October 2022 – 1st 3 MAGAZINE

ASYLUMS – Broadening The Edges

31st October 2022

Southend’s finest – ASYLUMS – release their fourth album: ‘Signs of Life’, via Cool Thing Records).

The world has changed, Asylums have changed…but one thing remains valid, making music is still an essential craft and serves as creative medicine for many musicians and listeners alike.

Recorded at the legendary Rockfield Studios (in the same room Queen recorded Bohemian Rhapsody) with genre-bending ‘Manic Street Preachers’ producer Dave Eringa in the driving seat, ‘Signs Of Life’ is a record that evolves the Asylums’ sound once again while still staying true to their musical and lyrical DNA.

Album opener and lead single ‘Scatterbrain’ comes out of the starting blocks like Dr Feelgood and The Jesus & Mary Chain gene-spliced with Richard III era Supergrass, urgent, pseudo sardonic but somehow still fun, it sets the tone for the whole album which was always intended to be life-affirming and joyous after a deeply reflective period.

Not since their much-loved single ‘Joy In A Small Wage’ have Asylums articulated their melodic and melancholic dimension so well – this time adding drummer Henry Tyler’s string arrangements into the mix. On ‘Instant Coffee’ the band entwine the fragile introspection of early Kurt Vile and Cat Power with the late 90’s song smithery of Blur and The Cardigans. The results are uplifting, soul searching and further evidence that Asylums are on top form. Of the record Asylums’ Luke Branch says:

“Making ‘Signs of Life’ was a total labour of love for us, it’s been a rough few years for most people and for us the writing, rehearsing, arranging, recording and the design of this album has just been something positive to escape into, connect us to one another and the outside world and ultimately share creativity. We hope it brings a little joy to anyone who might hear it because it was a joy to make”

Asylums ‘Signs Of Life’ draws inspiration from a spectrum of human emotions and examines how they intersected with technology during the accelerated change of the last few years. As well as dialling their manic rock sound up to 10, this record also draws from the likes of R.E.M., The Magnetic Fields and The Beatles who all arguably made some of their best work during a live hiatus.

Reflecting on how the record came about, producer Dave Eringa says of ‘Signs Of Life’:

“When Luke said he wanted to do an album at Rockfield in 8 days - all played live & to integrate big strings into their sound - it sounded so ridiculous I thought “let’s do this”! Only a band that can really play can do this kind of recording. No clicks, no tricks - all live off the floor, a few judicious overdubs, some amazing string arrangements from musical polymath Henry & a bizarre interruption from Countryfile - it was a pretty intense week and I couldn’t be prouder of them for what they achieved! They’ve really taken themselves to the next level!”

Pre-order ‘Signs Of Life’ HERE

Track Listing for ‘Signs Of Life’:

1. Scatterbrain

2. Understand The Psychology

3. Instant Coffee

4. Signs Of Life

5. Crypto Klepto

6. Erase The Edges

7. If You Can’t Join Them Beat Them

8. Say Goodbye Before You Die

9. Nursery Rhymes Against Humanity

10. Everybody Has A Space To Fill

11. Spat Out The Other Side

12. The Mirror

Summarising his feelings on the new record, Luke Branch concludes: “Musically speaking we tried to broaden the edges slightly on this album, quite frankly we didn't know if we would ever get to play it live so exploring the studio felt apt. We brought in strings, piano, organ and other sounds but still tried to stay true to our artistic values. I personally like to think of this album as our ‘Rubber Soul’ (The Beatles) or maybe even our ‘Out of Time’ (R.E.M.)”

ASYLUMS – IN-STORE SHOWSNOVEMBER2 – Pie & Vinyl, Portsmouth @ 1pm – TICKETS/DETAILS2 – Vinilo, Southampton – TICKETS/DETAILS3 – Vinilo, Bournemouth – TICKETS/DETAILS

* * * *Asylums are:Luke Branch: Vocals / GuitarJazz Miell: GuitarMichael Webster: BassHenry Tyler: Drums / Vocals

Shout out to these talented people…

Press Shot: Alistair Underwood Video: Director – JJ Eringa Cover Illustrations: Iron Brain

https://www.facebook.com/asylumsuk

Beth Nielsen Chapman (Live Review) – Some Sloane Square Sparkle

30th October 2022

Music News, Music Reviews

The drizzle and the dark autumn night was made sparkly and bright, much like Beth Nielsen Chapman’s shoes, by the festoon lighting strewn across Sloane Square.

The stage is set at the elegant and versatile Cadogan and there’s an anticipatory buzz in the bar before the show… these people know and love Beth’s music.

A Steinway concert grand, a drum kit, keyboard, guitars and a double bass are highlighted by a gentle, mellow glow as Scott Mulvahill unassumingly but confidently picks up his double bass and starts to play.

Scott Mulvahill

A simple 12 bar ostinato, played pizzicato, develops into the beginning of a beautifully crafted set of songs. The music simply pours out of Scott- he plays the bass every way possible, extracting magic with every bow, pluck, tap and strum.

His second song, Himalayas, is lively in tempo and begins with double-stopping, giving a baroque feel to the start. Scott taps and slaps rhythms on his string bass’ and his body before quickly changing to beautiful arco with a perfect vibrato and feisty pizzicato- and back again, all wrapped up with contrasting dynamics, rubato tempo and his gorgeous rich- toned voice. Also playing the guitar, Scott is king of versatility- he makes it all look so easy…and it is just joyful to watch him.

Later, during the interval, Scott told us…

I try to play the music instead of the bass… as long as you play the music it comes out right”.

Scott Mulvahill

Scott IS the music. It’s all in there- echoes of the famous bass opening of the 2nd movt of Beethoven’s Eroica, bluegrass, jazz, blues… and his love of it hits you with a big, warm, fuzzy punch.

Scott Mulvahill

Scott begins to tell us about himself, how he didn’t start playing (unbelievably) until he was 14, starting with the bass guitar. And then, he says, he “just had to sing”– and moved to Nashville. The rest is history… happening now, in the heart of Chelsea. Moving away from the mic, letting the lovely acoustic of Cadogan show off, he finishes his set with a touchingly a cappella ‘The Lord is Coming’.

Mia Morris follows, a tiny blonde fireball of creative potential, playing the drums before moving to the Steinway, sweetly expressing excitement at being the first to play it. She plays and sings without any trace of nerves, as if she’s just been waiting for us to hear how lovely she is and what magic she can stir up with those keys and that voice… Mia’s is pure, honeyed and soaring with a big range and plenty of dynamic control and her and Scott harmonise beautifully together. They end their set by singing to us, “If anything is sacred, it’s the here and now”. We feel so lucky to be here, now.

Mia Morris

And then, suddenly Cadogan Hall has filled up and here she is- the wonderful Beth Nielsen Chapman, sparkly as the Sloane Square night, (on the inside as well as her jacket and shoes)- a bit of BethWorld right here for us Londoners.

Joined by stellar musicians Scott Mulvahill, Mia Morrow, and long-standing band member Ruth Trimble, Beth starts her set with three songs from her new album Crazy Town. ‘All Around the World’, ‘Put a Woman in Charge’ and ‘4 Leaf Clover’, tunes so melodic and natural that to hear them once is to hear them a hundred times in your head in the following days…chromatics, counterpoint and harmonies crafted around the chords soar and blend in a dance that makes sense- it just all works so perfectly.

Mia’s drumming ranges from gentle feathers and kisses to moody, insistent and relentless heavy beats which drive and shape the whole performance. All are multi-instrumentalists, moving seamlessly and effortlessly from keys to strings to percussion, combined with their gorgeously sonorous and comfortably soothing blend of voices.

The famous “Sand and Water” works its usual magic, with Scott coaxing cello-like tones from his bass, Mia’s soft brushes and Ruth’s tumbling notes combining to become imagery of water as the full lushness of Beth’s rich tonality sweeps over us. Beth’s sharing of her own vulnerability makes for powerful connection- her singing reaches into you, into your own soft, vulnerable place. Her strength becomes yours in those shared moments of contradiction and juxtaposition. Through her words and music, Beth tells us stories of her darkest and happiest times and of the “powerful way that music and art can help us through”.

the frequent imperfect cadences at the end of her songs made ferocious by her uncompromising empathy for emotion"

The four musicians sing their way through a richly rewarding set of old and new songs- as a quartet, solos, duets; Beth even takes requests from the audience, playing and singing songs to celebrate wedding anniversaries and for long-time fans. She, of course, is the powerhouse that holds it all together, never more emphasized than during her arguably most famous song, “This Kiss”. Beth is the ultimate teacher up there, showing her disciples the way.

Tonight’s collection of gorgeous songs are richly layered stories of simplicity and complexity: powerful combinations of love, loss, facing one’s fear and ultimate hopefulness. Beth Nielsen Chapman humbles with the confidence of a storyteller for whom every decision, every note, every word is deliberate, the frequent imperfect cadences at the end of her songs made ferocious by her uncompromising empathy for emotion.

Saying goodbye, almost saying thank you to us, the four stand together to sing a her latest single, “Walk you to Heaven”, an a cappella bow on top of a much-wanted, longed-for and instantly loved gift of an evening.

Beth Nielsen Chapman played Cadogan Hall, London on 23rd October 2022

https://bethnielsenchapman.com

Scott Mulvahill

Mia Morris

Ruth Trimble

Words and live photography Copyright of 1st 3 Magazine

Not to be reproduced without prior permission. Social media use only for persons depicted, event organisers and venue. Not to be cropped or altered in any way.

GRAMMS – A Cautionary Tale

28th October 2022

Music News

GRAMMS TURN UP THE HEAT IN OFFICIAL VIDEO FOR
“SHUT UP A SECOND”.

Pairing suitably high-octane visuals to their killer debut offering, the alternative-rock duo of Sam Jenkins (ex-Glass Tides) and Paul Bowe (ex-Federal Charm) are back with a bang.

Shot in the French motor racing capital of Le Mans at the height of the 2022 summer heatwave, the official video for “Shut Up A Second” finds minds and logic melting in unison with the tarmac.

Unravelling the story of a sinister masked conspiracy theorist (dubbed ‘Qing Qonspiracy’), the video documents his disappearance down the rabbit hole as he discovers the route of all evil: GRAMMS. With the masks and ‘Tin Foil’ crown all personally designed and made by the band’s Sam Jenkins

“It’s a glitchy claustrophobic cautionary tale that pokes a bit of fun at the ‘truther’ mentality… The masks have mouths for eyes and represent the modern societal urge to spout every little thing that comes to mind.”

Sam Jenkins

The official video was directed in collaboration with Paul Peterson; a prolific performance artist and musician from England who now lives and works in France.

Punchy and provocative, the new cut provides the perfect accompaniment to GRAMMS’ devilish debut single: “Shut Up A Second”. Fusing gnarled classic rock thrills with a modern production sheen, the single packs the kind of brutal punch you’d expect in a face/off between Royal Blood and The Black Keys. A track about social inequalities and a society more divided than ever, the message behind “Shut Up A Second” couldn’t be any more apposite right now.

GRAMMS is Sam Jenkins and Paul Bowe — a brand new alternative rock duo with notable previous history. Well-versed in the mechanics of making music — Sam with Glass Tides and Paul as a founding member of Federal Charm — the two-piece have toured extensively both nationally and internationally, and graced stages at many of the world’s largest festivals including Glastonbury and Download. Their music has also scored airplay across national radio, including BBC Radio 1, Planet Rock and Capital FM.

Having wracked up an impressive resume between them and each earning their own die-hard following along the way, the two-piece are now ready to cause a stir with their rip-roaring new venture.

With further music expected to be revealed before 2022 is out, stay tuned for the next instalment from GRAMMS in the coming weeks….

i/ https://www.instagram.com/grammsmusic/
f/ https://www.facebook.com/GRAMMSmusic
t/ https://www.tiktok.com/@grammsmusic
w/ www.grammsmusic.com

LIBRALIBRA – A Postmodern Frankenstein’s Monster

27th October 2022

Music News

Ahead of the release of their new track ‘Frenemies’ LibraLibra have announced a UK headline tour for March 2023.

A chaotic postmodern Frankenstein’s monster, LibraLibra sits simmering in the fractured space between art-pop and punk. From bursting house parties, to supporting Psychic TV at Heaven, to headlining the Brighton Dome, LibraLibra is a DIY collective with an uncompromising creative vision that holds up a cracked mirror to the chaos of modern life.

A Pandora’s box that first opened itself to the world in 2018, LibraLibra has continued to erode the stability of convention with each ambitious release. Founded by vocalist Beth Cannon (fresh off of a tour with Simon Raymond of the Cocteau Twins) & Producer/Drummer Joe Caple (CLT DRP, Lambrini Girls, The Physics House Band) the couple soon enlisted long time friend; multi-instrumentalist Guy Jones to complete this genre-defying line-up, whose explosive videos & aesthetic are matched only by their visceral live performances.

Several weeks of working with producer SPACE (IDLES, Never Not Nothing, Jamie Lenman) saw the birth of their 2020 self-released debut EP ‘ Hail Mary’ championed by Melita Dennett from BBC Introducing The South and receiving praise from BBC Radio 1 and BBC 6 Music. Fast-forward to the present day, their second EP ‘Modern Millennial’ was born. Incubated in the womb of a hysterectomy, mental collapses, breakups, loss, a global pandemic and existential dread, this self-produced release lays screaming in the operating theatre gasping its first breath. Through pain is growth, through death comes rebirth. LibraLibra are excited to bring their blemished child into the broken world. A collection of songs that serve as a soundtrack for the apocalypse. A hint at the limitless possibilities that are yet to come, whilst laying to bear the past that lead them here. The group have also announced the release of their new single ‘‘Frenemies’ which will be released on 31st October, you can pre-save the single here.

Looking forward to heading out on the road for their headline tour next year, the band will visit Brighton, Newport, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle, Glasgow, Birmingham and London in March 2023.

Tickets go on sale at 10am on Friday 28th October and will be available from www.gigsandtours.com / www.ticketmaster.co.uk

TOUR DATES MARCH 2023

11 March         Hope & Ruin, Brighton
15 March         Le Pub, Newport
16 March         Oporto, Leeds
17 March         Night & Day, Manchester
18 March         Zerox, Newcastle
19 March         The Hug and Pint, Glasgow
21 March         Sunflower Lounge, Birmingham
23 March         Shacklewell Arms, London

(3) LibraLibra (@LibraLibramusic) / Twitter

SOULDRAINER – In Your Face

27th October 2022

HALLOWEEN SPECIALS, Mainly Metal

Swedish Death Metallers SOULDRAINER release new single “Council of Five”!

Symphonic death metal outfit Souldrainer is gearing up for the release of the band’s highly anticipated new album “Departure”, which will be coming out on November 25 via Black Lion Records. After the release of the first two singles “Where Angels Come To Die” and “Rats Of The International Race”, the band follows up today with the release of the track “Council of Five”.

Souldrainer comments: “We are very excited to present to you the third single Council Of Five of our coming album Departure.While this is our fastest song on the album, it still has heavy parts that we are known for. Buckle up and get ready for a ride through your dark future as a feeble human being!“

It is safe to say that Souldrainer have created their heaviest and most well-crafted album to date. Surely fans of the genre will not be disappointed. With thickly layered rhythm guitars, atmospheric angel choirs, string ensembles, and ripping vocals, Souldrainer create a distinct harmonic aggression that hits you harder than a brick wall in your face.

“Departure” will be coming out on November 25 and is available for pre-order HERE

Tracklist:

1. Council Of Five
2. Where Angels Come To Die
3. Weaver Of Mortal Dreams
4. Paint The World In Lies
5. Rats Of The International Race
6. Departure
7. I Abort You
8. One Last Shot
9. End Of The World

https://souldrainer.com

Track45 – A Fresh Approach

27th October 2022

Country News

The Meridian, Mississippi-bred sibling trio Track45 releases “Family” via Stoney Creek Records.

Written by the “rising Country trio” (Country Now) alongside Billy Mann, the track was originally made famous by David Guetta and featured Bebe Rexha last year.

With numerous versions going viral worldwide, the song was released in nine different languages. Seeing the song’s impact, Track45 began teasing a snippet of its version of the song on TikTok. Gaining immense fan support and more than 1.8 million views, the group knew they had to release it.

When writing “Family,” the close-knit siblings had recently lost an important relationship in their lives, and their friends helped them see the light at the end of the tunnel, realizing that you don’t have to be blood to be family. Balancing “small-town values and stories through an invigorating blend of genres relating to Country, R&B, Pop, and Rock in a modern way” (CountrySwag), the song intertwines the group’s crystalline blood harmony. “Family” follows the “breakthrough group’s” (Celeb Secrets Country) 2021 EP Big Dreams that American Songwriter praised as “indeed emblematic of the trio’s honest sensibilities and knack for catchy hook-writing.”

Track45 is made up of siblings Jenna, Ben, and KK Johnson, and the group’s name is a blend of homages to Meridian’s railroad history: a 45 record, Highway 45 that runs through Meridian, which took them to countless gigs in the family car, and their mastery of “Tracks” in their ability to write and produce as part of their track-driven style.

Each is a gifted songwriter and musician with individual publishing deals and impressive writing credits including: Justin Timberlake, Charlie Puth, Dierks Bentley, Weezer, Lee Brice, HARDY and Lauren Alaina. Ben recently had six songs simultaneously within the Top 20 on Billboard’s Country chart and received his first GRAMMY nomination this year for Weezer’s “All My Favorite Songs,” while KK has co-written and produced Kylie Morgan and Tyler Rich’s newest tracks.

Photo Credit: Alyssa Gafkjen

MORNING TOURIST – Bright Potential

26th October 2022

Music News

MORNING TOURIST – the alias of rising London alt/folk act Sean McKinney – is pleased to present his brand-new single: “Small Flame”.

The track arrives as the first taster of a brand-new album, ‘The Endless Eve’, which will arrive in 2023.

Revolving around an idea that could have stemmed from the minds of H.G. Wells or Aldous Huxley, “Small Flame” is a sci-fi love song filled with what-ifs and parallel realities, dreams and decisions. Imagining a world in which we could freeze time at the peak of a relationship, “before the honeymoon is inevitably over and the once intense gold rush of new love gives way to a reality of more sedate, sobering thoughts and fears for the future”, “Small Flame” is a song that steps into the shoes of a central protagonist caught-up by such daydreams.

As Sean McKinney AKA Morning Tourist explains of the track:

“Most of the song was written in the passionate haze of a new relationship, but was ultimately completed following its ending. By the conclusion of the song, the perspective of the author has changed from one of a charmed romantic, to that of a rueful self saboteur. While this song was written with the benefit of hindsight, its competing voices are not just reflective, but illustrate the pessimistic thoughts one tries to dismiss at a time when things are actually going well and life is good”.

A song that philosophises on how the thoughts we have and the choices we make can so easily reshape our relationships forever, “Small Flame” ultimately considers whether one’s scepticism in love can serve as a self-fulfilling prophecy, and whether it is always wise to trust the extremity of one’s emotions at any given moment.

An incandescent alternative/folk song to stave off the chill of Autumn, “Small Flame” vividly burns with the bright potential of a new songwriting talent you need to know about. Flickering with shades of Eliott Smith to The Shins, Sparklehorse to Villagers, the song is the first to be plucked from an upcoming 9-track debut album from Morning Tourist entitled ‘The Endless Eve’, which is set for release in 2023.

MORNING TOURIST – NEW ALBUM: ‘THE ENDLESS EVE’
– OUT 2023, VIA BLAGGERS RECORDS
STREAM NEW SINGLE “SMALL FLAME” HERE

With all songs composed and written by MT’s Sean McKinney (including instrumentation of Acoustic & Electric Guitar/Percussion/Vocals/Keys), the album was recorded at Shenley Studios, Rushmoor (UK). Produced and Engineered by Tom Davis, it features guest appearances from Jody Lahart (Bass), Sam Cahalin (Synth), plus electric guitars by Harvey Fenny (on the closing track “Perfect Sense”).

Ahead of the new release, Morning Tourist will be previewing tracks at a number of live fixtures, including multiple sets at Left Of The Dial Festival in Rotterdam this weekend. Catch Morning Tourist at these dates as follows…

MORNING TOURIST – 2022/23 LIVE DATES

21-22 Oct – Left of the Dial Festival, Rotterdam NL (multiple Shows)

14 Nov – The Castle, Luton

1 Dec – The Cavendish Arms , London

Tickets on sale now.

w/ https://morningtourist.bandcamp.com/releases

t/ https://twitter.com/MorningTourist

IST IST – Delivering A Punch

26th October 2022

Music News

IST IST RETURN WITH COMMANDING NEW TRACK “STAMP YOU OUT”.

IST IST are back with the insurgent new single “Stamp You Out”. The track arrives in tandem with the announcement of ‘Protagonists’, the band’s third studio album, which is confirmed for release on 31 March 2023 (via Kind Violence Records).

Delivering a resolute punch with an acerbic sting in its tale, new single “Stamp You Out” sees the Manchester band return to the spotlight with commanding form and typically uncompromising style.

From its blistering post/punk guitar lines to its punishing percussives, “Stamp You Out” creates an impending atmosphere of anxiety throughout. With Adam Houghton’s trademark baritone vocal booming with all the force of an omnipotent autocrat at the lectern of a police state; it makes for a powerful statement of intent that instantly envelops listeners back into the shadow-strewn world of IST IST.

Speaking about “Stamp You Out”, Houghton says:

“[Stamp You Out] tips its hat to the previous IST IST where the modus operandi was to try and make an impact in the most forceful way; pounding drums and bass and repetitive lyrics. I remember watching a news report where a politician, whose name I forget, just kept saying: ‘we need to stamp this out’. I was thinking ‘we need to stamp you out’, so I wrote an aggressive fight song and a call to arms about it.”

The single is accompanied by an official video that sees the band deliver a voltaic performance of the track against a flurry of incandescent lights.

“We felt like the track is a straightforward rock song which required a straightforward video and we didn’t want to over-embellish the visual aspect. For existing IST IST fans, it re-affirms what we’re all about, and for anyone new it tells you everything you need to know.”

The new single is also accompanied by the announcement of IST IST’s third studio album ‘Protagonists’, out 31 March 2022 via Kind Violence Records. After securing their status as one of Manchester’s most exciting acts with their 2020 debut ‘Architecture’, and then consolidating the title with its 2021 follow-up ‘The Art of Lying’; new album ‘Protagonists’ arrives as something of a new dawn for the four-piece.

As Andy Keating says:

“This was our first straightforward album, which sounds strange given it’s the third one. Our first album was a little bit of a back catalogue, and the rest was written in the same vein to have a coherent record. The second album was a stab in the dark and written and recorded during lockdown restrictions, but it broke us into the top 100. ‘Protagonists’ feels like the first album where there’s no pressure.”

NEW ALBUM: ‘PROTAGONISTS’

OUT 31 MARCH 2023, VIA KIND VIOLENCE RECORDS

An album all about new beginnings, with a nod to the trials and tribulations of love, tricky family relationships and the feeling of being trapped by the past, ‘Protagonists’ arrives as an attestation to a band sure of their own identity. With the time and space to experiment in order to solidify their own sound, Keating adds:

“We originally started just exploring sounds and textures which appealed to us, and it evolved into fully-fledged songwriting. There are some elements which hark back to our ballsy days of a heavy sound, but we feel like this is a band expressing themselves how they want to.”

Owing its title to songwriter Adam Houghton’s magpie-like method of writing, ‘Protagonists’ finds the frontman taking prominent characters that have caught his imagination, whether fictional or non-fictional, and transplanting them into dystopian worlds with new and uncertain outcomes. As Hougton explains:

“My process has always been taking inspiration from everything around me including but not limited to TV, Books, Movies, Newspaper, Articles on Wikipedia, Crime Documentaries etc. I then use these sources to craft fictitious stories around an imagined persona. The title ‘Protagonists” seemed to work with this method.”

Blurring the lines between fact and fiction and traversing a broad spectrum of genres, tracks like “Nothing More Nothing Less” — a “simple love song written from a woman’s perspective” — take on a gauzy and ethereal pop-tinted quality, while slightly more menacing moments like “Fool’s Paradise” and “Trapdoors” find closer alignment with the band’s brooding, brazen rock roots.

From future favourites like “Something Has To Give”, a jittering guitar track about “a stick or twist situation”, to fully fitted-out classics like the anthemic “Emily” (a live fixture from the band’s earliest days, which has finally found its place on this record), ‘Protagonists’ will provide plenty to pore over for fans new and old.

Recorded and mixed by Michael Whalley and IST IST at Milkshed Studios, the album was mastered by the legendary Greg Calbi and Steve Fallone at Sterling Sound (The National, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Interpol).

A compulsive, character-driven record from a band hitting their creative zenith, IST IST will release ‘Protagonists’ in Spring of 2023.

To mark the release, IST IST will be playing a special hometown launch show for the new record at the Manchester Ritz in March next year – details below. There will also be a small preview tour before the end of 2022, with dates in London, Birmingham and Hebden Bridge. Standby for further UK live dates soon.

IST IST UK LIVE SHOWS

NOVEMBER 2022

3/11 O2 Academy 2, Islington,
4/11 The Rainbow, Birmingham,
25/11 Trades Club, Hebden Bridge (Sold out)

MARCH 2023

31 – Manchester Ritz

Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Spotify

THE BIRTHDAY MASSACRE – A Bewitching Return

25th October 2022

HALLOWEEN SPECIALS, Mainly Metal, Music News

THE BIRTHDAY MASSACRE FASCINATION UK 2022 TOUR.

Canadian dark-pop act The Birthday Massacre are finally about to commence a long-awaited UK tour to promote their current album, ‘Fascination’, which was released in early 2022. The ten dates include some moved to bigger venues and are bookended by two events in London: a sold-out Halloween show at The Lexington and another at The Garage on 12th November that is close to selling out.

Formed in 2000, TBM incorporate elements of electronica, goth and new wave into their lush and atmospheric dark-pop sound. They have issued nine full-length studio records to date and had originally planned to tour their brooding and mystical eighth album, ‘Diamonds’ (2020). However, the pandemic intervened and eventually led the band to make ‘Fascination’, which was released in February 2022.

THE BIRTHDAY MASSACRE
FASCINATION
UK TOUR

31.10.22  LONDON Lexington SOLD OUT
02.11.22  YORK Fulford Arms SOLD OUT
03.11.22  NEWCASTLE Cluny
04.11.22  EDINBURGH La Belle Angele NEW VENUE
05.11.22  GLASGOW Ivory Blacks
08.11.22  MANCHESTER Rebellion NEW VENUE
09.11.22  NOTTINGHAM Rescue Rooms
10.11.22  WOLVERHAMPTON NAC NEW VENUE
11.11.22  BRISTOL Exchange SOLD OUT
12.11.22  LONDON Garage

Expansive yet intimate, ‘Fascination’ is TBM’s most fully realised effort to date, with the group’s signature blend of captivating electronics, aggressive guitars, cinematic melodies and beautifully bewitching vocals on full display. The album shows that their music and the magical world it creates remains ever captivating.

Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube

THE BIRTHDAY MASSACRE
Chibi – vocals
Rainbow – guitars, programming, vocals
Falcore – lead guitar
Phillip Elliott – drums
Owen – keyboards
Brett ‘Bat’ Carruthers – bass

thebirthdaymassacre.com

KENNY FOSTER – Singing About Those Sweet Lives

23rd October 2022

Country News

KENNY FOSTER SHARES LONG-AWAITED SECOND FULL-LENGTH ALBUM, SOMEWHERE IN MIDDLE AMERICA.

The long-awaited second album from acclaimed U.S. singer-songwriter Kenny Foster, Somewhere In Middle America, produced by GRAMMY-winner Mitch Dane, is out worldwide to stream/download today – listen via Spotify / Apple Music / Amazon.

Songs from the new album, which follows his breakthrough debut full-length release Deep Cuts (2017), include current single ‘Copy, Paste, Repeat’, ‘Dreams Change‘, ‘Poor Kids’, and title track ‘Somewhere In Middle America’, which premiered on BBC Radio 2 earlier this year, with additional airplay including Planet Rock, RTÉ Radio One, BBC Radio Scotland and Soho Radio.

On Somewhere in Middle America, Foster addresses the beauty and the limitations, the experiences and the challenges, facing those Midwesterners who, like him, carry a complicated relationship to their hometowns and the polarising mindsets that increasingly define our times.

Born and raised in Joplin, Missouri, the acclaimed and innovative artist didn’t set out to make this complex and deeply personal territory the focus of the record, but gradually became aware of what was feeling most urgent to him.

“The nice thing about where I’m at in my career is that I get to let things accrue until it makes sense,” he says. “I write five days a week, all the time, so my projects come out of the sorting of the songs after the fact – I’m not reaching for something, it’s just what’s coming out naturally. And this theme was something I really needed to say.”

The results merge country storytelling, singer/songwriter intimacy, and rock & roll intensity—the place where pedal steel and banjos meet power chords. Foster grapples with the struggle between ambition and reality in songs like ‘Dreams Change’ and ‘Farmer’, and wrestles with his attachment to old-school values in an advancing society in ‘For What It’s Worth’, presenting himself as “a long-form man in a sound-bite world.”

Growing up singing in church, Kenny never thought about making music his life’s work until he saw one of his cousins play some Led Zeppelin covers at a family gathering. “That was when the light bulb went off,” he says. “In the Midwest, we love film and TV and literature, but nobody ever put together that they could actually be one of the people on those posters.”

As a philosophy major at Missouri State University, he fell in love with the emo and alternative rock of Get Up Kids and Third Eye Blind, and had a revelation at a Dashboard Confessional concert.

“Hearing everybody sing the songs back to Chris Carrabba was incredible,” he says, “because it felt so much like my story, but it was their story, too. But I also realised ‘Oh, I think I can do that.’ “

Foster transferred to Belmont University in Nashville, and after graduating, he worked in and around the music scene while continuing to write songs and release them on his website, culminating in the 2008 release For Now. After a storm ravaged Joplin in 2011, he responded with the moving benefit single ‘Hometown’.

As Foster continued to grow as an artist and dive deeper into finding his voice as a songwriter, he crafted a unique and very personal sense of his artistry – this all culminating in the release of his critically acclaimed 2017 album, Deep Cuts. The record expanded his reach further than even he could imagine and found a global audience, performing in 18 different countries in the years following.

This year alone, while preparing for the release of his new music, Kenny has toured the UK, hosted an international songwriter’s round at CMA Fest, and signed with leading live agency UTA for global representation.

“When I moved to The South from the Midwest I realised very quickly that they had an entire ubiquitous culture down here, one that felt unifying and kinda desirable to want to be a part of. I think that’s part of country music’s allure,” he shares. “But Middle America is its own thing altogether.

“How do you sing about folks that kinda keep to themselves, complain very little, and live these sweet microcosmic lives? Those are my people. Wherever in the world they are, I’d like to think my music meets them there. Somewhere in Middle America.”

Somewhere In Middle America is available worldwide on all major streaming/download platforms now.

Monthly Archives: October 2022

ASYLUMS – Broadening The Edges

Southend’s finest – ASYLUMS – release their fourth album: ‘Signs of Life’, via Cool Thing Records).

Pre-order ‘Signs Of Life’ HERE

https://www.facebook.com/asylumsuk

Beth Nielsen Chapman (Live Review) – Some Sloane Square Sparkle

The drizzle and the dark autumn night was made sparkly and bright, much like Beth Nielsen Chapman’s shoes, by the festoon lighting strewn across Sloane Square.

GRAMMS – A Cautionary Tale

GRAMMS TURN UP THE HEAT IN OFFICIAL VIDEO FOR
“SHUT UP A SECOND”.

LIBRALIBRA – A Postmodern Frankenstein’s Monster

Ahead of the release of their new track ‘Frenemies’ LibraLibra have announced a UK headline tour for March 2023.

(3) LibraLibra (@LibraLibramusic) / Twitter

SOULDRAINER – In Your Face

Swedish Death Metallers SOULDRAINER release new single “Council of Five”!

Track45 – A Fresh Approach

The Meridian, Mississippi-bred sibling trio Track45 releases “Family” via Stoney Creek Records.

MORNING TOURIST – Bright Potential

MORNING TOURIST – the alias of rising London alt/folk act Sean McKinney – is pleased to present his brand-new single: “Small Flame”.

IST IST – Delivering A Punch

IST IST RETURN WITH COMMANDING NEW TRACK “STAMP YOU OUT”.

THE BIRTHDAY MASSACRE – A Bewitching Return

THE BIRTHDAY MASSACRE FASCINATION UK 2022 TOUR.

thebirthdaymassacre.com

KENNY FOSTER – Singing About Those Sweet Lives

KENNY FOSTER SHARES LONG-AWAITED SECOND FULL-LENGTH ALBUM, SOMEWHERE IN MIDDLE AMERICA.

Newsletter

Monthly Archives: October 2022

ASYLUMS – Broadening The Edges

Southend’s finest – ASYLUMS – release their fourth album: ‘Signs of Life’, via Cool Thing Records).

Pre-order ‘Signs Of Life’ HERE

https://www.facebook.com/asylumsuk

Beth Nielsen Chapman (Live Review) – Some Sloane Square Sparkle

The drizzle and the dark autumn night was made sparkly and bright, much like Beth Nielsen Chapman’s shoes, by the festoon lighting strewn across Sloane Square.

GRAMMS – A Cautionary Tale

GRAMMS TURN UP THE HEAT IN OFFICIAL VIDEO FOR“SHUT UP A SECOND”.

LIBRALIBRA – A Postmodern Frankenstein’s Monster

Ahead of the release of their new track ‘Frenemies’ LibraLibra have announced a UK headline tour for March 2023.

(3) LibraLibra (@LibraLibramusic) / Twitter

SOULDRAINER – In Your Face

Swedish Death Metallers SOULDRAINER release new single “Council of Five”!

Track45 – A Fresh Approach

The Meridian, Mississippi-bred sibling trio Track45 releases “Family” via Stoney Creek Records.

MORNING TOURIST – Bright Potential

MORNING TOURIST – the alias of rising London alt/folk act Sean McKinney – is pleased to present his brand-new single: “Small Flame”.

IST IST – Delivering A Punch

IST IST RETURN WITH COMMANDING NEW TRACK “STAMP YOU OUT”.

THE BIRTHDAY MASSACRE – A Bewitching Return

THE BIRTHDAY MASSACRE FASCINATION UK 2022 TOUR.

thebirthdaymassacre.com

KENNY FOSTER – Singing About Those Sweet Lives

KENNY FOSTER SHARES LONG-AWAITED SECOND FULL-LENGTH ALBUM, SOMEWHERE IN MIDDLE AMERICA.

Newsletter

GRAMMS TURN UP THE HEAT IN OFFICIAL VIDEO FOR
“SHUT UP A SECOND”.