Track Of The Day: Ex-Vöid – ‘Churchyard’

A catchy, jaded slice of garage-pop inspired by an unusual past-time, UK power-pop punks Ex-Vöid have shared their latest single ‘Churchyard’. Taken from their debut album Bigger Than Before, which is set for release on 25th March via Prefect Records/Rough Trade, the track is a buoyant blend of melodic guitars, soft dual vocals and frustrated lyrics.

Formed by ex-Joanna Gruesome vocalists Lan McArdle and Owen Williams, along with Laurie Foster (bass) and Jonny Coddington (drums), Ex-Vöid are inspired by the sounds of The Byrds, Big Star and Teenage Fanclub. Whilst on the surface their music is infectiously upbeat, the band retain a sardonic, strung out wit through their lyrics, with ‘Churchyard’ being a prime example of this blend.

“I wrote ‘Churchyard’ when I was like 24 and living in Brighton,” guitarist Owen Williams explains. “My friend and I were unemployed and we used to spend a lot of time drinking cans of lager and taking legal highs in a pet graveyard. It was boring so at the end we sing ‘I get so bored’ over and over etc.”

This humourous apathy underscores the band’s debut record, Bigger Than Before. The album was recorded in just over an hour in a studio in Hackney, with minimal overdubs and no breaks. Bassist Laurie Foster was reported to have “kept on playing even though his belt came loose and his trousers fell down” – if that’s not incentive to listen, what is?

Listen to ‘Churchyard’ below.

Follow Ex-Vöid on bandcamp, Spotify, Twitter & Facebook

Photo Credit: Max Warren

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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Track Of The Day: Kee Avil – ‘saf’

An intoxicating, claustrophobic listen that sharpens the senses, Montréal-based experimental artist and producer Vicky Mettler aka Kee Avil has shared her latest single ‘saf’. Taken from her debut album Crease, which is set for release on 11th March, the track unravels like a gratifying exhale, underscored by magnetic electronics and Avil’s intense, alluring vocals.

A guitarist, singer, producer and member of Sam Shalabi’s acclaimed Land Of Kush project, Mettler cut her teeth playing in various noise and improv outfits before fully fleshing out her new moniker Kee Avil. “Songwriting, to me, is like sculpting,” Mettler explains. “It stems from an initial word, emotion or sound, which I then build on, molding it into a more refined shape, glued into an artificial structure. Other times, my role is to peel it, scrape at its exterior, to reveal its natural state and its part within the whole.”

It’s this physicality behind the shaping of her sounds that makes Mettler’s music feel so visceral, especially in her new track ‘saf’. “Is this the same ache we all share? / can you feel it there under your ribs?” she probes over serpentine electronics, urging listeners to immerse themselves in the tense atmosphere she has created.

Following her self-titled EP released via Black Bough Records in 2018, Mettler’s debut album Crease was written over a period of three years, with each song representing “a certain moment in time, an emotion, exercise or spontaneous idea that creates its own world…built without consideration for the other.” With her razor sharp focus and disorientating blend of sounds and vocals, Mettler’s new full length offering looks set to be as spinetingling as her latest single.

Watch the video for ‘saf’ below.

Follow Kee Avil on bandcamp, Spotify, Twitter, Instagram & Facebook

Photo Credit: Lawrence Fafard (Mask by Ariane Paradis)

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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LISTEN: SOFT LAD – ‘2 Know U Betta’

A playful musing on what could happen if your crush just spared the time to text you back, multi-instrumentalist SOFT LAD has shared her latest single ‘2 Know U Betta’. Taken from her debut EP MAXIMUM FEELS, which is set for release on 1st April, the track is an earnest reflection on what could have been, underscored by buoyant guitars and smooth vocals.

Sophie Gaplin aka SOFT LAD has spent the past fourteen years playing alongside the likes of Tom Grennan, The Breeders, James Vincent McMorrow, Jessie Ware, SOAK and SELF ESTEEM. Now, she’s stepping into the spotlight to share her brand of honest pop, with her second offering ‘2 Know U Betta’ exploring that all-to-familiar feeling of being ghosted by a crush.

“I had a spark with someone and wanted to get to know them more, in a casual way,” Galpin explains about the track. “I was like, ‘I’m not looking for anything serious and there’s literally no pressure here, but we could be having a really nice, fun time if you ever texted me back!’ I knew there was a vibe there and I thought it would be a shame to let it go, but in the end I had to accept that she had her own thing going on, which is totally fair!” Galpin puts this missed romantic opportunity into context via her conversational lyrics and breezy melodies.

Inspired by the sounds of Years & Years, MUNA and Shura, as well as her own experiences of queer love and relationships, SOFT LAD’s debut EP looks set to be a joyful, tongue-in-cheek listen, with singles ‘Singapore’ and ‘2 Know U Betta’ providing the first dose of her pop-infused wit.

Listen to ‘2 Know U Betta’ below.

Follow SOFT LAD on Spotify, Twitter & Instagram

Photo Credit: Lou Pye

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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LISTEN: Fe Salomon – ‘Super Human’ and ‘Wired On Caffeine’

A rousing alt-pop tune that shimmers with self-belief, songwriter Fe Salomon has shared her latest single ‘Super Human’. Co-written with composer and long-term collaborator Johnny Parry, the track embraces the binary opposites of the human condition via playful beats, jazzy arrangements and Salomon’s smooth vocals.

Taken form her debut album Living Rooms, which is set for release later this year, Salomon has channelled her love of performing and her eclectic range of influences into her new records, which aims to tell the stories of “multiple lives lived and lost in the city, of friendships that meant everything and the characters you’ll never meet again, of transience and loneliness, and of getting by and moving on.”

‘Super Human’ is the first offering from her new material, and it’s an exploration of the power of the alter ego. “‘Super Human’ originated with dancing around with some upper body shimmy moves,” Salomon explains, “then a chunky brass section, dirty synth and disjunctive rhythms, all inspired by a number 70’s and 80’s movie soundtracks.” Accompanied by a cinematic video directed by Fraser Taylor, the visuals show Salomon performing the shimmy shakes that inspired the track’s conception.

The single is also accompanied by a bonus track ‘Wired On Caffeine‘ which showcases Salomon’s shadowy alt-pop side. Stepping into the shoes of an artist sacked from a job before it even began, Salomon remarks: “The chaos became very still and the seed of a new journey popped out its first green shoots of hope. Finding yourself is sometimes just a question of optics. ‘Wired on Caffeine’ is what happened when I looked through that lens.”

Watch the video for ‘Super Human’ below and listen to ‘Wired On Caffeine’ here.

 

Follow Fe Salomon on bandcamp, Spotify, Facebook & Instagram

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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