Browsing Tag

The Neighbourhood

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

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

AFTERDRIVE buried indie landfill under the immensity in their latest anthem, Gold Dust

AFTERDRIVE

The Ipswitch indie-rock breakthrough band, AFTERDRIVE, hit the wheel and blazed beyond contemporary trends with their latest single, leaving outfits in the vein of the 1975, M83, and The Neighbourhood in the ‘Gold Dust’ of their viscerally textured hit.

Ben Watts’ distinctive vocal inflections relentlessly hit raw nerves with the projections of vulnerability in the bitter-sweet release which embodies the band’s determination to bring small-town boredom blues to an international stage.

The instrumental evocative artillery shows little mercy; after showing melodic restraint within the verses, the choruses cascade into augmented alchemic chaos as the alt-indie-rock guitars construct walls of sounds to encase you within the brooding atmosphere of the intense narrative of affliction as the upbeat synths resonate as the last feign of hope in the outpour of ennui.

After their debut single, Stick Around, met critical acclaim and received regular airplay from BBC Introducing and more success was sealed with every subsequent release, we have no doubt that Gold Dust will seal the artist’s fate as one of the biggest names in the UK indie scene.

Gold Dust will be available to stream on all major platforms from June 7th. Discover ways to listen via the official AFTERDRIVE website.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Holly George – Alaska: A chill worth acclimatising to.

The seasons have finally turned, which means we can move away from the euphoria of summer and into eloquent conversations with tragedy, such as the one found in up and coming pop artist Holly George’s latest cinematically raw release, Alaska.

Any fans of Neighbourhood’s iconic track, Sweater Weather, or any soundscape from Warpaint or Tom Odell will definitely want to acclimatise to the climate in this chillingly ardent single. The comforting dark and cold tones are the perfect contrast to Holly George’s endlessly imploring vocals which have a poignant way of stripping hubris away when the lyrics grip you.

The official music video for Holly George’s seminal single premiered on September 8th. You can stream it for yourselves via YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

A&R Factory Present: BLAJK

Born from Toronto’s rapidly flourishing music scene, indie pop 4 piece ‘BLAJK’ wear their influences on a well-tailored sleeve. Fresh off of their first tour supporting Banners and fellow Torontonians Young Empires, BLAJK release the lead single from their forthcoming EP. “Good Liars” sees lead vocalist Jordan Radics tell the story of contrived, synthetic lives and personalities broadcast through screens and filters. BLAJK bring a sense of polished performance and compelling production to their latest single that they will be showcasing first at Canadian Music Week and on a tour of western Canada with Young Empires, and then at their debut festival performance at Bestival Toronto.
“Good Liars was built off another song we had written about a year ago.  We had always liked its energy but didn’t really know where to go with it.  So when it came time to piece together all the demos we had for the EP, that song quickly evolved and became one of our favourites.  The original demo sounded much different and it took a couple nights of writing to really bring it to life.  But when Jordan sang over it we knew it was strong and it proves to be whenever we play it live.” – BLAJK
Tour Dates
May 4 / The Velvet Underground / Toronto, ON (w/ Baio, ROMES, Only Yours and TMPL)
May 6 / Royal Ontario Museum / Toronto, ON
May 8 / Adelaide Hall / Toronto, ON (w/ Big Black Delta, Rolemodel and Wilde)
May 18 / Sugar Nightclub / Victoria, BC (w/ Young Empires)
May 19 / Fortune Sound Club / Vancouver, BC (w/ Young Empires)
May 20 / Habitat / Kelowna, BC (w/ Young Empires)
May 21 / Commonwealth / Calgary, AB (w/ Young Empires)
May 22 / Starlite Room / Edmonton, AB (w/ Young Empires)
May 24 / Amigos / Saskatoon, SK (w/ Young Empires)
May 25 / Park Theatre / Winnipeg, MB (w/ Young Empires)
Jun 12 / Bestival / Toronto, ON