Award-winning songwriter and musician Sean Martin fronts the brilliantly unique genre-fusing indie rock act The Quarantined, delivering this summer an incredibly original story and set-up, for the passionate and powerful Skeleton Chair.
Pop Rock
Conceptually united expressions of love, connected by stylistic threads of reverb and playful design – an aptly-titled artistic corner… Still Haunted presents stories of wonder, nostalgia, and inspiration, with Aren’t All Songs About Love?
McKay are an act upholding the realness and talent of organic, man-made bands and songwriting, at a time when we need that more than ever. They write youthfully fearless, thoughtful and intelligent lyrics, with fresh melodies and blissfully harmonised performances, and for all of these reasons, they’re a personal favourite act from the past couple of years, and Casino is incredibly special as an original project.
Following the colourful creative storytelling of his band’s 2024 album The Waking Giant, Georgia’s Ukulele-rock pioneer Winchester 7 returns with a five-track EP that’s distinctly more grounded, and devoted to the memories and nostalgia of snapshots or Postcards from a life.
Introducing a hugely uplifting soul-rock anthem, from Halifax creative ensemble Soul Howe & the Swells. A uniquely genre-fusing single, inspired by and devoted to the Life Rolls On organization – empowering people with disabilities through adaptive sport experiences.
Utah songwriter and devout creative Richard Tyler Epperson forever leads with an original sense of structure and production that’s unlimited by genre or expectation. His latest work, the full-length album Fragmented Night, is a colourful and impressive testament to that consistency and talent, and it delivers an engaging fusion of familiarity and outright unexpected design.
Blending the familiar and the fresh is key to a track that hits with widespread impact, and Aro Rose seems to achieve that balance quite brilliantly, with the compelling and creative individualism of Live Without You.
A superb playlist of thoughtful, meaningful pop-punk and rock tracks. Merit Maker bring something clearly original, creative and purposeful to the scene, and the tracks are not only a pleasure to escape into at volume, but help shine light on a sense of warmth and belief in better, particularly during such trying and conflicted times as these.
Standing tall on the strength of a simple but satisfying bass line, rising higher still as a soulful vocal thread and funky indie-rock aura gathers clear momentum – Lui Fazo rides the pulse of an implication, with the slick and unmistakable Energy.
Blending the nostalgic indie rock sway of easy guitars, riffs, bass and live drums, with a softly striking vocal, and a conceptual weight and sadness that’s almost unbearable, the mighty MYQO returns this season, with the broken and beautiful before me.
Already an impressive and consistently likable band, this latest offering injects a twist of something like soul and ska modestly woven into the band’s classic tapestry. The songwriting is catchy, the vocals sublime, and the faultless unity between musicians lets this spacious and genuine arrangement create a completely intoxicating groove.
Introducing a sensational indie pop-rock single, with refreshingly original lyrics, reflective of a unique and hopeful perspective, Lia Marie Johnson’s You Are Whole is an unmistakable gem of an indie track this year, and it releases at perhaps the most perfect time of all.