Five Favourites: Jen Cloher

Having been a big fan of Australian artist Jen Cloher for a number of years now, I was excited to hear that they’re set to release a new album next month. Our first taster from the album, latest single ‘Mana Takatāpui‘ offers a blissful celebration of the indigenous Polynesian people of Aotearoa, New Zealand, the Māori LGBTQ+ community. Showcasing Jen’s trademark luscious soothing vocals alongside a shimmering musicality, it builds with an uplifting energy to a truly joyous unifying anthem.

We think one of the best ways to get to know an artist is by asking what music inspires them. So, to celebrate the release of Jen Cloher’s upcoming album, we caught up with them to ask about the music that has inspired them the most. So, read about their five favourite ever albums, and check out the beautifully empowering video for single ‘Mana Takatāpui‘ below…

PJ Harvey – To Bring You My Love
There’s an incredible in-depth podcast (in 2 parts) with the legendary music critic Ann Powers where she covers every PJ Harvey album, collaboration and movie soundtrack with the loving attention to detail that an artist of PJ’s magnitude deserves. I came away realising 3 things – that To Bring You My Love is my favourite of her albums (and that’s a tough call), that PJ paved the way for the incredible influence women have on guitar rock music today and that Ann Powers brings the kind of intelligence and reflection we all dream music critics would bring to our work. Go checkout this Bandsplain podcast episode, it’s a treat.

Gillian Welch – Time (The Revelator)
The first time I saw Gillian Welch and David Rawlings play was at a club in Melbourne. I went in with high expectations as I’d fallen in love with the songs on the album in a way where they feel like they’re yours and you hope the artist doesn’t ruin them for you! Lols. I needn’t have worried. David Rawlings’ guitar playing alone floored me. For the first time in my life I felt an inkling of what it might have been like to watch Jimi Hendrix play live – guitar and human as one. This album is simple – two acoustic guitars, vocal harmonies and great songs. It’s a masterpiece.

The Doors – LA Woman
The Doors were my first teen band crush. I ‘discovered’ Jim Morrison when I was 13 and spent the next three years listening to and reading anything Doors related that I could get my hands on. I even had a life size Jim Morrison poster above my bed – the topless one with the beads and leather pants. Was Jim Morrison one of the few that could pull off leather pants? All teen obsessions aside (it’s weird falling in love with a dead person), The Doors wrote some classic blues rock jams. ‘Riders On The Storm’, ‘Light My Fire’ and ‘Break On Through’ still stand up as classics today.

Aretha Franklin – Lady Soul
This is one of the albums I remember most as a child. My Mum was a mega fan of the great women Soul and Blues singers. From Billie Holiday to Sarah Vaughan, to Ella Fitzgerald, there were always powerful voices floating up from the turntable in our lounge room. ‘Chain of Fools’, ‘Respect’ and ‘Natural Woman’ reimagined by Aretha Franklin still stand as the penultimate versions of these classics.

Te Kaahu O Rangi – s/t
Te Kaahu is the waiata Māori project of pop artist Theia who is based in Aotearoa, New Zealand. Theia grew up speaking and writing songs in her native tongue Te reo Māori and collaborated with me on my new album. We wrote a song together called ‘He Toka-Tu-Moana’ – which means to stand strong like a rock in the ocean. Her debut Te Kaahu album (2022) is a beautiful combination of traditional Māori songs with indie folk pop leanings. She pulls it off effortlessly.


Massive thanks to Jen for sharing their Five Favourites with us!

I Am The River, The River Is Me, the upcoming new album from Jen Cloher, is set for release on 3rd March via Milk! Records / Marathon Artists. Watch the beautiful video for latest single ‘Mana Takatāpui‘ here:


Photo Credit: Marcelle Bradbeer

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EP: wormboys – ‘smalltime’

Infused with the intense vulnerability they are fast becoming known for, smalltime is the latest EP from wormboys. The Leeds-based four-piece have a distinct sound that mixes an eccentric mashup of genres into a unique experimental style. The EP is made up of three tracks – ‘something pretty’, ‘worm’ and ‘tree’.

‘something pretty’ kicks off with a solid rhythm; the throbbing bass riff and steady drum beat settle in before the screaming guitar leaps in over the top. Higher pitched vocals ring clear above the growling combination of drums and strings, whilst the vocals wail over the grungy, fuzzy music – a howling tribute to queer hedonism. The lyrics and instruments blend in a way that swirls and flows, evoking smoke and glowsticks and swaying movements that aren’t quite balanced, but aren’t quite ready to topple over either. The track draws you into the intoxicating moment it depicts, then spits you out at the other end wishing for it back.

The next track, ‘worm’, is softer; low strings twinkle gently over a subtler beat. The little tune is almost mournful as deeper vocals carry the lyrics, soft and low, drifting like mist. A second vocal – higher, this time – highlights the melody in a distant, ghostly cry whilst in the background there are crackles that almost sound as if there might be something wrong with your speaker. They ramp up as the song gathers energy into a raw, powerful wail of guitar. Upon a repeat listen, those early crackles are wonderfully foreboding. The combination of the soft vocals and the guitars sound like a trapped scream, as it needles into your head with its fierce sense of neurosis and paranoia. This is a great track for showing off the band’s experimental side, using homemade pedals to create a unique distortion on the strings – it is distinctly wormboys, blasting the honest emotion already at the core of their sound.

Finally, we reach ‘tree’, which chugs to a throbbing start that echoes the distorted crackle of the last track, then drifts into a fuller, rounder tune. It has brighter chords and a simple but catchy riff played over strings that dance around each other. Although it couldn’t be called cheerful, the opening bars are misleadingly bouncy. When the vocals kick in, they are pained, ripping through the false pep and thrusting the feeling into the song – if it didn’t fit so perfectly with the rest of the track, you might imagine the vocal line is unprepared. It sounds spontaneous, spilling out all the pain without plan or direction. The music drops away to let the outburst shine, leaving a sense of isolation in the verses until the instruments leap back in for chorus with a harder punch.

As a whole, smalltime combines three exciting tracks to create a fantastic platform to launch wormboys into the next stage of their career. The EP shows off a huge range of skill in just three short tracks, showing off both a mastery of popular styles as well as an undeniable talent for creating altogether new sounds. 

Kirstie Summers
@actuallykurt

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NEW TRACK: Earthlung – ‘Joy¿’

A raucously relatable post punk tune that questions the mundane nature of everyday life, Brighton-based Earthlung have shared their latest single ‘Joy¿’. Full of sardonic spoken-word style vocals, cutting lyrics and distorted riffs, the band search for meaning and relief amidst the mind-numbingly ordinary tasks we undertake in order to keep living our best lives.

Formed of Ebony Grace (vocals & synth), Charles Backer (drums), Folly den Toom (guitar & production) and current bassist Alex Rushmer, Earthlung decided to experiment with their usual 80s-influenced pop sound on their new single. “Although our existing catalogue takes influence mostly from Ambient/Pop, with this track we fully embraced a Post Punk sound,” the band explain. Recorded in the Netherlands at Folly’s Low Road Studios, inspiration for ‘Joy’ sprang from moments of playful ridicule, and evolved into a sound that the band all wanted to embrace. Armed with a distorted riff and a disruptive energy, vocalist Ebony was quick to flesh out lyrics for the track.

“It was a matter of minutes before Ebony started mumbling words (whilst basically rolling on the floor),” the band continue. “She quickly grabbed a pizza box (still warm from the pizza consumed just moments earlier) and a pen, writing out most of the lyrics within minutes. In this moment we encouraged her to make it as cynical as possible. This gave such a clear direction to the track that we all instantly knew we didn’t want to over-complicate things. When we tracked it, the vocals were actually recorded through a harp mic with Ebony inverted hanging off a big leather chair.”

Earthlung channeled the track’s manic, direct energy into an accompanying video, which features vocalist Ebony prowling the streets of Brighton, trying not to choke on an insane amount of cornflakes and rum. The visuals perfectly encapsulate both the cynical and the silly sides of ‘Joy¿’.

Watch the video below.

Follow Earthlung on Spotify, Instagram, Tik Tok & Facebook

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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WATCH: Girl Ray – ‘Everybody’s Saying That’

Following the release of 2021’s ‘Give Me Your Love’, London trio (and GIHE faves) Girl Ray have now shared another much-anticipated buoyant new single.

Reflecting on themes of new love and self-doubt, ‘Everybody’s Saying That‘ is propelled by a swirling disco-inspired energy, oozing the band’s colourful charisma and uplifting charm. Flowing with funk-fuelled hooks and a sparkling danceable allure, it showcases the smooth lilt of Poppy Hankin’s distinctive vocals perfectly. Fizzing with all the shimmering blissful zest that we’ve come to know and love from Girl Ray, it’s the perfect Friday anthem; just one listen will elevate your spirits, leaving you ready to hit the dancefloor/roller-disco/bedroom with a revived sense of optimism.

Of the track, Hankin explains:

“The lyrics on this single were inspired by the straight-to-the-heart simplicity of the disco greats. I wrote it while missing my partner while on tour in 2020, and it plays on themes of new love and self-doubt. Musically we took reference from the nu-disco resurgence that seemed to be taking off in 2020, in particular from the likes of Kylie Minogue (Disco), Jessie Ware (What’s Your Pleasure?), Dua Lipa (Future Nostalgia) and Róisín Murphy (Róisín Machine). We were really inspired by all of these women re-imagining disco.”

‘Everybody’s Saying That’ is accompanied by a joyous Studio 54-inspired new video, directed by Alice Harding. Watch it here:

‘Everybody’s Saying That’ is produced by Poppy Hankin and Ben H Allen (M.I.A, Christina Aguilera), and is out now via Moshi Moshi Records.

Mari Lane
@marimindles

Photo Credit: Chiara Gambuto

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