Track Of The Day: Clara Byrne – ‘To Rome’

A soft, nostalgic tribute to her hometown of Bray in County Wicklow, Irish musician Clara Byrne has shared her latest single ‘To Rome’. The second single from her upcoming album Handstitched, the track reflects on Clara’s trip to the ancient city and documents the thoughts she had about her hometown whilst wandering amongst its famous ruins.

“Bray, this seaside town has been there to meet me at all the different stages of my life. From my first day of school, to my first love, to my first gig, each patch of the town holds a memory,” Clara explains. “During a particularly bad slump in inspiration, a dry patch in creativity, and even a lull in passion for music, I received a lump sum of emergency tax back. Though I was a struggling student at the time I decided to head off and explore the city of Rome as a stark contrast to my little town. I brought a pen and paper for company and this song is the result of that trip.”

‘To Rome’ is the result of Clara’s journey to Italy, full of gentle alt-folk guitar sounds and her rich vocals. “The evidence of the cities previous empire is scattered on every street corner in the form of these beautiful ruins. In a strange way, it gave me hope,” Clara continues. “Those living during that time must have seen their world as I see mine; seemingly impossible to change and difficult to imagine the end of all they’ve ever known. I think the contenders for the biggest impact in your life feel like they could go on forever. Whether it’s a relationship, the current political system, a pandemic or a great empire, nothing lasts.”

Watch the accompanying video for ‘To Rome’ directed by Bray artist Ed Cleary below.

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

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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Track Of The Day: Janette King (ft. Dijah SB) – ‘Cool Me Down’

‘Cool Me Down’, the second single in as many months from Canadian singer and producer Janette King, is a shape-shifting slow jam arriving just in time for summer. With a verse from Toronto-based rapper DijahSB lending extra weight, the track manages that rare trick of packaging a lyrically considered, musically inventive song in an immediately accessible form. 

King and producer Jonny Tobin play with genre to the extent that you could make musical comparisons to everyone from Tune-Yards to A Tribe Called Quest, Syd to Four Tet. Though the track is clearly rooted in an R&B tradition, ‘Cool Me Down’ embraces a more experimental approach to the genre, an approach which artists like Solange and Abra have recently utilized while still gathering streams in the millions – something it’s not hard to imagine King achieving in the not too distant future. DijahSB’s verse provides both contrast and complement – the styles of each vocalist, while different, seem well matched; similarly smooth and polished in a manner which throws the content of their lyrics into relief.

Following this single, King will release her debut album, What We Lost, in June this year. Recorded against the backdrop of the BLM movement and addressing loss and grief, the record promises more of the insight and invention on offer here. Having already picked up support slots for a range of artists including CupcakKe and Sudan Archives, we hope we’ll have a chance to see King on tour internationally before long.

What We Lost, the debut album from Janette King, is set for release 25th June via Hot Tramp Records.

Gregory Metcalfe
@gregorysparty

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Track Of The Day: Hussy – ‘I Tried’

A swirling guitar tune about self-assertion and facing adversity head on, Sophie Nicole Ellison aka Hussy has shared her latest single ‘I Tried’. Describing her style as “DIY with high ambitions,” the South London-based songwriter & producer performed drums, guitars, synth and bass entirely by herself on this track, which is lifted from her debut EP due later this year.

“I feel like people will instantly think this is a love song but it’s actually not,” Ellison explains about the single. “This song is more me standing up for myself and who I am and maintaining that through adversity. I wrote this pretty instantaneously in the moment, so it definitely has a dramatic ‘take it or leave it’ sentiment whilst landing on an acceptance over it.”

With her talent as a multi-instrumentalist and knowledge as a producer and professional sound engineer, Ellison has an incredibly self-sufficient approach to creating music under her Hussy moniker, which she adopted from a T-shirt slogan. On ‘I Tried’, her guitar sounds are polished, her vocal delivery is charming and the effortless way that she blends these two elements reflects the skill, confidence and resilience it must have took to self-record & produce her upcoming EP.

Listen to ‘I Tried’ below.

 

Follow HUSSY on bandcamp, Spotify, Twitter, Instagram & Facebook

Photo credit: Pooneh Ghana

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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Track Of The Day: Death Valley Girls – ‘Little Things’

Death Valley Girls’ new video for ‘Little Things’, a track from their recent album Under the Spell of Joy, provides a determinedly optimistic slant on life’s difficulties. The track was inspired by a friend of the LA band’s response to living with chronic pain and the lyrics emphasise allowing ourselves to take respite and pleasure where we can – a theme with particular resonance at the moment. The accompanying video recalls the work of Michel Gondry: charming, DIY, and pleasingly absurd – a dreamscape of homemade clouds and singing moons. Director Kelsey Hart has clearly succeeded in the stated aim of “reflect[ing] the unbridled hope and joy” of the track.

Musically, the track recalls some of the band’s West Coast contemporaries. The lead guitar line, a shimmering surf melody, is reminiscent of Seattle’s La Luz while the rhythm section drives the song along like a sunnier Chastity Belt. And sunny is certainly the word for a song like this; everything from the lyrics to the chord progression – even the lightly up-tempo rhythm – seem specifically designed to put a smile on the listener’s face and a spring in their step. The chorus, where the rest of the band join lead singer Bonnie Bloomgarden on vocals, is nothing short of delightful.

On this basis, the band’s cosmically inspired album, Under The Spell Of Joy, released last year on Suicide Squeeze Records, is certainly worth delving further into. 

Gregory Metcalfe
@GregorysParty

Photo Credit: David Fearn

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