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’s playlist is solely acts who will be performing at Wokingham Festival this year!
1. JNR x Natalie Gray- Meant to Be –
Natalie Gray qualifies for the playlist on at least three counts. The flame-haired synthpop artist is originally from Reading, she headlined at Readipop Festival last year, and she’s just been announced as part of the line-up for Wokingham Festival on Sunday 24th August! This is an epic tech-house dance track, a collaboration with producer JNR, and what we believe the young folks call a banger! Her just-released latest single, Camouflage, dedicated to anyone who is tired of wearing a mask, or not fitting in, is also well worth a listen. https://www.facebook.com/Natgraymusic
2. Tom Robinson Band – Power in the Darkness –
TRB emerged in the days of punk rock in the late 70s with a blend of sing-along anthems and campaigning lyrics. Tom Robinson himself built a career as a radio presenter of both music and speech, and is an accomplished raconteur. Nearly 50 years on, the messages of the band’s songs, such as this one, are just as relevant as when they were written, and we are thrilled at the prospect of seeing the band headline at Wokingham Festival on Monday 25th August, where they’ll be sure to play all the hits! https://www.facebook.com/tomrobinsonmusic
3. Solstice – Plunk –
Another track from Solstice’s acclaimed latest album, Clann, its prog rock credentials of an unusual time signature and longer run-time are augmented by a funky feel and heavenly vocal harmonies, plus a great guitar solo from founder-member Andy Glass. Just one more reason we’re looking forward to this year’s Wokingham Festival when Solstice will be on the main stage, just before Tom Robinson on Monday 25th! https://www.solsticeprog.uk/
4. Selina and the Howlin Dogs – Gemima –
Selina and the Howlin Dogs have been delighting audiences with their original blues rock for some time now, with appearances at festivals including several at Wokingham Festival. They are back on the main stage again this year, and one of the songs we’re looking forward to seeing performed live is this brand new release, Gemima, which was originally written by band
member Alan Burgin forty years ago! This timeless piece of rock and roll is the second track from their forthcoming album, “Third Time Lucky”. https://www.facebook.com/SelinaandtheHowlinDogs
5. Bonnie and the Jets – Naked –
Wokingham Festival has been developing an international flavour in recent years, with Focus and Sonic Whip from the Netherlands. This year, already featuring in the playlist is Leonie Jakobi (from Germany, though living Liverpool) and, flying in from Oslo, Norway, we have Bonnie and the Jets bringing their brand of upbeat blues rock. This recent number reminds us that whoever we are and whatever we do, we all came into the world the same way. https://www.facebook.com/bonnieandthejetsmusic
6. EBB – No One’s Child –
EBB were voted Best New Band by the readers of Prog Magazine for 2024, and they’ve just been announced as an addition to the Monday line-up at Wokingham Festival. This newly released track from their live album recorded just down the road in Southampton will give you a flavour of what to expect, though it doesn’t convey the full theatricality of their performance – find them on youtube or come along to the Festival to experience that! https://www.ebbband.com/
7. Leonie Jakobi – The Life My Parents Had –
We’ve featured Leonie Jakobi before, after we saw her on a road trip to Southampton, and we’re delighted at the prospect of seeing her perform again soon, on the Marquee stage at Wokingham Festival on Monday 25th August. This is a lovely upbeat track as Leonie muses on what she has in life and how it compares with what her parents had. https://www.facebook.com/ leoniejakobi
8. Cold July – In My Head –
Cold July hail from Guildford, where they formed at ACM just last year, and their sophisticated sounds belies their young age. This is their second single, which showcases their three part harmonies and rich production, and the intelligent lyrics examine a situation where something is at once too close and too far. They just played at Limitless in Basingstoke, and we look forward to seeing them on the Marquee stage at Wokingham Festival on Saturday 23rd August. https://www.instagram.com/ coldjulyband/
9. One Eyed Man – Breakfast in Bed –
Stuart Hutton is the One Eyed Man, born and bred in Berkshire before travelling all over the globe gaining many experiences which have been the inspiration for his musical output. This is one of his original compositions about falling in love and the joy of getting to know someone new. We saw him on the Marquee stage at Wokingham Festival four years ago, at Wokingham and at Are You Listening? Festival two years ago and this year we will be seeing him grace the main stage on Saturday 23rd August. https://oneeyedmanofficial.com/
10. Josh Roberts – Caught Up –
Josh Roberts is from Maidenhead, and we caught him performing recently at Milk as part of Are You Listening Festival in Reading in May. This is his latest single, released just last month, drawing on the experience of dealing with a relationship that ends. Josh made his Glastonbury debut last year, and we look forward to seeing him on the main stage at Wokingham Festival this year, on 24th August! https://www.instagram.com/_joshrobertsmusic/
You can listen to all the songs featured in our Spotify playlist at https://bit.ly/rawsoundstoday
