The Unsigned Guide Spotlight: September
Blog by Louise Dodgson under Artist Managers, Creative & Branding, Finance, Law & Music Business, Live, Media, Music Publishing, Music Training & Careers, Record Labels, Recording & Production, Selling & Distributing Your Music
This month we’re delighted to bring you another selection of corking tracks guaranteed to please your ears. Remember, you heard them here first!
Silverclub – ‘Back To The Start’
The title track of what sounds set to be an immense EP release, ‘Back To The Start’ was written in two brief sessions, and in collaborating with friend Nick Cotterill who is responsible for the killer bassline on this song, the band also gained a new member in Nick, expanding from four to five piece.
Producing remixes for the likes of fellow Manchester dwellers Elbow, not to mention Frank Black and Violet Clark's band Grand Duchy, Silverclub’s ability to create indie-electro-disco gold obviously precedes them. In ‘Back To The Start’ they’ve created a thrusting, powerful juggernaut of a track - dancefloor dynamite just waiting to detonate.
Released on Red Laser Records on 29th September, both digitally and on 12 inch, their imminent and eagerly awaited EP will also be launched in style with a gig-cum-party at The Deaf Institute on Friday 26th September. If you’re in the vicinity we highly recommend firmly strapping on your dancing boots and making your way there. Full details of the night can be found and tickets purchased via the link below.
Pony & Trap – ‘Time To Engage’
London duo Pony & Trap have a rather interesting story behind their punchy song ‘Time To Engage’ which succinctly showcases their punky, house pop sounds. Written for The Steve Prescott Foundation, an organisation formed after ex-professional rugby league player Steve Prescott was diagnosed with a rare form of terminal cancer, the song was to accompany their 48 hour Quadrathlon Race to the Grand Final. Essentially a song about friendship and hard work, the notion is to remind the listener of what’s important even when it may seem like everything else is in the way. All this and delivered in a catchy electro-pop package, you really can’t go wrong!Being crowned by Marshall for Best Live Performance and gaining recognition from BBC Introducing have all been high points for Tom and Sally to date, as well as playing esteemed venues such as Brudenell Social Club and O2 Academies in Leeds, Birmingham and Islington.
A new single ‘Coming Over’ is due soon, plus the pair will also be embarking on their first headline tour. Check out the website below for dates, hopefully they’ll be in a town near you soon!
Calum Foad – ‘Flaws’
Encapsulating radio friendly, feel good pop expertly is Calum Foad with a track which we defy you to shake out of your head after just one listen. ‘Flaw’s was co-written by Calum and Dan Weller, producer for the likes of Enter Shikari, Young Guns and Kids In Glass Houses. With the bulk of the song being previously penned by Calum, the final pieces clicked into place when they worked on it together and a quirky pop direction was born for the rest of the EP. Having worked long and hard, playing endless function events and gigs to get together the money to record an EP exactly in the way he wanted, it’s no wonder that Reading based Calum is immensely proud of making this happen and owning the master rights to his work; in his words “…something I can truly call my own”.
The rest of the year for Calum will be dedicated to promoting the ‘Flaws’ EP and trying to reach as large an audience as possible. We think he has every chance of making this aim a reality!
Moats – ‘Jeff Buckley’
Describing their sound with the bespoke term ‘glapp’, a mixture of gloomy and happy, Moats frontman Matt based the lyrics on ‘Jeff Buckley’ around some strange experiences he’s had over the past few years which have centred around songs from Buckley’s album ‘Grace’. We’re definitely intrigued…Embodying a wistful mix of lilting guitars, corroding feedback and husky vocals, they are bound to take Austin City Limits in Texas by storm when they play there in October, an honour bestowed upon them when they won a recent NME competition.
With plans to record forthcoming EP entitled ‘Rough’ and release in November, all before hitting the road on tour, they are extremely keen to share their abundance of new material with fans, old and new. If you can’t wait until then, you can catch them playing at The Macbeth in London on 9th September.
Cable Street Collective – ‘Wasted Hours’
Carnival pop is the perfect way to sum up the summery, sunshine tinged sounds evoked by Cable Street Collective. Upbeat, uplifting and catchy, they draw heavily on African influences from Congolese Soukous to South African Kwela, as well as adding elements from closer to home such as Primal Scream, the Stone Roses, Major Lazer and The Beta Band to their infectious melting pot.
First starting out in 2011, their goal was to play some festivals and having successfully achieved a couple of summers on the circuit, they’ve thrown their energies into producing their first EP ‘The Best Of Times’ which is currently in the final stages of being mixed.
The London seven piece will be playing Lake Of Stars Festival in Malawi at the end of this month, bound to be a fantastic experience, but look out for a launch gig on UK soil for their EP later in the year. ‘The Best Of Times’ will be available digitally on 4th October 4th so keep an eye on their website and social media links below.
How do I get featured on the Spotlight blog?
Our Spotlight blog is compiled every month from fresh new music submitted to us by our members. We want to hear from you! We select 5 of the best tracks from our members, so if you want to be in the running you’ll need to sign up to The Unsigned Guide then follow the instructions in your Welcome email to submit a track for Spotlight consideration to us. If you’re already a member and still not sure about how to submit your music for Spotlight, just give us a shout via our Contact page & we’ll help you out!
As well as being featured in our new music blog, your track will also be forwarded onto these music industry professionals including folks from Amazing Radio, Big Life Management, Club Fandango, Domino Records, The Fly, Memphis Industries, Rocksound, Skint Publishing, Sony Music, Spotify, Fake DIY, Transgressive Records and The Great Escape. View the full list of who listens to our Spotlight tracks here.
Did we mention we have a number of online radio stations that will air our Spotlight tracks too. Members of The Unsigned Guide get access to our huge directory of over 8,700 UK music industry contacts. Find out more about the directory and the other services we provide to help emerging bands and artists here.
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the unsigned guide spotlight, unsigned bands, unsigned artists, new music blog, music industry, cable street collective, calum foad, moats, pony & trap, silverclub
