FUTUREPROOF PICKS 04-07-24

Hello world,

Here’s your latest FP Picks update. We’ve got a host of banging tunes from Jodie Langford, Honeyglaze, Waxahatchee & many 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

Picture Parlour – Face In The Picture

London based rock quartet Picture Parlour have released their debut EP Face In The Picture along with the title track which uses strings and electric guitar to create a unique contrast of heavy and soft, yet all amounting to a dramatic sound. Singer Katherine Parlour explains: “Our dream for this EP was to make a body of work that spanned across and screamed power, emotion, grit and intensity to preface what’s to come in our musical world. We hope that all 4 tracks ignite the full spectrum of emotion in our listeners, just as they did for us when creating and even still now when we play them together.” The band has made waves with their electrifying live performances and opening slots for legendary acts like Bruce Springsteen and label mates The Last Dinner Party.

Georgia Gets By – Madeline

Kiwi artist Georgia Gets By (aka Georgia Nott) has shared a powerful new single and states: “Madeline is about the moment you meet someone that you know will change you. You feel it in the deepest place inside your stomach and become completely choice-less in your feelings for them.” The song starts slow with a thirty-second introduction of a bass-heavy ambient soundscape, warming up listeners with fuzzy amplification. As Georgia begins to sing, the momentum increases and the cathartic mood deepens. The song’s soulful yearning builds to a flooding of outsized emotion, expressing the inescapable feeling when you meet someone who transforms your life. A beautiful track with haunting vocals – love it!

James Crowley – Play to Win

James Crowley calls his own bluff on new single Play to Win. What could be heard as a tragic love song is actually a letter from the singer-songwriter to himself. “Often, we’re our own harshest critic,” he explains. “I know that’s true for me. I wanted to try to make peace with the standards I set myself as a man, as a human. Play to Win was a space for me to think about how I meet myself with more compassion and really sit in the discomfort of my own expectations.” Clacking percussion replicates the mind’s industry and machinations, while the gloss of reverb covers it with a shiny veneer. Intimate and expansive with soulful vocals – just beautiful.

Waxahatchee – Ice Cold

The infectious Ice Cold from Waxahatchee (aka Katie Crutchfield) explores emotional detachment. The lyrics express a weariness which could reflect emotional fatigue, a defense mechanism, or even a subtle commentary on how the stories artists tell and consume sometimes supersede their own lived experiences. Instrumentally, the track leans on a minimalist but evocative soundscape. Acoustic guitar and banjo provide the familiar Waxahatchee foundation, while subtle flourishes of slide guitar, electric guitar swells, and spare percussion add texture.  This sonic minimalism mirrors the emotional numbness depicted in the lyrics. Crutchfield’s vocals maintain their characteristic honesty on this captivating track.

Alien Chicks – Curtains Up

Punk outfit Alien Chicks have shared exciting new single Curtains Up, from their upcoming debut EP Indulging The Mobs. The track is a visceral and electrifying piece that showcases Alien Chicks‘ raw energy and punk ethos. It opens with a punchy riff and quickly escalates into a whirlwind of aggressive vocals and frenetic instrumentation displaying their signature sound with biting lyrics and an unapologetic attitude. Band member Joe says of the track: “Curtains Up is about recurring periodic anxiety. I’ve suffered badly from health anxiety and Curtains Up was a representation of how I’ve felt before. It also discusses how long adulting is generally and how that affects how anxiety manifests itself. Basically it’s a few minutes of moaning.” What a punk belter – be sure to check out their tour dates.

Honeyglaze – Don’t

Cult London trio Honeyglaze rage on new single Don’t, taken from upcoming album Real Deal. Vocalist Anouska Sokolow’s voice begins to shake as the track progresses – targeting the actions of every man who has wronged her in the past. Anouska says “Based on my favourite Destiny’s Child song bills, bills, bills (which is also a song about being done with waste men), Don’t was written after the end of a particularly bad relationship and I had this anger at every man I felt had ever wronged me or spoken down to me. It’s really fun to be aggressive and direct sometimes, especially when it’s unexpected.” Raw and personal – what a poignant track.

The Knocks & Dolores Forever – LOVER

Dolores Forever explain: “LOVER is really an expression of confidence, for when you’re done crying on the dancefloor and just want to have a great time. We wanted it to sound as if Fleetwood Mac and glitter had a baby, and The Knocks really brought that. We’re so excited to be releasing this song together – hope it’s a soundtrack to someone’s summer of fun.” The Knocks add: “We are fans of Dolores Forever and have loved their vibe for a while now. As with lots of The Knocks collaborations, we try to bring alternative-leaning artists into a different space and we were thrilled that they were down to experiment with us.” A toe-tapping, warm and infectious summer anthem – great stuff.

Jodie Langford – Get The Shots In!

Jodie Langford releases her new single Get The Shots In! – a dancefloor-filling-foolish tune with cannon-ball comedic lyrics that comment on the absurd behaviour you can witness, or participate in, after ‘just going for one drink’! This amped-up electronic / punk anthem is here to ‘keep it real’ & say it’s okay, we’ve all been there! On the track, Jodie’s producer Endoflevelbaddie perfectly balances her head-nodding naughtiness with frenetic beats & Kill Bill / Ironside–esque sirens to send your legs wobbly & your mind loose. With an imminent appearance at this year’s Reading & Leeds Festival, Jodie explains how her sound is evolving from spoken word to a more hybrid sound: “Endoflevelbaddie & I are shifting the vibe of the new tracks towards a more immediate, visceral & chaotic sound & style.” Great to have this confident, thought-provoking artist back with yet another banger!

The Mysterines – The Last Dance

Merseyside alternative rock band The Mysterines have shared new single The Last Dance from their highly anticipated album Afraid of Tomorrows. Bolstered by a blistering guitar solo and thunderous drum beats, the track deals with finding solace in something that is not real. Frontwoman Lia Metcalfe’s imagination dances wildly through the track, as it tells the tale of a person who falls in love with a porcelain mannequin and longs to dance with them. Metcalfe said: “I suppose it’s an analogy for what loneliness can do to you. Once you’ve exhausted all the dark alleyways of drugs and alcohol, you end up reaching for something to connect to that isn’t real.” The album represents a deeper and darker foray into The Mysterines’ psyche and reflects the maturity and growth of the band. Check out tour dates and don’t miss their powerful live performance.

King Krule – Time For Slurp

Following last year’s Space Heavy album that included the wonderful Seaforth (a Futureproof Picks ‘Best of 2023’ inclusion no less), the lovable South London multi-instrumentalist is back with his SHHHHHHH! EP that features this lo-fi gem of a tune. Time For Slurp, with its charming grunge fueled guitars, paints a highly personalised picture of an artist at their most elemental. No fancy production here, just let it all flow and the listener can do their own interpretation. The feel of the rhythm guitars is well on point & the distant lead guitar doodling lifts it just enough to complete the picture of an artist who’s more than comfortable in their own skin. Apparently the godson of drummer Dave Ruffy from The Ruts, King Krule aka Archie Marshall, was writing & recording before the age of 12 – maybe a reason for the quiet confidence that’s evident in so much of this artist’s output – so London, so indie, so good!