I've missed out a couple of Friday highlights due to holidays and travel, so I thought I'd do a catch-up post highlighting some of my favourite releases of the month so far. All of these (and lots of others) feature on my April 2022 playlist.
Her latest release switches frequently from slower paced, shut-your-eyes and hum along portions to upbeat refrains, all of which will make you smile - and keep smiling. Emma also shows off an impressive and versatile vocal range here, making it clear that she's not one who needs to rely on overproduction to deliver her lines. I'm always really excited to hear Emma's new work, and this one has beaten my expectations. Catch Emma at her headline hometown show in Leicester on 25th April - tickets available here.
Emma Mae - I Should Sell My Story To A TV Network Emma excels at what she labels "bitchpop" - a genre where the infectious effervescence belies the underlying take-no-prisoners theme of her music.
Her latest release switches frequently from slower paced, shut-your-eyes and hum along portions to upbeat refrains, all of which will make you smile - and keep smiling. Emma also shows off an impressive and versatile vocal range here, making it clear that she's not one who needs to rely on overproduction to deliver her lines. I'm always really excited to hear Emma's new work, and this one has beaten my expectations. Catch Emma at her headline hometown show in Leicester on 25th April - tickets available here.
Blue Violet - Halo Having recently released one of my absolute favourite songs of the year, 'Rabbit Hole', the husband-and-wife duo are back with a spectacularly sweeping, soaring ballad. You can't help but be taken along for an emotional ride with this one - it's gorgeous. The lyrical descriptions are top quality, and the vocals delivery is spot on.
Blue Violet release their debut album 'Late Night Calls' on 29th April and are about to embark on a run of live dates, including Glastonbury.
Jemima Coulter - SST This is a remarkable record - bluesy, off beat and soulful. It's nicely stripped back for the most part, which means that the introduction of rich warm piano chords, a more developed drum sound, and some slightly louder guitar really brings the second half alive. It's so, so effective, as is the jazzy outro which strays almost into electronic territory.
Kitty Perrin - Nothing Bad About Me Kitty is a Norfolk based singer-songwriter who has one of those voices which just stops you in your tracks - it's unpretentious and honest, and that works very well in this very personal-sounding song.
This is a very well-written, slow-paced track which blends indie-pop with forward leaning folk influences, and one in which lyrics and singing take centre stage.
Supersaurus - Alice This is a song full of surprises, one round each musical corner. After a clever false start, heavily processed vocals come in early, setting a quick pace which maintains right throughout the very poppy, 80s influenced song. The punches of 'Hey!' are novel and punctuate the whole track, adding to the peppery feel. 'Alice' is the debut offering from this recently formed band and I'm intrigued to see where this project leads next.
Wyldest - The Best Is Yet To Come This song starts with reverby guitar noodling and builds gently, layer by layer into a dreamy, almost meditative, track.
Zoe's voice is at its best here, and she delivers the words so carefully and precisely which gives a lovely clean feel to the song. The drum sound is particularly striking - rich and bassy - and very neatly tied in with the synth basslines. The whole track is exceptionally well produced, and despite the name, the best seems to be here already!