As much as a new year is just another day with a different number,
we start to reflect on the new things that are to come much more than any other
time of year. As this happens, bands who may have previously just been lurking
in the shadowy darkness of last years music scene begin to emerge left right
and centre. So what a fitting time it would seem to comprise a short list of
artists (in no particular order) who as we speak are crawling out of the
woodwork and into our ear-holes.
1. Beach Baby
Despite a Google search for this band
resulting in finding pictures of babies on beaches, and being pointed in the
direction of First Class' 1974 hit Beach
Baby this English Quartet are
far from babies and although they are not First Class their music is nothing
but. With the same management as that behind the jingly jangly Jungle, it comes
as no surprise that their music carries the same dreamy feel, yet it is also
completely different. The band's most recent release 'Limousine' (2015) is their
first EP and what a way to start. With the songs on the EP they entered the
music world with a setlist of post punk, shoe-gaze, surf pop hybrid that that
is sweet like honey in your mouth.
2.Blossoms
After the unprecedented popularity of this
leather-jacketed-long-haired five-some's hit Charlemagne it comes as no surprise that
Blossoms are already making their mark on 2016's indie market. Seeking
inspiration from the works of Alex Turner and ABBA, this band have created a
sound that is not dissimilar to pop culture of the 00's; and their recent
release At Most Just a Kiss is
no exception to their signature funky fresh vibe. Although the band has been
deemed to share the focal guitar rifts that such bands as the Arctic Monkeys
have, their heavy sythns keep the their tunes funkier than the sounds of Wham!,
proving that their roots are firmly grounded in the depths of glam-rock.
3. Tacocat
Seemingly 2015 was a
quiet year for this surf-punk, Seattle based foursome, in contrast they begin
2016 with the strong statement I
Hate the Weekend. Whilst most
appreciate the luxury of the two days which make up the weekend, the band
forces their typical comically piss-off outlook upon the way the weekend is
overcrowded with unbearable drunken businesswomen and men. The single follows
the bands classic structure of creating a classic punk sound with
unapologetically clever lyricism, keeping fans content with the burn! factor
that reigns through their previous two albums. The band, arguably, kicks off
the year with a kick up with a socially concious anthem that refuses to be
ignored, and this is can only be expected for their thrid album 'Lost Time'.
4. Black Honey
With an EP and three singles under their
belt, this foursome come charging at you with the tenacity of freight train but
in the dreamy way possible. And it is this that's given Black Honey such a rock
n' roll reputation among the indie music scene. Arguably what makes their music
stand out above the rest is their ability to combine psychedelic guitars of
recent mainstream indie pop, with the lyricism and hearty fuzz tones you'd
expect to hear from a 1960's garage band. With this in mind it feels as though
the band has based their songs on the moto of something
new, something borrowed and something blue making for the perfect
collaboration of the old and new and creating a sound that's like a pool of
blue you just want to dive straight into. Having already experienced the hype
of their own headline show, and won the award for the Most Blogged Artist 2015,
it feels safe to say that there are big things coming for this band, we can
only but hope they don't 'want to sleep for ever'.
5. Sons of an Illustrious Father
Having remained relatively unnoticed
around world, despite one of the band members being the actor (and angel) Ezra
Miller, this New York based trio create deep nuance blues sounds like no other.
And whilst the band have previously released two albums pre-2016, this year
they plan to release their third album Revol, in March. Whilst fans anxiously
anticipate the new album, Sons of an Illustrious Father keeps eager listeners
excited with the single Conquest, starting the band's 2016 with a
bang.
Conquest, is not only an amicable salute to both
traditional folk artists and politically conscious punk bands, but is also a
powerful homage to the intersectional feminists such as bell hooks and Andrea
Smith- who lead singer Lilah Larson claims 'the song is deeply indebted
lyrically to'. The hauntingly sweet song is accompanied by a graphic novel
both written and illustrated by Lilah Larson. With an upcoming tour of
the US and their upcoming album the band have a their hands full and the music
world to conquer.
6. Bleached
Made up of two sisters, the Calivins, Bleached are the veterans of LA's feminist punk girl group Mika Miko. Sticking with the theme of dirty-under-chipped-nails punk rock from their previous band, their music is aggressive and manic but still echoes the popular surf punk tunes. The girls undeniably resemble their 60's femme predecessors: combining a retro Shangri-La's coolness with mordern day rock and roll, similar to the like minded band Hunx and His Punx. Their 2016 release Keep On Keepin On sees bleached in all their glory, and with their second album set to release to release this year, as well as a world tour, this sister act is already giving 2016 a run for its money.
7. Inheaven
With an immaculate combination of the
gloomy vocals, aggressive guitars overlaid by female harmonies Inheaven have
managed to create a sound that, although is not dissimilar from their indie
rock predecessors such as Jesus and The May Chain and Jimmy Eat World, is
completely their own. Their unique sound almost embodies the unrelenting power
of teenage angst, so it's no surprise that they style and music caught the eye
(and ears) of The Strokes' Julian Casablancas who helped co-release the band's
first single. Having already released two singles in 2015, this South London
based quartet enter 2016 with a reputation that suggests that their music has
so much unstoppable spiritual, kinetic energy that it has a life of it's own.
8. Estrons
Estrons are a fearsome foursome who come
charging at you from the Welsh seaside wielding the lyrics 'I'd like to make
a man of you'. Whilst this song came out in 2015, and the only other song
to their name is a welsh track C-C-Cariad, they prove that they are
band not be messed with. The song Make
A Man epitomises this exact notion: its political, punchy and powerful echoing fellow political-punk
artists and takes no shit. The story behind the track is one 'of a heterosexual
female's battle between desiring a man, whilst simultaneously finding herself
having little respect for his self important ego and misogynistic attitude
towards women' tells
frontwoman Taliesyn Kallstrom, thus whilst their name means alien in Welsh their rebellious ideals are any but extraterrestrial. 2016 looks like a year that these Estrons will prove how out of this world they are.
9. Yuck
After a surprise appearance in 2015, with release of a
new single, Yuck have returned once more this year armed with a pop-punk track
that contagious as it gets; upholding their signature style and their
reputation as a great UK garage band. Their new release Hearts In Motion successfully embodies the stress of modern day
romance, where it’s hard for two hearts in motion to beat at the same time (much
like the inability to find a match on tinder). The song itself ends ambiguously,
leaving you wondering ‘Is it all just doomed to failure, or is it the one
thing that we should be holding on to the most in this world?’(says singer Max Bloom), however 2016 for this
band is anything but doomed to fail. Hearts
In Motion is a mere taster of what’s to come from Yuck’s third album Stranger Things that’s due out next
month.
10. The Magic Gang
This rising foursome from Brighton dive straight into 2016 with their new release EP, making their mark on this years music scene. As musicians they have been compared to the likes of Weezer and the Beach Boys, and with sickly sweet guitars combined with lyrics of the mundane, and sometimes gloomy, side of life this comparison rings somewhat true. Across the cleverly named EP, The Magic Gang fuse illusion with reality, epitomised in their contrast between joyous melodies and wistful lyricism that is almost too real to handle. The band themselves claim that their music is for the 'mind, body and soul', and their EP truly displays this to be their mantra. With tunes that make you blissfully aware that life is a bit shitty sometimes it looks like a good year for this surprising relatable and charmingly melancholic quartet.
Despite the year beginning with such sad loses to the music world it would seem that from here the only way is up. Roll on the hopefuls for this year.
