New Music: Liv Cartier

London and Manchester based singer songwriter Liv Cartier is one of the most exciting prospects that I have come across this week. With a distinctly dark approach to alt-pop, this artist creates songs with haunting soundscapes that are rich in character and intensity.

New single ‘Hello Morning Sun’ navigates the rocky terrain that comes with taking accountability for the state of your mental health.

“The most important thing about bettering your mental health is acknowledging you need help, which is also the hardest part. It’s so easy to find solace in uncomfortable spaces and accepting that thats all that is meant for you. ‘Hello Morning Sun’ talks about breeching that space to find better. it has that dark undertone heavily throughout but there is some light to be found within it.”

Liv Cartier

New Music: FINE, whatever

In an epic display of commitment, Swedish talent FINE, whatever plans to release a song every month for the next two years.

And in my books, that could well be an interesting thing to experience. Songs take inspiration from bands like Gorillaz and are infused with elements of old school emo pop. The end result is a sound that is pop-driven yet also heart-wrenching, taking on the concept of what it is to be feeling out of place.

“Doing a song in a day sometimes makes stuff much more honest, no story to hide behind just me and my problems. I think it is beautiful in a way.”

FINE, whatever

Visit the Alfitude Scandinavia Sound Playlist

New Music: HAWD HITTA

Inspired by the likes of Avicii, Oliver Heldens, Sigala, and Calvin Harris, Los Angeles-based HAWD HITTA is an electronic artist, producer, DJ crafting some of the most exciting house music to emerge from California.

Featuring the talents of Rogelio, ‘See Me’ is an emotive and anthemic piano house track that reminds us we are never alone in life, and invites us to come together with those we love most through the power of music.

“By coming together, we alleviate the world’s stresses, pains and troubles. Life’s trials and tribulations are always easier with someone you care about by your side, and ‘See Me’ (feat. Rogelio) is a reminder of that.” – HAWD HITTA

Having already performed over 30 shows in ten different states across the US, as well as gaining recognition from the likes of Clinton Sparks and MORTEN, this could well be HAWD HITTA’s time to hit the mainstream.

HAWD HITTA | Rogelio Douglas Jr.

New Music: adam brian paul

Emerging from Montreal as one of Canada’s most exciting newcomers is artist adam brian paul.

With his striking fusion of indie and lo-fi pop, this talent delivers a sound that feels raw and authentic, all the while using his distinctive vocals to deliver thought-provoking lyricism.

Taken from upcoming album ‘For The Good’ which is out soon.

adam brian paul

Abby Power – Private Moments

Hailing from North West London, rapper and songwriter Abby Power has already been writing and recording music for over a decade. After taking a 5-year break from the industry, she came back in 2020 with a string of releases and collaborations – and hasn’t stopped since!

With beats inspired by Drake and Jay Z, new track ‘Private Moments’ is a love song that was produced by Blacksurfer, showcasing a fine blend of old-school hip hop and pop.

“This is a track where I wanted to celebrate the one I love, and also create a relationship track that others can relate to.”

Taken from the new EP ‘influenced’ which is out now.

Abby Power

JT Roach – Limelight

American singer-songwriter JT Roach returns today with a sublime and refreshingly original fusion of indie and stripped-back electronica.

Delicately subtle and airy in tone, ‘Limelight‘ carries a rousing melody that is paired with riveting vocals.

“I wrote this song when I was living in a hallway and writing demos out of a walk-in closet in an artist commune house in Silverlake. I was also falling in love with someone at the time. I hear a new meaning to this song every time I listen to it, but it currently makes me think about how I moved to LA to find fame and fortune but the best thing I found since moving here was the love of my life, ‘my limelight’. The sounds of crunching leaves, rainfall, a fireplace, and other natural sounds of Northwoods Wisconsin are scattered throughout the song. I wrote it in California but it has the sonic characteristics of where I consider to be home, which is Wisconsin.”

JT Roach

Floyd Fuji – INSIDE

Floyd Fuji’s ‘INSIDE’ meets at the intersection of nostalgia and futurism perfectly. With its dreamy and soulful tones, this is a song that immediately casts a love spell on any listener.

Born in Virginia and residing in Los Angeles, Floyd Fuji has already performed in the house band for Kanye West’s Sunday Service and also collaborated in sessions with the likes of Anderson .Paak and Babyface.

Floyd Fuji

New Music: Caroline & Claude

Delivering a truly original take on pop, Australian sibling duo Caroline & Claude make infectiously timeless sounds with a charmingly literal and refreshingly direct approach.

“We wrote ‘It’s Not That Bad’ quite recently. The song is pretty self explanatory; our candid lyrics discuss the complexity of moving out of a relationship. The song is saying – we’ve both got baggage, but we’ll be okay, I can help you and you can help me – it’s not that bad”. – Caroline, Caroline & Claude

Caroline & Claude

BoyWithUke – Long Drives

After going viral and garnering hundreds of millions of streams independently, singer, songwriter and producer BoyWithUke releases new single ‘Long Drives’.

The song was first teased on TikTok (where he has over 2.5 million followers) as part of his ‘minute long songs‘ project, joining previous breakout hit ‘Toxic‘ which has picked up whopping 400 million global streams.

“‘Long Drives’ is about having a long distance relationship and constantly overthinking about the other person.”

BoyWithUke joins AJR on their upcoming North American tour this summer, which kicks off in May.

BoyWithUke

New Music: Debbie

Freshly signed to 0207 Def Jam and still only 22-years old, London-born musician Debbie crafts a delicate and immersive blend of emotive soul and pop.

Her stunning debut ‘Is This Real Love?’ is an earnest and heartfelt plea for a connection that goes beyond surface level emotion and social media stunting.

“I was frustrated with how much the definition of love is fantasised. I found myself getting passionate about the subject, and getting lost in research. In my findings, one thing that stood out was to have a stable relationship, it takes more than love. Yes, love is important but at its core it’s just a feeling, and you need more than a feeling to sustain something healthy. Patience, self-awareness, compromise, forgiveness just to name a few… I didn’t like how social media framed love at a surface level – with ‘couple goals’ and ‘happily ever after’ captions. It all just felt misleading.”

Debbie

New Music: Emei

Hailing from Los Angeles is singer-songwriter Emei. With gutsy vocals and punchy lyrics, this talent is delivering some of the most captivating slices of emerging alt-pop out of California right now.

Latest release ‘Better People to Leave On Read’ is a perfect anthem to scream in the car when you wish people would stop wasting your time.

“‘Better People to Leave On Read’ was written in a fit of rage when an ex-best friend (who made moves on my boyfriend) texted saying she was proud of my success. As the first alt-pop record made with KiNG MALA producer, Rob Auerbach, Better People to Leave on Read has a salt-inspired rage, hard-hitting drums and eye-rolling horns.”

Emei

Lisa Heller – cheetos n coke

Los Angeles based artist Lisa Heller is back today with a beautifully raw and vulnerable slice of pop in the form of catchy new single ‘cheetos n coke’.

Heller has already garnered millions of streams to date from her releases, as well as picking up praise from the likes of Huffington Post and PopMatters.

Lisa Heller

PENNY – Outside

After a hugely successful introduction to the world last year, Huddersfield singer-songwriter PENNY returns today with ‘Outside’ – a beautifully poignant indie-electronica confession about being tangled up in jealousy, and how sometimes it can be mistaken for lust.

“It feels like so long ago since I wrote ‘Outside’, but usually, when I write something, it’s because I need to find a way to process my emotions – it’s kind of like therapy to me. The song is all about jealousy, and how I became borderline obsessed with my ex’s ex. I found myself wondering whether my jealousy towards her was actually lust – the whole ‘do I want to be you, or be with you?’ thing. However, in writing the song and looking at the situation through an ‘outside’ perspective, I came to realise how ridiculous this was, and that I am really quite perfect just the way I am.”

Taken from the new EP ‘‘My Secret Powers’ which is out now.

PENNY

PENNY UK Live Dates:

  • MANCHESTER – The Castle Hotel – Tuesday 1st Feb 2022
  • LEEDS – Oporto – Wednesday 2nd Feb 2022
  • LONDON – The Brink – Friday 4th Feb 2022

New Music: Ryan Bourne

Calgary based singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Ryan Bourne creates sounds that are refreshingly unique in character. Self-described as a ‘dystopian banger’ for these times, ‘Black Hole’ blends curious synth lines with dreamy guitar-led pop, showcasing a fantastically intriguing approach to music that is as compelling as it is eccentric.

“Post-apocalyptic anxiety, pandemic isolation, climate change and nuclear threat, social media’s information saturation overwhelm, the vapidity and materiality and vacuum of much of technified modernity… Yet human contact [is] being made nonetheless.”

Ryan Bourne

New Music: Gebrasy

If you’re unfamiliar with the Lithuanian pop scene then all you need to know is that singer-songwriter Gebrasy is one of the stand-out talents emerging from the country so far.

This artist began writing songs from the age of ten, and despite his humble demeanour is rapidly picking up momentum across the continent for his trademark style of intensely dark pop that is both gripping and moving in equal measures.

“This song is about a recent break up, you’re trying to move on and you think that it’s over, but it’s not over. You start having troubles falling asleep, you dream of that person, you start wondering why didn’t it work out, what could have been done differently? During these thoughts you forget why it even happened as you start to long for the comfort and warmth that you felt with that person.”

Gebrasy

GRAE – Room In The Desert

Photo / Gennelle Cruz

Toronto based singer songwriter and multi-instrumentalist GRAE shares her new single ‘Room In The Desert’, and with it some beautiful visuals.

Continuing to impress with her style of new-wave pop that’s both nostalgic and boundary-breaking, GRAE crafts a hazy musical world filled with spacious vocals, buoyant production and deeply personal lyrics on the song.

“’Room In The Desert’ was written on a day when I was lacking inspiration. I came into the session with my producer Connor Seidel not knowing what to write about and instead of trying to fight that feeling, I embraced it. I decided to write a song about nothing, from nothing, using some random and interesting words we could find. At the time of writing, it had no real meaning, which was the intention, but now I actually find meaning in it which is interesting. I hope those who listen are able to find their own unique meaning too.”

GRAE

New Music: PLANET

Australian quartet PLANET create a style of indie-rock that feels authentic, raw and powerful in equal measures; so much so that they have already received acclaim from the likes of Rolling Stone, Triple J, CLASH and Wonderland, as well as garnering over three million Spotify streams to date.

“We wanted the video for ‘Information Overload’ to be as intense and sporadic as humanly possible so the idea was to make three separate clips and add in affected news clipping and ads. The final product was filming these clips projected on old TV/ broadcast monitors – quite obviously portraying the title of the song, but subtly highlighting how when there is so much going on you can’t think at all or do anything with clarity.” – Matty Took, PLANET

New album ‘Information Overload‘ drops on 11 March 2022, with a UK & Ireland tour following later in the spring.

PLANET

grentperez – Absence of You

Photo / Gemma Chua Tran

After growing a name for himself last year with his distinctive vocals and unique approach to creating timeless pieces of music, grentperez is back to unveil his next instalment of swooning bedroom pop.

Born from a love lost, ‘Absence of You’ gives listeners the same vibes as those from Amy Winehouse’s very earliest demos, and is utterly charming to experience.

“‘Absence of You’ is a song of heartbreak and coming to terms with your worth, to search and find that there’s a world waiting for you outside of yourself and that broken relationship. We see memories presented as burdens only there to weigh you down, with the idea of letting go being the overall theme; ‘and now the absence of you sets me free.”

grentperez