HANKERING FOR HAIM: DAYS ARE GONE

As the title suggests, I've got a hankering for Haim.

I've had a hankering for them way back since I first heard them on Radio One mid 2012.

But let me explain to you why that is.

As  a 17 year old girl who hails from Derby, England's go to place for well... nothing,

except a nice big lake, some rather large hills and perhaps the odd Bakewell tart, Haim are like goddesses to me, what with their long sun kissed manes, irresistible Californian quirk and undeniable cool girl auras. 

They come from California, I come from Derby, they have sun spun tales of love

 and heart break all set against the backdrop of west coast USA, and if I tried capturing the essence

of the Derbyshire Dales, we'd have abstract sheep noises fused with football chants and who wants to hear that?

You look at them, and you want to be them.

You want the hair, the cool girl swag, the talent, everything.

Heck, I've even suggested to my little sis that we do a Haim and make a band and grow our hair out and make some songs and just be quintessentially cool like them.

But alas, she said no.

And anyway, it's not like we would be much competition, would we?

Because these girls are utterly fabulous, they're a force to be reckoned with, and when you stop to think about it, just as I did on my early morning trek to college, it's actually rather incredible what

they've achieved and just how they've gone about it.

Now I'm not trying to go off on a feminist rant, but in the present day music industry, lets face it, if you're a woman, you aren't going to get very far without taking your kit off and doing a 

spot of twerking or gyrating.

It has to be sexualised, it has to compromise on your dignity, your strength, your independence.

Your aesthetic is more important than your talent, it undermines it & overshadows it 

to the point where people are talking about the dress you wore (or didn't) as opposed to your integrity as an artist. 

You can claim all you like to be strong, fearless, feisty, but the reality is,

when you're standing on a stage in just your bra and pants or diamond encrusted swimming cozzie,

no matter how fabulous your body, who's really believing you?

I'm not criticizing female artists who do that, but it seems a shame that

 in this day and age, female artists have to resort to these measures to even be heard, let alone taken seriously as an artist. It isn't right.

And now back to the whole point of this article, that's why I love Haim.

 Because these are three girls who keep their clothes on, and through their sheer talent and feisty natures alone, have successfully managed to carve out a name for themselves and gain respect from the music industry's notorious top dogs.

For example in the predominantly male orientated NME, Haim, who are currently gracing the front

cover, more than hold their own against their male opposition and they are respected and revered by both NME and fellow artists, and that's really saying something.

No-one dares bad mouth them and why should they?

These girls are incredible at what they do. An all female rock band who make quality music without

taking their gear off and all whilst radiating that fearless, no bullshit vibe that challenges

 anyone to mess with them and what they do so fantastically well. 

They care about their music, they care about their craft and they've been harnessing their skills their whole lives, having played in their parents band for years.

It's all about the music, not the aesthetics, and surely that's how it's meant to be?

They're feisty females and loyal sisters who stand their ground in a male orientated world,

they've gone to town with the seemingly unachievable task of a being the first all woman band, not pop group, to be taken seriously by the music industry, and they've done it all with

a confidence and assurance that I wish I had myself, as well as a glorious long mane of hair pretty please.

And now, on the eve of the release, of the long awaited debut 'Days Are Gone', I hope that

we will be listening to and writing about these ladies for many years to come. 

They're brilliant now, but as time goes on they're going to evolve and develop their sound and become even more of a force than they are right now. 

They can only get better, and with that, here's to Haim.

Doing rock the right way, with long hair, snarls, epic guitar, Californian grace

 and your sisters right by your side.

BUY THE ALBUM: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Days-Are-Gone-Standard-Haim/dp/B00BPQC1AK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1380450798&sr=8-1&keywords=haim

DON'T SAVE ME

THE WIRE

FOREVER

A LITTLE BIT OF MONKEY MAGIC

*BIG DRUM ROLL & TRUMPETS ET AL.*

And why is that I hear you ask?

Well it's only because Turner & co are on the cusp of releasing

the hugely anticipated and phenomenal concoction 'AM'.

We've less than 24 hours to go until physical and digital copies of what could quite

possibly be the defining album of the decade  (big statement there), according to this week's NME,

which as a mega Monkeys fan I dutifully bought, as expected.

With streams of the album already online, it's safe to say a large chunk of

Britain and the rest of the world have 'got the goods' now, as Turner put it in the sublime 

'Do I Wanna Know'. So we can't exactly act surprised when we finally enlighten our lives with

some rather fookin' (they all say it in Sheffield) amazing tunes from a band that can never seem to put a foot wrong.

Even those of us who have resisted giving in to sneak previews of other album tracks,

for example the rather oddly named 'Knee Socks' or on the converse, the rather beautifully named

'Arabella' (a dedication to Arielle Vandenberg perhaps?), have still heard a good quarter of the

songs, with 'R U Mine', 'Do I Wanna Know' & 'Why'd Do You Only Call Me When You're High' (what a mouthful!) all having being released already.

Of course some of us, probably just me, have even restricted ourselves further.

It was only yesterday I gave in to the temptation of listening to 'Why'd You.....' after almost

a month's abstaining from it, which was quite painstaking as I had gone out and bought the single

the day of its release and had to turn down the radio every single time it was on.

That then involved subsequently forgetting to turn the radio back up, surely running up

huge electricity bills for my mother- a nice surprise for the end of the month when the bills come in.

I can only say I did it because I'm getting my copy of 'AM' at the start of this week,

and I will probably know all the words to all the songs by the end of the week.

And by the end of the month I will be completely and utterly satisfied.

By the time I see the Monkeys LIVE IN CONCERT AT SHEFFIELD in November ( I still can't believe

my luck, I really can't), I will be on the biggest high known to humanity.

But by January 2014, I will want more, like the greedy little madam I am.

So I need to drag out and relish 'AM' for as long as humanly possible, because we probably

won't be getting anything else till at least autumn 2015.

But that's okay, because judging by the raving 5 out of 5, 10 out of 10, reviews, we should be on track to be still be raving about 'AM' when we're all old pensioners in the nursing home way over in 2063.

So normally, I would  recommend you go buy this album,

but I'm not going to recommend it because I hope you've already got it on pre-order and are sitting at your letterbox waiting like the good little fans I know you are.

You don't need my word to know that 'AM' is truly one of the best things you will EVER HEAR,

and one of the best things you could ever spend 10 quid of your hard earned cash on.

So go, go on into the big wide world and get that Monkey Magic in your life!

STREAM IT HERE:

https://itunes.apple.com/gb/artist/id62820413

WATCH THE MONKEYS AT ITUNES AT 7:45PM HERE:

http://po.st/iTunesFestivalAM

DO I WANNA KNOW

WHY'D YOU ONLY CALL ME WHEN YOU'RE HIGH

BUY IT:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/AM-Arctic-Monkeys/dp/B00DKY4LBW

FISHING FOR GOOD MUSIC: DAN CROLL, NO NO NO, 21 PILOTS, TWO DOOR & MORE

I don't know if it's just me, but I am constantly on the look out for new music.

It doesn't matter if it's by someone completely new and totally unheard of, or whether

it's a good old established name with a gazillion grammy winning records under their belt already.

All that matters is number one: I really, really like it, and number two: it's new, because let's not

deny it, we all love discovering someone or something before everyone else does.

And that good reader, is exactly what I've been up to this week.

 As the title suggests, I've been fishing for good music and I've laid it out in a concise,

to the point style, none of the normal waffling.

For brand new artists, I've gone for a lay out which allows you to see who the artist is, 

what they're making, recommendations, whether they're your kind of thing and how to find out more.

Pretty cool huh? 

And for the others, well, I don't think any of that is needed.

We all  know how brilliant they are.

1) DAN CROLL- IN/OUT

NAME: Dan Croll

GUILTY OF: Making glorious, original, unique electro-pop fusions.

LISTEN TO: 'In/Out', 'Compliment Your Soul', 'From Nowhere'

FOR FANS OF: Little Comets, Crystal Fighters, Andy Burrows

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/dancrollmusic

WEBSITE: http://www.dancroll.com/Dan_Croll/HOME.html

YOUTUBE BOX:

IN/ OUT

FROM NOWHERE

COMPLIMENT YOUR SOUL

2) NO NO NO

NAME: NONONO

GUILTY OF: Being Swedish and making unique, uplifting, quirky tunes that scream

'FUTURE APPLE ADVERT' (and that's not a bad thing...)

LISTEN TO: 'Pumpin Blood', 'Down Under', 'Like The Wind'

FOR FANS OF: Cider Sky, Passion Pit

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/nononoofficial

WEBSITE: http://www.nononoofficial.com/?frontpage=true

PUMPIN BLOOD

(ACOUSTIC BEAUTIES)

DOWN UNDER

LIKE THE WIND

3) TWENTY ONE PILOTS

NAME: TWENTY ONE PILOTS

GUILTY OF: Being cool, original, having great fashion sense, making quirky, awesome music and

having Zane Lowe's approval, something many of us can only dream of *sigh*.

LISTEN TO: 'House Of Gold', 'Car Radio', 'Holding On To You'

FOR FANS OF: Darwin Deez, Never Shout Never, Eminem

(these are hard to compare to another artist, but if you like Eminem & indie, this is for you)

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/twentyonepilots

WEBSITE: http://www.twentyonepilots.com/

HOLDING ON TO YOU

CAR RADIO

HOUSE OF GOLD

__________________________________________________________________________

OTHER NEWBIES TO GET LISTENING TO:

TWO DOOR CINEMA CLUB

Changing of The Seasons

DRAKE

Hold On We're Going Home

ARCTIC MONKEYS

Knee Socks

JASON DERULO FT 2 CHAINZ

Talk Dirty

THE 1975

Girls

JOHN NEWMAN

Cheating

ENJOY!

Leave us your feedback below or message on twitter at @teepotmusic!

SOUNDBITE: CATCHING COLDPLAY- THE NEW SONG

COLDPLAY- ATLAS

Been suffering from Coldplay withdrawal symptoms? 

The Mylo Xyloto blues? 

Well my dear readers, Chris & co. are back, at least for now anyway,

and they've brought with them an exciting new record to keep us all satisfied

until the highly anticipated follow up to 2011's phenomenal worldwide success 'Mylo Xyloto',

which many expect to be released sometime in 2014.

And this little beauty is called 'Atlas'.

It's the first soundtrack to be released from Novemeber's second installment of the

incredibly succesful Hunger Games series, 'Catching Fire' and co-incidentally

it's also the first song Coldplay have ever written for a film soundtrack.

Pretty cool huh?

The song itself is pure Coldplay but as we all know, that's exactly

 what they do best. It's beautiful, it's haunting yet uplifting, it's stunning and 

absolutely captures the whole feel and essence of the 'Hunger Games'.

'Atlas' could easily stand for a single in it's own right,

and you can't help but speculate if this indicative of what is to come.

It bares no relation to hits such as 'Paradise' or 'Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall',

in fact it's probably a relative of 2002's 'A Rush of Blood To The Head' or 2005's 'X&Y',

but it's still very original and I don't know about you but I love the entwinement between

haunting and uplifting.

It shouldn't work, but it does. 

It really, really does.

Judge for yourself right here....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lh3TokLzzmw&hd=1

SOUND BITE: BIRDY SPREADS HER WINGS

BIRDY-WINGS

The 17 year old English-Flemish beauty is back with her second album, 'Fire Within', expected

for release on 23rd of September, and the first single she has chosen to release is the

irrefutable gem 'Wings'. 

After seeing much success with her debut self titled album back in Autumn 2011, Birdy rose

to fame with her series of utterly beautiful covers and a number of self written tracks.

You'll remember her most for her stunning cover of Bon Iver's 'Skinny Love' or Cherry Ghost's 

'People Help The People', both of which went down a storm on UK radio stations,

particularly Radio One, helping Birdy to, dare I make the pun, fly, even further.

And now with album number two, Birdy is able to really flex her wings (cheesy pun I know),

and she has progressed to writing more of her own material.

With her debut 'Birdy', it was apparent that this girl had talent by the bucket load.

An emotive, rich, beautiful voice that when put to music and to good use, can bring any lyrics

or material to life and help it to resonate even further with the listening audience.

However a decision was made, either by the record company or Birdie herself, to demonstate

her amazing abilities via a cover album. An indeed 'Birdy' is a truly stunning offer yes, but

I think many of us wanted to see Birdy combine her voice with her own material.

Because an artist instantly increases in credibility when they can both sing and produce their

own material that is equally good. 

So the question was with Birdy, could she do it?

Well the answer is a definite yes, as her new single 'Wings' shows.

And judging by this, her new album is going to be a real beauty.

Birdy's own material is strong, well made, passionate, emotive, and of course compliments

her gorgeous voice even better than before. 

She is also an artist who is accessible to people of all ages, and although obviously

a younger audience is probably better suited as she is only seventeen herself, there's no doubt

that a Birdy gig will contain older, maturer fans who relate to the wise-beyond-her-years element

that is present in her music.

I suppose in some respects, you could hail Birdy as the new Taylor Swift.

I personally, as a seventeen year girl, can relate to her music in that sense, especially as the music

resonates more when the artist is similar in age to yourself or singing about topics in a way you can relate to.

However as Taylor ventures  further into the world of country-pop and global super stardom,

Birdy is a breath of fresh air, adopting a similar approach -young adult/teen trying to make sense of love, life etc.- but from a completely different perspective.

And the result is something genuinely commendable, stunning and unique.

So as Birdy soars to the next stage of her blossoming music career, you

may just want to be flying along behind her, because this is a young woman who really is quite something.

And I mean that in the absolute best way possible.

WINGS
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJTXDCh2YiA

ALL YOU NEVER SAY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6iB5MLmmgyE

BOTH OFF OF 'FIRE WITHIN' OUT SEPTEMBER 23RD

https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/fire-within/id673276899

KATY PERRY AND LADY GAGA COMEBACK CLASH

Two Queens of Pop. Two comebacks. Two fierce new songs.

Two leaks in the same week.

Uh-oh....

So who comes out victorious?

KATY PERRY- ROAR

First up we have Miss Perry.

A firm favourite for her sharp sense of humour, lovable personality and fun, fierce, flirty brand 

of pop, Katy's comeback after the huge success of 2011's 'Teenage Dream' has been long awaited.

She's weathered a divorce and found a new romance in the shape of a certain

John Mayer, she's made movies, she's won awards... 

Yet as the 'Teenage Dream' phase was coming to and end, it's fair to say that Katy was in vulnerable and emotional place, as her brilliant and much deserved success was marred by a difficult and public divorce 

from comedian and actor Russell Brand. 

As she put it herself, she was 'falling from cloud nine', and it was this time in her life that inspired hits such as 

'Part of Me' and 'Wide Awake'.

However it's 2013 now, and having been able to close the previous chapter of her life and start afresh, pursuing a new romance and channeling her emotions and feelings into music, Katy, it appears, has never felt stronger. And that's exactly the stance she has chosen to adopt for album number three, 'Prism'.

Katy isn't the damaged, broken, vulnerable women anymore,

Oh no.

New single 'Roar' proudly declares the exact opposite.

It's a fierce, strong, defiant single that empowers anyone who listens to it.

It's written by a woman who's gone through the worst and come out at her very best.

She may be in a steady relationship, but 'Roar' suggests  a woman who is independent, wise, brave 

and with a steadfast refusal to be beaten, knocked down.

It's all very inspiring stuff and I am genuinely pleased for Katy.

I really do believe that this could be the most successful phase of her career, eclipsing the huge success of 'Teenage Dream' and why?

Because the music Katy is making now is personal, it's powerful, it's inspiring, and there is no doubt 

that Katy will be reaching out to an even bigger audience who can relate to and take

 something away from Katy's music.

She's an inspiring woman. She's taken the worst of her life and made it into something that will surely produce the best of her life. She's survived and  as she rightly declares, she's back with an almighty roar.

LISTEN: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9SeJIgWRPk

___________________________________________________________________

LADY GAGA- APPLAUSE

And next up we have a certain Gaga.

After exploding onto the pop scene in 2008 with 'Just Dance', Gaga has been creating

 a humongous stir, what with her insane, wacky, imaginative outfits and consistent stream of pop hits, many of which will most likely evolve to become true classics, for the last five years.

2008's debut 'The Fame' quickly gave way to 2011's 'Born This Way' and it seemed as though 

Gaga rarely had time to pause for breath. If she wasn't decked out in her Kermit collection or wrapped up 

in meat like a human sausage roll, she was releasing hit after hit, releasing award after award and making sure her presence on the music scene could not be forgotten.

And of course it wasn't, how could it be?

It takes a lot to forget a woman who's idea of casual is to go out in her undies, and whose preferred 

evening look is that of a bacon rasher.

However it has to be said that in this fifteen minutes of fame society, once the spotlight had shifted to the next biggest star, Gaga moved to the back of the queue and speculation began to build regarding how she could

top the incredible achievements she'd made with her first two albums.

Yet over the last couple of years, Gaga has taken a step back from the limelight and toned

herself down. She's fallen in love, she's found an identity that seems to sit just right- unique, different, slightly strange yet beautiful, strong, feminine- and she's been working away on

a new album, 'ARTPOP', which seems to be the album she's felt most passionately about. 

Gaga's undergone a transformation whilst retaining her key, core elements.

And the buzz is building once more.

Like Katy Perry, Gaga's new offering, 'Applause', leaked before it's release date,

with many genuinely curious to see just what Gaga had to pull out the hat this time.

And she's got a good'un alright. 

In comparison to her previous work, 'Applause' is perhaps not as strong, but it's catchy, it's

well made pop, and hopefully it is only a taste of what is to come.

Because knowing Gaga, this is probably not the best she has, oh no, she probably has

a magical array of incredible songs up her sleeve just waiting to be released to the world.

With 'Applause', you can't help but think that she has released it to satisfy the growing appetite of her fans and public for new music. And the leak was something she couldn't ignore, so she has been forced to release it and use the generated publicity to her advantage.

Had she had the choice, I don't think she would've made 'Applause' her first single, but seeing as the choice was taken out of her hands, she's done well to ride the waves and I cannot wait to see what she has yet to show us. 

LISTEN TO IT: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ld9cZ7d_2A

___________________________________________________________________

SO WHO WINS?

Well there's absolutely no doubt that both will be greeted to much success with their respective releases,

however personally, based on their first singles, I believe it's a victory for Miss Perry in terms of her music.

She's entering what I believe will be one of the most successful phases of her career and I really do admire Katy for coming out the other side fighting strong. That will resonate with people most definitely.

So it's a victory for Katy right now.

But Gaga is most likely to sell a landslide, shedload and tsunami of albums and she will do incredibly well, of course. She deserves it. As does Katy, because ultimately, they are both strong, independent, admirable women who live and breathe their craft and each deserves every bit of success that comes their way.

PRISM- OUT 22ND OCTOBER 2013

ARTPOP- OUT 11TH NOVEMBER 2013

SOUND BITE: KINGS OF LEON NEW

-I've come up with a new feature called 'Sound Bite' which is going to be quick snippet on a new song that you need to listen to, so you can get your music fix quick and  whilst simultaneously being one step ahead of the crowd. How cool is that?! And the first soundbite is dedicated to.... Kings of Leon!-

KINGS OF LEON- SUPERSOAKER

So Kings of Leon are back with new release 'Supersoaker', off of eagerly anticipated upcoming album 

number six, 'Mechanical Bull', which is due for release on the 24th of September.

It's patriotic, it's got Caleb's croon, it's got heart, beats, guitars, the catchy hook line...it's everything you could want from Nashville's finest.

'Supersoaker' makes for a truly brilliant comeback for the quartet, who've taken a detour from the music scene after 2010's 'Come Around Sundown', which succeeded the euphoric success of 2008's 'Only By The Night' which produced hits such as 'Sex on Fire' and 'Use Somebody'. 

After initial doubt that 'Come Around...' could be their last album, after dispute and arguments within the band, KOL are back on fine form, and judging by 'Supersoaker', we're in for a real treat with 'Mechanical Bull', with the Followill family back on track, making the fantastic music that we've been enjoying for the last 10 years or so.

YOUTUBE IT: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izzY55ACUQo

NEW SONGS (& MAD SOUNDS) FROM ARCTIC MONKEYS

Okay so it's time for yet another Monkeys update!

I'm sorry as it's all I seem to be writing about lately but this is rather important stuff, so it's getting pride of place. Now I'm writing today because over this weekend, the Monkeys have debuted another new song, 'Mad Sounds', at their two Scandinavian festival dates and I really urge you to take a listen to it.

Although the song only exists through fan footage at the moment, the song still shines through and it's good enough quality for you to be able to reach a valid conclusion on the song itself.

When I read that the Monkeys had debuted another song, as I conducted my daily NME stalk at college this morning, I literally jumped up and down in my seat- and I was in the library too (gasp!). 

And when I saw it was called 'Mad Sounds', I was expecting some crazy ass tune like 'Brick by Brick' or something related to the brash, loud, catchy little numbers on 'Favourite Worst Nightmare'.

I was wrong. 

Contrary to what the title suggests, this new tune is ironically probably the furthest away from a mad sound you could get. I don't quite know what Mr Turner means when he says 'Mad Sounds', as fan footage makes it difficult to depict his lyrics. But he certainly doesn't mean the song itself.

'Mad Sounds' is a little but slower with links to 'Suck It And See' here and there although it's still keeping in line with the sound heard on 'Do I Wanna Know'. In all honesty, it sounds great.
I for one was very impressed and enthusiastically tapped my foot along whilst nodding my head in a very approving manner indeed.

The Monkeys have currently upgraded previous newbie 'Do I Wanna Know' to top of the bill whilst 'Mad Sounds' has been slotted between 'Suck It and See' and 'R U Mine'. The positioning of 'Mad Sounds' in the setlist seems to be deliberate as it does provide a perfect transition between the two songs.

When listening to 'Mad Songs' you can hear distinct elements from both songs, as I noted in particular some Suck It & See-esque riffs and sounds that seemed to have an 'R U Mine'-esque overlay. 

If this is the direction the AM's are choosing to head in then I can definitely agree that they've chosen a fabulous route to go down. It's just fantastic, it really is.

Their sound has evolved in the sense that it's more mature and as Alex and co. edge nearer their thirties, this was only inevitable. The relief is that like a good piece of cheese or wine, time is doing wonders for their sound, it really is. It's mellower, maturer and almost wiser, as if they are completely in control. 

It's self assured and we all know Alex is a fan of a good croon, especially as his covers tend to be of softer, richer, accoustic led records that clearly suit his versatile voice. 

But don't you worry, I'm pretty certain that album number five will have a couple of 'Brick by Brick' like bangers here and there. 

It is the Arctic Monkeys after all.

And finally as for the Arctic Monkeys timeline, I have to make a few amendments:

'Do I Wanna Know' now has an official video on You Tube and as of today can be bought
officially on iTunes! It's sounding absolutely fantastic and with the proper sound quality
you'll find you can appreciate the record a whole lot more.

So it seems that the Monkeys are taking advantage of the Glasto platform after all.

If anything, it will build up hype for the new album as Glasto is such a major festival both here in the UK and worldwide. Obviously 'Do I Wanna Know' and 'Mad Sounds' are going to be on the bill, and I would think another newbie or two will probably be added as well.

It's likely a major music magazine, probably NME, will do some sort of feature on Glasto and the Monkeys, within the next few weeks too so keep your eyes open!

From what I can tell, this album will probably be the one to propel the Monkeys to that last step of being the  best British band out there. They've practically there anyway, but I'm positive that this album will be the one to cement that status for definite. 

I ain't monkeying around.

(Bad pun, but I don't think you 'wanna know')

Ha.

MAD SOUNDS: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dS6GtoJNks
OFFICIAL VIDEO FOR 'DO I WANNA KNOW: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpOSxM0rNPM
BUY THE SONG: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/do-i-wanna-know-single/id660331528?affId=1930871
OTHER ARCTIC MONKEYS INFO: http://teepotmusic.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/new-arctic-monkeys-tune-monkeys-are-back.html
WEBSITE: http://www.arcticmonkeys.com/
NME: http://www.nme.com/news/arctic-monkeys/70884