Gang Of Youth – “Magnolia”:
On June 3 2014, singer Dave Le’aupepe took to twitter to describe in full detail the extent of the heartbreak and pain he felt when completing this song/video as a whole: “In a state of puerile drunken delirium, reeling from having my heart fucked beyond all recognition and knowing my marriage was about to fall apart, I tried to kill myself”.
The video is directed and produced by Josh Harris and in an interview with NME they said of the video: “A deep freeness, a sense of loss, a sadness; living somewhere between when the ‘want’ is gone and when every visceral desire is fierce and burning.The video does capture a real sense of isolation in the dark, with Dave walking the streets animatedly using his hands as a form of expresion, and dancing as if in a musical”. Watch the video below.
Hands Like Houses – “Colourblind”:
With the release of their third studio album, Dissonants, due next month on the 26th of February, Australian rock band Hands Like Houses have been releasing singles from the album in order to further promote the new album before it drops, as this will be their first album after three years, since their last studio album, Unimagine. Now, with a month left until the release, the band have decided to release the music video for “Colourblind”, an enigmatic and ironically colourful video. Watch below:
DUCKY – “Winter Song”:
LA producer DUCKY has released new visuals for the track “Winter Song”. The song is taken off her latest Lost Angeles EP which is out now via Skrillex’s free label NEST. Ducky has been producing since the tender age of 13 and started playing sets with a fake ID, as well as dropping out of high school at 17 and ended up at NYU to pursue her love of music full time. Her previous release “Rain Dance” was named one of NPR’s best dance tracks of 2015. You can watch the new video for “Winter Song” via Pitchfork below.
D∆WN – “Not Above That”:
D∆WN aka Dawn Richard has released her first single of 2016 “Not Above That”, which is from RED*emp*tion, her third solo album. You can listen to the new single below via SoundCloud. D∆WN started as a member of Danity Kane and then became a part of Dirty Money with Diddy and Kalenna Harper. Now, she continues to make a name for herself as a solo artist.
She’s had compliments on her talent from the likes of Pitchfork who said “Dawn Richard has spent her solo career blowing up emotions to near-mythical levels…she’s a tremendously evocative singer” (Best of 2015) as well as The Guardian which commented “The most ambitious and revelatory album of the year” alongside other positive reviews.
Away Days – “Messiah”:
Former members of rock band, Blitz Kids – Jono Yates, Nic Montgomery and Matt Freer came together to form a brand new band called Away Days. Blitz Kids were definitely one of the best bands to come out of the early 2000’s rock era, and the announcement of their break up, last year in July, came as a rather unpleasant surprise for their fans, particularly as their audience seemed to be growing on a daily basis. However, it is great to know that some good came out of the break up, as Away Days have dropped their first single, “Messiah”, and it has all the signs of following in the footsteps of Blitz Kids’ excellence. Listen below:
Coldplay + Beyonce – “Hymn For The Weekend”:
Coldplay’s new music video “Hymn For The Weekend” includes an appearance by the Queen B herself. The song, which is from their recent album Head Full Of Dreams, contains some vocal contributions from Beyonce, however her name is absent from the credits on the album. The video follows Coldplay frontman, Chris Martin, through the streets of Mumbai, with Beyonce wearing various Indian garments, jewels and a crown.
Martin, in an interview with the Wall Street Journal in November, hinted about a possible collaboration between the two, and now fans can finally watch the outcome of the star pairing. Take a look at the video below.
Cautioners – “Daisies”:
Formerly under the name Far From Proper and now re-branded as Cautioners, this rock band is back with a brand new single, “Daisies”. This is their first song in a long while, and it’s a brilliant one. Lead singer, Nick Harrison commented on the song’s basic concept: “‘Daisies’ is a song about someone who used to make you feel complete making you feel hollow and cold. That person makes you feel like you’re dead to them, like you never mattered at all”. The song is told from the point of view of someone who has already passed away, with “pushing up daisies” referring to being dead and buried. Watch the video below.
Eliza Shaddad – “Wars”:
Eliza Shaddad has released the visuals for her track “Wars”. Shadadd says of video “It’s a lot like the song itself; a mix of icy calm and chaos, and full of unanswered questions”. The song dropped late last year and has been receiving strong support and positive feedback from many, including John Kennedy (XFM), Huw Stephens (BBC Radio 1), and Zane Lowe (Beats 1). Eliza’s EP Run is also due for release on March 18. Shaddad has also announced a string of dates in the UK and Europe which you can also find below, as well as tickets for here.
Words by Christine Reynolds, Qurat-ul-Anne Sikander, Kira Knight and Clarissa Bamford
