First Timers Fest Returns For 2023!

We’re big fans of First Timers here at Get In Her Ears, so we’re thrilled to share the details of their upcoming gigs and workshops for 2023’s edition of the DIY festival!

All information and links to tickets can be found below.

Background Info

First Timers Fest are a London-based DIY community of musicians and activists who believe that having access to creating & playing music should not be a privilege, it should be a joyful and social experience that empowers everyone.

They encourage people from all walks of life – particularly those who identify as non-binary, LGBTQ+, disabled or female – to attend their workshops and gigs in order to experience and create music in a non-judgemental, low pressure environment. They aim to build people’s confidence, as well as forming a community of like-minded individuals who feel empowered to tackle the lack of diversity in larger music industry spheres.

Some of the bands who formed at First Timers and went on to release records and perform bigger shows include Big Joanie, Breakup Haircut, Bitch Hunt and Charmpit!

How To Sign Up For First Timer’s Fest 2023

First Timers is a two day festival where every band on the bill plays its first ever show! This years festival will take place on 28th May at The Victoria in Dalston.

The deadline to sign up to play is Sunday the 1st of March 2023. Sign up as an individual if you don’t yet have a band, or even if you’re just interested! You’ll be contacted closer to the time for further details.

Click here to sign up to play the festival!

IMPORTANT: To play in the fest, you need to be able to say yes to BOTH of these two statements:

1. One or more band members have never been in a band before OR one or more members has never performed that role in a band before (e.g if a drummer is having a go at vocals)

2. One or more band members belongs to one or more of these identity groups; a person of colour, a woman, LGBTQIA+, Jewish, people from Gypsy, traveller or Roma background, disabled- including non-visible, chronic health conditions and neurodiversity, working class, refugees and asylum seekers. (these identity groups aren’t exhaustive, let us know if we’ve missed any out)

Fundraiser Gig – 12th Feb, The Cavendish Arms

The team have organised a showcase featuring some of the bands that have formed at previous First Timers festivals and to raise some much needed funds!

The gig will take place on Sunday 12th February at The Cavendish Arms (SW8 2HJ). SKSIE, Melhole, Bulkwash and Gross Misconduct will all be performing. Tickets are £5.

Buy your ticket here!

First Timers Workshops – Feb-May 2023

If you’re keen to try out an instrument for the first time in a low pressure environment, then definitely consider attending one of the First Timers workshops listed on the poster below. We’ve attended them ourselves before, so we promise they’re fun and everyone is incredibly friendly!

This years workshops run from 19th Feb up until 7th May.

There are individual events on Facebook for each workshop that you can RSVP to by visiting the First Timers page here.

Individual workshops cost £5, however, the team don’t want anyone to feel excluded because of finances. Email dsflfirsttimers@gmail.com for information about concessions.

(FYI: the Stage Presence Wworkshop takes place on 16th April, not the 2nd!)

Follow First Timers Fest on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date!

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

 

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New Track: Miss Grit – ‘Lain (phone clone)’

An anime-inspired, alt-pop tune that explores the duality of self perception, New York-based, Korean-American musician Margaret Sohn aka Miss Grit has shared their latest single, ‘Lain (phone clone)’. Taken from their upcoming debut album, Follow The Cyborg, which is set for release on 24th February via Mute Records, Sohn’s latest offering is another altruistic mix of cinematic electronics, ultra clear vocals and glitchy beats.

“I feel like the divide between my inner and outer self can grow so big sometimes that it feels like I’m being eclipsed by this big cringey monster,” Sohn explains about the conflicting states that informed their new track. “I wanted to write this to mock the monster and remind myself I’m not powerless against it.” Taking cues from the anime Serial Experiments Lain (Yasuyuki Ueda) – which centers around a girl whose online self attempts to drag her physical self away from reality – ‘Lain (phone clone)’ is Sohn’s musical interpretation of this push-and-pull scenario.

As a mixed-race, non-binary artist, Sohn has always used their art in order to explore, connect with, and understand their own identity further. Their self-released 2021 EP, Impostor, addressed a “life-long journey through racial impostor syndrome,” whilst their Talk Talk EP tackled the complexities of relationships.

Intrigued by the duality of android life, Sohn’s upcoming full length record was heavily inspired by films such as Her, Ex Machina, and Ghost in the Shell, as well as essays by Jia Tolentino (from Trick Mirror: Reflections on Self-Delusion) and Donna Horroway’s A Cyborg Manifesto. They continue to find new ways of dismantling these concepts on their latest offering ‘Lain (phone clone), adding more evocative and stimulating electronic soundscapes to their impressive repertoire.

Watch the video for ‘Lain (phone clone)’ below.

Pre-order Follow The Cyborg the debut album from Miss Grit here

Follow Miss Grit on bandcamp, Spotify, Instagram & Facebook

Photo Credit: Hoseon Sohn

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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WATCH: Jessica Winter ft. Lynks – ‘Clutter’

A buoyant alt-pop anthem that celebrates the relief that comes with destroying the relics of an old relationship, London-based artist Jessica Winter has shared her latest single ‘Clutter’. Taken from her upcoming EP, Limerence, which is set for release on 10th February via Lucky Number, the track is a cathartic blend of playful synths and dancing beats, featuring the vocals of avant-garde artist Lynks.

Inspired by her desire to de-clutter her life both physically and mentally, Winter wrote this single whilst in the midst of a house move. “I found love letters, photos and other bits from relationships over the years that at the time meant so much, yet hold no significance now,” she explains about the process. “I’ve carried these things around with me all this time and a spring clean was needed; physically and spiritually from all past and present relationships! Lynks embodies a divine solitary strength so there’s no one better than him to help deliver this message.”

The single is accompanied by a music video directed by Ella Margolin. The visuals feature Winter and Lynks as they follow a group of women who have have left their husbands in order to seek a new life, filled with independent energy and hotness. The tumultuous effect of romantic relationships is something Winter explores from different perspective on her upcoming EP. “Limerence was written during a time when I was trying to understand my relationship to love and my behaviours around it,” she comments. “Love confuses me so much and I think this EP demonstrates that.”

Winter not only self-produces and writes all of her own music, she has also collaborated with the likes of The Big Moon, Jazmin Bean, Phoebe Green, Sundara Karma, Walt Disco and Brodka. In February, she will support Rebecca Black on her UK and Ireland tour, including a  show at London’s Heaven. Grab your tickets here.

Watch the video for ‘Clutter’ below.

 

Follow Jessica Winter on bandcamp, Spotify, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok & Facebook

Photo credit: Nan Moore

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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New Track: t l k – ‘Serenia’

A beautiful, soothing electronic lamentation about the nature of childhood grief and memory, Bristol-based artist t l k has shared their latest single ‘Serenia’. Brimming with emotive vocals, tender lyrics and blissful synths, the track is a poignant exploration of the timeless power of maternal love.

“Deep in a palace of the mind / held by the mother for the last time” muses t l k in the opening line of the track, inviting listeners into a deeply personal space via clear vocals and ambient electronics. Described as a “self-soothing metaphysical landscape”, the artist created ‘Serenia’ by manipulating an improvised vocal take and blending it with analogue synths, before adding percussive textures that were built from the spines of a cactus. The result is an emotive “sound bath” that evokes a sense of solace and serenity each time it’s listened to.

Using music to gently unfold themes of identity, self-hood, and the often incomprehensible depth of human emotion, t l k blends introspection, melancholy and euphoria within their sound, sometimes within the same track. Their debut EP, Strength In Tenderness (2022), was an evocative, rapturous collection of songs that seamlessly fused these two emotional states together, an accomplishment that meant the record made the cut for our Albums & EPs of 2022 feature last year.

t l k’s new single ‘Serenia’ is accompanied by an animated artwork created by graphics pro and visual artist Alfie Dwyer (Adult Swim, Eric Andre, Sad Night Dynamite, Thundercat and Flying Lotus). Dwyer’s work enhances the dreamlike, all encompassing warmth of t l k’s sound.

Watch the video for ‘Serenia’ below.

Follow t l k on bandcamp, Spotify, Instagram, Facebook or via their Website

 

Photo Credit: Giulia Spadafora

Kate Crudgington
@kcbobcut

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