Words: Saam Das
There are few more iconic Christmas songs in the UK than East 17's unexpectedly beautiful 'Stay Another Day', largely written in reference to the passing of band member Tony Mortimer's brother. Thirty years on from its successful battle against Mariah Carey's seminal 'All I Want For Christmas Is You' for the 1994 Christmas Number One slot in the UK, 'Stay Another Day' has had a polish in the form of a new remaster and re-release.
Portrait Of A Top Boy at Somerset House Embankment Galleries // Words and Photos: Saam Das
What a pleasant surprise it was to stumble upon the free pop-up of Portrait Of A Top Boy at Somerset House recently, while wandering around for London's Open House Festival. 'Top Boy' enters its final stretch this month, with the concluding season of the inner city crime drama now on Netflix, and this exhibition has been curated by Ronan Mckenzie to both promote the show as well as a series of emerging black artists.
Words: Saam Das
You'll probably know Lauren Mayberry best as one third of Scottish trio, CHVRCHES, alongside Iain Cook and Martin Doherty. The synth outfit's debut album 'The Bones Of What You Believe' came out ten years ago, and understandably, Mayberry has been looking into further creative outlets. Her beguiling debut single, 'Are You Awake?', dropped earlier in the month. Listen below.
Freddie Mercury: A World Of His Own (Sotheby's, London) // Words: Saam Das
On his 2007 UK number one single, Mika "tried a little Freddie", referencing the late and great Freddie Mercury - thanks to the latest exhibition at the world renowned Sotheby's in London, we all now get to 'try a little Freddie' too. Thousands of the former Queen frontman's personal possessions have been put on display, prior to being auctioned, in this incredible smorgasbord of memorabilia.
Words: Saam Das
It feels kinda wild that we're coming up to twenty years of Matt Johnson and Kim Schifino musical exploits as the riotious synth-led indie of Matt And Kim. I guess this is growing up. The duo have hit the refresh button in 2023 however, with new project PG14, which harks back to the raw beginnings of the band.
Words: Saam Das
The 2022 Eurovision Song Contest saw Ukraine's Kalush Orchestra take a well-deserved and understandable victory, but following many fallow years, the UK had an unexpectedly strong showing with Sam Ryder nabbing second place with 'Space Man'. An effervescent performance that truly felt like an artist seizing their moment to shine. No surprise then, that Sam Ryder was back for Eurovision 2023, hosted in the UK, with a little help from one Roger Taylor of Queen fame.
The Great Escape, various venues across Brighton (10-13 May 2023) // Words: Saam Das
We’ve been fans of The Great Escape festival since attending its inaugural edition in 2006, and it's become an important part of the UK music festival calendar ever since. Largely eschewing huge artists, Brighton's sprawling multi-venue festival has its eyes firmly on “the next big thing”, and in conjunction with its industry-led events, has attracted comparisons to Austin’s South By South West. The likes of Adele, Bastille and Haim have all played early gigs at the festival, and here we have ten acts that we hope may reach similar heights in future:
Words: Saam Das
Having kicked off way back in 2007, the annual international Record Store Day event has crept up on us yet again. From Ennio Morricone to iconic pro wrestler Macho Man Randy Savage to newer heavyweights like Taylor Swift, Bastille, and The 1975, there are plenty of exclusives, limited editions, and re-releases to tantalise fans of artists new and old. Here are some of our top picks for RSD 2023, in alphabetical order.
Rock Against Racism: Militant Entertainment Tour exhibition at St Mary In The Castle, Hastings // Words: Saam Das
The Rock Against Racism movement was founded in the UK in 1976 in opposition to comments made by prominent musicians, David Bowie and Eric Clapton, whose actions were symptomatic of a rising (and often violent) sentiment against various minorities at the time. Sadly, this all still strikes a chord over thirty years on. Therefore, this new exhibition in Hastings celebrating the activism of the movement, including their support from bands such as The Clash and The Specials, feels particularly timely.
It's not often that you see bands come together across various cities, let alone various countries, but synth-pop trio Render Ghosts have really taken working from home to heart. Based across London and Utrecht, Tamara van Esch, Tom Wilson, and Iain Chambers came together in 2020 to form Render Ghosts, releasing their compelling electronic-led self-titled debut album earlier this year.
Words: Rajan Lakhani
I’m doing things a bit differently this year and writing a general review of the music I listened to in 2021, instead of doing short reviews of my top 10. Rest assured, you can still see my top 10 below, and I’ve curated a best of 2021 playlist that starts with songs from my top albums before moving into my favourite songs from the year.
Words: Saam Das
There are moments when reading the LinkedIn profile for Jessica Weiss where my initial reaction is that Spiderman-pointing-at-Spiderman gif, although the comparisons quickly stop - particularly with regards to their musical repertoire. Having entranced us through their work in Brighton's Fear Of Men, as well as having been a touring member of The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart', Weiss has now unveiled their new solo venture - New German Cinema. Listen to debut single, 'I Become Heavy', below.
Words: Saam Das
"Everything you do, it's been done, done, done before." PC Music head honcho A.G. Cook nailed some of the core pandemic vibes of apathy and despair with '2021', originally released on their 2020 debut album, '7G'. Not content with releasing a 49(!) track long album, Cook subsequently released another album ('Apple') just weeks later, which was followed in 2021 by a remix album reflecting on the two aforementioned releases, 'Apple vs 7G'. Charli XCX collaborator umru took the reins for the latter's '2021' remix, which you can hear below alongside the original.
Words: Rajan Lakhani
It was so tempting given the challenges of 2020 to only listen to music that you know and love, to provide some comfort and reassurance while the pandemic was changing our daily lives. And that’s of course absolutely justified. But my favourite moments listening to music have been discovering something new, the first time hearing a record and how you can’t wait to hear it again. So here are my favourite albums of 2020, and hope you find something that you enjoy that you hadn’t heard before.
Words: Saam Das
Having already skipped past the whole of 2020 for our recent top tracks list of 2019, we figured we'd compile a bonus list of more pop-led offerings from the same year that you may well have missed. Again, we've tried to mix in some of the more well known acts such as Carly Rae Jepsen and Charli XCX with some lesser known ones, opting for an alphabetical order approach.
Words: Saam Das
As 2020 passes us by shortly, we've been reflecting on the manner in which the pandemic must have arrested the development of many a new band. Even dab hands like Wnderland, a duo comprised of Sarah McIntosh (the driving force behind such stellar acts as The Good Natured, Lovestarrs, and Sazzie) and experienced composer Thom Robson, likely saw their progress stalled. Catch up on their brooding synth debut tracks, 'Changing' and 'Who Are You' below.
Words: Saam Das
Fair to say, 2020 has been a weird one so we've decided to look back a bit further pre-everything-going-to-pot, and highlight some of our top tracks from 2019 that you may have missed. We've gone for a bonanza of bigger names (with an unexpected deference to artists beginning with the letter 'B') as well as lesser known acts like Julietta and Sacred Paws. All great songs, we hope you agree.
Words: Saam Das
As Caroline Baker states in the intro of the blink-and-you'll-miss-it brilliance of EP opener 'Colorado', "I don't know where to start". Perhaps the obvious elephant in the room, attributing a new/emerging artist moniker to someone with more than 20 million Spotify streams but in our defence, many a search engine result still primarily leads to Leeds band Caro rather than the Nashville pop-led solo artist. If you haven't heard of this Caro then allow us to introduce her to your ears.
Words: Saam Das
So we've not quite caught up to the Twitch "craze" yet and its rising prominence amongst the gaming community, but they've now partnered with Soundcloud - an off-shoot being their channel on the platform. Their Fast Track series features musicians creating beats in ninety minutes or so, and the latest edition showcases the skills of the recent Mercury Prize-nominated Georgia, somewhat channeling her 2019 smash hit 'About Work The Dancefloor'.
We're a collaborative British music, film and TV blog. "Trying to find the perfect match between pretentious and pop."
