music

Spotlight!: TALMA

/ James Fenney

TALMAGreat things rarely happen all at once, often it’s down to a multitude of little inconsequential factors that gather over time and end up knitting together perfectly. TALMA’s music grabs you in much the same way, all those little elements gel together to create something greater than the sum of its parts. With their second EP Out To Sea, this London based outfit offer a mature and elegant sound. ‘In Circles’ dabbles just enough in both retro and futuristic sounds to create a timeless feel, the bright dancing guitar tones on ‘Starless Skies’ imbue a sense of childlike innocence and nostalgia, while the hook heavy ‘Lifeline’ feels like a blend of Joy Division and Spandau Ballet with its pulsing post punk rhythms and soaring new wave vocals. It’s on the title track however where everything really comes together. The guitars wind a path through bluesy licks and indie riffs to reach a majestic climax, the bass line carries the very lifeblood of the song, and Henry Adams’ exceptional crooning vocals somehow steal the spotlight even more than usual. These artful alt rockers stand on the precipice of greatness with their refined and debonair approach.

TALMA’s new EP Out To Sea is out 23rd February and is ideal for fans of The National, Marlon Williams, The Smiths and Isaac Gracie

Top Tracks: Kindo – Return To Me

/ James Fenney

After what feels like forever, The Reign Of Kindo are finally back with new music (albeit with a shortened name), and it’s like they never left. Bringing together sultry smooth jazz, dazzling prog intricacies and spellbinding pop melodies, their incomparable signature sound feels just as fresh as ever. This new offering ‘Return To Me’ depicts creative inspiration as an absent lover, and deals with the paranoia of her not returning. Clearly their muse isn’t going anywhere as they are on fire as usual on this track, proving to be the very epitome of slick and precise. With a new record entitled Happy However After due for release this spring, Kindo have just shot up to the top of my list of most anticipated albums of the year. If the rest of the record is as good as then it’ll have all been worth the long wait!

Top Tracks: Avec – Youth

/ James Fenney

I think we all have a part of us that is drawn to music that incites introspection. Like how our bodies need sleep to rest and heal to keep going, so too do our minds need some care and attention. The latest single ‘Youth’ from Austrian artist Avec, taken from her debut album What If We Never Forget, is the perfect soundtrack for your own journey inward. With her affecting and unique vocals, and haunting folk soundscape, this song just seems to clear the fog from your thoughts to reveal a vast unspoiled wilderness holding a whole new world of possibilities. When you feel spent and empty, this is just the kind of song you need to offer perspective, understanding and a breath of fresh air. Add this to your playlist, give the album a few spins, do whatever you need to do to let it work it’s magic on you.

Top Tracks: Stay Inside – Fever and Jealousy

/ James Fenney

We all need to shut out the world for a time every now and then to keep us from falling apart at the seams, but often it’s your own voice that’s the hardest to drown out. All those paranoid little insecurities that gnaw away at you from within, all that overthinking poisoning relationships and experiences. Deep down you know that it’s just your mind playing tricks on you, but that doesn’t stop you jumping at shadows in the dark recesses of your thoughts. The new single from Stay Inside, taken from their superbly titled new EP The Sea Engulfs Us and the Light Goes Out released 23rd February, perfectly captures that feeling and offers a chaotic and electrifying sense of catharsis. The combination of passionate post-hardcore vocals and expansive post punk soundscapes feels like a shrill call out to the void, a search for answers where there are none to be found.

Top Tracks: Cristina Hart – House Of Tears

/ James Fenney

Every now and then you come across a song that seems all-encompassing. Listening to it feels like being immersed in a vast and vibrant tropical ocean; you don’t hear it so much as feel it with every fibre of your being. Cristina Hart has captured that all too rare feeling with this, her debut single, so Lord knows what incredible feats she could achieve with future releases. The soulful R&B of ‘House Of Tears’ begins with simple piano balladry and soon builds into an expansive and elegant soundscape, although it is never enough to draw attention away from the most important instrument. Not even the world’s finest orchestra could distract from Cristina’s astounding vocals. Her voice is truly one in a million, the kind that speaks to your very soul, making this an early front-runner for song of the year.

Top Tracks: Matt Gresham – Home

/ James Fenney

“Home is not a place, it’s a feeling”. We’re all looking for a sense of belonging and purpose. Some wander for a time and find something new worth sticking around for, some wander and fall in love with the sensation and carry that feeling of home wherever they go, and some do so only to find that home was right where they left it. It’s a journey that can take many shapes and forms, but it is one that we all take, and this new song is the perfect soundtrack for whatever path you choose to take. Australian singer/songwriter Matt Gresham fuses heartwarming folk with cinematic electronic flourishes and a wealth of pop sensibilities with his latest single. Life is a journey; it’s not about the destination, it’s about the people you meet and the memories you make along the way, and this is the perfect song to make memories to.

Top Tracks: Titus Makin – Suicide

/ James Fenney

The multi-talented Titus Makin is back with another dose of first class pop. ‘Suicide’, the latest single from this wonderful actor and singer, sees him feature more electronic elements and stray further into chart topper territory, and yet still keep the R&B influences and addictive hooks that give him an extra air of authenticity and charm. A far cry from his feel-good hit ‘Ropes‘, this latest offering details a toxic relationship, the kind where you’re so blinded by love that you don’t realise you’re being pulled down into the crushing depths until it is too late. It only serves to secure his reputation in my mind as the ideal role model for modern pop artists. Titus continues to perfect his sound with each new release, while maintaining the effortless and endearing charm that makes him stand out from the crowd.