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 entries from bands who have played in the area.

1. Jagged Baptist Club – Physical Surveillance –

Another thumbs-up for a band seen at The Purple Turtle, courtesy of the regular Monday night curated by Groove Cult Shindigs. Jagged Baptist Club came all the way from Los Angeles, as part of a tour of the UK and Ireland, to entertain the packed crowd with a set of frantic energy including tracks like this, the title track from their recent album. We mentioned English Teacher in conjunction with Honeyglaze, and Jagged Baptist Club actually toured with them just two years ago. By the time you read this, they’ll be back home, but keep your eyes open for a return visit! https:// www.facebook.com/jaggedbaptistclub

2. China Bears – Gracie –

Based in Guildford, China Bears played in Wokingham a couple of years ago at a packed Gig House (now Den 24), supporting Rila’s Edge. They are returning to the town this summer for Wokingham Festival, where they are headlining on the Marquee stage on the Saturday night, 23rd August. This gentle and contemplative track is the lead track from their most recent EP. https://www.facebook.com/

ChinaBearsBand

3. San Demas, Shoot to Kill – All In On Me –

We’ve featured San Demas a couple of times before, but this latest single is a bit of a departure from their regular sound, being their heaviest track to date climaxing with a guest vocal from metalcore purveyors Shoot to Kill’s vocalist, Danny Weathers. They played most recently at Frogfest in High Wycombe just last Sunday. https://www.facebook.com/SanDemasMusic

4. The Julia Set – I Won’t Back Down –

The Julia Set are based in West London, but ventured out to the Acoustic Couch in Bracknell recently, where we saw them put on a great show of their original songs. This is their latest single, released earlier this year. They have a great classic rock sound, with an indie edge to it, and you can see them for yourself when they grace the Marquee stage on Saturday 23rd August at Wokingham Festival. https://linktr.ee/thejuliaset

5. Y – Why –

As we expected, the Are You Listening? Festival was a great success, well organised and a good mix of music in various venues, with the bonus of very pleasant weather making the transitions enjoyable too. As always, the only downside is that it’s simply not possible to see everything, but what we did see was all good. Y were on early in the day, but were full of energy and had the crowd dancing along to their saxophone- and keyboard-driven groove. We love this track, enigmatically titled and homophonic with the band’s name (get us with the fancy words!) https://www.facebook.com/Ythebandlondon

6. Honeyglaze – Ghost –

Another selection from AYLFest, a calmer and more contemplative track from Honeyglaze. Honeyglaze are a trio based in London, currently on a tour around various European countries, and have been compared to Mercury prizewinners English Teacher. This is their latest single, a dreamlike evocation of uncertainty and memory, thoughts of someone no longer there. https://www.facebook.com/

honeyglazemusic

7. The Bluepers – I Don’t Wanna Be Managed –

We popped along to the regular Monday music night at The Purple Turtle, run by Groove Cult Shindigs, and were blown away by the headliners, The Bluepers. Effervescent with energy, this Reading-based band know how to put on a show, and their self-penned songs are full of humour. They are influenced by some classic bands such as Stevie Ray Vaughan, T-Rex and Thin Lizzy, but have their own sound. This is their most recent single, all about their preferred career choices. https://linktr.ee/thebluepers

8. Belizaire – Bear’s Claws –

Belizaire are having a productive year, we featured their first single earlier this year, since when they’ve released two more singles and an album, Unravel, which are all worth a listen.

This is the second single, and finds main man CJ Silvestre meditating on the state of a relationship. They already have some dates lined up for a short tour, starting at the Rising Sun Arts Centre on 26th June. https://www.facebook.com/belizaireband

9. Bonnie and the Jets – Broke Blues –

All the way from Oslo in Norway, Bonnie and the Jets are heading our way in order to top the bill on the Marquee stage at Wokingham Festival in August (Early Bird tickets on sale now!). As seems to be a common theme, this rocking number looks at the state of a relationship, wondering what’s next, but does it in exuberant style. https://www.facebook.com/bonnieandthejetsmusic

10. Leoni Jane Kennedy – Closer –

We featured Leoni Jane Kennedy earlier in the year, since when she’s been very busy releasing new material, playing solo gigs and playing guitar and supplying vocals for not one but two great bands – Solstice and and the Anchoress (who supported Manic Street Preachers!). We saw her play with Solstice in Southampton last month, and you can see her not very far away, in Aldershot next month with the Anchoress at the West End Centre on June 11th. Closer is the second single from her first album of original music, and harks back to the pandemic and distance and detachment from the outside world felt during lockdown and how it felt to come out of it. https://www.leonijanekennedy.com/

You can listen to all the songs featured in our Spotify playlist at https://bit.ly/rawsoundstoday

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