Fuck Me it's Mia Tea

This is the centre for all my online activities - be it blogs, articles and writing, profiles and networking, or interesting links and pictures.

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Next Best Thing Predictions 2015 / The Next Best Thing / More Than The Music

Our Next Best Thing section has had another exciting year highlighting some of the most dynamic and interesting emerging acts, including FKA Twigs, Lola Co

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The Staveley-Taylor sisters reappear with a new EP, and once again, these fresh-faced folk offerings exemplify to great effect the group’s perfect vocal harmonies, blessed as they are with balance, beauty and tenderness.

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MTTM Post: Next Best Thing September

New Video: Verite – Weekend

September 21, 2014

‘Weekend’ is the second single from talented New Yorker Verite. The single focuses on impressive topics such as concepts of nostalgia and perfection, expressed through Verite’s calm, sweet, melancholy vocal style. Musically she sits on the same shelf as Lorde and Ms Mr, with her stark sound and shoe-gaze aspect, but with Verite she already has her own commercially polished sound, which only two singles deep into her career is an impressive feat.

This is a lady with a very exciting future ahead of her – she has been heralded as a key rising star by everyone from Buzzfeed to The Line of Best Fit, and her debut show at POPSHOP NYC earlier this month was completely sold out. Check out the beautiful, sentimental and perfectly melodramatic video below for more: http://vevo.ly/5xXFbV

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Minimalist noir-pop maestros Love Inks are back with their third album, Exi.

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Made up of veterans from the Pittsburgh scene, Murder for Girls are a new four piece offering a consummate selection of lo-fi lure in their eponymous debut EP.

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MTTM Review: In The Woods 2014

Now in its ninth year, the taciturn experience that is In The Woods is back, housed once again in a secret location known only to festival goers...

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MTTM Post: Next Best Thing August 2014

New Video: Meghan Trainor – ‘All About That Bass’

August 10, 2014

Fresh from the hot heat of Nashville is 20 year old Meghan Trainor, the latest pop-princess to reach our shores from the US of A. ‘All About That Bass’ is Meghan’s infectious debut single, set for release here on 5th October on Epic. The single has already had a huge amount of attention in the States, (check the 12 million YouTube views), and it’s easy to see why with its charismatic sugar-plum coloured video, glitter pop outlook and feisty lyrics.

This unashamed anthem for the more voluptuous girl cheekily pokes fun at standard beauty ideals with humour and aplomb. Combine this with music that takes influence from the likes of Katy Perry and Taylor Swift, with vague hip-hop hints and a dash of 60s girl group glamour and this track is sure to be a hot hit. Check out the video here: http://youtu.be/7PCkvCPvDXk

New Video: Lola Colt – Vacant Hearts

August 25, 2014

Lola Colt are an exciting new sextet from London, offering rich, 60s style soundscapes, saturated in muddy mixes, heavy reverb and lo-fi vocals. Offering fuzzy, guitar driven indie rock that is brooding and dark, Lola Colt are highly reminiscent of Nico, Marianne Faithful and Francoise Hardy, whilst retaining and developing their own sound. This is music that is psychedelic and cinematic, intensely vintage and utterly spell-binding.

Lola Colt have their debut album scheduled for release in October, along with a nationwide tour. This band really are a treat to see live, but for the meantime, check out the video below for more: http://youtu.be/oD28ArpL3BY

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MTTM Post: Next Best Thing July 2014

New Video: Princess – ‘Neverlook’

July 6, 2014

Hailing from the Emerald Isle are Princess, an exciting two piece creating scuzzy dream pop, rich with 90s references, rampant drums and jangly guitars. Perfect instrumentation blends with charming timbres to create upbeat, catchy melodies, none more so than in this new track with its beautifully shot and thought-provoking video (below). Think Deerhunter and Surfer Blood with just a hint of The Cure and you’re along the right lines with this duo’s vibrant sound.

‘Neverlook’ is available now as a single for digital download, with the group’s debut album no doubt waiting in the wings. Check out the video here: https://soundcloud.com/thatssoprincess/neverlook

New Track: Table Scraps – ‘Bug’

July 20, 2014

Meet Table Scraps, an exciting young boy/girl duo from the Black Country. This pairing are rapidly gain attention from critics for their frenetic, visceral live shows, and have already supported the likes of Fat White Family and Temple Songs with their own brand of scuzzy, dirty garage rock. Filled with a fuzz ridden guitar (reported fed through three amps), and an unfiltered stand-up drum kit, this is a sound and a band to be reckoned with.

‘Bug’ is the group’s first release, out on the 11th August as a digital download and 7″ vinyl. The tasty track (rounding off at tidy 1:38) is feverish and catchy, a little reminiscent of 80s Matchbox B-Line Disaster. Check it out below: https://soundcloud.com/table-scraps-1/bug

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MTTM Post: Next Best Thing June 2014

New Track: White Reaper – ‘Cool’

June 1, 2014

Originating from the exciting emerging DIY scene of Kentucky comes White Reaper – a a vibrant all-male trio offering listeners jangly guitars, lo-fi drums and phaser-induced sonic mess aplenty. Known already for their raucous live shows and cool Southern style, the psychedelic musing of White Reaper are perfect for summer and beyond.

The group’s debut eponymous EP is set for release on 24th June and is filled with hot, dirty garage rock such as this little ‘Cool’ ditty. Think of the MC5 and Johnny Thunders, mixed with newer upstarts such as Charlie Boyer and the Voyeurs and you are on the right lines. Observe: https://soundcloud.com/polyvinyl-records/white-reaper-cool-1

New Video: Mozart’s Sister – ‘Enjoy’

June 7, 2014

Montreal’s hottest new ticket is solo femme Mozart’s Sister (aka Caila Thompson-Hannant). Her immediately engaging, subtle and complex style of pared down sample-lead electronic pop is making serious waves across the pond, with the likes of Pitchfork, Fader and Dummy Magazine raging about the musician’s curious yet charismatic sound. Probably closest to Grimes in term of contemporaries, Mozart’s Sister also draws from Bjork and early Daft Punk to create a bewitchingly  fractured sound full of intrigue and a few classy hooks to boot.

Mozart’s Sister has her debut album scheduled for release on 25th August on Asthmatic Kitty here in the UK. ‘Enjoy’ is the first single released from that debut LP, and it is safe to say we are very excited by the track’s sonic curiosity and its subtly engaging video. Check it out below: http://youtu.be/bQpv5fTKD2M

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MTTM Post: Next Best Thing May 2014

New Track: Happyness – ‘Great Minds Think Alike, All Brains Taste the Same’

May 11, 2014

Ahead of the release of their debut album Weird Little Birthday is this tasty little ditty that fully exemplifies the wonder that is burgeoning new band Happyness. The band have enjoyed excellent press from the likes of The Fly, NME, Clash and many, many more besides, and it is easy to see why, with their charming melodies and relaxed vibe.

Filled with rough edges and charismatic naivety, this quirky track has a 90s college rock vibe, recalling the likes of Pavement, Pixies, and even further back to Lou Reed circa Transformer. Take a listen below: https://soundcloud.com/happyness-4/great-minds-think-alike-all-1

New Video: Jetta – ‘Crescendo’

May 18, 2014

Jetta is breaking British singer-songwriter talent newly signed to Polydor. Already hyped by the likes of Pharrell Williams and Cee-Lo Green, Jetta has been tipped as one to watch for 2014 by Rolling Stone Magazine, and she was reportedly one of the most talked about performers at this year’s SXSW.

Hailing from Liverpool, Jetta creates charismatic, soul inflected pop, exampled perfectly here were her second release, the upbeat and dynamic ‘Crescendo’. The track is released ahead of her debut EP due out in June (produced by no less than Pharrell himself), and is accompanied by this charming and very British video: http://youtu.be/KTIc_wC0y1w

New Video: MT – ‘Incredible’

May 24, 2014

Over the past year MT have been stirring up a groundswell of hype, being championed by the likes of NME, Clash and This is Fake DIY. After a successful debut single release, alongside a residency at the KOKO in Camden, the group are now set to support The Polyphonic Spree on a number of dates in June ahead of the release of their debut EP What We Are in July.

This new video from the charismatic indie pop four piece follows the group on tour with a charmingly the retro fisheye lense, and is awash with reverb, kooky organs and cute percussion. Check it out: http://youtu.be/9uZ0yfouyeg

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MTTM Post: Next Best Thing April 2014

New Track: Bastard Mountain – ‘Meadow Ghosts’

April 19, 2014

Bastard Mountain are the new folk super-group on the block, consisting of Pete Harvey & Neil Pennycook from Meursault, Jill O’Sullivan from Sparrow & the Workshop, Rob St. John from Eagleowl & Meursault, Rory Sutherland from Broken Records & Reuben Taylor from James Yorkston & the Athletes.

Ahead of the release of their debut album Farewell, Bastard Mountain in May is this track ‘Meadow Ghosts’, a beautifully haunting, textured track worthy of your ears. Check it out in full here: https://soundcloud.com/songbytoad/meadow-ghosts

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MTTM Live Review: Goldfrapp – The Hexagon, Reading

We are greeted by beautifully stark, monochromatic visuals – the band are dressed entirely in black, the set drop is simple, textured noir brushstrokes...

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WTGR Single Review: Honours - Blue Light

Clearly masters of subtlety, Honours have here released a slow-burning gem, which really develops in musical and emotional intensity, as calm and cold as the blue light of the track’s title.

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Following on from her controversial comeback single Hard Out Here€™, Air Balloon offers up a bubble-gum flavoured slice of pop; but where's that acerbic lyrical jab?

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MTTM Album Review: Temples - Sun Structures

Temples have received a significant amount of attention in the past year, with the group's debut Sun Structures one of the most hotly anticipated albums of 2014...

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HCE Relaunch Issue: 2013 Albums of the Year

Best Album of the Year: The Electric Lady - Janelle Monae. Once again, Janelle Monae has wowed listeners with a complex, fully formed, and musically stunning conceptual album. Following on from her...

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Armed with their trademark glam sportswear and urban cool sounds, Neon Jungle's sophomore single release is ruled by a deeply dropped bassline and a rich beat that is utterly danceable.