LIVE: Tanita Tikaram @ Royal Festival Hall, 15.11.2025

I think I’ve written before about how much of an influence on my musical tastes my dad has been. Growing up – whether at home, or in the car on long journeys up to Birmingham to see my grandma, or down to Cornwall for the summer – there was always music playing. Sounds ranging from ‘60s rock to ‘90s trip-hop, and everything in-between, I was able to experience an eclectic sonic smorgasbord from a very young age. One of the more ‘in-between’, genre-defying sounds that we would frequently enjoy together was Tanita Tikaram’s 1988 album, Ancient Heart. Even as a young child, the deep gravelly tones of her vocals, soaring alongside the lilting folk-tinged musicality, seemed to really take hold. I have so many memories of both singing along with my dad, and then later as a teen – after stealing the CD for my own collection – seeking catharsis in the sweeping raw emotion and striking lyricism whilst listening on my walkman on the way to school. 

So, when I heard that Tanita Tikaram was playing at Royal Festival Hall as part of the EFG Jazz Festival the same weekend that my parents had planned to come up to London, it seemed like the perfect opportunity for a dad-daughter nostalgic evening out. 

Celebrating the release of her latest album, LIAR (Love Isn’t A Right), Tikaram makes an entrance alongside a host of accomplished musicians, the matching deep orange hues of her shirt and shoes adding to the warm glow that exudes from the stage throughout the entirety of the evening. Opening with ‘World Outside Your Window’, the gently empowering anthem from her debut that – upon its release – showcased Tikaram’s clarity and emotional experience beyond her 19 years, and now highlights the timeless quality of her songwriting as it sounds as resonant and energising as ever, the set continues to perfectly juxtapose the past and present as Tikaram flits between instruments and decades. 

Intricately describing the inspiration behind each song, from young ideals of love to all-encompassing issues such as hopes for the freedom and safety of all people, Tikaram shares an endearing vulnerability as she opens up about her songwriting process and influences, adding a welcome sense of intimacy and rapport to the performance. And musically, from the sweeping strings and majestic grandeur of new album track ‘This Perfect Friend’ and exquisite heartfelt grace of Ancient Heart’s ‘Valentine Heart’ (played as a stripped-back duet between Tikaram and her violinist Helen O’Hara), to the blues-inspired hooks of 2016’s ‘Cool Waters’ and immense beats (thanks to drummer Marc Pell) of 2012’s ‘Heavy Pressure’, she showcases her ability to interweave a variety of different styles into something entirely her own. 

Throughout the evening, Tikaram pays homage to a number of other artists who have influenced her in some way. From sharing that the inspiration behind the name of the new album comes from the Molly Drake (mother of Nick) song ‘Love Isn’t A Right’, and referencing Philip Glass’ ‘Night Train’, to dedicating Nina Simone’s ‘Wild Is The Wind’ to her partner Natasha and joining her cellist Midori Jaeger in a spellbinding rendition of John Martyn’s ‘May You Never’, the passion she feels for music and the songwriting process, and her gratitude for those who’ve come before, clearly shines through from start to finish. And, when she talks about how much of an impact her parents’ record collection has had on her (“luckily they had good taste”), I turn to my dad, feeling extremely lucky to be have been in a similar position, and grateful to be able to share such a special evening of music with him. 

Whilst the performance continues to exude an intimacy throughout, as we gain an insight into Tikaram’s personality and warmth as she shares details like this, she doesn’t lose sight of the bigger picture, of her dedication to using her platform as a musician to expose societal truths and express solidarity with marginalised communities. Having discussed the need for, and comfort to be found in, community earlier in the set, she goes on to recognise that “we have so much more in common than what separates us” before introducing the London Gospel Choir who join her for recent single ‘I See A Morning’; their soaring voices adding a stirring sense of unity to the performance. 

Flowing with an engaging warmth throughout, this wholesome evening not only showcases evidence of Tikaram’s timeless talent as a songwriter and sound ability to orchestrate a band of incredible musicians, but it also seems to offer a beautifully open celebration of her queer identity; each song bringing with it its own unique sense of joy and pride. A sentiment which is highlighted by the fact that she has been raising money for Switchboard (the LGBTQIA+ support line that I volunteer for) with each sale of a special rainbow picture disc of LIAR (Love Isn’t A Right).

Tanita Tikaram’s latest album LIAR (Love Isn’t A Right) is out now.

Mari Lane
@mari_getinherears

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LISTEN: GIHE on Soho Radio with Fightmilk (21.08.25)

For this month’s GIHE show, Mari was joined in the studio by Lily from punk-pop favourites Fightmilk, bringing listeners an eclectic mix of new music tunes from some of their favourite female, non-binary and LGBTQIA+ bands and artists.

They talked about Get In Her Ears’ upcoming 10th Birthday celebration at The Cavendish Arms, the secrets of being in a DIY band, horror films, favourite famous dogs, The Macarena and lots more! The playlist included tunes from Cheerbleederz, Problem Patterns, Pink Shift, Jasmine 4t and more.

Listen back below:


We’ll be back on Soho Radio on Thursday 18th September from 4-6pm (BST)
 Make sure you tune in via DAB or the new Soho Radio app!
You can also listen at www.sohoradiolondon.com

Tracklist
Dolly Parton – Dumb Blonde
Fightmilk – Summer Bodies
Cheerbleederz – I Deserved Better
The Schla La Las – 1234
Problem Patterns – Sad Old Woman
Problem Patterns – Terfs Out
Efemel – Resuscitate
Cowboy Hunters – Breathe (and then you die)
The None – Pigs Need Feeding
adults – discipline
Wiince – Specific Rim
Lande Hekt – Impending Dooming
The Cords – I’m Not Sad
Flinch – I wonder if colin from endocrinology remembers me
Soot Sprite – Wield Your Hope Like A Weapon
Wench! – Yeti Legs
Pinkshift – Vacant
Strange New Places – YATPYFL
Tugboat Captain – Pest Control
Yuppie Supper – Neocanine
Ducks LTD (with Lunar Vacation) – Lloyd, I’m Ready To Be Heartbroken
Jasmine 4t – Woman

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Guest Blog: Queer Cxntry

Saddle Up Y’all! Margate Punk Duo pink suits are bringing their cult night ‘Queer Cxntry’ to Signature Brew in Walthamstow for a FULL DAY TAKEOVER this bank holiday Saturday, 23rd August. Have a read all about it below, make sure you nab tickets, and listen to our special Queer Cxntry playlist to get you in the mood!

Is this your first Rodeo? For those who have not been to or heard of Queer Cxntry, here’s what to expect:

Queer Cxntry is a Country music themed LGBTQIA+ live gig and club night. Hosted by Lori Mae with performances from creators of the night pink suits‘ house band ‘The Northdown Rodeo’, plus drag legends The Cybils and special guest performers and DJs including Donna Poderosa, Izzy Aman and Dolly Parton tribute band, The Dumb Blondes. Audiences are encouraged to get involved! Come dressed to impress in your Cxntry Best for a chance to win the costume contest, join in some games for a chance to win some cxntry lovin’ prizes or jump up on the Rodeo Bull and show us what you got! Get your photos snapped in the iconic rose booth to show off  your outfits, and then dance the night away to country DJs and live music.

So, how did a political punk duo from Margate end up starting a Queer Cxntry night?

There were many things that lead to us starting Queer Cxntry. Lennie has always been really into cowboys, country music and dressing up. Johnny Cash and June Carter; The Highwaymen; Dolly Parton. And they’ve always been obsessed with watching cowboys that their mum loved growing up… Like Kevin Costner in Silverado, and concert videos of Ray Sawyer in Dr Hook and The Medicine Show, who were incredibly intriguing to a young bi boy from Manchester. Ray grew up in the real country, small town Colorado, USA! Surrounded by cowboys and country music, but in a very macho way. If you look closely, country has always been Queer!

More recent influences that directly lead to us starting Queer Cxntry in Margate were:

In late 2016 Lennie went for a piss in the iconic Grand Burstin Hotel in Folkestone. There was a country ‘n’ western night happening in the function room that they watched for a while. It was cute and wholesome, older couples line dancing and partner dancing, dressed in flannel shirts and cowboy hats and dresses and boots. But it was also very straight, and problematic with confederate flags hung on the walls. They thought it would be so great to see a Queer version of this… 

In 2019 Orville Peck exploded into our lives with the debut album Pony. This album, all of the songs, all of the aesthetics of Orville Peck and the music videos just crushed us. It was dark and romantic, and camp and silly, and unapologetically Queer. We were obsessed with all of it. That year we saw Orville Peck play in Leeds, London, Barcelona and Sydney. In Sydney we found a pink cowboy hat in a country store called Route 66 and decided to commit our lives to the Queer Cowboy aesthetic… 

Early 2020, right before the world shut down, there was a karaoke night at Tom Thumb Theatre in Margate. Lennie, newly back from Australia and newly committed to the Queer Country life, did a Cyrus mash up – singing Billy Ray Cyrus ‘Achey Breaky Heart’ dressed as Miley Cyrus in Wrecking Ball. Shelley Grotto was there and absolutely crushed Dolly Parton’s ‘Jolene’ and we said there NEEDS to be a night where we can dress like cowboys and Shelley can sing Jolene with a live band…

In Summer 2021 as venues were opening up again, Sammy from Elsewhere (now WhereElse?) asked us to do a show. We wanted to get audiences back together and back in venues, but we are a punk band and the restrictions were still up and down. No basements, no full gigs, no drums, no moving around, stay seated, wear masks etc, which didn’t scream ‘punk night’. We thought it would be a good opportunity to try out a Queer Country night of audience dress up, some gentle live band country covers, some drag performances. We knew Janet District Council played fiddle, and we met Island Girl on the steps at the beach and talked about banjos, so we put a band together. We had one rehearsal that Lucky Deluz just turned up to out of the blue… Thank the country gods! We sold out, a whole forty tickets, for the first ever Queer Cxntry… The rest, as they say…

Why does country lend itself so well to queerness? Has country always been Queer?

This could take a long long time and a lifetime of discussion, which we are fully committed to having! However, for the sake of ease, we will give you the simple answer. Queers love a dress up! And country is a very camp and very varied dress up… And all of it is hot! The cowboy aesthetic is rugged, butch and macho, it can be eccentric and tabby, sexy or subtle, it works for the L’s, G’s the B’s, the T’s the Q’s. The whole Queer alphabet! Leather is hot. Dungarees are hot. Boots and Saddles and Chaps, bandannas and ropes and tight jeans… it’s ALL GOOOD! And let’s be clear, the straights also love cowboys and the hot masc wrangler… But for Queers it is the subversion of this archetype that is fun and silly and sexy.

But country music is also very Queer. Not the business of country music, and a lot of the people who historically have been successful in it. Not the mainstream idea we have of the country music demographic, that has been unfairly co-opted by ideas of homophobia and misogyny, which is definitely rife in country music. But, at its heart, country music is about the experiences of life, love, loss, family and friends, and contemplating how we spend this time together. It is about heartbreak and beauty and struggles and pain. There is so much in country music that speaks to the Queer experience and – despite this idea that we have about country music not being a place for Queer people – a lot of the champions of country music have always been champions of Queer people and have spoken out about peoples right to live and love freely. I am talking about people like: Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Carrie Underwood, Reba McEntire, The Chicks, Tim McGraw, Brandi Carlisle, Shania Twain, LeAnn Rimes… And now we have many out Queer country artists like: Orville Peck, Paisley Fields, Allison Russell, Amythyst Kiah, Lil Nas X, Dixon Dallas and many more.

Queer people have always been here. In every part of society. That includes country. It includes country music. It includes cowboys and ranchers and farmers and wranglers. There are some great resources out there that go into more historic detail of Queer life in the American West. 

A couple of our favourite Queer Cxntry albums (in addition to everything by Orville Peck’s Pony):

Noah Cyrus – I Want My Loved Ones To Go With Me
Noah Cyrus just dropped one of our favourite albums of all time. It has come out of nowhere and absolutely crushed us. If you do one thing off of the back of this blog, then listen to this album. If you do two things, then listen to the album AND book tickets for the Bank Holiday all dayer!


Allison Russell – Outside Child
We have made this recommendation on GIHE before I believe? But we will never ever stop shouting about this album. It has been four years, and we still listen to it a few times a week. Allison Russell is an unbelievable artist and a wonder to see live! 


A few other must-listen Queer Cxntry songs: 

Lavender Country – ‘Straight White Patterns‘
Mary Gauthier – ‘Drag Queens In Limosines‘
Orville Peck – ‘Hope To Die‘
Paisley Fields – ‘Iowa‘


Like what you’ve heard / seen / read?! Come join the Queer Cxntry revolution at the special All-Dayer event THIS SATURDAY 23RD AUGUST at Signature Brew on Blackhorse Road – tickets here. These events are always the most joyous, most life-affirming of times, so we really cannot recommend it enough to our queer community (and lovely allies)!
If you can’t make it this Saturday, listen to the Queer Cxntry playlist and make sure you catch the whole thing on tour this Autumn – details here.


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Introducing Interview: Junk Whale

Having been big fans of Oxford’s grunge-pop faves Junk Whale since first hearing their 2022 debut (and fantastically named), Caught In The Act Of Looking Weird, we were super excited when they released a gorgeous new EP back in May. Over the last couple of months, I’ve been pretty much listening to See You Around, I guess? non-stop, unable to get enough of its scuzzy raw emotion and lilting indie-pop energy. Despite covering poignant themes such as grief and mental illness, the EP as a whole oozes an uplifting effervescent spirit, each track offering an instantly catchy jangly earworm (and not a repeating chorus in sight!). The band expand: “Lyrically, this might be our darkest release yet, written under the cloud of lockdown malaise and personal setbacks. But musically, it’s probably our most upbeat and energetic.”

To celebrate the EP’s release, and ahead of them playing live for us on 10th October at New River Studios supporting Belfast queer punks Strange New Places, we caught up with Junk Whale to find out more about the EP, their inspirations and the joy of playing gigs with plenty of non-men. Have a read, listen to the EP, and nab a ticket for 10th October now!


Hi Junk Whale! Welcome to Get In Her Ears! How are you all doing today?
We’re doing great, excited to be asked to do this!

Are you able to tell us a bit about what initially inspired you to start creating music and how you all came together as a band?
Hannah and I (Josie) have known each other since we were teenagers and played in a band together before Junk Whale called Four Thousand Dollar Ham Napkin. After that, ended we decided to challenge ourselves by writing, recording and releasing a brand new song every week for a year. It was a mad thing to do, no one was forcing us to do it and pretty much no one listened to the results! But that project was the start of Junk Whale. We met Jenny and Ali through the Oxford music scene and as soon as the four of us were together it stopped being this silly little recording project and started feeling like a really special band that we were all creatively involved in.

I love your scuzzy, emotion-filled indie-pop songs – who or what generally inspires your distinctive sound? 
We all love bands who mix noisy guitars with melodic hooks, bands like Dinosaur Jr., Sunny Day Real Estate, Sleater-Kinney, so naturally we’ve taken a lot of inspiration from those types of bands. Also, we’ve been really inspired by the local Oxford DIY music scene and all the weird and wonderful bands we’ve seen or played gigs with here. When we were starting out, Smash Disco were putting on these great punk and hardcore shows, and we’ve all played in bands doing that kind of music, so I think that’s where some of the emotional intensity and the rougher edges of the music come from. And then there’s Divine Schism, who put on a ton of really varied shows, but especially the more indie-rock-type stuff that we naturally slot in with really comfortably. When there’s a good local scene it really pushes you creatively to try to keep up with your friends’ bands.

You’ve just released your awesome new EP See You Around, I Guess which you’ve described as, lyrically, your “darkest release yet” –  are you able to tell me a bit more about the writing of the album and the themes running through it?
A lot of the songs on the EP were written during lockdown, and as well as the obvious massive cloud of doom hanging over everything, we all had our own personal stuff going on that coloured the lyrics. Jenny, Hannah and I all contributed lyrics to the songs on this EP – we tend to write about topics that are personal to us, so grief, mental illness and friendship break-ups were some of the things we wrote about this time.

And how would you say the whole recording process has differed from your 2019 eponymous album and 2022’s amazingly named EP Caught In The Act Of Being Weird?
The recording process for both EPs was pretty similar, Ali did the bulk of the engineering himself and we recorded each instrument separately. The album was a little different, we smashed through the whole thing in a couple days, mostly recording live with our pal Luke to help us. I think that probably gave the album a slightly different energy – we played everything about twice as fast because we were all on an adrenaline/sugar rush -, but it has been nice to be able to take our time with these recordings. I think it especially shows in the arrangements on things like vocal harmonies, that’s something we really pride ourselves on. And we’re very lucky to have such a talented sound engineer like Ali in the band! Junk Whale recording mostly consists of consuming a frankly irresponsible amount of snacks and fizzy drinks. One of my favourite memories of recording the new EP was when Ali, Hannah and I took a break to play football in a field near where we were recording – Jenny filmed us playing and used it for the ‘Bleeding Out’ video.

You’ve played loads of great gigs over the years, including supporting DIY heroes Martha and recently playing with GIHE fave Ray Aggs, but is there a particular show that stands out as a highlight for you? 
A stand out show for me was with Doe and Milk Crimes in 2019. Doe were (and are still) a band I really looked up to and who influenced my songwriting immensely, so playing with them was kind of a dream come true. Turns out they’re absolutely lovely humans too – sometimes you should meet your heroes! It was an also an emotional night for me because I’d only recently come out as trans to my bandmates and a few other close friends, and it was the first time I’d worn femme clothes and presented myself in public as ‘not-a-man’, so it’ll always be a special one for me.

And, sadly I have yet to manage to see you live (!) – for others who’ve not had the chance, what can fans expect from your live shows?
We love to rock out – sometimes this means going too hard too early and leaving myself out of breath by about the third song! We just like having fun, playing the music we love with our pals, and hopefully that results in a good time for the audience. Also, expect endearingly awkward stage banter, we really haven’t mastered that yet.

When you’re out on the road / playing gigs, are there any particular essentials you like to have with you to keep you going?
On our recent weekender with Nathy SG, we mostly survived on protein bars, Candy Kittens and fizzy drinks in only weird flavours. Ali’s puzzle books, Hannah’s Star Trek eps and my enormous collection of car CDs kept us going too!

As we’re an organisation focused on supporting new music by people of marginalised genders, I just wanted to ask how you feel the industry is for these communities at the moment? Do you feel that much has changed over the years in its treatment of women and queer artists?
We’ve not really involved ourselves with the ‘industry’, whatever that means. We only want to play gigs with bands and promoters who share our values and support women and queer artists. I don’t remember the last time we played a gig where we were the only band featuring non-men. In fact, the last few gigs we’ve played we haven’t even been the only band with a non-cis member – I don’t know if this is a sign of progress in general or just a sign that we’re choosing the right gigs to play, and maybe we’re just lucky that Oxford has such a diverse and inclusive music scene, but I think it goes to show that you don’t have to settle for shitty treatment if you don’t want to.

And are there any other bands / artists that you’d recommend we check out at the moment?
Top Shortage! They are one of the best bands in Oxford at the moment – they’re an amazing live band, especially their front-woman Noa who is just a mesmerising performer. They don’t have any recordings yet but hopefully some are on the way. And Leibniz from Brighton, they sound like all the grungey, heavy bands we loved when we were teenagers and they go HARD live. Also Fashion Tips from Newcastle & Leeds, who play very loud and danceable electro punk.

Finally, following your lovely EP, what does the rest of 2025 have in store for Junk Whale? 
We’re working on lots of new material and might even have some new recordings in the works. And we had so much fun on our weekend tour with Nathy SG and we’d love to do more gigging this year, there are so many places we haven’t played yet. Book us to play in your city!

Huge thanks to Junk Whale for answering our questions!

Make sure you check out Junk Whale’s gorgeous new EP, See You Around, I Guess? on bandcamp now, and also come along to catch their energetic and “endearingly awkward” live show supporting Belfast queer punks Strange New Places at New River Studios, along with Breakup Haircut, on 10th October. Tickets on Dice now!

Photo Credit: Ian Hanham

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