Five Favourites: Nervous Twitch

Having previously wowed us with their uptempo colourful energy live at The Finsbury, and following the joyous, uplifting punk-pop of last year’s ‘Tongue Tied’, Leeds trio Nervous Twitch have just released their eponymous fourth album, out now via Reckless Yes.

We think one of the best ways to get to know a band is by asking what music inspires them or influences their writing. So, we caught up with Erin from Nervous Twitch to discuss the five songs that have made the biggest mark on her. Check out her choices below, and watch the video for latest single ‘Alright Lads’ at the end of this article.

The Vaselines – ‘Monsterpussy’
The Vaselines do the finest scuzzy pop songs. I had ‘The Way of the Vaselines’ on repeat for a large proportion of the writing for our latest album, so I think that it’s woven into the sound of the album.

Josie Cotton – ‘He Could Be the One’
I feel like I was really late to discover Josie Cotton, considering how much of an obsessive I’ve become, but hey, it’s always good discovering a new to you band with a full back catalogue of hits! She’s got bags of style, the best kind of high-end pop voice (I really wish I had!), and writes some fantastic hits. The stabbing electronic organ intro to this song is great and it has an ace running bass line (I really should learn that!). I love power-pop, and how it lies somewhere in-between bubble-gum pop, rock and roll, punk and new wave; all the best genres in one!

Helen Love – ‘2000MPHGIRL’
I think in this day and age it’s really difficult to be completely original, but that’s something Helen Love surpasses. Her songs do have a sound that echoes the time of their release, but they always sound fresh every time I give them a spin. On paper the mix of styles sound like they shouldn’t go well together, but every track has a great balance of uniqueness whilst remaining a completely excellent pop song. I really could have picked any Helen Love song – they’re all so infectious!

Supercharger – ‘It’s Alright’
1990s garage punk is one of my favourite genres of music. Energetic raw and ready sound with a good dose of rock and roll. Karen’s primitive drumming style with the in-the-red guitars gives Supercharger a great sound. The perfect antidote to the autotuned world we live in today.

Southern Culture on the Skids – ‘Just How Lonely’
This is such a beautiful song. I learnt it over the summer, mainly because the guitar chords were easy to play (ha ha!), but it’s got so much heart and Mary really has a great voice for it. Musically, I think I’m more influenced by how they (Southern Culture on the Skids) craft their songs over the style of music they make, but I always admire how well they manage to present an overflowing mixed bag of influences from punk to bluegrass, and everything is done with such style, ease, and finesse. I was lucky enough to catch them live in Spain a few years back and they were hands down one of the best bands I’ve ever seen.

Thanks so much to Erin from Nervous Twitch for sharing her Five Favourites with us! Watch the new video for latest single ‘Alright Lads’ here:

Nervous Twitch, the new album, is out now on Reckless Yes. Order on vinyl, CD or digital via bandcamp now.

Photo Credit: Roz Doherty

mariangelicalane1 Comment

Five Favourites: Venus Grrrls

Having previously supported the likes of Anteros and Bloxx, and following the release of their debut EP last year, Leeds rockers Venus Grrrls have now shared a brand new single. Reflecting on the stereotypes surrounding ‘goth culture’ and witchcraft, ‘Goth Girl’ is a fiercely catchy anthem, propelled by a swirling, seething energy and the soaring power of front woman GK’s vocals.

We think one of the best ways to get to know a band is by asking what music inspires them or influences their writing. So, we caught up with the whole of Venus Grrrls – GK, Grace, Gabby, Hannah and Jess – to discuss the five songs that have made the biggest mark on them. Check out their choices below, and listen to the band’s new single ‘Goth Girl’ at the end of this article

GK (Vocals):
Heart – ‘Barracuda’
Ann Wilson’s vocals just speak to me in a way that many other vocalists don’t. The power and the intensity she holds with her unstoppable vibrato, communicates complete and utter certainty in herself. That’s something I’m constantly trying to channel through my own musicianship.

Grace (Synths):
Grimes – ‘Oblivion’
The way Grimes uses the synth here really inspired me when it came to composing when I was a teenager. ‘Oblivion’ is something I always go back to when writing, or if I’m suffering with any type of writers’ block. It helps to clear my mind and not overthink things.

Gabby (Drums):
Arcane Roots – ‘Curtains’
I always think about this song because it starts off reserved and raw, but then grows into this big intense huge ending, which I love. It was song that got me into drumming in the first place, I’m a huge fan of playing around with dynamics.

Hannah (Bass):
Sonic Youth – ‘Kool Thing’
This song is important to me because Kim Gordon manages to be the main component of the song, but by being so simple and understated. She doesn’t insist on complexity, and the power of this is highly effective and is something I always think back to.

Jess (Guitar):
The Runaways- ‘You Drive Me Wild’
A song that has massively influenced my playing, specifically in Venus Grrrls is ‘You Drive Me Wild’ by The Runaways. Lita Ford’s solo in this track just stands out to me as so cool sounding, it’s unlike anyone else’s playing and has so much style. It’s something I always come back to for inspiration when I’m writing my own solos.

‘Goth Girl’ is out now, listen on Spotify.

 

Photo Credit: Milly Hewitt

Get In Her Ears1 Comment

Five Favourites: Kama Vardi

Having spent a nomadic youth travelling, experimenting and creating, Tel Aviv based artist Kama Vardi has released a stream of solo material to much acclaim, and is now set to release her new album this week.

Showcasing Vardi’s unique sparkling majesty, the collection is filled with a beguiling allure and captivating mysticism as the shimmering splendour of Vardi’s distinctive vocals flows throughout each strikingly beautiful offering.

We think one of the best ways to get to know an artist is by asking what music inspires them or influences their writing. So, we caught up with Kama to discuss the five songs that inspire her the most. Have a read and watch her latest video for ‘The Gate’ below. 

Nina Simone – ‘Stars’ 
My first choice is this brilliant, heart breaking live version of Janis Ian’s song ‘Stars’, performed by Nina Simone. Nina Simone’s life was not a simple one, to put it lightly, and when you listen to her play this song you get it all – you mourn that life of glory with her, you make peace with her pain; you see her as she really is – a true performer. Simone is known for never leaving the stage, not for a moment, and when you watch this show, and you witness her breathtaking personality as it’s showing here, full of kindness and anger, you realise why. 

Syd Barrett – ‘Dark Globe’
Even though I rarely listen to Syd Barrett anymore, I had to put him in this list. Barrett was one of the first artists I ever got deeply into, and definitely the one that influenced me in the most meaningful way. His raw nature and wild, intuitive writing and performance got me from the first second. Barrett is not the relatable kind. He is not Joni Mitchell who wrote all her songs just for you, nor is he Tom Waits who will pull you from your deepest pits with a cuddle. But he will expand your horizons in a very real way, he will put you in a foreign land and stay with you there. This song, also called ‘Wouldn’t You Miss Me?’, is a perfect example of Syd Barrett’s world; a gorgeously hectic, beautifully broken, dazzling world.

Joanna Newsom – ‘Sawdust and Diamonds’
I admit, when I first heard Joanna Newsom I didn’t believe her. All I could hear was squeaks and, despite everyone around me praising it, I just couldn’t buy it. But then I broke up with my then boyfriend and band mate, and something about being twenty and alone cracked me wide open, and I decided to give it another chance. I sat down to listen to her album YS, and when I did I just couldn’t believe I couldn’t hear it before – it was so gorgeous, so profound; I listened to it on repeat for a week, waking up every morning excited to press play again, and when it reached a boiling point I sat down and within one sleepless week wrote my entire first solo album. It’s hard to pick just one song from this album, but ‘Sawdust & Diamonds” is a good one to start with. The words are everything in these songs, so reading them as you listen is very good advice. Here is a quote from that song, for appetite:
“I wasn’t born of a whistle or milked from a thistle at twilight
No; I was all horns and thorns, sprung out fully formed, knock-kneed and upright
So enough of this terror, we deserve to know light
And grow evermore lighter and lighter
You would have seen me through but I could not undo that desire…“

Oren Lavie – ‘Note to Self’
Sometimes you hear a song and you immediately feel so close to the person singing, you’re sure you and them are meant to be, and if you only got to meet each other you’d fall in love, become best friends, live happily ever after. I know that isn’t usually true; it’s disappointing, but artists are often very different on their canvas than in person.
Nevertheless, after I heard Oren Lavie’s ‘Note to Self’ I had to find out. I got his number and asked him out for a drink, and that drink turned into a night of wandering the streets together, which turned into the greatest love of my life to date. Oren Lavie is one of the most exciting, honest and timeless songwriters I know, with a voice so deep and soothing you’re gonna want to forget yourself in his arms every night, which I strongly recommend. 

Tom Waits – ‘Looking For The Heart Of Saturday Night’
When you’re young and seeking adventure, everything means something: the street lights flickering, your cousin calling, your weekly pay – all these things are like clues to help you find it. When you grow up you start filtering, you just can’t afford the waste, you don’t have time. But Tom Waits didn’t write this song when he was seventeen and this agelessness is one of the things I love about him. He could write a convincing fifty year old when he was twenty three, and he can capture this teen spirit as an adult. When I first listened to ‘Looking For The Heart Of Saturday Night’ I was a deeply committed youth participant myself, and I was drawn to this world he described like a moth to the flame. A world that is happening, the real thing. And he helped me up there, and still is. 

Massive thanks to Kama Vardi for sharing her five favourites with us!

Moonticket, the upcoming new album from Kama Vardi, is out 27th November via Bread For Eskimos.

Photo Credit: Goni Riskin

Get In Her EarsLeave a comment

FIVE FAVOURITES: anrimeal

“I never gave gender much thought before this album,” Porto-born, London-based artist anrimeal explains about her new release, Could Divine. Described as a “computer folk” record exploring the use of texture, limitation and repetition, anrimeal’s new record is inspired by the work of Eva Hesse and other women artists who pioneered the post-minimalism movement.

“I’d always felt alienated by concepts of womanhood, especially the notion that women exist under nature’s control,” anrimeal continues. “[But] seeing women use nature at the forefront of their work, not afraid to create art that could be seen as messy or dirty helped me reconcile those feelings, and motivated me to explore the less conventionally beautiful side of things.” Written, performed, mixed and mastered by anrimeal from home, Could Divine is a beautiful insight into the mind of a flourishing new artist.

We think one of the best ways to get to know an artist is by asking what music inspired them to write in the first place. We caught up with anrimeal to ask about her “Five Favourites” – five albums that have inspired her song-writing techniques. Speaking about her choices, anrimeal explains: “These are far from deep cuts, but really albums that not only do I know front to back, but also signposted some or other pivotal moments in my life.”

Check out her favourite albums below and scroll down to listen to anrimeal’s latest single ‘Encaustic Witches’ at the end of this post. You can also catch anrimeal and her musical collaborator Freda D’Souza performing a live improv session from home on Youtube at 6pm tonight. (Link here)

 

1. James Blake – James Blake
I remember buying this album on CD when i was 17 and spending entire days during Easter break lying down in my bedroom, looking at the ceiling and just listening. I think it was my first proper introduction to ambience in music, to a sound landscape that was as rich as the actual songwriting. And one of those things I just couldn’t unlisten. From then on, texture became the most important thing to me in music, a language of its own. There was something so personal about the sonic world James built in this album. I don’t think I’d been exposed to a truly DIY record before this one, and it really changed my perception of music as a medium, and ended up informing the way I like to create music today.

2. Grouper – The Man Who Died In His Boat
Liz Harris, I mean – her music changed my life. Listening to The Man Who Died In His Boat for the first time was like being shown the inside of my brain. The album was sent to me along with Animal Collective’s Sung Tongs with a message of this sort “if you like delay, then you might like these”. This was an even deeper dive into ambient music, and maybe the first time I felt like I could fully relate to what an artist was trying to put out. There’s a dark gentleness in her records, that I’ve only ever felt with music made by women. A kind of understated submerged darkness that is constant and calm. Not depressing nor effusive, just constant.

3. Animal Collective – Sung Tongs
Animal Collective!!!! Field recordings, adaptations of the aesthetics and energy of traditional music, beautifully poetic but slightly absurd lyrics, moments of chaos and of quiet introspection. Seriously, what does this album not have? I can’t say Sung Tongs reflects me exactly, but I think it showed me a side of life that I wasn’t very familiar with before. Having been educated in a strict classical music setting, I needed Animal Collective to show me that there was a fun side to music after all. The clouds opened to the sun like eyelids, and I owe it to this album. I’ve since become a devoted fan of Avey Tare’s catalogue, and I carry this upbeat and earthy world very dearly with me, as a kind of companion.

4. Kanye West – Yeezus
I was so arrested by this album, the first time I listened to it I was petrified and started sweating. It was completely different from anything I’d ever listened to before, it was so bold and genre-bending. I think I use this record a lot to remind me that I can do anything I want with my music. I very much appreciate Kanye’s commitment to art and unhindered self-expression.

5. Sufjan Stevens – Age Of Adz
Even though I was a fan of Sufjan for a long time, Age Of Adz was definitely an acquired taste, an album that sunk in really slowly with time. Again, it’s such a bold piece of work, so well crafted that its existence almost seems impossible to me. There are almost no words to describe this album, maybe just to say that it is a testament to true passion for the art of songwriting. If anything, Sufjan’s music makes me want to experience life with more care, so that I can find his detail in my own reality.

Thanks to anrimeal for sharing her favourites with us.
Listen to her new single ‘Encaustic Witches’ below.

Follow anrimeal on bandcamp, Spotify, Twitter, Facebook & Instagram for more updates.

Kate CrudgingtonLeave a comment