Hey hey – it’s Friday! Bet you can’t wait to go wild on the weekend and we have the perfect soundtrack with our #NewMusicFriday playlist. Bringing you the best singles and albums that have just been dropped, the insider info plus the tickets to hear the hottest new tunes being played live; Gigantic is your essential round up of the latest music.
Singles
VISTAS – ‘Eighteen’
Edinburgh brings us new hope for indie rock in the form of bright and upbeat trio VISTAS. Everyone is going nuts for their rampant hook laden single ‘Eighteen’ which is produced by Rich Turvey (The Coral, Blossoms) and will have you taping your toe well after the track is finished. ‘Eighteen’ will feature on their upcoming as yet untitled four track EP.
“Eighteen is about looking back on the best summer of your life and wishing you could go back to that moment. What often happens when you look back on those moments is you can forget about some of the bad sides of those experiences because your memory is clouded by nostalgia.”
Showing every sign of being the breakthrough band of the year, VISTAS have already amassed a huge online following which has seen them streamed 15 million by their 650,000 monthly Spotify listeners. They have also been praised by CLASH, DIY Magazine and Huw Stephen’s who has played them on his BBC Radio 1 show. Make sure you see them when they take over Crofters Rights in Bristol and Night People at Manchester during May, playing support for Circa Waves and Fatherson plus festival appearances are expected to be announced later.
Vistas tickets are currently available.
Albums
WHILE SHE SLEEPS – ‘So What?’
While She Sleeps have shown constant progression in their sound with each release and this evolution has continued unabashed on their new record ‘So What?’ On this, their forth LP, the Sheffield squad are still able to bring huge onslaughts of face melting guitar riffs under layered by concrete hard bass and explosions of drums, yet mix it up with almost orchestral vocal harmonies and temper the rough with smooth use of synths and programmed beats.
This makes ‘So What?’ an accessible album for those drawn to the catchy appeal of metalcore whilst still bringing enough aggression to satisfy their old fans and those looking for something to body slam to in the pit.
While She Sleeps have been invited to support fellow South Yorkshire hard rockers Bring Me The Horizon when they take over Victoria Park for All Points East on Friday 31st of May. There, you will also be able to see a mighty line up of savage sonic terrorists including Run The Jewels, Nothing But Thieves, IDLES, YONAKA and Alice Glass.
While She Sleeps tickets are currently available.
THE JAPANESE HOUSE – ‘Good At Falling’
Independent label Dirty Hit continues its flawless run of incredible offerings with Buckinghamshire’s latest dream pop sensation The Japanese House debut album ‘Good At Falling’. With astute song writing that packages complexed layering and experimental electronica with immaculate delivery, their first LP is perfect for both the casual listener looking for something easy on the ear and the chin stroking muso who wants something to get their teeth into.
The Japanese House is the work of solo artist Amber Bain who took inspiration for her stage name from a Cornish home previously owned by Kate Winslet where she had stayed with her family in her youth. Feeling safe within the anonymity the title afforded, she felt free to explore sounds and styles without expectation based on her background or gender allowing her to truly develop in any directions she chose. Her freeform forays into sound were aided by being locked away in Bon Iver’s cabin where ‘Good At Falling’ was recorded. There, she was able to craft her pioneering modern masterpiece with the assistance of producer BJ Burton who has also worked with Iver plus the likes of The Staves and James Blake.
“Originally I was going to try and produce the album by myself because George [Daniel, The 1975] was too busy, and I didn’t know whether I wanted another producer because that relationship had been so special. I tried it and I went absolutely insane. It almost feels like I’m cheating if I ask people to do things for me.”
“Eventually I Googled all of these albums and found a common thread between them was this producer called BJ Burton who’s brilliant. We ended up doing two months in Wisconsin, a month in Brussels then the last bit in Oxford with The 1975. I rarely get to hang out with them, so having that couple of weeks was really nice again because we are close.”
The Japanese House tickets are currently available.
LITTLE SIMZ – ‘GREY Area’
With all the attention seemingly on grime right now, West London based rapper Little Simz (Simbi Ajikawo) continues to strike out with her own unique take on hip hop which blends influences of R&B, jazz and soul as heard on her third album ‘GREY Area’ which she says “definitely feels like this is my best work.”
This is quite a claim considering the 24-year-old has already impressed such luminaries as Kendrick Lamar who described her as his favourite rising star with the high quality and relentless speed of her output which has seen her release albums ‘A Curious Tale of Trials + Persons’ plus ‘Stillness in Wonderland’. This time round, Ajikawo tackles the trials of mid-twenties malaise.
“I’m right in the dead middle of my twenties — no one warned me it was going to be this hard. It feels like a GREY Area — which is why I called the album that.”
‘GREY Area’ is released today on her own label Age 101 and you can see Little Simz when she joins the audacious line up for All Points East headlined by The Chemical Brothers on Friday 24th of May. Other performing acts include Hot Chip, Primal Scream, Spiritualised and more.
Little Simz tickets are currently available.
SELF ESTEEM – ‘Compliments Please’
It’s finally here! We have been getting very excited about Rebecca Taylor’s new project Self Esteem in the Gigantic office. So much so, we made her our Artist Of The Week which is why we are absolutely buzzing that her debut solo album ‘Compliments Please’. Bright shiny indie pop is matched with personal insights to create sixteen tracks of danceable yet emotionally compelling songs making it perfect for the good times and the perfect audio accompaniment to bouncing back from heartbreak.
“It’s been sitting in my guts since I was a child… It has been challenging and incredibly frightening but so much more satisfying because of this. I wanted to make pop music for my fellow flawed, squashed and disgusting humans having a go at life. I feel I’ve succeeded. And if I haven’t, I’m hoping to make a fair few more.”
Featuring such bold singles as ‘The Best’ and ‘Rollout’ which are both wracking up some serious streaming figures, it certainly does feel like she’s finding the success she is craving and clearly deserves. Make sure you grab your copy of ‘Compliments Please’ today!