as the track builds up to the pre-chorus, that’s when the sharp hook digs in and pulls you deeper into the intrinsically melodic work.

The Mess You Left Behind truly is the pinnacle of contemporary indie-folk pop. His innocently sweet scorned vocals, the celestial accordance in the choruses and lyrics that prove the extent of his determination to transfuse raw emotion into art makes Castle KYD one of the most gifted artists of his generation.

We didn’t need the self-taught artist’s bio to tell us that his music is an amalgamation of desire for connection, a means to cope and a way to turn banality into something meaningful. You can hear it in every ounce of passion poured into this evocatively bruising seminal release.

Here is what Castle Kyd had to say about his latest release:

“Mess You Left Behind was written on a sleepless night, thinking about someone I lived with and had to leave because it was so toxic. In 15 minutes, every feeling, anger and blame poured out of me and formed a poem which became a song in those minutes. After months, I still miss and crave them despite their emotional abuse; I blame myself for craving that, the person who instilled a lot of hurt in me. After struggling to get over it, I’ve become paradoxical; I am the mess this person left behind.”

The Mess You Left Behind is now available to stream via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast