In this feature, we delve into the career of Tom McClung (aka Francis Lung) exploring the moments in music that have resonated with him the most – the one’s that shine brightest and the one’s tug at the heartstrings, all according to McClung. A patchwork in memory of past recollections and new perspectives.
FAIRCHILD kindly gave us access to some exclusive behind the scenes footage from their travels around the UK, with New York four-piece MOTHXR. In the final part of the tour diary series, it becomes more a story of friendship and celebration than finalities and goodbyes.
Melbourne’s Mango Retreat share their first taste of new music in over a year with the rootsy carnival pomp of ‘Here On The Earth’. Banjo, mandolin, Hammond organ, guitar and lively percussion playfully dance around woop-and-call harmonies and an exuberant lead vocal. Leaving only one route of response: to dance uncontrollably in a kind of passionate […]
The weekend of A Carefully Planned Festival is quickly approaching and if you’ve got a ticket you’ll be wanting to work out who to see, where to go and also make room to experience some surprises along the way.
With so much great new music on offer at our fingertips, we thought it was time to restart the #BitterSweetPlaylist and also get inventive. So after you’ve given all the song’s on the playlist a good listen, you can vote for your favourite, by means of the handy poll at the bottom of the page. […]
Few songs nowadays are as packed with explosive potential as the latest Gold Class track Kids On Fire. As of now, if there’s ever a need to demonstrate what tension sounds like to a packed auditorium of students, all a lecturer needs do is play them the first 30 seconds of this track.
South-East London’s most prominent pedallers of psych-punk-shoegaze Whistlejacket have just dropped their second EP ‘Oh Brother’ and by gosh it’s something for your ears to behold. Slacklining the void between those in the Tame Impala or Tuska school, and the lo-fi stylings of My Bloody Valentine or Yuck, Whistlejacket ooze scuzz’n’fuzz from every pore.
Sunjacket are a band from Chicago, who’s sound ranges from dark, synth-driven pop to layered, syncopated rock. Their debut LP ‘Mantra’ fuses different tropes to great effect: it’s unusual, thoughtful and definitely not the typical ‘indie’ music that we’re hearing a lot of at the minute. What must be noted is the band’s use of varying instruments […]
Communions shimmer into view with an ‘Eternity’ of unlived experience at their fingertips, in this gorgeous lament to the passage of time. Combining the jangly indie of The Smiths with the nostalgic sunshine pop of The Drums.
Indie synth rockers FAIRCHILD relocated to Manchester, England last year, after deciding to take a risk and move halfway around the world from their home on the Gold Coast of Australia to pursue their music career. This is a bargain that has slowly paid dividends, the band having earned a solid reputation for their energetic […]
With our inbox full of exciting musical treats, we thought it was time to restart the #BitterSweetPlaylist and try something new also. So once you’ve finished digging into the music you can vote for your favourite, by means of the poll below. Spread the word, let’s make this thing huge.
In the tradition of Europe and America, Australia aim to write songs that sound as huge as the continents they’re named after, and Breathe In certainly takes this aim to heart. As stadium rock goes, it’s a great example.
The latest release from Manchester’s Francis Lung welcomes in a most infectious dichotomy between insatiable uplifting melodies and defiant introspection. ‘A Selfish Man’ is arguably the most familiar track in Lung’s catalogue, and one that easily leads the pack.
After a successful start to the year, Stoke’s Broken Flags bring us their biggest song to-date in debut single proper ‘Dare To Dream’. The rallying call offers up a bolt of determination to change your circumstances.
Brighton is well and truly winning right now on the music front. Our new favourite find is four-piece Safe To Swim, the band released their debut EP ’20 Years’ a few months back and have since been spending their summer playing all the cool festivals. So today’s TOTD highlights their latest track ‘Pieces’, lifted from […]
Richard Walters’ emotive songwriting doesn’t rely on any supplementary gloss, instead it rallies in the purity of honest emotion. With his angelic falsetto and rich tone at the centre-point of each enveloping masterpiece, elegantly soaring higher with every raised caress, Walters’ music becomes a staple. The Oxford native is treating us to another piece from his forthcoming album ‘A.M’ due for […]
After a three-year hiatus away from music, Aimee Herbert-Smith (the musical creator behind Mere Child) debuts her return with the darkly poignant, self-referential dream-electronica of ‘Not Good Enough’.
Sincerity in pop music is a rare and precious gem in today’s popular music landscape. I first became aware of the boundless talent of Dublin born, New York based singer-songwriter Sorcha Richardson when our editor here at Bitter Sweet Symphonies sent me her song “Petrol Station” upon its release. I was immediately taken by it, […]
London glitter punks TEAR smear attitude all over four-and-a-half minute long video for song ‘Beautiful’, taken from their debut self-titled EP. In a sort of rugged romance, the visuals play part in gendering the song’s subject matter exposing themes of vanity, glamour, opposition and artificiality. Fixing on these binary’s creates a provocative air around the […]
In today’s musical climate it is tough to compete, let alone be heard, in an industry that is brimming with talent from blossoming new artists to already established favourites. So all we do is hope that the good rises to the top and triumphs, but like everything in life, sometimes this isn’t always the case. […]