Next up we have Elena Jimenez, editor and booker for esteemed Hype Machine blog and gig promoters Popped Music. With past experience working for Oxjam Music Festival, Kendal Calling, Liverpool Sound City and BBC 6 Music Festival, Elena continues to support new music across the UK and sometimes further afield. Check out her tips below.
The Seamonsters
This Sheffield collective is bustling with talent and fun, so much fun. With six members of the band it’s easy to get lost in their overlapping harmonies. Plus there’s the 80s synth-pop vibe to totally get off on. The band have been busy this Summer hitting up several festival slots and are regularly playing live – with the likes of This Feeling behind them they’re going to be sure to hit upon a great wealth of new fans this Autumn.
Lily Moore
I first had the pleasure of seeing Lily play live last year, just her and a guitar. Since then I’ve seen her live show evolve into something altogether more impressive and a show that allows her to really shine. Musically she has her roots firmly in blues and soul but there’s also an element of her songwriting that’s timeless and it’s in part this, as well as her richly textured vocal which will see her on her way to becoming one of the UK’s biggest musical treasures. She heads out on her first headline UK tour soon and it’s honestly, not one to be missed.
Chloe Pitchford
Chloe found us before we found her and I’m sure as hell glad she did because I can really see a talent here. It’s not just in her easily recognisable tones that caught my attention but her ability to pen a tune, and tunes they really are. Chloe has the ability to do something I really enjoy and that’s to tell a tale in each track with clever lyrics that are easy to relate to. There’s so much promise here and working with the right team could see her really develop and blossom. I’m excited to see how she progresses.
Voodoo And The Crypts
This band has impressed from the get-go with their 2018 single Off My Mind. Elements of psychedelia and rock collide and their first release, Feeling, also brings some pretty funky basslines to the party too. Voodoo And The Crypts are essential new music listening and I’m not the only one who thinks so – they play The British Sound Project in Manchester this week, along with the likes of Franz Ferdinand and The Cribs as well as fabulous up and coming acts such as Berries and Lucia.
Para Fiction
Actually not really the kind of thing I’d listen to if someone handed it to me saying “it’s hip hop” – It is, but it’s also more in a dirty punk Jamie T -Beastie Boys vibe than your modern or classic Hip Hop. It’s that punk element that really appeals to me. From the two tracks available so far it’s WYSX that first caught my attention. It’s the chorus that wins me. Lyrically they’re hitting on topics that resonate and I might not be up on what’s what with Hip Hop or Grime, but I know good and exciting when I hear it. There’s something about their online presence which makes me think they’ve got a lot more to say than what’s in these two tracks, too.
