Track Of The Day: Lou Roy – ‘Down Since 07’

LA-based Lou Roy is a self–confessed anti-genre singer and songwriter. With her upcoming debut album Pure Chaos due for release at the end of April Lou has shared its third single, ‘Down Since 07’. She credits the light and fun quality of her recent songwriting to a new found love of weed, and that is evident more than ever on this chilled synth/hip-hop-hybrid.

The initial ‘down’ beat and bass line leads us into a groove, where Lou sings she’s “down since 07 / down since I met you.” The mood changes in the bridge, becoming dreamier – “every bite’s a peachy cobbler” – sounding more psychedelic and with a slightly stronger beat, the mantra of the song’s title is repeated, ending on the evocative whisper “only one pulling me out of the corner to dance.” The contrast between how she really feels and what she says, comes through.

When speaking at the song, Lou explains: “It’s about being down to bang someone…However by the end, it isn’t quite the joyful yodel into a lush canyon echoing back to me that I’d planned for.” It’s a humorous slice of real life and fits perfectly with Lou’s ‘Joy is King’ mantra. Expect more grit and glamour from her upcoming debut album, which is set for release on 29th April via Balloon Machine Records.

Listen to ‘Down Since 07’ below.

Lou Roy’s debut album Pure Chaos is set for release on 29th April via Balloon Machine Records. Pre-order your copy here

Follow Lou Roy on bandcamp, Spotify, Twitter & Instagram

Photo Credit: Silken Weinberg

Fi Ni Aicead
@gotnomoniker

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Track Of The Day: Greta Isaac – ‘how are you not freaking out?’

Welsh singer-songwriter Greta Isaac has released her expansive new single ‘how are you not freaking out?’, the latest installment to her eagerly anticipated second EP, ‘I Think You’d Hate It Here.’

‘how are you not freaking out?’ offers a change in pace to the power-pop sounds found on previous tasters to the EP (‘5’1”’, ‘NUH UH’). The song has a soft dream-pop start, with subdued hooks accompanying Greta’s vulnerable vocals -“If you saw it through my eyes… You would hate it here”. As the song builds, it introduces a powerful emotional allure as the vocals become more passionate, and the soaring guitar creates an anthemic energy, allowing us to “see the wood for the trees and they’re on fire…”

Reflecting on the need to suppress feelings or perform to expectations, ‘how are you not freaking out?’ is a truly stirring, yet instantly catchy, alt-pop earworm. 

Greta Isaac’s upcoming EP, I Think You’d Hate It Here, will be released on 6th May. And she headlines Jack Saunders’ Hopscotch club night at Oslo on 8th April. You too will be freaking out if you miss this inspiring up-and-coming artist! 

Fi Ni Aicead
@gotnomoniker

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LISTEN: Tess Parks – ‘Happy Birthday Forever’

Toronto-born, London-based singer-songwriter Tess Parks has announced the release of her long-awaited new album ‘And Those Who Were Seen Dancing, her first full-length solo offering since her much-loved debut album, Blood Hot, was released back in 2013. Since then, she has toured internationally and collaborated with Brian Jonestown Massacre’s Anton Newcombe in recent years (most recently the duo’s self-titled 2018 LP). Taken from the upcoming album, Parks has now shared the first single and video, ‘Happy Birthday Forever‘.

Flowing with a retro early ’90s vibe, with shades of the ’60s inspired Shoegaze and Madchester genres, it has a distinctly Happy Mondays feel to my (only slightly old) pair of ears. Those familiar with Tess Parks’ voice will find her beautifully hazy vocals perfectly suited to the track’s danceable groove and spacey beats, as a sophisticated slice of shimmering psych-pop is created.

The video perfectly mirrors the timelessness of the track; featuring home-recordings of Parks at ballet classes as a child, accompanying the immersive refrain of “get me out of here”. Both song and video are ‘en-pointe’ and an enticing taster for the upcoming album, as the single fades out with a captivating allure on the promising lines “You oughta shake your world”…


And Those Who Were Seen Dancing, the upcoming album from Tess Parks, is set for release on 20th May via Fuzz Club.

Fi Ni Aicead
@gotnomoniker

Photo Credit: Luz Gullardo

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EP: Sophie Kilburn – ‘My Room Made Public’

Sophie Kilburn is a London based, Derbyshire born singer-songwriter who merges a classic rock vibe with a modern alt-pop twist. My Room Made Public is her debut EP, featuring four tracks with an emphasis on digging deep to ask how much of our lives we should share with the world. 

Self-empowerment is a theme that runs throughout. Each track scratches the surface on different aspects we share and how we deal with the challenges life throws at us. For example, stirring opener ‘Movements’, with its driving guitar and percussive synth with shades of later Fleetwood Mac (“you’re the wildstar on my fan poster”) reflects on the acceptance that a relationship is over, whilst ‘I’m In love With My Therapist‘ – with its slow rock beat, and soulful refrain of “gotta get out of here” – explores the claustrophobia of self-analysis, using classic ’80s pop-rock sounds.

Although ‘Ruthless’ is a slightly more uptempo dance-pop track (although the lyrics deal with being unsure of oneself), the collection ends on a more reflective note with ‘Under The Heat’ – an emotionally open exploration of the social pressures of misogyny: “Under the heat, since I was young… My voice is strong enough to speak on its own.” That is the message of this EP as a whole; finding your voice and your place in the world, and having fun while you do it. And what is particularly clever is how it uses an old school classic sound to reflect modern pressures in this social media age, all delivered through Sophie’s exquisite, powerful vocals and poignant, emotional lyricism. It is both relatable and catchy, so let it be your therapy.


My Room Made Public is out now. Listen here.

Fi Ni Aicead
@gotnomoniker

Photo Credit: Percy Walker-Smith

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