Soda Blonde announce their debut album and tour with the release title track ‘Small Talk’. Out July 9th via Velveteen Records, the entirely self-produced album sees the group reflecting on their twenty-something experiences with refreshingly honest transparency. All four band members (Faye O’Rourke, Adam O’Regan, Dylan Lynch and Donagh Seaver-O’Leary) are seasoned musicians, despite their youth. They have been playing together since their early teens, with their previous band – the internationally renowned Little Green Cars, whose seminal debut album skyrocketed to number one on the Irish album charts.
‘Small Talk’ is a brooding new addition to Soda Blonde’s smoky alternative pop sound. The band take shimmering disco elements and light wispy synths and blend them to create an 80’s-esque intoxicating bop. Soda Blonde’s ability to weave rich musical threads throughout their instrumentation is awe-inspiring. Within ‘Small Talk’, the band create a fluid, hazy atmosphere through these mystical threads while injecting a funky bassline and buoyant beat into the track’s foundation which exudes a sultry dark undertone and air of mystery throughout. As the electronics unfold gently, the rhythmic backbone intensifies and bubbles, expanding into the catchy melodies and glittering guitars for the euphoric chorus. O’Rourke’s vocals are mesmerising. Her lush whispers elegantly drift over the dreamy melody exuding tender emotion as she coos, “Do I suppress everything? Am I just too late to admit that I’m Ignoring myself? “. With light twinkles on keys, lush harmonies and earnest lyrics, ‘Small Talk’ is a bewitching alternative pop track that boasts the musical mastery of Soda Blonde.
You Can Catch Soda Blonde Live at:
August 13 – 15 Wild Roots Festival, Sligo, Ireland August 27 + 28 SoFFT Nights, Co.Meath, Ireland September 08 Mike the Pies, Co.Kerry, Ireland September 09 Cyprus Avenue, Cork, Ireland September 10 Dolans Warehouse, Co.Limerick, Ireland September 11 Roisin Dubh, Galway, Ireland September 12 Whelan’s, Dublin Ireland September 19 Belfast Empire Music Hall, Belfast, UK September 21 Broadcast, Glasgow, UK September 22 YES, Manchester, UK September 23 Sebright Arms, London, UK July 17. 2022 Iveagh Gardens, Dublin, Ireland (with Sinead O’Connor)
Bio : Dublin/Meath Indie-Folk Band Between//Roads have released their new single, ‘Blue Eyes’.Formed in 2018, B//R began as an indie-folk 2-piece who sought to create catchy tunes similar to some of their favourite artists. B//R weren’t long in realising that their aspirations surpassed their set-up and in order to achieve the sound they were looking for, they needed to turn B//R into a 5-piece; in doing so, they instantly got closer to their musical vision.
Track: Blue Eyes
Why We Like It: It’s a bright indie folk song that showcases the expanding sound of Between//Roads.The band cut haunting soundscapes with jaunty guitar and jangly percussion to create a compelling and magical listening experience. With rumbling drums creating a sense of turbulence through the earthy folk and sweet melody, the song has a sense of mystery. The track broods and haunts between vibrant indie moments as backing vocals coo creating a ghostly dimension to this dynamic tune. Richly crafted with a cinematic crescendo, catchy chorus and dark luring verses, ‘Blue Eyes’ is a fantastic single.
Bio : Coral Palms are a four-piece indie pop band conceived and created in Torquay, Devon. Now, currently based in London, band members Ollie, Will, Adriano and Callum deliver an infectious, breezy sound, planting palm trees and warm summer memories in your head
Track: Echoes
Why We Like It: It’s a vibrant track that packs oodles of punch as the band surge an adrenaline-soaked indie-pop backdrop over buoyant rhythms to create a hyper listening experience. With dynamic hip moving bass lines wiggling between jaunty guitars and snappy drums, the track exudes youthful energy. The band create a fun sun-kissed sound as the intense verses bubble over to the animated chorus. With a catchy melody, smooth vocals and tight instrumentation, ‘Echoes’ is an irresistible tune that marks Coral Palms a band to keep an eye on.
Bio : Made up of three brothers from Canterbury, lotusbliss is a uniquely DIY indie band that focus on an ambient, yet sleek musical delivery. ‘Thunder in the Room’ is the last single from the band before their explosive, tightly executed new EP set for release in early April named Bittersweet.
Track: Thunder In The Room
Why We Like It: It’s a shimmering indie-pop track shrouded in dark tones and melancholia. The band drive edgy bass grooves through an icy, ethereal soundscape to create a compelling and chilling listening experience. As the song progresses, the band introduce warm horns and layered guitar melodies, which expand and build into a cinematic crescendo while the 80’s hued soundscapes flourish with sparkling synths and brooding tones. Utterly mesmerising and lushly crafted lotusbliss provide an emotive, refined new single that fully submerges the ears in rich melodies and expressive musicianship.
Bio : Formed in Galway and drawn together by a mutual appreciation of all music, past and present, The Clockworks are a four-piece comprising James McGregor on Vocals/Guitar, Sean Connelly on Guitar, Damian Greaney on Drums and Tom Freeman on bass. Relocating to London in 2019, the quartet signed to Alan McGee’s new record label Creation23 almost overnight. They have since impressed audiences across Europe with live performances at festivals including Eurosonic and Electric Picnic, performing to a huge crowd at Sefton Park in Liverpool in support of Kings of Leon, as well as a head-turning televised appearance on Sky 1’s Soccer AM.
Track: Feels So Real
Why We Like It: It’s is a sharp and thrilling tune. This band create soaring, refined music where ethereal pines on guitar pierce through a muggy backdrop of rumbling bass and drums. A dark undertone adds moments of agitation while the expressive melody and dynamic vocals tell a story of buzzing city life. ’Feels So Real’ is an honest and exhilarating new single that boasts the fresh songwriting and musical prowess of The Clockworks.
Belfast-born Liverpool-based songwriter Thom Southern has released his third single ‘Soul Singer’.It’s a fantastic burst of fuzz-pop that continues the frenetic sound we have come to love from Southern. I caught up with the singer-songwriter to talk about the new single, working with Sonic Boom and how he is carving his own recognisable sound as well as the advantages of beginning a solo career in the middle of a pandemic.
“Yeah, it’s always good to finally get the song out there because as a musician, you kind of just want to play it as soon as you write it and record it, you want to put it out the next day but there’s always a bit of a process to releasing music. I finished writing that song, probably a year ago and then I just sort of last-minute ended up asking Sonic Boom to work on it with me and he mixed it and added his instruments. Then we decided to put it out quite quickly, which was cool. Normally there’s more of a strategy to releasing music, especially if you’ve got a record label but with this track, I released it completely DIY. It was just fun to do it completely on my own and use friends to make videos and things. So that’s cool.”
‘Soul Singer’ was produced in collaboration with Peter Kember a.k.a Sonic Boom of Spacemen 3. A collaboration made in heaven as Spacemen 3 were notoriously known for their minimalistic psychedelic sound and Southern’s previous releases have shown flairs of psychedelia while maintaining a shoegaze and indie bite. Southern chuckles as he tells me how a random social media interaction brought about this beautiful collaboration.
“ It’s funny, I’m a big fan of Spaceman 3, for years I’ve been listening to them. And it’s [Soul Singer] actually really inspired by tracks that were probably more prominent with Pete [Peter Kember] because obviously Jason Pierce and Pete, their styles are very different inside Spaceman 3. You can kind of hear the difference, especially on the Recurring album. I’m pretty sure they’d split up by that point, and they did that album completely separately, and I think tracks like ‘I Love You’ and there’s a track called ‘Big City’. I think that was mainly Pete doing them. Those two tracks actually really inspired the production sound of Soul Singer so it was weird. I didn’t even know Pete then and I was just producing myself with Spaceman 3 in mind. Also, I love going to Spain, and everywhere you go in Spain, you kind of hear that…, I don’t know whether it’s Samba or whatever, you know, that kind of beat pulsing through every song, everywhere. Its like, boom, kicka boom ka. I’ve always really wanted to make a tune like that in an ironic way. So I just sort of blended that kind of Spanish influence and Spacemen 3 with like, another track I like, ‘Movin’ on Up’ by Primal Scream and I just really wanted to make a really feel-good song. I just felt like it was the right time to release it because, everyone’s a bit down at the moment, and it’s coming up to the summer, but yeah, it was funny, I just started following Sonic Boom on Instagram and he had released a new Christmas tune or something and I put it up on my story and then he shared my story post, and then I shared his share of my story post, and then he shared my share of my share, you know, and we kept doing that for like 10 minutes out of nowhere and we created this, In a way, it’s kind of poetic, but we created this kind of interstellar story sharing thing, and it’s like a parallel universe. It kind of looked like that with loads of shares. So we were just laughing and joking with each other all day and then I just said, you know what, I’ve actually got this song that I think would be perfect working together do you want to do it? and he was up for it, so it’s quite weird but yeah we’re kind of friends now on email and I keep in touch and stuff so yeah it’s funny how life works out like that.”
Like all true production maestro’s, Southern crafts his songs meticulously adding lush melodies and layers through each melodic whirl or sharp guitar wail. Within ‘Soul Singer’ there is a wonderfully sweet key melody that becomes the hook that lures your ears into the song while a catchy guitar and vocal melody intertwine to create a lush and exhilarating soundscape.
“I think, the way I connect the instrument and the vocals together, like the way I write songs, they sort of are always intertwined with one another. So a lot of the time I write a guitar chord that gets me going. I’m like oh this is class. I love writing a very simple hook inside the guitar. In a lot of my songs you’ll find, that I write the melodies of my lyrics, based on what the guitar’s doing or vice versa. So with Soul Singer, I’m pretty sure it was the acoustic guitar riff . I just sort of heightened it with a very clear melody and then I wrote the lyric, “you’re taking my problems away”, that’s the same melody over the top of that. I quite like when songwriting is completely simplified down to almost like a nursery rhyme hook, you know, just something super simple. So, yeah, that’s kind of how that came about.”
“Some of the verse melody ideas and lyrics I actually wrote when I was like 19 or something. It was at the very beginning of my old band, Southern. It used to be a song called Violet View or something, then I changed it to Soul Singer and sort of made it about a different story, but yeah it’s kind of three songs sort of put together and developed over time. I think it’s been hanging around for a good few years and I was never really happy with it. I wanted to define a vision for the production if you know what I mean. I think whenever I heard that Spanish drumbeat when I was going on holiday, a lot of that just sort of clicked.”
It’s interesting to see the versatility within each of Southern’s releases. He is creating his own instantly recognisable sound. ‘Soul Singer’ blends the swelling blitz of fuzzy shoegaze from ‘Shivers’ and the sweet heartfelt nostalgia of ‘Perfect Someone’ while adding more textures and sounds. I wondered is this Southern weening us into his sound or just showing what he can do
“That’s a good question. I think. Yeah, because of lockdown, I was watching an interesting interview with Mac DeMarco the other day actually and he was being interviewed about his process since covid came and everything, and it was funny what Mac DeMarco said. He said, there’s no point in me releasing anything at the moment because I can’t show and tell. That made me laugh. It’s so true, like normally I would write music that would incorporate how I’d like to present it on stage, so like, if I had a tour coming up or whatever I’d always make sure that the songs, sort of sounded similar so that when we go on tour, I can capture people in that moment and that style and get lost in it with them. Whereas I think because of all the lockdowns, it has sort of thrown the rulebook out of the window and it’s allowed a lot of artists to experiment more and I think it’s funny, I launched my solo career in the midst of it all so yeah, I think you can kind of get away with more. But, long story short, I think, It’s a bit of both. I’m just experimenting and I don’t think I can ever really have a specific style, because I really love a lot of genres, but the basis of my songwriting is always pretty similar, you know. I like writing catchy pop songs. But then, experimenting with the production sound. So maybe it’s more like the production sound, is what is more experimental. I think I’m just developing it at the moment. Eventually, when I’m ready to go on tour, I want to make a more full body of work where it’s like six tracks all interlinked and the whole story and the songwriting is all based around that EP whereas at the moment I’m kind of just releasing singles. So yeah, I’m just enjoying this.”
This experimentation has created a diverse listening experience for fans as they can hear the produced spectacle of the track as well as a more raw version when Southern performs the songs live. Recently Southern showcased how the tracks will translate live through a performance on This Feeling, providing yet another side to his sound that I’m sure fans were eager to see.
“I think, with Soul Singer, it was more of an artistic collaboration with Sonic Boom. It’s kind of not a representation of me on my own, just doing it completely on my own. So that was just a fun collaboration and something that I wanted to do because I admire Sonic Boom and I just thought, you know, it’d be cool to mix our styles together. But if I was to play Soul Singer on an acoustic guitar, it would sound more like what I did for This Feeling. And obviously, you know, ‘Perfect Someone’, it’s hard to replicate a sound like that with just three people on stage, unless you’re playing the backing tracks and I’m not a big fan of backing tracks. I prefer to hear the band totally raw. So, yeah, I think, what I did with This Feeling is probably more close to what I will sound like on tour, in general. Especially if I’m only playing with three people, you know guitar, bass and drums. I mean it’s hard to replicate all those sounds that I put into the production of Soul Singer. So, yeah that’s a good point, I think what I would really like to do is to make a more raw EP, eventually, I think at the moment just because of lockdown and everything I think it’s more fun to just do whatever I want, production-wise, and then when I’m ready to go on the road I definitely would love to make a more live-sounding EP, or album that I could easily replicate on tour. But for the meantime, I think it’s more fun for artists to just do whatever they want because there is no rule book at the minute.”
Versatility is an important trait to have as an artist and Southern doesn’t shy away from pushing himself to create tunes that erupt with life and energy. He also showcases his versatility through a few covers, most recently Billie Eilish’s ‘everything i wanted’.
“Actually it was like a year ago that I did the majority of that recording. I just kept hearing Billie Eilish’s name everywhere and I was like, you know what, I’m just gonna go and listen, and then the first thing I listened to was ‘everything i wanted’.Obviously, I think I’d heard some other stuff and it’s brilliant, but it’s not my cup of tea, you know like, ‘bad guy’ and stuff. But then I heard ‘everything i wanted’ and I was like, whoa, For fun I just started stripping it back onto an acoustic guitar and singing along with the lyrics and you just realize how good at writing her and her brother are. I think it’s as good as any master songwriter out there and it just suited my voice while I was singing. I thought I’d do my own take on it and I showed it to a couple of my friends and they were like you should definitely put this out, but I was sitting on that track for a while, and I just decided to put it out at the end of the year. And, yeah, it’s pretty cool and she won a Grammy for it the other day. It seems to be my most popular tune on Spotify which is cool”
Thom Southern is a talented singer-songwriter. He combines a natural knack for heartfelt melodies with an intense and ever-growing soundscape of alternative pop, shoegaze and psychedelia to create a sound that is truly mesmerising and lush. Each release brings something new and exciting. Looking forward to hearing what Thom Southern releases next.
Clonmel-based electronic artist, Culla, teams up with Limerick Indie Pop Quintet, Dylan Flynn and The Dead Poets, on the new EP, ‘Like It Never Happened’.The EP was written, produced, and mixed by Flynn and Culla, with Gavin Murray, the drummer of the Dead Poets mixing the closing track, ‘Miles’. Both artists are founding members of the Limerick-based collective, BitDepth.
‘Like It Never Happened’ is a diverse collection of tracks that surge with rich rhythms and refined instrumentation. Kicking off with the instrumental ‘Microscope’ the EP sets itself up to be a rich and unique collection of songs. This track oozes swagger as the guys melt intricately weaved guitar lines into a swirling thick electronic soundscape while warm saxophones inject a jazzy mellow element into the mix. Boasting deft production and dense percussive textures ‘Microscope’ is the perfect appetiser to the following track ‘Mellow Green’.The electronic pulse continues throughout ‘Mellow Green’ as beats ricochet off a swirling soundscape of bright guitars and lush instrumentation. This track ventures between R&B and indie-pop while velvety vocals create a soothing and moving atmosphere. ‘Miles’ brings the EP to a tender ballad-esque finale. Its rich blend of indie-folk radiates a heartwarming tone while the easy on the ears melody, steady beat, and soft guitar twinkles exude an irresistible charm. This is the most commercial track on the EP – laced in wholesome tones and bittersweet nostalgia it’s a moving and soothing end to the EP.
Culla and Dylan Flynn and The Dead Poets weave golden laid back melodies through their vibrant and kinetic sound to create a mellow yet engaging listening experience. Their unique blend of instrumentation and production techniques is refreshing and results in a well crafted and vibrant three-track EP.
Lemonade Shoelace is set to release his new single ‘Autopilot Paradise’. on 24th March. Lemonade Shoelace is the project of 23-year-old Ruairí Richman, a graduate of the BIMM institute in Dublin and a native of Newcastle, Co. Down. All his tracks are written, recorded, and produced entirely in a small home studio.
Throughout ‘Autopilot Paradise,’ Lemonade Shoelace uses prismatic psychedelic tones and lusciously blended sounds to create one refreshing guzzle of alternative pop. The song drifts along with a bubbling beat and elastic bass groove which creates a dance-infused foundation while 80’s-esque synths soar and wisp throughout providing an ethereal sense of euphoria. This juicy burst of electronic pop surges with zesty guitars and rich reverb soundscapes that intensify as the anthemic chorus kicks in. Richmans’ smooth vocals coo over the dreamy melody while the synths shimmer and flicker between the vibrant soundscapes. The track is a feast for the senses and layered perfectly, revealing new luxuriant sounds with each verse and chorus arrangement.
Oozing bright melodies, deep grooves, and ethereal synths, ‘Autopilot Paradise’ is a tantalizing new single that makes Lemonade Shoelace an artist to keep an eye on.
Encapsulating harsh feelings of anger, betrayal and frustration within his music, Davy Williamson has released his new EP ‘Down By The Fire’.Raised in North Carolina, Davy Williamson began his musical career co-founding various regional acts. Today, he sets off to launch his solo career, flying the flag for Hard-Rock while exploring themes fueled around broken homes, struggles with relationships and loss of friends. Working with names such as Shawn Adkins (Back-A-Round Records), Steve Hardy (RockMixer.com) and Andy Vandette (The Engine Room) on his latest project, Davy Williamson recently released his debut single, ‘Thin Disguise’ from his forthcoming EP. This release alone approached 10k followers and over 47k streams.
‘Down By The Fire’ is a raw rock EP laced in Davy Williamson’s emotional and powerful musicianship. Dowsing melancholic melodies in a vast soundscape of blazing guitars, pounding drums, and dynamic basslines the EP swarms in on a relentless wall of sound. Williamson creates cinematic moments and thrilling eerie atmospheres through his compelling tunes. ‘Thin Disguise’, ‘Cliche’ and ‘Sick Thoughts’ all boast anthemic crescendos and mosh-worthy elements while tracks like ‘Down By The Fire’ surge with powerful alternative rock brawn and emotive lyrics. Williamson’s cutting lyrics touch on themes of relationships and struggles which is expressed through dynamic vocal exclaims. His raw gravelly vocals exude emotion as he coos with sombre tones through the verses of ‘Fault Line’ and ‘Same Place’ before bellowing with passion alongside the crashing instrumentation of the exhilarating choruses. ‘Down By The Fire’ is a gritty and instrumentally rich, rock EP sure to have you headbanging and singing along in no time.
NI Music Prize Nominee Sam Wickens has recently released his new EP, ‘Watson.’ I caught up with the singer-songwriter to talk about the themes and topics that inspired this emotional EP, how he crafts his sound and the cinematic videos that have pushed him to the extremes in freezing cold weather.
‘Watson’ is a wholly immersing collection of tracks that display a timeline of the darkest and most vulnerable times in Wickens’ life. Within this EP, he describes in great detail his emotional state, his inner thoughts, and how he struggled to keep his head above water. I wondered if this honest delivery made him nervous for the release.
“No, I think I was more nervous when I was releasing the album, the fact that it was so raw to me, it was more of a personal thing for me to release. It wasn’t just like oh these are songs that I think sound amazing, it was just a part of me that I was releasing, so I wasn’t nervous about how people were going to take it. I think everyone, whether it’s music that you listen to normally or something that you would never listen to, when you hear something so raw, you just connect anyway and you respect it, so I wasn’t nervous”
It’s quite a gripping EP. Wickens captures so much anguish and torment through beautiful musicianship and production. Each song is almost like a piece of a puzzle that slots together to talk about his struggle with mental health. The vulnerability and rawness makes each song feel like it was written at the time of Wickens’ suffering. However, in retrospect Wickens realises the scale of what he went through.
“It was looking back in hindsight, that I saw, as you said there was a bit of like, puzzle or a pattern. One of the first thoughts I got when I was listening back after I think it must have been like eight months of writing and recording a lot of the songs, was like when people say the stages of grief, there’s different stages. I started seeing that, each song was like a different stage of… I called it my downfall, into the worst place that I had ever been. So, with some of the songs, it was the first time I had noticed something’s happening here I’m going somewhere, and then it gets into kind of questioning, you know with ‘Murky Waters’, it was that kind of angry, Why has all of this happened?. Why am I constantly being dealt these bad cards?, and then with ‘This War of Mine’ that was the acceptance stage. I’d accepted that I’m not going to get any better, this is going to be the rest of my life, however short, it was going to be at the time, you know, I’d accepted it. Then with ‘Strange’, that’s the afterwards, that kind of awakening of it all just went away. So when we were putting the tracks in order it was even clearer then to see that it was this pattern which was an amazing thing for me to see looking back because you get to see the different types of progress, you know the progress that I was getting more depressed, and it was very evident, looking back, but at the time everyday was the same.”
“ In a horrible way I became externally desensitized to a lot of things, as I said from having traumatic experiences. So, as a songwriter there’s a level of skill where you kind of switch off a little bit and you can analyze it, and I have learned skills in that through psychiatrists and a lot of counseling where you’re able to analyze a situation, especially if it’s inside your own head. But where ‘Murky Waters’ came from, it was just the lines you know I’ve been wading murky waters all alone, and I was so angry when I came up with that line. Because, as you said, the realization hit me, and I was just like, why has this always happened to me. I try my best to be a good person. I try to help anyone I can.Why is it such a struggle for me to just be me and I was just so angry, but when I was writing it, the anger became a bit more because, as you said, you know you’re looking into these things all of a sudden. 3 things that were on my mind that the song was about became 10 became 20. I was thinking about more of these things that had happened growing up and by the time I finished the song it was quite therapeutic because it was like okay some of them things I hadn’t thought of in a while and whenever you finish a song there’s a sense of closure with whatever you’re writing about. It feels like right, I’ve given that time of day, I’ve thought about it,I’ve really fleshed it out and that’s what I love about songwriting anyway.”
Wickens’ lyrics are expressive, well crafted, and poetic. This is especially the case with ‘Watson.’ However my personal favourite track on the EP is arguably ‘This War of Mine’. It is within this song I feel Wickens’ lyrics are at their most potent, evocative and poetic. He sings, “In time ill find some peace of mind. In time, I’ll lose this war of mine” – that line alone is striking. It gives a sense that here within this narrative or this part of the EP’s timeline, Wicken’s gives up or loses hope.
“ When I was first writing the song, I was just sitting playing on piano and how I write a lot of my songs I just kind of go and do an adlib, I’ll just sing whatever comes to my head and then change things up afterwards and stuff, but as I was singing it, I sang the lyric, I’ll lose This War of Mine. I got really emotional just sitting in my studio. I think it was the first time that I had admitted to no one else but myself, by myself that I don’t think this is something I’m going to be able to come through, you know for the first time. Everything else I’ve had an attitude of, I’ll get through it, I’ll fight through it, I’m not going to stop. But this was the first time where I had admitted to myself through music as well which is even closer to me than just me as a person that I wasn’t going to be able to win this time. That just struck me really deep.But also the fact that I was accepting of it, I was like, You know what, I’m going to get some peace of mind, no matter what, I’m either going to lose and none of these problems are going to be here anymore, or, it will leave, and it won’t be here anymore. But at the time of writing it was definitely, I’m going to lose this fight, I didn’t think I’d be around so it was quite tough when I first wrote that lyric.”
This pain is heartbreakingly powerful throughout the EP, but I wondered for Wickens’ family was it difficult for them to hear his pain through this remarkably honest EP.
“My mother always knew. We’ve always been very very close and we’ve always had a very open relationship. I would never hold anything back. So she’s been in the know through everything, especially from when I was a child, she had to be there at all the counseling or GP appointments and stuff so she had witnessed everything from medications to me being tranquilized and put to sleep and stuff. It wasn’t nice, but it was normal and that sounds really weird but because it happened for such a long period of time it was normal for me and my mum to go to a psychiatric hospital or me and my mom to go to my GP to get medication or, you know, go to a substance abuse clinic and all these things. It became quite normal but I wouldn’t let them really listen to the songs at an early stage. So by the time they hear it, it is pretty much with everyone else hearing it. So I think there’s a bit of a shock especially – they hear how I’m saying things from a very vulnerable place and that is me and my music. It’s always very vulnerable. My mom and my dad, they would hear from just a slightly different angle like whenever you are talking to someone you’re almost afraid to say something that could upset them so you sometimes dumb it down a bit, but with music,there’s no limit, you can say what you want. But I do know it was tough for them.”
Wickens’ music doesn’t conform to one genre; it seamlessly flows between electronic, blues, and country to rock. His writing isn’t a forced art. He allows it to flourish and grow organically, sometimes springing off a lyric or melody.
“ If I’m writing lyrics with no music, sometimes, it would be, as you said earlier, poetry. I would write it, and there’s no real musical element. There’s a bit of rhythm to the poetry, how you kind of move the words around and stuff. I see what kind of perks my ears, a little bit. Obviously, with me it’s not really that often a happy sounding song but, yeah with my style of writing I wouldn’t be the type of musician that’s writing every day to improve the skill. Whatever I do write, it’s going to be true, it’s going to be honest and it’s going to be from me, and sometimes that takes a long time. I know one of the lyrics in Murky Waters, “I’ll just drink if I drown” – I wrote that maybe four or five years ago just that one line. I had been sober for six years, and at one really down point, I was like you know what if I feel like I’m drowning in depression I’m just gonna drink. Luckily enough I’ve never done that but I was at a very bad place and I just wrote that lyric down, and, four or something years later, I was writing Murky Waters and remembered that line and was like this makes a lot of sense.”
Wickens once said that ‘Ravens and Crows’ from his ‘All I’ve Seen’ 2019 album was inspired by a bird that flew into his window and it gave him something to ruminate on. I wondered if escaping through his imagination is vital to his song writing.
“Yes, but I find that I need something to kind of startup. Unless it’s like daydreaming, about like what if I could fly, I can imagine that but for storylines and memories, with me and a lot of times my songs, they start off and the first little bit of inspiration is a memory that’s come into my head, and then, that just takes it on. But with Ravens and Crows and other songs that have been quite imagery based – My family always joke I’ve got an insane memory, when it comes to imagery stuff – I just can remember a lot of details. So one small picture- esque memory, I could just draw it in so much detail I could fill an entire song. But yeah, I seem to need that little burst of initial creativity, and then my brain just takes over.”
Another mesmerising quality to Wickens’ songs is his ability to create instrumental backdrops of cinematic quality filled with unique and exciting sounds that reveal themselves on each subsequent listen.
“ That’s the one part I absolutely love about production, the atmosphere and the textures and I think they just add the sense of day to day life, you know, whether it be a wind howling, or something clanging, that’s a big part of my production. It came from whenever I was doing therapy, there’s a form of therapy called EMDR. Whenever I was doing it he’d give me two little controllers and they would vibrate left and right in my hands, and then there would be a beep, left and right and it always made me relaxed. So I started bringing it into the songs and having things go on left and right, and then that kind of evolved into every time I would write a song I would put some kind of atmospheric sound or some kind of textural sound, and it would just distract me enough to allow myself to be creative. I’m just building on that, some sounds are random. In Murky Waters in the introduction of the song, there’s this kind of clicking it almost sounds like some kind of weird bird, but it was actually my drummer, that was taking photos on a camera, and I just heard it, I was like, Oh, we need to record that. In This War of Mine there’s someone hitting a hammer. There’s these weird sounds that I think add some kind of difference to the songs, they’re not all the way through, they’re not, on beat, it’s not even a melody it’s just the sound. But I love that, I love building them up and seeing what you can create with just bits of randomness.”
Wickens has a warm, soulful voice that oozes vulnerability and confidence all at once. There is something quite captivating within his vocals. However, Wickens admits he isn’t a confident singer at all.
“Oh no, I am still not. I never could sing. I would say one of the best things about me being very depressed, was I stopped caring what people thought about me singing and I’m so happy that I’ve managed to keep it up. But I’ve struggled with my confidence, a lot, and when I first started performing, I would never say a word. I would go up when I would perform and I would leave and I would go to the back door, I was a ghost. Then people started liking that, people started talking about the fact that Sam Wickens gets on stage. He doesn’t say anything. He just performs and he leaves and I started to feel quite comfortable in that. But I’ve never really had a lot of confidence, especially within my music, and I’ve seen a lot of people talk about imposter syndrome, where you feel like everything’s a fluke. I felt like that, you know, anytime my manager would say something about my voice and say like, this is quoting him, he would say like, ‘you’ve got one of the best voices about’. I’m like, are you listening to the same person I’m listening to? Because in my mind I think I sound like a drunk 80 year old person that smoked far too much for far too long. But I suppose just getting older, you start to just be okay with yourself. I think that I’m definitely going down that path now which is so much better because you’re able to enjoy it more, you’re not worrying as much.”
Wickens has released a cinematic video for ‘Strange 24’ and ‘Murky Waters’.Both striking in their own way with the running theme of pushing Wickens to his limits physically to create the tension, drama and imagery, recreating visually what Wickens’ mind was fighting through within the themes of these songs and throughout the EP.
“Strange was the first time me and the director Danny Mills had met each other. I’d seen his work on another artist, and there was something about it. Whenever you see a videographer’s work, it’s like you can see through their eyes a little bit, and how they see the world. As soon as I saw his video, it was a song called OMG by John Andrews, fantastic song, I love that song. I saw the video and I just felt like he [Danny Mills] could see darkness in things and if he can see darkness in day to day life, he could almost translate what I feel into video. So, we met up, and he just sat down and was like ‘Tell me your story’ and we just talked for about an hour or two. We were throwing all these concepts back and forth, about the video. I want to go to the extreme for videos. I think it’s a way of almost punishing myself for the music, you know, that kind of old thing. But I wanted it to be extreme. I think I said I want it to be a mixture of the introduction to American Horror Story, and the canal scene out of Willy Wonka. I want it to be that kind of unsettling. Then he texted me one day and he was like, Look, I have found this location that’s an abandoned asylum, it would be pretty cool to make the video almost like a prequel to the song – so the song is about it all just went away, well what went away Sam? so let’s go back there. Obviously, the psychiatric hospital I was in was nothing like the one in the video, but it was an amazing experience for ‘Strange’”
The asylum for ‘Strange 24’ is a harrowing setting I wondered was it as ominous as it looked
“One thing that really made me a bit on edge was there was graffiti on it. Some of the graffiti was very twisted, said some horrible things, and as soon as I read it, I was like, I don’t feel as easy here. I feel like the worst things that happened here happened after it had closed. It was long filming. We were filming from five in the morning and we were finishing about 12 at night. It was about three days, I think, and then obviously the outdoor scenes in the maze which was a task in itself. We had no way to communicate to each other. So, I’m in the middle of a maze and I need to find my way back to figure out what to do next. I had a spray bottle to keep myself wet for the video but a lot of it was just sweat because, you know, I would hear Danny shouting Sam come over I need to talk to you, and it would take me about 25 minutes jogging to get back to him, and that was constant. So it was pretty tough.”
“For Murky Waters, I got sick badly. I used to do crazy stuff growing up…I’ve set my face on fire and stuff for a video when I was a lot younger, and I got stabbed in the arm on camera and this is the first time my mom was like, I don’t think this is such a good idea I’m a bit worried. This was also the first time that I was actually a bit worried because where we were filming was just south of a place called Downpatrick, it was right at the sea edge, and the plan was for me to get into the ocean or into the sea, and I had never been to this location before, but when we got there the edges were just jagged rock face. It wasn’t like a beach. It was the coldest day of the year. It was lashing down. The bath we had, we were filling it up with water from the sea, so it was freezing, also I would need to stay in the same clothes all day. So I was getting a bit worried. We filmed a little bit, but the bath scene where I submerge myself was the first scene that we filmed. So as I went in, it felt like my lung capacity had just shrunk. I was trying to breathe and this waters…freezing cold and it’s freezing outside and it’s so windy… As soon as I went under the water the shock reaction of taking a breath and I took a big breath of water and jumped up coughing and almost threw up all this water at the side of the bath … I was very bad, my body went into a bit of shock and I couldn’t stop shaking. In a lot of the actual frames and scenes in Murky Waters, you can see me shaking and you can see that I’m very blank in the face. That wasn’t acting that was really true. There was a lot of time where I was tunnel vision throughout the day. Where I thought that I was about to pass out because all my clothes were just soaking wet and it was raining and it was windy. It was just constant freezing weather and then the next two days, I was really sick at home. I was really really badly sick. But it made for a great video. I’ve been given instructions from Danny – can you please write a song about sunshine and happiness so he can film in Ibiza or something. I said to him the next thing is gonna involve fire or something warm. One idea that I had for a video was macabre. I wanted to be lying beside myself. Basically, one version of me is alive and one’s dead, and wanted to just lie beside himself, but a few videographers down right were like ‘we’re not doing that, that’s a bit too much’ – this is one of the first questions I asked Danny just to see how he would react. He was like, ‘ definitely’, and I was like, yeah, we’re gonna work together. But I do love working with him and I can’t wait to see what’s next.”
Wickens’ Dublin show has been confirmed in The Workman’s Club for Saturday the 13th of November and Wickens is buzzing to play shows again
“It’s weird I’m just excited. Normally I’m really nervous. Sadly I only got to play one gig. Like, after I took a bit of a break and then I played one gig, that was, you know,a great great gig, it was for a mental health charity. I loved that. I was so scared. But after that, I was like, this is definitely for me, I want to do this again. Then the lockdown happened but I’m just excited. I’m not putting so much expectation on myself. I’m just allowing myself to be myself and enjoy it and Dublin is just amazing for music. The people that go to gigs in Dublin, they just want to listen to music and to be in it and I think after all of this people are gonna want that more than ever.”
I wondered what advice Wickens would give to someone who wants to start a career in music.
“Do it for the right reasons, do it because you want to do it. I see a lot of people, and they’re like 15, 16, and they’re trying to be what they think everyone wants them to be or what TV wants them to be or Simon Cowell and stuff like that. But I think the best thing to do is be yourself or else you’ll end up never happy. I remember listening to a podcast, years ago, and the guy in the podcast said that he was given advice when he was younger to ‘Be yourself’, and he never understood it until he was older and he was like, Oh, it’s not like be a better version of yourself, or be a more theatrical version of yourself, it’s just simply be yourself. I tried to make sure that I took that in a bit earlier than he did. I think that’s what inspired me to be a lot more open about myself because while I was struggling and stuff. I was still pretending. I was pretending I was okay. But I think, just be yourself. there’s always going to be people out there that like who you are and like what you do and there will always be a lot more people that can see through fakeness. I think authenticity gets people’s respect instantly, even if they don’t like your music, they’ll respect that you’re being authentic. I think that’s one of the best things about being a musician is just being yourself.”
I wondered what Sam Wickens has got planned for the coming months.
“I’m not too sure. I know I’ve got a few singles sitting there, but I do like to wait a wee bit between releases. It takes me a long time to debrief and move, mentally on to the next thing. I would like to work on a few more videos, whether it be for new singles that are in the pipeline, or something completely brand new, and just see what we can do live-wise. I do know that in the North, we’re late, they released the roadmap, but no dates and stuff so we’re still in the unknown, but I would definitely like to do something, I love small gigs so if there’s a possibility of a very small, intimate socially distant, whatever it may be, kind of a gig would be lovely especially coming into the summer, you know, nice, bright nights outside somewhere would be an absolute gift, so fingers crossed.”
Wickens is a passionate performer and exceptional instrumentalist; his heartfelt songs and deft musical prowess is something to be admired. Within his songs, there are immaculate moments of heightened emotion and striking, poetic lyrical depth that takes your breath away. With each release, Wickens creates a world of his own where the listener is immersed within his story as he depicts emotion like no other. Sam Wickens is a songwriter to treasure.
Dublin quartet Inhaler have released their new single ‘Cheer Up Baby’ alongside the announcement of their debut album, ‘It Won’t Always Be Like This,’ which will be released on July 16th. The band comprised of Elijah Hewson (vocals and guitar), Josh Jenkinson (guitar), Robert Keating (bass), and Ryan McMahon (drums), have already released a string of captivating singles. Their fevered live shows have earned them a diehard fanbase – on their last tour, they sold over 10,000 tickets and played to sold-out crowds across Europe. Their tracks have been streamed over 50 million times globally.
‘Cheer Up Baby’ is a golden ray of sunshine as Inhaler builds their infectious indie sound to create a timeless heartfelt gem. In true Inhaler manner, the track pivots around a sweet guitar refrain. Within ‘Cheer Up Baby,’ this bright guitar melody flickers with catchy indie-rock hues while a groove-stricken bassline and dynamic drums exude the band’s brand of glittering indie finesse over the verses. The sun-kissed soundscape creates a wonderful state of nostalgia enhanced by Hewson’s warm vocal croons “oh, how to kill these February blues.” …“When I think of all the things, I didn’t do, Oh, I can’t help but blame it on you…..cheer up baby you’re not on your own”. His vocals cling to the evocative lyrics oozing uplifting emotion while at the same time embracing a sense of sadness and longing.
However the song does not remain lamentful for long. The brooding verses lead into a chorus eruption as a thunderous upsurge announces the anthemic blazing sound of Inhaler. The bright guitars swell around the punchy drums to create an expansive soundscape for the dizzying synths and rampant bass to fill with exhilarating tones and reverberations.The expressive instrumentation is a joy to the senses and compels the listener to press repeat.
Inhaler are cultivating their sound beautifully to create an intoxicating brand of indie rock, and the result is an anthemic, perfectly executed song in the form of ‘Cheer Up Baby’. Press play and enjoy.
About the track, the band say: “It’s just a great pop song,” says Hewson. “I think it really takes us back to our roots as a band.” “I think it just has that classic, feel-good, anthemic, hopeful feeling that everyone seems to relate to on some level,” says McMahon.
Irish singer-songwriter Rory & The Island has released his new single ‘Miss This.’ Rory & The Island has had 12 Top 20 iTunes singles in Ireland in the past decade. His most recent single, ‘When The Lights Go Down (Valhalla),’ reached Number 1 in early November 2020 and raised a few eyebrows when it kept Miley Cyrus, Lizzo, and Dermot Kennedy off the top spot for the weekend. The single also climbed to Number 8 in the UK iTunes Songwriters chart. ‘Miss This’ explores the basic little joys we all miss during this crazy situation and has become a firm favourite during Rory & The Island’s successful weekly Facebook Live broadcasts, which have built up something of a cult following with an average of 30,000 weekly views over the past year.
While previous release, ‘When The Lights Go Down (Valhalla),’ displayed Rory & The Island’s rich, energetic, and full-bodied sound in all its glory, ‘Miss This’ takes a different, more gentle approach. Minimalistic instrumentation creates a warm ambient atmosphere as the track highlights another aspect of Rory & The Island’s expressive yet moving musicianship – the track is a comforting bittersweet tune exuding passionate and evocative songwriting enveloped within a dreamy melody of twinkling keys and warm acoustic guitar. With a foot-tapping rhythm created on percussion, the song has a supple texture while the lyrics depict the gatherings and carefree life we are all yearning for at the moment “stadium crowd, watching the home team singing so proud, living their own dream, I miss this.“
‘Miss This’ is a beautifully crafted, wholesome tune that comforts the ears in lush tones, sweet melodies and earnest songwriting. Love it.
Irish indie pop artist, Brí has released her fourth single ‘More Than’.Hailing from Offaly, Brí has previously released 3 singles, debut track, ‘Low Supply’, ‘Polite’ and ‘Burying’. From the success gained from these releases she sold-out her own Whelan’s headline show, received high praise from a multitude of blogs and radio and was selected to perform at Beatvyne’s Music X Tech Experience. While 2020 saw performances from Brí at the esteemed Whelan’s Ones to Watch, The Ruby Sessions, headliners in The Sound House, Spirit Store, festival line-up announcements such as Vantastival and the radio success of her recent releases, Brí hints at her debut album and a big year ahead in 2021.
‘More Than’ is an atmospheric song doused in the refined and emotive musicianship of Brí. The song drifts upon flickering beats and rippling soundscapes that expand and grow as the track progresses. The song moves seamlessly between soulful R&B and subtle folk-pop to create a captivating wall of sound filled with brooding ethereal synths and icy instrumental elements. Brí’s pristine vocals coo through the backdrop injecting warmth and emotion as she sings, “my soul is longing for something more than this,” mirroring the song’s expansive, airy soundscape with lyrics of loneliness and yearning. As the song builds into its cinematic crescendo, Brí intensifies the instrumentation to create a spine-chilling pinnacle moment within the track that is simply a joy to listen to.‘More Than’ is a well-crafted and beautifully presented song from Brí.
About ‘More Than’ Brí says…”More Than’ is about craving more than the situation you currently find yourself in. It’s a place where passion and emptiness meet, the point where two conflicting paths overlap and where all that is cloudy becomes clear.’
Stream ‘More Than’ below
Author : Danu
Indie: (n) an obscure form of rock which you only learn about from someone slightly more hip than yourself.
