Browsing Tag

UK Indie

The Relays sentimentally stargaze in their synthy alt-indie debut LP, Under Different Stars

Posted on 29 September 2022

After recording their debut album and mislaying the only copy for ten years, The Relays are finally here with their arrestive synth-driven LP, Under Different Stars.

With their previous releases, the Wigan, UK-hailing 4-piece have featured on BBC and Radio X, along with being lauded by Steve Lamacq and Huw Stevens. The title single from their debut album is a spacey testament to their swoonsome radio readiness.

While Under Different Stars lyrically latches onto a sense of sentimentalism that pulls you into the interstellar centre of affectionate gravity, somewhere along the way, the shimmering synth chords become entwined with your rhythmic pulses as you follow the melodic progressions through their absorbingly artful distinction. There’s no understating the evocative power of Under Different Stars, which effortlessly reaches above the standard for up and coming artists. It’s an achingly sweet release that will undoubtedly see the luminaries go far in their candour-heady career. Forget Editors’ new album, delve into this.

The debut album launched on September 29th; check it out on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Eat your dissonantly superficial heart out to Red Wine Talk’s latest single, Anti-Romance

Posted on 10 September 2022

With an opening lyric as strong as “I don’t need to tattoo your name on my arm, you’re already under my skin”, we were immediately hooked on Red Wine Talk’s latest single, Anti-Romance, which aired after the 9-month hiatus they clearly used to mature their indie rock sound to the nth degree.

Far from your average boy meets girl cliché-fest, Anti-Romance affixes its lyrical lens on the wanton disregard with which we throw away the latest object of affection before searching for another; between the lines underpinning the irony of fawning over Hollywood and pop lyric romances.

I just hope that the cognitive dissonance of the quick sex aficionados out there can fully appreciate this reservedly poignant antithetic ode to love (or lack thereof) in our modern age. The instrumental minimalism truly stands as a testament to the power of the songwriting by this UK outfit headed by vocalist and guitarist Edward Brookes.

The official music video for Anti-Romance will premiere on September 9th. Catch it on Vimeo.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

 

Green Wire launched their latest indie-rock attack ‘Upside Down, Inside Out’

Posted on 9 September 2022

“Upside Down, Inside Out” is the latest feat of era-spanning indie pop rock from the Manchester raconteurs of raucous innovation, Green Wire.

With notes of garage rock, pop punk and 80s rock fusing to create their dynamic sonic signature, Green Wire are by far one of the most authentic Manchester up-and-coming powerhouses as of late – a fact I can fully attest to as a fellow Mancunian. This high-powered frenetic earworm is sure to see the cheeky fourpiece go far.

Upside Down, Inside Out will officially release on September 2nd. Check it out via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The Sunset Radio – Clouds: This One is for the Nyctophiles

Posted on 5 September 2022

Alt indie rock fourpiece, The Sunset Radio, returned from their three-year hiatus to release their stratospherically strident single, Clouds. The North Yorkshire-hailing outfit has moved away from their punk roots and ventured into spacey territory with their synth and sample-driven hit, which will go down a storm with any fans of The Midnight, The 1975 and Gunship.

The soul-baring lyrics may channel vulnerability, but sonically, Clouds stands as a testament to their ability to craft anthemically consuming choruses. If any up-and-coming UK indie act has what it takes to break it in 2022, it is The Sunset Radio. Tune in.

Clouds was officially released on August 26th. It is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

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