musomusofm on the radar playlist #44 - The Electric Flea Show, Temples of Youth, Samantha Sharpe, The New Summer Bleaks and more....
It’s Tuesday, which means that it’s no longer Monday, which is good, very good!
I don’t have any live shows booked in for this week so hopefully, things will be a little quieter than they have been the past couple of weeks, though I’m sure something will come along soon to scupper my plans.
This playlist is a mish-mash of bands and artists from every corner of the earth, some very interesting ones in there to check out and learn more about. Our featured artists are listed underneath the playlist feature, please take a few minutes to check them out if you can, maybe have a browse whilst you’re listening to their track on the playlist.
See you on the other side.
The Electric Flea Show
Possibly the world’s leading psych-folk, indie alternative pop acoustic singer-songwriter thinking deeply and breathing shallowly (or breathing deeply and thinking shallowly) about ever so serious stuff, The Electric Flea Show describe themselves / himself as “slightly arty pretentious nonsense with annoying fiddly bits - or maybe it’s distinctive top line intelligent song writing enhanced with clever bits and pieces. Whichever is fine by me. Or something else no-one’s mentioned yet.”
Some drum samples, some effects, some vintage keyboard sounds that aren’t quite what they seem, an acoustic guitar and singing that overall we’re told might sound slightly unnerving.
Lyrical themes occasionally informed but not constrained by ‘lockdown’ and well, life, death, dreams, communication and a nod to a trans couple (‘Hold On’).
The Electric Flea Show….a one-man band / project - Unidentified, in the spirit of Banksy perhaps - or maybe just some anonymous bloke. Learn more at their social sites below.
Socials
Temples of Youth
influenced by the likes of C86 artists, US indie and alternative pop, Southampton based Temples of Youth are also partial to a bit of 90's grunge which is never a bad thing.
Jo Carson (Vocals and guitar) and Paul Gumma (Lead guitar and vocals) started the band five years ago and were originally an electronic duo. A couple of years back they decided that they wanted to be more organic and change their sound - this is wen they invited Mike Vaughan (drums) to join them and has stuck around ever since.
Being no strangers to festivals, they have played Blissfields, Smoked and Uncut and Victorious and have been played on BBC Radio 1 on numerous occasions, they’ve also produced a live in session for BBC Introducing Solent.
Asked about their recent track ‘Susan Gets Confused’, the band said, “The track is inspired by the sharp, headstrong persona of Katherine Hepburn and many of the characters she portrayed. The title and lyrics are a reference to the free-spirited, heiress and leopard owner Susan Vance from the 1938 comedy, ‘Bringing up Baby’.
For more info on this talented trio, head to the socials (all listed below).
Socials
Samantha Sharpe
Samantha Sharpe is a Melbourne based musician who sings and plays guitar/keys.
She’s inspired by a lot of musical genres and a lot of artists but admits that ‘Ghost’ feels “a bit more Adele and a bit less country than my usual offerings, which I like to think is growth!”
Having appeared on the Radio for The Casey Beat, AMR Quiz Fizz, and had her music featured on lots of indie stations in Melbourne, she has just started a Patreon, to build on the community that music has given her.
Samantha loves to use music as a means of connecting with people, and knows that she connected with people a lot in her life due to what they had in common, what they were fans of and shared a love for, so would love to continue that and make a space for her own fans to feel like they belong.
‘Ghost’ was recorded at Salt Studios in Melbourne, produced by Ross Caygill, and then sent off to London's Abbey Road Studios to be mastered by Mastering Engineer Christian Wright.
Asked about the track, Samantha replied, “I got ghosted, and I had a lot of pent up emotions about it. It's so familiar to people within this age group, I think, to talk to somebody online, to get along well, and then just never hear from them again. It's strange and it leaves you with a lot of unanswered questions.”
Samantha closes by adding, “There's a moment in this song where all the pent up energy and anger is finally out, and you can actually hear me take a deep breath and sigh it all out.. like, now that this is out.. I can, gratefully, move on.”
Keep an eye on her socials via the links below and if you are in the Melbourne area, watch out for any local shows where I’m sure she’d love to see your smiling face in the crowd!
Socials
The New Summer Bleaks
The New Summer Bleaks describe themselves as "Indie pop music written by committee over the pandemic across 3 cities using snail mail….Torch songs for post covide times”
Phil Loutsis (Piccadilly Teardrops) - Instruments and Dean Honer (The Moonlandingz) - Producer met working on a single by ‘Darlings of the Splitscreen’ back in Bowling Green Studios in Sheffield under a dark sky over a bottle of wine and a sea of synthesisers.
Their love of bands such as Beach House, The Shins, Glass Animals, Alec Benjamin and Dean Lewis have helped them to produce these ‘torch songs’ that were written from stories pulled together from postcards shared between penpals found during the "lockdown", the tracks were recorded in Brixton, London and Produced at Bowling Green Studios in Sheffield
Asked if there is a particular ethos behind the album, they added “The album is meant to make you sad and then bring you back. I wrote these songs to help me understand a few things a it better - they're proper indulgent and I'm really pleased to share them.”
Learn more about this fascinating duo by clicking the links below.
Socials
SO there you have it folks, another 9 awesome tracks for you to get your ears around. If you liked any of them, please hit them up on the socials and tell them, mention that you heard them on the musomusofm on the radar playlist and they might even buy me a cookie if our paths ever cross!
Please take a moment to spread the word on social media, it’s on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, just head to musomusouk on either platform and give it a LIKE, SHARE, THUMBS UP or whatever you can!
Until next time…..