Browsing Tag

Lana Del Ray

Ava Valianti’s ‘Wishing Well’ is a Diaphanous Dive into Lost Innocence

Posted on 10 December 2024

At just 15, Ava Valianti has already mastered the art of weaving raw emotion into new-wave indie pop. With her latest single, ‘Wishing Well’, the Massachusetts singer-songwriter delivers a reverie-rich production that captures the ache of growing up and the bittersweet nostalgia for the innocence of youth.

Inspired by childhood memories, Ava channels her reflections on the fading simplicity of youth into soaring harmonies and sweeping melodies. Thematically, ‘Wishing Well’ resounds with longing and hope, its diaphanous textures sonically illustrating the vulnerability of clinging to the magic of belief. Ava’s lyrical candour doesn’t just invite listeners into her world; it offers them a mirror to their own experiences of inevitable change and loss. Her ability to find clarity in bittersweet moments transforms each note into a visceral connection.

Standing alongside her earlier singles—‘Bubble Wrap’, ‘Middle Ground’, and ‘January’—this track showcases her ability to fuse introspective lyrics with literally and figuratively haunting melodies. With comparisons to indie luminaries like Mitski and First Aid Kit easily and rightfully drawn, her trajectory has been meteoric, already earning her 10k monthly listeners, a nomination for the New England Music Awards’ “Pop Act of the Year,” and praise from over 60 radio stations across the US.

Ava’s music is a force propelling her into the heart of indie supremacy, and ‘Wishing Well’ solidifies her place as an artist who creates vessels of unfiltered soul, poised to resonate with listeners across generations.

Wishing Well was officially released on November 22nd; stream the single on Spotify now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Bela V scorched through the pop veil with the soulful inferno in her sophomore single, Wait Game

Posted on 2 July 2024

When Bela V penned her sophomore single, Wait Game, she didn’t just write a fierce pop hit, she scribed her illustrious legacy through a calligraphy of sheer intensity and fervour.

By splicing soul with the insurgent energy of pop punk, the singer-songwriter became a defiant renegade in the pop scene and settled a stark milestone in her creative career which exhibits her talents as an actress and siren songstress.

Wait Game mirrors her eclectic influences – Lana Del Rey’s haunting nostalgia, Amy Winehouse’s raw emotional depth, and Avril Lavigne’s defiant pop punk ferocity; each formative element serves to amplify the emotional magnitude of the next, exhibiting Bela V as an alchemist of originated vivacity. From soulful verses that could rival any classic soul legend to a chorus that bursts with a punkish roar, the track is a bold declaration of her artistic finesse.

The production of the track deserves as much acclaim as the vocals; polished yet edgy, it supports Bela V’s transitions from smooth, seductive tones to hell-hath-no-fury outbursts with seamless precision. This sonic landscape does more than just back her voice; it heightens the emotional gravity of her lyrics, plunging the listener into a whirlwind of passion and defiance.

As Bela V ends her own wait game and steps back into the spotlight, she brings with her a song that promises to ignite the airwaves and cement her status as a pop icon in the making.

Wait Game was officially released on June 14; stream the single on all major platforms via this link.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

CARLOTTA answered existential questions with etherealism in her debut single, Angel

Posted on 16 June 2024

Fans of The Neighbourhood, Lana Del Ray, and boygenius have a brand-new emissary of ethereally-hued indie pop to affix to their radar after CARLOTTA, an openly avowed poetic symphonist to the dreamers and lovers, released her debut single, Angel.

Her artful approach to poignantly reflecting on how love, faith, and self-discovery often intersect as we try to comprehend our intrinsic identity while grappling with external factors capable of knocking our authenticity out of kilter tracks the highs and lows through the juxtaposing transcendent and turbulent tones.

The singer-songwriter’s vocal register is rendered with the same raw evocative power as Angel Olsen as she pours her heartbroken candour on the instrumentals that allow Angel to become so much more than your average lovelorn hit. CARLOTTA existentially questions what it means to believe in something that has dematerialised and how possible it is to find hope in desolation.

“The message behind ‘Angel’ is that even when love is hard or fails to last, it’s important to believe that it exists in the world and most importantly, that you remain a believer in the goodness of people despite your heartbreak. It’s a song about faith and holding onto nothing except this exact moment.”

Angel was officially released on June 6th; stream the single on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Neil Young meets Pixies in Ryanne + The Rumination’s seminal single, Waste

Posted on 21 February 2024

Indiana’s Ryanne + The Rumination hit the airwaves running with their stylistically expansive self-titled debut LP, which explores the spectrum of human emotions within the psychological ebbs and flows.

The standout single, Wasting, exhibits the duo at their most ethereally magnetic. Ryanne’s crystalline vocal lines cut right through the Pixies-esque atmosphere manifested through the guitar-driven production that exhibits the duo’s influence of Neil Young.

Intimate and profound in equal measure, the artfully immersive single evolves from a dreamy monochromatic release of pent-up emotions to a melancholically stirring alt-pop anthem that won’t fail to pull you into its raw oscillating core. If Ryanne + The Rumination’s is the future of pop, I’m here for it.

Ryanne clearly found her alchemic match in the multi-instrumentalist, Seth Wyatt. The way the single culminates in a post-punk decorated disquiet crescendo after a lament on the frustrations of stagnation is a stunningly affecting way to make an ever-lasting impression.

Waste was officially released on February 9th and is now available to stream with the band’s eponymous LP via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Sample Myla Vie’s dark electro-pop delight, CAUTION

Posted on 7 October 2022

Through the influence of pop icons in the same contemporary vein as Dua Lipa and Lana Del Ray, Myla Vie became one in her own right with the release of her single, CAUTION, which is due for release on October 7th.

The moody alt-electro pop production complemented the up-and-coming artist’s artfully vulnerable vocal timbre as it works through the lyrics that allude to the lack of willingness to open yourself up to more torment following a heartbreak.

She has exactly what it takes to become the next UK alt-pop sensation, and we certainly aren’t the only ones under her spell; her previous releases have been in regular rotation on BBC Essex and Amazing Radio UK/USA.

You can sink into the pure soul of CAUTION by heading over to SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Secret Lover – Stela Cole – New Release

Posted on 19 June 2017

Sometimes all you need is a fun tune. When you have had enough of the inward looking and earnest indie kids, the cliché riddled rockers and the production line pop, something light, sassy, self-aware and playful is what is called for. Sometimes all you need is Stela Cole.

Balancing the pop infectiousness of Ellie Goulding, the darker undertones of Lana Del Ray and the street smarts of Lily Allen, her “beats from the Bible Belt” are as cool and contemporary as anything currently filling the dance floors, yet they still sounds like nothing else you have heard from any of the competition. Living up to her mantra that “trying to fit in gets you nowhere, standing out is what life’s all about,” Secret Lover is a mercurial and original blend of cartoon theme tunes, wonky, staccato dance grooves and bubble-gum pop beats making the most addictive cat nip for the very coolest of cats.

And the odd thing is that for all its apparent throwaway pop nature, this is throwaway pop that you just can’t stop listening to. How do you even do that?

Instagram: instagram.com/callmestelacole/

Twitter: twitter.com/callmestelacole

Facebook: facebook.com/callmestelacole/

Words: Dave Franklin

A&R Factory Present: B O K E H

Posted on 18 February 2017

Born in Cape Town, South Africa, raised in Wellington, New Zealand, Chloë Lewer grew up too shy to ever sing in front of anyone. Instead, she spent her childhood and university years working as an actress. At age 21, she met a filmmaker who persuaded her to start a ukulele busking adventure with him in Berlin, which quickly developed into a touring band called ‘Charity Children’ with two albums under their sleeves over five years.

As the relationship turned to friendship and the band went into hiatus, Chloë sought new artistic endeavours. Teaming up with Dutch writer/producer Wouter Rentema, also the drummer of ‘Charity Children’, the pair spent the Summer of 2016 locked inside various studios about the German capital and recording synths in a disused chapel in The Netherlands, developing what would become Chloë’s artistic alter-ego: B O K E H.

‘Don’t Leave The Fire’ feels like the diary no one was ever meant to find. The highs and lows of life and love lost are explored over a six track EP, in what is clearly a very personal musical letter. Intimate, sincere vocals, charged by an epic Electropop production with obvious 80s influences, expose B O K E H’s world and all the colourful, beautiful and painful spots of her imaginarie.

‘I Know You Know’, the first single from the EP, is scheduled for release Feb 17th, 2017.