TIPPER OF THE WEEK: ANDY HAGGERSTONE

We continue to shine the spotlight the biggest and best emerging acts from across the UK. Each Monday, we ask one of our esteemed tippers to select five of their hottest tips to be featured on the site throughout the week.

Next up we have Andy Haggerstone. Andy is co-founder and managing director of Kaleidoscope, an artist management company and record label based in Newcastle upon Tyne, and a partner in Blank Studios, a recording studio in Newcastle’s Ouseburn Valley. Andy also recently submitted his PhD thesis on the evolution of creativity at University of York.

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Drahla – Form of Luxury 

Drahla are a three-piece from Leeds that I think I first heard via one of Spotify’s algorithmic personalised playlists. From what I gather, they’ve been releasing their tracks through their own label, and recently did a short tour of Europe. They’re managed by Wichita, who have one of the coolest labels around, and I suspect it’s through repeatedly listening to another one of their bands, Cloud Nothings, that has led to Spotify’s robots tipping me off about Drahla. This particular track reminds me of early Joy Division and they’re on that same playlist I made too, so perhaps that was a contributing factor.

Joy Crookes – Bad Feeling 

I had the pleasure of seeing Joy play live on the same bill as one of the artists I look after, Callum Pitt, at Selfridges’ Music Matters gig series. I was really impressed seeing such confidence in a young performer in what was quite an unusual situation (performing in a glass box in the basement of a department store!), not to mention the fact that she has a great voice too. I think she’s definitely still playing with her sound a little from the tracks I’ve heard, but I like the mix of Jurassic 5 and Alicia Keys of ‘Bad Feeling’ in particular.

River Matthews – Light the Way

I was switched onto River Matthews by Sean Canty who plays drums in another band I work with, Organised Scum. Apparently River used to live just down the road and gave him his first guitar. It’s not usually the kind of sound I go in for, but the guy has a great voice; and perhaps it’s the manager in me, but this track seems destined for a sync on a hit US TV show! If they ever do a prequel to Sons of Anarchy, I reckon this will be on there.

Sundile – late night love songs 

This reminds me of both Matt Maltese, which is very cool, and Babybird, which I suppose isn’t (to other people who were teenagers in the 90s, anyway)! ‘late night love songs’ was apparently made by ‘sundile’ on Garage Band in his bedroom at uni in York. I think the track shows a lot of potential, and I also went to University of York so I’m inclined to be a little biased here!

Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs – Sweet Relief 

I could also be accused of bias here, I suppose, in that one of the guys from Pigs(x7) is also one of the partners in Blank Studios. However, I’m not the only one who thinks these guys are worth looking out for – they were tipped by The Guardian just before Christmas as one of their ones to watch for 2018. I grew up on a diet of huge guitar riffs thanks to an older brother who got me into Rage Against the Machine and Nirvana when I was 8 or 9, and I think Pigs(x7) tap into something deeply ingrained in my musical taste with Sweet Relief.