LISTEN: Suzie Stapleton re-releases ‘Thylacine’ to raise money for Australian Wildlife

Previous headliner of ours at The Finsbury, Suzie Stapleton, has announced a special digital release to raise funds to help injured and displaced wildlife affected by the Australian fires. This digital release of Stapleton’s latest single ‘Thylacine’ comes with an exclusive, previously unreleased track called ‘Song of Murray’s Brigade’.

A musical adaptation of a 1940 poem by Australian bush poet Banjo Paterson, ‘Song Of Murray’s Brigade’ is a heartfelt acoustic offering. Whereas ‘Thylacine’ features Rolling drums and adventurous riffs painting a sonic landscape complete with Stapleton’s captivating gritty vocals and a majestic, haunting depth.

The thylacine, also known as the Tasmanian Tiger, was a dog like mammal that inhabited Australia. Intensive hunting encouraged by bounties is generally blamed for its extinction. The last known thylacine died in captivity in 1936. Many of the species that have been affected by these fires were already threatened or endangered due to factors such as habitat loss from land clearing for agriculture and urban development, invasive species, and pressures from extreme heat caused by climate change and ongoing drought. These fires pose a huge threat for their ongoing survival, but we still have a chance to help and ensure that they don’t end up in the history books next to the thylacine.

This digital release is available for £5, though you can pay what you want and there is no upper limit. 100% of proceeds will go to Wildlife Victoria. Please give generously to help Australia’s unique wildlife.

Available via http://www.suziestapleton.com and Bandcamp until January 31st.

Mari Lane
@marimindles

Photo Credit: Pitcher Photography

 

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LISTEN: Katie Gately – ‘Waltz’

Inspired by one of her Mother’s favourite artists, Leonard Cohen; Katie Gately‘s new track ‘Waltz’ is a haunting, powerful call to arms encouraging listeners to dance, even in the midst of overwhelming grief.

The track is lifted from Gately’s upcoming album Loom, which is set for release via Houndstooth on 14th February. The record is dedicated to Gately’s Mother, who passed away in 2018 due to a sudden onset of a particularly aggressive form of cancer. The electronic musician & producer has channelled her grief into these new songs, and ‘Waltz’ is one example of how transformative this can be.

After listening to Leonard Cohen’s track ‘Take This Waltz’ on repeat for an entire day, Gately was inspired to write ‘Waltz’. The accompanying video directed by Samantha Shay was shot at an abandoned Catholic convent, and features modern dancer Bobbi Jene Smith opposite Gately, who appears in her own video for the very first time.

“When you see me, I am already gone” muses Gately at the beginning of the track, as Jene Smith performs her primal, urgent, crooked choreography around the stark walls of the convent. Speaking about the track, and the accompanying visuals, Gately explains further: “When I listen, I see images that correlate to a zebra on a bad LSD trip. But I feel that its absurdity honours the chaos of losing someone you love more than time, space or measure. And so perhaps my message is: it’s okay to feel like a drunk zebra when your heart is breaking. Or, to quote the far greater poet Leonard Cohen: “When things get really bad, just raise your glass and stamp your feet and do a little jig. That’s about all you can do.””

Gately’s admirable outlook and bravery in writing and recording the video for ‘Waltz’ didn’t go unnoticed by Director Samantha Shay. “When I work with a musician, there is a wide spectrum to feelings about being filmed or photographed, and Katie expressed that she didn’t feel comfortable on camera,” she explains. “The day of the shoot, I asked Katie if she wanted to be challenged as a performer or not, and she practically demanded it of me. What resulted was absolutely magnetic. She wilfully and bravely let her walls collapse in front of us, and this video, to me, is a powerful portrait of her.”

And what a beguiling, intense portrait it is. Watch the video for ‘Waltz’ below and follow Katie Gately on Facebook & Spotify for more updates.

Katie Gately UK Live Dates 2020
April 1st – London’s Cafe Oto

Photo Credit: Steve Gullick

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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LISTEN: CIEL – ‘The Shore’

A gentle, fuzzy, alt-pop gem; Brighton-based band CIEL‘s latest single ‘The Shore’ is a dreamy rumination about seizing the moment, and not letting life pass you by. The single is taken from the band’s debut EP, Movement, which is set for release this spring.

Formed of Dutch musician Michelle Hindriks and the friends she made when she relocated to Brighton, CIEL enlisted the help of Producer Jack Wolter (Penelope Isles) to help them create the atmospheric sounds on ‘The Shore’. Hindriks’ pensive vocals float above beguiling guitars, snappy beats, and blissed out synths, reflecting the waves of thought she sings about.

Hindriks explains further: “The song is about a moment where you feel stuck in your life and are waiting for it to ‘really’ begin; yet at the same time, you realise it’s just an illusion and your life has already begun, and you’re living it right now. Losing the connection with that essence can feel extremely frustrating”.

CIEL have supported the likes of Hatchie, Sasami and Penelope Isles, and are set to play more shows over the coming months. Listen to ‘The Shore’ below, and follow the band on Facebook and Spotify for more updates.

Photo Credit: Jantina Talsma

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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Track Of The Day: Indian Queens – ‘Bubblewrap’

A beguiling lament about the state of the planet, London three-piece Indian Queens have shared their latest single, ‘Bubble Wrap’. The track is lifted from their upcoming debut album God Is A Woman, which is set to be released via Cool Thing Records later this year.

Formed of sisters Jennifer (guitar/vocals) and Katherine (bass) O’Neill, and lifelong friend Matthew Dudan-Bick (drums), Indian Queens were born and raised in Hackney Wick. Influenced by the restless city that surrounds them, the trio’s soundscapes reflect both the darkness and the light on a personal, and a universal scale.

Underscored by a genuine fear surrounding the current climate crisis, ‘Bubblewrap’ smolders with its dense beats, atmospheric guitar and Jennifer’s captivating vocals. “We were born in plastic bags / conveniently stored / bubble-wrapped indoors”, she muses in the chorus, conjuring up images of over-protection and suffocation. Despite the track’s haunting context, Indian Queens still manage to lull their listeners into acceptance, and hopefully into action against the forces escalating climate change.

2019 saw Indian Queens invited to play Robert Smith’s Meltdown at Southbank Centre, sharing a line-up with Nine Inch Nails and My Bloody Valentine. If they continue to release music as compelling as their latest single, 2020 looks set to be another successful year for the trio. Listen to ‘Bubblewrap’ below, and follow Indian Queens on Facebook & Spotify for more updates.

Photo Credit: Kana Waiwaiku

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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