Track Of The Day: SPIDER – ‘U GET HIGH / I GET NOTHING’

A dark, atmospheric reflection on the imbalance of emotions in an unequal relationship, London-based, Irish musician & producer SPIDER has shared her latest single ‘U GET HIGH / I GET NOTHING’. Taken from her recent debut mixtape C.O.A. (Coming Of Age), the track is a raw, relatable rumination on being taken for granted by someone you cared for, explored through emotive vocals, brooding electronics and confessional lyrics.

Born and raised in Dublin, twenty-two year old SPIDER harnesses the strong feminine energy of the arachnid she’s named after as a totemic symbol through which she can explore her own emotional resilience. She struggled growing up in a Catholic household as a young Nigerian girl in a predominately white country, but creating music provided her with an outlet for her most unfiltered thoughts. Now, with her mixtape and new single, she continues this narrative of breaking down barriers to share her truth and she does so with provocative flair.

Refusing to be stereotyped by producers and other music industry folk who assumed she was an R&B artist because of her skin colour, SPIDER exerts full autonomy over her music, taking on production duties and coming up with the visuals and aesthetics for all of her releases. On C.O.A, she filters her experiences through a dark-pop, angsty lens to prove that growing up – and fucking up – is a universal experience.

“Activities like drinking and partying are tagged as ‘coming of age’ when white kids do it but demonized when kids of colour do it,” SPIDER comments. “We deserve the right to experience our youth and find ourselves. C.O.A is what that felt like for me, and my hope is that other people of colour will listen to it, hear a situation they’ve been through, and maybe it’ll become their own coming of age moment.”

Listen to ‘U GET HIGH / I GET NOTHING’ below.

Follow SPIDER on Spotify, Instagram, Twitter & Facebook

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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LISTEN: GIHE on Soho Radio with Charlotte Adigéry 09.03.22

Tash & Kate were back on the Soho Radio airwaves playing loads of new music from some of their favourite female, non-binary and LGBTQ+ artists. Sadly Mari couldn’t make it into the studio, but offered some of her “musical musings” too.

French-born, Belgian-Caribbean musician Charlotte Adigéry also joined them to talk about her debut album Topical Dancer, which she worked on with Bolis Pupul, and the power of joy and laughter when it comes to making art about your own life experiences. Baby Rocco also had his say!

Listen back below:

Tracklist
Eurythmics & Aretha Franklin – Sisters Are Doin’ It For Themselves
Adrianne Lenker – Symbol
Julia-Sophie – Dial Your Number
t l k – IWNU
Fraulein – Drag Behind
A.A. Williams – Melt
PET Wife – Alone
Ailsa Tully – Salt Glaze
Tomberlin – happy accident
ROBYN & Neneh Cherry ft. Mapei – Buffalo Stance
Pongo – Doudou
My Idea – Crutch
CMAT – Every Bottle Is My Boyfriend
After London – Here, Tonite
Charlotte Adigéry x Bolis Pupul – Ceci n’est pas un cliché
**Interview with Charlotte Adigéry**
Tirzah – Tectonic
Hannah Schneider – Mirror Sphere
Big Thief – Little Things
Muna Ileiwat – Stuck
Petrol Girls – Baby, I Had An Abortion
SASAMI & No Home – Squeeze
KIN – Cosmos
Amaroun – Brown Skin Beauty
Cate Le Bon – Remembering Me
Queen Latifah ft. Monie Love – Ladies First

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LISTEN: Blue Loop – ‘Kodama / Pan’

Inspired by the conflicting states of mind she experienced during 2020’s winter lockdown, London-based producer Blue Loop has shared two new singles, ‘Kodama’ and ‘Pan’. Following on from her debut single ‘Before It Begins‘, the double A-side marks a progression in Blue Loop’s sound, venturing into new sonic territory but retaining her polished and considered approach. Both tracks were mixed by Omni Collective’s Joy Stacey and mastered by Stephen Kerrison at Tall Trees Audio Mastering.

Named after the forest spirits of the Studio Ghibli film Princess Mononoke, ‘Kodama’ is a soothing, graceful composition. The track fuses electronic and orchestral elements together – including clarinet improvisations by Rose Ford – to provide a tranquil tonic for tired minds. Second track ‘Pan’ is designed to awaken and distract, with its Jungle/Drum & Bass inspired beats and choppy, techno synths. Opening with samples of street drummers and cathedral bells which Blue Loop collected in France and Portugal in autumn 2020, the track’s pulsing, driving rhythm is complimented by her use of intermittent atmospheric synth patterns.

Together, ‘Kodama’ and ‘Pan’ represent the duality of experience. Blue Loop explores the space in between “light and dark, motion and stillness, tension and release” through these new soundscapes, and she does so with effortless flair.

Listen to ‘Kodama’ and ‘Pan’ below.

 

Follow Blue Loop on bandcamp, Spotify, Twitter, Facebook & Instagram

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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EP: BLAB – ‘Word Of Mouth’

The sound of what happens when you fully embrace your choices and lean into the raw power each moment, Southend-based musician Francis Murray aka BLAB has shared her debut EP, Word Of Mouth. Released via Cool Thing Records and formed of three previously released singles and a brand new track, BLAB combines direct lyrics with infectious riffs to push past personal and political frustrations, providing her listeners with sharply observed judgments on both.

Fuelled by her disdain for current political policies, opener ‘Eton Mess’ is a rumbling “anti-fascist anthem” that proudly sticks two fingers up to the establishment. It’s one of two tracks that see BLAB take aim at the crushing nature of conformity, with the restless ‘Insurance’ providing another dose of much needed eye-rolling at conventional ideas of power and success.

It’s on new “anti-love song” ‘If Only’ and astrology-inspired single ‘Gemini’ that BLAB is at her strongest – refreshingly vulnerable with her revelations, but still retaining her rebellious attitude. Lyrically, ‘If Only’ is littered with hetero-normative paraphernalia, culminating in the realisation that you can’t rely on someone else to be the foundation of your happiness. On ‘Gemini’, she filters the pain of unrequited love through an astrological lens, combining catchy riffs with her bittersweet lyrics to work through her mixed feelings.

On Word Of Mouth, BLAB cuts through barbed emotional moments, softens unsettling realisations and firmly communicates her anti-establishment, anti-ego message. “I’m not even really consciously trying to do anything,” BLAB comments about her EP, “I’m just doing what I want, writing what I love and talking about my life.” This approach to song-writing reaffirms the narratives of independence within her music, and we can’t wait to hear more of it in the near future.

Listen to Word Of Mouth below.

Follow BLAB on Spotify, Instagram, Twitter & Facebook

Photo Credit: James Mannion

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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