Emerging UK talent Dan Aura returns today with a supreme slice of punchy pop through his new single, ‘Living Room’.
Melodically catchy and lyrically relatable, the song was written by Aura at a time when he felt that his life was becoming too monotonous and predictable.
To date, Aura’s music has accumulated well over 500k catalogue streams and been featured on notable Apple Music and Spotify editorial playlists. Aura has also gained the seal of approval form iconic publications like Attitude, Paper, Wonderland and Flavour magazines.
As the alter-ego of Danish musician Mathias Baadsgaard, everBear is a promising indie-folk project that has captured attention for the last year.
Following on from the release of the Baadsgaard’s ‘The Secret Life Of Trees’debut EP a few months ago, today sees the release of a brand new single entitled ‘Time Is A Slope (Waiting on Fire)’.
Created alongside producer Valentin Kruse, the song’s (very relevant) message is inspired by the anxieties that most of us face when we think of society’s future, and wonder if our existing lives will ever go back to how they used to be.
“‘Time is a slope (waiting on fire)’ could easily have become a song with a guitar and vocals, but through the creative process it quickly evolved into something entirely different than that. It evolved into an anthem of expression and hope.”
Rising Des Moines duo Elison [Holding Hour] unveil their new single ‘Fruit Flies’. By expertly blending elements of indie rock with shoegaze and dreamy pop, this emerging musical project craft sounds that feel raw and captivating in tone, while also maintaining an emotive essence.
‘Fruit Flies’ tells of the self-destruction that could occur if we allow ourselves to over-romanticise the memories of our younger years:
“When I started playing music during the pandemic, after decades of wishing I was brave enough to try, I found myself revisiting the girl that ignited the dream in the first place, my sixteen-year-old self. Through that process I started questioning the actual growth I previously thought I had achieved.” – Marissa Kephart, Elison
Elison comprises of lead singer and guitarist Marissa Kephart, and Scott Yoshimura – who also serves as a producer, engineer and multi-instrumentalist for the project.
Acclaimed Swedish indie outfit Janice Prix are back today with a new single entitled ‘Stone Love’.
Dark, haunting and atmospheric in tone, the song attributes its intensity to being written and produced during the pandemic. Elaborating on the lyrics, guitarist and producer MK explains:
“[The song] definitely revolves around destroying something beautiful and turning it into something awful. It happens in both love and friendship.”
Since releasing debut album ‘Waking’in 2020, Janice Prix have gone on to tour across Europe and South Korea, while also garnering critical praise from the likes of The Line of Best Fit and Hype Magazine.
American artist Grant Knoche is no stranger to the Alfitude pages – and for good reason. This ever-emerging talent continues to deliver outstanding pieces of pop that are not only melodically captivating but lyrically intelligent.
Powerful new single ‘YOU DON’T HAVE TO TALK’ looks at the topic of mental illness, and gathers its inspiration from Knoche’s own real-life experiences:
“Someone very close to me deals with severe mental illness and it was hard for me because in the moments that they were at their worst, I didn’t know what to say or do to make them feel better & cheer them up. I realised that the best thing for me to do was to just let them know I’m there for them and to listen if they felt like talking. ‘YOU DON’T HAVE TO TALK’ is about letting that person know ‘I’m here for you no matter what’. Mental Health is very serious and I hope this song helps those dealing with it & those that are helping their loved ones get through it.”
With more than 400k monthly listeners on Spotify, Knoche has had a stellar year that his seen him release a series of critically-acclaimed singles while also finding the time to compete on hit TV series The American Song Contest.
KAIRO end the year with yet another slice of musical bliss that is sure win them even more fans.
Lifted from their freshly-released ‘Return To Sender’ EP (out now), ‘Movie Star’ continues to showcase the Houston-based duo’s outstanding approach to music-making. Speaking on the new collection of songs, pop’s most loveable twins explain:
“Our sophomore EP ‘Return To Sender’ reflects on our process of being hurt and moving on from the relationships we sang about with deep love and adoration on our debut EP ‘Love Letters From Houston.’ Alongside the elevated production that sees us living in the space between pop and R&B, we continue to place harmonies front and centre as the through line that makes this EP uniquely KAIRO. And with that, our Love Letters have officially been marked Return To Sender.”
To date, KAIRO have built up an impressive fanbase on social media – with more than one million followers on TikTok alone. The twins’ music has also been featured on notable playlists like Spotify’s Fresh Finds Pop and TIDAL’s Rising Pop,
Singer and songwriter Abby Simone will be a name that we suspect many people will come to know over the next year.
By crafting a finessed sound that seamlessly fuses melodic soul with jazz, R&B and pop, Simone looks set to become one of the most promising new artists to emerge from Asia.
Inspired by long-distance relationships, debut single ‘Same Sunrise’ serves as a perfect introduction to Simone’s work. Elaborating further on the lyrics, she explains:
“After a while you get used to the distance, but never the absence. This song was written for lovers, friends and families in a long-distance relationship to say, ‘Hey, that wasn’t easy but well done.’ We all know that the sun really doesn’t rise. But when you’re with your person and the world stops moving, science can wait.”
It’s been a short moment, but Irish artist Matt Taylor returns with a slice of pop perfection through his new single, ‘Stay’.
Immediately captivating, the song marks Taylor’s next phase in his creative journey as a musician:
“‘Stay’ was written in the aftermath of my last EP, when I wanted to get away from all the lil sad boy vibes & enter my dancing fiend era. It’s been a while since I’ve felt this good on my own. It’s been so freeing to have more time to invest in friendships and myself. I just want to document how I’m feeling at the moment, and ‘Stay’ is the embodiment of everything I want to be right now. It’s the most pure pop song I’ve ever written and I’m proudly owning it.”
In recent months, Taylor has picked up the attention of iconic tastemakers as diverse as Clash, Variance, EARMILK and Ones To Watch, while his music has been featured on editorial playlists like Spotify’s NMF, New Pop UK and Fresh Finds.
Having previously featured both roman around and Thavoron on these pages, it seems only natural to also present to you their powerful new collaboration, entitled ‘Bear The Burden’.
Urgent and commanding in tone, the song shines a light on the environmental injustices that are increasingly becoming evident throughout the world, as roman around explains:
“The actions of one will not be enough to change the course of an economic, environmental, and power system which systematically burdens poor, minority, and disabled populations. The ways in which we continually destroy the planet are known and unchanging. These populations who are closer to their demise than those with a sense of entitlement are the first to bear the burden.”
A masterclass in hazy lo-fi pop and alt-R&B, the track is lifted from roman around’s forthcoming ‘Tell Me All About You’ EP, which is scheduled for release on 20th January 2023 via Trailing Twelve Records.
Hailing from Los Angeles is songwriter and producer Venus as a boy (aka Theo Lee), who today unveils his latest release, ‘When were you so low‘.
A recent winner of the Kenny Beats battle, this promising talent constructs intricate electronic sounds that result in soundscapes that feel immersive, intriguing and arresting in character. Elaborating further on his new single, Lee explains:
“‘When were you so low’ a song about coming to terms with the realities of chasing your dreams and the things one has to sacrifice in order to do so.”
Lee’s artistry has already led him to work alongside the likes of Adrian Cota, Cody Simpson, Nick Lee and Rowlan, while his music has been featured on flagship Spotify playlists like ‘anti-pop’.
Rising British starlet Bethia is back today with an impressive new single called ‘One Of A Kind’.
Inspired by the experiences of being in a one-sided relationship, the song treats listeners to a sleek fusion of R&B and pop, further cementing this artist as one to watch.
“I was in a situation where I felt like someone I was dating only stuck around when it was convenient for them and their situation. And frankly, that sh*t’s on them.”
In a relatively short space of time, Bethia has picked up praise from the likes of BBC Introducing, Music and Fashion Blog and New Lease Music, while her music has found its way on to prominent playlists like Spotify’s ‘New Music Friday UK’ and Apple Music’s ‘New Music Daily’.
Genre-bending extraordinaire Louis Culture is back with a sensational release that is certain to wind its way onto your playlists.
Lifted from forthcoming debut EP ‘When Life Presents Obstacle’ (out 25th Nov), melodic new single ‘Grime’ perfectly balances elements of electronica with funk and house.
“Karma Kid and I made this around two years ago but for a long time it was just the chorus. I feel like I only just found the right words to say this year. Feel like it took some more living.”
Rapidly marking his name as one of UK’s most promising alternative artists, this 24-year old talent will perform a sold-out headline show at London’s Peckham Audio later this month
Emerging from Austria are Aze – a musical project consisting of Beyza Demirkalp and Ezgi Atas.
Together, these two childhood friends create an atmospheric sound that incorporates elements of alternative R&B with dreamy pop.
‘Sidewalk’ is taken from the duo’s ‘Hotline Aze’ project (out now), and presents listeners with an immersive audible experience that is both mesmerising and intriguing in character.
To date, this rising outfit have accumulated over 300k catalogue streams on Spotify, while also commanding more than 50k monthly listeners on the platform.
It’s taken a good while, but Toronto-based artist MorMor has finally released his debut album, ‘Semblance’.
The project’s collection of songs offers listeners a candid view into the artist’s thoughts on love, growth and relationships.
“‘Semblance’ is an album that took its time to come together. It gave me the opportunity to reflect on things I would have otherwise run away from. That’s what keeps me coming back. I hope that spending time with ‘Semblance’ will offer you joy and serenity in reflection.”
Alongside the album’s launch, MorMor has also unveiled the visuals for his new single, ‘Here It Goes Again’, of which he explains:
“‘Here It Goes Again’ is a song about the desire to recapture the honeymoon phase of a relationship that is otherwise falling apart. When working out the direction for the video – Adrian [Villagomez, director] and I wanted some way of visualising what it felt like to be captured in an endless cycle. The song encapsulates the concept of attempting to recapture the honeymoon phase, while in reality the relationship is falling apart; so we felt it best to represent that by creating an ever evolving loop.”
MorMor has received critical acclaim from the likes of NME, Dazed, Vice, The Observer and Sunday Times Culture, while his work has accumulated more than 68 million streams on Spotify alone.
Multi-award winning Australian singer, songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist Matt Corby unveils his latest release, entitled ‘Problems’.
The track was created after Corby and his family were caught up in the floods that raged across Queensland and New South Wales at the start of the year. Elaborating further on the lyrics, Corby explains:
“It’s about how funny humans are creating our own problems and issues that we then have to solve. Or creating problems so difficult we then can’t solve, and how people talk so much shit and don’t do anything – how we’re setting ourselves up for failure. People want to point the finger but nobody wants to carry anything themselves.”
In recent years, Corby has established himself as one of Australia’s most prominent musical exports, commanding upwards of 1.4 million monthly listeners on Spotify and acquiring hundreds of millions of catalogue streams.
Showcasing some of the most exciting indie sounds to emerge recently from Germany, nothhingspecial is the new musical project of a 20-year old artist who is also known as Chrissie.
Lifted from her EP of the same name, ‘somewhere we don’t know’ presents listeners with a beautifully raw and emotive song that was inspired by the struggles that we face when trying to ‘fit in’ with what the world expects from us.
“This song was written when I felt like I couldn’t stand being in the current position I was in anymore. I think many people struggle with the idea of fitting into this world and system and portraying something for society’s sake. I honestly just felt like disappearing and wanted to see and feel something different.”
To date, nothhingspecial has garnered more than 440k career streams on Spotify alone, while critical praise comes from the likes of GEM Magazine and We Love That Sound.
Track of the week. Few emerging talents are causing as much buzz in the US right now as Baton Rouge rap artist Wakai.
Lifted from forthcoming project ‘Travel Team, Vol. 3’ (out in December), new single ‘A Month Ago’ features immensely promising newcomer wavworld, and treats listeners to a finessed fusion of nu-soul and dreamy hip hop.
With support from Pigeons & Planes, Earmilk, Wordplay, Daily Chiefers and many other tastemakers, it seems undeniable that Wakai will become one of the most promising new American musical exports next year.
One of North England’s most interesting artists to emerge recently has been singer, songwriter and producer Frankie Beetlestone.
New single ‘Popstar’ finds this Sheffield-based talent showcasing a polished indie-pop sound that was inspired by people’s hunger for fame:
“‘Popstar’ is basically just a song about how everyone wants to be famous these days. I kind of liked the idea of a bunch of people dancing and acting fit to a song that was taking the piss out of them.”
Beetlestone has received critical acclaim from the likes of Dork, Wonderland and Gigwise, while his catalogue of releases has so far accumulated close to 100k streams on Spotify alone.
Consisting of brothers Sammy and Johnny Bennett, Deki Alem is a new musical project emerging from Sweden that incorporates elements of drum’n’bass with hip hop, electronica and punk.
The resulting sound presents listeners with tracks that are refreshingly invigorating and energising in tone.
Rapidly gaining traction across Scandinavia, Deki Alem have already garnered praise from the likes of GAFFA Sweden and Kingsize Magazine.
We are kicking the weekend off with an exciting UK newcomer who’s style of alt-pop has already piqued the interest of several noted tastemakers like Wonderland, Clash and Notion magazines.
While ‘Boyfriend Of The Year’ is Bellah Mae’s first official release, the track has already gained considerable traction through TikTok. Elaborating further on the creation of the song, Mae explains:
‘I’d had the opening line of the chorus in my notes app for a few months, but I didn’t know which angle I wanted to take the song. Josh [Breaks, collaborator] and I started trying out ideas and, in an hour, we had written the song. It was one of those examples where it just writes itself.”
With more than 100k streams on Spotify alone in only a matter of days, it’s safe to say that Mae is one UK artist to watch in 2023.
