Browsing Tag

Deerhunter

Kablamo traverses the otherworldly in their post-punk-y indie release, Unnatural

Kablamo self-proclaims their debut self-titled EP to be personal, genuine and, at times, indulgent; I can fully attest to the indulgence being universal once you slip into the seminal single, Unnatural.

Unnatural unravels through dreamy guitar melodies, glassy synths and ragged post-punk basslines beneath the dream pop vocals which mellifluously breeze through the sentimentally heartfelt release, which all too readily imparts the emotion. An evocative response to the kaleidoscopic colour of Unnatural is non-optional.

Any fans of Deerhunter, Beach House, Tame Impala and Wild Nothing will undoubtedly want to sink their teeth into this paradoxically ambiently striking release.

The debut self-titled EP hit the airwaves on September 9th. You can hear it for yourselves by heading over to Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

A&R Factory Present: Kidsmoke

Kidsmoke are back with their first release since June 2015. Channelling their established sound into their upcoming self-released singles, the quartet are releasing ‘Cut Yourself Loose’ on the 26th February with a follow up due to arrive in April 2016.

After having returned with a fresher, more focused sound and a second EP ‘So Long, Emptiness’ in April 2015, ‘Cut Yourself Loose’ looks to build on this and is the first single the band have released since.

The artwork for the two singles was designed specifically by local artist Mike Payne. After being given the two tracks to listen to, Payne ran with his ideas. A theme of night and day emerged from his depiction of them, the perfection summation of the different feels and influences the tracks gave him.

In ‘Cut Yourself Loose’, Guitar strums emerge from a watery synth into Kidsmoke’s statement twist on indie-pop, mixing their heritage and contemporary influences into the cocktail of sounds. Like adding burnt orange peel to a cosmopolitan, this track is the perfect complement to Kidsmoke’s existing discography.

Bio

Formed in 2013 in Wrexham, North Wales, Kidsmoke consists of: Lance Williams on vocals and guitar, James Stickels on bass and vocals, recent addition Sophie Ballamy on Guitar and vocals and Chris Trow on drums. They quickly rose to prominence in April that year following the release of their debut EP ‘Higher’. Since then the band have reached the final of the Green Man Rising competition, played the festival and also supported the likes of Paul Smith (Maximo Park), Glass Animals, Satellite Stories and Widowspeak. BBC Radio Wales’ Adam Walton took a liking to the band, playing a number of their tracks several times on his show and has voiced his support for them such as when talking about Track ‘On And On’, saying that “It would thaw the heart of a dead Polar bear”.

The indie-pop four-piece note some of their influences as The Smiths and Joy Division, among more contemporary bands like Wild Nothing, Real Estate and Deerhunter.