Lucky Number Music

Middle Kids (Tim Fritz, Hannah Joy and Harry Day) have today released their first new music in over 18 months. Premiered last night on triple j, the propulsive “R U 4 Me?” was produced by Lars Stalfors (St Vincent, Cold War Kids, Soccer Mommy) and showcases the band’s capacity to pair unforgettable melodies with raucous, arena-worthy indie rock.

Lead singer and songwriter Hannah Joy explains the alienating inspiration for the song: “I was at university once and there were all these signs on the walls saying “BE NICE IT’S NOT THAT HARD”. The tone of the message itself actually wasn’t very nice or kind…. We are always looking around at other people thinking “are you on my team?”. I think this just results in us all feeling lonely.”

“R U 4 Me?” has a frenzied energy. The band chose to include their own distorted yelling, wailing and laughter (captured candidly between takes in the studio) as the sounds encapsulated the spark and energy of creation at that moment. A little manic, a little wild, a little joyful.

“R U 4 Me?” is accompanied by a moving music video directed by W.A.M. Bleakley, portraying a story of youth, peer pressure, social isolation and the joy of finding a place to belong, which you can watch below.

Middle Kids new single is the band’s first release since their 2019 EP New Songs For Old Problems, which in turn followed on from their critically acclaimed 2018 Triple J Award winning debut album Lost Friends.

Middle Kids will also performing live in a Global Live Streaming Event on October 22nd. Tickets are available now.

Delighted to announce the return of Sunflower Bean with their new single “Moment In The Sun”, premiered by Radio 1’s Annie Mac as the Hottest Record In The World, their first new material of 2020. Produced by Dave Bassett (Vance Joy, Bishop Briggs, Fitz and the Tantrums) and Jacob Portrait (of Unknown Mortal Orchestra), “Moment In The Sun” is out now alongside an effervescent music video made in quarantine with VMA-nominated directors Andy DeLuca and Sarah Eiseman, co-starring Julia Cumming of the band and Marquis Rodriguez of Ava DuVernay’s When They See Us, which you can watch below.

“‘Moment In The Sun’ is about finally recognizing what is important in one’s life, the people you decide to spend it with,” Sunflower Bean explain of the track. “All of these things we distract ourselves with, the never-ending mountain of career climbing, the pursuit of financial success, and the hope that after all that trying you could finally be cool. All of that is meaningless in comparison to one great day, hour, or moment with someone you really love.”

The band further explain of the video: “While quarantining together upstate this summer we decided to make a music video for ‘Moment In The Sun.’ We thought the best way to visually represent the meaning of the song, while also taking inspiration from this isolating time everyone has been forced to live in, was to create two separate worlds. One world which exists totally inside a home, mostly in a lonely bedroom. The other world exists completely outside in the sun and is made up of memories of a summer love. We invited Marquis Rodriguez, who is one of Julia’s best friends since high school and also an incredibly talented actor, to co-star in the video. He was crucial in helping us tell the story of summer love and show those potent memories of tenderness coming to life. While living alone, the character Julia is portraying becomes flooded with memories and moments from the past summer, and as a result her bedroom starts to transform into the outdoor world. We built up the entire bedroom using real sod and flowers. Her memories are brought to life, just like the room.”

Dream Wife – Rakel Mjöll, Bella Podpadec and Alice Go – have just released their  second album So When You Gonna…, earning Rough Trade’s coveted title of Album of the Month. Produced and mixed by Marta Salogni, the album deals with topics such as miscarriage and gender equality, and follows the band’s 2018 critically acclaimed self-titled release. The record has debuted in the UK Album Chart at # 18, the only album in the top 20 to be produced by a womxn and non-male engineering team, as well as the only non-major label release, and at # 1 in the Official Record Store Chart of Independent Retailers. Purchase, stream or download the record, HERE.

Today, Dream Wife share the music video for the emotive album closer “After The Rain”. Regarding the song and its subject matter, Rakel explains: “The song was originally a voice memo I recorded after having a conversation with my sister, she had just discovered she was pregnant, and she didn’t want to go through with the pregnancy. This was happening at the same time as The Human Life Protection Act/Alabama Abortion Ban last May. Going through these multiple waves of community shame, anger at these systems imposed by the patriarchy to own women bodies, lack of trust and feeling disconnected from your own body. And not being able to articulate those feelings.”

 With the video, created in collaboration between the band and director Helga Katrínardóttir, they explain “We have used water in both the song and video to symbolize and explore the singular yet collective experience of abortion. Water is the fundamental for all life. We are 75% water. Water is all and all pain is shared pain. It is our choice to craft the narratives of our own lives and fight the restrictions put on us by a society attempting to control our bodies. It’s feeling all the feelings and knowing that the storm will pass. 

Filmed across expansive Icelandic nature and intimate South London home the film takes the viewer on a journey from the internal to the external, from the singular experience to the collective. The dramatic differences between the interior and exterior shots also speak to the drastically different ways our home countries have mobilised in response to the current pandemic and how important it is to function collectively during times of dislocation”.

Hinds released their glorious and triumphant third album, The Prettiest Curse, last month  to widespread critical acclaim and now share the video for bombastic album track “Burn” . Directed by Mariano Schoendorff, it was filmed remotely as Madrid finally began to slowly ease out of lockdown.

Dream Wife will release their explosive new album So When You Gonna…this Summer, and have now shared the album’s title track, accompanied by a music video directed by frequent collaborator Aidan Zamiri. “So When You Gonna…” follows the previously released singles “Sports!” and “Hasta La Vista,” and is accompanied by today’s 2021 tour date announcement and the release of episode five of the band’s womxn-centric podcast series.

Dream Wife on “So When You Gonna…”:

“It’s a dare, an invitation, a challenge.  It’s about communicating your desires, wholehearted consent and the point where talking is no longer enough. It promotes body autonomy and self-empowerment through grabbing the moment. The breakdown details the rules of attraction in a play by play ‘commentator’ style, inspired by Meat Loaf’s ‘Paradise by the Dashboard Light’.

For the video for we worked with our favourite elf prince Aidan Zamiri who filmed around a free sweaty, sexy, gig we did for ours fans back in January – shot as a first person POV from the inside of a mouth. Performing live is the beating heart of this band and we miss it, so please take this video as a little love letter to the rock show”

Today the band also announce a UK and European tour for 2021. The tour kicks off in April with the final UK date at London’s Electric Ballroom before they head to Europe for a string of dates. Full list of shows below and tickets for all shows are available on their website.