Read between the lines of a familiar fairytale and you may stumble across a rabbit hole you never noticed before. Those curious enough to follow their ears into the black will be met with a world of escapism, narrated by the weird and wonderful music of Alice’s Night Circus. Ringmaster Julia Scott orchestrates the magnificent sounds of Alice’s Night Circus. Juggling a smorgasbord of influences with a pop sensibility, the Sheffield-born artist walks the tightrope between her theatrical world and the mainstream sound-du-jour. Eccentric single ‘Curious World’ is the ultimate demonstration of this: what begins as an off-kilter waltz that harbours her eccentricities eventually bursts into a grandiose chorus, showcasing her earworm hooks. Listen to 'Stand Up (Final)' here - https://soundcloud.com/user-30071441/stand-up-final The main attraction of Alice’s Night Circus is undoubtedly her staggering vocals, which have evoked favourable comparisons with powerhouse vocalists such as Florence and the Machine and Shirley Bassey. The classical training she received whilst growing up has informed both her singing and her music, which bears traces of opera, musicals, jazz and symphonic metal. But, perhaps her biggest influence has been drawn from the world of Steampunk. She made her debut live appearance under the Alice pseudonym at the world’s largest and longest running Steampunk festival called The Asylum in Lincoln, where she now resides. Having taken inspiration from the awe-inspiring visuals and beguiling theatrics of the community, Julia begun to create her own costumes and accessories for live shows and Steampunk events. Furthermore, she’ll appear as herself and Alice as part of Gary Nicholls’ Imaginarium trilogy, a photography project centred around Steampunks. Like Panic! At The Disco who married debauchery and cabaret with pop prowess, and Muse who converted a fascination for space into cabinets of album awards, Julia is attempting to lure the mainstream into her conceptual world of circus and theatrics. With an abundance of tricks up her sleeve, we have every reason to believe the ringmaster can draw a crowd to Alice’s Night Circus. Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/400uDlpep629T3L02HdJtr Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnyOy98XOqXty8L8y49otwA Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alicesnightcircus/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/alicencircus Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/curiousbyalice/ Website: www.alicesnightcircus.com
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Few debuts make the kind of impact that TS Graye's powerful 'MY2' did when the seventeen-year old released it in June, with many earmarking it as the most exciting introduction to a new artist this year. With the track having reached over 100,000 streams on Spotify alone, TS Graye has today shared her eagerly awaited follow up; 'Take Notes'. Showcasing a different side to her musicality, with a more stripped back, almost ballad-like feel laden with soul and authenticity, 'Take Notes' further proves TS Graye is an inimitable force - listen here. Written about falling in love with your best friend, the song is a personal account from the young Bristol based singer-songwriter. And, like her debut 'MY2', where she cleverly engaged use of wordplay and double entendre, she returns to form with her use of intricate and considered lyricism in this new track. In particular, her words are meant to convey intensity in sound and meaning, as the production and melody of the chorus reach new heights. It was produced by Louis Mattrs, who she met online and continues to work closely with. On the meaning behind 'Take Notes', TS Graye says:- "Take Notes is about realising that you've fallen in love with with someone unexpectedly. At first, I was soul-searching, trying to understand why I was feeling some kind of way about a friend. As soon as I clocked that I was in love, I saw that the game had changed forever and had to lay down the law, hence spelling out the rules and asking him to take notes." Growing up in the West Country, TS Graye’s influences never strayed far from home; trip hop and the sounds of neighbouring Bristol (e.g. Massive Attack, Tricky, Portishead) play out heavily in her music, but true to her generation she discovered most of the music she loves online (she references Lana Del Rey, Banks, Post Malone and Drake and her sound invokes likeness to greats Rihanna, SZA, Alicia Keys and Jorja Smith). Self-taught, TS Graye learned how to produce and play piano from her bedroom and has been writing two songs a week since she was thirteen. Her passions outside of music include experimenting with make-up and zine making. Stay tuned for more news to follow. Instagram | Twitter | Facebook Rising, British pop prodigy Emily Burns has today shared an acoustic version of her catchiest single yet; 'Cheat', as the original nears one million streams on Spotify (taking her total Spotify stream count to over five million since her first single release earlier this year). Listen to the acoustic version [smarturl.it/CHEATacoustic]here, or revisit the original. 'Cheat' perfectly demonstrates Emily's knack for story telling in her music, with her relatable lyricism atop impeccable melody and infectious hooks, and is the third cut to be taken from her forthcoming debut mini-album 'Seven Scenes From The Same Summer', out 20th July on 37 Adventures (JONES, salute, Geowulf). Explaining the meaning behind the song, Emily reveals: "I wrote “Cheat” after a whirlwind romance that ended much more abruptly than I’d hoped for! I was feeling let down but was struggling to see anything other than the good in this person. Then I had a chat with some friends who reminded me that I would have behaved very differently in the situation so, I went into the studio and expressed that. I wrote this one with LMBY, who’s a really good friend of mine, which made it super easy to get straight to the details and vent freely. I felt much better after writing it…" Likened to Charli XCX and MØ (The Line of Best Fit) and Sigrid and Tove Lo (Popjustice, Disco Naïveté), 22-year old Emily is writing modern, ambitious, frank pop songs about ex-girlfriends, spite, love and revenge. Having recently returned from some writing sessions in Sweden with MadFun (all female producer crew) and TEN (home of Tove Stryke, Icona Pop and all the Scandi greats), her mini-album release will be supported by a headline London show at Sebright Arms, and a return to her homeland Scotland. Date listings as follows: Sat 14th July - Longitude, Dublin Wed 1st Aug - Sebright Arms, London (headline show) Fri 3rd Aug - Belladrum, Scotland Sat 18th Aug - Hardwick Live, Stockton Upon Tees Sat 25th Aug - Pride, Manchester Sat 15th Sept - UWE Freshers Ball, Bristol Sat 3rd Nov - 2Q Festival, Lincoln Sat 1st Dec - DIVA Music Festival, Great Yarmouth 'Seven Scenes From The Same Summer' will be available in limited-edition pink vinyl LP (pre-order here). Stay tuned for more news to come soon. Website Pet Shop Boys will release the final set of albums in their definitive ‘Catalogue: 1985-2012’ series of reissues of all their Parlophone studio albums. This fourth batch of releases will see the PSB albums ‘Behaviour’ from 1990, the 1993 album ‘Very’ and the 1996 album ‘Bilingual’ reissued on 31st August 2018. The albums have been remastered and repackaged, and will be accompanied by ‘Further listening’ albums of master quality bonus tracks - including demos, extended mixes and remixes of tracks from the albums and others created in the same period as each record. ‘Behaviour’ was Pet Shop Boys’ fourth studio album, recorded largely in Munich, Germany at co-producer Harold Faltermeyer’s studio. The album was then completed at London’s Sarm West Studios, and was released in October 1990 – hitting number 2 on the UK Album Chart and going on to earn platinum certification. The LP is seen by some as one of Pet Shop Boys’ most contemplative and moving records, and features the singles ‘So hard’, ‘How can you expect to be taken seriously?’ and their classic track ‘Being boring’. This ‘Catalogue’ release of ‘Behaviour’ features Further listening bonus tracks such as an extended mix of ‘Where the streets have no name (I can’t take my eyes off you)’ and an ambient mix of ‘Music for boys’ - both of which are previously unreleased on CD. Behaviour/Further listening 1990-1991: CD 1 1 Being boring 2 This must be the place I waited years to leave 3 To face the truth 4 How can you expect to be taken seriously? 5 Only the wind 6 My October symphony 7 So hard 8 Nervously 9 The end of the world 10 Jealousy CD 2 1 It must be obvious 2 So hard (extended dance mix) 3 Miserablism 4 Being boring (extended mix) 5 Bet she’s not your girlfriend 6 We all feel better in the dark (extended mix) 7 Where the streets have no name (I can’t take my eyes off you) (extended mix) 8 Jealousy (extended version) 9 Generic jingle • 10 DJ culture (extended mix) 11 Was it worth it? (twelve-inch mix) 12 Music for boys (ambient mix) 13 DJ culture (seven-inch mix) • Previously unreleased The 1993 album ‘Very’ was a number one record for Pet Shop Boys in the UK, Germany, Sweden and Switzerland, and has to date sold in excess of five million copies worldwide. It contains 5 singles, including their cover of ‘Go West’ – a number 2 hit for PSB – and lead single ‘Can you forgive her?’. Stylistically, ‘Very’ could be said to serve as an antithesis to ‘Behaviour’, insofar as the production and lyrical themes are generally more upbeat and positive than those of the previous album. Visually, too, PSB reinvented their image to incorporate more vivid colours and brightness, including Very’s now-iconic “Lego” album cover. The album is also the first to be produced almost entirely by Pet Shop Boys themselves - with additional programming and production courtesy of Pete Gleadall and Stephen Hague. This ‘Catalogue’ issue of ‘Very’ includes a Further listening disc of bonus material, such as the previously-unreleased tracks ‘Falling’ (a demo for Kylie Minogue), and a 1992 twelve-inch mix of ‘Go West’. Very/Further listening 1992–1994: CD 1 1 Can you forgive her? 2 I wouldn’t normally do this kind of thing 3 Liberation 4 A different point of view 5 Dreaming of the Queen 6 Yesterday, when I was mad 7 The theatre 8 One and one make five 9 To speak is a sin 10 Young offender 11 One in a million 12 Go West CD 2 1 Go West (1992 twelve-inch mix) 2 Forever in love 3 Confidential (demo for Tina) 4 Hey, headmaster 5 Shameless 6 Too many people 7 I wouldn’t normally do this kind of thing (seven-inch version) 8 Violence (Haçienda version) 9 Falling (demo for Kylie) 10 Decadence 11 If love were all 12 Absolutely fabulous (single version) 13 Euroboy 14 Some speculation 15 Yesterday, when I was mad (single version) 16 Girls and boys (live in Rio) Released in September 1996, ‘Bilingual’ was the sixth studio album to be released by Pet Shop Boys. It was a UK top 5 record upon release and included 5 singles, all of which were UK top 20 singles. As is often the case with PSB records, ‘Bilingual’ comprises many influences, including those of the music of Latin America, due partly to the Spanish and Latin music Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe had been listening to prior to recording the album. The album was recorded by PSB with Danny Tenaglia and Chris Porter, and has since gained platinum certification in Spain, and Gold in the UK. This ‘Catalogue’ release of ‘Bilingual’ includes a Further listening CD of bonus tracks, with previously-unreleased new versions of ‘Discoteca’ and ‘A red letter day’. Bilingual/Further listening: 1995-1997: CD 1 1 Discoteca 2 Single 3 Metamorphosis 4 Electricity 5 Se a vida é (That’s the way life is) 6 It always comes as a surprise 7 A red letter day 8 Up against it 9 The survivors 10 Before 11 To step aside 12 Saturday night forever CD 2 1 Paninaro ’95 2 In the night (1995) 3 The truck-driver and his mate 4 Hit and miss 5 How I learned to hate rock ’n’ roll 6 Betrayed 7 Delusions of grandeur 8 Discoteca (single version) • 9 The calm before the storm 10 Discoteca (new version) 11 The boy who couldn’t keep his clothes on 12 A red letter day (expanded single version) 13 The view from your balcony 14 Disco potential 15 Somewhere (extended mix) • Previously unreleased The ‘Catalogue: 1985-2012’ reissues of ‘Behaviour’, ‘Very’ and Bilingual’ will go on sale 31st August 2018. The three albums will be packaged with an extensive booklet in which Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe discuss each song, illustrated with many archive photographs. The entire project is designed by Farrow. To pre-order the albums, please follow the links below: ‘Behaviour’ – https://lnk.to/PSBBehaviourMP ‘Very’ - https://lnk.to/PSBVeryMP ‘Bilingual’ – https://lnk.to/PSBBilingualMP The ‘Catalogue: 1985-2012’ reissue series began last year with the release of ‘Nightlife’, ‘Release’ and ‘Fundamental’ which all entered the Top 40 album charts, followed by re-issues of ‘Yes’ and ‘Elysium’, and later ‘Please’, ‘Actually’ and ‘Introspective’. The reissues of ‘Please’, ‘Actually’, ‘Introspective’, ‘Behaviour’, ‘Very’ and ‘Bilingual’ were originally released with bonus Further listening albums in 2001 and are being newly remastered with their original track-listings for this project. http://www.petshopboys.co.uk The votes have been counted, and chart-topping, singer songwriter Harry Styles has been crowned the winner! Harry Styles will take home the coveted Best Live Act Award, sponsored by Ticketmaster and Live Nation, at today’s O2 Silver Clef Awards, an event which raises money for music therapy charity Nordoff Robbins.As the only award voted for by the public at today’s awards, devoted fans proved their dedication to give the award-winning Brit the title of Best Live Act. Receiving 60% of the vote, Styles fought off competition from ten other nominees including Adele, Stormzy, Iron Maiden and Ed Sheeran. This award is Harry Styles’ first solo win, although he has held the title of Best Live Act twice in 2013 and 2016 as part of boy band One Direction. Previous winners of the award include Sir Paul McCartney (2011), Arctic Monkeys (2015) and Little Mix (2017). The Best Live Act winner is currently on his debut world tour as a solo act, which will see him play 89 shows across Europe, North America, South America, Australia and Asia, performing hits from his self-titled certified gold and platinum album. Since signing a recording deal in 2016 with Columbia Records, his first solo single, Sign of the Times, reached number one in the UK and number four in the US. Its music video earned him a Brit Award and an iHeartRadio Music Award. Andrew Parsons, MD Ticketmaster UK says:- “Harry Styles is a global sensation who won the hearts of many in One Direction and continues to do so in his solo career, so it’s not surprising that he has earned the title of Best Live Act. It’s great to see such support for the British star after his record-breaking debut album and world tour – this award is thoroughly deserved.” Fans voted for the shortlist of 11 artists, who performed in the UK between March 2017 and March 2018, handpicked by a panel of music industry experts. The nominated artists were:
Nordoff Robbins has already announced the first wave of other winners at the O2 Silver Clef Awards 2018. Roger Waters and Robert Plant will receive the Nordoff Robbins O2 Silver Clef Award and the Integro Outstanding Award respectively. Stereophonics, the American Express Icon Award, Jorja Smith, the Amazon Music Best Newcomer Award, Ellie Goulding, the Liz Hobbs Best Female Award, George Ezra, the AEG Presents Best Male Award, The Script, the Raymond Weil International Award, Michael Ball and Alfie Boe, the PPL Classical Award and Bastille, the Sky Best Group Award. #O2SilverClefs www.nordoff-robbins.org.uk Alyusha (pronounced ‘Ali-usher’) is the progressive vocalist, writer and producer who today shares the first song “Cracks” from her upcoming “Little God” EP. Born to Japanese & Romanian / Irish parents, Alyusha has a rich musical heritage, which as a producer she combines with her influence of industrial, city sonic landscapes. This combination of influences creates a futuristic and sometimes jarring sound, juxtaposing light and dark with provoking songwriting. Since her second single "Paradise" with Linden Jay charted at Number 2 on Spotify’s ‘Global Viral Charts’, she’s toured Europe alongside working on new material in the studio, collaborating with other artists and spent some time in Tokyo where she immersed herself and collected sounds from the city. One of the artists that the progressive, classically trained musician collaborated with is Warp’s “ghetto futuristic artist” Gaika where she features on and co-produced “The Deal”. “Cracks” has a smooth yet experimental interplay between formation and demolition delivered by her soothing vocals, effortlessly malleable in character with a sound that while soul-infused orbits around the fascinatingly cold decaying tones of jarred Hip Hop and a unique R&B hybrid. Alyusha doubles down the attack with lyrics that tackle emotion and personal subjects with a lawless attitude. Discussing Japanese philosophical ideologies such as ‘wabi sabi (embracing the imperfect) and ‘kintsugi’ (the ancient art form of mending cracks with gold paint in pottery). This symbolises the belief that only something that has been broken has the potential to transform in to becoming something more beautiful. While lyrically her vocals are lucid and inviting; the grimy production on her first cut of 2018 transfers its tough and unforgiving strength to the listener. Check out “Cracks” (Listen here) and stay tuned for more from “Little God” EP https://www.facebook.com/alyusha.official/ Welsh Alternative Rockers Dream State to drop new EP 'Recovery' on May 18th; tour announced14/4/2018 Alt-rock quintet Dream State have announced their new EP, Recovery, which is set for release on May 18th via UNFD. Fans can pre-order the EP here: https://unfd.lnk.to/Recovery. The band has also released their brand new single "New Waves" today, following last night's exclusive premiere on BBC Radio 1 with Annie Mac. Listen to "New Waves" here: https://youtu.be/8s2POYKsKsw. "'New Waves' is about finally letting go of prodigal habits and ties and riding new waves, making fresh starts, releasing myself of the past and welcoming the future," states vocalist CJ Gilpin on the new single. "Life is not easy for anyone but it's good to remember how far you've come and no matter how dark life can appear, it can't compete with the light that follows, so I put these new experiences and feelings I've been having into 'New Waves' and I couldn't be happier with the results." Watch the music video for the band's previous single "In This Hell" here: https://bit.ly/2GNkn1O. The band recently announced their signing to UNFD (Northlane, In Hearts Wake), along with the reissue of their hit single "White Lies". "White Lies" was previously featured as a #NewName on BBC Radio 1 with Annie Mac. Watch the music video, which has over 5 million views, here: https://bit.ly/2rVQXUr. Dream State has been announced on line ups for Download, 2000trees, Slam Dunk, and The Great Escape. The band will also be playing shows this summer with As It Is in the U.K. and then with Babymetal throughout Europe. Dream State is CJ Gilpin (vocals), Aled Evans (guitar), Rhys Wilcox (guitar), Danny Rayer (bass), and Jamie Lee (drums). Upcoming Festival Tour Dates: May 18 - Brighton @ The Great Escape (Afternoon headline slot) May 18 - Brighton @ The Great Escape (Evening slot) May 19 - Brighton @ The Great Escape (Evening slot) May 21 - Norwich @ Arts Centre May 22 - Sheffield @ Plug* May 24 - Bristol @ The Lantern* May 25 - London @ St Pancras Old Church May 26 - Leeds @ Slam Dunk May 27 - Hatfield @ Slam Dunk May 28 - Birmingham @ Slam Dunk May 30 - Swansea @ Sin City^ June 1 - Reading @ Purple Turtle ^ June 2 - Dover @ Booking Hall^ June 4 - Innsbruck @ Music Hall** June 5 - Utrecht @ Tivolivredenburg** June 6 - Utrecht @ Tivolivredenburg** June 10 - Donnington @ Download July 7 - London @ Basingstoke Live July 14 - Cheltenham @ 2000 Trees Festival August 4 - Bournemouth @ Burned Out Festival *w/ As It Is ^headline dates **w/Babymetal London-based singer/songwriter, performer and curator Belgrave releases visual for the title track from his new four-track EP 'Riviera', released on The Shooting Gallery Recordings this May 25th. A former tailor on London's Saville Row, Belgrave's distinctly dark melancholic pop perfectly pairs powerful, emotive songwriting with grandiose choruses inspired by the artist's childhood heroes such as Freddie Mercury, George Michael and Elton John. Nowhere is this more evident than the EP's first single 'Riviera', whose ethereal, dreamlike tone serves as an important introduction to a unique talent impossible to define. On the track, Belgrave explains ""I have always been fascinated by music that I cannot comprehend or understand. Once I heard the vocal sample while writing 'Riviera', I was entranced by it and the rest of the song fell into place around it quite naturally" The 'Riviera' EP will be released via The Shooting Gallery Recordings on May 25th. You can stream/purchase 'Riviera' here: Spotify Apple Music iTunes Amazon Music Google Play You can find Belgrave online here: Following last year’s ‘Pearl’ EP, French born singer Nuuxs today announces the release of her brand single ‘No Good For Me, a supernaturally catchy, low-slung R&B offering. Nuuxs sets forward a track that is universally empathetic to not just self-care but almost to never reciprocate someone's negativity. “This song is about allowing yourself to cut certain toxic people out of your life. We’re often made to feel guilty and hurt from other people’s insecurities and you can end up absorbing that negativity. It’s about being empowered and standing up for yourself.” Listen to ‘No Good To Me’ here An effortless storyteller with a pure and unfiltered singing talent and songwriting ability, ‘No Good For Me’ is a vivid snapshot of Nuuxs' journey from ridding her life of ruling characters and finding a new empowerment in life. Quietly charismatic, Nuuxs is ballsy in attitude and approach. Nuuxs’ musical influences are undoubtedly shaped by her ever-changing surroundings, as much as she is. Her journey began writing hooks for grime artists that she went to school with. She later joined a number of bands where she experienced jazz, funk and indie music, throwing everything into the melting pot of her burgeoning career. Ever determined, Nuuxs reached out to music producers, before being noticed by Jake Gosling (Ed Sheeran, The Libertines and James Bay) at a writing camp through their publisher, Bucks. Despite not instantly creating a creative partnership Jake “kept an eye” on her work and as she evolved Jake signed her to his Goldun Egg label. Amber Arcades, the alias of Annelotte De Graaf, today shares a brand new track entitled “Goodnight Europe”, which is available now via Heavenly Recordings. This is the first music since the Dutch-born musician released her critically debut album Fading Lines in 2016 followed by the Cannonball EP last June. The track is available to stream and share via Spotify HERE. Annelotte said the following about the track: "I guess about half of it is me actually being worried about the current state of the Union. The other half is me kind of messing around with, and making fun of, this archetype of the tiresome existentialist academic in me." Also shared today is a short film directed by Elliott Arndt (http://www.elliottarndt.com/) starring Annelotte, which hints at upcoming news of a second album. This video is part 1 of 3 and features Amber Arcades’ new single, “Goodnight Europe”. Director Elliott Arndt says of the film: "A lot of the themes Annelotte wrote about for her record struck very close to home. What I found especially poignant in her lyrics is how it’s mostly through a study of herself and a nonchalant look outside her window that Annelotte makes us get a sense of the political turmoil that’s affecting her. In that respect, I was interested in trying to represent this sense of “banality” in a young adult couple in 2018, who are not only the fruit of a vibrant European Union, but also perhaps the ones most directly affected by its dismantling. I wanted to depict a static, homesick, glitchy romance. And here it is, trying all it can to grow against, amongst and beyond the constricting geographical barriers surrounding it.” Watch and share the short film HERE. Amber Arcades will also be performing live in the UK and Europe this summer with a London show at Omeara on June 7th 2018. Full live dates are as follows with UK shows in bold: June 4 – 7: Beaches Brew Festival, Marina Di Ravenna, Italy June 6: Le Pop-Up Du Label, Paris, France June 7: Omeara, London, UK June 13: Kantine am Bergain, Berlin, Germany June 14: EKKO, Utrecht, Netherlands July 21: Bluedot Festival, Macclesfield, UK August 17: Green Man Festival, Crickhowell, UK September 7: Festival No. 6, Minffordd, UK http://www.amberarcades.net https://www.facebook.com/AmberArcades/ https://soundcloud.com/amber-arcades/ https://twitter.com/AmberArcades |
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