I’m very excited and very honored to announce that I’ve been chosen by MSG Sphere London as their Up and Coming artist curator for the Month of October! MSG supports local artists and venues and asked me to create a playlist of my favorite up and coming London artists!
Listen to the playlist here!
This playlist covers a wide span of genres, all of which I really enjoy and have influenced my music making. I thought it’d be nice to dive into the artists and songs on the playlist a little more and give some insight as to why I picked them, so here goes:
Stranglehold – Atomic Bronco
Shameless plug. Deal with it.
Little Girl – Weird Dreams
Weird Dreams is a one-man band from East London who traffics in alternative/ indie rock songs with wonderfully jangly guitars and dreamy doubled vocals. This song in particular off the 2012 debut album is a very easy listening song with an infectious 6/8 groove and impressive vocal melodies and harmonies. I’ve had this on repeat since I first heard it and I think you will too.
Stay Out the Limehouse – Tigercats
Another East London band, although this one has a few more members, 7 by my count. These guys have a slight ska band sound, but with a real British post-punk vibe. I love the guitars on this song, and the lead signer has this great voice that is just dripping with attitude. Really impressed with how the guitars and horns interact seamlessly in the chorus.
Your Light – The Big Moon
I’ve seen a few people mentioned that The Big Moon might be the next big thing out of London, and with this song it’s easy to see why. The all-girl outfit pulls off a pop-rock spectacular with ease, and I feel like this song will be floating around for a while. I especially love the half-time prechorus before slamming into the chorus with the Ahs right up front.
Toes – Glass Animals
I’m a little late to the Glass Animals party, but like I always say, better late than never. I had friends in Denver that raved about Glass Animals and saw them live religiously at Red Rocks while I was still living there, but somehow missed the boat until now. This song in particular from their debut album does an incredible job of creating a sonic vibe; I can almost hear the jungle in this song. The bassline, the backing vocals, the offbeat guitars, just…. (chef’s kiss)
Night Flight – Franc Moody
I saw Franc Moody live at the O2 Shepard’s Bush Empire in early March 2020, and will likely be my last concert this year, but boy, what a great one to go out on. Seeing this band is like being transported back to CBGB’s to see Nile Rogers and Chic, with all the modern amenities This new age funk band has all the right dancefloor grooves, and I’m seriously jealous of the bass player’s talent in this band. All of their songs are impeccably mixed, and I’m really looking forward to seeing what this band does going forward.
Soul Food – Mat Zo
I’ve been a fan of Mat Zo’s for a long time, back since he was making trance tunes on Anjunabeats. Bipolar and Pyramid Scheme are some of my all-time favorites of his, but his 2016 album Self Assemble and this song in particular really seemed like a mature stepping out moment for the London-based producer, and the result is some seriously catchy Nu-Disco.
Winona – DJ Boring
I’ve been a fan of Lo-fi house since the genre started to come onto the scene in 2016/2017, this song is arguably the one that brought the movement some traction. The song starts with some very soothing chords and then an excerpt from an interview with Winona Rider transitions into the beat. This is one of those songs that I think you may have to hear on a club dancefloor to truly appreciate.
Heartbreaker (Midnight Croquet) – Atomic Bronco
Second Shameless plug. I’m actually a little sorry about this one
That’s it for now, but follow me on Spotify and sign up to my newsletter to keep up to date!