Promoting and Supporting Women in Music
The fifth in our ‘Comic Reviews’ feature – where illustrator Sally-Anne responds to a new track with her wonderfully unique drawings – we checked out the seething new single from London duo, and GIHE faves, Deux Furieuses.
My War Is Your War, the upcoming album from Deux Furieuses, is out on 18th October via Xtra Mile Recordings. Watch the new video for ‘Year Of Rage’ below:
Sally-Anne Hickman
@sallyshinystars
Having previously wowed us with their kaleidoscopic offerings, including EP Someone Else To Blame and the hypnotic psychedelia of their last single ‘Helen Is A Reptile’, GIHE fave Jemma Freeman and The Cosmic Something has now joined Trapped Animal Records, along with the likes of The Baby Seals and Kerry Devine.
To celebrate, they have shared brand new single ‘Find A Place’. Comprised of two different recorded mono performances of the track, both mixed together to form the stereo version, it instantly captivates the ears with its fuzzy whirr, twinkling hooks and the distinctive soaring majesty of Jemma’s vocals. Another spellbinding offering from JFATCS, ‘Find A Place’ oozes a swirling, ethereal haze, building to a powerful outpouring of emotion. Of the track, Jemma explains:
“The song is about feeling empowered and finding your stage, or a place where you fit in aphysically and psychologically. The concept of the song itself is about the duality of our internal and external representations of ourselves. The idea of feeling empowered and the external image finally matching with my internal narrative. I’ve always felt genderless or imbued with maleness when I play live, but it wasn’t until I performed in drag that I felt I could access those parts of me. For those elements to align was a powerful experience. The kind of cathartic nature of finally presenting your most inner power very publicly and using what could be paranoia or undermining thoughts to your advantage.”
Produced by Mark Estall, ‘Find A Place’ is out 2nd August via Trapped Animal Records/Cargo Records. Oh Really, What’s That Then?, the upcoming album from Jemma Freeman and The Cosmic Something, is set for release later this year.
Mari Lane
@marimindles
An upbeat, dreamy, pop-infused reflection on the nature of the image we project; Joviale has shared her latest single ‘Taste Of The Heavens’. Inspired by the Greek myth of Narcissus, the track is taken from her upcoming debut EP Crisis, which is set to be released via Blue Flowers on 6th September.
“It’s easy to get trapped in someone else’s projection of themselves based on what you’re looking for, or think you want and deserve” Joviale explains. “That feeling of obsessional focus becomes what you become dependent on, like whatever substance one needs to function be it: a social/professional situation or your morning routine. It’s easy to become so overtaken by certain habits you don’t realise they exist…until you relieve yourself from them”.
Joviale’s thoughtful lyricism and laid back melodies are what make tracks like ‘Taste Of The Heavens’ so enchanting. Influenced by cinema, the African music from her childhood, and great vocalists such as Billie Holiday and Janis Joplin, Joviale is able to cut and stitch these elements together to create her own intuitive sound. Listen to ‘Taste Of The Heavens’ below and follow Joviale on Facebook for more updates.
Photo Credit: Bernice Mulenga
Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut
A ruthless, beguiling take on the forces that influence and overwhelm us; ZAMILSKA‘s latest release Uncovered is a densely hypnotic record permeated by the artist’s fascination with levitation. The result is thirteen richly textured tracks that seethe with “the anxiety of what we want vs what we get”.
Following 2016’s Undone and 2014’s Untune, Uncovered is the third in a trilogy marking ZAMILSKA’s progression from an unknown artist in to an emerging talent that cannot be overlooked. At times chilling, at times enchanting, ZAMILSKA’s industrial-techno hybrid is ruled by the need to purge ones self of negativity: “It’s about getting something out, to be able to start again, to rise” she explains. That urge is evident in both the sound and the artwork on Uncovered (see image above), which is an apt visual metaphor for the way her music lifts and suspends at unexpected intervals.
Pounding beats, ticks, sporadic bells, inaudible voice samples and relentlessly jagged synths are carefully staggered throughout opening track ‘Message’. Second track ‘Dolls’ hosts lighter percussion, but the same unnerving feeling permeates this and following track ‘Hospital’. It’s a nightmarish affair that pre-empts brief interlude ‘Still’, before bleeding in to ‘Hollow’, which combines melodic and industrial elements in beautiful yet brutal fashion.
The aptly named ‘Gape’ is overshadowed by the quiet fury of ‘Alive’, on which ZAMILSKA intermittently seethes “She’s a girl who can eat you alive”. ‘Delusion’ teases with its lighter synth sounds providing a welcome respite from the harshness of previous tracks, before bleeding in to ‘Prisoner’. Its warped synths and slow, unsettling beats are reminiscent of The Downward Spiral era Nine Inch Nails – a band ZAMILSKA has openly confessed an obsession with, and who in turn have championed her on their own Spotify playlist.
The pulverizing beats on ‘Blind’ act as an audible purge, whilst final three tracks – ‘Back’,’Front’,’Done’- feel less weighty, like a sonic resurrection. ZAMILSKA’s ability to orchestrate a record about “floating upwards, not about falling down” whilst exploring the sonic space between feels effortless, and Uncovered is a stunning third offering from this promising Producer.
Buy your copy of ZAMILSKA’s new album Uncovered here.
ZAMILSKA UK Tour Dates 2019
02/08/19 – The Shacklewell Arms, London
03/08/19 – Visions Festival, London
Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut
Get In Her Ears 