HUMANIST will play on Sunday 5th April 2020 at The Sunflower Lounge Birmingham. Tickets are on sale here.
Humanist is the expansive and ambitious project orchestrated by guitarist and producer Rob Marshall.
Having recently announced ‘Shock Collar’, the latest single to come from the album (set for release on 7th Feb) featuring iconic Depeche Mode singer Dave Gahan, Humanist have also announced a UK tour.
The album, masterfully conducted by Rob Marshall (guitarist of Exit Calm and co-writer of Mark Lanegan’scelebrated “Gargoyle” and “Somebody’s Knocking” albums) who wrote, played and produced all the music here, Humanist is a swirling Niagara of fuzzed-out industrial melody and noise, that has attracted an all-star cast of collaborators including Mark Lanegan (Queens Of The Stone Age), Dave Gahan (Depeche Mode), Mark Gardener (Ride), Carl Hancock Rux (David Holmes, Portishead), John Robb (The Membranes), Joel Cadbury (UNKLE), Ilse Maria, Ron Sexsmith and Jim Jones (The Jim Jones Revue, Thee Hypnotics).
‘The Covasettes are destined for big things.’ –Indie Central Music
The Covasettes will play on Thursday 9th April 2020 at The Sunflower Lounge Birmingham. Tickets are on sale here.
The Covasettes are an indie-rock four-piece, from Manchester, made up of frontman Chris Buxton, lead guitarist Matt Hewlett, bassist Jamie McIntyre and drummer Matt Buckley. They burst onto the scene in late 2017 with the release of their debut single, ‘This Feeling,’ which combines Buxton’s infectious vocals and lyrics with Hewlett’s world-ending riffs and the driving rhythm of McIntyre and Buckley.
In 2018 the boys released three more singles, ‘Wondering Why’, ‘Top Drawer’ and ‘Wild’. Those releases proved that The Covasettes are ones to watch in the future, and helped them achieve a place on Spotify’s ‘Indie List’ and ‘Summer Indie’ playlists, gaining over 200,000 streams in just a couple of months.
In early 2019 the boys played their first headline tour and released their fifth official single ‘Like You’. This time round they have stepped it up a notch with their debut EP ‘It’s Always Sunny Above the Clouds,’ which boasts four upbeat summer anthems.
Dancing On Tables are a five-piece pop-rock band from Dunfermline, a small town just outside Edinburgh.
Dancing On Tables will play on Wednesday 25th March 2020 at The Sunflower Lounge Birmingham. Tickets are on sale here.
Alongside sound-tracking national campaigns for Scottish Water and Schuh x Adidas, the boys’ live game continues to impress. UK tour support of the likes of Cassia have come alongside festivals such as Latitude, The Great Escape and Liverpool Sound City, as well as a number of their own sold-out tour dates across the country.
The band pride themselves on their energetic and engaging live performance, using a variety of influences in curating their sound – think if The 1975 met Blossoms at a Future Islands show.
American chart-topping writers Liz Rose and Seth Ennis are amongst the list of stars involved in new material as Dancing On Tables’ sound continues to evolve. Their infectious blend of UK Indie-Pop, is complimented by the anthemic, story telling influence from across the Atlantic. You can understand why one of Variety Magazine’s “10 Brits to Watch” are ready to make the world dance.
NME – ‘Sabbath having a screaming row with Nirvana’
God Damn will play on Wednesday 26th February 2020 at The Sunflower Lounge Birmingham. Tickets are on sale here.
God Damn are: Ash Weaver (Drums & Percussion), James Brown (Guitar, Synths & Vocals) and Thomas Edward (Guitar, Keys & Vocals).
Hailing from Wolverhampton in the heart of the Black Country, God Damn will unleash their third album on One Little Indian records early in 2020. Recorded primarily live in just a few days at Edge Studios in rural Cheshire and produced by Sylvia Massy (Tool, RHCP, Johnny Cash, System of a Down).
‘There was a physicality to the recording process- whether it be the crash of the cymbals bleeding into the guitar takes or tracking the vocals in the control room with playback blaring at 110db. It felt like we were all playing off one another’s strengths and Sylvia was the guiding force that channelled this record into becoming the idiosyncratic, defining statement of ‘God Damn’ that it is.’
The band plan to play selective shows in December 2019 and Feb/Mar 2020 and festivals throughout 2020.
“MAYBE WE DON’T LIFE THE POP DREAM BUT WE ARE LIVING THE DREAM POP”
Some Sprouts will play on Thursday 2nd April 2020 at The Sunflower Lounge Birmingham. Tickets are on sale here.
The German quintet Some Sprouts combines breezy indie-indie-jams with dreamy pop sounds. With the release of the two hit-singles “SHE LONGS FOR YOU” and “SOMEONE YOU LOVE”, the band toured all over europe including club shows in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Netherlands and the UK.
After playing The Great Escape Festival in brighton and STANDON CALLING FESTIVAL, the band returns next year for their first ever UK CLUB TOUR. Don’t miss it!
Smoke Fairies have announced the release their first album for four years. “Darkness Brings The Wonders Home” will be released on January 31st coupled with new tour dates for the band. The first single to be taken from the album “Disconnect” is released today on all streaming platforms.
Smoke Fairies will play on Friday 7th February 2020 at The Sunflower Lounge Birmingham. Tickets available here.
Jessica and Katherine travelled to Seattle to record Darkness Brings The Wonders Home with producer Phil Ek (The Black Angels, Fleet Foxes, The Shins) and over the course of a rigorous month-long session in Seattle, adopted a purposely intimate approach to achieving a singular sonic tone.
In the making of Darkness Brings The Wonders Home, Smoke Fairies drew inspiration from mysteries both real and imagined: sea monsters, flocks of crows taking flight in extravagant formation, strange creatures dwelling in the mud near their new South London abode.
“Times of darkness are when people are often the most imaginative,” says Jessica Davies in reflecting on the album’s title. “It helps you to see all the wonders of the world you hadn’t noticed before – the things you’ve been blind to because you’ve been on autopilot for so long.”
To celebrate the album’s release Smoke Fairies have announced a tour starting in Manchester on February 1st 2019. The band dropped new track “Out Of The Woods” in August and follow it with first single “Disconnect” which is released on streaming and download platforms today.
The new album Darkness Brings The Wonders Home is available to pre-order now Link and tickets for the band’s tour dates go on general sale Friday 27th September from all usual outlets.
“Blamire and Davies don’t trade vocal duties so much as appear to sing from the same body, their voices nearly indistinguishable, shifting between smoky moans and toe-curling trills”– Pitchfork
“Smoke Fairies rely on intertwining…their two voices move in close harmonies, with timbres blending almost like sisters.”– New York Times
Nova Twins return with yet another punch-in-your-face-anthem, “Vortex”. The track bobs and weaves with effortlessly cool swagger, vocal nods to the Queen of Hip-Hop (Missy Elliott), and headbanging basslines and siren guitar riffs (all of which were created with the use of their vast pedal boards – no synths here!). Take a joyride with Nova Twins in their video for “Vortex” HERE.
Nova Twins will play on Sunday 2nd February 2020 at The Sunflower Lounge Birmingham. Tickets available here.
“Vortex” follows on from the huge success of their previous single “Devil’s Face” which received spins from Annie Mac (declared as her “New Name”) and Sophie K at BBC Radio 1 and was chosen as Single Of The Week by John Kennedy at Radio X. The band turned heads when they performed to packed tents during this summer’s busy festival season (Boomtown, Download, Hellfest and Nova Rock festivals and a blistering set at this years Heavy Music Awards to name but a few) and smashed it every night on tour with Prophets Of Rage across Europe and the UK. Nova Twins are also the featured artists in the current Dr Martens A/W campaign – you may have already spotted them on posters and in stores around the world! Further to this, the duo have just embarked on a short UK tour supporting legends Skunk Anansie, ahead of their headline UK tour later this September (with London and Brighton dates already sold out).
When you’ve never seen yourself in music, there’s an opportunity to build something from nothing. To make tracks that don’t sound directly like anyone else’s. “We had to work out our identities within music because we never had a reflection,” says Georgia South, Nova Twins bassist. “This is a 21st-century take on rock. It’s so many things.” Singer and guitarist Amy Love adds with a smile, “It’s the NOVA sound.”
The strong and unique bass guitar of Georgia South and the incisive vocals of Amy Love, are the driving force of Nova Twins. “Devil’s Face” and “Vortex” showcasing their unique future-rave-rock sound. The duo refuse to conform to any template, fusing bass-heavy grimey punk and taking inspiration from all corners of audio, from bands like N.E.R.D., Betty Davis, Jack White but also Missy Elliott, Princess Nokia and Rihanna, capturing fans of all demographics with their riotous energy. The best friends have turned rock on its head, injecting their songs with boundless energy, barely controlled rage and heavy riffs. The pair, always dressed head-to-toe in designs they’ve made themselves, are uniquely genre-bending.
This year has seen Nova Twins awarded The International Showcase Fund in Jan 2019 generating European gigs and Festivals Summer 2019 and the PRS Momentum Music fund (which has helped artists such as Little Simz, Boston Manor, Years & Years and many more), as well as being featured as a Flying Vinyl Spotlight Artist, and scoring features in both NME and The Guardian.
Nova Twins use their platform to champion inclusivity and diversity with their high-octane, genre-warping approach. Effortlessly cool in not only their musical output, but in every element of what they do creatively as artists. From designing and making their own outfits for all videos, photoshoots and stage wear to the art direction on their videos. Nova Twins are above all, strong, independent and inspiring women. Their modus operandi is to take socio-political experiences from their day-to-day and turn it into something their fans can lose themselves in.
Nova Twins are currently wrapping up their debut album with legendary producer Jim Abbiss (Adele, Kasabian, Arctic Monkeys), more news on that soon…
“…Very much rate this, and certainly don’t think that Wire, Alternative TV,Sauna Youth and Institute’s Catharsis LP are excessively flattering reference points…” The Quietus
Italia 90 will play on Thursday 30th January 2020 at The Sunflower Lounge Birmingham. Tickets available here.
“…catnip for fans of Protomartyr or The Fall…” The Ransom Note
“…sounds as though it was recorded in a working sawmill…” Hard of Hearing Music
“…The sound this four piece create, recalls those early Wire recordings, Joy Division cassettes and Gang of Four bootlegs at least one mate would own having sneaked a cassette recorder into the venue to record and listen to a few weeks later….” Louder Than War
Déjà Vega are vocalist and guitarist Jack Fearon, drummer Tom Webster and bassist Mike Newton.
Déjà Vega will play on Friday 28th February 2020 at The Sunflower Lounge Birmingham. Tickets available here.
After forming in Cheshire, they made the short journey to Manchester, a fitting backdrop to their gritty, guitar led psychedelia. Rhythmic and rage-fuelled and boasting surging riffs, Fearon’s hypnotic slurring lyrics lurch in and out of poetic chants, battling over chaotic drums and the razor-sharp bass lines underneath.
Live, Déjà Vega demonstrate that they’re a force to be reckoned with.
Feelgood pop outfit Deco have spent the past two years building their reputation as one of the country’s most exciting bop-makers.
DECO will play on Tuesday 19th November 2019 at The Sunflower Lounge Birmingham. Tickets are available here.
Having played to packed out crowds up and down the country with a sold out UK tour in Autumn 2018 and support slots with the likes of Declan Mckenna & Fickle Friends, their ascent shows no sign of slowing down. Their hook filled brand new single, Don’t Waste Your Time, paints the self motivating picture of the band’s leap into pursuing music full time and departing part time jobs in 2018. The track showcases their signature ear worm melodies and captivating synths. Don’t Waste Your Time takes inspiration from Eighties hitmakers including Duran Duran and George Michael, resulting in a substantial progression for Deco, a move on from Radio 1 favourites Chances and Turn Around.
