Serendipity is one of my favourite things; a couple of weeks ago I spontaneously ended up at an Amaroun show - also one of my favourite new discoveries this year so far, please have a listen - and just so happened to bump into Annie (a.k.a. Austel). Talk about right place, right time. After a quick chat my interest was piqued on what the project would sound like, especially after later finding out that Annie has worked with a number of varied artists beforehand. All I will say is that I was not disappointed...



As delicate as Austel's vocals sound in portions of "Crows", the strength of her voice and the message of rising above uncertainty had come through clearly by the end. After attending her debut full band show in London yesterday, I can confidently say this is a name you'll be hearing again soon. I would have never imagined that this was their first time performing live together. Austel's ability to convey emotion and float seamlessly between hard-hitting and quiet comtemplative moments in music is stunning. You can hear a little taster of that during the bridge on "Crows" and you'll without a doubt be hearing more examples of this on any releases to come. Austel's EP entitled Unfold is due to be released later this year and I can't wait.

I don't know about anyone else but, Christmas is coming soon and I'm trying to save my money. So what better way to start than to get awesome new (and old) music for FREE?!



LAYLA - I've actually written about LAYLA a bunch of times before (here and here) but now she's about to release a new EP - Weightless - and has kindly given us the single "For You" for free here! I've had this on repeat since it graced my iTunes - fabulous song.








SPRING OFFENSIVE - Following their split earlier this month, Spring Offensive have now released every single thing they've put out to date all for FREE!! What kind of madness?! I'd advise that you jump on it while it's there. Here you go.








SKIES COLLIDE - I saw this band pop up on Twitter and was obviously drawn to the whole "female fronted pop rock band" so I gave them a listen. Their song "Fade (Only If You Let It)" was instrumentally very good. The vocals were a bit weak at points BUT I like them nonetheless. Download the free EP - Tomorrow's Too Far - here.






ARIZONA - I found this band a few days ago. I can't actually remember how but I heard their song "Black Hart" and it was awesome!! Love the video, and they have huge potential. I look forward to hearing more from them but until then get their EP - The Hunter, The Gatherer - for free here.





WOLF ALICE - Yay! I've made my love for Wolf Alice no secret and I also happen to love their latest EP - Creature Songs. Luckily for everyone, they've made the song "Storms" from it, available for free! If you haven't already listened to the EP download this song here.





NOTHING BUT THIEVES - This band popped up on Facebook in the "Sponsored" section recently a few times. When I finally decided to click on it I was actually shocked. They sounded very different to what I'd expected them to sound like. However, they still sound great. I'm happy with this new discovery. Have a listen to "Last Orders" for free here.

Here's a recap of some music moments that have happened this past month now that it's coming to an end. I'm sure that May will have many more moments to offer us but until then...

PHARRELL WILLIAMS NEW MUSIC VIDEO "MARILYN MONROE"
Pharrell has the habit of grabbing people's attention and especially with his latest album GIRL. So when I heard that he'd released another single from it, with a video - I knew it'd be an instant sensation. Over 8 million views in 5 days...? I think I was right. Have a watch here. WARNING: That ridiculous hat makes several appearances.


ROYAL BLOOD NEW MUSIC VIDEO "COME ON OVER"
Now I know that this song was available quite a long while ago but they have just released a new music video for it and as always with Royal Blood, it's electric. Check it out here. Royal Blood have also been super busy this month, playing on Jools Holland here and releasing a video of what they got up to in March here.


LINKIN PARK BUILD UP TO "THE HUNTING PARTY" ALBUM
Over the past couple of weeks, Linkin Park have released a few snippets about their upcoming album The Hunting Party. I've heard them mention that it's supposed to be going back to their heavier (Hybrid Theory/Meteora) roots - thank God - and so I'm excited. Here is the album trailer, here is the tracklisting for it and here is the first single from it "Guilty All The Same (feat. Rakim)". Check out their Faceboook event page for more updates. Time to get excited!


AS ELEPHANTS ARE NEW SINGLE "WENT WRONG"
As Elephants Are are actually in the middle of releasing a new EP - Hand Prints - and so have been premiering new songs from the EP via souncloud for the past few weeks. This is the latest song that they have revealed to the public and it is quality! Have a listen here.


BEN DEAR NEW SINGLE "NOW IS THE TIME"
The Acoustic Shack has been helping worship songwriters put out their music for quite a while now and also making new worship music available to the public. Ben Dear's song is the latest thing that they had on their page - here - great song.


READING AND LEEDS ANNOUNCE 52 MORE ACTS
Just when I thought that the line up couldn't get any better - they went and announced over 50 new acts, most of which, have got me ludicrously excited! To name a few names - The Story So Far, Tonight Alive, Brody Dalle, Mallory Knox and so many more! See the current line-up here. With line-ups like these, all I can say is this will be an immense summer!


BEYONCE NEW MUSIC VIDEO "PRETTY HURTS"
Well technically it's not new as it came with the actual hardcopy of the album BUT it's new to the public and it is absolutely stunning. This was my favourite song on the self-titled. I will never forget the first time I heard it, it definitely struck a chord with me the first time and hearing it again accompanied by this video... all the same feelings are coming back. One of Beyoncé's best in my opinion. Watch and listen here.


LAYLA NEW MUSIC VIDEO "BLACK MUD"
Layla has released the video to the title track for her new EP just in time for the release yesterday. The video is really interesting, and if I'm honest, I'm completely shocked that not more people know about her. Brilliant songwriter and brilliant vocalist. I would definitely suggest getting your hands on her EP here and maybe pass it on to a friend after! Excluding that, here's the video - share this with your friends too!


RUMOUR HAS IT...
There have been a lot of rumours spreading around the interwebs recently - an Oasis reunion, a Pharrell and Missy Elliott collaboration and rumours of Metallica being the last headliner at this year's Glastonbury. I suppose we'll have to wait until next month to find out?!


PS: Catch up on stuff you may have missed earlier this month here.

At the end of last month (30/03/14), I went down to The Institute, Birmingham's (tiny) Temple to see Bipolar Sunshine. It had been one of the longest days ever and so was just ready for a nice chilled set to unwind to.

I had heard that Indiana was supporting but had never heard of her before the event, so of course I went straight to YouTube. Here's what I found, and if I'm honest, it really did not impress me - I'm pretty sure that I didn't even finish it in the end. Safe to say I wasn't too excited for her set. When the band stepped on stage and played their first song I was extremely taken aback... they were great!! It wasn't until a couple more fabulous songs in that the singer announced that her name was in fact Layla. That explained why the sound was a lot different to that in the song I heard. Layla was fantastic though. Since watching her kill this set I've already written about her here and here. Her personality was just contagious and you could tell that she really loved music - sort of reminded me of a more cheerful version of Elena Tonra. A surprising set but an amazing one too.

Next up was actually Indiana. In fairness, she wasn't bad and the set did get better as it went on (despite a lengthy microphone malfunction). The crowd really loved her single "Solo Dancing" but I just was not drawn to her - the set didn't engage me and I didn't feel connected. Either way, her musicians were good, and the set was pretty mellow. Call me old fashioned though, but there were a few too many electronic things for my liking - I would always much rather a classic band set up. All in all - underwhelming set.

Finally, the main event - Bipolar Sunshine. Before coming I'd heard his most well known singles like "Fire" and "Where Did The Love Go" and I didn't really know much else by him, but I was stood front and centre nonetheless. The band came on and I have to say every single member was looking super (special shout out to the bassist's shoes). Bipolar Sunshine himself is just a very cool cat. After this show there are a lot of new favourites that he has provided me with - "Rivers", "Drowning Butterflies" and "Love More Worry Less" are definitely among the list. The overall musicianship and banter between the musicians themselves was fantastic - made for a really great atmosphere. I found myself laughing and smiling a lot more than I was even cheering at this show - I just had a genuinely fun time. When they ended I was still smiling - uplifting gig and a perfect end to a stupidly long day!

Overall Rating - 7/10


Here are some pictures from the night...

Now that my deadlines are pretty much behind me, I thought it time I get back to the music world! Well in fact, I've been pretty involved in the music world these past weeks (expect 4 gig reviews and quite a few more things coming your way), but I thought I'd just catch you up on what I've come across these past couple weeks...

TONIGHT ALIVE NEW MUSIC VIDEO "THE EDGE"
It's official, Tonight Alive are my favourite female fronted pop punk band right now by a mile (sorry Paramore). I've been overplaying their more recent album The Other Side a lot more lately and now this single has made me love them even more. I'm also pretty excited for the new Spiderman Movie which this features in - win:win! Watch and listen here.


CITIZEN NEW UNOFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO "THE SUMMER"
A pop punk band that I was introduced to late last year and will hopefully be seeing on their upcoming tour later this year. Citizen have actually really blown up recently, once I was introduced to these guys last year, everyone seemed to know who they were! Either way, I love this song and even though the video is unofficial it's cool - check it out here.


GARDEN HEART LIVE SESSION "CURE"
I actually spoke about Garden Heart after seeing them live at the Wayward Daughter EP launch last year here and have been looking out for their movements ever since. They've posted a few cool covers and some snippets of things coming up, but this is the best thing they've put up so far in my opinion - really brilliant. Click here to listen.


WOLF ALICE NEW SINGLE "MOANING LISA SMILE"
The first thing that made me think I'd like this song was the title. Whilst being witty, Wolf Alice also always put out awesome tunes and I look forward to hearing this as part of their next EP Creature Songs. Another band that I'd love to see on their tour later this year. Have a listen to the track here.


LAYLA NEW SINGLE "SMOKESTACKS"
SPOILER ALERT: One of the gig reviews coming up this week is for Bipolar Sunshine. Layla actually supported this gig in Birmingham and being my first ever impression of her, she really caught my attention! I'm absolutely loving this new single of her's which she performed - here.


FESTIVAL MADNESS
I've always known that there are a lot of festivals that happen in England but I have severely underestimated just how many. Moving to Birmingham has definitely opened my eyes to a lot more in the music industry. T in the Park have just announced some acts for their weekend and of course Glastonbury. However, here are some smaller Brummy and London festivals to look out for this summer: Birmingham & Beyond, MADE, Revitalised and One Beat Weekender.


JAMIE XX NEW SINGLE "SLEEP SOUND"
Just in time for the Glasto line-up announcement which he features on. I'm sure that every festival goer that will get to see him, is excited to hear this live. I could never really decide whether I liked Jamie xx's solo material or his remixes more, but this song might just tip the scale.


DRAKE'S REPLY TO JAY Z IN "DRAFT DAY"
Now I haven't really been paying too much attention to this whole rap industry beef between what seems to be the whole world and Drake but apparently Jay Z has said something offensive about Drake in a rap and so this is his response to that. If you are following this whole drama here is the reply. If you aren't following it, here's an enjoyable rap song sampling Lauryn Hill.


Check out the music news that you might have missed a few weeks ago here. This obviously isn't everything that has happened over the past couple of weeks so do keep an eye out for whatever else may pop out. Whilst you're supporting music - feel free to follow and support this Rock spotify playlist for a UK-wide university society competition, here.