LISTEN: Real Big Sky – ‘Long Lost’

A brooding, atmospheric musing on feelings of loneliness and isolation, Gothenburg four-piece Real Big Sky have shared their debut single ‘Long Lost’. Full of moody guitar sounds, shiver-inducing cymbal smashes and melancholic vocals, the track is a captivating slice of dark indie noise, taken from the band’s self-titled debut album which is set for release in July.

Originally created as a distraction for multi-instrumentalist Sara Kleppe (You Break, You Buy, Gold Baby) during the Covid-19 lockdowns here in the UK in 2020, Real Big Sky began life as a solo project which Kleppe worked on at home in her bedroom in Hackney. Making good use of her time during an unpredictable year, Kleppe picked up her old electric guitar and began working out songs and sounds that would eventually form the eight tracks on Real Big Sky’s album. After relocating back to her native Sweden in 2021, Real Big Sky have now blossomed into a full band made up of Kleppe’s friends and family members, with debut single ‘Long Lost’ being the first of what’s to come from these intriguing newcomers.

With her tender vocals and expansive guitar sounds, she transcends feelings of isolation, creating a cathartic, heavy lullaby for those who may still be feeling the sting of loneliness. With the help of friend & long-term collaborator Luca Romano – who also played drums & was on recording, mixing and production duties for the record – Real Big Sky’s sound is now fully fleshed and ready to be released into the world.

Listen to ‘Long Lost’ below.

Follow Real Big Sky on bandcamp, Spotify, Facebook & Instagram

Photo Credit: Johanna Kleppe

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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Track Of The Day: Fears – ’16’

Transforming her ruminations on a troubled past relationship into an elegant, exquisitely raw new offering, Irish musician and producer Constance Keane aka Fears has shared her latest single ’16’. Released via her own imprint TULLE, the track is a combination of meditative synth loops, tentative beats – inspired by the traditional Irish bodhrán drum – and the instrumentals of her late friend, classically trained cellist and trans rights activist Sophie Gwen Williams, which all mesh together to create a truly soothing, magnetic soundscape.

Accompanied by a beautiful video, shot in The Maharees in County Kerry in south west Ireland and directed by Zoe Greenway who performs alongside Keane in punk band M(h)aol, the visuals are a poignant tribute to Williams too.

“Sophie was an incredible artist and a very close friend of mine,” Keane explains. “We did a filmed performance together last March, thinking we’d get a chance to record it ‘properly’ in a studio, but she passed away before we could. Zoe and I dedicate the video for ’16’ to her memory. I had made her a dress for the original performance out of pink tulle – the same fabric I have with me in the video. She was a really inspirational and encouraging person, and I wanted to create something that shows how I carry her with me, even though I no longer have her physically here.”

Using her art as a canvas to express and process her grief, Keane’s soft vocals and candid lyrics – “It’s been a while since I cried / unusual for me / normally once a week / since we were 16” – combine to create a delicate, shadowy landscape for her listeners to dwell in. On her debut album Oíche, she underwent a significant and moving personal metamorphosis and now with ’16’ she continues to shapeshift and thread her own experiences into immersive, illuminating sounds.

Fears will perform live in London as part of a TULLE Collective showcase on 7th May at Chat’s Palace. Watch the video for ’16’ below.

Sophie Gwen Williams was an acclaimed performance artist, classically trained musician and trans rights activist from Northern Ireland who co-founded We Exist, a charity which raises vital funds to help trans people across the UK pay for healthcare costs. She was also the chair and one of the original members of The 343, a Belfast-based queer art collective. Here she also founded 343 radio, which is Ireland’s first ever queer radio.

Follow Fears on bandcamp, Spotify, Instagram, Twitter & Facebook
Follow TULLE on Instagram & Twitter

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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Track Of The Day: Francis of Delirium – ‘The Funhouse’

“This is a call to arms” sings Jana Bahrich aka Francis Of Delirium in the opening to her latest single ‘The Funhouse’, instantly commanding listeners with her grungy riffs and clear vocals. A reflection on the manic and disorientating mindset that’s been accepted as “the new normal” over the past few years, Bahrich’s track is a cathartic rush of angst that questions what’s “left to believe” in such an overwhelming world.

“’The Funhouse’ is largely about how we are adapting to the chaos that is present in our everyday lives,” Bahrich explains about her new single. “The way it can feel that the world is crashing down around us and in order to protect ourselves, we become numb to the sheer terror of it all. Sort of like walking through a funhouse and attempting to remain un-phased by the mayhem that surrounds you.”

Through her frantic riffs, urgent vocals and conflicted lyrics, Bahrich explores the strange mix of apathy, adrenaline and dread that we’ve all been ricocheting between since the Covid-19 pandemic hit in 2020. The track is accompanied by a self-directed video, with its fast-paced editing and flashing lights reflecting the chaos she sings of. Despite its uneasy context, ‘The Funhouse’ is a powerful dose of riotous guitar music that breaks down the remnants of underlying anxiety that originally fuelled it.

Watch the video for ‘The Funhouse’ below.

Follow Francis Of Delirium on bandcamp, Spotify, Facebook, Twitter & Instagram

Francis of Delirium will play their first-ever North American tour supporting The Districts this spring.

Photo Credit: Pit Reding
 
Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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Track Of The Day: Maria BC – ‘Good Before’

An atmospheric rumination inspired by the joy you can find in a moment of spontaneity, Maria BC has shared their latest single ‘Good Before’. Taken from their debut album Hyaline, which is set for release on 27th May via Fear Of Missing Out records in the UK, the track is an uplifting, ambient offering that sees the songwriter embrace a sudden influx of new inspiration.

Following on from their dreamy debut EP Devil’s Rain (2021), on Hylaine, Maria BC has created another tender collection of songs that “Let the world wash over you…rather than trying to pin it to one single thing.” This immersive quality was captured beautifully on previous single ‘The Only Thing’ but ‘Good Before’ filters these tendencies through a slightly poppier lens, whilst retaining their soothing vocals and tentative guitar picks.

“I wrote ‘Good Before’ in 2019, before any of the other songs on Hyaline — and before any of the songs on Devil’s Rain, for that matter,” Maria explains. “I put it away for a while because I thought it was too poppy, but eventually I got over that. Now it holds a special place in my heart. Some of the lyrics came to me on the highway, when the sun was starting to rise, and I was running on no sleep, just Dunkin’. It’s unusual for lyrics to come to me ~in the wild~ like this. I like to block out time to sit in a spot and write. That’s just my style. When inspiration comes to me out of nowhere, I’m immensely grateful.”

Listen to ‘Good Before’ below.

Follow Maria BC on bandcamp, Spotify, Instagram, Twitter & Facebook

Photo Credit: Ulysses Ortega

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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