Indie Picks: Sniffer's Selections of the Week
Our Indie Picks of the Week have been squished into our compact list below. It has been a pretty good week for submissions for sure. I hope you enjoy our selections this week.
Tim Baker // The Eighteenth Hole
Stunning work here from Canadian singer Tim Baker. This live rendition of The Eighteenth Hole, featuring lovely harmonies from Nico Paulo & Felicity Williams was just what the doctor ordered this week. Chillingly beautiful keys, luscious vocals and raw emotion aplenty – this is a darling of a tune. I'm delighted this fell on my lap this week. Can't get enough of it.
Gold, solid gold.
FFO: Nathaniel Rateliff (solo works)
The Satellite Station // Hollow Sound
Ohio native Travis Rue is the brains behind the music of The Satellite Station. Hollow Sound is his latest composition and we love it. This is very folk-y stuff here from the talented multi-instrumentalist. This single is filled with catchy hooks and infectious instrumentation – Rue is creating really listenable sounds over there. An instant addition to this weeks indie picks.
Check out Hollow Sound below.
Diamond Thug // The Woods
South African band Diamond Thug return this week with brooding, haunting single The Woods. Formed in a bedroom in Vredehoek this band have garnered lots of attention in South Africa last term with their debut album Apastron. The album was a huge success receiving over three million streams in it's first year. This success has seen them embark on a European tour earlier in the year.
Their latest single The Woods harbors a darker mood than usual with droning synths and lead singer Chantel Van T's moody vocals setting the scene. It is a track the succeeds in addressing the theme of angst the lyrics portray. It has fitted in nicely on our playlists this week.
Fever Joy // Done Dreaming
Avery Robitaille leads the duo that make up the Fever Joy alias. Raised in Indonesia by missionary parents she moved to LA at the age of 18 and began performing open mics around the county. It was at one of these sessions she met Sean Baker and the project was born.
Done Dreaming is a really catchy track with a really well executed whistling in the chorus and powerful electric chords. I have been listening to this one for a couple of weeks and still cannot fault a single thing about it. All three singles released by these talented musicians have been of the highest quality. Done Dreaming is a little charmer.
Looking forward to hearing more. A definite shoe in to this week's indie picks.
Ryan Innes // You Are Gold
Some Gnarles Barkley styled grooving here from Ryan Innes. You Are Gold is as uplifting as it gets. It is impossible to be in a bad mood whilst listening to this infectious and bouncy little indie gem. The Arizona native has struck the right notes on this one.
He has had a long and prosperous career in music so far – a journey that led him to be mentored by Pharrell Williams and Usher during his stint on The Voice America back in 2013. Since then he has released a string of popular cover singles and his debut album THE I, surfaced last year. His latest single You Are Gold has hit the mark with us. He is a mercurial talent that still has a lot more chapters to write in his musical quest.
Vana Blu // T-Erase-Her (Him)
Vana Blu is a new artist on the London scene and his latest single has really stood out with us here. T-Erase-Her whisks Blu away from his normal lyrical subject matter as he delves into the hard topic of Brexit on this one. The political unrest over in the UK has really been grinding on all of our gears in recent years and this single is Blu's personal take on it all. His frustrations about the current government are evident from the off.
The song itself is a really well produced record and it has been co-produced by Peter Lyons (one half of Peter & Kerry).
Interesting video too. I'm not a big advocate of political themed stuff in music but this is creative.
FFO: MaRRius // The EU
Lee Smythe // We Should Go
I will save my personal favourite of our indie picks from the trailing week until last. The pick of the bunch for me this week has to be this chirpy number from American songwriter Lee Smythe. He hasn't been active really in the last couple of years but his latest release 'We Should Go' is a really nice effort.
Intense keys throughout. I get shades of Cold War Kids off this. Solid.
Check out our showcase artist: https://thesoundsniffer.com/our-artists/
If you are still here scrolling , Check out info of our Showcase gig down at the Fox & Firkin on October 31st. It's FREE ENTRY!! Darshaan — (BBC Introducing artist of the week 14th October 2019/will be played on BBC radio 1 by Hew Stephens on 20th Oct) is headlining. Info below!!
https://www.facebook.com/events/1505486642923697/?ti=as
Indie electro, Indie rock
diamond thug, fever joy, indie picks, lee smythe, ryan innes, The satellite station, Tim baker, vana blu
Phil Simmonds // Homesick
Andrew Marica // I Just Wanna Go