In today’s climate, bands and artists blowing up overnight and storming the charts are dead. It is a brutal process, from getting local gigs to performing on the main stages of festivals. As such, there is a swelling of talent on the underground, poised to break through.
So, this week, we are picking five of our favourite artists on the cusp of said breakthrough. Our third installment comes via Lissy Taylor.
Taylor hails from Stoke after two years living in USA and three in Manchester. Having supported The K’s, The Bluetones, and The Lottery Winners already, this year saw her perform for This Feeling at the Isle of Wight.
To celebrate all things Lissy, today we look at her most recent single ‘Feel For Me’. It was written by Taylor and produced by Gareth Nuttall (The K’s / The Lottery Winners).
Feel For Me
For the best of a decade, the mainstream has marginalised rock ‘n’ roll. Rock acts Royal Blood and Nothing But Thieves or gentle indie form Blossoms and The Lathums and the unexplainable fascination with the Arctic Monkeys have been the blueprint for bands on a-lists.
Image & artwork courtesy of Lissy and Oliva Roberts.
For those looking to raise hell, do something meaningful, or both, it’s BBC Introducing, Lammo, and John Kennedy keeping their dreams alive. It was, with as much pride as relief, to hear Taylor’s ‘Feel For Me’ given a spin on Radio 1.
Unadulterated ambition should be lauded in rock ‘n’ roll. It’s not a negative trait. Done with thought and care, it’s one of the most powerful agents of change in the arts, and Taylor is proof of that.
‘Feel For Me’ roars to life with stadium-sized belief guitars and finishes with a demand for even bigger audiences.
Despite the sonic burning a hole in the sun, Taylor’s vulnerability is the song's true star. Lyrically awash with fragility and empowerment, Taylor looks to move on from a key relationship:
“You make me cry…with laughter / You can see it in my eyes that I hate saying goodbye / But I have to…Get out of here somehow / I’ll see you around”
Then, in the chorus, she lets out a desperate howl vocally when tempted to move back into comfortable bad habits. Eyes closed, fists clenched, she drags herself through the pain! All the while, her guitars serve up scintillating psyche-rock worthy of Lindsey Buckingham and Noel Gallagher’s early live performances.