Guest Blog: Bloom Sessions

Priding themselves on supporting women and people of marginalised genders within the music scene across Yorkshire, Bloom Sessions was founded in October last year. Originally funded by charity NYMAZ, they now work in collaboration with Come Play With Me and have also worked with Girls Can Play Guitar. Both a publication spotlighting different artists and illustrators, and a live events organiser, Bloom Sessions have proved themselves to be a vital, innovative part of the North West music scene.

Ahead of their last event of the year at Headrow House tomorrow afternoon, we caught up Claire Hamilton from Bloom Sessions to find more about what they do, why they do it, and what they have planned for the gig tomorrow…

Since October 2020, Bloom Sessions has been supporting women and people of marginalised genders across Yorkshire by hosting live sessions, commissioning artwork and generating digital content. This December, we close off the year with an afternoon of soothing soul, jazz and R&B on Sunday 12th at Headrow House in Leeds, alongside Rumbi Tauro, Pixie Cola and Shantelle King. 

Originally funded by youth development charity NYMAZ, Bloom Sessions has gone on to be supported by the likes of Leeds Inspired and are currently in collaboration with Come Play With Me. The project started as two friends with a common interest in championing local creatives, a love of music and a drive to see change in the industry. We’re currently a team of three, Cheïma, Izzy and Claire, and we’re more inspired than ever to continue working with fantastic creatives across Yorkshire. 

Frustrated by underrepresentation and dismissal across the industry (boo), as well as personal experiences of a lack of respect and responsibility (double boo), we set our main goal as aiming to be a safe, respectful, fun space for women and people of marginalised genders to express themselves and be paid fairly. 

Bloom Sesh vol.1 spotlighted one illustrator and one musician/band per month between Oct 2020 – Feb 2021, with a super special bumper edition in March ’21 for International Women’s Day in collaboration with Oporto TV and Girls Can Play Guitar. Vol. 2 placed us directly in the live music scene as we hosted two gigs at the heart of Leeds in cooperative club Wharf Chambers. We worked with 8 incredible artists including the likes of Sofa King, The Sound of Modesty, illustrator Janice Leung, and super talented local photographer, Fev. 

But let’s talk December! We wanted to finish the year on a high, and to counterbalance the frantic festive szn we’ve programmed a perfect sunny Sunday afternoon that is guaranteed to lower your blood pressure. Expect to be swayed (quite literally) by sounds of soul, jazz and R&B as we welcome three superb women to the stage at Headrow House, Leeds. P.S – check out that poster design by the wicked Tanya Shanduka!

With doors at 1pm, we open with Shantelle King, a Bradford based neo-soul artist who has made everything happen for herself, being her own agent, manager and promoter. A certified force to be reckoned with, Shantelle only commands more respect once you listen to her music – it’s smooth, intimate and utterly captivating. Following this, we’ll be hearing from Leeds legend Pixie Cola. Residing between the realms of jazz and hip-hop, Pixie holds one of our favourite local releases of the year. Her debut EP, You’re Living In A Pixie World,Vol.1, combines her powerful lyricism with fragrant beats and dreamy melodies. 

Last but definitely not least, our headliner is the effervescent Rumbi Tauro. Rumbi has had a strong 2021, going from strength to strength with the release of her latest whopper ‘Run Run’, collaborations with The Leadmill and Hope Works as well as festival slots at Long Division and Tramlines. Rumbi’s powerful energy translates into her music and the end result is creative, warm and dynamic – in her own words, she leaves ‘no emotional stone unturned’. We can’t wait to see what she brings to the stage, it’s her first headline here in the city and we want to give a warm reception!

So, if you’re based in the Leeds area, clear your schedule. Join us from 1pm at Headrow House, and even if you’re hungover, this’ll be the perfect remedy to cure those ‘Sunday scaries’. Tickets are only a fiver, but if you’re not in a position to pay that – DM us on Instagram, or email hello@bloomsessions.com, and we can work something out. 

Come say hi, support some underrepresented artists and wrap yourselves up in some dreamy melodies to chase away those wintery chills!

Poster by: Tanya Shanduka 

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Track Of The Day: TV Room – ‘Balcony’

You may know her as the drummer of deep tan or Buggs, but London-based multi-talented artist Lucy Rushton – aka TV Room – has now shared her shimmering debut solo single.

Showcasing Rushton’s rich cascading vocals, ‘Balcony‘ ripples with a smooth, soulful splendour and lilting energy, with shades of early Marika Hackman. Propelled by pattering beats and twinkling hooks, alongside an immersive, confessional lyrical storytelling, a sparkling winter ballad is created, oozing a captivating, effervescent allure. With its cinematic musicality and heartfelt raw emotion, it offers a perfectly comforting accompaniment to a cosy festive evening.

A self professed “soft-boy queer anthem”, ‘Balcony’ offers an honest reflection on the feelings that accompany a break-up. Of the track, Rushton explains:

“It’s important to think about whether it’s self-fulfilling to just say everything you’re feeling to someone who you’ve broken up with, or whether sometimes it’s best to understand that they might not need that just because you do, and let them move on. It doesn’t stop you from wanting to get it out somehow though, so I’d recommend writing a sad song about it instead.”

Watch the new video for ‘Balcony’ here:

‘Balcony’ is out now via Sad Club Records.

Mari Lane
@marimindles

Photo Credit: Syd Parsons

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Introducing Interview: CRAWLERS

Based in Liverpool, raging rockers CRAWLERS have spent the last couple of years building a loyal and committed fan base, and have now shared their long awaited debut EP – a diverse collection of emotion-strewn anthems. From the raging, politically-charged energy of ‘Statues’ to the sparkling melancholic splendour of ‘Come Over (again’), each track oozes the band’s trademark impassioned drive and swirling raw charisma.

We caught up with CRAWLERS to find out more about them and their mission as a band…

Hi CRAWLERS, welcome to Get In Her Ears! Can you tell us a bit about the band?
Hiya Get In Her Ears! Crawlers are a four-piece band based in North-West England (half of us from Warrington and the other Liverpool), we formed in late 2018 and like playing around with the sound of rock in any way we can, but most of all we’re four best mates who love creating music. 

How did you initially all get together and start creating music?
Amy (guitarist) and Liv (bass) played together in a few bands in their high school and ended up splitting up when both went to different sixth forms. Holly (vocals) and Liv then went to LIPA Sixth Form in Liverpool, and were into very similar music and decided after dabbling in a few projects to create a band with Amy. We met Harry just after we released our third ever single as he wrote a review of the song for a magazine, and once we said we needed a new drummer he was the perfect fit!

Your new EP CRAWLERS is out now – can you tell us what it’s all about? Are there any themes running throughout the EP?
The EP has mainy themes, however it definitely has an overarching theme of struggles. The first single ‘Statues’ is about the corruption of the American police system, and its institutionalised racism. The second ‘Breathe’ is about my (Holly) existential crisis about the development of social media and technology. The penultimate ‘MONROE’ explores the beauty standards specifically for women in media, and the unfair treatment of Britney Spears. And finally ‘Come Over (again)’, the final track, is about our own personal woes, grief of relationships and family, and most of all, the people who cause such feelings.

You’ve been compared to the likes of Nova Twins and Yungblood, but who would you say are your main musical influences?
We’re very lucky to be compared to both artists as they’re both individually extremely talented! We as a band definitely are inspired by the likes of Nirvana, The Strokes, Queens of the Stone Age, Pixies and Smashing Pumpkins… However, individually we all love very different types of music which allows us to delve into many different types of genres. Holly loves artists such as Mitski, Phoebe Bridgers and Black Country New Road, whilst Liv is a huge metal fan, inspired by bands such as Metalica and Tool. Harry loves Gorillaz and Rage Against the Machine, and Amy is the biggest Fleetwood Mac and ABBA fan possibly ever!  

How is your local music scene? Do you go to see lots of live music?
Liverpool is a wonderful scene currently, exploding with some of the UK’s biggest talents of many alternative genres. Everybody knows everybody and word spreads fast of a new band on the scene and it’s absolutely crazy to start becoming mutual friends with artists and bands we have loved and respected since we first started out in the scene. 

And what can fans expect from your live shows?
As we have grown as artists, we have definitely also grown as performers. For some reason I (Holly) used to pretend to be bada*s on stage, when in reality I’m a bit of a joker. We focus on creating a safe space for all kinds of supporters, as I have sensory issues. I try to ensure when our heavier songs are played that everyone is aware of their space, as well as those around them and their actions, so that everyone can have a good time! I know there’s been a lot of times at heavier gigs when I have personally felt extremely overwhelmed because of the environment, and we wanna let people enjoy heavy music no matter how they like to enjoy it. Not gonna lie, sometimes I do treat a gig like a bit of a comedy show – I have a funny rapport with the audience and a giggle with the band. I feel like that makes it a lot more personal, and when our emotional songs are performed, it feels like we go through every single emotion at our gigs. 

As we’re a new music focused site, are there any new/upcoming bands or artists you’d recommend we check out?
Our current favourites from our scene are definitely Torture and the Desert Spiders, Stone, Gadzooks and Zuzu! All you should definitely check out! Generally I would recommend Witch Fever, Vial, Lowertown, Tash and Charles and the Big Boys too.

And how do you feel the music industry is for new bands at the moment – would you say it’s difficult to get noticed?
It’s a hard one. Social media has definitely made it easier for artists to get noticed, however it has also meant major labels have even more power to control, and has meant the over saturation of artists has made it difficult to stand out. A good time to play around in the live scene, now it is all back and about, and a good time to build a platform! 

Finally, what does 2022 have in store for CRAWLERS?
A lot. We’re going to be going on our first ever tour, and hopefully showing you guys even more of our now very diverse catalogue, hehe. We’re just so lucky for so early in our career to have such amazing supporters and fanbase – and we can’t wait to grow our craft and share it with the world!

Massive thanks to CRAWLERS for answering our questions! Watch the video for latest single ‘Come Over (again)’ here:

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Track Of The Day: First Frontier – ‘Break Away’

As a debut single, ‘Break Away‘ cements First Frontier as a band that don’t hold their punches. They define themselves forcefully as performers who aren’t afraid to be vocal about their real, raw reactions to the world around them.

The Birmingham-based garage rock duo use a simple but incredible combination of drums, guitar and vocals to create a powerful sound that narrows in on its message. The raw strings and precise drums flow effortlessly together, pouring in from the first beat. The simplicity of just the two instruments provides a great foundation for the impact of the vocals.

‘Break Away’ speaks to something that a lot of people are feeling right now, in terms of the time when people are thinking about fresh starts for the new year, as well as the general social landscape. If the past two years haven’t been enough to encourage people to deeply think about what makes them truly happy and drop anything that doesn’t bring a little bit of joy into the grim reality of the world, then I don’t know what will. The repeated call to “break away” hits exactly how it needs to. The track as a whole sucks you into its energy; you can’t help but feel the rage and the heartache behind it, and be inspired by the way that pain manifests through upbeat and catchy music.

The lyrics allude to the political in a way that is satisfying for anyone paying attention to the state of UK politics right now. References to “this wasteland of a union” and calling for the offending party to be “overthrown” feel revolutionary, but they’re structured in such a way that you could easily apply them allegorically to whatever else might be bothering you on a personal level. If you’re not feeling like breaking away from a corrupt capitalist system, the vibe still matches up to the need to escape from oppressive workplaces or toxic relationships.

It all comes together into a song that is incredibly easy to connect to and sing along with. It’s a vibrant, exciting sound that you’re happy to get swept up along in, wherever First Frontier are going next.

Find out more about First Frontier on their website now.

Kirstie Summers
@actuallykurt

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