WATCH: jellyskin – ‘I Was The First Tetrapod’

Following on from their eccentric rave anthem ‘Bringer Of Brine‘ released at the end of April, electronic Leeds-based duo jellyskin have shared their latest single ‘I Was The First Tetrapod’. Accompanied by a quirky new video, the track is lifted from their upcoming debut album, In Brine, which is set for release on 9th June via Wrong Speed Records.

Formed of Will Ainsley and Zia Larty-Healy, jellyskin have spent the past four years meticulously writing and recording their debut record between Leeds, Liverpool, Bristol, Palamos and Berlin. The pair invited Berlin-based producer Lewis D-t to co-produce, mix and master In Brine, and to “finesse the tracks into fat-free hunks of ecstasy and sonic exploration”. The result of this collaboration is a record that brims with a palpable sense of urgency and euphoria, with narrative themes that range from intense longing and desire, to misadventure by the sea and aquatic apparitions.

It’s the latter of these elements that the band explore on ‘I Was The First Tetrapod’. Through their pulsating beats, eclectic synth sounds and bizarre narratives, jellyskin playfully examine would the world might look like through the fresh eyes of a new life form. The track’s accompanying video, directed by Richard Ainsley, is an extrapolation on this idea.

Following high-profile UK festival slots and shows alongside The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Warmduscher, Sea Power, Moonlandingz and The KVB, and with their debut album on the horizon, 2023 looks set to be an exciting year for jellyskin.

Watch the visuals for ‘I Was The First Tetrapod’ below.

jellyskin’s upcoming debut album In Brine is available to pre-order via bandcamp now

Follow jellyskin on bandcamp, Spotify, Twitter, Instagram & Facebook

Photo Credit: Misha Warren

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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LISTEN: Anna Pancaldi – ‘Where Do I Lay All The Love I Have Left?’

London based singer-songwriter, Anna Pancaldi, has now shared new single, ‘Where Do I Lay All The Love I Have Left?‘. The first of a string of singles to come, it marks Anna’s thought-provoking, affecting vocals and musicality evolving into a new chapter. 

A versatile artist, Pancaldi also co-writes on a variety of outside projects (singles, synch, top-lining/features). For example, in April her music was used for the brand new Grey’s Anatomy trailer and has featured on hit US TV shows such as ‘Pretty Little Liars’, ‘Famous in Love’ and the 2022 Paramount film ‘The In Between’ (featured under the pseudonym Beò).

‘Where Do I Lay All The Love I Have Left?’ is a soulful ballad, reflecting on opening up to one’s feelings. It begins quietly with a stirring piano intro, building up to the bridge with an impassioned grace, where synths are added, echoing the emotional turmoil of the lyrics – ‘”I admit I am frightened, scared of being misled…” Although uncertain, the song allows growth with a beautiful catharsis, before paring back to the final question – “Where do I lay all the love I have left?”. A perfectly poignant soundtrack to the uncertainty of falling in love again.

Catch Anna Pancaldi live at Folklore in Hackney tomorrow, 18th May – tickets here.

Fi Ni Aicead
@gotnomoniker

Photo Credit: Curious Rose Photography

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PREMIERE: Charlotte Carpenter – ‘Spinning Plates’

Having charmed our ears as a guest on our radio show, and with 2017’s Shelter EP, East Midlands artist Charlotte Carpenter has previously shared stages with artists such as Marika Hackman and George Ezra. Now, having received acclaim from the likes of NME and BBC Radio 6Music, she has announced the release of her debut album later this year.

Taken from the album, new single ‘Spinning Plates’ offers a poignant reflection on the power structures and misogyny within the music industry. Propelled by a fierce energy, Carpenter’s gritty, raw vocals flow alongside catchy Americana-infused hooks. With a stirring sentiment that is all too relatable – lyrics such as “I’m just trying to be a better sister / daughter / lover…” highlighting how women’s worth is so often only seen as important within their relationship to men -, the track oozes an impassioned blues-soaked allure as it builds with a glistening, anthemic drive. A striking call to arms to fellow women and marginalised groups within the industry, ‘Spinning Plates’ offers a defiant return to form from this innovative artist, showcasing her ability to fuse together her trademark soulful musicality with a cathartic, empowering spirit.

Of the track, Carpenter explains:

“There’s a lot to unpack in this song… from societal pressures on the roles you are meant to fulfil as a woman, alongside the struggle of keeping up a relentless positivity to being a musician – and how impossible it is to ever get the balance between the two.”

Watch the new video for ‘Spinning Plates’ here:

‘Spinning Plates’ is set for release tomorrow, 17th May. Catch her live (supporting SOFT LAD and Kelli Blanchett):

14th July – The Finsbury, London 
27th July – The Victoria, Birmingham
28th July – Black Prince, Northampton
30th July – The Castle, Manchester 

Photo Credit: Fraser West

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EP: Midwife & Vyva Melinkolya – ‘Orbweaving’

A disarming collection of hypnotic vocals and mesmeric guitar sounds, Midwife and Vyva Melinkolya have shared their collaborative EP, Orbweaving. Written and recorded at Madeline Johnston aka Midwife’s studio in New Mexico in the Chihuahuan Desert, the five songs that form the record are a beautiful byproduct of the idiosyncratic environment they were created in.

From nights spent “herping” on empty roadsides looking for rattlesnakes, roadkill and orb-weaver spiders, to meaningful moments shared between Johnston and Angel Diaz (Vyva Melinkolya) in the studio, Orbweaving smoulders with the residual heat of sun-scorched sands, but it’s laced with the shiver-inducing melancholy of desolate desert nights too.

From the lullaby-esque tones of opener ‘Miss America’, through to the epic twelve minutes of the all-encompassing final eponymous track, Johnston and Diaz’s deceptively simple lyrical motifs and ambient riffs perfectly pacify the pain of their past. Forging a strong friendship during 2020, the pair guided each other through a turbulent emotional time, and in the process began spinning the intricately woven, affecting web of sounds that now form Orbweaving.

From the aching sincerity of ‘NMP’ (No More Pain), to the heavy ambience of ‘Hounds Of Heaven’, the duo navigate the duality that comes with losing and reclaiming connection with internal and external spaces. Their poetic, hazy laments provide a heavy form of hope, the type that reveals itself unexpectedly; like emerging from the morning fog into the sunlight after a restless night pacing in the dark.

This feeling is aptly captured on the apocalyptic-titled ‘Plague X’. Inspired by the life-cycle of the cicadas insect – whose 17 year periodical took place in 2021 at the time of recording – the track gently personifies the horror and the sublime processes that occur in the natural world, and mirrors the inner emotional metamorphoses that Johnston and Diaz experienced themselves during the time they spent together. Its ominous context doesn’t detract from the immersive, mesmeric vocals and waves of rich, hazy guitar.

Whilst it may feel bleak and fragile in places, there is a truly bright human thread that underscores Orbweaving. Together, Johnston and Diaz have spun a delicate web that simultaneously connects and soothes the senses, but also manages to retain the grit of the grains of New Mexico sand they were inspired by too. Bathe yourself in Johnston’s trademark “heaven metal” and Diaz’s evocative shoegazey noise, both of which are seamlessly tethered here.

Listen to Orbweaving on bandcamp and Spotify

Follow Midwife on bandcamp, Spotify, Instagram & Facebook

Follow Vyva Melinkolya on bandcamp, Spotify, Instagram & Facebook

Photo Credit: Jon Mcwilliams

Kate Crudgington
@kate_crudge

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