Getintothis Jukebox
The Getintothis Jukebox is a potent collection of locally-sourced acts, artists touring the city in the month ahead, and an eclectic selection of the best new tracks released into the ether from overseas. Getintothis’ Jake Marley takes the helm.
Ever had the satisfaction of putting one pound in a Jukebox in return for a few tunes? A sure fire kickstart for the night of shenanigans ahead. Now what if we said to you, keep your pound and in return we’ll provide you with the finest gems and jams from the glittered new music vault for free. Sounds good right? You might have to put a pound in for Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Kylie or Dexys though!
Issue Twenty begins with the finest Merseyside flavoured bangers, the first of which comes courtesy of XamVolo. Silky smooth, funky neo-soul crafted with such assurance that its title Be Cool, couldn’t possibly be more on the money.
Following on in similar form with another emerging star within Liverpool’s walls. 17-year-old singer-songwriter Tayá. Her latest track Sweet Waste of Time, produced by AlunaGeorge collaborator George Reid, it is an absolute gem. Her delicate vocal drifts through Reid’s retro 00’s style production, lovely, lovely stuff.
Liverpool’s ever blossoming underground scene has been churning out band after band of big hitters for years now and the latest graduates appear to be Blossoms buddies and intricate psych-rockers The Vryll Society, a group confidently moving forward with intent, release on release. The latest of which is new churner Self Realization, a real groover.
Next up, Whitecliff. 2015 saw the band become the first group to sign to 25 Hour Convenience Store, a label ran by The Libertines’ Gary Powell. Ice-cold guitars and Wild Beasts esque vocalism, their latest number (literally) Five Minutes is quite the sum of parts. Okay the mathematical puns stop here. Whitecliff are on the rise, a rise we saw first hand during their set for DIY at Liverpool Music Week last year and Five Minutes is proof that sticking with pummeling guitars and high notes is doing them no harm at all.
Four-piece Moats have earned quite the reputation for deep, energetic riffage and raw homegrown motives. All again apparent in new release Hungry, which aptly leaves you hungry for much more. The lyrical focus of craving something badly can be said again here as we’re left craving for more Bunnymen esque vocal delivery amongst the passionately strung musicality, more a three-courser than a snack-wrap.
Finishing off the Mersey outlook with Glass Eyed and Shameless; a fresh, wet behind the ears demo from Wirralians Jo Mary. Stark potential bottled up in a mid-toned scuttle of youthful Mersey magic straight from the lands that brought us The Coral can only mean bigger things are on the horizon for this bunch.
Just down the M62 there’s a few things to bring to your attention from Manchester too. First off, Larkins whose latest Let Your Hair Down, is a pulsy, feel-good anthem with more than a punch to pack. Indie-pop Two Door Cinema Club qualities intertwined with brash northern power, quite the mix.
Another Manc-fueled entity, Girl Friend are next. Jangly synth-pop with a lasting effect. Waste My Time is anything but a time waster. Confident, feel-good grooves that indicate a group that have found their sound and are ready to be propelled into consistent banger territory.
Every month without fail Liverpool is jam packed with boss gigs. Ranging from huge touring artists to underground bands in 150 cap venues. Therefore it’s only write to give you the heads up on some must-see action for the month ahead with a tune to wet your cockles too. So that said, first up is the magnificent Ulrika Spacek who visit Parr Street’s Studio 2 on Wednesday February 17th, bringing their unique mold of Krautrock and Shoegaze direct to your ears, as their latest cut Beta Male personifies.
‘Support the supports‘ is a term that gets thrown around and it’s something to seriously get behind. Why pay to go to a gig and not watch everything on offer? So with that in mind, swallow this Ragged Child pill from Cage The Elephant‘s tour support at O2 Academy, Liverpool on Thursday February 18th, Chrome Pony.
Heading into March, pimped out hip-hop icon Saul Williams brings his A-game for his debut Liverpool performance at 24 Kitchen Street on Saturday March 5th and has dropped magnificent new cut Sinners Vs. The Losers pre-gig. Williams who’s touring in support of his latest concept album is not one to be missed lightly, especially considering we’ve been trying to get him to Merseyside for years.
Missed previous Jukebox instalments? We forgive you, but be sure to check them out here.
Aussie Matt Corby is also among the extensive array of touring artist visiting the city in the month ahead. The 25-year-old singer-songwriter embodies such a varied musical persona it’s as if you’re getting 3 shows for the price of one. Kicking off 2016 by dropping Knife Edge; a broody funk groove that’s darn infectious and sure to be good live.
Brighton is a musical community seemingly on a continuous rise, every introducing column you read these days seems to have someone from Brighton involved, Black Honey the most well known, of course. YONAKA are not too far behind however and their chunky hooked Run is a prime example of their power. The pristine dark indie-pop outfit visit Liverpool’s Shipping Forecast on March 8th with the Moats lads (mentioned above) in support. Shit-hot gig if you ask us.
*Sound the big touring band klaxon* – Media darlings Wolf Alice are coming to town to play East Village Arts Club, on March 9th. The album’s a belter, they’re bossness personified live and there’s glitter too. Jump on down and sing to the rooftops as they churn out anthem after anthem, their babies aren’t made of china and their peaches are bigger than James’ – do the maths.
Now, every Getintothis Jukebox has an added pleasure, the new music picks. A specialist bundle of tracks artists have dropped into the global ether in the last month. It’s like pick ‘n’ mix when you close your eyes, you could get anything, who knows what’s dropping in, here it goes, go mad, take the lot as your own, no complaints here.
First up, another nod to that expansive Brighton scene. Strange Cages, a trio that make a lot of noise. Latest Catharsis moves away slightly from the smooth desert psych vibe of their early releases instead opting for a lucid outpouring of sweat-ridden dynamics akin to the swirling visuals within which it’s packaged in video form.
Next delve into some delicious indie-pop with Why We Love’s infectious newbie Lucky One. It’s frankly impossible to listen to this one without a huge grin on your face. There’s bits of The Thrills knocking about the chorus, it’s everything indie-pop should be. Airy bubble-gum hooks and guitar-jangles Belle and Sebastian would be proud of. Top banana.
Seattle’s Scott Reitherman the creative mastermind behind electronica project Pillar Point grooves into the Jukebox next and we’re still dancing to Dove. Sprightly grooves with a chiller undertone, not too dis-similar to LCD Soundsystem at times, lush stuff.
Full blown electro-pop can be massively infectious and that is indeed the case with new Atlantic Records signee Annabel Jones and IOU, her first release since inking a deal with the record giants. The term ear-worm is thrown around quite a bit but it’s necessary for this one. Her enthusiastic vocal flows along in tandem with grimy bass to great effect. Keep an eye out for her Libelle EP in the near future too, sure to be a good’un.
Oh, Be Clever is the brainchild of vocalist/wordsmith Brittney Shields and instrumentalist Scott Layton. The duo’s recent jam Blanket is an effortless rush of storytelling in harmony with juicy electronica.
Finally a collective of musicians under the monika HAARM and their heavily radio backed number Foxglove. Sharing a scene with the likes of Outfit and Stealing Sheep brings its own influence. HAARM aren’t two dis-similar from either but remain lushly fresh with dual gender vocalage excelling within the walls of their infectious pop and lo-fi synth stabs it’s easy to see why Radio 1 big fans.
This weeks guest pick comes from Know Your Culture‘s Cal McKinney. KYC is an independent artist development company based in Liverpool, well known for digging out absolute gems. Cal has picked Funny How by Sun Drift, the solo project of musician Zac Barfoot hailing from picturesque Silverdale, Lancashire.
Cal: “I stumbled across Sun Drift – the solo outfit of Zac Barfoot – about a year ago when he released his gorgeous debut EP ‘Tied’. The release was an intimate collection of sun-kissed songs, reminiscent of bands like Real Estate and Wild Nothing, and I’ve been hooked ever since. On ‘Funny How’ – his latest offering and the first single to be released from his upcoming EP – Zac perfectly balances soothing jangly-guitar lines alongside melancholy lyrics, with each hook leaving you in a dream-like state. It’s a beautiful release that Zac wrote, recorded and mixed himself a testament to just how talented this guy is. I imagine throughout the next year Sun Drift will remain dormant continuing to build up catalogue with maybe the odd show here and there, but come 2017 I can’t help but feel Sun Drift will be a much more familiar name and will be included in many ‘One’s To Watch’ lists.”
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