Before The Chorus

Future Islands are a four-piece based in Baltimore, Maryland. Their epic hooks & soul-wrenching lyrics helped them skyrocket to fame back in 2014, with the release of their song Seasons and their fourth album Singles. Their sixth studio album, As Long As You Are forces you to feel things just as deeply. Now, while this makes its heartbreaking moments quite palpable, it also means that the joyous parts are monumental. Like, so joyful you might spread your arms and try to fly even though you clearly can’t.

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Max Clarke, better known as Cut Worms, is a solo artist based in Brooklyn, New York. He is both drawn to and heavily critical of the past; while the American songbook provides inspiration to his writing, he worries that people tend to romanticize the past, glossing over its glaring problems. His new double LP ‘Nobody Lives Here Anymore’ explores this dichotomy in depth, using the very images that define traditional Americana to examine it.

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Bully is the project of now-solo artist Alicia Bognanno. Her third album SUGAREGG is all about letting go and embracing reality, even when the process of doing so isn’t perfect. With its message shouted through wailing guitars and well, literal shouting, the album provides catharsis and release for both the listener and for Alicia herself.

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Kay Young is a solo artist & producer based in London. While she’s been making music for a while, cutting her teeth at the same time as Jessie J & Ed Sheeran, she has been in an especially fruitful creative period for the past two years. After a hiatus allowed her to reset & experience life outside the industry, Kay returned to her writing re-energized & with plenty on her mind. On Middle Matters, she details finding peace in her passion, Faith, & following the path that she feels called to.

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Oscar Jerome is a staple member of the London jazz scene. In addition to being part of the collective KOKOROKO & appearing on many friends' projects, he’s a solo artist with his own brilliant work. His debut album, Breathe Deep, builds a rich sonic world, while speaking out about social greed and the treatment of refugees, and celebrating the love of family.

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Glass Animals are internationally loved for their genreless, often cheeky songs. They’ve never hesitated to work against the grain: they went weird and murky on their first album Zaba, told anecdotes about homemade characters on How To Be a Human Being. But Dave, the band’s frontman, never told his own stories out of insecurity; until now. Their third album Dreamland weaves through stories of a childhood in rural Texas, later years in Oxford and London, and a range of experiences from questions of masculinity to late-night hookups.

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Another Sky are a London-based four piece, comprised of Catrin Vincent, Jack Gilbert, Naomi Le Dune, and Max Doohan. Their songs manage to be anthemic and urgent, tender and vulnerable at the same time. Which makes sense; they see the ways in which mental health and the state of the world are interwoven, often leaving our generation in a state of overwhelm. I Slept on the Floor, the band’s debut album, covers the many ills of the modern world, offering a sense of hope through each call to action.

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Gordi is a solo artist, originally from Canowindra, Australia. She’s been championed by the likes of Bon Iver, and it’s no wonder why: her songwriting cuts to the bone. Her sophomore album, Our Two Skins, is Gordi in her most radically honest form. Each song paints a vivid, raw picture of the album’s themes, from mental health and questions of sexuality to love and acceptance.

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Mystery Jets are a three-piece indie band from London, who first made a name for themselves over a decade ago. Approaching their sixth studio album, lead singer Blaine Harrison found himself amidst the turmoil of post-Brexit London. While living around the corner from Trafalgar Square, Blaine weaved himself into the crowds of the EU rallies, the Extinction Rebellion, even far-right groups like Britain First and the National Defence League. The album birthed from this period, A Billion Heartbeats, navigates through all of the problems that both unite and separate us, reminding us that we all need to fight for compassion.

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Equiknoxx are a collective based in Kingston, Jamaica. They are comprised of Gavborg, Shanique Marie, Time Cow, Kemikal, and Bobby Blackbird. Over the last decade or so, they have woven through genre after genre. They first cut their teeth as dancehall producers, and later folded their wide range of influences into their music. I have Gav, Shanique, and Nick aka Bobby Blackbird here to discuss their 2019 album, Eternal Children, and the history that brought all five members together as a united project.

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