10. Kubota – Sunday Vibes
Kubota’s latest release is about as slick, relaxing, and smooth as you’d expect from a track called ‘Sunday Vibes’. The blend of indie pop and hip-hop is fast turning into a defining genre for modern popular music, especially so the more laid back and relaxed style. For Kubota, the song is an outlet as much as it is a reality. Working a real job and pursuing music all at once isn’t easy; in fact, it’s downright exhausting. ‘Sunday Vibes’ is all about reminding himself and people in a similar spot that it’s alright to unwind and let go from time to time.
It does just that in its short but succinct three minute runtime. Kubota leaves you floating, just remembering and enjoying the simple things in life. For that, it almost shoves down feelings of nostalgia down your throat. All in all though, if you were looking for a laidback and mellow start to your weekend, or even a lazy day at home, Kubota has got you covered.
http://www.kubotamusic.com/
9. Vassilis – Puppy
Leisurely innocence is the best way I can describe Puppy. The latest track from the Greek singer-songwriter is a dreamy and mild piece of indie pop that is a wonderfully elegant and easy listen for anyone at any time. Vassilis, currently based in Manchester, has a way of crafting melodies that, while outwardly simple, are exquisitely composed. At his core, he’s a guitar driven singer who heavily utilises vocal harmonies, melodic elements, and atmospheric production sensibilities to craft the kind of easy-going vibes he so effortlessly glides on.
There’s not much to dislike about ‘Puppy’, it’s just perfectly amenable, pleasurable, and easy-going. It’s the kind of track you want to wake up to. It’s the kind of track you want to go for a walk to. And it’s also the right mood to keep you feeling positive on a gloomy day. Singer-songwriter music done right, in every way.
8. Daniel Fin – By The Ears
Two years after the release of his first complete album, Daniel Fin is here with another piece of indie folk that is even more personal, intimate, and warming as his prior work. Having spend two decades as a singer and guitarist for an alternative rock group known as The Tilts, Fin has a wealth of experience that has accumulated into the style he now rocks on his current solo endeavours.
On ‘By The Ears’, Daniel’s endearing voice carries the rather minimal almost lullaby-esque track by his lonesome. There’s a lovely acoustic guitar that continues along like a jingle, giving the song a feel that leaves you smiling gleefully. The refrain ‘wave your hands, wave your hands, and maybe move your hips a bit’ keeps in theme with the rest of the track as a sing along summer song. If you need something to put a smile on your face, look no further.
7. Ralph Beeby & The Elephant Collective – Death Be Gentle (Moenchsgeier)
Blues with a bit of weirdness. Ralph Beeby & the Elephant Collective couldn’t be better described. The group specialises in taking grim and morose topics, setting them to sardonic lyricism, and performing them in the swinging emotion of their own oddity filled version of the blues. ‘Death be Gentle’ is about a satirical conversation with the Grim Reaper set to a powerful, howling, and aching guitar refrain. Forming part of a larger album concept that’s based on death and mortality, Ralph takes this seemingly depressing topic and fills with a sarcastic humour in acceptance.
Ralph Beeby & the Elephant Collective is the brainchild of Folk/Blues songwriter Ralph Beeby. The “Elephant Collective” side of the project has thus far been a myriad of different accompanying artists. While an interchangeable assortment of artists have joined Ralph for his live performances in the past, but all that is different in the latest project. ‘Scythe’ is the first release to break away from this format, with a steady set of collaborators on board. There’s an edge to this music, one that’s not needlessly abrasive or sharp, but the kind that pricks you just the right amount.
6. Preethevibes – New Day
‘New Day’ is a whole lot of sounds meshed together under a rather broad umbrella of Afro-Caribbean, but with clear undertones of electronic pop and EDM. It’s a completely new style of dance music, one that’s as catchy and commercial as it is inventive and imaginative. . Accompanied by vocals from singer Courtney Grace, the group’s front-man Jus-Q narrates a rather grim but almost relatable personal struggle with self abuse in the wake of a failed relationship. Although it specifically discusses the ramifications of alcohol abuse, the song does offer a more broader commentary of sadness and self esteem after a failed relationship.
It starts off like a rather typical commercial pop song, exciting and catchy. When the chorus hits, you see juts how well produced and intricate the production value on this piece. Courtney Grace’s vocals on the chorus send the song to another dimension, offering a chorus that is bound to have you feeling euphoric and ready to conquer the world. It’s just got an energy you can’t let go, the kind you need once you hear it the first time.
5. Our Man in the Bronze Age – Midnight Lovers
Having played for fourteen years together, Our Man in the Bronze Age have a coming together story that’s really endearing. The group of five had been friends for a long time, and ever since their partnership in 2007, they’ve continued to explore song writing, soundscapes, and just performing music all around! The UK based alternative rock outfit experiment with a lot of different styles and ideas in their music, all together creating a rather holistic and incredibly exciting rock music extcalenravaganza.
On their latest single, ‘Midnight Lovers’, the groups innate swagger and synergy reveals itself in full flow. The suave with which the vocal delivery of ‘those midnight lovers’ comes out is just effortlessly groovy. Powered by an emphatic and funky riff alongside a punchy and infectious chorus, it’s got a nigh anthemic feel to its composition. Elements of progressive rock, hard rock, and even metal find themselves interspersed through the track, making it all that much more exciting. Don’t sleep on this five piece rock group, they sound like they’re having as much fun as they’ll make you have when you listen to them.
4. Ksenia – Girl From The Forest
Sometimes you come across a song, and you just know from the start that this is almost certainly guaranteed to be a megahit. Ksenia, already a star in her own right with close to half a million followers and numerous major label collaborations under her belt, might just have elevated herself to the next level with her latest pop-rap piece. ‘Girl From The Forest’ is the kind of music you can bet your dollar could go viral overnight. Innately catchy, filled with instantly quotable one-liners, and backed by an audaciously punchy beat, it is by composition a TikTok curated masterpiece.
Born on the outskirts of a Russian village, pop star-in-the-making Ksenia made it to LA and is ready to take the music scene by storm. The song in and of itself is about Ksenia’s roots highlighting the distinctive sounds of traditional Russian instruments and folk melodies that are set on top of a more modern and infectious dance beat. A future hip-hop star in the making, undoubtedly.
3. ELY -Tornado
On their very first official release, brand new folk fusion band, ELY, have catapulted themselves onto the scene with Tornado. The single, filled with verve and exuberance, has a bit of country in it to make it all that more of a swinging, sing-along anthem. he group is led by award-winning singer/songwriter and emerging star, Jenny Colquitt, who recently received critical acclaim for her solo single, Dirty Town. Her voice is a major selling point on the single, driving and injecting passion into the uptempo track.
Although natively from the United Kingdom, there’s a marked influence of Americana and country styles on the group’s new record. It’s carried by a chorus that is just simply unforgettable, a tune so melodic and harmonious that you can’t help but sing along when it comes around the second time in the song. An expert piece of Americana with hints of folk all around.
2. Nick Cody And The Heartache – You Gotta Move
Nick Cody is bringing the blues back. On their second release, the soulful rock outfit is back with a groovy tune that has you yearning to be in a jazz club to hear the full show live. Cody himself has a wealth of experience under his belt. He’s a UK artist who is the founder of a number of musical ensembles including The Small Change Diaries, The Caravan of Dreams, and, in 2021, Nick Cody and the Heartache.
‘You gotta move real slow’ sings a slow and serenading Cody in the chorus of this track. It’s just a very easy listen, especially so for fans of the blues, jazz, or slow-rock as a whole. Nick Cody understands the assignment, he’s able to stick to all the requisite metrics that make a slow-rock song good and build on it wonderfully. ‘You Gotta Move’ might not want to make you move, but it’ll definitely have you easing through it.
1. Yuka Tree – The Man in the Leather Laced Shoes
Self described as ‘Plant Punk’, Yuka Tree are a five piece British based group who have just come out with their second release. A punchy, angsty, and abrasive piece of guitar driven rock music that can be most easily categorised as post-punk, Yuka Tree are loaded to the gills with an anger that sounds as vital and pointed as some of the earliest punk megastars themselves. It’s raw and unfiltered, the right kind of rage that you want to find in your punk tunes.
‘He looked right through you, said you’re a loser’ yells a fired up Kieran Breese on the song’s chorus, really pushing the angst of the tune into a more pointed area. As a fan of the early wave of punk music, Yuka Tree seem like a revitalisation of a genre that has, for better or worse, gone a bit more commercial with their aesthetic and sound. They’re not looking to please anyone, just vent and let the angry follow suit.
On the song, Kieran says “The song is about power dynamics, trust and perhaps finding it difficult to understand when a relationship is in your best interest or when it is being abused. This could be a romantic, platonic, or organisational relationship.” Punk fans rejoice, you’ve found a successor.
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