Gwenno - "Patriarchaeth"

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Gwenno, aka Gwenno Saunders, used to be in The Pipettes from 2005-2010. Knowing The Pipettes, her solo work seems to come out of nowhere. While her previous band was a fun throwback to 60s girl groups (Gwenno sang lead on the hit "Pull Shapes"), Y DYDD OLAF (The Last Day) is a political concept album that was inspired by a 1976 Welsh sci-fi novel of the same name. The album's first single, "Patriarchaeth," is kraut-pop. It's still a throwback sound slightly updated, but more 80s than 60s this time around.

 Y DYDD OLAF (The Last Day) is due out July 24 on Heavenly Recordings. For more information on Gwenno, check out her Facebook, Twitter, and website. Listen to "Patriarchaeth" below, and find her current tour dates below that.

Saturday 4th July - CARDIFF - Tafwyl 
Sunday 5th July - LIVERPOOL - Heavenly 25 @ Kazimier 
Sunday 19th July - SOUTHWOLD - Latitude 
Friday 31st July - CORNWALL - Port Eliot Festival 
Friday 14th August - CARDIGAN - Caught By The River 
Sunday 6th September - PORTMEIRION - Festival No. 6 
Thursday 17th September – LEEDS – Brudenell Games Room 
Friday 18th September – GLASGOW – The Hug & Pint  
Saturday 19th September – NEWCASTLE – Think Tank 
Sunday 20th September – MANCHESTER – Soup Kitchen 
Tuesday 22nd September – LONDON – Oslo 
Wednesday 23rd September – BRISTOL – Louisiana 
Thursday 24th September – BRIGHTON – The Basement  
Friday 25th September – CARDIFF – Clwb Ifor Bach 
Saturday 26th September – BIRMINGHAM – Rainbow Club

On Repeat...

The New Limits - "Normal Day"

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Photo via Facebook According to their Bandcamp profile, The New Limits are a "Boston ska band with a taste for rocksteady, reggae, soul, and rock n roll." They just released a single that shows off their sound perfectly. "Normal Day" is a laid back ska song dripping with soul. You know that joke that goes around every few months saying that ska is the sound that plays in a twelve year old's head when they get an extra mozzarella stick? The New Limits are the grown up version of that sound. This is ska/rocksteady for adults. It's ultra chilled out music with some of the best horns in the city. Even if you haven't listened to ska since your youth, you need to check out "Normal Day." This might help re-open the entire genre to you. The New Limits say of their latest single: " What is normal, anyway? Some of us just want a nine-to-five. Others cry at the thought. 'Normal Day' has nothing to do with quarantine and lots to do with figuri...
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Brennen Leigh - "Dumpster Diving"

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Photo by Lyza Renee Brennen Leigh has quickly become a favorite of ours, with her take on a classic country sound with a slight sense of humor. Her latest single, "Dumpster Diving," which she describes as a "trashy little tune," is everything we love about the musician. It's a vintage style country song that comes in at a punk like one minute, forty-eight seconds. With a chorus of "Dumpster diving, this ain't gonna last / Dumpster diving, 'cause baby you like trash..." how can you possibly resist. Leigh's latest gives us a decades old sound with modern sensibilities and her fantastic voice that's tailor made for this genre of music. It's almost like a collaboration between Loretta Lynn and Shel Silverstein, and who doesn't want to hear that? You can hear "Dumpster Diving" below. Don't You Ever Give Up On Love  is due out October 3 on Signature Sounds, and is available for pre-order here . For more on Brennen Leigh,...
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The Beths - "Mother, Pray for Me"

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Photo by Annabel Kean For their latest single, New Zealand's The Beths have released "Mother, Pray for Me." This is a heartbreaking ballad consisting of Elizabeth Stokes' vocals and guitar with just the slightest hint of organ. It's a deeply personal song for Stokes, made obvious with how intimately the song comes across. It truly feels almost confessional, and it's quite simply beautiful. The Beths are most known for huge little indie rock gems perfect for bopping along to, but "Mother, Pray for Me" is quite the opposite. Stokes' vocals and lyrics are right up front on this one, and I can't imagine it any other way. Elizabeth Stokes says of her latest single: “I cried the whole time writing it. It's not really about my mother, it's about me — what I hope our relationship is, what I think it is, what it maybe actually is, and what I can or can't expect out of it.   “My mother is a first gen Indonesian immigrant, and very Catholic....
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