WATCH: Pillow Queens – ‘Favourite’ (acoustic)

Irish indie band Pillow Queens have shared an acoustic version of their recent single ‘Favourite’, proving their gentler musical arrangements can still pack an emotional punch. The track is taken from the band’s upcoming EP State of The State, which is set for release via Specialist Subject on 16th March.

Pillow Queens’ charm and energy still flows through this softer rendition of ‘Favourite’ and it permeates the sound on their upcoming EP too. The band worked with Producer Peter Ashmore to finalise their musical explorations of “emotional highs and lows”, including the “frustration of trying to succeed in post-recession Ireland” and the toll that can take on your mental health.

Pillow Queens will be touring Ireland and the UK in April, so make sure you learn all of the words to ‘Favourite’ before you head along to one of their shows.

IRELAND & UK TOUR:
April 5th – Galway, Roisin Dubh
April 7th – Cork, AMP
April 9th – Bristol, Hy Brasil
April 10th – London, Sebright Arms
April 11th – Guildford, The Boileroom
April 12th – Brighton, Prince Albert
April 13th – Leeds, Chunk
April 14th – Manchester, Night & Day
April 15th – Glasgow, GLAD Cafe
April 19th – Clonakilty, Debarras
April 20th – Limerick, Dolans
April 21st – Dublin, Workmans Club

Follow Pillow Queens on Facebook for more updates.

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

Get In Her EarsLeave a comment

Track Of The Day: BRYDE – ‘To Be Brave’

It’s been a busy year for London-based, Welsh-born musician Bryde. After setting up her own label Seahorse Music to publish records by like-minded women and help make them more visible in a male-dominated industry, Bryde finished up her debut LP Like An Island, while flitting between London and LA. Exploring themes of independence, liberation, and relationships, her candid indie rock sound were fully fleshed out with mixing help from Catherine Marks (Wolf Alice, PJ Harvey, St Vincent) and mastering by Mandy Parnell.

Lyrically, Bryde concentrates on life and human interaction, her songwriting persona wears her heart on her sleeve and new single ‘To Be Brave’ showcases this open attitude. Speaking about the track, the songwriter explains: “’To Be Brave’ was written as kind of a soft squeeze of the hand to many friends who have, like me, been through many a dark period and put on a brave face and just got on with it. It’s a comment about how we all live out certain episodes of our lives in such a public setting these days that I feel we almost edit them to appear flawless, nothing but smiles.”

We’re big supporters of Bryde’s bravery and can’t wait to hear her EP Like An Island when it comes out on 13th April. Listen to ‘To Be Brave’ below, and pre-order your copy of her EP here.

Follow Bryde on Facebook for more updates.

Photo Credit: Sarah Howells & Jamie Ahye

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

Get In Her EarsLeave a comment

Darlington Music Collective Tracks Presents: Noisy Daughters Event

Following on from their successful Womenfolk event in October 2017, Darlington music collective Tracks have organised a FREE workshop & panel discussion on 3rd March – followed by a ticketed gig! – to celebrate females in music. The event aims to teach and inspire the next generation of girls and lead the way to equality in music. The showcase will take place at the new Theatre Hullabaloo space that’s recently opened in Darlington.

Tracks are a non-profit organisation and any money raised from ticket sales will go back into funding future Noisy Daughters events. The workshop is open to females only, but all are welcome at either the panel or the gig.

The free songwriting workshop for women runs from 1-3pm, and will be delivered by Liz Corney (The Cornshed Sisters, Field Music). Participants are encouraged to bring their instruments and are offered guidance in all things musical composition (places are limited; so booking is advised). This will be followed by a panel discussion from 3.30pm-4.30pm, which will centre around the issues facing women in the music industry today, and what can be done to change them.

Panelists include Rianne Thompson from BBC Tees, Hannah Van Thompson of The Van Ts, Claire Dupree from Narc Magazine, and Liz Corney of The Cornshed Sisters/Field Music. Sarah Wilson from Tracks/BIG Little Gigs will be chairing, and there will be an opportunity for the audience to ask questions at the end.

The day will conclude with a headline gig from The Van Ts, with support coming from the likes of BBC 6 Radio play-listed singer-songwriter Eve Conway, the much hyped hip-hop act Leddie MC, and energetic electro-pop pioneers Twist Helix.

(Pic: The Van Ts)

Sarah Wilson from Tracks said: “It’s vital to give women in music credible, female-led music events nationally, and it’s brilliant that we can do this in our hometown of Darlington. We’re hoping to inspire the next generation of female musicians, whilst giving a platform to the current batch of female artists that are leading the way”.

BBC statistics showed that last year, 84% of headliners at music festivals were men. Ents24.com demonstrated that this trend occurs not only at festivals but takes place on a daily basis at regular shows. On a randomly selected day(12th October 2017), they found that out of the 370 gigs listed on their website, 69% of the acts (255) were made up entirely of men, while just 9% (33) were female-only (half of these being solo artists).

Outside of the performance arena, a recent study by Georgina Born and Kyle Devine – titled ‘Music Technology, Gender, and Class: Digitization, Educational and Social Change in Britain’ – highlighted the “highly (male) gendered digital music field” in which approximately 90% of music technology students are currently white males. The outcome is that the creative field becomes dominated by male practitioners, male lecturers and male authors.

With all these negative headlines and a male dominated industry it’s easy to see why women are underrepresented in the world of modern music. Thankfully, organisations like Tracks are tackling the issue head on with their brilliant Noisy Daughters event.

Tickets for the gig are available online here. Physical tickets can be purchased from The Pennyweight in Darlington.

FYI – this is a 12 + event (under 16s must be accompanied by an adult).

RSVP to the free song-writing workshop & panel here.

Follow Tracks on Facebook and check out their website for updates & future events.

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

Get In Her EarsLeave a comment

EP: EMA – ‘Outtakes from Exile’

Sitting comfortably in what she calls “The Outer Ring” of society – the zone between the country and the city, both literally and figuratively – EMA’s dark electronic sounds ooze with an unease and intensity inspired by “material that speaks truth to power.” Rather than agonise, Erika M. Anderson (aka EMA) organises synths and vocals to express her resistance against poverty and inequality, and her recent EP Outtakes From Exile is another impressive example of these determined efforts.

Lead single ‘Dark Shadows’ ia a blend of hazy vocals, sharply produced beats and opulent electronics, inspired by the film 20th Century Women. Anderson says she was inspired by the premise – “badass women living in 1970s Santa Barbara getting into punk” – and ‘Dark Shadows’ emerged as “a survivor song”, detailing someone who’s “leaving a dark past behind, emerging again into the world”. It’s a world in which second track ‘MopTops (Twist While The World Stops)’ plays out confidently, with EMA’s hushed, croaky vocals sitting atop steady synths that loop for three and a half minutes.

‘I Don’t Treat Anything Good’ is similar in its understated style and tempo, but it culminates in EMA’s plea-like vocals to be saved from this casual apathy. The emotional exposure on penultimate track ‘From The Love That We Made’ will have listeners caught up in a sultry, synth-heavy haze before an unexpected switch from electronics to acoustic guitars mid-way through the song clears the figurative smoke screen.

It’s the defiant power of closing track ‘Breathalyzer Instrumental’ however, that truly displays EMA’s ominous, shadowy skills. It’s twenty minutes of intriguing noise which broods somewhere between intense awareness and a need to be aurally anesthetised. Whilst her vocals on previous tracks are quietly hypnotic, the lack of them here is not to be lamented. Ten minutes in, her almost inaudible whisperings appear over persistent synths, offering a brief distraction from this epic, intoxicating sonic assault.

Make sure you set aside the time to explore EMA’s intriguing soundscapes on Outtakes From Exile – you won’t be disappointed.

EMA’s Outtakes From Exile (released via City Slang) is available to stream/download now.

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

Get In Her EarsLeave a comment