DIY, December 2023 / January 2024

DIYMAG.COM ISSUE 136 • DEC 23 / JAN 24

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Divorce by Ed Miles

Question!

The dawn of 2024 is upon us and so, as we gaze into our crystal balls, what are Team DIY’s predictions for the incoming new year?

SARAH JAMIESON Managing Editor Less prediction and more just vain hope: that there’ll be a dark comedy Succession spin-off series starring Roman and Gerri, featuring their various awkward hijinks.

EMMA SWANN Founding Editor There’ll be a huge curveball that not even the most whipsmart TikTok comedian could conceive of. And whatever Dua Lipa has been cooking up with her all-star pals will rule all.

LISA WRIGHT Features Editor The continued rise of The Last Dinner Party will lead to an unprecedented spike in Google searches for

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Dostoevsky among 1825 year olds; Pantone’s shade of the year will be ‘Industry Plant Green’.

LOUISE MASON Art Director Today I accidently got very into a techno track that turned out to be a Spotify AI plant, so maybe that but hopefully not. Ideally it’s lutes, church pipe organs and medieval avant-garde drone hitting the big time, lets get wholesome.

DAISY CARTER Digital Editor We’ve long-since reached peak craft beer and its Clapton cousin, orange wine, so the next twelve months will see the resurgence of determinedly kitsch drinks. Smirnoff Ice, we’ve missed you.

Editor's Letter The days are getting shorter, fairy lights are going up and we’re happy to report that it’s totally acceptable to start bunging Bailey’s into any of your hot drinks; it’s officially December! And that means something else very special that we’re finally sharing our Class of 2024 issue!

Across the next 70+ pages, we’re showing off some of the incredible new artists who are a shoo-in to have massive 2024s.

From Picture Parlour to Fat Dog; Hemlocke Springs to HotWax, treat our latest edition as the ultimate guide to your future favourite acts.

Other than that, we want to say a huge thank you for your continued support; we couldn’t do this without you. Here’s to a wonderful festive period, and a very happy new year!

Sarah Jamieson, Managing Editor

ListeningPost BILL RYDER-JONES - IECHYD DA Our Bill might not be the most obviously festive musical fella, but with a new album that’s got an actual full-on children’s choir involved, ‘Iechyd Da’ is giving us some seasonal feels - albeit it, slightly melancholy ones.

THE LIBERTINES ALL QUIET ON THE EASTERN ESPLANADE Indie kids, rejoice! For Pete and Carl (and Gary and John) have served up a Christmas miracle in the form of a new album - their first in nine years - that’s set to land in March. Expect copious swigs of Albion spirit, as only the Likely Lads know how.

THE POGUES FAIRYTALE OF NEW YORK It was a truly sad day last month when the passing of The Pogues’ legendary frontman Shane MacGowan was announced. A genuine original, there’s no better way to toast his life than with a rousing singalong of perhaps the greatest Christmas song of them all. Here’s to you, Shane.

Dec / Jan playlist Scan the Spotify code to listen.

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ONSTAGE, BACKSTAGE, OR IN THE STUDIO With seven campuses across the UK, Ireland and Germany, BIMM Music Institute is uniquely placed to help you start your career in music. As the largest dedicated music school in Europe, you’ll have the chance to shape your journey alongside a diverse community of students and lecturers from all over the world.

Onstage, backstage or in the studio, whichever path you choose, our courses are designed to meet the needs of today’s music industry. We’ll help you develop all the skills you need to succeed, and our careers programmes will get you directly connected to the UK music scene in a role that suits you.

So, whether you’re a performer, producer, or music industry professional, at BIMM you will find your creative community, express yourself, develop your talent and make friends for life.

You’re the future of music. What are you waiting for?

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JOIN US NOW BIMM.AC.UK

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CONTENTS NEWS 8 GOSSIP 12 JAZMIN BEAN 18 DIY LIVE

Class of 2024

22 HOTWAX

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HEMLOCKE SPRINGS

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40

50

52

KATIE GREGSON-MACLEOD

STONE

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ANTONY SZMIEREK

BIG SPECIAL

DIVORCE

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GRETEL HÄNLYN

54

HEARTWORMS

reviews

32 FAT DOG

46

PICTURE PARLOUR

58 METTE

62 ALBUM S 70 LI VE

Founding Editor Emma Swann Managing Editor Sarah Jamieson Features Editor Lisa Wright Digital Editor Daisy Carter Art Direction & Design Louise Mason Cover Photos: Pooneh Ghana / Louise Mason / Ed Miles

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ll material copyright (c). All rights reserved. This publication Contributors: Adam Hasyim Cranfield, Alex Rigotti, Alfie Byrne, Ben Tipple, may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form, in Dan Landsburgh, Ed Miles, Ella Margolin, Elvis Thirlwell, Holly Whitaker, Jack whole or in part, without the express written permission of DIY. Disclaimer: While every effort is made to ensure the Terry, James Hickey, James Smurthwaite, Joe Goggins, Matt Ganfield, Millie information in this magazine is correct, changes can occur Temperton, Otis Robinson, Pooneh Ghana, Rhian Daly. which affect the accuracy of copy, for which DIY holds no responsibility. The opinions of the contributors do not For DIY editorial: info@diymag.com necessarily bear a relation to those of DIY or its staff and we For DIY sales: advertise@diymag.com disclaim liability for those impressions. Distributed nationally.

For DIY stockist enquiries: stockists@diymag.com

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Your future in music starts now.

Scarlett 4th Gen is the DIY interface for music makers.

Your future in music starts now.

Featuring Mayyadda

The new Scarlett 4th Gen is the DIY audio interface for music makers.

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r e w o P e g r u S Returning with a new single and album - next year’s ‘Real Power’ - that marks their first as a band since 2012,

Gossip are injecting a super-

charged shot of big-hearted humanity into the world once more...

Words: Lisa Wright

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I

t may only be 9am in Portland, Oregon when Beth Ditto logs on for today’s call, merrily panning down to show us her “nightgown,” but the Gossip frontwoman has clearly woken up on the right side of the bed.

“My first thought this morning, I jumped up and my brain went: ‘Hiiiighwaaaay to the danger zone…’,” she sings in that immediately recognisable Southern cadence. “So I’m ready!”

There’s a lot for Ditto to be ready for right now, too. A few days previous, her band of punk renegades Gossip released positivitysoaked comeback single ‘Crazy Again’ - their first new music since 2012’s ‘A Joyful Noise’. Alongside came the announcement of sixth album ‘Real Power’ and the full reinstatement, after a series of 2019 anniversary shows, of one of the noughties’ most incendiary groups; a trio - completed by guitarist Nathan Howdeshell and drummer Hannah Blilie - who sent a jolt of radical transgression through the decade, putting a proudly queer, body-positive voice front and centre at a time when neither identity was as readily a part of the cultural conversation.

Elevating scene-stealing hits like ‘Standing In The Way of Control’ and ‘Heavy Cross’ to the indie disco A List, Ditto has always been magnetic.

Now aged 42, she remains a ludicrously enjoyable conversational whirlwind, breaking into song and diverting into anecdotes at every turn. “A lot of parody songs will pop into my head. The other day, this is a true story - are you sitting down?” she questions, barely able to contain her own laughter. “My eyes were really goopy and gummed up when I woke up, and immediately my brain went: ‘Do I have pink eye? / Or is it just allergies? / Maybe it’s a sty…’” she sings to the tune of ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’’s opening bars. “That’s the kind of brain I have, it’s just the dumbest shit…”

It’s a silly, funny, lovable side that’s as integral to Gossip’s appeal as their moments of protest. And, having begun life as a Ditto solo project before morphing, through friendship and necessity, into a full band reunion once more, ‘Real Power’ is a record set to embrace both facets more than ever.

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n the time since 2017 solo album ‘Fake Sugar’, Ditto divorced from her wife and “best friend since 19 years old,” Kristin Ogata. The pair had married in Ogata’s birthplace of Hawaii, and so it was with complex feelings that Ditto headed out to meet super producer Rick Rubin at his studio in Kauai - one of the state’s smaller islands - to begin working on what she assumed would be its follow up.

“It was very sad for me to be back there, but that’s where Rick was and you go where Rick is,” she says. “It was so hard and such a struggle inside for me emotionally; to be surrounded by all of this beauty and to feel so sad, it was very upsetting every day. Back here in Portland it’s rainy, it’s cold

“I didn’t want to be alone anymore. I didn’t want it to be just me.” - Beth Ditto

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NEWS and dark by 4pm, and people are working so hard doing jobs they hate, and I’m in this place that’s literally paradise. What’s wrong with me? Why can’t I just stop having this connection to this place?”

In order to get through the experience, she asked Howdeshell to come out for the sessions, initially just as a friend and creative head to bounce ideas off. But as time progressed, the unspoken question rose to the surface. “I think that [whole experience was] maybe what made me think, I don’t wanna be alone anymore. I don’t want it to be just me. I need somebody that I trust and love and can rely on in this one specific way, and that’s Nathan, and he did that,” she says. “The love that I have for him and Hannah, coming in and just saving me - not because the music was struggling but because I needed someone there that could ground me - maybe subconsciously on some level, that made me go, ‘Why can’t we just do this together again?’”

Friends since their youth in Arkansas, Ditto speaks of the bond between the three Gossip members as one built on easy familiarity and, above all, laughter.

Coming back together after a decade away from the studio, then, was “like wearing an old hat”. “We’re such a funny little group, it’s just exactly the same,” she laughs. “It’s so weird, it’s just the same!”

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itto has a way of answering with this sort of slightly baffled frankness that’s almost as though even she doesn’t understand how the Gossip magic happens.

‘Crazy Again’, a sweet and blissed-out ode to “falling in love and feeling so safe”, firmly leans into the band’s softer side, a world away from the crashing dance-punk of some of their former material. What did she want it to show the world about where the

“If Gossip can give people a place to be surrounded by love and compassion and fun and radical joy, that’s what I want to give people.” - Beth Ditto band are at, we ask?

“Nothing!” she hoots. “It’s so hard for me. I hate listening back, I hate band practice, I like writing songs but I hate practising for shows and shit; it’s painful to me. So the less thought I can put into it the better; I’d rather do anything else than have to think about it… I wish there was a better story but there’s not!” Were they listening to things in the studio that took them in that direction? “I mostly just listen to podcasts, which is the most adult thing you’ll ever hear… I really wish I had a better answer…”

The inspiration might be coming from who-knowswhere, but when it comes to Gossip’s continued place in the world, Ditto knows exactly what she wants them to be. Having gone through a turbulent period in her personal life alongside the continuing conveyor belt of wider world fears and fractures, the band is a safe and inclusive space for the singer as much as her crowd, a way to rally against the negative forces and choose joy.

“My friend Cody [Critcheloe, aka Ssion] who made the ‘Crazy Again’ video said, ‘I realised one of the most radical things I can do is just decide to be happy and have fun’,” she recalls. “I wish I’d heard that months or years ago, and of course it took another punk queer to tell me that. So many things are up in the air: safety, access to healthcare,

abortion, trans rights and visibility, war. When you’re thinking about that, you start to see it’s not just anger, it’s worry, it’s sadness, it’s a daily struggle.

But I can’t do anything for anybody if I can’t allow myself to access joy, and I really was not for a long time, I blocked it out - I didn’t deserve it, we didn’t deserve it.

“The worries are so heavy, but I love the idea of trying to give a sense of fun and positivity,” she continues. “I love that, and I feel like I lost that in myself the past four or five years. I didn’t know what to do, but one thing we can do is just help people to have a good time and feel good and safe in the space they’re in. That’s maybe something that we can give.

If Gossip can give people a place to be surrounded by love and compassion and fun and radical joy, and also feel empowered and that we’re all part of this machine that’s trying to navigate the world and move forward, that’s what I want to give people and that’s what I want for myself.”

Beth Ditto might not have the answers for everything, but now, as ever, she and Gossip are aiming to try and create a meaningful, impactful and above all joyful move towards their own solution. Returning with ‘Real Power’, it’s a title that says it all.

‘Real Power’ is out 22nd March via Sony. DIY

“I hate practising for shows and shit; it’s painful to me. So the less thought I can put into it, the better” better” - Beth Ditto

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OMEARA PRESENTS DEC

01 MICHAEL BLACKWELL FEEL IT 02 TRAMPOLENE SUPA DUPA FLY 03 SOAK 05 BEAVERTOWN PRESENTS: COACH PARTY + BEDROOM HIGH CLUB + HOUSE OF WOMEN 07 RYAN MCMULLAN 08 OLD DIRTY BRASSTARDS: BIG BRASS XMAS BASH FEEL IT 09 PHABO TREVOR NELSON’S SOUL NATION 10 THIRD MAN RECORDS PRESENTS: XMAS FAIR 11 GREAT LAKE SWIMMERS 15 FEEL IT 16 TEN TONNES TECHNO & CHILL X SESHN 17 INTERLAKER 20 OLD DIRTY BRASSTARDS: BIG BRASS XMAS BASH 21 OLD DIRTY BRASSTARDS: BIG BRASS XMAS BASH 22 OLD DIRTY BRASSTARDS: BIG BRASS XMAS BASH 23 OLD DIRTY BRASSTARDS: BIG BRASS XMAS BASH 31 SPIRITLAND PRESENTS NYE: LUKE SOLOMON + X-PRESS 2 + PATRICK FORGE & ROSS ALLEN + MIKE MENACE + MORE

JAN

19 20 26 28 31

FEEL IT SKATING POLLY FEEL IT FEEL IT NELL MESCAL

FEB

03 04 05 08 10 11 12

LUNA BAY FEEL IT TRAMA NIEVE ELLA HIFI SEAN + DAVID MCALMONT FEEL IT WILL LINLEY HD LIFE TAMERA NIEVE ELLA ROSIE FRATER-TAYLOR FEEL IT NOEP HOLY MOLY & THE CRACKERS

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NEWS

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DIY In Deep is our monthly, online-centric chance to dig into a longer profile on some of the most exciting artists in the world right now.

Unbeknownst to the legion of fans who’ve watched Jazmin Bean’s rise to cult stardom, the singer’s life for almost a decade has been one filled with unimaginable horrors. On debut album ‘Traumatic Livelihood’, they’re finally ready to tell their story.

Words: Alex Rigotti.

Content warning: the following interview contains material relating to grooming and sexual abuse.

14year-old Jazmin Bean was going to the US, but they couldn’t tell their friends. Even if they could, they didn’t know how to. It wasn’t for a holiday, and it wasn’t to visit family. “I was groomed by a man that was much older than me,” Bean says, plainly.

They’re sitting down on a kerb in LA, basking in the sunshine. “I’m very happy to not be in British weather right now,” they say over Zoom. “I prefer the sun so, so much.”

We’re talking about their debut album, ‘Traumatic Livelihood’. It’s an album that Bean’s fans have been clamouring for since they broke out on the scene in 2020 - and there are approximately 900,000 of those fans now on TikTok alone. Back at that time, Bean was known for their extreme beauty style, love of anime, and their shocking performance tactics. Their debut EP ‘Worldwide Torture’ - released aged 17 - spawned some of the tracks (‘Yandere’ and ‘Hello Kitty’) that remain their biggest hits to date.

But in reality, a lot was going down behind the scenes. In June 2022, Bean announced they had been in rehab for a few months. It was a decision that had been a long time coming after four years of struggling with addiction particularly with ketamine - that started around the same time they began being groomed.

“I

was around 14 when that happened,” Bean begins. “I was being shipped back and forth across the world and obviously exploited quite badly, sexually, and isolated from a lot of friends and family. I was trapped in this one bedroom in the Bronx, not really knowing what was going on.”

As a result, they turned to drugs to cope. “A

lot of my drug usage at a young age came from that repressed memory and blocked that trauma,” they explain. “Your brain blocks out trauma and I just started remembering things that I didn't even know happened. And so that was a lot for me to overcome mentally.”

Just years later, and still in the grip of addiction, Bean would simultaneously rise to fame as one of the most exciting names in alternative music. They were only 16 when they released ‘Hello Kitty’, which now has 23 million views on YouTube. It’s a raging speed-metal track whose accompanying video features the singer’s famous makeup style at the time; like the track’s titular animated feline was glitched out and turned into a demon. But even then, there were signs in Bean’s music that something wasn’t right: “One day I'm gonna get stretched too hard and snap like a rubber band,” they sing.

Through it all, they would continue to release music that showcased the singer’s wild creativity. 2022’s ‘Puppy Pound’ is set to a punishing bark, while Bean struts around in a fluffy pink dress with slick black latex gloves and boots. But at that point, they were in LA “with the wrong people and no parental guidance, making song after song after song”.

Bean, knowing they had hit rock bottom, decided to go to rehab. It’s a move which their label, Island Records/ Interscope, was entirely supportive of and even paid for, and is something Bean believes every label should offer. “The data shows that musicians are bad with addiction!” they exclaims. “I don’t know the science behind it, but the stories are plentiful. I’m really appreciative that they understood my journey and welcomed me back with open arms.”

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merging from rehab, Bean listened back to what was supposed to be their debut album. What they found, however, was a project that sounded like “a cry for help”. “This album sounds like it's coming from someone who is on a lot of drugs and really unwell,” they recall thinking. “It wasn't aligning with my point of view or what I wanted to do with my style.”

Additionally, Bean felt the album was “trying too hard to do all the different genres that were popping off”. Though they concede that “there were some good songs”, they decided to scrap the album and start fresh with new material they could relate to.

So Bean got back in the studio, at first nervous about the songwriting process. But once they began writing, they realised they were uncovering parts of themself they didn’t even know they had lost. “When I got out of rehab and I got back in the studio, I was like, wait – I'm actually really good at writing songs!” they laugh. “I didn't know because I would be falling asleep in the studio all the time, not being able to focus, because I'm just thinking about the next high. It's all consuming.”

‘Traumatic Livelihood’, ‘Shit Show’ and ‘Favourite Toy’ were the first three songs Bean wrote for the album, and they sparked their energy for the rest of the process. “Those are the first songs that I wrote where I was like, ‘OK, I think I have something’,” says Bean.

“There was so long of not being truly fulfilled by songs, but this whole album has [given me] loads of that.”

Pulled from upwards of a hundred possible songs, the ones that made the cut for ‘Traumatic Livelihood’ form a purposely happy body of work. “I just wanted it to feel optimistic in some way and not just rotting in my pain,” they explain. “Yes, I’m talking about sad stuff, but I wanted to make it clear that I'm acknowledging it in some way.”

‘Traumatic Livelihood’ is out 23rd February via Island Records / Interscope.

Read the full feature online at diymag.com/ jazminbean. DIY

“I just wanted the album to feel optimistic in some way and not just rotting in my pain.”

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NEWS

Albums As voted for by DIY contributors.

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of

CAROLINE POLACHEK

Desire, I Want To Turn Into You

“Go forget the rules, forget your friends / Just you and your reflection / ‘Cause nothing’s gonna be the same again / No, nothing’s gonna be the same again”. So exclaims mother Caz on ‘Welcome To My Island’, the tone-setting introduction to her triumphant second outing ‘Desire, I Want To Turn Into You’. And for those who bore witness to her dizzying release-day performance at London’s Hammersmith Apollo - on Valentine’s Day, no less - it truly felt as if the musical course of 2023, at least, had been changed. Cinematic, ambitious, and utterly immersive, the album’s influences flit from trip-hop (‘Fly To You’), to classical Spanish folk (‘Sunset’), to bagpipes (‘Blood And Butter’), all of which are handled with the confidence of a mad scientist who knows - just knows - that this time they’ve nailed the secret formula. Worshippers at the altar of alt-pop, bow down. (Daisy Carter)

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OLIVIA RODRIGO GUTS

As soon as ORod kick-started her ‘GUTS’ era with the release of crescendoing big-hitter ‘vampire’ back in June, we knew she meant business. Rollicking pop-punkindebted choruses? Tick. Tender lovesick balladry? Tick.

Self-aware, zeitgeist-capturing, uniformly whip-smart lyricism? Tick, tick, tick. Stepping into sonic maturity on her sophomore LP, she retains the immediacy of her debut while widening her frames of reference, taking in - and taking on - all the consistent inconsistency of adolescence.

(Daisy Carter)

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2 2023

BOYGENIUS the record

Few announcements this year were met with as much rabid excitement as the news, back in January, that the boys would indeed be back in town and bringing ‘the record’ with them.

But whilst anticipation for Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker’s collective long-player was of a level that could have been nearunattainable for most, the trio made light work in an album that deftly showcased each of their individual voices whilst finding solidarity and harmony as a unit.

From the opening a cappella ‘Without You Without Them’, ‘the record’ was as definitive as its title. (Lisa Wright)

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YOUNG FATHERS

Heavy Heavy

Three musicians with the sort of musical synergy normally reserved for those bonded by blood, Young Fathers have been crafting rhythmic, idiosyncratic magic for years now.

With fourth album ‘Heavy Heavy’, that ability seemed almost preternatural, inviting listeners into a world that veered from the seething to the spiritual, wrangled together by a joyful, intentional sense of catharsis and communion.

It earned the Scottish trio their second Mercury Prize nod and perhaps their most universal acclaim to date. (Lisa Wright)

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CMAT

Crazymad, For Me

Whether you believe that CMAT’s second record really is a concept album about an old(er) woman attempting to rewrite her shitty dating history via a YouTube time machine, or simply just a ‘Bat Out Of Hell’-style rock opera for the girlies, one thing is unquestionable: the Irish star’s sense of brilliant, bonkers ambition.

Equal parts confessional, comedic and utterly charming, the emotional rollercoaster of ‘Crazymad, For Me’ is as fabulous as we could’ve ever hoped. (Sarah Jamieson)

MOTIF II A.N.C.

WITH ACTIVE NOISE CANCELLATION

FRONT ROW SOUND MARSHALLHEADPHONES.COM 17

DIY’s Christmas Gift Guide!

Left all your seasonal spending ‘til the last minute?

Never fear! DIY is here with our one-stop shop for all your present-buying needs.

TECH FOCUSRITE SCARLETT 4TH GEN 2I2 STUDIO

TREATS CHILLY’S COFFEE CUP

We all know Chilly’s is the Number One for taking your hot drinks on the move - still not a convert? Sort it out! Not only is their latest Series 2 range double walled to keep the heat in, it’s also fully-customisable, from colours to engraving to their range of Liberty collabs.

RRP: £30 Buy it: chillys.com

PANETTONE NEGRONI

Fun to sip AND fun to say, this ready-to-drink panettone negroni is pure Christmas in a bottle. Infusing the classic ginbased cocktail with the flavours of an Italian festive bake, all you need to do is pour over ice, sit back and wait for Santa to arrive (with some more cocktails, we hope).

RRP: £31.95 Buy it: masterofmalt.com

NO.3 GIMLET COCKTAIL

Give the gift of delicious convenience to someone who’ll need it come Christmas Day’s cooking marathon, and send them a bottle of Berry Bros & Rudd’s pre-made No. 3 Gimlet.

Citrussy, botanical, and made with their No. 3 London Dry Gin, it’ll give them the pep to push on through until pud.

RRP: £30.50 Buy it: bbr.com

THE CURIOUS RED WINE AND CHEESE HAMPER

A delectable starter kit from cheese and wine pairing specialists Mouse and Grape, this hamper (also available with white wine) pairs a bottle of 2021 Montfrin la Tour Rouge and a chunky wedge of nutty comté, bringing out the best of both - with a drizzle of honey on the side for good measure.

RRP: £30 Buy it: mouseandgrape.com

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MERCH LYNKS SIGNED CONDOM

Christmas is a time for spreading the love, but if you’re intending to really go for the sentiment then Lynks has got you - quite literally - covered. Grab a ‘Use It or Lose It’ themed (and signed!) condom, and you won’t have to spin any yarns to your mum about an immaculate conception.

RRP: £5 Buy it: lynkslynkslynks.bandcamp.com

THE BEATLES CHRISTMAS JUMPER

If you didn’t shed a tear listening to The Beatles’ finallyfinished, last ever single ‘Now and Then’, you’re a sturdier reader than us. For those whose Christmas came early from The Fab Four, grab this ‘Snow and Then’ (see what they did there?) jumper and toast the greatest to ever do it.

RRP: £44.99 Buy it: notjustclothing.co.uk

OLIVIA RODRIGO CHRISTMAS STOCKING

Just putting it out there, if Elf did a remake, our ‘Liv would make a FABULOUS Jovie. Until then, however, she’s spreading some festive cheer with these ‘GUTS’ decorated stockings, putting Saint Nick’s boring old red ones to fashion shame.

RRP: £25 Buy it: shopuk.oliviarodrigo.com

BOMBAY BICYCLE CLUB BALD POINT PENS

Few things have received a metaphorical standing ovation in the DIY office this year like BBC’s inspired bald point pens. No follicles?

No problem! Simply turn the pens upside down and watch your fave indie boys become hirsute once more.

RRP: £10 Buy it: shop.bombaybicycle.club

The latest update to their iconic Scarlett interface, the 4th Gen 2i2 Studio kit contains everything you need to become the next bedroom songwriting superstar. Easy to use, portable and including headphones and studio condenser mic, you’ll be smashing out the hits in no time.

RRP: £289.99 Buy it: focusrite.com

GROOV-E SOUNDBAR

An impressive addition to any home, this speaker with built-in subwoofer easily connects to your telly, meaning you can blast out the Youtube Christmas tunes (or watch the Strictly final) with the sonic clout that deserves.

RRP: £79.99 Buy it: groov-e.co.uk

BOSE QUIETCOMFORT ULTRA EARBUDS

With ultimate noise-cancelling capabilities, personalised CustomTune sound calibration and a case that holds up to three additional charging cycles, Bose haven’t named the newest addition to the QuietComfort family ‘Ultra’ for nothing.

Go on, treat your ears - they deserve it.

RRP: £299.95 Buy it: bose.co.uk

MARSHALL MIDDLETON SPEAKER

Small but perfectly formed, Marshall’s Middleton speaker is perfect for home or outdoor use. Dreaming of summer park picnics? This baby will keep the music pumping for more than 20 hours, meaning it certainly has more stamina than any of the DIY team.

RRP: £269.99 Buy it: marshallheadphones.com

STUDIO JTM

20W ALL-VALVE AMP MADE IN THE UK

ERA-DEFINING SOUND THE AMP THAT STARTED IT ALL IS BACK. MARSHALL.COM 19

DIY live

NEWS

WELL HELLO!

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hile - let’s be honest - no one really looks forward to January, we do at least have one shining beacon of new music to look forward to: our Hello… live series is back! Yes, once again, we’re going to be pitching up at iconic East London venue The Old Blue Last for another round of live shows, featuring some of the buzziest new artists.

Taking place across four Tuesdays in January (we’ll let you stay in your PJs on 2nd January, don’t worry), Hello 2024 is set to play host to the likes of Home Counties, Shelf Lives, SPIDER, Circe, Sans Soucis, Night Tapes, and Peter Xan, as well as Antony Szmierek, fresh from this very Class of 2024 issue.

Picture Parlour, Cardinals & Trout pack out The Victoria for The Great Escape’s First Fifty launch

It was standing room only (and barely even that) for our sold-out showcase. Photo: Daniel Landsburgh.

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onight Hackney is a veritable hive of activity as The Great Escape take over eight venues to launch their First Fifty. Punters are spoiled for choice, but one thing is for sure: unless they’re lucky enough to have nabbed a ticket for The Victoria’s sold-out stage - presented by DIY - then there’s little chance of squeezing in. First up is Trout, the project of Liverpoolbased songwriter and producer Cesca, who intersperses cuts from recent EP ‘Colourpicker’ with unreleased material and reverb-heavy interludes. Their enveloping and intricate sound recalls the ‘90s shoegaze of Cocteau Twins and the electro-tinged grunge of Sorry in equal measure, along with an undeniable sprinkling of something entirely their own.

To have found a fan in Fontaines DC’s Grian Chatten is something of a coup in anyone’s book, even more so with only a trio of singles out in the world. But as they walk on stage to a rapturous reception, Cork’s Cardinals appear to be taking it all in their stride. Merging ‘80s goth-rock, Irish trad folk and indie-pop sensibilities, the young six-piece are

Cosmorat bring feisty fun to the latest edition of One Way Or Another showcase Tonguetied and Sol Child also took to the stage at the second show of DIY’s monthly live series with Parallel Lines. Photo: Emma Swann.

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hile Storm Ciarán might be trying its best to cause a ruckus across London this evening, that’s not enough to put punters off venturing to The Waiting Room for a night of scintillating new music. Taking to the stage first for the latest edition of One Way Or Another, Sol Child’s set-up may be more stripped back but her storytelling is bold; guiding us through her recent ‘Spring’s Dawn’ EP, her dreamy, pop-flecked offerings tell the story of a journey to self-acceptance, with ’Crutch’ - and its math-rocky backing and reflective lyricism - providing a particular highlight.

Next on this evening’s bill comes the synth-pop stylings of Elena Garcia’s Tonguetied. Fresh from the release of her debut EP ‘Bloom’, and considering tonight’s show is her very first live performance, her set already feels incredibly polished. Pairing sultry beats and hypnotic vocals, her offerings sit in the danceable-yet-dark sweet spot between FKA twigs, yunè pinku and Kate Bush, while an array of eery projections and flashing strobe lights - most notably, the word 'GREED' that menacingly flashes across the stage towards the end of a freshly-written "angry" new track - breathe even more life into her haunting, sonic world.

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Check out the full line-up on diymag.com now and head to DICE to sign up for free tickets.

captivating, both in their confidence and in the surprising warmth imbued in their arrangements by resident accordion player Finn Manning (who one crowd member initially pegs as “a sat down Bez”).

By the time the clock strikes 10pm, anticipation for tonight’s headliners is palpable. Picture Parlour have had something of a whirlwind year, and as such this - their final gig of 2023 - has an air of celebration about it. Quite rightly, too: steadfast set-opener ‘Moon Tonic’ is a triumphant example of how much the quartet excel in writing stirring, cinematic anthems, while ‘Sawmill Sinkhole’ captures a heavier side they’ve not yet committed to record. And the best part?

That all four are exuding barely-concealed joy. Whether it’s Katherine Parlour ringleading the crowd to cheer for guitarist Ella Risi (whose grandad is in attendance), or bassist Sian Lynch playing back to back with her bandmates, Picture Parlour deliver a show that’s about as close as you can get to a cork-popping aural “Cheers!”. Roll on TGE 2024, huh?

(Daisy Carter)

Despite the fact that Cosmorat only released their debut single a matter of weeks ago, tonight you get the sense they already know exactly who they are. Smushing together all the best bits from every corner of music and throwing them out in a riotous, rollicking manner, the Pennsylvania-via-London quartet are chaotically fun from the off. A little like if Los Campesinos! happened to have younger American cousins, their scuzzy-edged pop tracks are infectious and unpredictable, while ringleader Taylor Pollock swings from sugary-sweet vocals (the opening chant of their most recent single ’S.A.D.L.U.V’, case in point) to gnarly shredding in the blink of an eye. “We are gonna be the biggest band on LinkedIn!” their singer yells gleefully towards the end of their set; it’s this kind of tongue-in-cheek, playful attitude that's likely to set them apart. (Sarah Jamieson)

NOW & NEXT TOUR BACK FOR 2024!

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et your 2024 diaries out, because we've got some red hot shows to add to your spring gigging calendar! Next April, we'll be going out on the road for our annual Now & Next Tour in partnership with Kilimanjaro, with two of the country's most exciting new bands at the helm: HotWax and Big Special.

Split into two legs, Black Country punk duo Big Special will lead the first five dates, with support from special guests Grandma’s House.

Passing the baton over, fiery rock trio HotWax will then top the bill for the second half of the tour, with support from special guest Aziya, with more TBA for both.

Tickets are on sale now priced at £12.50 from myticket.com.

APRIL 2024 w/ Big Special & Grandma's House 03 Cardiff, Clwb Ifor Bach 04 Oxford, Bullingdon 05 Sheffield, Yellow Arch Studio 06 Brighton, Green Door Store 07 Southampton, Joiners w/ HotWax and Aziya 09 Birkenhead, Future Yard 10 Manchester, Deaf Institute 11 Glasgow, Stereo 12 Newcastle, Cluny 13 Leeds, Wardrobe

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Meet the 12 new artists vying for the top of the podium.

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Having honed a reputation as a must-see live band, HotWax are pushing forward as one of guitar music’s brightest new sparks. in tow. Words: Daisy Carter. Photos: Pooneh Ghana.

Gigging gave me more confidence, so going on stage is always a time where I can just be who I want to be.”

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t was my favourite day ever,” says vocalist and guitarist Tallulah Sim-Savage, earnestly grinning as she recalls the moment when, a few months back, Karen O gave her band HotWax an onstage shout out at All Points East. Not just any old shout out either - the Yeah Yeah Yeahs frontwoman dedicated their seminal song ‘Maps’ to the trio (completed by bassist Lola Sam and drummer Alfie Sayers). “Well, she dedicated it to a lot of people…” Tallulah concedes. “But we were one of them!” Lola jumps in: “It was us alongside The Strokes, Sinéad O'Connor… and Yeah Yeah Yeahs are Tallulah’s favourite band.”

HotWax themselves had opened the very same stage just hours earlier, making Karen O’s acknowledgement something of a fullcircle moment for the band - who, only a couple of years ago, were still juggling gigs and self-released singles with school work.

It’s just one of several pinch-me stories they share as they speak to DIY via Zoom from a hotel room in LA, on the morning of their first outing supporting Royal Blood across the US. “Every day when we look out of the window, we just think, ‘What the hell?!’”

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aving met in Year Seven when a discerning music teacher put them in a band together, Tallulah and Lola gravitated towards each other from the off, as apparently the only pupils interested in guitar music. “Everyone was like, ‘That’s really lame that you’re in a band’,” explains Lola. “But we wanted to do it so badly. We didn’t really have any goals, other than just, ‘We wanna do this forever’. And now we actually do get to do it all the time!”

As they grew up together, swapping band recommendations and instruments, the pair’s early chemistry evolved into a tight-knit bond.

From initially having what Tallulah describes as “quite different playing styles” to jointly discovering the likes of Pond, Ty Segall and Tame Impala, the two have “learned to compliment each other” in striking fashion.

“We’ve just been playing together for ages; I wouldn’t want to be in a band with someone else,” Lola says simply.

Even via a webcam and a transtlantic internet connection, this inherent comradeship is palpable; there are frequent good-natured interruptions as one cottons on to the particular anecdote the other is telling, and it’s entirely unsurprising that this dynamic

[The last EP was] us spitting out our doubt and moving on to the next chapter.” - Tallulah Sim-Savage Tallulah says of swapping their home town of Hastings for Hollywood. “I just can’t believe that everything looks like a photo!” At the same time, however, Alfie notes that years of watching American TV shows and films have made their surroundings “strangely familiar”; as a result, the young trio seem wide-eyed and anticipatory, but relatively unfazed.

“We never thought it would happen, but it also feels like the right time in a way,” Tallulah affirms. “It hasn’t felt like this weird thing that we’ve suddenly been dropped into, because we’ve been working on HotWax for years.

Obviously we haven’t really had the money behind it before and we wouldn’t really be in the studio, so the releases were really sparse.” She pauses, giving a sheepish smile.

“And, you know, we were in school.”

extends to their tour bus, too. “Me and Tallulah can be chatting the whole time and then sometimes the boys [Alfie and their tour manager Steve] can be silent for five hours,” Lola confirms. “Like, what the hell?”

As well as being an endearing testament to the significance of those who see you through your teenage years, the trust and closeness shared by Tallulah, Lola and Alfie (who tempers the girls’ more fiery energy with a steadying presence) is key to the ease with which they’re dealing with HotWax’s current exponential trajectory. “I’m just glad that we have each other, and that we’re all going through this at the same time,” says Tallulah as Lola nods, her orange hair bright against the beige hotel wallpaper. “We talk about this all the time, saying, ‘Imagine doing this by yourself’ or ‘Imagine being the only girl in the

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Everyone at school was like, ‘That’s really lame that you’re in a band’, but we wanted to do it so badly.”

- Lola Sam

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band’; I’d find that scary.”

Though Lola points out that HotWax do work with lots of women on their various teams, she agrees that “if you were the only girl, you might be treated differently by people, for sure”. That, and the fact “you’d always have to be in a room by yourself either that, or share with boys”. She scrunches her brow as Tallulah laughs and Alfie interjects indignantly: “Hey, you guys are more messy than us!”

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ith the speed at which the music industry moves, it’s perhaps easy to forget the notso bygone days of socially-distanced gigs, or indeed no gigs at all. Yet this was the landscape into which HotWax first started releasing music. Their debut single ‘Stay Cool’ arrived in 2020, and was followed by a steady string of standalones over the next two years. They began to build a cult fan base around their raw, DIY sound - a raucous concoction landing somewhere between The Slits, PJ Harvey and, more recently, Dream Wife - such that, when venues opened their doors once more (and the band had finished their schooling), appetites for a longer project had been well and truly whetted.

“Both hometown gigs we’ve done have been sold out,” smiles Lola, referring to the launches of their debut EP ‘A Thousand Times’ in Hastings, and this autumn’s follow-up ‘Invite me, kindly’ at Brighton’s Dust. “I was really nervous,” Tallulah picks up, “especially for the Hastings one, but it felt so nice.

All our friends were there, as well as people who we recognise in the crowd who’ve been watching us for years. So yeah,” she grins. “It made us feel really supported.”

Pre-game nerves or not, once HotWax are onstage, all bets are off - and that’s part of the thrill. “When I was a child, I was really shy; one of those kids that just would not talk,” shares Tallulah.

“Getting a job and gigging gave me more confidence, so going on stage is always a time where I can just be who I want to be. Especially as a support band at the moment: going out to a crowd that probably doesn't even know you, and trying to win them over and make a connection - it’s just so much fun.”

“And there’s so many different types of live show!” Lola enthuses, reeling off the various gig scenarios they’ve experienced this year: “Arenas, festivals, packed nightclubs… we’ve played small pubs to about ten people and we’ve supported Louis Tomlinson from One Direction.” At the mention of this latter point they all laugh, shaking their heads at what their childhood selves would think of that sentence.

Did they find that the Directioner crowd lived up to their famously intense reputation? Alfie grins as Lola widens her eyes and nods.

“It was like we were famous for a day,” she laughs. “People had been queuing for weeks outside - they were SO dedicated. Really nice though, and I think they appreciated that Louis

had picked a heavy female band, because everyone else on the lineup was guys.” “It was definitely weird playing to a more pop crowd,” Tallulah rejoins, “but at the same time some people really liked it and that meant a lot to us, because it’s not necessarily the music that they choose to listen to.”

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otWax themselves tend to attract a varied audience, from the 6 Music dads of Brighton to the “kids” who told Tallulah “I’ve just started to play guitar and that really inspired me” after one of the trio’s UK support shows. It’s no wonder that young people are engaged; because they’re not long out of school themselves, HotWax occupy a particular niche of aspirational, yet truly accessible role models. What’s more, in a genre typically dominated by older, male-heavy bands, they prove that the future of guitar music is alive and kicking, filtering grunge rock sensibilities through a thoroughly contemporary lens.

Themes of climate change and future uncertainty - both markedly Gen Z anxieties, compounded by the pandemic and current world affairs - bubble throughout both ‘A Thousand Times’ and ‘Invite me, kindly’; Tallulah uses the example of the track ‘Mother' to comment that “when you’re growing up and you’re given baby dolls as toys, it’s [with the expectation that] you’re going to be What’s hot a mother. Now, you feel like this is and what’s not? probably not gonna happen.” Lola agrees, observing that “even if you are feeling fine about things, you feel a bit guilty. But the news is just constantly VIEWS in your face and there’s very little Lola: The views [in the USA] will be so good you can do about it - you just feel where we’d normally be powerless.” looking out at, I don’t know, Southampton, Balancing a consideration of these instead we’ve got the broader social issues with lyrical Nevada desert. introspection, their recent project has CROWD more of a narrative throughline than COMMITMENT its predecessor, the tracks on which Lola: When we were Tallulah explains were written between playing our set at the ages of 15 and 17. In contrast, Reading, The 1975 the lyrics for ‘Invite me, kindly’ were started playing halfway completed in “one burst of inspiration through… But it was and creativity” over just a couple fun; we still had a bit of an audience when they of months. “They’re all stories of were on! relationships I’ve observed or gone through,” she continues. “We’re turning 20 next year, so [the EP] is sort of looking back on everything LONDON CROWDS that’s happened as a teenager. It’s us Lola: The crowds in spitting out our doubt and moving on England are sometimes to the next chapter.” a bit tough. English people are kind of And as next chapters go, this one’s miserable, aren’t they? primed to be page-turner: once If we do Scotland and they’ve ticked off this Royal Blood tour Manchester and stuff it’s and two American headlines of their always really nice, but own, HotWax are getting their heads in London they just play down to write new music, helm DIY’s really hard to get. own Now and Next Tour in April and AMERICAN PRICING take festival season 2024 by storm. In Tallulah: Everything [in the meantime, though, LA] is so expensive! This Tallulah, Lola and Alfie is crazy - it’s six dollars are just enjoying the ride for a bag of Cheetos!

- both metaphorically, and in those endless, chatty tour van hours together.

Touring: Hot!

Not!

HotWax headline DIY’s Now and Next Tour in April 2024. See p16 for details. 

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It’s quite bleak in Manchester; everyone’s a poet or a dancer or in a band because you kind of have to be.”

Armed with spoken word songs that celebrate the beauty in the everyday, the Manchester poet is ticking off career milestones seemingly by the minute.

Words: Lisa Wright.

Photos: Louise Mason.

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Forever’, then heading home the following day to run a poetry workshop. It’s a double life that’s been having more and more crossover of late. “In Glasgow, I was pulling people up on stage for ‘Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Fallacy’, and grabbed this guy and it was Benji from my old Year 10 class,” he chuckles. “I looked at him and he was like, ‘You alright sir?’ in the middle of a show. So that was fucking wild…” here comes a point in every success story when you have to take the plunge and go all in. For Antony Szmierek, it’s arrived in a whirlwind, all at once.

But, having escalated - in little over 12 months - from a teacher at a special needs college penning songs in his spare time, to one of BBC 6 Music’s recently-crowned Artists of the Year with a Later… with Jools Holland performance under his belt, Manchester’s own musical Clark Kent is readying himself to go into Superman mode, full time.

“Even a month ago it didn’t feel possible in terms of sustaining myself, but now it’s like, OK, I can kind of see it,” he says, in a tentatively hopeful tone. “Everything’s been so quick. We were in the lobby of Wogan House at the BBC waiting to go on Lauren Laverne’s show and we still didn’t know the [rest of the 6 Music] list. I got tagged in a post, and saw Blur and boygenius were on it and was freaking out. Then we pretty much immediately went on tour and it was already sold out, but all of a sudden it was ‘6 Music Artist of the Year Antony Szmierek’ and I feel like those shows changed because of that.”

All the while, until he hangs his staff card up at the end of the year, Szmierek has still been teaching; after today’s DIY obligations, he’s popping over to recent collaborators Jacana People’s London show to sing their track ‘Twist

But aside from extracurricular run-ins, there’s a synergy between Szmierek’s two career paths that’s undoubtedly fuelling the empathetic everyday storytelling that sits at the heart of his music.

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zmierek’s output to date - debut EP ‘Poems to Dance To’ and recentlyreleased follow up ‘Seasoning’ positions him in a long line of working class northern poets, from his hero Jarvis Cocker to Alex Turner, who he would impersonate as vocalist in the school staff band (cue a more than serviceable impromptu snippet of ‘There’d Better Be A Mirrorball’ sung across today’s pub table). Though Szmierek’s medium is a hybrid of genres that has one foot in the sweaty gig venue and the other in the club, lyrically he’s an everyday observer of life as a whole, cribbing from an endless array of iPhone notes stolen from “overheard conversations on the tram or the bus or the train”.

Take breakthrough single ‘Hitchhiker’s…’, in which Szmierek’s stream of consciousness narrative hops between succinct, relatable vignettes that find tenderness and humour in the seemingly humdrum: “Is hope included in the meal deal, or? / Nahhh I didn’t think so / The good stuff never is .” Perhaps inevitably, it’s a style that’s led to a fair whack of Mike Skinner comparisons but, says Szmierek, there’s something innately different to his Mancunian point of view.

“It’s quite bleak up there, especially in Manchester where it’s pissing it down every day because of the Pennines; everyone’s a poet or a dancer or in a band because you kind of have to, you’ve almost got to [make it better for yourself],” he suggests. “It’s a different thing to down south. There’s a certain mundanity and a certain thing that we’re rallying against - trying to find the beauty in the very mundane, quite sad, everyday traditions.”

What I do in my spare time is go and watch bands so if we’d been shit live that would have been awful…”

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he beauty and the joy, however, is the key.

Having first started out writing novels (debut, The Hypocrite, is still loitering on Amazon for any keen investigators), before moving into short stories, poetry and - after a lengthy period of lockdown furlough - songs, his recent musical endeavours are clearly scratching an itch that’s been there Szmierek’s entire life.

An indie kid through and through (“I was 17 in 2007 when there was ‘Favourite Worst Nightmare’ and Klaxons and all that. My identity was around what

bands I liked; it was the first thing that I found purpose in”), he’s keen that the UKG element that seeps in on record isn’t necessarily the focus.

“This summer, I was quite determined to show that this is an alternative act played with a band because that’s what I always wanted to be,” he notes. “It’s not me and CDJs or a backing track, it’s a full thing. My favourite compliment is when people say it’s good live, because what I do in my spare time is go and watch bands so if we’d been shit live that would have been awful…”

Currently nestled in his live set is an unexpected cover of Sugababes’ debut single ‘Overload’. “It comes after a really serious poem on purpose,” he notes. “There’s a spoken word, heartfelt piece about my dad and the state of the world, and then we do ‘Overload’ after. I just want it to be a fun show; I’m not taking myself seriously.”

With his next ticketed London show sold out five months in advance and a 1,300-capacity hometown gig nearly sold out equally as far ahead, Szmierek’s methods are clearly working.

Recently, he’s been plotting what a debut album will look like; the plan is for it to be “quite novelistic - not a concept album, but there’s gonna be character names that crop up [throughout] and loose threads, almost like an anthology.” It’s an ambitious plan but one the affable musician makes seem easy - much like everything else in his rapidly escalating trajectory right now.

“It’s a funny thing where it’s been my hobby forever to listen to music and go to gigs, and I’ve always watched Jools Holland and me and my brother would actively go: ‘What would we wear?

What would we do? How would we play it?’ Even though we weren’t in a band,” he laughs. “I was always doing something - always writing, always performing - so it almost kind of felt inevitable when we were on Jools. Not in a way where we deserved to be there; we were so nervous and we had two backpacks of stuff to bring in when everyone else had seven lorries so it was silly that we were there. But only recently I’ve been like, fuck, was this always going to happen?”  Antony Szmierek headlines Night Two of DIY’s Hello 2024 series at London’s Old Blue Last on 16th January - sign up for free on Dice!

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With this year’s debut EP ‘going… going…

GONE!’, hemlocke springs has firmly bid farewell to normality and stepped into a world of offbeat technicolour performance. Words: Daisy Carter: Photos: Louise Mason.

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tanding near the back of the packed and dimly lit Camden venue of Dingwalls, you can just about make out a small sea of teenagers and young adults staring rapturously at the stage, arms aloft as they form the shape of a heart with their fingers. It’d almost be a stock photo-worthy scene, save for the footie chant that sweeps through the crowd, increasing in both volume and fervour as more and more grasp its prosaic lyrics: “We love you hemlocke, we do / We love you hemlocke, we do / We love you hemlocke, we do / Ohhhh hemlocke, we love you!”

The object of their collective affection? North Carolina’s Isimeme Udu (who goes by Naomi), who’s standing onstage sporting a bright blue wig, baby pink tea dress, opera gloves and a huge grin as she revels in this markedly British reception. On the face of it, the laddish cheers seem incongruous with Naomi’s high-fashion aesthetic, but she just merrily leans into the chaos - so much so that the overall effect is one of intentional, joyful juxtaposition. It’s a throughline which extends into other aspects of her project, too; sonically, visually, and even biographically, hemlocke springs is wonderfully contradictory.

“Lollapalooza was like, my second show,” Naomi exclaims pre-gig, absent-mindedly brushing the gold glittery remnants of DIY’s shoot from her face. “I think that’s when the lightbulb went off; I can connect with people on the internet, but seeing crowds being there in real life, realising that they [were] there for me - that was crazy!”

Playing a major festival would be a milestone in anyone’s book, but it’s an especially far cry from Naomi’s not-too-distant past life as a medical informatics Master’s graduate - a burgeoning career that began to take a back seat after she released debut track ‘gimme all ur luv’ in May 2022 and it swiftly blew up. And it’s this about-turn that informed the title of her recent debut EP ‘going… going…

GONE!’, a project that encapsulates “how much of a

180 life has taken” since her college days.

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rawing cherry-picked inspiration from her teenage K-Pop obsessions, the timelessness of ‘80s classics, and the noble desire to “just do ridiculous things”, ‘going… going… GONE!’ reflects both a huge breadth of pop culture, and an often touching depth of personal experience. Her output has certainly struck a chord with the Lockets (or, if you prefer, the unofficial group noun of “haemorrhoids”), whose very existence seems to still slightly bewilder Naomi. “When I’m meeting people, if they say, ‘I’m such a fan of you’, I literally look back…” She pauses to perform an exaggerated pantomime turn over her shoulder. “Like, who are they talking about? Me?!”

Naomi is warm, expressive, and frequently selfdeprecating, and this approachable humility is undoubtedly part of what endears her so strongly to her followers. Whether it’s dancing with unselfconscious abandon or walloping a cymbal with gusto onstage, she’s the utter antithesis of the perfectly curated, Instagram-filter brand of celebrity.

“What you see is what you get,” she shrugs. “It’s too much to feign something - I don’t know who else I could be.” With this kind of transparency can come a particular vulnerability, but, as Naomi explains, fear is an emotion with which she’s well acquainted. “I’ve never not been afraid of anything in my entire life. I’m scared of everything, but that doesn’t mean I won’t still do it; I’ll just be scared while doing it, which I think is the best route to go.” ‘going… going… GONE!’, then, is a manifestation of her facing these fears head on - both practical, tangible anxieties about career viability, and more existential notions of identity. “The music industry is so fast-paced, and I thought, ‘Oh, people will lose interest, people aren’t going to tune in to me’,” she continues. Ironically, however, it’s this attitude that’s allowed her the freedom to write without heavy expectation or prescriptive direction, instead simply thinking: “I don’t really know what’s happening right

What you see is what you get. It’s too much to feign something - I don’t know who else I could be.”

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now, and I don’t really know what’s going to happen in the future, so I guess I’ll write about that.”

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The idea that you’ll have your life together by your mid-twenties is one of life’s great lies and, for Naomi, hemlocke springs has been instrumental in helping her through this ubiquitous quarter-life crisis.

“Writing is my way of examining how I’m feeling. I have it all up here,” she taps her forehead, “and then I get it down on paper, and I guess that’s the first step of processing something.”

I thought I had to stay genre specific and make everything sound super cohesive, but I just don’t think that works for me.”

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n the hemlocke springs school of therapy, though, you’ll sooner exorcise demons via dancing than deep introspection, and Naomi excels at pairing ostensibly serious subject matter with the sort of buoyant synth-pop that Pet Shop Boys would be proud of. Take the Robyn-inspired sad banger ‘enknee1’, for example - it’s one of the EP’s standout tracks and a clear live favourite which, when performed, sends the crowd bouncing around to heart-wrenching lyrics of acute loneliness.

This striking contrast between the sonic and thematic is something of a hemlocke signature - a technique that serves to “just make it all the more interesting and maybe a little bit funny”, as well as allowing Naomi the scope to explore multiple emotional avenues within one song. “I always say that I have different voices up here,” she explains, gesturing to her head again. “You know how everybody has an angel and a devil voice, and they’re your thoughts fighting against themselves? That’s basically me - I fight against myself a lot.”

But it’s because she puts so much of herself into the project - internal arguments and all - that others, in turn, invest heavily too. Naomi’s found fans in the likes of Steve Lacy, Doja Cat and Grimes, while her Dingwalls show acted as a microcosmic warm up for her current stint supporting on Ashnikko’s UK and European tour dates. “Because of the amount of people who have said [my] music is good - which is so cool - I got a lot of industry plant stuff,” she laughs, clearly amused at the idea that she has nepotistic connections. “I couldn’t even be mad at it. I was lowkey like, ‘Mom, do you… do you know people?’”

Despite being flattered by the high-profile kudos (“It’s honestly very rewarding and very fulfilling to hear that people I never thought I would interact with are fans”), Naomi is also steadfast in her decision that both ‘going… going… GONE!’ and her next project (on which she’s currently working) will be hers alone. “I want to find my own footing as an artist.

I’m working on new things all the time, and I think I’m trying to explore more, with more live instrumentation. In my mind, I thought I had to stay genre specific and make everything sound super cohesive, but I just don’t think that works for me. If you’re going this way,” Naomi points into the middle distance, “then you’ve just gotta keep on going and see where it leads you.”

Following her instincts, however unconventional, has served her well enough so far. By embracing juxtaposition and being unashamedly magpie-like in approach, hemlocke springs has put herself firmly on the path to alt-pop stardom. 

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I loved playing the Monsters Inc. theme. It was a weight off my shoulders at the end of the set.”

- Joe Love

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Cemented as 2023’s most chaotic breakthrough live band, this South London quintet are putting their paw prints on a debut LP - all with their trusty dog mask-wearing drummer in tow. Words: Matt Ganfield.

Photos: Ed Miles.

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ew Year’s Eve, not twelve months ago, and Dalston’s Shacklewell Arms is playing host to a very strange band indeed. With not a note of music to be found online, and a drummer in a rubber dog mask furiously pounding a snare at double speed, the five-piece oddball collective otherwise known as Fat Dog are granting sweaty revellers and bemused plus ones a one-way ticket down a cacophonous, strobe-lit rabbit hole as the bells herald the beginning of 2023.

Fast forward to the end of the year and they’ve extended their cult across the United Kingdom, seducing devotees with their beguiling fusion of techno, punk, Klezmer and psychedelia. Having signed with Domino, the band, led by South Londoner Joe Love, now have a total of one single out in the world: a statistic which is dwarfed by the noise they’ve made – both literally and figuratively - in the interim months.

“People were so cooped up over Covid that it was the natural reaction; as soon as audiences were able to, they were ready to go nuts,” synth player Chris Hughes suggests of the band’s allure. “I know that was how I felt before I joined the band. I went to one of their gigs and just went mental.” “The first Fat Dog shows were just me playing over a backing track during that window of lockdown where you could host socially-distanced gigs,” Joe recalls. “It’s pretty depleting to perform dance music to a crowd that can’t stand up.”

However, once audiences were finally granted permission to rise and, crucially, dance, Fat Dog’s primal energy and sonic mayhem proved to be a killer combination to soundtrack society’s re-emergence: an apocalyptic rave for a nation in disrepair. It was around this time, in fact, when Chris first came across the band. Recently dumped by his girlfriend and in need of distraction, he became an early example of Fat Dog’s

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loyal fanbase before learning that they were in need of a viola player. “I was pretty drunk when I heard, so I lied and said I could play it; then I went on eBay that night to buy one,” he nods.

Following a full week of mastering the instrument, Chris inevitably failed his audition: “It was really bad, maybe the worst thing I’ve heard in my whole life”. But, as luck would have it, Fat Dog’s synth player departed shortly after to take up a job in the art world, leaving a bandmate-shaped hole and a memorable idea of who to fill it. “I liked his confidence,” Joe shrugs.

A relentless word-of-mouth campaign fuelled by the band’s raucous live shows led to their record deal being inked at the tail-end of 2022, following a handful of unfruitful meetings with a major label. “We had a few conversations with [redacted],” Joe recounts. “But they still seem to think it’s the fucking Britpop era: feet on the desk, pile of cocaine on the table, getting you an Addison Lee everywhere”. He namechecks the label for a third time in the space of thirty seconds. “Could we edit that out again? They definitely have hitmen there and I don’t wanna get ski-masked on my front door…”

“Domino is a really nice place to be,” Chris chimes in, his sincerity only slightly undermined by his gold face, which is still painted from the photoshoot. “It’s a big label, but it’s like a home-cooked meal.” So what meal would that make a major? “Huel,” he says, without a moment’s hesitation “A beige slop that is purely a vehicle for nutrients.” “We went into the label to meet them at the top of their massive, evil

tower,” Joe says, “and the label guy was all like: ‘I’m thinking Prodigy. I’m thinking…’” “I’m thinking your name up in lights, kid!” Chris interrupts in a gravelly, faux-US accent. “Now bend over and we’ll seal the deal.”

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ne might imagine that penning a deal with Domino, who boast the likes of Arctic Monkeys, Wet Leg and Hot Chip among their roster, would come alongside expectations of a certain step-up in professionalism. “No, not really,” Joe laughs.

“We’ve been losing stuff along the way.”

“Professionalism dipped, if anything,” Chris remarks. “I’ve lost the pedalboard in the airport, and I’ve left the flight case full of keyboards in a venue.” Both members of the band completed by bassist Ben Harris, saxophone player Morgan Wallace and drummer Johnny Hutchinson - audibly scoff at the notion that they’d have staff on the team to take care of such matters, instead offering a shoutout for their tour manager, Johnny Ray, and the white van in which they schlep to and from shows.

Industry buzz, however you might define it, may be hard to substantiate whilst you’re in the middle of it, but both present members of Fat Dog carry themselves without any visible pretentiousness, cracking jokes throughout with the ease of any normal chat. Normal, that is, with a dash of slightly unhinged kookiness about them, like two strangers you’ve built a rapport with at a house party where there’s a mattress on the floor.

One tangible perk of the band’s rise has been the opportunity to work with producer James Ford (Gorillaz, Kylie Minogue, Florence + The Machine) on their debut album, albeit in a manner which is typically Fat Dog-ian in its casual nature.

“He’s just a nice guy,” Joe says. “We were doing tracks in his house, in a little bedroom studio, it’s pretty chill.” “Yeah, it was homely,” Chris agrees. “There was a bit of, ‘You can’t play drums after a certain time because it’ll wake up the neighbours’.”

“When you’re releasing stuff to a big audience, the best you can hope for is that 50% of people love it and 50% of people hate it.” -

Chris Hughes

The tracks that will make up Fat Dog’s eventual debut LP are mostly songs that have grown from the band’s live outings, put together by Joe on his computer before being beefed up by his bandmates. “We’re trying to follow the demos as much as we can,” he explains.

“I took what we had over to James [Ford] to thicken everything up.” Does this imply that Fat Dog’s inaugural album is on the horizon? “The album is nowhere near done,” he continues, after a long, excruciated noise from Chris that implies that the subject is a sore one. “I should be in the studio now but I’m taking pictures with a gold man,” he shoots a look at Chris. “I have about four weeks to make six tracks.”

“Domino have been

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nice. They’ve said, ‘We like the songs that you’ve written so just go for it’,” Joe continues, touching upon the artistic freedom that accompanies life at an indie label. “To be honest, I’m doing a lot of talking about songs which I mostly haven’t actually made at this point. I’m happy with the first single, though.” “And that’s a good one,” Chris concurs.

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From your experience, what kind of people come to the shows? What does a Fat Dog fan look like?

Joe: They’re good people. Good, hard-working people Chris: Fun-loving people. I did see that, when we were releasing our first single - our only single - someone tweeted saying, ‘Fat Dog finally release some music, a big day for unbearable people’, which I thought was fucking hilarious. We have really loyal fans - what are they called? They have a name…

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Like Swifties or Beliebers? o call Fat Joe: Oh, yeah they all seem to be Dog’s debut called George. single, Chris: Yeah, all our fans seem to be August’s called George.

‘King Of The Slugs’, Joe: Shoutout to the Georges who a “good one” is an come to the gigs. understatement.

The most ambitious opening statement from an artist since LCD Soundsystem announced themselves with ‘Losing My Edge’ in 2002, ‘...Slugs’ is the sound of a band setting out their stall with intent. Clocking in at over seven minutes, the track opens with a murky electronic soundbed before an Arabian riff enters proceedings, descending into something akin to a nightmarish, amphetamine-fuelled snake-charming exercise. “I’d probably suggest that putting a seven minute long single out is fucking stupid,” Joe says of the bold release.

“But in retrospect, it was probably a good idea.” “The fans wanted us to put ‘King Of The Slugs’ out,” Chris notes.

When a fanbase has done as much heavy lifting for a band’s early notoriety as Fat Dog’s, it seems only fair to grant them their choice for the first single. Numerous members of the Fat Dog faithful have already followed the band across multiple shows on the same tour, and handfuls of audience members fondly remember the days when the Monsters Inc. theme tune was still a cornerstone of the Fat Dog setlist.

“I loved playing the Monsters Inc. theme,” Joe reminisces. “It was a weight off my shoulders at the end of the set. I’d be heaving up, because I’m so fucking unfit.” “On several occasions,” Chris continues, gold face shining in the glow of the room’s artificial lighting, “we thought that the Monsters Inc theme, as performed by us, was going to be the last Joe heard before he died.” “It’s not a bad way to go,” he reasons.

If 2023 has offered anything by way of a theme in regards to new music discovery, it’s a resurgence of the word-of-mouth sensation which was once thought to have withered in the clutches of the internet. Perhaps it’s a renewed yearning to be part of a larger community or the result of a backlogged class of gig-goers catching up on time lost to lockdown, but tangible, real world fandom seems to be back in a big way, and it’s abundantly clear when you attend one of Fat Dog’s euphoric live ceremonies.

“I know it sounds crazy, but when you’re releasing stuff to a big audience, the best you can hope for is that 50% of people love it and 50% of people hate it,” Chris says of Fat Dog’s polarising sound and the fans who are delivering it to public attention. “If people just have a lukewarm response then what’s the point? You just have a nothing song. I think some people fucking hate Fat Dog and a lot of people love it, so I’m happy.”

Fat Dog headline DIY’s Class of 2024 launch party at Colours, Hoxton on 14th December.

Sign up for free tickets via Dice. 

“People were so cooped up over Covid; as soon as audiences were able to, they were ready to go nuts.”

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I was writing really deep shit when I was seven. I was writing like a divorcée!”

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With a viral, life-changing hit in her back pocket, and a knack for writing witty but intimate vignettes of life and love, the Inverness singer is focussed on the long game. Words: Sarah Jamieson. Photos: Louise Mason.

much pressure to go at a thousand times speed all the time - which I did last year and it was a mindfuck. But actually I think it was so necessary to slow down and do a bit of cherry-picking, to keep it quite stripped back, and now I’m feeling so ready.”

or Katie Gregson-Macleod, 2023 will go down as a year of change. Following on from the frankly unfathomable success of her breakout single ‘complex’ last summer (40 million Spotify streams and counting…), it’s only over the past twelve months that she’s been given a chance to take stock. “Most of this year has been dedicated to me trying to find my feet in a new city, a new environment and a new version of the industry that I’d never experienced before,” she nods from a Shoreditch cafe.

It’s little wonder that Katie needed a breather. Wind back the clock to August 2022 and things looked rather different for the Scottish singer: still in the middle of a History degree at Edinburgh University, working as a barista on the side, making music was then just a hobby, providing some much-needed relief to her more academic world. It was during the summer holidays, back in her Inverness home, however, that she uploaded a clip of what would become ‘complex’ to her TikTok channel and her life was changed forever. By the time 2023 rolled around, she’d already signed with Columbia, worked with super-producer Greg Kurstin (Adele, Harry Styles), been nominated for an Ivor Novello, and - having left university for the time being - packed up and moved to London to be a musician full time.

“I think it was necessary to be honest,” she says, digging into mushrooms on toast as she reflects on the time she’s taken out to adjust. “In hindsight, I had that worry of, ‘Did we not take advantage of the moment enough? Did we not do enough shows?’

There’s a point of anxiety around it; you’re under so

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hile it may still be early doors in Katie’s career, in a way she’s been laying the groundwork for most of her life. “Oh I was a little twat!” she jokes, thinking back to her younger years when her creativity first came to the fore. “I was a drama queen. There were short stories, poems, songs, all from a young age. I don’t think they were anything to write home about but I was non-stop on that side of things, I loved being creative. Me and my cousin Jamie were those kids in the family that would make everyone watch our performances.”

With an English teacher for a dad and a pianist for a mum (“I refused lessons,” she notes. “I was like, ‘No, I know all about this!’ but I didn’t know shit and I wish I could play piano better now”), there was, as she puts it, “an appreciation for words and music in my house from a very young age, so I was obsessed”.

And, much like her current habit of delving into the more confessional side of songwriting, her pre-teen self attempted the same.

“I was writing really deep shit when I was seven, and now I’m like, ‘What the fuck was I on about?’ I was writing like a divorcée!” she chuckles. “I think I was listening to too much Adele and Amy Winehouse…”

Was it a case of her younger self faking it ‘til she made it? “It’s funny how you imitate being inspired until you are; I don’t know who the fuck broke my heart when I was eight - I don’t think anyone did!

- but you would’ve thought that,” she raises her eyebrows. “But I definitely noticed a difference when I turned 17 or 18, where I just had so much inspiration all of a sudden. I think I kissed the person that I’d fancied for a long time when I was 18 and then I remember it was that day that I started writing every day - and it hasn’t stopped since then! That was the catalyst!”

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hatting just a few days before she heads to Glasgow to begin rehearsals for her long-awaited UK headline tour, you get the sense that, even though the incendiary success of ‘complex’ is still clearly impossible to fully comprehend (“A lot of this year has just been people being like, ‘Have you processed it yet?’” she grins. “‘And I’m like, ‘Girl, that is never happening!’”), Katie is feeling more at ease with the whole thing.

Does she ever wonder what could’ve been had she not uploaded the video that day? “Fuck my life, man!

It was sat in my drafts for two days!” she laughs.

“The thing is, my life would be so different but I think the goalposts have just changed,” she goes on. “The big thing everyone talks about is transferring that moment into a career and expanding upon what is built there. It is fleeting; a viral moment is just that, a moment. We were very aware at the end of last year that some [fans] would stick around from ‘complex’, but the song would have a life of its own and I wouldn’t necessarily be attached to that, which is lovely. So, the main thing this year was almost acting as though it hadn’t happened, in many ways; making another EP, expanding the sonic landscape a bit, playing some shows. Just continuing the traditional path in the wake of that very untraditional and bizarre moment.”

And so, making good on that promise, last month she released her latest EP - and third to date - ‘Big Red’. Continuing her knack for the kind of observational, intimate lyrics that transport listeners right into the middle of any given scenario, its premise - which follows a four-month relationship from first date through to breakup - feels intensely personal throughout. There are ties to her new London life, where she shares a flat with fellow rising star Nell Mescal, such as on ‘Girlfriend’: “I just decided on the Jubilee line / I've landed on the real thing, tried to fight it / I listen to Nell when she tells me / I can't lay my life on a mood ring”. “I can’t stop referencing tube stops,” Katie laughs. “I get home from a day of doing

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I definitely don’t have that [barrier] during the process of writing, probably to a detrimental degree.” stuff in London, and I think to myself, ‘What have I seen today?’ It’s just the tube!

Every song references a tube stop nowadays.”

TFL aside, does she ever feel a subject could be that bit too personal to make it into a song? “Sadly not! I wish there were moments like that…” she jests. “I had that thing when I was releasing this EP where I was like, ‘Fuck, that is so specific’ and then that person [who inspired the songs] asked to hear the EP. I was like, ‘Fine…’ but I took ‘Girlfriend’ out of the playlist because I was like, ‘Well, that’s fucking embarrassing’. I don’t know if you can tell but I’m not their girlfriend?! That did not happen!

"But no, I definitely don’t have that [barrier] during the process of writing,” she picks up, “probably to a detrimental degree, but it’s very fun for me. It makes it so much more exciting. This stuff is so personal and it makes it a really therapeutic thing; the

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songs are almost just diary entries, very observational and anecdotal.” That level of eagle-eyed detail even trickles down to the EP’s title itself - named for the bar on Holloway Road in which the protagonists have their first date. “‘Big Red’ is certainly a prime example of that,” she laughs. “I literally went there one time! I had been there once when I wrote that EP - I’m such a psycho!”

Now, with another EP-shaped string added to her musical bow and a slew of live shows to round out the year, Katie’s sights are already set on her next big task: her debut album. “Well, I’ve been writing it for a long time, a loooong time,” she emphasises. “Since before ‘complex’ came out. So, I’m finishing the writing process; every day I make a tracklist in my Notes app. I’m just obsessed with the idea of the album; I’m very interested in having it feel a certain way, and having those highs and lows that an album allows you to have. That’s where my sights are set and no one can convince me otherwise.” 

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Weaving vulnerable tales of every day life into their vital brand of soulful but fiery punk, meet the Midlands duo that are living up to their name. Words: Sarah Jamieson. Photos: Holly Whitaker.

was expecting a bit of a quiet week, and now we’re doing O2s up and down the country…” begins Big Special’s Callum Moloney. In the middle of a series of shows opening for Sleaford Mods - and precisely the opposite of a “quiet week” - the duo are currently speaking from the back of their van, hurtling down a motorway en route from Glasgow.

In what’s perhaps a perfect analogy for Big Special’s momentum-fuelled year so far, these packed out gigs landed on their plate last minute, with just a few days’ notice. “The size of the rooms…” vocalist Joe Hicklin picks up, “they’re the biggest gigs we’ve done. We were just at the Glasgow O2 [Academy], which is a big theatre room with a big balcony and stuff, and I can’t wrap my head around it to be honest.”

Capping off what Joe refers to as a “head-wobbler” of a 2023, it’s little wonder that the ‘Mods would see fit to draft in the duo for their current run. Having broken through with their fiery single ‘SHITHOUSE’ back in summer, what’s happened in the aftermath is the stuff of dreams.

“This whole year,” starts Callum, “every single thing that we’ve done, we’ve been like, ‘Oh wow, that’s gonna be the highlight of the year’.

And then we get another thing come through, then the next thing, and the next thing. We can’t really understand it!” “We’ve been cracking on separately for fifteen years doing music,” nods Joe, “and it’s all happened in the last ten months.”

While 2023 has seen the Midlands duo marked out as one of music’s fiercest new prospects, an overnight success story this is not. Having met at college when the pair were teenagers, they were “just drawn together immediately”, Callum confirms. “I was the biggest Joseph Hicklin fan since the moment I met him. I got his old lyrics tattooed on my leg when I was younger,” he smiles, affirming his commitment.

A series of bands came and went, starting with a “six-piece funk and soul outfit” which was soon whittled down to a duo before Callum moved to Bristol for university and the two continued their endeavours apart, “separately [spending] a decade trying to make music and art”.

Then, just as Callum found himself

“I just thought if I was ever gonna change it up or experiment, it was gonna be now. - Joe Hicklin 42 DIYMAG.COM

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wondering if it was time to wind down from playing in bands, Joe reached out.

“In lockdown, Joe came out of nowhere and we reconnected, and he wanted to do a new project,” the drummer recalls.

“I wasn’t sure; I thought it was time to call it. So I said, ‘Nah’, but then he called me back about two weeks later with the demo of ‘THIS HERE AIN’T WATER’ and I was hooked immediately. I just knew I wanted to be a part of it,” he confirms.

“So, I said no initially, but I’m really glad he called me back, 'cos I wouldn’t be living my best right now.”

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rom then on, everything for Big Special seems to have seamlessly clicked into place. The duo continued writing together through lockdown, using their separate musical experiences (Joe had spent most of the interim period as an acoustic singer-songwriter) to build out their enigmatic but potent blend of

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BREAKFAST’). “We think it’s all important to talk about,” Joe notes, on the more working class focus that their songs naturally take. “But it’s not come from a preconceived idea. We’re not nailing it to a post, it’s about honest experience and that’s it really. We’re just fully committed to trying to be honest and brutal with that honesty.”

That honesty is translating: alongside their current run with Sleaford Mods, the band have already racked up support slots alongside the likes of Benefits and John Grant’s Creep Show, with a slew of

“We’re fully committed to trying to be honest and brutal with that honesty.”

- Joe Hicklin post-punk and soul. “First and foremost, we’re music fans,” Joe says, on why their sound channels such a myriad of influences. “We love loads of stuff and always have. I was doing the acoustic stuff for fifteen years, and I’d just fallen out with that structure. I’d always written poetry and stuff like that, and in lockdown, I just thought if I was ever gonna change it up or experiment, it was gonna be now.”

Focussing more on the central voice of the project, the duo’s blistering sound veers from in-your-face confrontation to stirring passion, all while delving honestly into the spectrum of every day life; whether mental health issues (‘SHITHOUSE’), the growing friction between vast swathes of society (‘THIS HERE AIN’T WATER’), or simply having to face the daily slog (‘DESPERATE

festivals including The Great Escape and Reeperbahn under their belts, and a run of sold-out London headline shows. Next April, meanwhile, they’ll head up DIY’s own Now & Next Tour, alongside fellow Class of 2024 stars Hot Wax. “As a band fresh out of the gates, this year’s been rolling with the punches, taking every gig we can,” Callum reflects, “and next year is mad already. I wanna try as many local delicacies across Europe as possible, see as many cities as possible, and I don’t wanna touch the ground.” He cracks a grin. “It doesn’t look like we’re gonna get a chance to.”

Big Special headline DIY’s Now and Next Tour in April 2024. See p16 for details. 

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Sometimes you get a new artist that changes things.

What I strive for is that original idea.”

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Pushing her witty, gothic storytelling into evermore adventurous territory with each release, the West London singer is striving for originality above all. Words: Lisa Wright. Photos: Louise Mason.

ursing a cup of English Breakfast tea, having smashed out DIY’s candlelit photoshoot to the strains of Sonic Youth’s ‘Daydream Nation’, Gretel Hänlyn is musing on the purpose of music - the purpose, we should note, of the sort of really good music that the West London singer is working hard to find herself considered alongside. “[I’m drawn to] something that has a very powerful atmosphere and something that doesn’t sound like it’s trying to copy something else. That’s all you can really ask for,” she nods.

“Something I strive for in my own stuff is a change of culture.

Sometimes you get a new artist that changes things, like Billie Eilish introducing more downtempo music where then there’s a lot of artists who follow on and do the same. What I strive for is that original idea.”

Shaking up an entire music ecosystem is quite a lofty ambition to casually throw out there at 3pm in a coffee shop, it might be said… “It’s Monday and I’m thinking about changing the world,” Gretel shrugs with a glint in her eye.

Since drawing a line under her previous acoustic endeavours, choosing to write for a full band and deciding upon a new, Brothers Grimm-inspired moniker, Gretel Hänlyn has been steadily widening her own sonic boundaries in a way that suggests a little game-changing might not be entirely out of reach. Where the now 21-year-old describes those early teenage tracks, released under the name Maddy Bean, as “gothic acoustic folk”, by 2022’s debut Gretel EP ‘Slugeye’, she’d begun to craft a “world-building” new direction, informed entirely by instinct. Having never played a gig with a band, ‘Slugeye’ was written with the singer crafting parts for imagined musicians. “I didn’t know what would ever work live and I never had a reference point for any of the songs, they just shat themselves out,” she laughs.

Follow-up ‘Head of the Love Club’, released back in March, was penned in the wake of both a considerable amount more on-stage experience and a romantic “infatuation” that proved particularly lyrically fertile. In the centre emerged an EP that amped up the dynamics, veering from Nico-esque opener ‘Dry

Me’, to ‘Wiggy’’s Pixies nods and ‘Drive’’s razor-sharp indie riffs.

Full of wryly dark observations, pulling from horror as much as romance (“Do you need me? Would you come to my show? / I’m your pet really and I just wanna be owned,” goes ‘Wiggy’), it began to clarify a worldview that’s been building since childhood. “I used to write a lot of short horror stories, and a lot of the music I wrote was putting a melody with depressing chords to a horrible story I'd written,” she recalls. Pause. “No, I did not have many friends, to answer your next question…”

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hile a lifelong penchant for the darkly evocative and macabre forms a central pillar of Gretel Hänlyn’s artistic outlook - be that via the records (Nicks both Cave and Drake, Jeff Buckley, Wolf Alice) that would be played around the house or the gothic art that her mum would introduce her to - it was a period of sickness as a teenager that would change the course of her output in an altogether different way.

Around 2018, Gretel fell ill for a year with her diaphragm particularly affected. The continuing problems it presented for her voice, meanwhile, lasted much longer. “I wasn’t able to sing, and there was never a point when I was [fully] able to sing again but I just decided I had to make it work somehow,” she recalls.

“The only way I could sing without it sounding really scratchy and terrible was if I sang through a different path, lowering my larynx and really pushing the sound out from within rather than singing in the way that would come naturally to someone who wasn’t sick. But after all that illness I still came back to music and to writing because it was just always something that I had to do.

“This has always been the dream from when I was little,” she continues. “I’d always play guitar and sing for my family, and that’s something that carries on when I see my granddad. He’s got very bad Alzheimer’s and he can’t remember anything can’t remember me, can’t remember my mum - but I’ll pick up the guitar and sing an old Irish folk song to him and he’ll always sing the words back to me. Music’s always been something that’s fascinated me, and pulled me in and dazzled me.”

As she’s recovered over time, so has Gretel’s ‘natural’ voice

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lyric, I’ll spend a long time thinking, ‘I love these lyrics’,” she corrects herself with a chuckle. “I spend a lot of time congratulating myself about lyrics.” come back; these days, it’s a choice rather than a necessity. And while that presented its own problems at the beginning (“I felt trapped by it in a way because people seemed to really like how I sounded on ‘Slugeye’ but I don’t need to do it anymore,” she explains), now Gretel is seeing the variety of her vocal options as yet another tool with which to paint her evocative musical pictures. “Now I dart between all of the voices that I’ve used as another mode of storytelling, another narrative,” she nods.

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Music’s always been something that’s fascinated me, and pulled me in and dazzled me.”

urrently, Gretel is working on extending that narrative into her debut album. Long-term collaborator Mura Masa is on board as both producer and an artistic foil to bounce ideas off; “He’s a bit of a Rick Rubin type where he’s a great producer but he’s also equally as good at being a creative director,” Gretel enthuses. “He thinks about the context of the world and thinks outside the box. It’s hard to find someone you trust that much with your music.”

Thinking outside of the box, indeed, seems to be the MO of the record as a whole. Lyrically, there’s still a love of love but taken and twisted into new vantage points. One track destined for the release, ‘Squish’, is an exhausted takedown of modern hook-up culture. “What happened to courting and giving things a go?” Gretel says. “‘Squish’ is saying: ‘All I wanna do is just drown in love and let you squish me’.

And you can hurt me, but at least something happened.” Another, ‘Far Out’, uses both sides of the term to muse on a recent long-distance relationship. “He was far away but he also loved to do drugs so he was pretty far out…” she notes.

Lyrical care and originality is evidently a big priority for the singer. “I actually get a little bit weirdly upset when I’m watching interviews and someone says the lyrics come last,” she says. “No! Don’t say that!

They have a lot of importance to me and I spend a lot of time thinking about lyrics - or thinking about good lyrics. When I’ve written a good

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Musically, meanwhile, it seems like the box has been broken down entirely. Words like “challenging” repeatedly pop up when talking about the tracks she’s working on, whilst Gretel jokes that she might title the release ‘Have I Taken It Too Far?’. There are still, she promises, “accessible songs to balance it out”, but much like her proclivity for offsetting the sweet with the sour, finding “something beautiful in something grotesque”, it’s in the marriage of the two that Gretel Hänlyn’s increasingly singular style really soars.

As 2024’s debut dawns, the belief in her own vision seems to be working. “I did a short UK run earlier this year and it was mostly [older] 6 Music listeners, and now having just gone on this tour the rooms are way more packed, there are a lot more young women, and there’s a younger fanbase singing every word, there with their friends,” she smiles. “It’s lovely seeing the hard work pay off through those people. It’s like we’ve unlocked the next step.”

After all, you can’t change the culture without making a few bold moves. 

DEBUT ALBUM OUT JAN 5TH 2024 FEATURES THE SINGLES ‘LITERARY MIND’, ‘ADORE, ADORE, ADORE’, ‘UP AND COMER’ AND SHADOW OF A DOUBT' “CONFRONTATIONAL, FEROCIOUS AND BOLD … AN UNAFFECTED AND EXHILARATING DEBUT ALBUM” – 8/10 LOUD & QUIET FULL UK, IE + EU TOUR FEB-MAY 2024 APRIL 3RD - HEAVEN, LONDON 47

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ST AND AR D Crashing into life with debut single ‘Norwegian Wood’ back in the peak of summer, Picture Parlour have had a rollercoaster 2023 full of hype-ridden highs and troll-fuelled troubles. Emerging with their heads more firmly in the game than ever, there’s little that can stop them now. Words: Rhian Daly.

Photos: Louise Mason.

ince Picture Parlour took their first steps onto Brixton’s notorious Windmill stage in December 2022, life has started to mirror the sails of the venue’s namesake, spinning faster and faster as the months have progressed. The band’s origin story began like that of many other budding musicians: meet a kindred spirit and start making songs together; decide to go all in and expand the band from its central core; start gigging wherever will have you. But that initial show at the South London hub of new music discovery marked a veering off script into a plot that only the most special acts get to follow.

The four-piece – founding members Katherine Parlour (vocals) and Ella Risi (guitar), plus later additions Sian Lynch (bass) and Michael Nash (drums) – quickly gathered word-of-mouth attention for their live performances as they became a fixture at the venue. Three months after first gracing its stage, and despite not having a shred of music officially online, they sold out the space for their debut headline show and swiftly became an almost go-to support act for some of music’s biggest names.

“There’s been a few surreal moments,” Ella reflects shortly after wrapping up the band’s sparkly photoshoot with DIY. “Some of the shows we’ve played this year have been beyond anything we could have imagined. We’ve played with some of our favourite artists, like Bruce Springsteen and The Strokes…” “Not WITH them,” Katherine interjects, grinning at the thought.

“On the same bill. It’s not like we did a duet or anything!”

Despite the blaze of attention that has burned around them this year, Picture Parlour are clearly staying grounded. Instead of getting lost in the noise, they’re laughing in disbelief at the absurdity of everything that’s been happening and allowing themselves to be

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deservedly awestruck by the milestone moments they’re living on a near-weekly basis. Even between June’s debut single ‘Norwegian Wood’ and its October follow-up ‘Judgement Day’ – their first since signing with Island Records – they’ve felt a levelling up.

“Because we released ‘Norwegian Wood’ independently, the video for that was just us and a friend in Wales,” Katherine explains.

“We just spent two days in our drummer’s family home and shot what we could. It was so much fun, but it didn’t feel like a music video – it felt like, ‘Let’s see what shit we can get and if we can make something out of it’.”

On the contrary, ‘Judgement Day’ presented a far more professional experience. “Even though it was only shot in an afternoon, there was just a moment where I was on the stage doing a lip sync-y thing, and I was like, ‘Am I really doing this?! Is this real?!’”

“I remember watching you do your performance section, and it was one of those pinch-me moments,” Ella tells her bandmate.

“It was like, ‘Oh my god, it’s actually happening’, and it was surreal to see you up

there, just being so natural.”

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lthough Picture Parlour acknowledge that getting to this point in their story wouldn’t have been possible without talent, you won’t catch the pair buying into the idea that they’re some kind of indie chosen ones. “Obviously I believe that we’re good, but [it was] massively pot luck,” Katherine suggests. “It could just be any band, couldn’t it really, that get stumbled upon?”

There’s maybe some truth to what she says, but what makes Katherine and her cohorts so special also shouldn’t be diminished. This is a band who cut a formidable shape on stage but also have the tunes to back it up – songs that mix the louche, lounge spirit of Nick Cave with the slick, cinematic poise of ‘AM’-era Arctic Monkeys, the poetic lyricism of Patti Smith and more. With the four musicians’ own DNA – like Katherine’s throaty, rich croon – thrown in, they create something theatrical and refreshingly out-of-step with their peers.

There’s a confidence to Picture Parlour that makes it clear they know exactly who they are, what they want to make, and where they want to go.

“I think anyone would have a tough time trying to mould me. They’d be like, ‘It ain’t worth it - we can definitely find someone way more malleable…’” the vocalist cackles. As contradictory as it sounds, she credits her and Ella never fully believing that this could be their job as the key ingredient behind their assurance.

“There was nothing to lose.

It was like, ‘Well, if this isn’t what’s meant for us, then we’re young women with our lives ahead of us’.” “It was always a dream, but it wasn’t ever something that we’d seen as a reality,” Ella nods. “Doing music for a living was something that

I think anyone would have a tough time trying to mould me.

They’d be like, ‘It ain’t worth it…’” - Katherine

Parlour

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we couldn’t even comprehend.”

TikTok might like to tell us that being “delulu is the solulu,” but Katherine and Ella only took a smidge of that rule to heart. Instead, they’ve balanced a healthy amount of fantasy with a far larger dose of grounding, inspired in part by the singer’s dad. “Growing up, he’d be realistic with me,” Katherine smiles. “He’d be like, ‘You’re not Beyoncé, are you love?’ But he’d also tell me, ‘You’ve got it, you can do it – why wouldn’t you be able to?’ Having someone in your corner being like, ‘The world and everything else is against you, but you can give it a go’, has been really helpful.”

The conviction Picture Parlour have in each other has been necessary, too, since they released ‘Norwegian Wood’. On the day the track was shared online, the band featured on the cover of NME – an achievement that sent the internet into a rage. Conspiracy theories clogged up Twitter, ranging from plain old payola to the very big reach that, actually, Katherine’s dad was ex-Arsenal midfielder Ray Parlour, and he’d clearly been using his mythical music industry connections

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to get them the spot. What should have been a celebratory moment for the quartet instead saw them plunged into a bilious swirl of conversation centred around industry plants and nepobabies.

in the country – and lived up to its promise. “It felt quite powerful, having these two groups of women just all on the road together, playing these fantastic venues every night and having a great time,” Ella grins.

“Let’s start to embrace the things that come our way that’s really how we were dealing with everything from the get-go. If an opportunity comes, why not take it?” begins Katherine. “[But after that] there was a part of us that began not to embrace those things.” A few months on, however, and the band are now thankfully returning to their enthusiasm of old; if anything, the hate and “barbaric accusations” have left them stronger than ever. “Anything that comes our way after this,” the singer notes, “we’ve already dealt with the most absurd thing.”

“There was just an energy in the room,” Katherine nods. “It was just electric. We’re on the same label now, so we were [praying to get that slot] because we’d seen them perform before. Seeing what they do with a crowd is incredible, and they have unbelievable showmanship in the whole band. It was just the coolest experience ever.”

Earlier this year, meanwhile, the band hit the road for their first proper tour, supporting The Last Dinner Party – another group who’ve been on the receiving end of similar claims. While the billing probably had bitter online commenters frothing at the mouth in fury, the tour brought together two of the most exciting bands

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aving the opportunity to tour and play live more regularly has subtly shifted Picture Parlour’s songwriting over the last year. Their singles so far were written back when the band was still just a duo, asking each other: “If we could make the perfect album, what would you want?” “That’s where ‘Judgement Day’ came from,” Katherine explains. “It was just the two of us imagining an orchestra and all these big sounds. But when you’ve got a band of four people in a small venue…”

tentpoles of British culture.

“It’s made us lean into a… not a heavier sound, but something more upbeat,” Ella chimes in. “Things the audience can get into a bit more.” Lately, though, they’ve been learning that not everything has to be buoyant to get a reaction.

“Some songs we had we thought were a bit too slow for the set, but then you get people coming up to you afterwards like, ‘That song made me cry’,” the guitarist smiles.

In between lots more touring, the coming months will find Picture Parlour sharing the results of this year’s big learning curve, starting with a new single in January. “It’s our favourite song [so far],” Katherine grins, adding that the band hope to have their debut album out by the end of 2024. Although they’re very much still in the process of writing for it, the record could take inspiration from two iconic – if very different –

New Year, New You

What sort of new year’s resolutions are on the cards for Picture Parlour’s central duo?

Katherine Parlour: Not to write in 3/4 [time signature] and I need to get to the fucking gym. I know it’s boring. It’s not like I had a good diet before [touring], but now it’s not even about food consumption. It’s if I don’t move my body, it’s not going to work.

I need to start treating my arteries with respect – if we’re gonna live off Gregg’s, we need to move.

Ella Risi: All the things I want to stop doing, I know I won’t so live life and enjoy it – and don’t feel guilty for damaging your body. Live, laugh, love.

“Do you watch Big Brother?”

Katherine asks as Ella bursts into laughter next to her. “There’s a great love story going on between two guys, Jordan and Henry.”

“We were literally like, ‘Let’s write a song about Jenry’,” the guitarist explains between giggles. “Aside from that,” Katherine continues, “the new Beatles song has inspired me. Maybe it’s ‘cause I’m a Scouser, but it fully got me.

That made me want to write a song.”

Wherever they end up drawing inspiration from for their highlyanticipated debut, the band know exactly what world they want to build with it. “What is an unwavering reality for us is the lounge thing – below the surface, smoky bar, a bit of nostalgia, loads of intensity,” their frontwoman says. “That’s my goal for 2024,” Ella adds. “Tour loads, have the album finalised, and have a year that supersedes this one.” Should Picture Parlour come good on the promise they’ve shown so far, that goal should be well within sight. 

Anything that comes our way after [the industry plant accusations], we’ve already dealt with the most absurd thing.” - Katherine Parlour

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Liverpool’s next great guitar hopes, heading into their debut LP with raucous energy and creative hunger to spare.

Words: Lisa Wright.

Photo: Emma Swann.

ne of the biggest things in life is knowing yourself and it took me a long time to start knowing myself,” begins STONE frontman Finn Power. “I was quite nervous on stage [at the start], and then I was like, how do I battle the nerves? Do the opposite. Go on stage like a bull in a china shop and dive in the crowd. Punk rock. That’s what I did for a while, and I still do that. But I’ve definitely started understanding how to just get into the vibe of the song and naturally unleash.”

‘Naturally unleash’ might sound like something of a paradox - aggressively visceral yet organic; hard yet soft - but it might just be the perfect term for the Liverpool quartet. On one hand, they’re a hedonistic rock’n’roll band in the truest sense of the word; four mates who love making a big noise, worshipping at the altar of the hook, and setting the stage ablaze. On the other, however, their songs are increasingly pushing forward from what some old-fashioned associations of the genre might imply. Recently released second EP ‘punkadonk2’ includes the track ‘Am I Even A Man’, a reckoning with masculinity that exemplifies this idea, while their forthcoming debut - recorded and ready for release in 2024 - is set to crack them open even further.

“The album has love songs on it, which we’ve never released before. There’s parts of the album that are about facing addiction in my life and there’s more vulnerability,” says Finn. “[Writing it has been] the opposite of pushing.

It’s finally sitting down for a second and breathing in the fresh air and allowing the world around me to spin.” “I think it’s really healthy to be introspective and under-

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stand the male condition and the way we operate and the way the patriarchy permeates everything,” picks up guitarist Elliot Gill. “I’m not really a dude’s dude, so it’s nice to know there’s a better place for that now than ever and that masculinity can take so many different forms and be a positive thing.”

What’s remained steadfast since the beginning, however, has been STONE’s commitment to pushing their own boundaries. Across their two EPs to date, there are nods to The Streets (‘Left Right Forward’) and the Prodigy-esque side of the dancefloor (‘Moto’) alongside the guitar roots that sit at their core; recently, on Radio One’s Live Lounge, they thrashed out a very solid cover of Britney Spears’ ‘Toxic’. “A banger is a banger and that song’s just pop music at its finest,” shrugs Elliot.

“People have always talked about boxes and with STONE, we’re like, what box? We’re boxless.” -

Finn Power

The son of celebrated Liverpool musician John Power - formerly of The La’s and frontman of Cast - Finn is understandably determined to carve out his own lane. “Growing up around it, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t inspired and I don’t think it’s a bad thing; I grew up with access to the art world, so I’m lucky,” he says. “But there was definitely an element that I wanted to do my own thing and make my own statement as a human being, as my own carbon life form and collection of atoms floating through space. I want to be myself and not be compared.”

Heading into a debut that Elliot describes as having “emotional range, some anthems, bops, bangers, and hooks left, right and centre”, STONE have laid all the groundwork for what could - and should - be an incendiary opening statement. “People have always talked about boxes and with STONE, we’re like, what box? We’re boxless,” Finn nods. 

lafayettelondon.com

lafayettelondon

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Penning evocative indie-country-punkwhatever explorations on the human condition, the Nottingham quartet have already got Self Esteem in their corner - it’s probably time to join her. Words: Lisa Wright. Photos: Ed Miles.

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“We’re finding subtler and subtler ways of connecting.” Felix MacKenzieBarrow

ot many buzzy guitar bands would choose to spend their celebratory EP release day gamely pretending to punch each other in the face for two hours, but since pricking up ears with last year’s breakthrough single ‘Checking Out’, Divorce have been doing things a bit differently. For a start off, no one has thrown themselves into this issue’s photoshoots with quite as much vigour as the Nottingham quartet… “We come from an acting background, so we’re not strangers to making ourselves look a bit silly,” says co-frontperson Felix MacKenzie-Barrow as his vocal foil Tiger Cohen-Towell nods: “We’re cringe but we’re free.”

At the start of the band’s journey, coming out of lockdown, Divorce explain they felt the pressure to try and bend themselves to fit a certain industry shape; “I think we wanted to work out what people would want to hear so we could get a foot in, which felt almost impossible when you’re from a provincial place,” notes Tiger. But as time’s gone on, so the band - completed by guitarist Adam Peter Smith, and drummer Kasper Sandstrøm (also of Do Nothing) - have shaken off the shackles of expectation and learnt to trust their innate selves.

The EP they’re toasting today, ‘Heady Metal’, represents a notable leap forward from 2022’s debut ‘Get Mean’.

Where, around that period, the band were often labelled as ‘country-punk’, from swelling centrepiece ‘Right On Time’ to the synthy ‘Scratch Your Metal’, their latest is far less categorisable. Rather than genre, the throughline is in the feeling: a collection of songs that look inward and process change with a poetic, sometimes yearning, often dryly humorous turn of phrase. “Oh, it’s the year of me! I’m fixing all of my devices,” goes opener ‘Sex & the Millenium Bridge’; “I wanna be beautiful / I wanna be good to myself,” cries the cathartic chorus of ‘Birds’.

Talking about the tracks, Tiger references the idea of an “emotional zeitgeist”. “It’s the flare up of feeling when you’re going through big changes,” they say. “A zeitgeist is usually used on a more societal level, but the way that, as people, we just commit to eras emotionally and then come out and look back on them feeling really different…”

“And then bring that reflection into the present with the new light it throws on it,” picks up Felix. “There was a lot of self-examination.”

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hough Divorce is still a fairly new project, Felix and Tiger have been writing together for the best part of a decade, from when they were just 16. “Back when we were little rascals, running around Nottingham,” Tiger laughs. It’s an evidently close-knit bond that comes through in the increasing nuance of their music. “It feels like there’s a lot of songs coming out and we just have to work out which ones hold hands,” says Felix. “We’re finding subtler and subtler ways of connecting.”

Though they joke about the lingering effects of their previous theatrical forays (“I think we’re quite annoying people; acting kind of inherently requires you to be a bit annoying,” laughs Felix), there’s a lack of inhibition and pretension to the band that allows them to put their feelings out there, warts and all. “The aesthetics of this band are very emotionally-driven instead of what looks cool, and if what’s right for the song means making ourselves look silly or being theatrical then that’s how we’ll do it,” says Tiger.

“That lack of worrying about what your body or face looks like and just worrying about the emotional intensity of it, that’s something we’ve got from acting.” “I’ve never found a successful way of looking cool,” Felix sighs as Adam

affirms: “But that’s why you ARE cool…”

One person who certainly agrees with him is Rebecca Lucy Taylor, aka Self Esteem, who’s been shouting about the band on Instagram at every opportunity.

“She will NOT leave us alone…” jokes Tiger. Earlier this year, when Divorce were very much still in their infancy, she handpicked them to support on a smattering of shows. “She’s so supportive. To bring us on the shows we did with her… it’s not every day someone takes you to the prom,” Felix smiles.

Next up, alongside a Spring 2024 support tour with Everything Everything, is a move towards a coyly-described “larger amount of music”. Whatever form that takes, they’ll have to top ‘Heady Metal’’s anarchic cover shoot day, for which they shipped in a room full of dogs to join them. “For half an hour it was the best, and then the other half an hour it was like… OK, now they’re pissing,” recalls Kaspar. “I was the only one who got pissed on!” retorts Felix. “It was a 4D scratch and sniff kind of experience, except I didn't even have to scratch.

The owners would throw treats at us, so not only were we covered in piss, we were covered in treats, and then covered in dogs.”

Fun, messy, sweet and silly, it’s an image that suits Divorce well. Their music might come firmly from the tangled depths of the heart, but they’re also relishing every win

The aesthetics of this band are very emotionally driven instead of what looks cool.” - Tiger Cohen-Towell they can whilst putting it all out there. “It feels like the last six months have been pretty mental in terms of the snowballing we’ve been doing,” says Kaspar, as Felix continues: “People are giving us the chance to do the thing we’ve wanted to do for ages.” Tiger nods: “We’re THIS close to the chance.”

Divorce play DIY’s Class of 2024 launch party at Colours, Hoxton on 14th December. Sign up for free tickets via Dice. 

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Cheltenham’s Jojo Orme is creating arresting, emotional collages using gothic post-punk soundscapes and her theatrical spoken word delivery. Words: Alex Rigotti. Photos: Louise Mason.

ojo Orme has always known that she doesn’t view the world like other people. “It’s very difficult,” she says, looking down at the ornate Persian rug that adorns today’s studio floor. “When you see things differently, you want people to see what you see - and that’s when it becomes isolating.”

Once a small child raised in Cheltenham, unseen by her peers, Orme is now shining as Heartworms. Soon to tour with The Kills and The Last Dinner Party, Orme has embedded herself in the South London scene, where fans and critics have championed her unique take on post-punk.

For a person in their mid-twenties, Orme is unusually disciplined. She rises around 5am most mornings, relaxes by sketching aircraft plans and casually volunteers at RAF Hendon in her spare time. “I love getting my hands mucky and knowing that these planes have been in history,” she notes. That discipline and perseverance has helped Orme find order through chaos: something she’s had to do most of her life.

Born to an Afghan-Pakistani father and a DanishChinese mother, Orme’s music career began amid a gross misunderstanding.

Grounded for a year for having a boyfriend, she was confined to the library at lunchtime to prevent her budding romance. “I used to write letters and ask people to pass them on. It was such a love story,” she recalls with a laugh. With time to kill, Orme began to learn the guitar, sparking a lifelong obsession with music.

Armed with her love of The Shins and Siouxsie Sioux, she left home in her teens, busking on the streets to pay rent and alternating between foster care, the YMCA and sofa surfing.

She pursued a Production and Performance degree at Stroud College, often

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excluded by men who wouldn’t let her be in their bands.

It was also a period that saw Orme hang around a “strange” friendship group and develop an unhealthy relationship with drugs. “It was every day, weekly,” she says.

“I remember blacking out loads of times and waking up like, ‘Well, it’s a new day, go to college’.” Orme managed to pull through, however. She graduated as the college’s Student of the Year and is now sober. Where once her peers doubted she’d even make it through the course, now Heartworms is signed to cult indie label Speedy Wunderground, ready to take on the world.

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ontrary to her sweet, shy personality, her approach to art is arresting and engaging. Today, she’s posing in a vintage Moschino jacket courtesy of her mother (who used to work in fashion). It’s a comical take on the dinner jacket, complete with golden cutlery brooches – a far cry from her usual military punk via Michael Jackson influences.

There’s an unmistakable theme of control throughout Orme’s work that separates her from her fellow post-punk peers. Recent EP title track ‘A Comforting Notion’ displays this best, Orme hissing the first verse with a seething sensuality, shackling the listener to her. As her voice grows clearer and louder, she descends into a chant with a soaring, authoritarian tone: “Remove the chains!

My wrists are in strain!”

We put it to Orme that she sounds a bit like a dictator. “I think I get what you mean,” she laughs. “I get bored of being the same in a song.

I want to be able to be like…” Orme stretches out her arms and starts singing. “‘Yes, I will listen to everything you say!’ I want something powerful, and a lot of operatic singing does that.”

Naturally, that translates into a dramatic performance style, the vocalist death-staring her audience and giving Kate Bush-esque, theatrically wide eyes. “When I normally go and see bands, I want them to know that I'm there,” she explains. “I want people to know I see them, and we're sharing that moment together, because every single person in this entire world wants to be seen. It's very important to me. But I also like to make you feel uncomfortable, like, ‘Why's she staring into my soul?’”

Instead of a linear narrative, Orme creates emotional collages, pairing metaphors with whatever feelings she’s experiencing. “I always like to find meaning after my music so I don't ever realise what I'm writing until after,” she explains. In particular, there’s a dark fascination with feathers, which she used to imagine “dropping hard” on the ground as a child. On ‘24 Hours’, Orme speaks of a “feather in my eye”, and on the surprisingly groove-oriented ‘May I Comply’, there’s a bloodied helplessness in the “clots in your feathers”. “With feathers, I like to do the opposite,” she says. “Sylvia Plath is an example of someone turning dark things into beautiful things. There’s something powerful about that.”

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he’s is totally unflinching when it comes to discussing the unusually visceral, uncomfortable nature of her music. “My lyrics are violent,” she concedes. “I have very dark thoughts. I will be honest, it is difficult.

“I haven't really had a normal family life,” she explains.

“I had a violent upbringing on my father's side when I was a very young kid. Then I went to my mum, who was also very depressed. As a child, it's so hard to take away all this pain. You can hear it in my lyrics. [But] it can be a beautiful thing, and that's what it is. I don't have to feel this pain and hate it so much.”

Heartworms has evolved into way more than just music.

It’s a multimedia project, one where she takes it upon herself to design and sew her own merchandise, along with exploring her interest in fashion. “I don’t even know what the style is anymore,” she says. “It’s very goth, but still military with the control.” The image of Heartworms is all about projecting power: shoulder pads and “collars tight around my neck” are what makes Orme feel the strongest.

She also explains that having her neck exposed makes her “too feminine”, and comes connected to the previous sexism that she’s faced. “It is maybe PTSD from feeling like I was not good enough for music because I was female,” she admits. “Maybe I’ll be more accepted, be respected a bit more [if I do that]. Not saying that should be the case, but that's how I feel.”

You can see why Orme is so keen for Heartworms to be acknowledged as a solo project, when it’s often mistaken for a band. “I always get agitated and angry because they don’t see how much work I put behind this,” she says, impassioned. “It's a world I'm building and I get to design it how I want to, with no one telling me otherwise.”

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rme sees the world differently, and earlier this year she discovered why when she was diagnosed with ADHD and autism. She says her whole family are on the spectrum, too: “We always find it difficult to show love, but we are very emotional people. We always want to be seen by each other, but we would never see each other,” she describes.

“I never knew I was on the spectrum until recently. I wasn't able to be seen. I was like, ‘Why am I like this?’”

For Orme, who struggles with eye contact and has had some turbulent school experiences, music expresses her thoughts where traditional communication often creates boundaries. “Words don’t always describe how you see anything, they’re such a filter,” she explains.

“I wish I could just give people an emotion. That’s what the music does. You don't have to talk to people, you don't have to confront people, you're confronting yourself. And that was something I was never afraid to do.”

Clearly, it’s paying off. The musician is due to play Camden’s Roundhouse with The Last Dinner Party in April, the same venue where she previously supported Sports Team. She used to work at the space, often dancing whilst scanning people’s tickets: “I always believed that I would play one day, but I didn't believe it would be that quick!” she laughs.

Heartworms is also supporting The Kills in America next year, and Orme can barely contain her excitement for visiting New York. “I can't stop thinking about it,” she smiles. “I hate tall buildings, but I'm so excited to be scared a bit!”

From busking for rent to basking in the South London scene, it’s fair to say Orme’s trajectory has been explosive. But on a personal level, Heartworms has morphed into a unique validation of her personality after years of trying to find herself. “I've always tried to fit in so people could see me,” she says. “That didn't work out, so I was like, well, I just have to be myself then.” 

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I want people to know I see them, but I also like to make them feel uncomfortable.”

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If I'm not trying to lasso my dreams, wants, desires, passions, truths - then what the hell am I doing?”

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A solo project with expansive ideas, METTE is the multimodal artist making existentialism exciting. Words: Daisy Carter.

Photos: Holly McCandlessDesmond, Raul Ruz.

ppearing on entertainment television cornerstone Later… With Jools Holland is likely a nerve wracking experience for any first timer. But when METTE graced the famously circular space to perform breakout second single ‘MAMA’S EYES’ earlier this year, not only was it her television debut, it was her first time performing live in front of an audience full stop. “It’s kind of nuts,” she concedes, speaking just ahead of her run supporting Jessie Ware on a sold-out UK tour.

In conversation, though, the Minnesota singer seems remarkably unfazed by the leap from studio audience to 10,000-strong crowd.

“Performing is one of my favourite things in the world, because it's how I feel seen and how I self-express - it's everything to me,” she shrugs. “So that's the part that feels most at home.” Indeed, while this may be the birth of her outing as a solo artist, METTE is far from a stranger to the world of performance; a certified triple threat, she’s worked with the likes of Rihanna and Pharrell Williams as a dancer, and on films such as Barbie and Hustlers as an actor.

Explaining how these other creative avenues inform her current practice, she muses: “By the nature of my upbringing and my education as an artist, I treat everything as a masterclass. But I think one thing I really learned from acting is subtlety; it’s taught me that power can come from not saying a word, not making a sound, not making a movement or a facial expression. Power can literally be just holding space.”

It’s a thread which runs throughout her debut EP ‘METTENARRATIVE’ and its accompanying visuals, which play a significant role in her storytelling. At times foregrounding widescreen pop production (‘VAN GOGH’), at others showcasing a beat-driven, spoken word flow (‘FOR THE PEOPLE’), the project encodes a freedom of expression away from stringent notions of genre or theme. “There’s nothing to prove, only to share,” she smiles. “That’s literally my mantra in a sentence, and when I perform, that’s the kind of environment and safety that I want to cradle in the room. That’s my job… that’s my duty and my honour to do.”

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t’s in many ways a symbiotic relationship, whereby METTE fosters a sense of belonging in her audience and, in doing so, (re)claims a certain autonomy over her art and identity. “I think there’s a bit of biomythography happening here,” she says of the EP’s lyrical content, referring to the Audre Lorde-coined literary genre of combined history, biography, and myth.

Within the project, there are elements of her childhood wanderlust to “get the hell away from [her] small town in Minnesota and live a different life”, but it’s also grounded in the self-determination that her familial upbringing allowed.

“I think duality and fluidity is something that's always been a part of my life,” METTE affirms. “I

was never told I couldn't do something because I was a girl - never.

When I left home and entered the real world, I realised [it] upholds these rooted stereotypes of beauty and gender.” As such, subversion and contrast are key to METTE’s output; the music video for ‘MAMA’S EYES’, for example, juxtaposes masculine with feminine, nature with industry, past with present. “These are things that come out in the process of creation that we can’t storyboard,” she comments. “We become the living, breathing manifestation of those things, so of course they’re in the work.”

Speaking about how she uses her art to question these established ideas, she notes that “some people have a huge problem with it”.

“I've read comments saying, ‘You’ve got the midsection of Stallone - I know skeleton science, that’s definitely a man’,” she continues. “I don’t know if these are serious comments; I find them quite amusing personally. But if they are serious questions, if they are like, ‘Wait, I’m confused, I’ve never seen this kind of feminine strength before’ - I’m interested in that.”

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undamentally, what ‘METTENARRATIVE’ grapples with - and evidently, what it inspires in listeners and viewers - is a fervent curiosity about different facets of the overarching human experience. “One of the biggest questions for a lot of folks is, ‘Where do I fit in this grand tapestry of human emotion? In my community, and in the world at large?’” says METTE. “[The EP] is my take on these umbrella theories of feeling whole and loved and passionate, but also the other realms that exist within me. There’s the light and the dark, and the two cannot exist without each other.”

It’s an ambitious statement of intent for any record (and one which is aptly, well, meta), but it’s also one that’s taken a long time to fully hone. “At a certain point in life - I think for me it was around 27 - you have the realisation that every moment is to be seized,” METTE says, explaining what prompted her to finally pursue her long-held ambition of writing music. “If I'm not trying to lasso my dreams, wants, desires, passions, truths - then what the hell am I doing?”

‘METTENARRATIVE’, then, is the culmination of years of visual storytelling, experience absorbing and soul searching, drawing on her work as a dancer and actor to communicate on multiple levels simultaneously and break new creative ground. “Difference is important, but there are throughlines that bind us together, and I’m trying to get closer to folks when I go on the road and meet fans next year,” METTE smiles.

“Being on stage is where the full package comes together, and that’s where I truly believe I’m destined to be.” 

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Kili Presents

2023 has been a blast.

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Photo by Jamie MacMillan

DEADLETTER. Promoted by Kili Presents.

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PinkPantheress

Heaven knows (Warner / 300 Entertainment)

Death appears many times across ‘Heaven knows’, but as expected, comes hidden in cutesy, upbeat two-minute hits. The slow burning of a doomed relationship - and an inability to let go of ensuing entanglements - begets an existentialism best symbolised as a grievous journey into the afterlife, where PinkPantheress lands only in purgatory. Her debut full-length proper is that, but over slick lo-fi garage and dream pop, as if a Y2K Shakespeare were musing on sticky sweet star-crossed love amid metaphors for abandonment on a bedazzled Motorola Razr.

Its title draws direct lineage to 2021 mixtape ‘To Hell With It’, but ‘Heaven knows’ elevates the full scope of PinkPantheress - the artist and entity - beyond a heady viral fame origin. It’s a sort of re-rebirth into the genre-slippery, emo-meets-jungle nature that brought her accolades, yet PinkPantheress’s scope does not betray that original saccharine UK garage niche, nor her penchant for earnest, bitesize emo-like hits, especially when taking nosedives into unexpected terrain.

It’s almost undetectable, since much of the artist’s staple cybercore remains - she stays at the helm of a bold resurgence of noughties Brit aesthetics, all the while expanding upon her one-size-fits-all allure. In playing with ‘90s hip hop on ‘Feel complete’, she ups the energy, while the spooky ‘80s synths on opener ‘Another life’ feel completely unexpected. Later, a familiar McFly melody is a caricaturish but pleasing throwback on ‘True romance’, and Robyn-style noughties nu-disco on album high ‘The aisle’ showcases a previously unseen pop sheen to the singer. And to ignore her standout performances with Kelela on the gooey and guttural ‘Bury me’ and the Charli XCX-indebted ‘Blue’ would be criminal. Meanwhile, adding altpop credibility to an already thrilling debut is the backing from a host of leading pop artisans; Danny L Harle, Mura Masa, Count Baldor and Oscar Scheller all perfectly splice their perspectives with the record’s super-sweet hyperbolic melancholia.

It feels like a renaissance of sorts - a reanimation of noughties UK garage with extra pop sewn in not only of genre, but of the artist herself. ‘Heaven knows’ pushes PinkPantheress into new realms of utter brilliance. (Otis Robinson) LISTEN: ‘Blue’

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Sleater-Kinney Little Rope (Loma Vista)

This eleventh effort from the indie-rock legends is about as straight-up and purified an experience as any Sleater-Kinney observer-slash-enthusiast could ever hope to have in 2023. With seemingly none of that badass-ery from their classic late-’90s output diluted by the passage of time, ‘Little Rope’ sloshes up nothing less than a condensed, rocket-punch collection of ten three-minute bangers. Opener ‘Hell’ roars, crashes and burns with intoxicating darkness. ‘Hunt You Down’ filters its catchy hooks through a twitching, disco beat, while ‘Dress Yourself’ smoulders in the haze of brooding synthesisers and fuzzy, glam-rock soloing.

While packed with these big choruses, defiant lyricism, bursting vocals and garage riffs aplenty, underlying all these anthemic qualities is a moment of overwhelming sadness and grief. In the autumn of 2022, Carrie Brownstein’s mother and stepfather were both killed in a car accident while holidaying in Italy. Retreating to their fretboard as a means of dealing with the loss, soon after, Carrie was gathering around guitars and amplifiers with Corin Tucker to compose the first sketches of what would become ‘Little Rope’. No wonder then that the record burns with such molten passion, and rings out with such candid, heartache-filled lines as “Drive around, drive the pain out / Warped from grief, can’t go home”. Painfully, and nobly, it howls at the full moon rising up above. (Elvis Thirlwell) LISTEN: ‘Dress Yourself’

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Danny Brown Quaranta (Warp)

New realms of utter brilliance.

To say that understated has generally not been Danny Brown’s style since he exploded onto the hip hop scene in overwhelmingly brash fashion more than a decade ago would be to put it very mildly. As recently as this past March, he was on reassuringly lurid form on his thrillingly weird collaborative record with JPEGMAFIA, ‘SCARING THE HOES’; reassuring, that is, because in recent years he has acknowledged severe difficulties with his mental health, ones that drove a man who once wore his copious drug intake as a badge of pride to pursue sobriety. If ‘SCARING THE HOES’ was a diversion from his personal issues, ‘Quaranta’ sees him tackle them head-on; it is, by and large, an introspective and subdued collection of reflections that would have been impossible to envision from this particular artist as recently as 2019. Indeed, this record was written largely in 2020, during the early stages of the pandemic and around the time that he was entering the final year of his thirties; ‘Quaranta’ is Italian for forty. The album deals with addiction, divorce and displacement, with Danny having opted for a fresh start in Austin, Texas, away from his hometown of Detroit, in the aftermath of his marriage failing. There, he has done significant meditation on his place in the world, and unsurprisingly, the beats on ‘Quaranta’ match the lyrical tone. There’s an emphasis on downtempo percussion and claustrophobic electronics, especially on ‘Down Wit it’ and ‘Shakedown’. Meanwhile ‘Hanami’ (named after the Japanese practice of appreciating the transience of flowers) plays like the album in microcosm; it’s a woozy treatise on the finite nature of life that crystallises ‘Quaranta’’s pervasive sense of the party being over. It seems counterproductive, then, to shoehorn in occasional nods to the chaos of old (‘Dark Sword Angel’); those tracks negate what is otherwise a disarming portrait of a class clown suddenly dropping the shield provided by years of off-the-wall zaniness, and offering up his vulnerabilities for us to pore over, instead. (Joe Goggins) LISTEN: ‘Hanami’

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Bill Ryder-Jones

Tate McRae

Think Later (Ministry of Sound)

The latest from Bill Ryder-Jones is a showpiece statement of folk-balladry and beatific maximalism. For an artist who’s so often cosied himself into the intimate corners of scuzzed-up slowcore (see 2018’s ‘Yawn’) or pared-back, home-spun reflections (2013’s ‘A Bad Wind Blows In My Heart’), ‘Iechyd Da’ - welsh for ‘Good Health’, and a nod to the singer’s heritage - feels like a heavenward leap of faith. From sampling disco strings and Brazilian singer Gal Costa’s ‘60s classic ‘Baby’, to brain-warping spoken word interludes, no idea here has seemed too ‘far out’ to be within Bill’s grasp. Amid references to Die Hard 2, American Dad, and Echo and the Bunnymen’s ‘The Killing Moon’, the 13-song set is also packed with more than a handful of pessimistic lyrical turns - “I just don’t see myself getting past this one,” he sings, for example, in ‘Nothing to Be Done’ in his distinctive Scouse drawl. Despite this, the overriding lusciousness permeating every arrangement on ‘Iechyd Da’ douses us in a joyous, unplaceable euphoria. It’s a truly cathartic listening experience, driven by the belief that our darkest moments can only be alleviated if we sing about them beautifully enough. (Elvis Thirlwell) LISTEN: ‘Nothing To Be Done’

The machinations of Tate McRae’s rise to Main Pop Girl status are subject to heated debate. Accusations of being an ‘industry plant’ sit between tweets from opinionated pop stans who find her particular musical brand lacklustre. Though the Canadian dancer’s debut record ‘I Used To Think I Could Fly’ was largely acclaimed for its arsenal of jagged pop weapons, conflict remains and detracts: while half her audience embraces her unabashedly referential sound, the other jeers at it. And it’s true that on follow-up ‘Think Later’, there are times where fanfare belies any fully formed direction astray from her peers. Indebted to the well-treaded paths of Julia Michaels’ acoustic pop and Ariana Grande’s so-called ‘white girl R&B’, Tate risks a familiarity that masks how interesting she can be left to her own devices - that said, it’s faultless in its mimicry. Elsewhere, however, she ups the ante of her heady dance tracks. The Pussycat Dolls-inspired choreo-pop resurgence singles ‘Greedy’ and ‘Exes’ - both certified hits - caught the devout attention of those tired of bedroom pop, while later she calls upon the clubby floor-fillers of late-noughties electronic pop for standouts ‘Hurt My Feelings’, ‘Guilty Conscience’ and the title track. On these is a taste of Tate at her most interesting, unafraid to deep dive into a bygone pop R&B eclecticism. No, ‘Think Later’ doesn’t come close to reinventing the wheel (or pop), but it does drench itself within a pop maximalism full of fuel, energy and modernity. (Otis Robinson) LISTEN: ‘Hurt My Feelings’

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Blanket (Video Store / RCA)

Letter To Self (City Slang)

Iechyd Da (Domino)

Kevin Abstract Kevin Abstract finds himself in a post-BROCKHAMPTON existence, and ‘Blanket’ marks his first solo outing since 2019’s superb ‘ARIZONA BABY’. Released almost a year to the day since BROCKHAMPTON’s final show, their former leader seeks a creative tether. And by and large, ‘Blanket’ is an exercise in reinvention. ‘When The Rope Post 2 Break’ and the title track are built on grunge guitars in place of the lo-fi trap beats that furnished his prior work. Gone are the conscious raps, and in their place are saccharine melodies and disquieting whispers, like Nirvana’s MTV Unplugged put through an indie-pop filter. Throughout ‘Blanket’, he employs a range of effects to alter his voice on the likes of the pitch-shifted ‘Real 2 Me’ or the nauseatingly autotuned ‘Madonna’. It’s a novel idea on paper, but in execution makes ‘Blanket’ feel like a homemade compilation of artists who inspire him. Most intriguing of all though, is that an album so focused on matters of the heart can feel so half-hearted. Love and loss are recurring themes throughout, but tracks like ‘The Greys’ do nothing to convey the emotion of it all, even when he sings “I can’t be alone”. There are bright spots, like the haunting ‘Heights’, ‘Spiders And The Dark’, or ‘What Should I Do?’, but these are few and far between. It’s clear that Kevin Abstract is trying to find himself and figure out where he fits in today’s musical tapestry. He’s not short of ideas and if he can zero in on a select few, he will produce something far better next time around. (Jack Terry) LISTEN: ‘When The Rope Post 2 Break’

Sprints

There’s a contagious anger that seems to permeate through Dublin’s far-reaching scene, from Fontaines DC’s spearheading despondency to Gilla Band’s visceral noise and Pillow Queens’ melodic breakdowns of religion and sexuality.

It’s a clear indication of people and place, rising through a city that at once pushes down and celebrates the underdog in an ongoing battle between creative expression and political anguish. Paired with Sprints vocalist, guitarist and songwriter Karla Chubb’s transient upbringing and sexuality, that anger is pushed to boiling point.

The four-piece’s debut veers from the densely claustrophobic ‘Ticking’ through the showstopping ‘Shadow of a Doubt’ to the rousing catharsis of the closing title track, all the while embodying the unsettling thrill of an unhinged horror film. It unfolds at pace, driving Karla’s frustrated musings on expectation and identity, underpinned by a sound inspired by atypical stalwarts PJ Harvey and Savages, and produced by Gilla Band bassist Daniel Fox (who brilliantly captures the band’s live ferocity).

Amid the whirlwind, Karla disingenuously apologises to her parents for her sexuality, declares her existence a living nightmare, and audibly breaks down into tears, cementing a record that, far beyond storytelling, acts as an outlet for deeprooted exasperation. That anger lifts slightly with each scream and every riff, driven by post-punk that goes light on the post and opts for the occasional welcome sidestep. It’s musical exorcism at its very best, rallying against socially-imposed doubt and anxiety and - in its unique horror - finding welcome moments of inner peace. (Ben Tipple) LISTEN: ‘Shadow Of A Doubt’

Musical exorcism at its very best.

Photo: Ed Miles

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THE FESTIVAL FOR NEW MUSIC

15 18 MAY 2024

GREATESCAPEFESTIVAL.COM

BRIGHTON - UK

SPOTLIGHT SHOW

CORE PROGRAMME

PRESENTS SPECIAL GUEST

AND MANY MORE

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RAT WARS (Loma Vista)

Pick-Up Full Of Pink Carnations (Thirty Tigers)

HEALTH

RECO MMEN DED Missed the boat on some of the best albums from the last couple of months?

Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.

Since being catapulted out of the underground by a Crystal Castles remix more than a decade ago, LA’s HEALTH have made a name for themselves as master collaborators. Since their last full length album, we’ve had two editions of HEALTH’s collaborative ‘DISCO…’ series with co-conspirators as varied as 100 gecs, JPEGMAFIA and Poppy, but now HEALTH are back standing on their own two feet with ‘RAT WARS’, their fifth canonical album. Opener ‘DEMIGODS’ sets a template of crunching guitars clashing with driving dancefloor beats and ethereal verses that sticks through most of the album. Their formula is tastefully broken up by frantic drums on ‘CRACK METAL’, unsettling synths on ‘HATEFUL’ and the twisted pop of ‘ASHAMED’ that soars with the most memorable chorus on the record. Unfortunately, that chorus is an outlier on an album that can wash past with as much staying power as candyfloss in a puddle. Jake Duzsik’s elfin vocals dissect the murk but rarely catch the ear and the oppressive world HEALTH meticulously conjure is fizzled by closer ‘DON’T TRY’, a superfluous ballad that conjures all the emotion of a P45. ‘RAT WARS’ is at its best when collaborators are brought back into the fold. Lamb of God’s Willie Adler contributes a trademark metalcore riff on ‘CHILDREN OF SORROW’ before chugging through a section reminiscent of ‘FEEL NOTHING’. ‘SICKO’ quickly follows and samples the “You breed / Like rats” refrain that opens Godflesh’s ‘Streetcleaner’.

These features are reminders of HEALTH at their vibrant and varied best, something that ‘RAT WARS’ fails to consistently capture. (James Smurthwaite) LISTEN: ‘ASHAMED’

The Vaccines

It’s never been hard to see why The Vaccines’ frontman Justin Young has become one of the most soughtafter songwriting collaborators with the next generation of indie: a man who knows his way around a perfect three-minute pop number; who knows how to make a chorus coincide with the throwing of many a festival pint, and a middle eight incite at least attempts at a circle pit. Sixth album ‘Pick-Up Full Of Pink Carnations’ is unsurprisingly another showcase of the singer’s sensibilities, an instant familiarity to the tracks’ pacing alongside that of his recognisable vocal. The remaining parts come hinted at by title and record sleeve: a mis-heard lyric from Don McClean’s ‘American Pie’ and a rear-view mirror scene of a nondescript road Stateside are matched sonically with a hint of melancholic 70s AM soft rock and a smattering of ‘Born To Run’-style glockenspiel. Even at moments when the instrumentation begs to reference New Order - the guitars of ‘Discount De Kooning (Last One Standing)’; the synths of ‘Sometimes, I Swear’ - it comes via The Killers. The record peaks with the impactful, guitar-driven ‘The Dreamer’, while the couplets of ‘Sunkissed’ are second to none: “We were so in love / Booked into the Hilton / Grew my beard / To look like Dennis Wilson” being a case in point. Elsewhere it does turn into decidedly by-numbers territory - ‘Primitive Man’ and ‘Lunar Eclipse’ in particular. This isn’t necessarily one to win The Vaccines a new generation, but for those already won over, it’ll prove worth the listen. (Alfie Byrne) LISTEN: ‘The Dreamer’

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JELANI BLACKMAN The Heart Of It

The Londoner’s debut just might be one of the best of the year.

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CASISDEAD

Famous Last Words The enigmatic artist’s long-awaited first full-length finds him compelling and engrossing.

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TKAY MAIDZA

Sweet Justice Her second record is nothing short of a crowning achievement.

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Marika Hackman Big Sigh (Chrysalis)

There’s nothing like a global pandemic and crippling anxiety to stop creativity dead in its tracks. Coming off the back of the critically-praised openness of ‘Any Human Friend’, folk-turned-alt pop wunderkind Marika Hackman was arguably destined to struggle creating ‘Big Sigh’, an audible release of four years of uncertainty. The outcome of that anxious battle manifests as perhaps her most personal, but also her most diverse.

In the first three tracks she explores Radiohead-esque soundscapes on ‘The Ground’, delivers the most commercial sounding list of panic attack prevention techniques on ‘No Caffeine’, and glides into the title track’s grandiose, multi-instrumental nod to her folk upbringing. It opens a record that lives happily in its inconsistency, from the Scandi-pop of ‘Hanging’ to the piano-instrumental of ‘The Lonely House’. Perhaps less fluid than the lust-driven ‘Any Human Friend’, the album’s gentle chaos reveals itself as remarkably relatable. An experimental outcome of emotional turbulence, ‘Big Sigh’ never tries to find a throughline beyond just that, a musical recognition that anxiety can both stifle and drive the creative process. That Marika supposedly rediscovered her musical inspiration in a pub toilet is fitting for an album that, even following the previous record’s penchant for sex, lays her at her most bare. (Ben Tipple) LISTEN: ‘No Caffeine’

Remarkably relatable.

2024

UK TOUR

SUPPORT FROM

FEBRUARY 2024 MON 05 TUE 06 WED 07 FRI 09 SAT 10 SUN 11 TUE 13 WED 14 SOLD OUT THU 15 OUT SOLD17 SAT SUN 18 MON 19 WED 21 THU 22 OUT SOLD FRI 23

O2 INSTITUTE, BIRMINGHAM ACADEMY, MANCHESTER ROCK CITY, NOTTINGHAM

DATE ADDED DUE TO DEMAND

TROXY, LONDON TROXY, LONDON DREAMLAND, MARGATE LEAS CLIFF HALL, FOLKESTONE O2 GUILDHALL, SOUTHAMPTON O2 ACADEMY, BRISTOL O2 ACADEMY, OXFORD DOME, BRIGHTON O2 ACADEMY, SHEFFIELD O2 ACADEMY, LEEDS BARROWLAND, GLASGOW NX, NEWCASTLE

A CROSSTOWN CONCERTS, SJM & DF PRESENATATION

BY ARRANGEMENT WITH WASSERMAN MUSIC

WWW.THEVACCINES.COM

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C R O S S T O W N B Y

C O N C E R T S & F R I E N D S P R E S E N T A T I O N A R R A N G E M E N T W I T H W M E

with special guests

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SPECIAL GUESTS

SPECIAL GUESTS

SPECIAL GUESTS

the new album ’everything is alive’

SPECIAL GUESTS

DRAG QUEEN ELVIS PRESLEY BURLESQUE DANCERS THE SWORD SWALLOWER

SNOOKY MONO

by arrangement with primary talent international by

T I C K E T S

A V A I L A B L E

SOLD OUT

February 2024 Sun 18 Birmingham O2 Institute Mon 19 Nick Rayns LCR UEA Norwich Mon 26 Cardiff Great Hall the new album ’everything is alive’ out now

by arrangement with primary talent international

F R O M

SEETICKETS.COM GIGANTIC.COM DICE.FM TICKETWEB.UK CROSSTOWNCONCERTS.COM �CROSSTOWN_LIVE

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Neil Young

Before And After (Reprise)

Wings Of Desire Life Is Infinite (WMD)

The release of this compilation in the dying embers of 2023 frames these songs in terms of endings and beginnings for Wings of Desire; a clearing of the decks as this first, formative era of the band closes, and a new one begins.

James Taylor and Chloe Little are opening a new chapter both personally and professionally, with the two former Inheaven members now a married couple as of this past August, and over the varied course of ‘Life Is Infinite’’s twelve tracks, there’s plenty of evidence as to the solidity of their creative bond. Clearly, they share the same foundational bedrock of influences, one largely rooted in the ‘80s; there are crunching guitars reminiscent of William Reid’s in The Jesus and Mary Chain, soaring synths that nod to New Order and a sense of rolling drama to the knowing, interlocking vocals. It’s one thing wearing your influences on your sleeve, but it’s another to infuse them with a sense of urgency, especially ones as done to death as those mentioned above. In that regard, ‘Life Is Infinite’ is a bit of a mixed bag; there are moments where, for all the polish, the duo sound as if they’re going over their forebears’ outlines. When they do hit the heights, though, the results are scintillating, especially on the constantly shape-shifting anthem ‘War, Feed The Fire’, which incorporates spoken-word wit and soaring choruses. The stormy ‘Angels’, too, is spectacular, tapping into the kind of atmospherics you’d expect from a band named after a Wim Wenders film. By the end of this opening instalment, Wings of Desire have demonstrated plenty of promise. Now to go forward and build upon it. (Joe Goggins) LISTEN: ‘War, Feed The Fire’

Few artists have as rich a back catalogue as Neil Young. Under his own name – discounting his recordings with legends like Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills and Nash – he numbers ‘Before and After’ as his 45th studio album, 53 years after his first. But instead of new songs, here he presents rerecorded deep cuts from across his career. Some come from classics, such as ‘After the Gold Rush’ track ‘Birds’; while album closer ‘Don’t Forget Love’ was released as recently as 2021, on ‘Barn’. Each recording features minimal instrumentation, mostly Neil’s trademark warbling high tenor and warm harmonica set either to an acoustic guitar, piano or organ. The songs are rarely improved upon, with the fidelity to ruggedness giving the songs the feel of half-finished demos, but the songwriting itself is, of course, stellar. ‘Burned’, from Buffalo Springfield’s debut, maintains its jauntiness, while ‘Mother Earth’ carries a prophetic weight in its rich, bassy organ. ‘If You Got Love’ serves as an extra surprise, having been previously unreleased, and its simplicity and sincerity proves that after all these years, Neil Young still writes with the same heart of gold that earned him his name in the first place. (James Hickey) LISTEN: ‘Mother Earth’

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NewDad

Madra (Fair Youth / Atlantic) With a year between EPs and now almost two since then before this full-length debut hits shelves, Galway outfit NewDad are clearly ones to take their time. The initial buzz surrounding them, then, is long gone, but what of their airy, nostalgic and delicately-layered shoegaze? Well, it’s a shame that ‘Madra’ is so back-loaded: it’s only until ‘Let Go’ crashes into life via a heady contrast of Julie Dawson’s breathy vocal and discordant guitars, ‘White Ribbons’ cocoons her delicate murmur and the closing title track climaxes in the most gorgeously obtuse manner, that the qualities which made the then-newcomers stand out shine through. For the most part, it’s instead a case of either too much, or not enough.

By stripping the layers back and presenting the songs in a wholly straightforward manner - slick, with Julie’s voice centered as if she’s embarking on a perfect three-minute pop song - flaws appear where they shouldn’t exist. The choruses of ‘In My Head’ and ‘Sickly Sweet’ appear to hint at Beabadoobee’s breezy grunge-pop, but only step up half-heartedly, while ‘Where I Go’ comes off long-winded and one-note, and opener ‘Angel’ might suggest Wolf Alice’s more wistful side, but unlike their predecessors, there’s no contrast anywhere for it to rally against.

No doubt these songs will triumph when performed live, but as a record, ‘Madra’ isn’t quite it. (Emma Swann) LISTEN: ‘Madra’.

GOSSIP REAL POWER Yes, you read that right.

The iconic ‘00s dancefloor fillers are back with a new album on 22nd March.

THE SMILE WALL OF EYES Thom, Tom and Jonny are getting all 1984 on us here, just like Hard-Fi did in 2005 with ‘Stars Of CCTV’. Maybe. Out 26th January.

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Folly Group

Down There! (So Young) Folly Group have already proven their ability to fuse Afrobeat, dub and trip-hop on their two EPs - ‘Awake And Hungry’ and 2022’s ‘Human And Kind’ - and the outfit build on that pedigree with debut full-length, ‘Down There!’. ‘Big Ground’ kicks off with bare drums, sparse guitars, and a dose of gang vocals, before a wall of noise closes the track in a swirling maelstrom of righteous energy. Meanwhile, the jangly opening of ‘I’ll Do What I Can’ is followed by gritty vocals and driving guitar that evoke post-punk of all ages, from the goth-tinged ‘80s to today’s worldly stylings. The record glides effortlessly and it’s a spectacular thing to be able to make a 37-minute-long album feel like a fraction of that time, which they do by offering up sumptuous morsels and microdoses of disparate genres and elements, without ever feeling forced or misplaced. Whether they’re tackling mental health issues on the indie-rocking ‘Bright Night’ or decrying financial pressures on the stirring and discomforting ‘East Flat Crows’, the authenticity and vulnerability on show makes Folly Group feel like a bunch of mates. (Jack Terry) LISTEN: ‘East Flat Crows’

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BRITTANY HOWARD WHAT NOW With an impressive collection of sunglasses in tow, Brittany’s second solo full-length is set for release on 2nd February.

MGMT - LOSS OF LIFE The duo’s fifth album which features Christine and the Queens; not bad for a debut feature - is out on 23rd February.

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LIVE YARD ACT

EXACTLY WHAT A CITY FESTIVAL SHOULD BE.

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Iceland Airwaves Various venues, Reykjavik. Photos: Louise Mason.

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tretching throughout the centre of Reykjavik, in established venues and gallery spaces, churches, retail shops and even, on occasion, people’s living rooms, the communal spirit of Iceland Airwaves holds an accurate mirror up to a city whose music scene feels equally enmeshed.

With a population of only 400,000 in the whole country, there’s a higher than average amount of camaraderie between artists - both in terms of helping out and playing in multiple projects, and proudly showing off the city’s homegrown talents. More, perhaps, than any other city festival, Airwaves genuinely aims to showcase what Iceland has to offer rather than just shipping in a conveyor belt of touring artists; those that do make the trip are nestled within a thriving line-up that gives them a run for their money.

If there’s one moment that encapsulates the specialness of the festival - where mountains and freezing lakes border a town centre that’s jolly and fairy-lit enough to put us fully in festive mode - it’s when Reykjavik singer Salóme Katrín takes to the piano for an impromptu set as part of a low-key residential showcase. Blessed with jawdroppingly perfect pitch, which she uses to hit glacial falsetto notes and harmonise with a french horn player, she’s like an Icelandic Kate Bush; a bright and spirited presence with an air of magic to every note she plays.

In the calm surrounds of the waterside Fríkirkjan church, Elín Hall is a more modern type of story-spinner, bookending her folk-tinged tales with humorous explanations of the loves and losses that spurred them on (one particular song, she notes, has led her to sell promotional toothbrushes - as you do). Meanwhile, Nanna - lead singer of Icelandic behemoths Of Monsters and Men - arrives in her solo guise, finger-picking her way through an intimate catalogue including recent single ‘Godzilla’ that displays a smaller, softer side than her original outfit’s rousing oeuvre.

If that all presents a fairly understated picture, then the flipside of the country’s musical coin is one where eccentricity is embraced with open arms. Following a Thursday night set from Yard Act, who bring a selection of new wares from forthcoming second album ‘Where’s My Utopia?’

- including the swaggering psych of newie ‘Petroleum’ and the tongue-in-

cheek bounce of recent single ‘Dream Job’ (alongside a deadpan shout out to Reykjavik’s “ten pound pints”) - the lights turn red and we’re introduced to 2019 Eurovision entrants Hatari.

Dressed like if the Terminator went for a sexy night in Berghain, replete with harness-clad dancers, a spaceshiplike light show and a saucy style of industrial rave, they might have lost a key ingredient to their success with the departure of original vocalist Matthías Haraldsson, but you can’t fault the commitment to the bit.

Likewise it seems the whole of the festival has come out for another local Eurovision hero, Daði Freyr, who has a ludicrous queue stretching down the street on Saturday night; the biggest of the festival by far. Clearly he’s aware of the moment too, and has brought a giant inflatable rendering of his own face and hands to crown the stage with for the occasion. Campy, high energy and replete with his cover of Atomic Kitten’s ‘Whole Again’, it would take the prize for the most surreal moment of the weekend had we not just watched primarily-coloured pop outfit Celebs crowdsurf on a ‘00s inflatable sofa before bringing out a dancer in a head-to-toe pink tinsel monster suit.

It’s enough high jinx to make the overseas contingent seem relatively tame in comparison, however LA’s Blondshell needs no trickery to make the grunge-tinged catharsis of this year’s self-titled debut sing.

Highlight ‘Olympus’ hits hard, Sabrina Teitelbaum’s vocals raw and melodic, while a cover of Le Tigre’s dancefloor staple ‘Deceptacon’ is a welcome, cheeky addition. Later that evening, the breadth of Bombay Bicycle Club’s explorations are distilled into a relatively tight 60 minutes, moving from the easy warmth of new album ‘My Big Day’’s title track through the whomping beats of ‘Carry Me’ via some solid gold indie hits (‘Always Like This’, ‘Lights Out, Words Gone’).

BLONDESHELL

ELIN HALL

SALÓME KATRÍN

NANNA

It’s left to Dublin’s Sprints to close out the festival with a late night set at the suitably low-ceilinged Gaukurinn punk club. Weeks away from debut LP ‘Letter to Self’, the quartet cut a ferocious figure, frontwoman Karla Chubb leading a wall of cathartic noise that’s as empathetic as it is furious. They might not be residents, but their ethos of being true to yourself and creating pockets of community around you is one that nonetheless rings out amongst a festival, and a music scene, built on exactly these kinds of values. (Lisa Wright)

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CMAT

Shepherd’s Bush Empire, London. Photo: Jessie Morgan

M FOR MONTRÉAL Various venues, Montréal. Photos: Emma Swann.

Each November, a bunch of international industry pros brush up on their French and head to Montréal to brave the Canadian winter while being treated to four days of showcases from acts from across Canada, and a few beyond. While this year saw unseasonal warmth (“summery,” as one festival staff member described the ten-degree torrential rain on Friday afternoon) the artists on show were predictably génial. Here’s five favourites from across the festival.

streams on Spotify - but during her all too brief set at NOMAD, it’s her own material (standout, ‘Towers of Sequin’, her ode to Toronto) that shows why she’s been the name on most Canadians’ lips all festival. The headline is, naturally, her one-in-a- million voice; velvety and soaring, think early Adele videos for a similar likeable, unassuming presence.

Her skill, though, lies in knowing precisely how to use it, not afraid to retreat to a speaking whisper when her songwriting - itself whipsmart and with a fine way around a chorus - demands.

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MATTMAC

Like if Dream Wife’s raw early sounds had taken in French pop, or Bikini Kill were less punk and more new wave, this Montréal supergroup of sorts take the scratchy, belligerent side of post-punk and imbibe it with gnarly guitars and unbridled fun in equal measure. Their mid-afternoon set turns L’éscogriffe into a sweaty basement, a simmering energy propelling them on as vocalist Éliane Viens-Synnott channels Wednesday Addams’ dance moves while stabbing her synth erratically.

For those of us unaware of Mattmac’s credentials going into his opening night set at Ausgang Plaza, his intro, with sampled audio of others extolling his musical virtues, does the job. “You’re beautiful,” he says, addressing the crowd, with a wry smile. “And that’s coming from a blind person.” On the surface, the Oji-Cree artist, who grew up on the Garden Hill First Nation in Manitoba, showcases a solid set of commercially-viable trap and emo-pop; it’s not a long shot to predict a huge hit in his future. But delve deeper, and the producer is also using his songs to share his stories: “When I wrote this I was walking on the reservation / Now they can’t say that we not up in the conversation,” for example, goes ‘Isolation’.

LES SHIRLEY One hint to Les Shirley’s musical lineage comes courtesy of the fact that two of them - bassist Sarah Dion and drummer Lisandre Bourdages - also play in NOBRO; another, that the trio (completed by vocalist Raphaëlle Chouinard) supported Foo Fighters back in the summer. With the relentless pummel of hardcore punk, Lisandre barely breaking a sweat while making it happen, cues are taken from all corners of rock - a Green Day-like chord shuffle here, a Smiths guitar lick there. With big choruses and Raphaëlle’s vocal uncannily like Carrie Brownstein turned up to eleven, their set is a riot.

BILLIANNE Ontario newcomer Billianne may have gone viral for her Schitts Creek-inspired cover of ‘Simply The Best’ - her studio release of the song currently has over 35 million

There are easy comparisons to be made to Self Esteem in the way that CMAT’s star has rapidly risen of late, thanks not only to a superlative second album (October’s ‘Crazymad For Me’) but also the vital messaging behind it; that you can be simultaneously hilarious, vulnerable, confident and a ball of neuroses, and still thrive if you can find a way to truly exist in your own skin. Every inch of tonight underscores that sentiment with joy, fun and silliness to spare, from the mirror-topped, wedding cake staging that Thompson uses to strut up and down at every opportunity, to the absolute commitment with which she camps up choreography with her keyboardist, like a tour-length travelling Strictly audition.

Vocally, she is truly staggering, from the falsetto chorus of opener ‘California’ to a final encore of ‘Stay For Something’; a communal exercise in past demon-exorcising, belted out in unison by what seems like every person in the venue. This isn’t just cheery singing along, this is 2,000 people in joint catharsis, and it’s CMAT’s greatest gift. As the night falls on 2023, we might just have witnessed the gig of the year. (Lisa Wright)

KANEN It’s no easy feat to go full-pelt on stage when the majority of the audience is keeping themselves to the balcony bar area on opening night at Théatre Plaza, but Innu singer-songwriter Kanen manages to do just that, eventually dragging audience participation out of the assembled industry types to boot. The most immediate number of her set, which veers between alt-pop and folky indie while always remaining excitingly off-kilter, comes via ‘Fuck That Shit’, on which she makes full, spiteful use of the English titular phrase for added oomph.

KANEN

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ince the earliest days of her career, Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson has jokingly referred to herself as a “world famous pop star” but tonight, in the hooting and hollering belly of Shepherd’s Bush Empire, the imminent actualisation of that sentiment seems like a foregone conclusion. By the third song (a rollocking glow-up of early single ‘I Don’t Really Care For You’, replete with dance break and a full-band simultaneous death drop), those in seats are giving the sequin-clad singer a standing ovation; by the end of the set, the whole venue is performing a swaying country two-step.

Throughout, the crowd throw out the kind of elongated, supportive screams and cheers that aren’t just about a job well done but a true embrace of the woman at the centre of it all.

We might have just witnessed the gig of the year.

YEULE MON 11 DEC OUTERNET LAURA MISCH TU 12 DEC HACKNEY EARTH RAHILL TUE 12 DEC THE LOWER THIRD LANKUM WED 13 DECSOLD OUT ROUNDHOUSE JOCKSTRAP OUT 13/14 DEC SOLD BARBICAN THE BIG MOON MON 18 DEC UT O SOLD UNION CHAPEL

SAM EVIAN THUR 22 FEB HACKNEY OSLO

FRANCIS OF DELIRIUM TUE 14 MAY HACKNEY OSLO

TATYANA FRI 22 MAR THE WAITING ROOM

LANKUM 18/19 MAY HACKNEY EMPIRE

NAILAH HUNTER THU 1 FEB HOXTON HALL

MARY IN THE JUNKYARD WED 27 MAR CORSICA STUDIOS

THE GARDEN TUE 25 JUNE HEAVEN

A. SAVAGE WED 14 FEB THE GARAGE

KAI BOSCH WED 1 MAY 2024 THE SOCIAL

GLASSER FRI 16 FEB ST PANCRAS OLD CHURCH

MITSKI 8/9/10/11 OUT SOLD EVENTIM APOLLO

AN EXCLUSIVE EVENING WITH

JOSE GONZALEZ THU 25 JAN UT EARTHSOLD O

DORIAN ELECTRA FRI 26 JAN ELECTRIC BRIXTON

Cruush

THE NATIONAL FRI 5 JULY CRYSTAL PALACE PARK KETY FUSCO THU 14 NOV ICA

THE SOCIAL

SOMOH Al Costello

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A once-in-a-lifetime dream gig, designed and curated this month by... Marika Hackman

VENUE: RED ROCKS AMPHITHEATRE, COLORADO

WHO ARE YOU GOING WITH?

HEADLINER: POSSIBLY THE WORLD’S BEST SUPERGROUP?

WHAT ARE YOUR PRE-GIG PLANS?

I’ve never been there, but it seems like a really magical place; it just seems to have a great energy, and I like the idea of playing outside on a warm evening. And because I’ve inserted myself into the headline band, I’ve always really wanted to play there, so it’s a great opportunity to do that too.

So we’ve got Caroline Polachek on main vocal; Tori Amos on the piano, but also backing vocals; I’m playing the bass and doing backing vocals; drums we’ve got Stella from Warpaint; on vocals, saxophone, autoharp and percussion we’ve got PJ Harvey; on guitar we’ve got Soph Nathan from The Big Moon / Our Girl; and on backing vocals and harp we’ve got Joanna Newsom. It’s a dream! And we’ve also got the London Contemporary Orchestra backing us up as well. I don’t necessarily know what songs they’d be performing - maybe a combination of everyone’s tracks, covers… a big hits set.

SUPPORT ACT: JONI MITCHELL

I think I’m shafting the main band here, because I’ve picked a young Joni Mitchell as the support. That’s something I’ll never be able to see in that iteration, so to be able to watch that before we go on… it’d obviously be absolutely terrifying to follow, but a once in a lifetime experience. I also think it’d just suit the vibe - I was trying to think about curating a gig that made sense, and she would just be the most incredible focal point before this crazy supergroup.

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As I’m in the band, I can’t necessarily watch the show, but my friends and family are always the most important people to be at shows I’m playing. I can also imagine that the guestlist is going to be pretty glitzy with this crew - some pretty hardcore musicians - which is intimidating but also a very exciting prospect.

We’re doing warm ups together; we’re eating hummus and carrot sticks. Having a few beers, chatting about some shit. But I imagine this is a very focused set of musicians with individual pre-show rituals, so we’re probably all getting in the zone.

IS THERE AN AFTERPARTY?

I’m thinking a big dinner party - a sort of rustic Italian style, candlelit, long table dinner. We’d invite our nearest and dearest to join us, we’d have a big Italian feast, maybe there’d be someone serenading us. I’d be listening to everyone’s amazing stories, and we’d really be strengthening our bonds as firm friends. The kind of night where you’re still sitting at the table at 3am - a kind of outdoorsy, music-based Goodfellas scene.

ANY ADDITIONAL EXTRAS?

Because I’m so proud of the band I’ve chosen, I feel like the focal point is just the insanity of whether that actually existed. I don’t think there’s anything extra one can really add!

‘Big Sigh’ is out 12th January via Chrysalis Records.

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Be responsible. Drink with moderation.

Toast to music

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