Original photo credit: Haydn Gwyn
As is customary with the singles roundup, we’re going to start with our Single Of The Week. This week we’ve chosen the new tune from Flowvers. They’re a band you may have heard of, given the fact they’ve accumulated over a million streams on Spotify. Their new track, ‘Flowers’ gives the impression of a slow-burner before amassing into a grand cascade of indie-rock. Elements of Talking Heads and Television shine through as the band stride from one arching chorus to the next. An absolute banger and not one to be missed.
Next up we have the new track from the Midlands-based Paradise Circus who dropped their latest single, ‘Cascade’ last week. Fans of the band will be pleased to know it follows on from their last single, ‘What A Way (Cheetah)’, in that it showcases a familiarly tender and guitar based sound. The melodic and eutrophic core of the track is what really gives it its strength and, while building on its predecessor, it proves the band to be far from short of ideas about where to take their sound.
Sticking with indie bands with this next one and it’s the new single from Salvation Jayne. Though only forming early last year, the band have been making waves in the indie music scene with their consistent and widespread UK tour, which has seen them support the likes of The Subways and Milk Teeth. Their new track, ‘A Mouthful Of Magnificent Spite’, seems like the band’s attempt to capture their live performance in the studio, a task they largely succeed in. The track’s intro sounds not unlike a Buzzcocks track before an arching vocal comes to dominate the overall sound. This is an exciting track from an equally exciting band.
This next one comes from indie solo artist, Mellah. A songwriter and producer who has received significant acclaim from the likes of NME and The Fader in recent months. Both publications praised his ability to write compelling lyrics and his new track, ‘Yesterday’, follows that trend and focuses on the way we avoid honesty in favour of idle chit chat. The track’s instrumentation finds beauty in its suitability, featuring soft guitars and bedroom-pop drums beats that aren’t dissimilar to a Jordan Rakei or Tom Misch track. Well worth a listen.
This next one also is a slightly stripped back track and it's the new single from Scott C. Park. The track, called ‘Slide’, is taken from the solo artist’s latest EP, ‘Scampy Lampy’. With lyrics that fire shots at the organised religion he was brought with, the song proves Scott to have a point or two to make and doesn’t shy away from doing so. Musically, it features a largely gentle and guitar-based sound that builds into a somewhat frenzied soundscape towards the track’s conclusion. The instrumentation was bizarrely inspired by ‘Spyro the Dragon’, one of Scott’s games on PS1. The singer was so inspired by the game that he actively tried to channel its textures into the track.
Next up for this week is Charlie Clark, who has released his new track, ‘Blink of an Eye’. The tune, which examines the passing of time and the journey to a brighter future, brings a mellow, gracious sound that gives the reflective themes of the song a real cohesive feel. The track’s soundscape is melancholic yet southing and its layered arrangement adds further depth to the mindful journey lamented in its lyricism. ‘Blink of an Eye’ is the latest in a line of releases on Charlie’s own No Big Deal Music label, which he formed to shine a light on Scottish indie music, and comes with the promise of further releases soon.
Back onto indie rock with this next one and it’s the new track from The Now: the South Wales-based group dropped their new single, ‘Pleased’ last Monday. The track bears the hallmarks of Welsh neighbours and key influencers, Catfish and the Bottlemen. Soaring choruses take centre stage as distorted guitars provide them with a fitting backdrop. Having already been featured on national radio, ‘Please’ is a track that will likely allow the band to build on their expanding profile.
And last but by no means least for this week is ‘Miserable Man’: the new single from the Sheffield-based indie rock band, Bloom. The band shares the songwriting duties between two of its members and takes the bulk of their inspiration from 60's rock and 90s indie. Such influences ring true on ‘Miserable Man’, which features an intro not unlike Oasis’ ‘Rock ’n’ Roll Star’ and continues into a 60s garage-rock-infused guitar solo. Having only formed in February this year, the band are excited for the future and, if they continue to release this kind of quality single, there’s every reason to be.
All the tracks here are out now and available on the Our Sound Music Playlist.
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