News – Page 79 – RCRD LBL

September 30, 2020

September 30, 2020September 30, 2020 Mike change

Indie pop music producer Sfven releases new EP, Honey

Jamie Clarke, AKA Sfven, is a 22 year old music producer from Derby who has already been receiving notable support early on in his career. His lo-fi debut EP ‘Like I Love U,’ which was released earlier this year, quickly caught the attention of BBC Radio 1’s Annie Mac and the station’s new music champion Jack Saunders. He has also received support from the likes of BBC Introducing, MTV, DIY Magazine, Clash, Dork, Notion and The Independent.

The second EP from Sfven, ‘The Honey EP’ is the producer’s most cohesive statement yet. Sonically, it draws heavily on the very same classic songwriters that Sfven remembers from his childhood, clashing timeless melody progressions and emotion-packed lyrics with breezy, forward thinking production.

“I just wanted to make something that you can boogie to, but also focus on lyrically.” says Sfven. “I think my favourite part has just been experimenting with new sounds, figuring out a direction and whether it sticks. This EP turned out feeling a lot more cohesive than the last one, even though I went a bit out of my comfort zone. Hopefully that comes through.”

Sfven’s recent single ‘Changing,’ which features on The Honey EP, received solid playlist support across DSPS including Spotify ‘NMF UK,’ ‘Peach,’ Apple Music ‘New Music Daily [x20 countries],’ Deezer ‘Brand New UK’ and Amazon ‘Brand New Music and ‘Breakthrough UK.’ The official music video was also added to MTV’s Rocks Chart playlist.

Honey EP also includes previously released single ‘Saint’ as well as the upcoming focus track ‘Honey.’ Standing firm and holding on to who you really are is a recurring theme on ‘Honey.’ The official music video, which is set in Norfolk, follows a unique and romantic storyline of two sock puppets who fall in love at first sight and get married.

Also featured on the EP is the track ‘Funeral’ which became a metaphor for losing a part of your identity. “It became about having a funeral for a part of yourself” Sfven explains, “and having a partner that makes you change – and almost kill a part of yourself – to fit their mould and expectations”

Hotly tipped by the likes of Dork and MTV, backed by Annie Mac and Jack Saunders, and currently hard at work on his debut album set for release next year, Sfven is a one-of-a-kind artist set to make some massive waves in the forthcoming future.

Follow Sfven:

Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

September 30, 2020

September 30, 2020September 30, 2020 Mike change

Music producer HELMAUD unveils fun DIY music video

Today, music producer and composer HELMAUD has released single ‘Hey Boi’ ft. DIXIE along with an official music video for the single, featuring fiery songstress DIXIE and of course the man himself. Filmed with a DIY approach, the video captures the pair taking a night drive in the iconic city of Paris, where HELMAUD is from.

Previously interviewed by Muze FM, the music producer commented on his relationship with collaborator DIXIE, “The two neighbours initially met in Thai boxing classes in 2015 (have been doing boxing for 8 years now). They would both come and spar with good energy and an open mind, but DIXIE and HELMAUD only truly started sympathizing in spring 2019, as DIXIE learned HELMAUD was a pianist. DIXIE has a wonderful 1920 Pleyel Piano in her flat, rue St Denis, 75002, so I drop by many times just to jam. And she did the same, coming over randomly while down my block. Hitting me up asking if I’m around, and dropped by for a fast jam, and a lot of white wine… Man, I can’t follow up with her drinking.. she’s way too trained. As HELMAUD’s jazz-infused technique started attracting DIXIE, the two yet-to-be friends very quickly became inseparable. Music, and especially jamming had forged a very strong bond for the two, DIXIE, discovering her attraction for singing and composition, and HELMAUD, finding very much satisfaction through DIXIE’s soul heritage and care-free energy. Hedonism, stoicism, philosophy, friendship, and the ups and downs of relationships have forged their urge to doing music together.”

Talking about the video concept, HELMAUD adds, “After many unsatisfying cuts based on another story from a former director, I decided to change totally and go for a real DIY video. A variation on an old hip hop famous theme: the whip ride – a tribute to American hip hop iconography. We thought this 1964 Cadillac riding along contemporary Paris would fit the soul vibe on the modern beat and attitude of this song. Knowing that Dixie is half American (New Orleans) & I’m a full Parisian, it made sense. No one was in town or available for the last-minute deadline. Then comes Isabel Deprice, an old friend of mine, (who featured in my previous music video “I Know Your Game”, shot by Ryan Doubiago). In the end, it was shot in 2 hours with an Iphone & edited with an Ipad.”

Follow HELMAUD

Website – Facebook – Twitter – Soundcloud – Youtube – Instagram – Spotify

September 30, 2020

September 30, 2020November 25, 2020 Mike change

Indie pop musician Team Solo shares debut song ‘It Only Makes Me Love you More’

Introducing: Team Solo, a collaborative solo project from Hackney based recording artist Scuta Salamanca (previously of The Dallas Guild and also Social Skills). First inspired by a minimalist Hip Hop / R&B approach after finding a broken ’80s drum machine (EMU SP12), he melds Indie, Pop, and Ska influences with a colourful aesthetic to create a sound that’s truly unique.

Debut single It Only Makes Me Love You More is the first taste of Team Solos percussive, energetic and driving left-of-centre pop. The track is a light-hearted play on feeling under the thumb in a relationship, Scuta says, adding I’m trapped in love – but perhaps I like it that way.

Recorded in Scuta’s old, ramshackle studio in a factory in North London the track features his studio neighbour Nick Crofts (Heart Years, The Title Sequence) on piano and also Alex Reeves (Elbow, Dizzee Rascal) on Percussion.

Prone to trying everything, as a solo artist making tracks in his studio in Hackney, the musical mantra of Team Solo is: minimalism. The songs need to be simple enough so he could pack a bag at a moments notice and perform anywhere in the world. Not wanting to just make a solo project, he invites a guest to perform on each song during the process of recording. Some of them he knows, and others he has never met or even spoken to, often allowing the guests artist to do whatever they want which gives a greater colour to each track whilst still remaining distinctly Team Solo.

Team Solo is a wholly unique proposition, which is only set to grow after the release of their debut single.

Follow Team Solo:

Soundcloud

September 30, 2020

September 30, 2020September 30, 2020 Mike change

Alternative pop composer Fischer King shares personal song ‘Lost’

Los Angeles based producer and composer Fischer King creates pitch-black alternative pop, with influences that range from James Blake and Nine Inch Nails to Claude Debussy and Herbie Hancock. As a child he forged an early love for tense, bombastic classical music before diving headfirst into the punk rock and hip hop scenes that surrounded him in Detroit. After moving to LA as a young adult, Fischer has spent years working behind the glass for a host of artists, producers and directors, constantly absorbing inspiration and refining his sonic identity.

His self-titled EP will be his first time stepping into the light with a personal, singular artistic vision. King shares, “I combed through a mountain of half-finished ideas, pages of lyrical snippets and after a few months of intense pre-production I landed on a core group of songs and a “textural signature” that felt as honest as it could be.”

Sonically the EP has a streamlined palette, with regular appearances of simple drums, pitch-shifted guitars, cascading strings and synths that feel like they might fall out of tune. The songwriter explains, “Ultimately I wanted everything to feel just ever-so-slightly bent.” King credits Billie Eilish’s debut album for emboldening him to stick with a vocal-forward, almost claustrophobic sound, “a concept that would have been far too vulnerable for a younger me to stomach” he reveals.

Leading single “Fault Lines” showcases beautifully muted tones and a grumbling bassline which acts as a juxtaposition to the scintillating synths. His music has been dubbed as “existential crisis pop”, with narratives concerning what one’s purpose might be, what in life holds actual value, and how one’s environment can affect those perceptions. This is particularly true with “Lost” – a track about losing your footing outside the context of a relationship. “Lost” features an amalgam of sounds which gradually build into a unique, cinematic release.

King’s music reflects life’s less glossy moments with addiction and deception (both of yourself and others) being major themes throughout the EP. The musician confides, “Anyone who’s familiar with the former knows it invariably breeds the latter, and unfortunately they’ve both touched my life to a considerable degree. I’ve lost friends, I’ve seen family struggle, and I myself have flirted with going down the wrong path.”