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Ahead of their recently-announced headline gig at the glamorous Freud bar on the 20th of February, I caught up with the student band Still Pigeon, who reveal the stories behind their latest lyrics and enigmatic band name. Their glistening and fresh take on R&B opened some big doors for them last year. With two Spotify […]
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I couldn’t tell you that I was turned-on by the idea of Pale Waves when I first heard them on their All The Things I Never Said EP in the winter. What can I say? Call me a fool. I just didn’t hear a way in. But then I thumbed through their cover feature in […]
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In one word? Sweaty. Time for a swim. If there’s any place to go to brook the roast of that insidious beast popularly known as ‘ The Heatwave’, then it’s the breezy shores of Margate, Kent. Yelling at me neck-deep in water and in-between breast strokes is Alex Rice, singer of ‘up-and-coming’ indie band Sports Team. Having been […]
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Oddly, the first thing that strikes most new listeners of Pale Waves is the juxtaposition between the band’s gothic aesthetic and their indie-pop synth sound, and it is a juxtaposition that pervades their music too. It is an intensity, echoed in their look, delivered in an upbeat way that gives Pale Waves their distinctive sound […]
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Could It Be Different?, the third album from Edinburgh-based pop-punk quartet The Spook School, opens with a bang. The big melodic hooks, jangly guitar sound and tight drum-work of ‘Still Alive’ place it firmly alongside the C86 indie-rock influences the group wear proudly – they have frequently been compared to Buzzcocks and The Primitives, and […]
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It’s seven-thirty on a Thursday night, and I’m in line to see a band I hadn’t heard of until this week: The Night Café. The Liverpool up-and-comers have released about as many songs as I can count on two hands, and yet they’re here at the Bullingdon as part of their UK tour. They’re young […]
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On my way to a gig, about which I only knew the postcode, I was feeling increasingly more dubious. ‘Sofar Sounds’ gigs are held in secret, unique and intimate locations across the world, and all you have to do is have a little trust and apply for tickets. If successful, you will find out the […]
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You might not have realised it, but right now, you’re living through an era that in future times will be called The Reign of the Beanie. Experts are struggling to pinpoint the precise moment when it became the official headwear of the indie-kid, but suspect that it’s the nineties screwing with us again. Last Friday […]
Continue ReadingGregory Alan Isakov writes songs for travellers. He’s an indie folk singer-songwriter whose work depicts places and people you can visit with a single listen – which explains why people travelled from miles around to hear him weave his stories in London last night. The personal nature of much of his repertoire might have made […]
Continue Reading“We go through different pairs of words, but for me at the moment I think of it as messy R&B”, says Be Good singer Ash, when I ask how they define their music. “Sex-pop” is Charlie’s alternative, “but I don’t think you can really get away with that in media terms”. Well perhaps not, but […]
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The Japanese House, interviewed by Rowan Ferguson & Aoife de Bhál. Amber Bain, aka The Japanese House, is on the way to great things. Her debut track ‘Still’ was Zane Lowe’s final ‘hottest record’ on Radio 1, and her distinctive style of melancholic alt-pop has been tipped for the mainstream by international tastemakers such as The […]
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Local Natives, an indie rock band originally formed in Southern California, opened the UK leg of their “Sunlit Youth” tour at the O2 Academy, Oxford 1 November. The insistence of their call for social awareness equalled the high quality of their live music. They struck a nice balance between past hits and recent releases, making […]
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Yes, it’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for, holding our baited breath for many a long year. Two Door Cinema Club are back. Perhaps pushed into action after the capitulation of their rival club – the Bombay Bicycle (a grudge which was said to equal Bullingdon vs Piers Gav) – Two Door has released […]
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Bastille are back in force, with their newest mixtape, VS. (Other People’s Heartache, Pt. III). Containing nine new tracks, it is their latest indie rock offering, which sounds like it has been created via a synth machine circa 1983, the Park End cheese floor, searing underground rap and Classic FM. Sounding eclectic? It is. To […]
Continue ReadingFew words are more applicable to Wales’ Manic Street Preachers more than ‘longevity’. I choose this word very specifically over ‘reliability’ or ‘consistency’, as these would do them the disservice of tacit agreement with those who would seek to label them pedestrian, predictable, or simply guilty of churning out the same po-faced, inept political bellyaching […]
Continue Reading“Is it intellectual? I don’t know, maybe it is a little bit.” An interview with Parquet Courts singer and guitarist Austin Brown rapidly descends into a pretty ‘meta’ conversation about influence, criticism, and music journalists with repressed egos. It is clear that Parquet Courts have some very specific ideas about what they are doing, and […]
Continue ReadingThe sextuplet of Young Kato have been considered to be rising stars ever since their performance on Made in Chelsea. The band were danced along to somewhat unconvincingly by the social elite but nevertheless it seems to have done them a world of good, given the number of teenage girls who were in the […]
Continue ReadingAlready causing a stir in the US, alternative pop duo Thumpers debut album is tipped to make a splash in the UK this summer. The media has struggled so far in trying to describe their sound and after a fair few listens, I’m still perplexed. That though, is no bad thing and Galore is certainly […]
Continue ReadingIrish indie-folk group Raglans recently embarked upon a twelve-date UK tour to mark the release of their guitar-laden, self-titled debut album. I caught up with the band ahead of their Oxford show to discuss their album, their musical influences and touring. “For an independent release – we’re on a small label in London – that […]
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