New Track: CHROMA – ‘Don’t Wanna Go Out’

Having just announced the release of their debut album, out via Alcopop! next month, and with news of an exciting support slot with (my most watched band in the world) Foo Fighters next year, Welsh band CHROMA are definite ones to watch right now. And, with acclaim from the likes of John Kennedy at Radio X and BBC Radio 1’s Alyx Holcombe, their instantly catchy new single showcases all there is to love about Pontypridd’s band on the rise.

Propelled by the band’s distinctive relentless energy, ‘Don’t Wanna Go Out‘ reflects on feelings of FOMO and the pressure to go out and socialise. Raging with seething hooks and front woman Katie Hall’s fiercely raw vocals, it offers a compelling slice of biting garage-rock; a relatable and dance-able anthem that’ll cement itself in the ears on first listen, demanding multiple plays immediately.

Currently in Korea, playing DMZ Peace Train Festival, CHROMA are excited to share their debut album with the world. Entitled Ask For Angela, it shares its name with the UK wide campaign to prevent sexual assault in the UK, and showcases the band’s knack for creating empowering, inclusive offerings covering poignant topics ranging from trans rights and violence against women, to their experiences of growing up in the Welsh countryside. Of the album, they add:

“This album takes us in a direction that we as a band feel as if it affirms the sound that we’ve always wanted to create, and with thanks to Steffan Pringle and Tom E1 Mastering and Duplication, they’ve helped bring these songs to life. ‘Ask For Angela’ is no longer just ours, but it’s yours, now and forever. We hope you find as much joy in this record as it was for us to create.”

And, on their return from Korea, they’re heading straight up to London next Friday 8th September to headline for us at Shacklewell Arms – we couldn’t be more excited. It seems to be their only London show for a while, so do come and join us in moshing along to their gritty energy in a fairly intimate venue, before they hit the stadium next year!


Ask For Angela, the debut album from CHROMA, is set for release on 20th October via Alcopop! Records. Pre-order here. And make sure you don’t miss them live at Shacklewell Arms on 8th September, with support from Leeds band wormboys and Brighton’s UrgentSea – nab tickets here!

Mari Lane
@marimindles

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PLAYLIST: August 2023

The Get In Her Ears team have put together another eclectic mix of indie & alternative tunes, guitar anthems, alt-pop gems and electronic sounds for your listening pleasure. Take some time to scroll through our track choices below, and make sure you press play on the playlist at the end of this post.

Follow GIHE on Spotify to hear all of our previous playlists too.

Human Interest – ‘Step On’
Following the success of previous singles ‘Mixing Paint’ and ‘Cool Cats’, and with recent acclaim from the likes of Steve LaMacq on BBC 6Music, East-London band Human Interest have now announced the release of an upcoming EP later this year. Combining a fierce post-punk drive with a fuzzy, lilting energy, lead single ‘Step On’ reflects on “appreciating the duality of yourself and your friends” and builds with an anthemic power to a swirling slice of infectious indie-pop. ‘Step On’ is out now via Nice Swan records.
(Mari Lane)

CLT DRP – ‘I See My Body Through You’
Following on from their incendiary anthems ‘New Boy‘ and ‘Nothing Clever, Just Feelings‘, this is the latest banger from Brighton feminist electro-punks CLT DRP. Taken from their upcoming second album, Nothing Clever, Just Feelings, which is set for release on 8th September via Venn Records, the track is a dynamic, corrosive rumination on objectification and how it can affect our own identity and self worth. By combining quieter verses with a blistering chorus, CLT DRP reflect the tumultuous emotions and lack of control that can come from feeling exposed and viewed through a skewed and restricting lens.
(Kate Crudgington)

Chroma – ‘Don’t Wanna Go Out’
Having just announced the release of their debut album, and with news of an exciting support slot with (my most watched band in the world) Foo Fighters next year, Welsh band Chroma are definite ones to watch right now, and so we couldn’t be more thrilled that they’ll be headlining our night at Shacklewell Arms next Friday! (8th September). To celebrate the news, they’ve shared ‘Don’t Wanna Go Out’, a fierce new single reflecting on feelings of FOMO and propelled by the band’s distinctive raw, relentless energy. An instant earworm that I can’t wait for East London to mosh along to very soon! Ask For Angela, the debut album from Chroma, is set for release on 20th October via Alcopop! Records. Nab tickets to see them live on 8th September along with wormboys and UrgentSea here. (ML)

Duvet – ‘Girlcow’
‘Girlcow’ is the latest single from Manchester post punks Duvet, who are gearing up to to release their split 7″ ‘Girlcow/Sweaty Dog’ on 29th September via Fear of Missing Out Records. I love their sleazy, chaotic sound on this track, which the band say is “a bit of fictional story telling about a confident cowboy pursuing a play girl bunny type character,” explored from both perspectives. (KC)

Gender Chores – ‘Dysphurious’
A reflection on coming out as non-binary – a subject that’s very close to Northern Irish punks Gender Chores’ hearts – ‘Dysphurious’ offers a truly uplifting dose of punk-pop, oozing a fierce colourful spirit. Filled with scuzzy hooks and a refreshingly honest lyricism, it’s an empowering ode to freeing yourself from the constrictions of conventional gender ‘norms’; an energising boost of confidence to be your true self in the face of adversity. (ML)

Femegades – ‘Depleted’
Following their debut EP Pornsick and last year’s ironically entitled Not All Men, punk-rockers Femegades are back with a gloriously riotous new single. Reflecting on society’s expectation on women to be – and want to be – perfect, happy mothers, ‘Depleted’ rages with a snarling energy and fierce, raw power. (ML)

ALT BLK ERA – ‘Misfits: SOLAR’
Combining jagged electronics and racing beats with their raging lyrics, genre-defying sister duo ALT BLK ERA have created another alternative statement of self autonomy on ‘Misfits: SOLAR’. Taken from their upcoming EP, Freak Show, which is set for release on 1st September, the track is a frenzied anthem fuelled by their antagonistic, youthful spirit. (KC)

The Dead Zoo – ‘Hoover Damned’
Having recently wowed us live at our last gig at Shacklewell Arms in July, London-based The Dead Zoo have now shared an uplifting new single. Propelled by a scuzzy energy reminiscent of brit-pop bands of the ‘90s, ‘Hoover Damned’ oozes catchy hooks and swirling harmonies, accompanying the sultry allure of front woman Kaoru’s gritty vocals. Of the track, Kaoru explains: “I wanted to write about a world where women are as free to make mistakes and walk away as men traditionally have…” Produced by James Aparicio, ‘Hoover Damned’ is out now via Rock Noir Recordings. Watch the new video here. (ML)

Deerhoof – ‘My Lovely Cat!’
Following the release of their 19th album earlier this year, I was lucky enough to experience the utter magic of legendary avant-garde sound creators Deerhoof last week. And when I say ‘magic’, I’m not exaggerating… The pure immense cacophonies they’re able to create are a spectacle to behold; their frenzied colourful energy like nothing I’ve ever seen. ‘My Lovely Cat!’ is probably my favourite track taken from the latest album (which is sung entirely in Satomi’s native Japanese), not only because of its cute, relatable title, but I just love its swirling sonic brilliance and joyous drive. Miracle Level, the latest album from Deerhoof, is out now via Joyful Noise. (ML)

HAVVK – ‘Expiry’
The new single from Irish based trio, and GIHE faves, HAVVK, ‘Expiry’ channels a seething raging energy, ‘Expiry’ reflects on society’s expectations of women to ‘age gracefully’, whilst giving a middle finger to these restrictions on how you should dress or behave. I just love how its fierce sense of urgency is propelled by the raw power of lead singer Julie’s distinctive celestial vocals. (ML)

Shaene – ‘june’
This melancholy song from Leeds-based songwriter shaene is lifted from her self-produced debut album, time lost / time regained, which is set for release on 1st September. The track is a reflection on her fluctuating relationship with their Dad, which she is reminded of on Father’s Day each year during June. As with her previous single ‘sad’, shaene filters these conflicting feelings through a soft, shoegazey lens, which makes for sad-yet-sweet listening. (KC)

GENN – ‘Calypso’
GIHE favourites GENN are gearing up to release their debut album, unum, on the 6th October, and this track ‘Calypso’ is lifted from it. The track showcases the truly versatile sound of the Brighton-via-Malta art-punk quartet, who totally blew us away with their live performances at The Great Escape Festival earlier this year. (KC)

Ideal Host – ‘The Resolution’
A tender, synth-led rumination that showcases the evolving nature of their sound, this is the third single from Ideal Host. Led by Heather Perkins and Sean Hughes – who are both former members of the band Slowcoaches – Ideal Host are dedicated to making music on their own terms. ‘The Resolution’ acts as a bookend to the band’s previous single ‘The Conflict‘, exploring the softer side of their brooding, intuitive songwriting. Ideal Host are currently writing and recording their full length album, which they plan to release and tour next year. (KC)

O Hell – ‘hard times’
The chorus to this O Hell track hit me right in sternum. Her direct lyrics, clear vocals and evocative electronics make for captivating listening. Speaking about ‘hard times’, O Hell explains: “What I wanted to say in the chorus is: get back to what love really is, ‘cus it’s way bigger and better than the bullshit possessiveness we’re told it needs to centre around. It might change state, it might morph between romantic and platonic, or everything in between – but fuck all the drama off, if you love someone, let that love take its course. It was always bigger than the first label you smacked on it anyway.” (KC)

Hinako Omori – ‘cyanotype memories’
A mood-lifting soundscape that offers listeners a moment of respite in an uncertain world, I love this single from London-based artist and composer Hinako Omori. Taken from her upcoming album, stillness, softness…, which is set for release via Houndstooth on 27th October, the track is an ode to surrendering yourself to the unknown and finding peace within that process. (KC)

Mint Field – ‘El Suspiro Cambia Todo’
Having just announced the release of their upcoming new album, Mexican psych duo Mint Field have now shared a dreamy new single. Flowing with a whirring, hypnotic grace, ‘El Suspiro Cambia Todo’ (The Sigh Changes Everything) offers a spellbinding soundscape, enchanting the ears with its glistening splendour. Of the track, the band explain: “Sighing is the desire for melancholy. It denotes that something is happening. Sometimes we just need to sigh to let go. Sighing is something we do unconsciously but it says a lot about what is going on inside our mind.” Aprender a Ser, the upcoming new album from Mint Field, is set for release on 27th October via felte. (ML)

Amaroun – ‘Dopamine’
Taken from her upcoming EP of the same name, which is set for release on 29th September, ‘Dopamine’ is the latest single from ‘GIHE favourite Amaroun. Inspired by “the minuscule euphoric moments that keep her ADHD brain hooked throughout the day,” this track oozes with Amroun’s trademark alt-pop style. (KC)

CHIKA ft. Charlie Wilson – ‘Can’t Explain It’
I’m a bit late to the party, but recently loved watching ‘Ladies First’, a short (not long enough!) docu-series on Netflix about and by women in hip-hop. As well as featuring a number of artists I already know and love – such as the legendary Queen Latifah and contemporary rappers Rapsody and Tierrra Whack – it also introduced me to a few that I’d not come across before. One of these was Alabama-born MC/rapper CHIKA, who spoke at length about her position as a queer woman in the industry. I just love her driving energy, gritty allure and refreshingly honest lyricism, and urge you to check out this celebration of queer black love, as well as her epic recent album Samson. (ML)

Mykki Blanco – ‘Holidays In The Sun’
I can’t get enough of the funk-fuelled energy and infectious uplifting spirit of the new single from pioneering artist Mykki Blanco. “A feel good summer anthem about lazy summer days swimming in the sea, hopping from one music festival to the next, feeling good about life and living la dolce vita soaking up the sun.”, its only negative is that it does make me quite desperate for a holiday in the sun myself… Mykki Blanco’s upcoming new album, Postcards from Italia, is set for release on 22nd September via Transgressive, and keep your eyes peeled for an exclusive interview with them on our website very soon! (ML)

Aderyn – ‘Distraction’
Reflecting on the restlessness one can feel during the summer break, ‘Distraction’ is the latest single from South Wales artist Aderyn. Propelled by shimmering hooks and a driving punk-pop energy, it showcases Aderyn’s honey-sweet vocals and ability to create instantly catchy, emotion-rich singalong anthems. Aderyn’s debut EP, Sea Glass, is set for release on 14th September. (ML)

Catherine Moan – ‘Jawbreaker’
Angel Jefferson aka Catherine Moan is back with this new single which marks a “new era” of her electro-pop project. ‘Jawbreaker’ is written from the point of view of “someone who feels replaceable, hard to love, and ultimately feels damaged by another’s actions” – all underscored by buoyant 80s-inspired synths and Catherine’s bittersweet vocal. (KC)

SOFT LAD – ‘The Human Condition’
“This song came as a result of the worst hangover of my life!” explains Sophie Galpin aka SOFT LAD about this single – respect to her for telling it like it is! The multi-instrumentalist, who also plays in Self Esteem’s band, encourages her listeners to treat those closest to us with kindness; all underscored by her buoyant beats, melodic riffs and clear vocals. (KC)

Cutty – ‘Overdrive’
This is the latest single from Hull-based duo Cutty, who formed after meeting at their local dive bar. Amy and Kev explain that ‘Overdrive’ is a crowd-pleasing favourite when they play it live at local gigs, so it made sense to record it and share it for everyone else to hear too. (KC)

Sirene – ‘Don’t Let Me Fall (Out Your Mind)’
With acclaim from the likes of Deb Grant on BBC 6Music, Yorkshire-born, London-based artist Sirene released her debut album last year, and has now shared a poignant new single. Reflecting on the desire to consistently do your best for the ones you love, ‘Don’t Let Me Fall (Out Your Mind)’ is a beautifully stirring ballad, showcasing Sirene’s distinctive rich vocals and an exquisite twinkling emotion. (ML)

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LIVE (Photos): The Great Escape Festival 2018

The Great Escape kicked off UK festival season in sun-soaked style last weekend, and it’s taken us a few days to gather our thoughts on the prolific 3-day event, renowned for championing new music. Spread across multiple venues in Brighton, we managed to catch some of the brightest talents in between sunbathing on the beach and consuming our body weight in fish & chips.

Irish beauts Pillow Queens kicked off proceedings with their packed set at The Prince Albert on Thursday afternoon, setting a high standard for the rest of the weekend, before Scottish alt-rockers The Ninth Wave blew us away at Horatios at the end of the Pier. They had three shows by the sea, so they definitely made waves.

Soccer Mommy

Gracing the brand new Beach House stage were Snail Mail and Soccer Mommy, and both performed to big crowds with their catchy slacker-pop anthems. We saw out Thursday in spectacular style at The Hope and Ruin with our favourites Queen Zee. Their packed set included a cover of Dizzee Rascal’s ‘Bonkers’ and their usual crowd-pleasers ‘Boy’ and ‘Sass Or Die’.

Queen Zee

We partied a little too hard post Queen Zee, so Friday was pretty hazy until our favourite rock-pop duo REWS blew our hangovers away with their set at the Beach House. We caught this duo in 2016 at The Speigltent and since then they’ve signed to Marshall Records, released their debut album Pyro, and have started sharing their singles in America. These girls are exceptionally talented and always entertaining to see live.

REWS

We had high hopes of catching Bodega, but the queue outside The Haunt was longer than the equator, so we took off in search of venues supporting The Alternative Escape. We caught some of psych-rockers Strange Cages before calling it a night.

Saturday started off with Canada’s Partner, who were a complete joy to watch live at The Walrus. We caught some final rays of sunshine and had our last portion of chips before heading over to Sticky Mikes Frog Bar to catch Copenhagen’s Nelson Can, who were ultra-cool all clad in white. We spotted Brighton’s ARRX on the barrier watching them too. Electronic one-woman-wonder Elsa Hewitt was the last act we caught in Komedia before the festival was over. She hypnotised us with her well-crafted electronic sounds.

Our photographer Jon Mo was arguably the most productive man in Britain over The Great Escape weekend and he managed to catch all the bands we didn’t (aside from Dream Wife, who unsurprisingly packed out The Beach stage to capacity.) Check out his incredible shots below. Brighton, we’ll see you again in 2019!

Audiobooks

Brooke Bentham

Chroma

Hatchie

Jealous Of The Birds

Stella Donnelly

Photo Credit: Jon Mo

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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INTERVIEW: Queen Zee

“I could do a Morrissey…” threatens Queen Zee, as we sit outside of Hackney’s Sebright Arms chatting before the band’s headline gig at the venue that evening (April 26th). Zee’s referring to The Smiths’ front-man’s recent controversial interview in which he makes more of his weird and divisive statements for seemingly no reason. I know it’s an idle threat, but Zee’s dry wit puts me at ease. I begin by asking Zee about what they’re expecting from the show that evening.

“The great thing with Queen Zee gigs is that you never really know what’s going to happen. Sometimes we turn up and it’s absolute mayhem, and sometimes we turn up and people are ballroom dancing. You can’t predict it, and that’s what I love about it”

It’s this unpredictability that drew me to the band in the first place. I saw them support Marmozets on their 2017 UK tour at The Garage, and I was blown away by their ability to get the crowd stirred up in to a mosh pit with their songs ‘Boy’ and ‘Fly The Pink Flag’. Their combination of punk anthems and activist attitude has laid the foundations for a community of fans to unite and celebrate in style – and safety – when they attend Queen Zee gigs. I ask Zee whether fans approach them after shows about this.

“We do have some fans who prefer to message us after the gig on Twitter which is always nice, but I make a point when I’m on stage of saying ‘come and say hello’, because I love sharing and I see Queen Zee as a collective, not just as an extension of my ego or as my project. I like people getting involved. People have been customising their clothes and getting tattoos…”

I tell Zee that I saw that a fan had posted a picture of the “sass or die” tattoo that they’d had inked in honour of the band on Queen Zee’s social media accounts. But for every loyal fan, there seems to be a troll. I ask about the trolling Zee experienced on the band’s posts about International Transgender Day Of Visibility (31st March). I ask if shouting back – which Zee always does – takes its toll, or do posts like the one about the tattoo make things easier to deal with?

“Cis people will see these things online and be really shocked by that, but one of the main things for trans people is that you go through things like that every day anyway, it’s just not always online. I actually love people trolling, it’s my favourite thing. I know that I have offended them, and that my existence offends them – and I think that’s brilliant. I don’t want those people to like me, I don’t want them to come to our shows if they’re that bigoted.

Going back to the tattoo though, I absolutely love that. I think it’s bizarre that people would do that. It blows my mind. We played this huge punk show in Liverpool last year, where all the DIY punks get together as a collective and play to about 300 people. We played that and my guitar broke, so we just had to play cover songs, and after that the fan came up to me and showed me the “sass or die” tattoo – and that was the way we ended 2017: it was absolutely amazing. I loved it”.

I broach the subject of mental health too, as this is also an issue Zee speaks openly about online. I ask if they have any advice for other bands who find themselves feeling mentally drained whilst on tour.

“The big thing for me was that I was originally really anti-meds. But actually, just starting on meds has totally changed my life and I feel so much better for it. I don’t want to be ‘pro-meds’ – whatever your stance is, it’s your stance and that’s totally fine – but I would advise people to come to their own decisions, and don’t close your mind off to it. Especially if it’s something that could potentially help you.

General advice and stuff for bands is to eat well, sleep well, and look after each other. It’s dead simple. When we first started touring it was like ‘Yeah! We’re on tour, let’s go out every night!’ and you end up being destroyed by day ten. You get physically ill too.

The thing that made me really ill whilst touring though was that the band consumes your life, so it takes away your social life and even though you’re with your best friends in a band, you don’t see your family, or your other friends, or your partner. And on top of that you’re constantly tired, so it all adds up. I would advise keeping in contact with friends as much as you can. Get your friends to come to shows in the different cities that you’re touring, which is what I’ve done on this tour. A bit of life outside of the band whilst you’re all on tour is great, and it will stop you killing each other.

Our band is formed of five of the most annoying individuals ever. Our bassist is obsessed with meme songs, so on the way here we were listening to Toto – just Toto. It’s funny to start with, you’re like ‘you’ve played ‘Africa’ a few times, okay’ and then he played another Toto song, and another one, and another. He played them for the entire journey – which was an hour. He’s lucky to still be alive. So yeah, no Toto songs on tour…

After establishing a strong “No Toto” rule, I ask if Zee can remember the first time they crowd-surfed or got involved in a mosh pit at a gig, as both of these things always occur at Queen Zee shows.

“The first time I crowd-surfed was as Queen Zee. I never had the guts as a little queer kid to get down to the front and do it. I can’t remember the first time I moshed really, but I was always in to punk and thrash bands so I definitely moshed at those gigs. It was very macho though, so I didn’t feel very welcome in to any of that and there was never really any girls in the pit. So it’s great now when we play shows that I see a mix of girls and guys in the mosh.”

I highlight what a great achievement that is, to have created the safe space that Zee felt was initially lacking at gigs.

“That’s what it’s all about. People know at our gigs that we won’t tolerate any nonsense either. We stopped a show in Nottingham on this tour because our bassist Frankie’s Mum got punched in the face. It was the last song of the set, so I was like ‘if you want to move about, this is your chance to do it!’ and this guy thought it was a great idea to just to swing round in to me, hitting Frankie’s Mum in the face in the process.”

I point out that of all the people that could’ve happened to, what are the chances it would be the Bassist’s Mum…

“I know! I was like ‘you need to leave, now’. Luckily she was okay, she actually loved it! Mosh pits are weird though. We had a gig in Birmingham the other day, and the crowd for the support bands were quite young, maybe seventeen year olds? So they were really kicking off, and I thought I’d jump in because you know, it’s only kids – but I just got beaten up! I’m too old. I’m twenty-four this year, and I came out of that mosh bruised and feeling like a fifty year old”.

I ask Zee what new music they’ve been listening too, as GIHEs are always interested in new music recommendations from our favourite bands.

“There’s so many on this tour that we’ve played with. A band from Cardiff called CHROMA are amazing. We shared a stage with them at Reading & Leeds last year and then we’ve played with them on this tour, and they always blow me away. Their songs have a really cool Death From Above type vibes to them. There’s a band from Nottingham called Babe Punch who play Riot Grrrl-esque punk stuff, and they do a really good cover of ABBA’s ‘SOS’. Salt Bath are another Cardiff band who play really cool queer punk stuff. They’re my big three”.

Now it’s time to talk about plans for the summer. I ask what festivals Queen Zee will be playing at, and if there are any festivals Zee would like to attend just as a fan.

“I hate music…”

It takes me a moment to work out whether Zee’s joking or not…

“No seriously, when we play a gig or we’re watching support bands I’m like “Ah music is great, I love it!” but when I’m at home I never listen to music. I’m chilling the fuck out and watching Netflix, I’m not going to any festivals as a fan! After seeing the inner-workings of festivals as well, it changes your perspective on things. It’s always so stressful trying to get from point A to point B in a field, which you think would be simple but it’s the most difficult thing.

But, having said that, we’re playing quite a few festivals in May. We’re playing The Great Escape, Sound City, Live At Leeds, Neighbourhood and there’s more on the horizon too. We’ve got some time off on June & July to do some more recording though.

To make the idea of Festivals more bearable, I ask Zee what their dream Festival line-up would be.

“Dream headliner would be Me, with a support of Me and just before that it would be Me. Doing slightly different stuff though, maybe even a ‘Toto’ covers set? I dunno, I’d probably give the headline slot to someone who really deserves it.

I have really bad music taste, I love classic rock like Twisted Sister. I’m obsessed with them, and I know I shouldn’t be, and I know it’s bad. Everyone else in the band has really cool music taste like Pixies and Neutral Milk Hotel and I’m like ‘okay, does anyone like Scorpions?’ I’d like to see The B52s, I don’t even know if they’re still going?’

I mention that Cindy Wilson of the B52s is doing her own solo stuff now, so that might have to wait.

“I’d resurrect ABBA! To be honest, it’d probably just be loads of little bands in a sweat-box venue. Oh wait – I’ve got my dream headliner – Judas Priest…I’m obsessed with them.”

Little did we know at this point that the next day ABBA would announce they’re releasing new music. It’s as if Zee has a sixth sense. To end our chat, I ask Zee what three words they’d used to describe Queen Zee – aside from “sass or die”…

“Tortured Scissor Sisters…”

Fingers crossed that’s what Zee calls the band’s debut album.

Catch Queen Zee at The Great Escape at The Hope & Ruin (10:45pm -Thursday 17th May)

Photo Credit: Jon Mo

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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