On The Cusp...Pastel
With Pastel’s debut album around the corner, they are on the cusp of big things.
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.
*banner image courtesy of Spirit of Spike Island.
Click image for tour tickets.
So, this week, we are picking five of our favourite artists on the cusp of said breakthrough. Next up are the Knebworth opening Pastel. On tour last year with Afflecks Palace, they stole the show with their Verve-esque jams.
To celebrate our Manchester heroes today, we look at their new single ‘Your Day’ which premiered on the iconic Steve Lamacq show yesterday evening.
‘Your Day’
Their time with Liam Gallagher seems to have paid dividends as they deliver their most urgent record yet. The sense of being in the moment collides with a battle line in the sand as they Emerge from the shadows of giants with the clarion call:
“don’t sit around and hide for this is your day”
Seize the day is a right of passage for UK rebels. From The Enemy (“Stop living your life for the alarm”) to Billy Bragg (“The system has failed you, don’t fail yourself”), the lineage is pure and strong. The commonality is often punk or its influence, which makes Pastel’s addition more remarkable. They come with Nick McCabe flourishes, hints of the Roses’ nomadic phase (‘Good Times’ & ‘Tightrope’), primordial drums meets, and shoegaze with swagger.
Pastel may come from a different plane musically, but their punk and rebel credentials bloom in technicolour as they rewrite Joe Strummer’s “he fucks nuns will later join the church” with “the hand that shakes the suit and tie / is the one that will betray”.
Many probably believe Pastel are beyond the “cusp” we’ve discussed this week with San Quentin, The Velvet Hands, Lissy Taylor, and Holy Youth Movement. However, the industry is precarious, and bands fall by the wayside without constant care and support. In Spirit of Spike Island, Pastel have a label which allows them to breathe creatively and stay grounded financially, but it comes to nothing unless you get out to their gigs and buy their records.
On The Cusp...Holy Youth Movement
Bristol’s Holy Youth Movement are on the cusp of great things.
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.
Today, we focus on Holy Youth Movement. Born out of the ashes of the once formidable Shimmer Band, HYM hail from Bristol. They recently blitzed Truck Festival and have their sights set on Shiiine On this winter.
They have been working with the legendary producer Jagz Kooner (Primal Scream / Kasabian / Oasis) who is often found raving at their gigs. They have also collaborated with Primal Scream’s rock ‘n’ roll idol Andrew Innes on former single ‘Tranquilizer’.
To celebrate HYM, we take you back to our first live experience of the soon-to-be iconic band at the Social in London. Enjoy the live review but, most importantly, rejoice in Holy Youth Movement!
*banner image courtesy of Alan Wells.
HOLY YOUTH MOVEMENT
THE SOCIAL, LONDON, October 7th 2022
Bristol's Holy Youth Movement was second up on This Feeling’s Test Transmission night. They have been supporting headliners The Utopiates across the UK this past summer.
Image courtesy of Rocklands TV
In the 00s, many bands tried to bridge the gap between rock ‘n’ roll and breaks. Kasabian and Radio 4 got the closest, although, if we’re honest, neither married the two to a level the scene deserved.
Step forward Holy Youth Movement! A walking remix behemoth of a band!
Everything about them screams Kasabian debut, nu-school breaks, and 3am mayhem in nightclubs (remember them!). Previous singles ‘Information Is Beautiful’ and ‘Tranquilizer’ explode into the ether like a Serge Pizzorno wet dream. The former is blessed with the melodic yet destructive synths of Justice vs Simian alongside the beautiful volatility of the Primals ‘XTRMNTR’. It allows their message of humanity to come together, no matter the chaos.
‘Tranquilizer’ does what all post ‘West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum’ Kasabian albums have attempted and failed. It delivers a post-apocalyptic rave that throbs and thunders to the soul. The guttural electronica of Underground meets the spirit of BRMC's ‘Whatever Happened to My Rock ‘n’ Roll’. It leaves the room feeling hollow afterwards. It looked your soul in the eye, licked it, fucked it, and left whistling, leaving you desperate for more.
It’s easy to see why the legendary Jagz Kooner hooked up with the band in the studio. Holy Youth Movement have tapped into the post-headliner twitching hours of Bestival and Secret Garden Party from 2005 to 2015. Their ability to splice in rock ‘n’ roll showmanship will take the band to another level.
No one knows what it is, but you know it when you see it. This was it.
On The Cusp...Lissy Taylor
Stoke’s Lissy Taylor is on the cusp of big things.
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.
On The Cusp...The Velvet Hands
So, this week, we are picking five of our favourite artists on the cusp of said breakthrough. Today, we pick our top 5 tracks by The Velvet Hands.
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.
Today, we pick our top 5 tracks by The Velvet Hands:
*banner image courtesy of Alan Wells.
Image courtesy of Harvey Williams-Fairley & Sonic PR
The Party’s Over
Comfortably in the last decade's top 5 rock ‘n’ roll songs. A stonewall classic built sonically on debauchery and lyrically on unrequited love and heroic failure.
Holiday In My Head
The fog of life without a future swell to unprecedented levels in the verses as they play The Ramones sound in ferocious Stooges style. The intensity is several levels above anything their debut offered, exemplified by the explosive Nick Valensi (The Strokes) meets Russell Lissack (Bloc Party) solo. It encapsulates the pressure and stress of bills mounting, work not paying, and life becoming too much with such vehement brilliance.
Telephone Love
‘Telephone Love’ takes the band to darker pastures of overindulgent all-nighters of booze and drugs. The party is over, but the protagonists remain, caning it. A snapshot of a generation sold down the river in every industry. Now they’re left praying the next line will make them feel alive enough to carry on:
“Bloodshot eyes and bleeding gums,
Welcome to the house of fun
And now you’re talking insane,
Telephone love runs through your veins
And I don’t know just how you found me, I don’t know Just how you found me
And now, and now it’s dawn
Riding from the dusk before
We could waste the night
You know you help me feel alive”
I Don’t Mind
‘I Don’t Mind’ has a chorus that forges a togetherness with the band and the listener through its shambolic arm-in-arm drunkenness. Images of spilt snakebite and sweat-ridden walls of indie discos flood the senses.
Sucker Punch
Artwork curtesy of Sonic PR.
The violence and desolation on the title track ‘Sucker Punch’ but a more thoughtful musicality exists. The title track initiates with jagged 00s guitars reminiscent of Bloc Party, Dogs, and early Razolright whilst the vocals roar like Johnny Rotten. Despite the uncompromising snarling of the verses, they lead into a melodic Vaccines-esque chorus for fans to buy into joyously. Not finished there, they serve up a breakdown akin to an out-of-body experience. The message of getting up off the canvas and keep fighting becomes less naive and one of “now or never” and “don’t give up”. They emerge on the other side with confidence and solidarity.
Click the image below for tickets to their November tour:
On The Cusp…San Quentin
Southend’s San Quentin are on the cusp of a big breakthrough.
In today’s climate, bands and artists blowing up overnight and storming the charts are dead. It’s a hard grind from. 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 breakthrough.
So, this week, we are picking five of our favourite artists on the cusp of said breakthrough.
*banner image courtesy of Magnolia Lux
First up are Southend’s San Quentin. They were formed in 2019 by songwriter Liam Cass, frontman Owen Eves, drummer Luke Johns, and bassist Nick Keep. Lead Guitarist Dan Ridgewell joined the band in 2020 .
They’ve since gone on to sell out The Water Rats for This Feeling and be named in BBC Introducing’s 2022 ‘Ones To Watch’. They’re
To celebrate San Quentin, we give our track-by-track EP review of ‘Feed The Ego’ to celebrate the band today. The EP was released on 25th August and recorded at SS2 Recording. Rees Broomfield carried out mixing and mastering duties.
You’re Lost
Artwork courtesy of Songbird PR.
Live, San Quentin have always caught the eye with their effervescent energy. On record, this hasn’t always translated. Here, they capture their live essence but crucially add scathing lyrical content and go to another level.
Aiming at all the worst aspects of today's apathetic society, they take Soft Play’s fire into their rapturous indie world. More melodic than the Kent icons, San Quentin have found a recipe for success.
You Got Some Nerve
Gunslinging indie! The sound of the band in the trenches fighting their way out against inconceivable odds. The bitter discourse “so whose wrong, is it me or is it you / yeah you got some nerve” comes snarling with hints of grunge and their indomitable spirit.
Serotonin
Fall to floor indie rock. Desperate and unhinged, the guitars fizz with the volatility of The Reytons and the melodic hiss of Reverend & The Makers.
You Can’t Stop Me This Time (Underdog)
The moment the cusp became a distant memory. This is the sound of a band realising their dreams. Visceral and cinematic, San Quentin delivers their biggest sound to date.
Eves vocal comes with an emotional heft not seen before. Something death-defying has flooded his soul! Ridgewell’s guitars loiter with menacing intent until his solo emerges victoriously. All the years spent in jobs they’ve hated pour out into this emotional juggernaut of a song.
As Eves decrees, “you can’t stop me this time” you are left in no uncertain doubt that he is right!
Feed The Ego
Swaggering with danger, the title track signs off with great style!
Tour Dates
September 9th - THA KNOWS - Sheffield
September 23rd - Real Time Music - Chesterfield
September 30th - Gathering Sounds - Stockton
Tickets available here https://www.sanquentin.co.uk/gigsv