Pssst Do you know those kids over there? They’re gonna be the next big thing in ’17 Woop woop!
Here’s the RAW RAMP list of the worlds shiniest shooting-stars as they hurtle their way into 2017. All certain to be bigger-than-big.
So, before the others climb on board and claim they found ’em first, read our list and get the glory…
In alphabetical order.
1: Abra
We like to think there’s a place for 1980’s freestyle minimalist electro/R&B in 2017 and this sensational artist with a voice of pure honey (already been compared to Whitney and Mariah … but we think the better comparison is Aaliyah) is gonna make it come to us. Try “ Crybaby” — she’s all over those Latin beats with her shiny-smooth voice or try the weirdly textured “ Bounty ” with those poppin’ rhythms.
2: Baskery
We’ve been listening to “Love in L.A.” over the holidays. And we think it has that trill and thrill that gets you in the mood for party-loving. There’s nothing quite like this: The biggest sound you can imagine from three Swedish girls [one with a banjo] who live large and rock hard.
3: Be Charlotte
There’s something sacred about Charlotte Brimner’s “Machines That Breathe” – it sounds like church music. The clarity of the vocal of the girl from Dundee sends a chill through our muscles and those synth lines are more dandified and deluxe than they ever ought to be. Soul-stirring stuff!
The cloud-soft Hawaiian plainsong “ Which Cloud ” from ‘Wandering Heart‘ is as moody as it is fluffy. As if Édith Piaf had met Mary Hopkin in a bar in the the 20th arrondissement and they wrote about love, loss and sorrow. Wow! This material will make you purr and sob in equal measure.
We’re still playing the snappy hit “L.U.V.” even though its over a year old. And that says all there is to know about this band from Glasgow formed in 2014 around guitarist Chris McCrory. It’s poppy, has a whiskery temperament and is filled with high-quality musicianship. Reminds us of early BLUR. And that’s only the start… get ready for some amazing collabs in 2017 as this superior band delves into fresh genres. That’s why these lads are the most talked-about group right now…
Some prefererred the sludge of distortion on their orbital suicide-squeeze version, but the newest “Nurse Ratched” from ‘Apocalipstick’ [about that woman from One Flew, in case you wondered] is out January 20, 2017 on Secretly Canadian. It is dark, jagged and dangerously acidic.
7: Dream Wife
This London UK band allows you to wallow in the nostalgia of the 1990’s. Take “Lolita” for example, this has plenty of twitchy guitar along with a sheer soprano vocal that reminds us, oh so much, of Marcella Detroit.
Eurythmics ✓ check
Shakespears Sister ✓ check
No Doubt ✓ check
8: Estrons
Their rushing & excitable pushiness gained plenty of new fans on the recent SLAVES tour.
Speedy, heady and full of thrills. Not aggressive, but their sounds always come with a truculent snarl.
9: Flora Cash
“Sadness Is Taking Over” is strong, deep and magnificent. This song from two bright-eyed creatives from Stockholm, Sweden, wraps its velvet tentacles around your heartstrings before pulling you deep under to be suffocated wonderfully by its quilted, drowning currents.
10: Goat Girl
If you’ve ever wondered whether a female Johnny Cash could exist right now in the 21st century try Goat Girl. “Scum” was released on Rough Trade Records in December and takes all that darkened angst and world-weary rebelliousness and screws it into a short-track of sombre pithiness.
Yeah, OK, it’s generic. But it works.
11: JohnnySwim
“Touching Heaven” from their album “Georgica Pond” is filled with naked feeling and targets your subdued, hearty and plushy places to score deep within your folds.
If this doesn’t give you a shiver, what will?
12: Jorja Smith
“Where Did I Go?” is a svelte and glorious song with vocals that recall Corinne Bailey Rae i.e. jazz-based loquacity for the sophisticated set.
Are you mature enough to enjoy this kinda quality? No?
Gettouttahere …
13: Kadhja Bonet
You hear a lot of music described as ‘cinematic’ but it’s only when you lay-back into the bubblebath of sounds that is “Honeycomb” by Kad-ya that you really understand the term. Her voice is velvet and the beats are translucent.
Orchestration by Mantovani? Arrangement by Bacharach? Rhythms by Herb Alpert? Flute by Herbie Mann? … Well, YES it COULD be but it ain’t… It’s all her! Cool isn’t it?
14: L.A. Salami
The poetic and fresh “Day to Day (For 6 Days a Week))” is less about footloose fancy-free living and more about heartache than you’d expect. Yet the song remains positive … chirpy even. No, he’s not Leonard Cohen but, nevertheless, this Cockney Sparrow has made melodic range, distinctive expressionism and deep longing a thing of his own. Honesty exists under the surface of each hand-crafted number. We all saw how big — how quickly big — Ed Sheeran became. We think LA Salami will be the next English singer-songwriter to change the world…
15: MarthaGunn
Seek out the A capella version of “Honest” recorded in Britain’s smallest City – St. David’s by Brighton’s wonders, to witness the true coffee-cream joy of Abi’s incredible voice.
16: Vera Blue
The rhythms on “Fingertips” reverberate as they sway into your heart whilst her melting voice reminds you that Celia Pavey is the temptress trapped inside a mermaids body who you wouldn’t mind being captured and exquisitely tortured by…
17: Wildwood Kin
There’s plenty of harmonising on the folk-rock number “Warrior Daughter” – is there too much? Err? Dunno… But this number certainly contains elements of 1979 era Fleetwood Mac espcially with all that tribal thwackry and translucent images. And we maintain that if they ever need a medieval troubadour-style band for future episodes of Game of Thrones, here’s who to go to first…
Words: Neil Mach
Main Image : Jorja Smith
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