It’s songs like this that really make my job difficult. As someone who spends an inordinate amount of time weaving my thoughts about music into a verbose tapestry of flowery language, the rare gift of a song that leaves me lost for words is the most delightfully vexatious experience imaginable. Doctor by day and musical maestro by night, Fran O’Hanlon’s latest single under his moniker AJIMAL is an absolute must-hear track. To say that his soulful and tender vocals evoke Jeff Buckley, and that the opulent orchestration reminds me of the softer side of Talk Talk and Belwood favourites The Last Dinosaur, would only be scratching the surface. The loving intimacy and devotion of this track is so hard to describe, but it’s a feeling that anyone who has given their heart to someone completely will know all too well. Anyone who has known a love so absolute will be left breathless by the line “I’ve loved your heart as long as it’s been beating”. And I doubt even Wordsworth himself could compose a poem to describe the sensation which this gorgeous arrangement offers. How this blissful baroque pop ballad makes your spirit soar, how it lifts you up to pirouette upon a pillowy canopy of clouds. The only way to truly understand is to hear it for yourself.
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Spotlight!: Francesca Louise
There’s a whole lot of solace to be found in sad songs. When an artist pours their heart out and releases all their fear and sorrow into the world, odds are it will find its way to someone who sees their own struggles reflected in the music. Finding comfort and reassurance rarely means having all the answers, often just the act of knowing you’re not alone, that other people are dealing with the same thoughts and feelings, is enough to keep you going. With her debut EP Melancholic Antidote, London based singer/songwriter Francesca Louise not only provides the perfect term to describe the process of fighting sadness with sadness, but also offers a prime example of it in action. Francesca is the kind of artist who holds nothing back, brave enough to bare her soul and share her fears and doubts with the world. Earnest songwriting is like a smile; you can tell when a smile is forced and when there’s a genuine spark in their eye that lights up the room. That same spark is woven into the very fabric of this EP. Continue reading
Album Review: Taylor Swift – folklore
Taylor Swift – folkloreAlbum Review: Margo Price – That’s How Rumors Get Started
Margo Price – That’s How Rumors Get StartedInterview: Tiny Castle
It’s safe to say that 2020 doesn’t have a lot going for it. That does mean however that each little oasis of joy and beauty that we stumble upon in this monumental clusterfuck of a year feels all the sweeter. There’s plenty of great new music despite everything, and one of the finest escapes I’ve stumbled across in the past six months has been the brilliant debut EP from Australian indie quartet Tiny Castle. Blending post punk rhythms, retro synths and slick indie hooks, Perspectives is the kind of record that takes everything you know and love and serves it up on a silver platter. I fired a few quick questions over to Chris from Tiny Castle to find out how their stunning first EP came to life. Continue reading
Top Tracks: Family of Things – YKB
We’re not born with hate in our hearts, it’s something that’s taught to us. When you’re young you don’t see creed, colour or class. Likewise we don’t become fixated on our own faults and perceived imperfections until later in life. We all start out with open hearts and open minds, full of love for ourselves and others, until the world tells us otherwise. But we don’t have to accept this culture of division and insecurity that is thrust upon us. As Canadian duo Family of Things so deftly tell us with the hook of their infectious new single: “you know better”. We can reject the drive to throw up walls and embrace the open and loving state of mind that we were born with. Full of vibrant carefree energy, ‘YKB’ is the perfect anthem for the better world that it preaches. With a hefty helping of Jungle, a kaleidoscopic dash of Tame Impala, and a striking video that wouldn’t look out of place projected on a skyscraper in Blade Runner, this fabulously funky slice of electropop is one of the most feel-good tracks I’ve heard this year. Packed with memorable hooks, slinky bass lines, shimmering synths and seductive splashes of sax, it’s the kind of song that makes you want to rush to the dancefloor and drag the nearest person along with you.
Album Review: Phosphene – Lotus Eaters
Phosphene – Lotus EatersSpotlight!: Tiny Castle
A lot of time and energy in the music world is devoted to finding something fresh and new. While it can certainly be a thrill to find a band that breaks the mold, I believe there is an undervalued charm in familiarity. Encountering a new act is a first meeting of sorts after all, and there are few greater pleasures in life than meeting someone new and falling into a natural rhythm. That moment when you and a total stranger are so perfectly tuned in to the same wavelength that you suddenly feel like you’ve both known each other for years. The debut EP from Brisbane based indie quartet Tiny Castle evokes that same sensation. Perspectives doesn’t feel like a first meeting, instead it’s as warm and familiar as a record that you’ve grown up listening to. It leaves you feeling nostalgic for some alternate history where the EP was the soundtrack of your youth.
‘Black Dove’ ascribes to The Cure’s school of being equal parts sweetness and sadness, reflecting on past love and enveloping the listener in gorgeous melodies, while frenetic synth driven rocker ‘World’ is the perfect soundtrack for hurtling down an empty highway faster than your demons can follow. The bright balladry of ‘Composure’ and ‘Madeline’ make you want to slow-dance around the room, ‘I’m Like A River’ is reminiscent of The Killers as it blends the synths with a dash of Americana, while closing track ‘Sentimental Holiday’s robust bass line, emphatic drums and light snappy riffs reminds me of The National. Perspectives is a swirling melting pot of everything from 80s AOR and post punk to modern indie and alternative. It never feels like a Frankenstein’s monster of styles however, rather a spectrum of colour combining into a brilliant white light as the band craft a sound all their own. Even on first listen it feels like they’ve already been one of your favourite bands for years and you just didn’t know it. This Tiny Castle just feels like home.
Fans of The National, The Cure, Holy Holy and The Paper Kites should check out Tiny Castle’s debut EP Perspectives
Top Tracks: Jacob Westfall – Burn Me Down
There is so much that is woven into the intricate fabric that is you and I. All the little daily rituals, all the cherished memories, a network of feelings and morals. We’re all little more than a jumbled mess of quirks and idiosyncrasies manning a trenchcoat and playing at being a person. It’s often difficult to separate ourselves from the pieces that make up who we are; pull too hard at one thread and the whole thing may unravel. All this can make for a daunting prospect however when it comes to the parts of ourselves that we long to change. ‘Burn Me Down’ deals with the inner turmoil that stems from addiction. Whether it’s a substance, a sensation or a person, the end result is the same – it becomes a crutch that you lean too heavily upon. The only option is to let it keep corrupting its way deeper into your spirit, or to take a torch to your darker side in the hope of building a better you from the ashes. This sublime slow-burning track from Portland based artist Jacob Westfall explores this journey in spectacular fashion. Opening with a soft and melancholic folk arrangement, with Jacob’s gritty vocals at its heart, before kicking up a gear with a lush and enrapturing Americana vibe. At its climax an emphatic drum fill launches us into a tempestuous bluesy solo to offer the release that the song has been so perfectly building towards right from the very first note.
Haim – Women In Music pt. III
Belwood Music 