Leeds heroes ‘Velvit’ drop rocking new single ‘Dig’

VELVIT are the product of a love for hard hitting rock and the need to rave ! The band consists of 4 friends drawn to the sunny banks of Leeds. The full band line up consists of Harry, Tom, Chris and Josh who met whilst studying at Leeds College of Music after each individually deciding there was nothing else for them. Their unique blend of mosh and dance creates a spectacle you do not want to miss. The band share influences from a range of genres including Alternative Rock to 90’s Rave. Gaining inspiration from Leeds’ vast underground dance scene and their love for classic rock legends such as Audioslave and Pink Floyd. They have been playing music together for the past 4 years with various versions of the band playing up and down the country. In this time they opened for chart placing bands such as Glass Caves, headlined Merrion St Festival and playing a sold out night in their home town of Leeds. When the final four first got together they knew they could create something fun, refreshing and unique combining basement eats with arena ready riffs and VELVIT was born. VELVIT recorded their Debut single ‘Dig’ back […]

÷ (Deluxe) – Ed Sheeran

Flame-haired singer/songwriter, beatboxer, and guitarist Ed Sheeran’s eclectic blend of acoustic pop, folk, and hip-hop has been championed by everyone from the underground grime scene to American Oscar winners. Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England in 1991, Sheeran released his first EP, The Orange Room, while still at school, and his first two albums — his self-titled debut and Want Some — by the age of 16. After moving to London to gain more live experience, his performance of the self-penned “You Need Me, I Don’t Need You” on YouTube channel SB.tv gained half-a-million viewers and attracted the attention of actor/R&B star Jamie Foxx, who invited him to appear on his Los Angeles Sirius radio show. Securing a deal with Elton John’s management company, he supported Example on his U.K. tour and, after signing with Atlantic, became just the third artist to score a Top 75 album purely on download sales, when his No. 5 Collaborations project, a star-studded seven-track EP featuring Wiley, JME, and Devlin, charted at number 47 in 2011. That same year he released the Loose Change EP (which featured the smash hit single “The A Team”) and his major-label debut studio album + (“Plus”). + was […]

Vivaldi: Le quattro stagioni (The Four Seasons) – Rachel Podger & Brecon Baroque

Rachel Podger, Baroque violinist, is known for her highly accurate, virtuosic playing, outstanding musicianship and understanding of period style, and a cheerful, warm, and decidedly non-stuffy stage presence. Her father was British and her mother German. She was educated in Germany at a Rudolf Steiner school and studied violin. When she returned to England she continued violin studies with David Perry, then was admitted to the Guildhall School of Music and Drama with Pauline Scott and David Takeno as her teachers. She asked to be allowed to study Baroque violin as well as the standard violin with modern set-up, but was told the only Baroque fiddle was already given out to another student. In addition, as she said, “It wasn’t really the thing to do in your first year. You were supposed to establish your technique.” She did not let this stop her, “So I got hold of an instrument and did it anyway.” She surreptitiously took Baroque violin lessons with Micaela Coberti at the Guildhall and often visited Cambridge where her brother, singer Julian Podger, had founded a small ensemble called Trinity Baroque and gave her a chance to play some of the central Baroque repertory. From her second […]

COSMIC – Bazzi

R&B-influenced pop singer/songwriter Bazzi hit the mainstream after finding viral success with his breakthrough single, “Mine.” Born Andrew Bazzi to Lebanese-American parents in Dearborn, Michigan, he was a natural performer from a young age, imitating Elvis and Ricky Martin as a child and later playing oud and acoustic guitar. At the end of high school, he moved to Los Angeles with his father to pursue a music career. In addition to building an audience online, he appeared on Fancy Cars’ single “Fun” in 2016. Influenced by the likes of Justin Timberlake and Bryson Tiller, he released his solo debut, “Alone,” soon after. In 2017 he issued the singles “Sober,” “Beautiful,” and “Got Friends?,” but it wasn’t until “Mine” went viral with the help of an Internet meme that his audience grew. With its smooth, breezy sound, the romantic “Mine” became a streaming hit and landed Bazzi on the Billboard Hot 100 in January 2018. His debut full-length, COSMIC, arrived months later. Featuring additional singles “Gone” and “Honest,” the set debuted at 35 on the Billboard 200. ~ Neil Z. Yeung Get this now from: https://www.apple.com/uk/itunes

Heaven Before All Hell Breaks Loose – Plan B

British MC and actor Plan B (real name: Ben Drew) came to notice with “Cap Back,” a playful, Wiley-referencing track produced by Roll Deep’s Wonder that appeared on the 679 label’s Run the Road compilation in 2005. Signed to 679’s roster, the London native proceeded to release a handful of singles across 2005 and 2006, which culminated in his debut album, Who Needs Actions When You Got Words. With its Meat Puppets-referencing title, and tracks featuring clever samples of Hall & Oates, the Prodigy, and Gary Puckett & the Union Gap (often with acoustic guitars over shuffling breakbeats), the album made it clear that there was no easy way to classify the MC. Released in 2010, The Defamation of Strickland Banks — not just an album but also a short film directed by and starring Drew — was to prove a breakthrough for Plan B. Led by “Stay Too Long,” a stomping, organ-led rock song depicting an alcohol-fueled tailspin, the record was also heavily influenced by soul and Motown. The Londoner’s formidable singing voice shared the limelight with his rapping, helping to make Plan B a household name in the U.K., where the album was the fifth best seller that […]

Crop Circle – Nines

North West London rapper Nines drew a loyal fan base through a dichotomy in his music that celebrated the grim reality of the streets while expressing his aspirational drive to escape them. Hailing from the Harlesden area of London, the burgeoning star (real name Courtney Freckleton) steadily built up an audience through a series of mixtape releases. The first, From Church Road to Hollywood, arrived in 2012, and seemed to reference the notorious London Church Road gang that his murdered brother was allegedly a member of. He was awarded Radio 1Xtra’s People’s Choice award in 2013, and nominated for a Mobo in the Best New Hip-Hop category. That same year saw the release of his follow-up mixtape Gone Til November, but it also marked a period when his career was put on hold after he was sentenced to an 18-month imprisonment at Wormwood Scrubs for unspecified crimes. Despite this setback, the prolific artist went on to release a further two tapes, 2014’s Loyal to the Soil and 2015’s One Foot Out. Over the course of his four mixtape releases the rapper had increased his profile, thanks in part to millions of YouTube views, and he signed to XL Recordings, which […]