Paloma Faith has released the video to her latest track Can’t Rely On You, that will feature on her third album A perfect Contradition which follows later this year. The soulful song was written especially for Paloma by Pharrell Williams, who also produces the single and appears as a backing vocalist. Meeting at the infamous Met Ball, Pharrell walked over to the British singer and sang a rendition of her own track New York, before taking her phone, adding his details and saying he wanted to work with her. The song, which is released February 23rd, is the outcome of that random encounter. The album is set to be the most upbeat Paloma has ever made, going back to her soul-girl roots with diverse influences such as 1960’s girl groups, ‘70’s disco and early 1980’s soul.
FEATHERS, the female four-piece from Austin Texas are starting off 2014 by releasing a new EP. Out on Monday 13th January, Only One will feature new tracks Wild Love and The Only One, as well as never heard before remixes of Believe and Familiar So Strange, both of which were originally released on the band’s debut album If All Here Now. A Twin favourite, FEATHERS atmospheric synth sound translates beautifully onstage with front-woman Anastasia Dimou’s mesmerising stage presence. With their European tour, supporting Depeche Mode, they will be heading to the UK at the end of January and have planned a headlinning gig at Birthday’s February 1st, giving you plenty of chances to see them live.
Iconic artist Prince is coming out with a new album from 3RDEYEGIRL tentatively titled “Plectrum Electrum,” in the early part of the year.
Last week he performed three consecutive house packed shows for fans at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut. Prince, backed by members of both NEW POWER GENERATION and his new rock group 3RDEYEGIRL, ended 2013 with a bang that is still echoing through media and fan responses. 2014 is anticipated to be a big year for Prince.
Check out live performance clips from Sunday here:
The fifth solo studio album from Beyoncé is now available worldwide, exclusively on the iTunes Store. The self-titled set is the artist’s first visual album.
BEYONCÉ is infused with 14 new songs and 17 visually stunning, provocative videos shot around the world from Houston to New York City to Paris, and Sydney to Rio de Janeiro, all before the album’s release.
“I see music,” says Beyoncé about her decision to create a visual album. “It’s more than just what I hear. When I’m connected to something, I immediately see a visual or a series of images that are tied to a feeling or an emotion, a memory from my childhood, thoughts about life, my dreams or my fantasies. And they’re all connected to the music.”
If you happen to be in New York tomorrow, don’t miss out Tinderbox Music Festival, which is an annual event showcasing a powerful and diverse lineup of emerging female artists producing innovative original music.
Rooted in the vibrant New York City music scene, Tinderbox fosters community by providing opportunities to perform, collaborate, and connect. Tinderbox donates its net proceeds to programs involved in empowering the next generation of female artists including GIRLS WRITE NOW, an organization providing guidance and opportunities for NYC’s underserved high school girls to develop their independent voices and explore careers in professional writing, and the WILLIE MAE ROCK CAMP FOR GIRLS, a non- profit music and mentoring program empowering girls and women through music education and activities, and the TINDERBOX SONGWRITING WORKSHOP, a program pairing established NYC female musicians with adolescent female songwriters to create and perform original songs.
The festival is held at the Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn, New York. Doors open at 5pm.
Alexander Tucker and Daniel O’ Sullivan are the super-duo behind Grumbling Fur. Their new album which came out in July has had great reviews and today Twin is excited to premiere their new video for the track Protogenesis, via Thrill Jockey.
The both are veterans of the UK experimental underground and their sound is recognized for its pulsating bass and rhythmic synth beats.
The track Protogenesis, is made up by a synth line with a constant beat, and as the track progresses the duo’s warm, echoing vocals breaks through. The psychedelic inspired video is directed by the very talented Mark Titchner, English artist and a nominee for the 2006 Turner Prize.
Start your week by listening to the hypnotizing sound and get lost by the blending colors. And if you want a copy of the album, you can order it here thrilljockey.com
Fresh from spinning the decks at menswear fashion week after parties, the dapper Parisian DJ Jérémie Khlat talks to Twin about all things music, plus offers up an exclusive summer mix to get us in the mood for the sun…
How and when did you get into deejaying?
I got into it years ago when I was the art director of Chacha Club in Paris. I was hanging around DJs and finishing late sets got me really into it. I then began to deejay a lot for fashion events and got to build my own DJ style. I became the main DJ and booker for Montana club 3 years ago, that’s when everything kicked off for me. I spinned around the world for the big fashion houses, also doing their sound design for catwalks. I’ve always loved music from being a kid. My family is very into music – my father is an opera musician – and I grew up in this world full of jazz and opera. This is mixed with my generation of music: old hip hop, good rock and pop music.
What is on your personal playlist at the moment?
I download lots of new music all the time – new remixes, covers, bands or albums – but to be honest, I’m usually more into old stuff like disco and rock n roll classics. I love the new Sky Ferreira songs at the moment. She’s pretty amazing and has her own soul, which I like and you can feel it in her work. I’m also really into the new Phoenix songs, they’re the best band ever to me.
Where are your favourite places to DJ?
I love Montana in Paris obviously, I ran that place and it’s where you could just feel free and have the best fun. But I’ve always loved deeyjaying in NYC, where I just recently moved to. Deejaying at Le Baron in NY is cool because the atmosphere can be close to the Paris clubs. I’m also really enjoying the Electric Room with fellow DJs Elle Dee and Kieren Taylor. That club is mostly about rock n’ roll and indie, which is definitely more my type.
What are the best secret hangouts in Paris?
If I told you then it wouldn’t be a secret anymore 😉 Stolly’s bar in the Marais is definitely the place to go, they have good rock n roll / punk playlist, the crowd is amazing, the bartender Louison is the sweetest; it’s like Cabin in NY. Re clubs its not a secret anymore…Montana to me is the perfect place to enjoy a night. The little bars are cool too, like Dirty Dicks in Pigalle (they have the best cocktails), Cafe de Flore in St Germain, Brasserie le Mansart in the 9e or the Le Carmen basement room which is run by my best friend & DJ partner Adrien Wend.
But Paris has a lot of great flat parties, that’s where the fun is at…
What is your guilty pleasure song?
My guilty pleasure songs are mostly the ones aren’t that ‘cool’ anymore but I loved during my teenage years, like the old Robyn song from 15 years ago, or some cheesy disco that always makes you want to dance like crazy. Saying that, I’m not really into commercial songs. I always love a good big new hip hop song, violent and aggressive, or very occasionally a pop song, but I couldn’t tell you, I still want people to hire me [laughs].
What’s coming up for you this summer?
Well, I just moved to NY recently, and now will be in between Paris and NY most of the time to deejay, doing sound design and event hosting. It’s been busy so far with Coachella and Cannes film festival where I have deejayed for many years now. This summer I’ll probably split my time between the Hamptons, Montauk and NY. I’ll go to Europe in August as usual, to see the family and rest in Corsica and the south of France.
NY Indie-Summer Twin Magazine mix by Jérémie Khlat
Feat. Joy Division, The Preatures, Cocovan, The Royal concept, Charli XCX, Fashions, NONONO, Phoenix, Trails and ways, DEJA, Paul Simon, Flight facilities, RAC, Sky Ferreira, Krystal Klear, Spies on Bikes, Carousel, Major Lazer, The Embassy, Kisses, Beach day, Active child, The Chromatics.
Illusions Of
This week we’re loving the hypnotic new single by one-woman-show Charli XCX and NY beatmaker J£ZUS MILLION. The track ‘Illusions Of ‘ marks the producer’s debut single and the duo’s third collaboration.
The single will be featured on DoubleDenimVol. 1, the young record’s label first compilation disc which will also feature tracks by the likes of Outfit, Empress Of, Amateur Best, Brolin, Body Language and Celestial Shore.
Music recommendations don’t come much better than from innovative songstress, Grimes, who has described Canadian pop singer Caila Thompson-Hannant aka Mozart’s Sister as her biggest inspiration.
With her new Hello EP out now, there’s no reason not to check out her self-described #pinkdepression tunes.
This week marked the release of If All Now Here, the debut LP from Feathers. The girl band from Austin performed last Thursday at The Old Blue Last, giving a hypnotic performance. Undeniably cool, these girls play powerful electronic pop ballads. Anastasia Dimou’s alluring stage presence and ethereal voice created a certain other-worldly ambiance, one that the girls manage to combine with a pop sensibility.
After their performance last week we can’t wait to hear the full album. You can buy it here.
Next month marks the release of Baz Luhrmann's eagerly anticipated film adaption of TheGreatGatsby. The soundtrack seems to be racking up as many stars as the movie, with Lana Del Rey's offering of YoungAndBeautiful already garnering thousands of listens on Soundcloud. Del Rey – who wrote the track with Rick mobile casino Nowels – recently described Luhrmann's take on the F Scott Fitzgerald classic as “highly glamorous and exciting”.
The ballad features haunting vocals typical of Del Rey's style, with dreamy strings and insecure lyrics. Jay-Z has curated the overall soundtrack, which also includes Beyoncé, Florence The Machine, Andre 3000, Fergie, Jack White, will.i.am and Emeli Sandé.
The Great Gatsby debuts on May 16 in the UK with the soundtrack set to release on May 7.
Last night saw the launch of Uniqlo’s latest venture which brings together the worlds of fashion, music and art. The initiative has made its way to cities such as Tokyo, New York, Paris and Singapore, and now it’s London’s turn. The UT POP-UP is an unique concept gallery space which opens to the public today, located at The Hoxton Gallery at the Arch on Kingsland Road.
The gallery will have different art installations each weekend from renowned London-based artists Damian Weighill and Dan Freeman which look at music and art as themes, as well as a pop-up UT (UNIQLO T-shirt) store and events. There will be a private screening of the documentary on the life of Keith Haring at the UNIQLO Secret UT Cinema tonight. Other events at the concept gallery space include UNIQLO UT Sessions, a live recording session with Charlie Boyer and the Voyeurs on Friday 26th April and the UNIQLO Record Fair on Saturday 27th April.
Everything is Embarrassing was labelled as one of the best pop songs of 2012 by many within the music blogosphere last year, so with her much-delayed debut album finally scheduled for release this spring, Roulet t ar ett spel som har passat mig riktigt bra eftersom man inte behover fruktansvart mycket i insats, samtidigt som det ar latt och enkelt att spela. all eyes and ears are firmly fixed on the 20 year old musician, model and muse, Sky Ferreira.
Although Ferreira”s Everything Is Embarrassing EP has been available to buy in the US since late last year, it will be officially released in the UK tomorrow.
Twin Sunday Soundtrack – Bleached
What can I say about Bleached… Firstly, they are two sisters (Jennifer and Jessica) who are effortlessly oozing the Twingirl attitude and energy. They follow no rules. But perhaps if they did, the pair’s understanding of regulative instruction would probably be something rather similar to those catchy slogans you find printed on stereotypical punk tees at festivals and Camden Market: ‘Live fast, die young,‘ ‘No Regrets,’ ‘Rock ‘till you die.’ The title of their debut album, ‘Ride Your Heart’ is another addition to this Bleached-Rule-Book…
Secondly, they also create some pretty awesome music. The sound is rough yet melodic, focused yet loud – Essentially a wonderful gnarly noise of bouncy punk-pop reminiscent of the music produced by fellow Rockin’ ladies, Vivian Girls and Wild Flag.
Ride you Heart is released tomorrow, followed by an extensive European tour.
With only five years together as a band, the effect that The Smiths have had on music, culture, and if you’re a fan of Morrissey, pretty much anything, is unbelievable. It seems there is an insatiable thirst for more from the infamous four that split 26 years ago – and that is where the Institute of Contemporary Art steps in.
Smithsfest is a two-day festival running this weekend at the Strand gallery, comprised of talks, performance, art and film, with the purpose to survey the artistic and cultural impact of The Smiths. A barber offering Moz-esque quiffs, a Q&A with SaintMorrissey author Mark Simpson and 80s DJ sets late into the night means that this will undoubtedly be the last weekend of any importance.
This week we’ve been lusting over a girl. In particular a Girl Called Johnny – the latest musical project from ex-Ramona vocalist and front-woman, Karen Anne. The debut single Heaven Knows is a beautiful story of heartache and lost love featuring catchy heartfelt lyrics that can undoubtedly relate to any twenty-something-year-old girl (even those not called Johnny).
Since going solo, Karen has embraced the opportunity to create a completely personalised record whilst swapping Ramona’s staple punk-rock sound for a refreshingly mellow indie approach reminiscent of early sixties mod-pop, “Ray Davis is a major influence – he writes the most beautiful lyrics, especially about London,” she told Twin. “Also a lot of the other bands I love like The Smiths and New York Dolls are influenced by all the sixties’ girl bands so I guess it all comes from the same place…”
As well as her music, Karen Anne has also become renowned for her sugary-sweet boyish looks (think Debbie Harry meets Edie Sedgwick) after posing as the face of Burberry back in 2011. However music is most certainly on the top of her to-do list for 2013. “Expect an album for sure, I’m also working on a new video right now which is exciting!”
Twin decided to get to know A Girl Called Johnny with a quick either/or game…
Colleen Green is a single guitar, a drum machine and a pair of oversized sunglasses, whose catchy, fuzzy tunes fuse Nineties surf rock with pop-punk… If California were a sound, it would be the sound of Colleen Green.
Time In The World is the first song to be taken from her latest album, Sock It To Me available from 19th March with HardlyArt.
For this week’s Sunday Soundtrack we’re stealing time with Stealing Sheep, three very lovely Liverpool lasses (Emily, Rebecca and Lucy) whose shared love for three-part-harmonies, whiskey and an eclectic mix of experimental music genres first brought them together back in the summer of 2010. Their debut album Into the Diamond Sun was one of the most exciting new releases of last year that subsequently took them on numerous adventures touring around the UK and Europe. Twin spoke to the musical trio to discuss future plans, the Merseyside music scene and telepathic dinosaurs…
Your music has been described as everything from psych pagan folk to post-punk pop, but how would you describe your sound?
We’d say something like… dreamy, doom pop with hypnotic boomy beats, slinky pitch bendy guitars, voodoo folk harmonies, 60’s drone Synths and 16-bit fantasy style keyboards frilled with accidental percussions such as zithers, tuned cow bells and far away howls.
You’ve just finished supporting Villagers on their UK tour – how was that? Do you currently have plans for any other live shows coming up soon?
It was really nice – they are sound lads – very down to earth and into whiskey just like us! We went straight to Europe after that to join Alt-J (who we also toured with before Christmas) and that was well fun. It was great to see them again and watching them play was as great as ever! We’re looking forward to the festivals next and our dates supporting The Postal Service.
What ideas inspire your music?
We play a word game in the car. It goes like: Moon. Spoon. Lagoon. Lilly. Pond. Fish. Plate…etc. You sort of say whatever that word reminds you of and only get a split second to say it so it’s random and fresh. We write it down and put the words together to see what we can create. In Paris last weekend we created a Telepathic Dinosaur with a Death Mind. So that’s the start of a couple of new songs or a new illustration, animation, music video idea… anything! We also listen to loads of music on tour. We listen to anything from composers such as Gustav Holst (The Planets) and Vernon Elliott (Noggin the Nog and Clangers), to Alt-J or Ariel Pink. This really inspires a mixed bag of ideas.
You were one of the coolest new female bands of 2012 – who are you keeping your eye on for 2013?
Girl band wise we’d say Novella and Pins are looking pretty hot!
You girls are all originally from Liverpool – tell us a bit about the music scene there?
…and we’re still here! There’s a good healthy mix of old and new bands. They’re all pretty diverse and doing their own thing. There’s a really cool art collective called The Kazimier and they run a club and do loads of performing arts style nights which are really inspiring musically and visually. There is such a great crowd of amazing artists and musicians so it’s great to be here and be part of it!
Female solo artists seem to be dominating the music world as of late but there are still very few all female bands out there in comparison – why do you think that is? Is there an additional pressure on females trying to make it in the music industry?
Maybe fewer girls are interested in being in bands? We’re not sure really. We like working together but not necessarily because we’re all girls. We’re all into having three-part harmonies and naturally interested in similar things. Maybe with all girl bands you find a nice intuitive level between you because of how the female brain differs creatively… or does it? Music industry wise, there are different kinds of pressures for all bands depending on your genre and style. Whether you’re targeting audiences that are interested in the music or the style or the looks. It all depends what you are in it for, it’s how you perceive it. We don’t want to be pressured into anything: if we don’t want to do it, we won’t. So I guess it’s simple. It’s all to do with how strong-minded you are!
What can we expect from Stealing Sheep in the near future?
We’re designing costumes, new music videos, writing new material and we’re touring a hell of a lot, so come an’ see us!
It was back in May of last year when the Scandinavian siren, Beatrice Eli, first stole our hearts. Now with her latest single ‘It’s Over’ and a new EP due for a worldwide release later this month, we’re ready to fall in love all over again…
Nottingham singer-songwriter Indiana has one of those honest voices. A simple and pure voice that refreshingly undermines the generic pop auto tuned screaming that seems to be the norm. Young but sure of herself, Indiana’s recent single Blind As I Am was listed in the BBC Introducing Picks Of 2013 and she is now set to play her first London Show on March 14th. Intrigued by her talent (and tear jerking rendition of Frank Ocean’s Swim Good), Twin spoke to Indiana as she reveals the story behind her journey into music, her creative influences and goals to take over the world.
Was there a key moment that inspired you to pursue music?
It was kind of accidental. My sister has always been in to music – she also sings, writes and plays the piano. She was moving house and couldn’t fit her piano in her new place so I offered to store it in my dinning room. I just kept having a play about on it every time I walked past and so I taught myself to play and began writing my own songs. They were terrible… I think I’ve made some progression…hopefully!
You voice has a beautiful vulnerability to it – is vulnerability key to your music?
I think connection is key, if I feel vulnerable it comes across. If I feel menacing I believe you can hear that too. Depends what I’ve written about.
What are your views on being a musician at present? Do you reckon it’s harder or easier to make it as a musician now?
I have nothing to compare it to – I’m new to the game in a lot of ways. I’m just happy I’ve found a passion that I’m relatively good at and I’m able to call it a career.
Your cover of Frank Ocean’s Swim Good is haunting and delicate – what drove you to cover that song specifically?
I thought the song was cool, it was John’s idea (my co-writer) but it wasn’t until I’d learnt the lyrics that I felt a huge and haunting connection with the song….i’m actually crying towards the end of it.
Are you a fan of Frank Ocean?
Massive fan. He brings something new to music, which is something I aspire to do. I love experimenting with production. He takes chances and pulls them off, I hope I can do the same.
Who are your top 5 influences?
Gary Numan
The XX
Alt J
James Blake (Retrograde makes me feel like everything I’ve ever written is crap)
Portishead
Have you encountered any obstacles in your musical journey – from the industry or otherwise?
Radio play. It annoys me how much rubbish gets on to the Radio 1 playlist. There are so many credible artists and such a vast amount of amazing music that can only be heard in the early hours of the morning, yet we have to endure Pitbull when the sun’s up!
What are your ambitions – in your music and life?
I’ve always dreamt of a stadium of people singing the lyrics of one of my songs back to me.
What would you say is you life philosophy?
When writing an album think “all killer no filler!”
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