Hello world,
Here’s your latest FP Picks update .. loads of great new music as always inc Slow Coast, IDLES, bar italia & more. If you like what you hear please follow and share this playlist, it helps us keep doing our thing by getting the algorithms on our side. Also please support the artists featured in any way you can!
Until next week
Helen (Futureproof) x
Bored at My Grandmas House – Inhibitions
Leeds based singer-songwriter Amber Strawbridge’s new single Inhibitions is a slice of infectious dream-pop – a poem aimed at over-thinkers. She states: “I wrote it from a place of reflection and frustration. It’s about feeling anxious day to day and watching my own inhibitions get in the way of everyday life and the things I want to achieve. It’s a feeling that was new to me and something that I felt I had no control over, written to reflect a time when I didn’t feel like my authentic self.“ Melancholic and melodic, with beautiful vocals – we’re loving this one.
Slow Coast – Won’t Change the Game
From his bedroom, Matt Lawton brings sun-drenched indie-pop bangers for your summer playlist. Beachy guitar hooks, punchy grooves, and swirling synths make up this upbeat, yet laid-back, sound. A great feel on the chorus led by a plumby bassline makes singer-songwriter Slow Coast‘s new single Won’t Change the Game a must add for our playlist. It’s indie-pop with a fonky beat – what’s not to love! Touches of studio trickery on the drums going into the chorus only add to the charm offensive on this song about a game of hard to get & the inherent risk that comes with playing along to such behaviour – pop music at it’s best and a toe-tapping stunner!
Soft Loft – Happy New Year
Soft Loft is a safe haven, an attitude, a way of life. It’s where the broken and the imperfect are embraced and celebrated. Soft Loft is non-hierarchical. Soft Loft is where reality is transmuted into dreams and dreams back into reality. This “end of year” track from Futureproof faves Soft Loft, with its infectious groove, tells a tale of a small-town couple who lose it all when they move to the city. An inviting vocal delivery brings out the melody hooks that ironically, when considering the lyric, leave you with a sense of calm & contentment. We’re loving this bouncy breakup sing-along track!
Johmen – C64
Eccentric alternative indie artist Johmen brings a track about losing himself in the best-selling computer of all time and states: “give the kitty a cigarette !!! give that boy a little ciggy !!! the little man deserves a chuff !! meow ! meow !! meow !!!!! puff up little guy !!!” Great touches of early electro pop on this lyrically tongue-in-cheek lo-fi gem that cleverly emotes the loner mindset of those who bury themselves in the safe space they find when making music on a machine. It’s different, it’s great, it’s catchy – we love it here!
Joe Leytrick – I Don’t Know
This light & uplifting arrangement from Pittsburgh / Pennsylvania based singer-songwriter Joe Leytrick shines brightly with its subtle guitar arpeggios blending perfectly alongside bell drenched synths. Slightly reminiscent of Flyte sideman M Field’s work, this dream-pop gem, with it’s reflective lyric about how absence makes the heart grow fonder, captures a mood perfectly and I sincerely hope Joe finds his phone soon before the person he’s singing about moves on! Joking aside and citing Mac DeMarco, Sill Woozy & Just Fudge as his musical influences, here’s a songwriter very of the moment with their songwriting style who could do well in today’s market.
Rooftop Sailors – Dancing on Broken Bones
Put on your dancing shoes, because it’s time for Rooftop Sailors‘ newest hip shaker Dancing On Broken Bones, the last single from upcoming album RETROSLAVE. Telling nighttime tales, this epic, electric, energetic track combines disco feel with modern rock guitars. It’s possibly a little too 80s sounding for our playlist (almost Duran Duran) but the melodic hooks & the overall production are so easy on the soul (+ it’s Christmas) so we couldn’t resist. Great songwriting & great pop music.
86TVs – Higher Love
86TVs features former Maccabees members Felix and Hugo White and the anthemic Higher Love is the second single to emerge from the group since their debut Worn Out Buildings emerged in August. Vocalist Felix told Rolling Stone UK: “I wrote this years ago when I was a bit lost and I didn’t know what I was going to do. In hindsight it’s about realising that the thing you’re looking for is actually inside you. I really like songs where the focus point is telling someone else they’ve got it inside them to succeed, but listening back to it now, it’s telling myself that the thing I need is inside me.” It’s a slow-burner that builds to a rousing crescendo – crank it up!
Loren Kramar – Hollywood Blvd
Accomplished musician/visual artist Loren Kramar says of new single Hollywood Blvd: “There’s almost a self-created fanfic that comes with imagining oneself as a star. It’s a coping mechanism against insecurity and shame… that I am enough, that I have value as a person outside of being an artist.” The video sees Kramar heading to get his Hollywood star on the Walk of Fame. “It is my crown jewel,” he adds. “It’s a song about aspiration in all its ridiculousness, and wanting to feel like you matter.” Beautiful vocals and lyrics from this talented LA based songwriter.
IDLES – Grace
Bristol based indie outfit IDLES have shared new single Grace from their upcoming album TANGK. It starts slow – soulful and heartfelt but eventually builds. The song was produced by Nigel Godrich (Radiohead, The Smile, Beck), Kenny Beats (Denzel Curry, Vince Staples, Benee) and the band’s Mark Bowen, as is the rest of the album.“The song came from nowhere and everything. It was a breath and a call to be held,” frontman Joseph Talbot said, discussing the inspiration behind the song. “The only words or singing that came from our sessions with Nigel and I needed it, truly. All is love.” A more subdued track from IDLES but it’s great!
bar italia – worlds greatest emoter
London indie rock trio bar italia made a name for themselves with their debut album Tracey Denim and they’ve followed it up with new album The Twits, with worlds greatest emoter being their latest cut. The track was recorded by the trio over eight weeks from February 2023 in a makeshift home studio in Mallorca, and was mixed by Marta Salogni. Between driving indie rock and atmospheric post-punk, Worlds Greatest Emoter has all the hallmarks of a classic track, bolstered by the three-part shifting vocal lines that the band have made their signature.
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