Three of the UK’s most influential and groundbreaking artists FKA twigs, Headie One and Fred again.. have come together on new single ‘Don’t Judge Me’. Originally featuring as an interlude on Headie and Fred’s GANG mixtape, this expanded sequel is accompanied by a video from acclaimed director Emmanuel Adjei, renowned for his work with the likes of Beyonce, Madonna and Sevdalisa among others.
In keeping with the song itself, the ‘Don’t Judge Me’ video – supported by global fashion platform FARFETCH – is a powerful comment on the experience of being black and British in the world today. It features FKA twigs and Headie One alongside a cast that includes poet and Black Lives Matter activist Solomon O.b, writer Reni Eddo-Lodge, model and activist Kukua Williams, musician and poet Benjamin Zephaniah, dancer and singer Lisa Elde, mental health advocate Nicole Crentsil, fitness expert and trainer Efua Baker, footballer Mahlon Romeo, activist and model Munroe Bergdorf, model Danto Earth and broadcaster Clara Amfo. Although every individual’s experience is different, all share a struggle against an invisible oppressor – propagated by cultural, systemic and structural biases – that is often hard to see and even harder to overcome. In the video, FKA twigs is styled in all Black designers, available via FARFETCH.
‘Don’t Judge Me’ was premiered tonight by London’s hugely influential No Signal, with twigs and Emmanuel Adjei guesting on the station during a one-hour takeover. For further information head HERE.
Talking about the video, director Emmanuel Adjei says:
“THE INVISIBLE OPPRESSOR – From someone’s appearance, we are unable to judge whether a person discriminates over color, sex, religion, or gender. The oppressors within the people surrounding us, most often remain invisible until their abuse against others is revealed. This is one of the reasons why, for generations, discrimination is so hard to fight. Who must the victim fight against if it can’t identify the perpetrator?
In this audio-visual document we get to witness artists FKA Twigs and Headie One, amongst other Black British influentials, fighting against invisible forces of judgement and oppression. Having the enormous Victorian-inspired fountain ‘Fons Americanus’ by visual artist Kara Walker – depicting the historical, sorrowful story of slavery and colonization – as our setting, and particularly as the spirit of the film, this important monument creates another layer of depth and meaning to an invisible yet shared history.”
Stream & Download ‘Don’t Judge Me’ – https://dontjudgeme.ffm.to/
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Tawanda makes his debut entrance with his single (‘WAIT’ prod. by Tawanda). Coming off the back of feature track ( ‘Test Drive’ by Yawdoesitall ft Tawanda ) and ( ‘Do This’ prod by Tawanda ) he aims to solidify his mark as an artist and producer. The Zimbabwean – Australian artist is set to release the track Friday 4th February.
With a handful of production credits ranging from Szn’s, Yawdoesitall, Bale, Makalita and Michelle, Tawanda spent the early days of his music career as a prolific songwriter and producer. His penchant for pretty and flowery chords with a build of hard drums is evident in his previous works with these artist. His magnetic confidence and patience has allowed his single “Wait” to be worth its wait. With this kick start, Tawanda looks forward to making his imprint across the Sydney rising scene and also branch out for future international opportunities. This is also a performance track which makes a future show something to look forward to.
https://www.facebook.com/tawandamusicofficial
https://www.instagram.com/Tawandaofficial/
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FUNNY BUSINESS
LIVE
w/ special guests Yasmin Poole, Erika Geraerts & Alex Zaccaria
@ 170 Russell, Melbourne
Early Show (Doors @ 6pm)
Late Show (Doors @ 9pm)
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Junior Jack & Pat BDS deliver a cinematically futuristic, heroic music video for their melodic house heater ‘Tecky Dream’. Directed by Mike Anderson and Ryan Dickie, they create an analogue of the last year using video game engines and motion caption.
Released in 2020 on Junior Jack & Pat BDS’ own Adesso Music imprint, ‘Tecky Dream’ instigates tension and rising energy by integrating slow building synths and elevating bass tones. The track has a rich, cinematic feel, driving intensity which is captured in the video set to be released today.
Following a narrative of a hero in a relentless, escalating chase scene the video corresponds with the times we find ourselves in; charging forward, trying to stay alive and well, with ever-changing threats nipping at our heels.
“The hero has a past, and the story has an ending, but for these four minutes, the intensity of the sequence is all that matters. The video is dream-like, with unanswered questions and mysteries locked inside the narrative.”
Mike Anderson & Ryan Dickie
Inspired by cut scenes and trailers for AAA video games, Junior Jack & Pat BDS bring us a futuristic animated apocalyptic video for ‘Tecky Dream’ filled with ceaseless energy.
“Combining a video game development pipeline with a cinematic track, we built a project that pushed the boundaries of our practice. We’ve been collaborating on different projects for ten years, and we’re always searching for ways to reinvent our approach, always trying to find something new. For us, ‘Tecky Dream’ opened up a high-energy, collaborative approach to storytelling that was a perfect fit for the project.”
Mike Anderson & Ryan Dickie
Director information:
Director, writer and animator Mike Anderson has been championed across the board with UKMVA Nomination “Best Pop Video”, Webby Nominated, Top 25 New Faces of Independent Film, 2017, 2 Cannes Lion YDA Awards, 2017, Vimeo Best of 2017 (The Giant) , Vimeo Staff Pick Premiere (The Giant) and 8 Vimeo Staff Picks.. also, to name a few. Meanwhile, as an independent filmmaker, Ryan Dickie specializes in live action, animation, interactive and VR. His accolades are vast & include two Gold Cannes Lions ‘Young Director’ awards, D&AD Graphite Pencil Award, Vimeo Best of the Year Award and multiple Staff Picks and three UKMVA nominations to name a few.
Junior Jack:
Remaining one of Italy’s premiere House music exports Junior Jack’s achievements are multitude, as a producer, he’s created some of the best House records of the early 2000s becoming a big star and major contributor to the sound and style of the time. Since then he has been a prolific and varied producer, continuing to release tracks, diversifying his sound, always with his ear to the underground and creating many early morning dancefloor moments.
Junior Jack & Pat BDS ‘Tecky Dream’ Video is out now
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Stay connected with Finn Askew:
Twitter | Instagram | YouTube
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Comprising members Rami B, Tony Stone, and DoomX, Planet Giza is the genre-bending crew who reflect their multicultural background through a repertoire of diverse sounds. They attribute this versatility to the diverse community of Montreal, as well as their widely-varying musical influences.
Planet Giza launched their own radio show ‘Mellow Mellow Radio‘ in late 2020, with longtime collaborator KAYTRANADA making an interview appearance on the first episode. They also dropped their debut album Added Sugar in 2019, an acclaimed LP described by Hot New Hip Hop as “a timeless sound that you can listen to over and over.”
Their relationship with KAYTRANADA stems back to 2017 when they collaborated on ‘Domina‘ taken from their debut EP Zayad City, which led to KAYTRANADA contributing to their full-length 2019 project Added Sugar. Since the release of Added Sugar, Planet Giza has performed at Montreal’s Jazz Festival, collaborated with Mick Jenkins while also producing GoldLink’s ‘Ridd‘, which he performed on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.
‘When The Moving Stops‘ is demonstrative of a hip-hop outfit at the top of their game.
‘When The Moving Stops‘ is out now, buy/stream it here.
Stay connected with Planet Giza:
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Youtube | SoundCloud
Edinburgh, Scotland.
What inspired you to write your latest single, Could Have Been?
This song was inspired by an inscription in a book of love poetry which read ‘Happy Birthday, 1978. Love John. Xxx Could have been so good – (see Somewhere on the Way)’. Somewhere on the Way is a poem by Peter Roche and is a heartbreaking account of love, lost due to an inability to communicate his feelings, and of hindsight. The poem uses the phrase ‘I wanted to say….’ about several things and this, combined with the inscription and a new guitar part I had just developed, resulted in this song. A gift to a songwriter!!
What’s your song writing process like?
Oh boy, that’s a hard one to answer. Having been asked it many times though I have come to realise that where it starts is usually me noodling with the guitar, maybe learning some new skills/parts, and then playing about with this and ideas that are beginning to formulate in my brain. Eventually, a song is born!!
What’s behind the title of your forthcoming fourth album ‘Where Time Suspends’?
This album had a working title of Music is Sunshine for most of its life and it only changed on the night before the actual CDs were to be pressed! I lay awake that night wondering if I’d called it the right thing, as the original title didn’t work with the cover art (a definite) and didn’t really give much of a clue about the content either or reflect the zeitgeist. After much tossing and turning, the line ‘where time suspends’ from the song, Music is Sunshine, jumped into my head as being the absolutely correct name for the album as it leaves the listener with a sense of wondering where life will go next. It felt very apt for the times we’re living in and also perfectly complemented the ambiguity of the artwork – in my opinion :).
Can you tell us some more about the album’s production?
This, my fourth album, has been almost five years in the making and I was really enjoying the actual process of its development. Several of the songs were brought to fulfilment using the process I’ve described above and, because this album wasn’t rushed at all, they developed in a very organic way. The producer, Marc Pilley, and I have worked together on all four albums and we just thought we’d allow it to take its time and see where that led us. We had a lot of fun and creative development in the course of the five years! The way we usually work is that Marc comes to my house, we have a chat and then he records ideas and songs that I’ve written. He then takes that away and adds his musical parts to it. All of the recording is normally done that way – my loft/studio is basically a recording studio as well as my studio for making art. We only had two songs left to finish when the pandemic struck and we were unable to meet up like this. After a few months of us not getting any work done on the album as we weren’t meeting up at all, I suggested that we could try to use my Tascam recorder as a means of me being able to send him really high-quality files. After a little bit of trial and error we found that this works really well and were able to finish off at last 🙂
What is behind the artwork for the album?
The photo in the cover art is of a scene in France that I’d photographed many years ago and which I felt was incredibly atmospheric. It was always going to be the album cover as it’s one of my favourite photos and I love it as an image.
How does Where Time Suspends sound compared to your previous releases?
It’s so hard to be objective about this as it’s like asking about a favourite child, although I know that’s not quite what you’ve asked! It sounds like a development in my work, like a mixture of songs and styles that, in some part reflect my inner world and personal experience but that will also (I hope) have resonance and connect with others who hear it. Musically it records my progress as a musician and songwriter and the work I’ve put into learning the craft of guitaring over the last few years. For example, one of the songs, Choices, sprang from me having just learned the guitar part for the classic jazz song ‘My Funny Valentine’. I loved the chord progression in that song (which is the same as Stairway to Heaven btw…) and wrote the song around some of these chords, which were new to me. It’s definitely the best work I’ve done to date and I’ve also been told this by others who have heard it and who know my music.
Why and when did you first start playing music?
This is another long story….. Just over 20 years ago I worked as an art therapist in a children’s project dealing with children and youngsters who had experienced sexual abuse. I found it very difficult to leave my work behind when I got home and my supervisor suggested that I took up something that would bring me joy and give me a better balance in my life. She asked what that might be and I said I liked singing and sang all the time around the house. She gave me contact details for a voice coach (who went on to become a friend) and the voice coach encouraged me to sing, to start my own band and to see where that would all take me. I’d played guitar very badly since I was a teenager so I then decided to practice that properly too. There’s a lot more to it than that but this was the origin of my musical life.
So I started off by playing other people’s music and then started writing my own songs a few years later and my first album, Lazy and Mellow, came out in 2009.
Where are you most excited to play when live gigs return?
I really enjoy playing small, intimate gigs where I can engage directly with the audience. One of the gigs that was cancelled due to Covid was in the National Gallery of Scotland and that’s one that I really enjoy so that would be in the top three. I can’t wait to get together with my band again as we had just really started to gig as a coherent band, playing my new songs as well as the older ones, when all of the restrictions happened. We were looking forward to doing some house concerts too so these would be high on the list. In addition to this, I usually do some petits concerts in France and that will be another thing to look forward to this year – fingers crossed!! There may also be something in this year’s Edinburgh International Jazz and Blues Festival in the pipeline so I’ll wait to see if that happens as that’s a fun gig too.
How do you spend your time when you’re not making music?
I’m an artist, a dog owner and nature lover and have an allotment. These things, together with my family, take up most of my days.
Who are you listening to at the moment?
I’m very much an old-fashioned music lover and my default musicians are Joni Mitchell, Carole King, Van Morrison, Paul Simon, David Bowie, Leonard Cohen, James Taylor, Joan Armatrading, k.d.lang, Nick Cave, Mary Gauthier and others of that ilk. So, mostly singer-songwriters, although I do also love the blues, some jazz, and lots of rock music, including Thin Lizzy, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC etc. Several of my friends are musicians too and I like to keep up with what they are doing. Marc Pilley, my producer is a perfect example of that. He has produced a lot of music recently, since the pandemic started, under the name of Arksong. Lovely stuff 🙂
https://www.facebook.com/RosieNimmoMusic/
Title: Candyman
Label: CYB3RPVNK
R3HAB serves up a dose of post-holiday cheer with his new release “Candyman,” an upbeat dance anthem that sets the tone for a new year. The single delivers bouncy basslines and energetic melodies over ethereal, singsong vocals with lyrics that will take you away from the less-than-ideal reality of 2020 and into a fantasy land of vanilla skies. R3HAB has continued to release fresh music even in the face of a challenging global landscape, and “Candyman” proves that he has every intention of heading into 2021 with a positive outlook and even better vibes. Another announcement from the R3HAB camp is the rebranding of his radio show as “CYB3RPVNK Radio“, formerly known as “I Need R3HAB“, which debuted this month and will feature a roster of high profile takeovers and guest mixes by other widely-known artists. Stay tuned for more news on CYB3RPVNK Radio and read on below for R3HAB’s thoughts on the new release:
“I’m happy to release ‘Candyman‘ with Marnik as my first single of 2021. I’ve been looking forward to collaborating with Marnik since they remixed “All Around The World“, and I love what we’ve made here. ‘Candyman‘ is a fun and lighthearted record that we hope will set the right tone for 2021” – R3HAB
“‘Candyman‘ is a special song for us because it’s directly connected to our purest emotions and dreams, where everything looks innocent and magical. It wants to take you higher, right to the fairyland full of candies and colors, where everything blossoms through sweetness and delight.” – Marnik
Dutch/Moroccan DJ and producer Fadil El Ghoul, better known as R3HAB, has been trailblazing his way through dance music for the better part of the last decade. From his breakthrough hit remix of Afrojack, Pitbull and Ne-Yo‘s “Give Me Everything” to his dance anthems, such as “All Around The World (La La La)” and “Lullaby,” which have collectively amassed over 600M streams, to his collaborations with the likes of ZAYN, Andy Grammer, Sofia Carson, Timmy Trumpet and more, R3HAB has proven to be one of the most talented and forward-thinking artists in the game. He partnered with Spotify and GATTÜSO to create the first-ever official “mint” single release. In 2016 he founded his label CYB3RPVNK, which passed one billion streams on its catalog within the first two years since its inception. R3HAB himself continues to evolve and diversify his sound by working with a variety of artists around the globe, experimenting with everything from hip-hop to pop through his collaborations. With his combination of innate artistry and innovative attitude, in 2021 R3HAB is continuing his journey. Keep an eye out for what’s next!
Country music phenom (and Vancouver’s own) – Rod Black – has released his new single “Barely Gettin’ By” – a tune with which he paired up with Producer/Writer Jeff Johnson (2017 CCMA Producer of the Year, and a 5-time BC Country Music Association Producer of the Year) to create.
Today, one of Canada’s top up-and-coming artists, Brandon Howard Roy, will be premiering his new single “The Fear.” The track is from his highly anticipated new EP which is set to drop later in the year.
Produced by Colin Buchanan (Paper Lions / Sorrey / KINLEY) at The Hill Sound Studio in Roy’s hometown of Charlottetown PEI, “The Fear” is an indie pop gem that explores anxiety in all its forms. “Anyone working on their mental health knows it’s never a linear path, and some days my fears feel like these ghosts that control every part of me,” says Roy, “I wrote this song as a reminder that it’s ok to be scared sometimes, that growing up is hard, and that mistakes are gonna be made along the way.”
Originally from Montreal, Roy has always been involved in the arts, and his passion for the creative process has driven him to poetry, theatre, and (of course) music. After relocating to PEI in 2018, Roy found himself even more focused on music – and it was in 2019 that he fully dived in and had his first show, and released his stunning first single “Little Reasons.”
With word starting to spread, and with critics (and fans alike) being taken in my his pop charms – this is an artist (and a song) that you won’t want to miss.
The focus track, “Listen to the Sound of the Sun,” tells the mesmerizing tale of a race of beings who look to the sun as their god only to discover that it is they who are the real gods. This groovy psychedelic freak-out features the theremin playing of Stephen Hamm, with Shawn Mrazek (Nardwuar and the Evaporators, Doers, Notes from the Underground) on drums and Elliot Langford (SSRIs, Rebel Spell, Freak Dream) on guitar.
A seminal figure in Vancouver’s influential music scene, Hamm has played in a number of storied West Coast acts, including Nardwuar and the Evaporators, Canned Hamm, Slow and Tankhog. His latest solo project focuses on the theremin, an esoteric instrument that is played without touch. Following the success of his well-received 2019 album, “Theremin Man,” this 7” delves even further into the creative with an adventurous odyssey into psychedelic electronic worlds. Combining his larger-than-life personality with the theremin and synthesizer during the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown, Space Hamm takes you on a musical journey into new dimensions!
Melbourne Recital Centre and Crown Ruler bring the summer vibes to Southbank with a free outdoor music series featuring Melbourne’s finest DJs.
The Centre’s brand-new Forecourt on Southbank Boulevard is the perfect place to enjoy great music beneath the stars this summer. Every Thursday and Saturday night until the end of March, Crown Ruler will transform this unique open-air space with an unmissable program celebrating the Melbourne’s rich artistic pedigree.
With a backdrop of native trees, soak up the last of the day’s rays and linger long into the night with cocktails and food from Blondie Bar, while listening to a dream line-up of performers curated by Crown Ruler.
- Subscribe to Melbourne Recital Centre’s YouTube channel for more live concert videos and premieres.
- Escape the news in your news feed and follow Melbourne Recital Centre on Facebook for more inspiring and uplifting content.
- Discover the stories behind the music over on Soundescapes.
