Brooklyn based Swimming Bell have released a new single that is sure to bring them closer to the dream that they once thought, at one point, unteachable. Their newest release, “Desert Song (a lullaby)” was written in a cool October night while band member Katie Schottland was driving after attending a wedding. Before long, she found herself lost with a phone that had little to no battery. After pulling off the road to stop for the night and after many failed attempts to reach a satisfactory slumber, the words for this new release came to her as she tried to soothe her wild imagination.
Swimming Bell is a solo project that was created by Schottland after participating in several different bands over the past few years. With relatively no musical training, Katie has approached music with pure skill, talent and a highly developed ear for good sound. With the release of this new single, Swimming Bell hopes to also release a full length album by the end of this year. Along with these plans for future releases, it has also been announced that this group will be turning around the United States in order to share their music with anyone who is willing to listen.
Back again after the successful release of their last single, Lume is back with the release of their second single, “Unending” from their next album Wrung Out. Not only is a perfect complement to their previous release, “Unending” is full of a new excitement, rhythm and beat that is a new angle fans have yet to see in their previous releases. Originally, when the band began their journey of writing and producing their new album, they were inspired by the weight that society tends to place on certain subjects. Highly affected by the death of three friends, taken too soon from this earth and who suffered from drug abuse and suicide, Lume was motivated to speak out and express these deep emotions with their music. Although the themes of their lyrics are of great societal concern, “Unending,” avoids being dismal and bleak. Instead, it takes the listener on a journey that is beautiful, but also leans far over the edge until you are forced to take a plunge into their crashing finale.
With two singles from their next album out on the market, band members of Lume are preparing for the release of their full length album that is scheduled to drop on April 20. Also, more exciting news from this budding band includes the announcement made recently of the their upcoming tour with REZN. With a new album scheduled for release and a tour just around the corner, Lume is finally getting the attention from the music community that they so crave and rightly deserve.
Moving into the limelight after releasing her debut album is 90’s inspired band Soccer Mommy with the newest music video for one of her most popular tracks, “Cool”. Opening with a scene set in the middle of what appears to be a high school soccer field, the music video immediately envelops and intrigues the watcher to continue watching. From the beginning, the bright, crisp colors juxtapose the relaxed vibe of the track. Not only does this highlight the song’s unique sound, but also creates a clever visual spectacle that definitely shows signs of 90’s influences. Not only do the colors enhance the viewing experience, but the animations, created by Art Baby Girl, are clever and perfectly match the atmosphere of the music.
Soccer Mommy definitely has a bright future within her own sphere of cool, collected artistry that she have built for herself. Although she has hit a home run since the release of the full-length album, she has continued to chase after what seemed like such an elusive dream. This same principle is manifest in the quality of her music video, which is absolutely stunning. With the fire burning bright, there is no question that there is solid potential moving forward for Soccer Mommy.
Full of life and that 80’s vibe that fans can’t get enough of is newest single, “Little Mystery” from Matthew Meade’s newest project, Spritzer. With fans waiting on the edges of their seats in anticipation of his next full-length album Love. Lies. Decay—which comes out on April, 27—they are also just eating up this single. Although there is a familiarity in his catchy new sound, Spritzer adds a unique twist to the wide array of genres that they pull inspiration from. Ranging from indie rock to bossa nova, “Little Mysteries” has everything that the fans are both wanting and expecting.
When speaking of where inspiration for this song came from, Meade makes it clear that it was brought about by the blissful new relationship that has budded since the release of some of his older tracks. In his own words Meade considers it the “fun and shamelessly cheesy love song,” of the album. “Little Mystery,” is by far the most energetic and upbeat song on the upcoming album and has a nice spin on what fans might of expected out of this budding artist. Now that he has once again expanded his repertoire, we are all waiting to see what Matthew Meade has in store for the future of Spritzer.
Ushering in their next release is the synth-pop quintet that has been coined as New Jersey’s “hardest working and most loyal outfits.” Since their debut, Lowlight has been working hard to create fresh, new music that will keep fans moving. Now, they are coming forward with another track from their forthcoming EP Born to Run entitled, “Nights and Weekends,” which, like the name implies, is an anthemic, emotive single that is sure to catch the attention of synth-pop fans throughout the world. Scheduled to drop on March, 30, fans and band members alike are waiting with baited breath in anticipation of the new release. Despite all of this new material that they have been releasing, band members of Lowlight have also found the time to tour with The Pretenders throughout eastern states.
Within their new release, “Nights and Weekends,” this band takes the listener on a journey laced with killer beats and guitar solos that have a specific and unique sound that captures the attention of the listener. Lyrically, the lead vocalist encourages fans to live up the nights and weekends and live while the night is still young. It is an empowering, exciting track that is both lighthearted and inspirational. Radically different from the feel of their last release “Nights and Weekends” is upbeat and perfect for those seeking to get out and experience what the night life has to offer.
Moving into the spotlight is dynamic duo Nightseason who released their debut single, “Nothing Calms My Mind” last week via Noon Pacific. Their unique sound, however, is not the only thing that sets this group apart. Before releasing anything, Nightseason wrote their first EP by communicating through emails without ever even meeting each other in person. This, however, would not stop Patrick Zeinali and Jordan Caiola from collaborating together to form what has been marked as potentially one of the most successful singles in the world of rising new artists. Both of these band members were inspired by recent heartache that eventually led to the formation of Nightseason.
With the hopes of conveying a specific message that was full of both feeling and emotion and also dreaming of turning the world of rock on its head, Nightseason has worked tirelessly to produce, “Nothing Calms My Mind.” Looking ahead, fans can expect the debut of their 5-track EP later in in the year. Musically, this band features raw vocals from Caiola together with the production magic of Zeinali, there is nothing stopping this band from moving up in the world of music and accomplishing exactly what they set out to do originally.
Coming out of the woodworks and shocking the music world as a whole is only one attribute that has caught the attention of fans and critics from around the world. Blossoming artist Fenne Lily has broken out of mundane and average to achieve something that is worth while, but more importantly, worth the listen. Mostly acknowledged for her work on Aldous Harding’s last album, Fenne Lily was able to gain the traction that she needed with a surprising 20 million Spotify streams. Her style has been compared to the of Angel Olsen and Linda Perhacs, and has been given the title of “Joni Mitchell meets 4AD.” One of the greatest features of this 20-year-olds vocal performance is the versatility and flexibility in her voice. There is a “je ne sais quoi” feel about the atmosphere that she creates that entices the listener and soothes the soul.
Most recently Fenne Lily has come out with her single, “On Hold” with its accompanying music video that she created and produced by herself. It features Fenne rolling around London on roller skates handing out roses. Full of charm and quirk, this artist clearly has much to offer the rising generation on music and vocal talent.
Reaching new heights since the release of their second album is Melbourne-based band PrettyCity who have not only taken over the Britpop grunge scene in Australia, but have also been gaining radio traction here in the US. Most recently, this group has been busy writing, performing and producing their new album Cancel the Future which was released this month. Despite their busy schedule, the band members of PrettyCity took the time to sit down with us and talk about some exciting news, here’s what they had to say.
When you started working together, what were your goals and plans for the future? How have they changed since then?
When we started, we had all been in other bands that weren’t playing as many shows as we’d have liked. We were all kind of frustrated, so we just played as many shows as possible. We said yes to absolutely everything and started touring straight away. I guess it was a very explosive but scattergun approach. Over the years we’ve refined this to try and build a more of a global fan base and not limit ourselves to Australian shores.
Was there ever a time where you felt that you had achieved what you set out to do? Or are you still chasing that dream?
No. Never. We’re always chasing better song writing and better albums. I don’t think we’ll ever stop trying to create that piece of art that we think is perfect, which is the trap because there’s no such thing. I think the four of us are just those kinds of people. Are there any bands or artists that you like to model your sound or style after?
I don’t think there’s anyone in particular that we’ve tried to model our sound and style after but we certainly have strong influences. The four of us have really diverse tastes and influences, but the band has always been great at allowing those influences to shine through and take Hugh’s songs in interesting directions. I think we draw we draw a lot from other band’s attitudes and approaches to song writing. We all love the Beatles and the Stones and the art of simplicity, but we also love bands like the Killers, Jet, and the Brian Jonestown Massacre for how they were able to reinterpret older ideas and make them their own. From the grunge era there are so many bands but I’ve been prettyinfluenced by Green River, Soundgarden, L7, Hole and the Smashing Pumpkins. From an attitude perspective we love Black Sabbath and the Doors and T. Rex. It’s just sexy stuff. What does your writing process look like? Is it a team or individual effort?
Hugh, our lead singer and guitarist, writes the songs for the most part. Or he at least has melodies and some lyrics and then we work on structures and parts together. It’s really very collaborative and each of us is totally free to make our own parts and contribute to the song writing. Hugh’s got an incredible ear for melody and for capturing and distilling complex emotions into catchy sing along lyrics, which is such a hard thing to do. We’re very lucky to have him, and the group dynamic is really productive and supportive. As you prepare for your 27-day long European tour, what are your expectations? What are you most excited for?
I’m expecting a lot of time on the autobahn. I’m expecting to eat more cheese and pork products than I would usually consume in a year. I’m really excited to go back and experience the amazing European hospitality. We had such a great time last year and we can’t wait to get back and reconnect with all the friends we made. Now that you are looking to take your music and sound to an international level, what are your expectations as far as reactions from fans and crowds?
I guess we’re excited to share our new music with people. That’s the unchanging thing for all of us that is the same whether we’re in Melbourne, Austin or Hamburg, we are excited to play music and share our experiences with everyone. I hope more people will come share that with us, but at the same time, we love playing music so much, so we’re happy either way. I think the crowds will grow in Europe significantly though.
What can fans expect in the year 2018?
Well, we’ve already recorded our third album, so you can expect to hear an early single from that later in the year. Other than that, I think we’ll be doing some more touring back home and enjoying our home town for a bit 🙂
Drawing on the her bluesy background and soulful sound, Memphis-born artist Rania Woodard and producer/songwriter Brian Squillace have come together to put together some of the most popular up and coming sounds from the rising generation. Forming a dynamic duo, pop outfit LANNDS has created some of the most forward and interesting music on the market today. Since working together, they have worked to produce a new EP that is scheduled to drop later in the year. Their latest release, however, is the title track from the aforementioned EP titled, “Legends”.
From an early age Rania has always found solace in music and since her debut, the realization that she has a place in the music industry has transformed from a dream to a reality. Comprised of Woodard’s soulful vocals, blues background guitar as well as electro-pop musings from Squillace, this new artist’s music is as unique as it is relevant.
Since the formation of this hit new duo, they have racked up over 2 million streams to date, drawing attention to their out of the box beats and introspective, coming of age anthems. Not only have they caught the attention of fans ranging across all demographics, but they have also turned the heads of some of the well known names in the music industry such as Neon Gold. In the future, fans can look forward to the release of their EP Legends, but for now are soaking up the creative artistry of their latest release that bares the same name.
