Are you one of those people who just cannot say no? If you are, you’ll understand the struggles Charlotte Bettson contemplates in her latest single ‘Piggyback’. The Derbyshire singer-songwriter debuted her first single two years ago; Bettson touched upon her everlasting battle with anxiety.
A few years on, her lyricism has matured, as she sings about the struggles that concatenate with her newfound success in the music industry. Her debut EP ‘Overcoming Anxiety’ reached success with a stripped-back, acoustic backdrop. Now, her vocals are backed by the sound of a full band, which shows she is not afraid to venture out of her comfort zone.
In a short interview with Charlotte, I asked if we should expect to see her with a full band when gigging is back, and she answered: “Yes I have a full band in the works! Expect more band gigs than solo now.”. On top of this, I asked what inspired her to shift from quiet, acoustic music to indie rock, and here is what she had to say: “I was always into bands like Paramore as a kid and then I listened to more pop stuff, and the music I was making at first was acoustic/poppy. Then I discovered an indie rock artist (Sam Fender) that made me fall in love with the genre all over again.”
Saints Among Us – Hallucinations
People deal with anxiety, depression, and OCD far more often than we’d like to believe; Maddy Chesman accentuates this important conversation with her new single ‘Hallucinations’.
In an interview with me, lead singer and rhythm guitarist Maddy explained “It’s all about creating awareness of the daily struggles we all go through.”.
With its reverberated noise and heavy, mysterious guitar progression, the track sounds dark which seems to reflect the sentiment of the song. And the vocals seem to outdo the darkness of the instruments that sit behind them, as they offer lyrics that contemplate death and what happens when we go. This hyper-real expression of ill mental health forces us to be uncomfortable, and thus get to drips of the depths of gloom that people around us find themselves in.
Towards the end, the song seamlessly breaks and provides a vivid image of what goes on in the mind of a mentally unwell person. Hopefully, this expression of mental health will allow people to relate and feel understood, as well as let unaware people understand its importance.
Highly spirited and gritty four-piece from Sheffield speaks of a night out in Liverpool in their new single ‘Waiting’.
With a catchy chorus and autobiographical storytelling, Lights of the Night feel as though Oasis and The Arctic Monkeys have melted together.
After getting in contact with the boys, they explained how ‘Waiting’ is a story of a night out in Liverpool which involved house parties, drinking, nights out, arguments, and relationships: “I’m sat in this rando’s house on the other side of Bradford plus my phone was dead so that meant no uber, so I had to walk all the way back at 4 in the morning.”
They also had this to say: we are planning to bring out more music by the end of the summer, we are currently working on an EP, we are in the process of mixing one of the songs and we are jumping back into the studio very soon for 2 or 3 more songs so these are exciting times, we also have plenty of gigs lined up throughout the summer, also playing in a few festivals too tickets are coming soon.
This track feels purely unique, as it marries manchester-indie rock with punk and grunge in a slick way; this performance oozes passion and energy.
It was recorded live at Matchbox Productions, which makes it feel raw and untouched, which adds to its authenticity. This is something we don’t see enough of in the current music scene.
The heavy fuzz guitar and the repetitive riff are reminiscent of the tone of The White Stripes’ Jack White. As I have said previously, this sound works very well when coupled with thick Mancunian vocals. It feels cool and laid back yet pulsating. I feel this is truly unique and this band could go far if they keep pumping songs out.
Frankie Jobling – Summer’s Come Early
Summer HAS come early. Frankie Jobling’s new single does what it says on the tin, and provides us all with a dreamy old school R&B bop with an immaculate vocal performance.
The artist from Newcastle-Upon-Tyne honed her craft when studying music in Manchester and later released her first single ‘Are We Dreaming’ which was well received by her followers and added frequently to various Spotify playlists. I can only expect Frankie’s popularity will surge when this drops, as it goes hand in hand with the summer we are all about to enjoy.
The mood is set with some smooth, glistening guitar licks provided by songwriter Thomas Day which acts as a perfect backdrop to Jobling’s dreamy vocals and this moody summer song gives you a sound you never want to end.
