Beat & Soul

All you need to know about music!!

[personme]

On the 20th of May, 2012, Robin Gibb, a man from the famous group, The Bee Gees, passed away from cancer complications. He is survived by his brother, Barry and their sister. This is a wish that now he’s resting in peace, that God has a new singer to sing Unto His Glory, my heart goes out to both his family, and his wife and son. May they take comfort in the legacy that he shared and helped create. Here’s to you Robin Gibb. You’ll forever be missed. Smile down upon your family and friends and the fans whom mourn your passing with tears in their hearts, memories in their minds and smiles that now you’ve found your other brothers in heaven and are peace. Rest In Peace Robin Gibb age 62.

The song is called “Don’t Cry Alone” sung by Robin Gibb himself. Enjoy. 

[heartbeatandsoul]

Introducing CHURCHES

CHURCHES are a new group featuring members Iain Cook, Lauren Mayberry and Martin Doherty. For some of you a bell might be ringing when reading those names. Firstly we have Iain Cook ofAereogramme/The Unwinding Hours, Lauren Mayberry who is a freelance journalist and is also known for her vocals with Blue Sky Archives and last, but not least is Martin Doherty of The Twilight Sad fame. Their style combines sweeping synths, deep beats and the soft vocals of Lauren.

This is a must-listen! 

[heartbeatandsoul]

Simian Mobile Disco release 'Unpatterns'

It has been a busy week for Simian Mobile Disco, first appearing at Mary Anne Hobb’s XFM show for a 25 minute mix, the 16th of May welcomed them to Zane Lowe’s Radio One show, and I went to the album launch party of Simian Mobile Disco at Londons Phonica Records last Thursday (17 May) and had a great time. The Album launch party was for free and everyone could bring their own booze. The new album is titled 'Unpatterns' and has been described as a foray into more minimal techno territory and a bit of a departure from their catchy dancefloor classics such as the Ditto-voiced Cruel Intentions. The duo has gone away from using well known vocalists but instead you have now deep and soulful house music. 

Listen to 'Unpatterns' below: 

You can also download the official Unpatterns app for iPad and iPhone here. And if you’ve missed all that, catch them on tour instead!

Upcoming Tour Dates:

May 19th – Shipping Forecast – Liverpool – United Kingdom May 20th – Optimo – Glasgow – United Kingdom May 23rd – U Hall – Washington – DC – United States May 24th – Snacks @ Voyeur – Philadelphia – PA – United States May 25th – Webster Hall – New York – NY – United States May 26th – La Mouche – Montreal – Canada May 28th – Le Cercle – Quebec – Canada May 31st – Cervantes – Denver – CO – United States June 1st – Avalon – Hollywood – CA – United States June 2nd – Mezzanine – San Francisco – CA – United States June 9th – Parklife Festival – Manchester – United Kingdom June 15th – Sonar (Live) – Barcelona – Spain

[heartbeatandsoul]

Introducing Philco Fiction

After much digging, I stumbled across Philco Fiction led by frontwomen Turid Solberg. Philco Fiction is an amazing electro-pop trio coming from Oslo. The songs of the trio all have a haunting melody and are epic, broken-hearted piano ballads that recall prime Prince and electropop symphonies. If you once start listening you won't be able to stop. Philco Fiction's sophisticated pop tunes hit you straight away in both the heart and feet. There is much hype around them already: 

“A twisted pop sensation that lives up to the hype” – The Guardian

“Have to hear in 2012!” – NME

“Single of the Week” – Drowned in Sound

“We feel this is simply some of the most exciting music to come out of Norway in recent years.” – Record of the Day

“Some of the nicest sounds to come out of Norway this year!” – Richard Thane, The Line Of Best Fit

Philco Fiction is touring Europe this month and in June and have already featured in a few bunch of gigs in London and Brighton. I hope that you were one of the lucky ones because their live shows are said to be amazingly charasmatic. 

Their next gig in London will be on 17 May at The Lexington.

Here is their latest single 'I Want You'

They are surely a band to watch!! 

[heartbeatandsoul]

Introducing Theme Park

This is the discovery of the day! Browsing through the online scape to find new and exiting bands is so much fun, especially when you come across bands like this one. Theme Park is a four piece band from London that actually began gigging as a different band called Ark People playing a style of post-punk pop but having changed to a catchy and more than likable indie pop sound with Theme Park. 

The band is made up of twin brothers Marcus and Miles, Phil, Oscar and Ric. Mile's voice is what one lets hit the play and repeat button over and over again. Being compared with Talking Heads, the band gives us a very familiar feel but at the same time putting their very own unique style in lyrics and musical arrangements. 

Their latest single 'Two Hours' which was released through Transgressive Records last month is such a tune - great vocals, percussive groove and great guitar hooks are what makes their sound so great.

What do you think? Liked what you have heard? So head over to itunes. 

Theme Park is currently touring the UK so make sure you catch them somewhere near you.

MAY

18th - Brixton Academy w/h Mystery Jets, London

19th - Sound City Festival, Garage - Liverpool

JUNE

2nd - Field Day, London

3rd - Evolution Festival, Newcastle

20th - Ibiza Rocks w/h Maccabees - Ibiza

30th - Blissfield Festival, Winchester

For more gig listings, head over to Theme Park's facebook fan page or visit their website. 

[heartbeatandsoul]

Paramore announce intimate UK show for August

Paramore is booked to play under headlines of The Cure at this summer's Reading and Leeds Festivals and have now announced a second UK show at the Edinburgh's Corn Exchange Centre on August 21.The gig in Edinburgh is the second the band have announced in recent days. Last week they confirmed that they would be headlining the Belsonic 2012 event in Custom House Square in Belfast on August 19. The shows in Edinburgh and Belfast will be the band's first UK shows since the departure of founding members Josh and Zac Farro. Recently the band revealed that Justin Meldal-Johnsen, the bassist of Nine Inch Nails will be producing their new record and have so far completed one track, which is titled 'Daydreaming'.

Tickets go on sale next Friday (May 18).

Make sure to watch their latest video for 'Brick By Boring Brick'!! 

[heartbeatandsoul]

Flight Facilities - New Single Release

Flight Facilities, the Sydney based production duo that brought us the 2010 pop hit 'Crave You' feat. Giselle that hits over 4 million hits on YouTube have released a brand new single today. Their musical style combines dreamy pop with disco/ house beats to create a head nodding club tune. The duo first emerged on the scene with their remixes of Bag Raiders’ Turbo Love, The Lowbrows’ Dream In The Desert and Toecutter’s Best Party Ever. The brand new single is called 'With You' with vocals of Hot Chip drummer Grovesnor. Compared to their first release this track is a bit deeper and darker but unbelievably catchy. Enjoy!!! 

The single has been released through Future Classic on vinyl and through iTunes and Beatport. 

[heartbeatandsoul]

Introducing Sara Schiralli

Sara Schiralli embodies pure girl power and is surely one to watch. And again ... there is this mystery that one can find almost no information about Sara online despite of of her great success in France. The singer was born in Italy and raised in London but that is about it to find about her person. There is definitely some good PR missing as she could truly become successful in the UK as well. Sara became known in France with her first single release of 'Paranoid' and her song 'Bang Bang' counts almost 130,000 hits. Sara's voice is so pure and refreshing, at the same time combining folk and pop to make a light and catchy tune. 

Funky drumbeats, tambourines and a gentle piano tones make her newest single' The Clearing' to a great catchy song. 

You can see her perform life Next Thursday May 24 in the Apple Store in Covent Garden, London. It is a free gig so make sure you pencil this date into your diary. 

Make sure to visit her facebook fan page for information of upcoming shows and new releases! 

[heartbeatandsoul]

Jessie Ware – “110%” - Review

Jessie Ware rocks!! Having listened to this track a few times on the radio one cannot stop to have it on loop all day! 100% is such a great summer tune even though summer is nowhere near yet. Funky dubstep baselines combined with this subtile and beautiful voice make her sound really unique. It feels like a breeze of summer! 

Jessie started her musical career borrowing her stunning voice to artists such as SBTRKT and DJ Joker but to listen to her as a solo artist is much more exciting. Jessie Ware has now started to overtake her competition and is one the way to be a rising star. 

[heartbeatandsoul]

Gold & Youth! Listen to their new mixtape

Great band!!! The GOLD & YOUTH trio is a Canadian band based  in Vancouver and Toronto. Their sound reminds us of the poppy Empire Of The Sun and a bit of 80s success band Depeche Mode but with their very own and original style.

GOLD & YOUTH recently signed to Arts & Crafts They are releasing their debut album 'Beyond the Wilderness' this summer and if you have a listen to the mixtape below be sure to get the album on your shelves. Synthetic sounds that remind us of the 80s drenched with drums and guitar sounds and melancholy vocals. 

GOLD & YOUTH originally consisted of Matthew Lyall, Murray McKenzie, Jeff Mitchelmore but since the completion of the album also of Louise Burns who gives her stunning voice to 4 of the album's tracks. If you are lucky enough you can still catch them at The Great Escape this coming weekend. Take a look at their upcoming shows for this weekend below.

MAY 12 at 12:15pm - Komedia Downstairs - “The Great Escape Festival”, Brighton 

MAY 12 at  3:15pm - The Blind Tiger Club - “The Great Escape Festival”, Brighton 

MAY 12 at  8:00pm - Above Audio - ”The Great Escape Festival”, Brighton 

[heartbeatandsoul]

Introducing Laura Welsh

This is a little gem! As we are all seeing at the moment female solo acts are leading the charts. Talking of the likes of Adele, Lana Del Ray and Florence Welch the big voices as well as personalities that have huge label budgets behind their success and exposure. Out there are many more of those fabulous female solo acts that still need to be explored and spread around the globe! Laura Welsh is one of them. After a bit of digging the net I found her story! 

Laura is from Staffordshire but moved to London a few years back to start her musical career. It appears that she has previously performed as 'Laura and the Tears' and 'Hey Laura' so you may have already visited one of her gigs down in London without realizing it.

Laura's voice and style seem to be going in the direction of Adele's 21 album! Her voice is enthralling, extremely powerful and so beautiful that it wouldn't take a long time until a big label signs her and this wonderful voice will be around us everywhere we go. 

Listen to her latest single 'Ghosts' 

She is truly one to watch! 

[heartbeatandsoul]

Citizens! announce their debut album 'Here We Are'

Citizens! a fabulous five piece of tremendous talent! The band has freshly been signed to Kitsuné. One just has to love these handsome London boys Martyn, Thom, Mike, Lawrence and Tom. The songs are filled with catchy music and melodious vocals that have to be added to your summer track list. The songs make you think of sun picnics and barbeque's somewhere out on London Fields.  

Their bold statement is that they reclaim pop cause “Pop is not a dirty word. It’s a holy one.” (Mike)

Currently Citizens! have announced full details of their debut album 'Here We Are' which will be released on May 28, that also includes the brand new single 'Reptile'.  

This fabulous debut album was recorded in Scotland last year with Franz Ferdinand frontman Alex Kapranos acting as producer.

The full tracklisting for 'Here We Are' is as follows: 'True Romance' 'Reptile' 'Caroline' 'Love You More' 'Let’s Go All the Way' '(I'm In Love With Your) Girlfriend' 'Nobody’s Fool' 'Monster' 'She Said' 'I Wouldn’t Want To' 'Know Yourself' You don't have to wait long as the boys will be around the UK in June with the dates to kick off at London's Hoxton Bar & Kitchen on June 12 and run until June 18, when Citizens! headline Sheffield's SOYO.  They will play: London Hoxton Bar & Kitchen (June 12)  Glasgow King Tuts Wah Wah Hut (14) Manchester Deaf Institute (15) Southampton Joiners (16) Birmingham Yardbirds Jazz Club (17) Sheffield SOYO (18) Haven't bought your ticket yet!??? Be quick as they will be all gone pretty soon! Get your tix here!!!

[heartbeatandsoul]

Niki And The Dove stream debut album 'Instinct'

Electro-pop is what is hot this summer. And here is the debut album of Niki And the Dove! You haven't heart of them yet... then make sure you are listening to that amazing sound. Catchy tunes with the soft and subtle voice of lead singer Mailn Dahlström. The Swedish duo is definitely on the rise. Their debut album 'Instinct' was streamed one week before its official release next Monday (May 14).  Last year Niki and The Dove' released their first EP 'The Drummer' and now here is their follow up with 12 brand new tracks, including the singles 'The Fox' and 'DJ, Ease My Mind'. 

The Swedish duo, are currently touring the UK. Tomorrow (May 9) they are playing at Southampton Joiners  and the Great Escape before playing at Horatios as part of Brighton's Great Escape festival the following night (May 10). After those shows you can see the duo in  Newcastle, Birmingham and Cardiff .

To listen to the entire album head over to NME Music right now!!! 

You can still get tickets for their shows here.

[heartbeatandsoul]

Listen to Passion Pit's comeback single 'Take A Walk'

On the 23rd of July Passion Pit is releasing their new album 'Gossamer'. The band  posted its comeback single 'Take A Walk' online and this track sounds very promising of how the album will sound like! They sure know how to make a comeback. 

Summer is very close and "Take A Walk' conveys such a summery groove. A great sound that makes you think of summer barbeques and picnics in the sun with friends while exploring themes of financial struggle and prosperity.

'Gossamer' the follow up of the band's first Album 'Manners' which was released in 2009, is 12 tracks long and will be released ahead of their UK live shows this summer. Passion Pit has confirmed shows at this year's Reading and Leads Festivals on August 24 and 25. 

Get your ticket for the Reading Festival here or if you wish to go to the Leeds Festival here! Make sure to get your tix sorted!

In an interview with NME, front singer Michael Angelakos spilled that the band's next album was "going to be a really fantastic, exciting, beautiful and gorgeous record. An absolutely beautiful record. I'm so excited". And yes this new track is exciting and for sure the album will be as well. 

[heartbeatandsoul]

Nneka - Artist Review

This is for all the music lovers out there!! I recently just came across Nneka even though she is a very established artist already! Her most successful single 'Heartbeat' counts almost 5Million hits on YouTube. Nneka is a hip hop/ soul singer with Nigerian and German roots singing both in Igbo and English and this might be the story of her success! She has just got the soul sounds and rhythm in her blood. 

Her musical career took off in 2005 and Nneka has built on her successes since and widened her musical range. Her debut album 'Victim of Truth' which was released in the UK in 2007  includes an inspirational mix of hot loops, black consciousness and 21st-century soul music. The album was praised by the The Sunday Times, saying:  ‘As good as The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill,’ 

But Nneka is not a big label product and this is what really makes her stand out as she is not over produced and over marketed. Her music has been sent across the globe through word of mouth and thanks to her amazing talent, the quality of her albums as well as the powerfulness of her life performances.

Check out her tour dates here - www.songkick.com

[heartbeatandsoul]

Erik Hassle an artist to watch out for!

Ever heart of him? Erik is a Swedish pop singer and songwriter and was hyped three years ago but didn't get the UK success he deserved.

His first single titled 'Hurtful', released in Sweden in 2008 gained amazing critics, hit the charts straight at #11 and peaked #2 in Denmark. 

Unfortunately when "Hurtful' was released in the UK it only debuted at #59 and fell very quickly off the charts before anyone could really notice his talent even though he was awarded New Comer Of The Year in 2009

His debut album called 'Hassle' serves the mass but mainly consists of deeply emotional, romantic and melodramatic songs. So are the lyrics to 'Don't Bring Flowers' about being  “so deep into the shit I can taste the earth” and how “each day I die in a million ways”. 

All his songs are full of emotion and have a melancholic-romantic feel. Recently one of his new songs titled 'Stay' appeared online and it is such a beautiful track worth to listen to. 

An update to eventual gigs will follow, so watch this space!!!

[heartbeatandsoul]

Sam Sparrow Talks about his new album 'Return to Paradise'

Sam Sparrow has debuted his new music video for his single ‘Happiness’ online just a few weeks back. Love the song and the disco vibe. ‘Happiness’ is the first single  from his new album ‘Return to Paradise’.

The music video sees the singer sent back to the ’50s, cooking a perfect breakfast and performing on a retro television set.

The album is very personal. In an interview with Attitude Magazine, he described it as “a heartbreak album disguised as a disco album”. Even the happy songs are almost about coaxing myself out of a depression. “I feel so differently now that I did when I finished the record. The album is about going through a difficult time in my life and looking for happiness, discovering that I am enough, and that I quite like myself.” 

Watch the 'Happiness' video below: 

Sparro has worked with a range of producers for his latest project, including Greg Kurstin (Lily Allen), Empire of the Sun’s Jono Sloan, Swedish singer Erik Hassle and Shakira collaborator Lester Mendez.