Hey Gigantic Gang,
Bet you are looking forward to the bank holiday weekend! And it starts with #NewMusicFriday – your complete list of all the hottest releases from cutting-edge acts, rising stars and major names. Keep scrolling to read the latest music news whilst you enjoy our playlist and grab tickets now that gigs and festivals are coming back.
Enjoy your big weekender, you deserve it xx
SINGLE
HALLAN – “Orwell's Idyllic Future”
The post punk revival continues and the latest of the new breed is Hallan; the politically charged Portsmouth quintet ready to take on the world. Following first single “Hands Up” and second offering “Modern England” comes new song “Orwell's Idyllic Future” which is their warning of how the online culture wars are a performative means of control through divide and conquer;
“With all sorts of wings be they left or right swinging for each other with mocking tweets or cancel culture as their weaponry, it's easy to feel lost as an onlooking bystander in a world full of hostility. Relationships become strained and questioning your own mental stability becomes just another daily problem as you peruse through endless news articles, each one presenting you with a slice of self-loathing or existential dread. But nothing is to fear as the longer you stare upon the words you read in your Sunday newspaper or mobile device the more you will feel the sweet embrace and comfort of Big Brother's gentle arms. Orwell's Idyllic future has come to be, and everything is going to be just okay.”
“Orwell's Idyllic Future” will feature on their debut EP Reporting Live From The Living Room Floor which is released on July 16th, via Nice Swan Records
See Hallan smash it at Birmingham hotspot Sunflower Lounge on Saturday 28th of August. Click the link and book your ticket with Gigantic!
Hallan tickets are currently available.
DO NOTHING – “Rolex”
Nottingham based band Do Nothing dropped second EP earlier this year on their very own label Exact Truth, and their dead pan delivery of post punk \ new wave fusion is marking them out to be one of the most vital British bands currently breaking through.
Now, they release “Rolex” which is the third single from the EP and continues their cutting analysis of an increasingly strangely cold and apathic world which has finally lost the plot. The sharp edge of such cruel indifference is highlighted with an absurdist video, which sees singer Chris Bailey chained to a giant watch from said makers after being cast away from a job that has stolen his best years, leaving him with nothing other than a burdensome status symbol.
See Do Nothing make appearances at Wide Eyed, Dot To Dot and Sonic Wave Festival, plus they play their own headline tour in September.
Do Nothing tickets are currently available.
EP
ROSEANNE REID – Horticulture
Scottish songwriter Roseanne Reid made a huge early impression with the release of debut album Trails in 2019. Faced with huge cancellations and the prospect of lockdown, Reid’s answer was to write and record the entire Horticulture EP at home with just a little help from cellist Graham Coe and producer Dave Eringa, long term collaborator with Manic Street Preachers who has also worked with The Who.
"’Horticulture’ consists of four songs, all written and recorded at home over the course of lockdown. The songs deal with isolation, loss and realising the vitality of the natural world around us. It is a response to a testing year from a place of hope."
Roseanne Reid will be playing support for Teddy Thompson when he arrives at The Glee Club in Nottingham on Thursday 27th of January, tickets selling fast!
Roseanne Reid tickets are currently available.
ALBUM
BIRDY – Young Heart
Birdy is back! Five years on from her last stunning LP Beautiful Lies, which was a huge worldwide commercial success, the acclaimed indie folk singer \ songwriter returns with new album Young Heart which draws inspiration from her travels to country heartland Nashville and visits in L.A. Written prior to the insecurity of the pandemic, the introspection of her new work now has added resonance which she built upon in her home studio;
“We had finished everything, but then [the pandemic] gave us time to reflect and listen to it all. I ended up redoing a few bits in a little makeshift studio in a cupboard at my grandpa's cottage where I was staying, so it was quite interesting.”
Gritty, raw yet far from despondent, Young Heart is a coming-of-age album from an artist now four records but still only 24 years old. It’s a hopeful response to an increasingly difficult world and is a perfect listen during those moments of solace and meditation
Birdy tickets are currently available.