Industry news & advice blog

Jackson Mico Milas - ‘Don’t You Think of Me Once in a While’

The final single to be taken from Jackson Mico Milas’ recently released debut album ‘Blu Terra’ is an evocative and fragile track. ‘Don’t You Think of Me Once in a While’ is both uncomplicated, yet sophisticated and stirring at the same time. Adorned with shimmering chimes, dusty rhythms and Jackson’s muted vocals, the song really does showcase his refined sound perfectly. Or if you prefer to use a description offered up by one of Jackson’s friends, "yacht rock on opium" might just do the trick.

Considering some of Jackson’s more recent work as a film and TV score composer, plus his time creating music as High Highs, it’s hardly surprising to hear, for someone as prolific as him, that ‘Don’t You Think of Me Once in a While’ came together quite organically and rapidly; “Sometimes when an idea clicks in the studio, I often get a sensation of a fresh breeze, like a feeling of being on holiday or something. It’s really weird. I had that feeling all the way through this tune. Maybe as I’d also already put in a few years of work on the record by the time this one came around, and it was almost like a reward for the hard work, the way it seemed to just come together. I think the lyric “waiting for September in a room with a view” came about because a friend of mine had just flown in and was quarantining for 14 nights in a hotel room. This idea of isolation and looking out was pretty evocative and representative of something we all felt early on and it’s something that ripples through the whole record.”

Whilst the glowing reviews pour in for both the single and album, with the likes of Atwood Magazine, Wonderland Magazine, Earmilk, and BBC 6 Music’s Cerys Matthews and Guy Garvey all on board, Jackson has also been blown away by more personal responses to his music; “I have had a few messages from a few people who say the record has really truly touched them or meant something significant to them in their lives. So that’s all you can really hope for.”

With new material in the works, plus plans being laid for shows next year, it looks like we have plenty more to look forward to from Jackson Mico Milas over the coming months.

Website   Instagram   Facebook   Twitter   YouTube   Spotify   





Esme Bridie - ‘Mad About It’

Creating quirky and catchy lo-fi indie, Liverpool singer songwriter Esme Bridie’s disarmingly honest lyrics add to the offbeat charm of her glorious song ‘Mad About It’.

“It's about impatience and frustration at not being 'in' with people. I enjoyed playing with this idea of going to the bathroom at a party and seeing that you had something in your teeth and feeling embarrassed, but mostly feeling angry and hurt that none of your friends told you. It's like a betrayal. That was the image that sparked the idea for the whole song. Eventually you realize that only you can change the things about yourself that you want to change, only you can get the parsley out of your teeth! The whole song is like me giving myself a bathroom pep talk.”



The vulnerable nature of Esme’s music has so far made her a firm favourite with the likes of Dave Monks at BBC introducing Merseyside, Kid Jensen and China Moses at Jazz FM, plus Amazing Radio, Liverpool Noise, Bido Lito!, Get Into This and Music Crowns.

With ‘Mad About It’ making the cut for Spotify’s New Music Friday, we’re sure her follow-up singles are bound to follow suit. There are four more tracks on the way (‘Shut Up!’ was released just last week) between now and March, which will culminate in the unveiling of Esme's debut EP ‘Something In Your Teeth’.

This may only be the beginning of Esme’s journey, but she’s off to a flying start and we predict nothing but good things along the road ahead. “This project has been a longtime coming and I’ve never been prouder of my music. It’s all been recorded with my band and I’m planning to get out with them and gig as much as possible in the new year!”

Website   Instagram   Facebook   Twitter   YouTube   Spotify





Wakey Wakey Rise & Shine - ‘Softly Softly Catchy Monkey’

Originators of the genre ‘Limbocore’, Bristol four piece Wakey Wakey Rise & Shine cannot be tamed, and certainly not classified when it comes to their music, which straddles everything from indie, alternative and psychedelia to heavy metal, hip-hop and jazz. “Essentially, the reason we say Limbocore is because we limbo between so many genres. It sounds so pretentious but I think a lot of other bands feel the same with their sound.”

And their song ‘Softly Softly Catchy Monkey’ demonstrates this versatility perfectly, with choppy angular guitars, building to a chaotic crescendo, peppered with wild howls and yelps. The band tell us more about how it germinated: “The majority of the song was written in 5-10 minutes and Smudger added lyrics when we had the skeleton of the track together. It's a bit of a random song to be honest with no real meaning, but a lot of our songs are like that and that's how we ensure we have fun when writing our songs. We're not a very serious or moody band.”



Following a stand-out summer with Wakey Wakey Rise & Shine sharing their limbocore vibes across two sets at Glastonbury, other highlights of the year have included airplay on BBC Radio 6Music, as well as BBC Introducing, and a bundle of glowing reviews.

The band will be back in the studio in January to record some new material which they plan to dripfeed to us thirsty mortals throughout 2023. Although WWR&S have managed to play plenty of gigs over the past year, they aim to hit the road even harder over the coming 12 months, so look out for them at a town or city near you soon! “We're hoping to make next year a bigger year with festival slots and more gigs. Festival and gig promoters if you're reading this, get in touch!”

Bandcamp   Instagram   Facebook   YouTube   Spotify




 
Other Half - ‘Jollies For the Boys’

With their second album ‘Soft Action’ fresh off the press, Norwich trio Other Half’s discordant, sardonic punk is making quite the impact, and latest single ‘Jollies for the Boys’ is an intense, piercing slice of post hardcore angst.

Vocalist and guitarist Cal divulges what sparked the track; “I’m always interested in what motivates people to do horrible things and I figure a lot of the time it's just the only road open to them; the anger is white-hot but misdirected. ‘Jollies With The Boys’ is a nasty little banger inspecting that and how I wish I possessed the same energy to fight against all the awful stuff going on in the world but instead just sit on my arse and write songs about the idea of being angry.”

Already grabbing the attention of iNewspaper, Stereogum, Brooklyn Vegan, Vanyaland and beyond, the band were also thrilled to see Matt from Nada Surf at one of their recent gigs; “I’ve loved Nada Surf since I was 15 so for him to actively watch our band and then say genuine nice things about it to us afterwards, that was really fucking heartening.”

Having just returned from a co-headline UK tour with Modern Rituals throughout November, you’ll still get chance to catch Other Half live before the year is out as they embark on support slots with Johnny Foreigner in Birmingham on 17th December, and Jamie Lenman on 18th of December in Manchester.

Next year, there’s already a full UK tour alongside US band Short Fictions in the diary for March/April, as well as appearances at Jamie Lenman’s Lenmania III, and Manchester Punk Festival 2023.

Bandcamp   Instagram   Facebook   Twitter   YouTube   Spotify





KHARTOUM - ‘Whatever Helps You Sleep’

Rapidly gathering momentum, and with recent airplay on BBC Radio 1, it seems that grunge pop trio KHARTOUM’s latest single ‘Whatever Helps You Sleep’ is indeed the infectious, fuzz-laden anthem that we suspected. Influenced by the likes of Joshua Homme, Death From Above 1979 and Jack White, the band have been refining their sound and welcoming a heavier, arcane edge.

Recorded in their own self-built studio, creating and unleashing the song has been a cathartic experience for the band as they explain; “We recently went from a four piece to a three piece, and the song was written in a moment of frustration with coming to terms with that adjustment. We wanted to keep it very simple and direct to give it as much impact as possible.”

With kudos rolling in from the likes of The Line of Best Fit, Dork, CLASH, Thoughts Words Actions, BBC Radio 1’s Jack Saunders, plus Spotify playlist placements galore including Hot New Bands, Fresh Finds, All New Rock, and Shockwave, the band are riding high. The past 12 months has seen them play packed out performances at Glastonbury, plus a headline slot on BBC Introducing’s stage at the Moto GP, further affirming their reputation as ones to watch on the live front.

With no immediate major plans for 2023, it’s no wonder that KHARTOUM think it’s best to keep doing what they’re doing. It’s worked out so far; “We just plan to keep churning out the tunes. We’re pretty prolific with our writing, and we’re mainly just excited to step further into our new identity as a trio and to continue honing and developing our sound.”

We can’t wait to see what unfolds.

Instagram   Facebook   Twitter   YouTube   Spotify

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 to champion on Spotlight. As well as being featured on our new music blog, your track will also be played on our monthly Reform Radio show, get a free release package from CD Baby, plus the 5 tracks are also forwarded onto a select bunch of music industry professionals...including folks from Big Life Management, Club Fandango, Decca Records, Memphis Industries, Rocksound, DIY Magazine, Transgressive Records and The Great Escape. Find out more about Spotlight here.

To be in the running you’ll need to sign up as a member to The Unsigned Guide, then follow the instructions in your Welcome email to submit a track for Spotlight consideration to us.

Members of The Unsigned Guide get access to our huge directory of over 8,000 UK music industry contacts, spanning 50 areas of the music business. Check out our quick video to find out more about the directory & other services we provide to help emerging bands and artists.