Track Of The Day: Projector – ‘Full Circle’

Brighton’s Projector have shared their latest single ‘Full Circle’, and it’s swept us up in to a grungy haze. The track is taken from the band’s debut EP How Does It Feel? which is set to be released via Roadkill Records on 9th November.

The trio’s debut explores themes of “anxiety, love and loss”, and ‘Full Circle’ encapsulates all three. Bassist Lucy’s vocal range is impressively showcased on the track – switching between coarse, gravelly screams and clear, magnetic harmonies – whilst drummer Demelza’s beats drive the song to its conclusion, alongside Edward’s spiralling guitar sounds.

After a string of sold out home town shows and support slots including Tigercub, Demob Happy and Deap Vally, Projector will be headlining their own shows in celebration of their debut release. The band will play in Brighton at The Haunt on 9th November, and at London’s Moth Club on 10th (tickets are available on DICE).

Listen to ‘Full Circle’ below and follow Projector on Facebook for more updates.

Photo Credit: Jessie Morgan

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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EP: Indian Queens – ‘You When I Close My Eyes’

The ever cool Indian Queens have shared their debut EP You When I Close My Eyes, and it’s an atmospheric, driving compilation of sounds that prove the Hackney trio are set for big things. Released via Cool Thing Records, the EP is filled with hazy guitars, mesmeric vocals, and brooding percussion; making it the perfect soundtrack for an autumnal evening in London.

The record opens with title track ‘You When I Close My Eyes’, which was inspired by the binary opposites of “ugly and beautiful”. Jennifer O’Neill’s clear, strong vocals permeate the track, alongside sultry bass lines and grungy guitar riffs. ‘Wish You Well’ follows, blushing with an intense romantic need to be next to a lover, with its hushed vocals and catchy chorus.

The band’s first single ‘I Get No Rest’ – written during the midst of a massive political shift (Brexit, the general election) and in the wake of the tragic Grenfell Tower fire – is a response to the inescapable feeling that (as Jennifer puts it) “rich ‘important’ people were taking the piss out of our lives”. The song’s steady percussion and moody bass lines create a jaded, but seductively atmospheric tune that remains in the mind long after it stops spinning.

Equal parts driving and delicate, ‘Pretty Little Thing’ is as attractive to the ears as its name suggests. It’s an infectious blur of hypnotic vocals and shoe gaze guitar sounds, inspired by a childhood memory of being safe and happy in a Grandparent’s garden. This nostalgic undertone makes the track ring out with warmth and understated joy, before closing track ‘Us Against The World’ proves that Indian Queens have the potential to produce original, magnetic, meaningful sounds.

Together, Jennifer, Katherine, and Matt have created an EP that warrants all the praise it’s been receiving from critics and fans alike. It’s no surprise the band received a standing ovation earlier this year after their set at Robert Smith’s Meltdown Festival – You When I Close My Eyes is a stunning debut from this compelling trio.

Download Indian Queens’ debut EP here. Follow the band on Facebook for more updates.

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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Five Favourites: Annabel Allum

After seeing Annabel Allum support Australian songwriter Stella Donnelly earlier this year at The Lexington, we knew her talent would take her to the places she wanted to be. She’s been gigging relentlessly this year, with spots at Reading Festival, BBC Radio 1’s Biggest Weekend, The Great Escape and Boardmasters and more, and now she’s heading out on a headline tour of the UK.

We caught up with Annabel to ask her about her “Five Favourites” – Five artists or albums that have influenced her songwriting technique. Check out her responses below and make sure you head down to one of her tour dates too.

1. ‘The Velvet Underground & Nico’ 
The sounds, the experimental element of it. Just the whole feel of this record stands very close to me. It always has done. Every track has a very vivid memory or feeling.

2. Janis Joplin
Her energy and freedom inspire me to let go, her attitude does too. What a woman. And her voice- fucking hell. Not gonna try and use words to explain that one.

3. The XX – ‘XX’
This record always reminds me that less can be more. Space in music is valid, and I don’t always need to fill it.

4. The Mouldy Peaches
Haha, I don’t care what any of my musician friends say, I fucking love the Mouldy Peaches. They remind me to stop taking myself so fucking seriously and singing about real life tiny funny experiences is good. And being loose as a band can be fucking cool too. They’re brilliant.

5. Jimi Hendrix – ‘Are You Experienced?’
Because it reminds me to stop thinking about what is musically correct. I know fuck all music theory, but I know what sounds and feels good.

Annabel Allum UK October 2018 Tour Dates
13th – Crofters Rights – Bristol
15th – Sticky Mikes – Brighton
16th – The Shed (Vault Stage) – Leicester
18th – The Hifi Club – Leeds
19th – Cuban Embassy – Birmingham
20th – SWN Fest – Cardiff
29th – Studio 2 – Liverpool
30th – Moth Club – London

Photo Credit: Caitlin Traetto

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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Track Of The Day: Laura Gibson – ‘Domestication’

Following beautiful tracks such as ‘Empire Builder’ and ‘Damn Sure’, acclaimed artist Laura Gibson is now ready to release her new album Goners later this month. In the meantime she has shared a poignant new single, ‘Domestication’.

Questioning the things we are presumed to desire from womanhood, ‘Domestication’ oozes a delicate emotion as folk-strewn twinkling melodies flow alongside Gibson’s raw, soaring vocals. With the addition of sweeping strings, it’s filled with a rich musicality and subtle passion, creating a sparkling, cinematic splendour that is truly spellbinding.

Of the track, Gibson explains:

“… at times, though I know better, I’ll catch myself thinking in terms of what I should desire of womanhood instead of what I actually desire. I catch myself feeling I am failing at something, at some ideal I was never actually aiming for. I finished these lyrics a year ago. It’s strange to release the song now, when it feels so much is coming to a head. So much has cracked open for women, in the year since writing ‘Domestication.’ So much remains the same… Though I’d meant ‘domestication’ in the animal sense, when it came time to make the video, I liked the idea of using the term in the homemaking sense. I’d been obsessed with this photo I’d found of the pastel women of the FLDS cult, and wanted to build a world and a story around the aesthetic, something like the speculative societies of Margaret Atwood or Ursula Le Guin. At the end of the story, I wanted the women to act like wolves.”

Watch the eerily poignant new video (co-directed by Gibson and Alicia Rose) for ‘Domestication’ here:

Goners, the upcoming album from Laura Gibson, is out 26th October via City Slang.

Mari Lane
@marimindles

 

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