Ben Howard Releases 'Far Out' and 'Follies Fixture'

In what is becoming a welcomed tradition, Ben Howard has returned today with not one but two brand new singles, taken from his forthcoming fourth studio album 'Collections From The Whiteout', due out 26th March 2021. Speaking about the two new track's Ben explained on Far Out: “The song is essentially a critique of how easily people are drawn to violence and animosity without reason, just to pass the time. And ultimately how there is perhaps a simpler, more fulfilling path. I wanted it to have a very British rhyming slang feel and a Roald Dahl sense of macabre humour.  I fear my tinkering with it has made it a little more plain and serious”. Turning to Follies he goes on to say “Follies Fixture is a love song. It deals with an apathetic period of my life searching for routine in Paris.” Coninciding with the news, Ben has also announced a run of London live dates at The Royal Festival Hall on 18th and 19th September. Tickets will go on general sale from Friday 5th March via www.benhowardmusic.co.uk, preceded by a fan access pre-sale from Wednesday 3rd March.Take a listen to the singles below. 

You can Pre-Order the album here.

f: www.facebook.com/benhowardmusic

Wolf Alice - The Last Man On Earth

Following their most successful year to date in 2018, Wolf Alice return from hiatus where they decamped to an AirBnB in Somerset with news of their brand new single, The Last Man On Earth. Taken from the band's forthcoming third studio album the track offers an expansive insight in to what lays ahead as they unveiled their new effort on Radio 1 last night. Explaining the details behind the single, singer and guitarist for Wolf Alice Ellie Rowsell says, “It’s about the arrogance of humans. I’d just read Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle and I had written the line ‘Peculiar travel suggestions are dancing lessons from god’ in my notes. But then I thought: ‘Uh, your peculiar travel suggestion isn’t a dancing lesson from god, it’s just a travel suggestion! Why does everything need to mean something more?’” Marking their powerful return, the single twists and turns through its soft piano intro before bursting in to life with rousing percussion and teetering on almost orchestral qualities. Take a listen for yourselves below. The new album 'Blue Weekend' will be released 11 June via Dirty Hit.

Photo: Jordan Hemingway

 f: www.facebook.com/wolfalicemusic

Kayla Grace - Bird in a Cage (Music Video)

"My last teenage years have been stolen from me" sings Kayla Grace. Even at 30, the Watford-born artist's new single Bird in a Cage still manages to resonate with me. Having spent the best part of a year 'locked up' at home, with every meaningful extracurricular activity stripped from beneath us, the track comes as a cathartic offering in these bitter empty times. Speaking more on the track, Kayla Shares: “‘Bird in A cage’ is, to put it simply, a song about lockdown. It’s painfully relatable but feels so personal and I think it’s something I needed to get out of my system to comprehend how much life has changed for everyone since coronavirus. It’s got this kind of irony because I’m complaining about my birthday being on a zoom call while people are literally dying, but I think it just shows the reality of the situation and how differently it's impacted, everyone. I’m in my final year of university and I’ve not really left my bedroom all year but I’m still putting this pressure on myself to be grateful that I’m even alive and healthy. I think a lot of people will resonate with the feeling of being isolated and trapped (like a bird in a cage) and all I’m hoping is that the song will help them realise they’re not truly alone. We’re all in this situation together and one day it’ll be okay again.” Take a listen for yourselves below. 

f: https://www.facebook.com/kaylagracemusic/

Flyte - Under The Skin

Flyte have recently shared news of their highly-anticipated second album 'This Is Really Going To Hurt', due April 9th 2021 via Island Records. To coincide with the release the band have unveiled their new single Under The Skin. The album is a loose documentation of a lamented breakup, told through the eyes of an impassioned Will Taylor and so their latest effort is the cathartic release of emotion you'd expect from the band. From their busking days to this climatic pinnacle, they stride towards perfection with another pristine offering. Under the skin is a build-up of tension. It warns of imminent chaos. An ode to a relationship that’s on the brink of destruction. I hope we never have to write a song like it again, it was a very dark time”  - says Taylor of its conception. In accompaniment to the release of the record, the band will also be releasing a pen album book. Will Taylor says of the book: “The book was our labour of love over lockdown. There are typewriter-written transcripts of phone conversations to our producer, chord charts, hand developed photographs, scans from early lyrics in old notebooks. It’s fair to say that as a band and as individuals, we tend to keep things fairly inconspicuous. Hopefully, this book will be an insight into our process that people haven’t seen before.” Take a listen for yourselves below. 

Photo: Jan Philipzen

f: www.facebook.com/flyteband

Zachary Knowles - johnny & june

Zachary Knowles · johnny & june

Fast rising Texan-based artist Zachary Knowles already knows a thing or too about writing a pop perfected masterpiece. It's no surprise then to learn that his latest cut johnny & june is another pristinely polished feel-good jam. Speaking about the track, Knowles explains "When I wrote johnny & june, I was in the midst of a lot of changes in my life. I think because I had so much going on at the time and because there were so many changes, it made me want to write about something steady, that being love. I wanted to make something that just felt good; something that felt real and authentic and honestly just happy. This song is a total love story, and it helped bring me peace during a time of uncertainty in my life. I can’t wait to share it with everyone, and I hope it can do the same for people that it’s done for me." Take a listen for yourselves below.

f: https://www.facebook.com/zacharyknowlesmusic/

Alfie Templeman - Everybody’s Gonna Love Somebody

Alfie Templeman · Everybody's Gonna Love Somebody

Taken from his upcoming mini-album 'Forever Isn’t Long Enough', due out 7 May via Chess Club Records, Alfie Templeman last week returned with his new single Everybody's Gonna Love Somebody. From its infectious lyrics and soul-drenched melodies to the track's video featuring muppet like characters in search of love it truly has it all. The Bedfordshire teen explains: “I first wrote and recorded ‘Everybody’s Gonna Love Somebody’ back in 2017 when I was 14 years old and it’s been ingrained in my memory ever since. I’d always go back to it and try to re-record it but I could never quite get it right - then I went on a Tears For Fears binge and realised that it needed that ‘Everybody Wants To Rule The World’ kind of production. I got back in the studio, changed a few lyrics and cut it in a couple of hours. It’s probably my favourite song on the new record.” Speaking on the track’s video, directed by previous collaborator Thomas Davis, Templeman says: “This is my most adventurous video yet. I was really keen on making a cinematic experience for ‘Everybody’s Gonna Love Somebody’ and Thomas was perfect for bringing exactly that to life. Brian and Suzie were a pleasure to work with and it was nice to see them work things out in the end. I sure do adore those two lovebirds!” Take a watch for yourselves below. 

f: www.facebook.com/atemplemanmusic

FEVER - International Dream

Following on from last year's triumph, Hull-based five-piece FEVER have last week unveiled their first new music of 2021 sharing their brand new single, International Dream. Looking to expand on their already anthemic sound, the band chart new territory as they deliver their driving guitars and harmonious choruses to maximum effect. Speaking truthfully on International Dream, lead-singer James Harrod describes the track as: “A song about trying to convince someone that they don’t need to conform and follow the crowd like everyone else, but simply stay true to themselves. In the age of overly glamourised social media, it’s easy to think that we need to try portray ourselves as someone or something else, in order to impress other people. When in actual fact we don’t, as ultimately none of that materialism really matters.” Take a listen for yourselves below.

With everything crossed, Fever look forward to a livelier 2021 with the following tour dates, with more to follow:

Fri 5 March: Manchester Gorilla (supporting Pacific)*
Wed 17 March: Lincoln Engine Shed (supporting Blossoms)*
Fri 19 March: Stoke Victoria Hall (supporting Blossoms)*
Sat 20 March: Leicester O2 Academy (supporting Blossoms)*
Sun 21 March: Cambridge Junction (supporting Blossoms)*
Mon 29 March: London O2 Forum Kentish Town (supporting Blossoms)*
Thu 1 April: Hull Social (NEW DATE ANNOUNCED)*

*dates likely to change due to impact of Covid-19.

f: https://www.facebook.com/feverbanduk/

Middle Kids - Cellophane (Brain)

Sydney's Middle Kids last week unveiled their scintillating new single Cellophane (Brain), taken from the band's forthcoming album 'Today We’re The Greatest', which is set for release on 19th March via Lucky Number Music. Lead singer/songwriter Hannah Joy explains the meaning behind the song; “I remember making a diorama in primary school for an under-the-ocean scene using cellophane. I loved the way cellophane looked but I hated the way it crunched and creased in my hands. It’s one of those weird things you remember sometimes… I’m not even sure if cellophane is an exact metaphor for my mind but it feels connected to the song for me.  When I consciously started taking note of what was going on in my brain it was usually ANXIOUS and NEGATIVE. If my mind is a minefield of fear and sadness, nothing else can shift my overall sense of myself. But to change one’s thinking is incredibly hard. It’s an inner journey with little extrinsic reward or accountability.” Take a listen for yourselves below.

photo credit: Daphne Nguyen

f: www.facebook.com/middlekidsmusic