Hey there Gigantic fam! Listen carefully because I’ve got some really good news for you – IT’S THE WEEKEND!! Yes, it’s finally here and with it comes your favourite #NewMusicFriday blog! Your essential round up of all the latest tracks and tunes you need to know.
Not only is our playlist the soundtrack to your weekend, but we let you in on the story behind the music plus give you the chance to grab tickets to see the very latest gigs and festivals. Enjoy!
Singles
JENNY LEWIS – ‘Redbull & Hennessy’
Having first established herself in L.A. indie rock outfit Rilo Kiley who rose in the late 90’s to break in 2014, Jenny Lewis has continued to grow working in three-piece Nice As Fuck and a solo artist.
‘Redbull & Hennessy’ is taken from her forthcoming new album ‘On The Line’ which is released on CD, MP3, limited edition blue vinyl from independent retailers plus a limited edition deluxe vinyl only available from her online store – out March 22nd on Warner Records. It will include contributions from such rock and pop royalty as Ringo Starr and Beck, marking it as one of the biggest album releases of the year!
Bright and breezy, ‘Redbull & Hennessy’ captures the giddy rush of the first flushes of attraction with a highly polished country inflected pop feel. If this is what we can expect from ‘On The Line’, we can’t wait to hear the rest!
Jenny Lewis tickets are currently available.
TOKIO HOTEL – ‘Melancholic Paradise’
The ever-evolving sound of German rock band Tokio Hotel never fails to impress. Centred around twin brothers Tom and Bill Kaulitz plus Georg Listing and Gustav Schäfer, they have explored pop punk, emo and electronica over the past eighteen years winning them three number one singles on their debut album ‘Schrei’ alone. It has subsequently sold more than half a million copies worldwide.
Their continued experimentation has continued leading to their new electro-pop single ‘Melancholic Paradise’ which has only just dropped! The song expresses their lethargy and heartache in the face of a seemingly perfect life.
Make sure you see the Deutsche dance rockers when they hit the UK to place Manchester Academy plus O2 Forum in London during April this year.
Tokio Hotel tickets are currently available.
Lazy Day – ‘Double j’
Originally just the bedroom project of songwriter Tilly Scantlebury, Lazy Day grew into a full band when her self-recorded Garageband tracks started taking off on Soundcloud and drawing attention from many quarters of the independent music press. After recruiting drummer Beni Evans, guitarist Liam Hoflay and Jonathan Coddington on bass, Scantlebury has continued to impress with a series of singles wrapped deep with emotion plus the EP ‘Ribbons’ which exhibited her wide spanning take on indie rock across a short succession of seven tracks.
Her latest release is new single ‘Double j’ which takes its kews from the 90’s alt rock the grew out of the grunge years and is an ode to her best mate.
“I wrote ‘Double j’ about my best friend and how she gets me through a lot. It feels really good to talk about her strength and all that it does for me, especially shouting about it in the big choruses. These are the happiest lyrics I’ve ever written, and I wanted the music to properly reflect that - to be a fierce celebration of friendship.” - Tilly Scantlebury
‘Double j’ will appear on the upcoming EP ‘Letters’ which was recorded with producer Steph Marziano (Radiohead, The Prodigy, Mumford & Sons) at Czar Street Studios in London and will be out on 22nd March via Lazy Day’s very own label Weird Cool Records.
Lazy Day tickets are currently available.
KIMBRA – ‘Lightyears’ (Chris Tabron Mix)
Two-time Grammy Award-winning songwriter and actress Kimbra has just dropped a re-worked version of ‘Lightyears’. Taken from last year’s killer album ‘Primal Heart’, the Kiwi indie popstar has teamed up with multi-platinum selling producer Chris Tabron who has also worked on tracks for the likes of Beyoncé, Nicki Minaj and The Stokes to give the album track a little added extra punch.
And when she isn’t bringing out cracking tunes, Kimbra will soon also be making her big screen acting debut in the upcoming New Zealand film ‘Daffodils’ which is described as “A bittersweet love story told with beautiful re-imaginings of iconic New Zealand songs.” ‘Daffodils’ sees the lead roles go to Rose McIver from ‘iZombie’ and ‘The Lovely Bones’ and George Mason of from ‘Home and Away’ and ‘Go Girls’.
Kimbra tickets are currently available.
Albums
HIGHASAKITE – ‘Uranium Heart’
It’s finally here! The long awaited third album ‘Uranium Heart’ from Norway’s icy synthpop sensations Ingrid Helene Håvik and Trond Bersu AKA HIGHASAKITE is now out and it’s a cracker!
It’s been three years since their last LP, during which time the band split up and Håvik took time out to have a child. With so much going on, it would have been easy to lose momentum and produce a lacklustre LP which failed to meet the mark of their past glories.
But upon listening, all such worries are quickly blown away not least due to the shining single ‘Mexico’ which glistens with flawless pop perfection – its bombastic nature is tempered with minimalistic writing giving the song space to allow the emotion to come rushing in with vivid lyrics and trebled drum machine. And this spacious approach to each song remains throughout ‘Uranium Heart’, allowing Håvik to truly show the range of her expressive vocals. The only real change on their third studio album comes with the title track which talks more of a folksy approach, swopping synths for country guitar. Make sure you see them at Heaven in London plus Band On The Wall in Manchester next month.
HIGHASAKITE tickets are currently available.