Each week, there are 10 great acts in our playlist, all with a connection to Reading or Wokingham. As always, we have a wide variety of musical styles, but we think they’re all worth a listen, and we hope you find something new to enjoy as well as maybe getting out to experience the thrill of live music. This week, we’ve got three new singles, from bands who’ve visited or are about to visit the area..
1. Henge – Slingshot/Hypersleep –
Henge are a group of interstellar travellers who touch down on earth to take some of the inhabitants on an interstellar journey. Last week it was the turn of some lucky folk in Reading to be taken on a trip to the planet Voltus B and experience the wonders of space, as well as hear a message of universal peace and kindness, before returning via a wormhole to South Street Arts Centre! Catch them on tour, for an unforgettable, playful, experience. https://www.facebook.com/HENGEmusic
2. Sprints – Feast –
Music festivals are a great opportunity to discover new bands, and we are very fortunate to have so many in and around Reading and Wokingham. Are You Listening? is a great one that we’ve enjoyed in previous years, and this year’s edition is this month, on the 9th and 10th of May. We’ve chosen this track by Sprints, who are headlining the opening Friday night at St Laurence Church. Bands can then be seen at numerous venues around Reading on Saturday. https://www.sprintsmusic.com/
3. John McKay – The Blessed West –
This one is something old and new at the same time. John McKay was the groundbreaking guitarist with Siouxsie and the Banshees for their first two albums and early singles, who then disappeared mid-tour. Post-departure he worked in the studio with a group of fugitives from other bands on some tracks which have been unheard until now, when they’ve been unearthed and released on an album, Sixes and Sevens (due out 9th May). This characteristically jagged and jolting track, angry and claustrophobic as it was influenced by the atmosphere of the Thatcher era, is the first single from it. John McKay is touring too, and you can see John McKay’s Reactor at The Facebar on 17th June, courtesy of Club Velocity.
4. Rila’s Edge – Undone –
We’ve watched Rila’s Edge go from strength to strength over the last few years, from support slots to headlining on the main stage at last year’s Wokingham Festival. We’re expecting big things from them this year, too, if their new single is anything to go by, an intense track that builds to a wall-of-sound big finish, and they kicked off their live appearances with a show in London last week. https:// linktr.ee/RilasEdge
5. The Amazons – Night After Night –
The Amazons need no introduction, and we featured their last single only last month, and this is the latest one, ahead of their new album, 21st Century Fiction, due out next month. It’s very different in style from Love Is a Dog from Hell, and echoing the themes that Lake Malice explored in the recently featured Scatterbrain, it revolves around the psychological patterns it’s easy to find yourself trapped in. Chaotic and vibrant! See them headlining Readipop Fiesta in September. https:// www.theamazons.co.uk/
6. Glitch – She Makes Me (Great) –
Maidenhead-based Glitch (they won the Maidenhead Festival battle of the bands last year) have already featured in the playlist with their debut single, and this follow-up confirms our view that they’re a band to watch for the future. This is a great jangly anthemic pop song, about the joy of falling in love. We saw them play in High Wycombe the other week, and can’t wait to see them open Wokingham Festival in August! https://www.instagram.com/glitch.musicc
7. Dub Pistols – I Predict a Riot – Manasseh dub remix –
Dub Pistols brought their mix of dub, reggae, dancehall, ska & DnB to the Face Bar the other week, courtesy of Stogfest Promotions, and kept a very appreciative packed house very happy! Turn up your bass bins and rattle your neighbours’ doors with this dub version of their latest single, a version of the Kaiser Chiefs classic track, remixed by dub producer Nick Manasseh. https://dubpistolsmusic.co.uk/
8. The Wave Machine – Home –
Angus Trott, aka The Wave Machine, brings the chilled out surf vibe from Cornwall, where he spends time on the beach catching waves, when he’s not constructing lovely mellow tunes like this about the comforts of being home. As for the local connection,Angus has graced the stage at
Wokingham Festival a couple of times, and we could well see him again in future. https://www.facebook.com/ thewavemachine
9. Sound of the Sirens – Sacred Dreaming –
Sound of the Sirens are singer-songwriting duo Abbe Wood & Hannah Walker from Exeter. This is their latest single, an intense piece about finally getting free from someone who was controlling to the extent that they were even appearing in dreams. They played the Face Bar last weekend for Club Velocity. https://www.soundofthesirens.uk/
10. Rosalie Cunningham – To Shoot Another Day –
Rosalie Cunningham wowed the crowd at the Facebar when she performed with her band just last month for Club Velocity. James Bond is taking a break for a while, but if you have a hankering for a Bond-style theme song, the title track from her latest album should keep you happy for a while, as should the rest of the album which is inspired by Cunningham and her co-writer and partner Roscoe Wilson’s love of James Bond soundtracks. https://rosaliecunningham.com/
You can listen to all the songs featured in our Spotify playlist at https://bit.ly/rawsoundstoday
