New Artist Alert: Friend Slash Lover - Unaware

When We Were Beautiful is happy to introduce Friend Slash Lover, indie-rockers with a haunting undertone from LA, with their single Unaware which is taken from the latest EP 'The Grey Area'.

The video incorporates footage filmed entirely on an iPhone but certainly doesn't have an amateur feel; the black and white visuals of driving through lost streets adds to the mystery and eerieness conjured up by the music which pleasantly plods along with an electro-indie rock feel. The production on the track is great which, although at times slips in and out of your consciousness, has a very late-night radio-friendly sound. There's some lovely piano arpeggios that resonate wonderfully, and great harmonious backing vocals soothing in the background of the mix.

You can see the video in question below, and keep up to date with the guys from Friend Slash Lover on Facebook. Be sure to check out some earlier music and, if you're local to LA, try and catch them live if you can. Enjoy :)

New Artist Alert: Mary at Midnight - Heads Will Roll

It's all been coming up a bit punky recently and every once in a while it's nice to reel things back in, take stock, and refresh. As this current wave of refresh breaks, the water ebbs and leaves behind Mary at Midnight on the shore with her beautiful single 'Heads Will Roll'.

Mary at Midnight is an 'enigmatic new artist' who is pioneering the 'dreampop' charge alongside Mercury Award winner Talvin Singh on Heads Will Roll, the debut single which is set for release on Feb 18th. The single has been described as featuring 'plush sounds scattered with... ambient waves'; this sounds a bit like an Ikea catalogue description to me, but nevertheless I've had a listen myself and can confirm the track is quite lovely.

Heads Will Roll delicately tiptoes into life with a thumb piano and Ellie Goulding-esque vocal harmonies before finding its feet with a simple electric pulse. The lead vocals are as fragile as much as they crystal clear; the production is quite something and the arrangement, although simple is wonderfully effective and current. A musical firework introduces the first chorus with intent before withering into the equally-delicate second verse. It's quirky, it tugs between a straight and swing beat, and, most importantly, it's different. It's a great pop song and the 'dreampop' tag is definitely what comes to mind; a perfectly rounded song with Native-American drifts here and sleepy, dreamlike whispers there which needs to be experienced.

You can listen to Heads Will Roll for yourself below, and be sure to check out Mary at Midnight on Facebook. Enjoy :)

New Artist Alert: The Antics

A New Jersey outfit that has performed at the Stone Pony?! No...it can't be... alas, The Antics are not offspring spawn from a one Jon Bon Jovi/Richie Sambora love affair, but they are in their own right taking over the NJ music scene with one eye on the rest of the world.

The Antics are a fourpiece post-punk/indie rock band who have grown up together jamming in garages and working at fame the hard way whilst laying the foundations to their very own career in music. The band take inspiration from rock-mainstays The Who, The Smiths, Joy Division, and The Doors and describe their sound as, "...a tasty dish of head-knocking beats with fuzzy guitar riffs, propulsive drums and infectious hooks." Well, with my appetite whetted, it's time to find out what all the fuss is about.

'Touch the Sky' kicks off album 'Running Faster' with a raw and steady feel, held together capably by the lead vocals. With a nod to the genre, the arrangements are simple and a little thin but this is what the indie sound is all about. I was a little unsure about the sudden fade-out at the end; coming in at just over two minutes I felt there were a lot more ideas that could have been explored without feeling like the song had to come to a sudden end but it segues into track two on the album easily.

'In the Night' is sitting pretty in the middle, holding fort at the halfway stage of the album. Led by the lead vocals, the guitar sound isn't dissimilar from 'Touch the Sky' but at least the lead guitar explores some lead-lines to develop the sound and maintain interest. The track breaks into these lead-lines at regular occurrences creating a much more musically-interesting arrangement. The chorus is low-impact but suits the style of the track as it grows in intensity, the lead vocals once again leading the charge, as the rhythm section holds everything down steadily whilst the lead guitar delves into solo territory. The sound is far more interesting and well-developed than previous tracks on the album but still has a little 'garageband' tinge to it all; this might be part of the charm of the band and the genre, and who am I to say what the NJ teens are screaming for these days, but I feel that the influences cited by the band all had a lot more to offer musically and I worry that The Antics don't penetrate deeply enough nor do they jump high enough on a middle-of-the-road, and very congested, musical spectrum.

Don't be swayed by my opinions; simplicity is effective and I urge you to make up your own mind. The Antics are attracting critical acclaim in the NJ area and are also donating a track to go towards relief efforts in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, raising funds for the Red Cross.

You can check out The Antics for yourself on Facebook. Enjoy :)

New Artist Alert: Maycomb

When We Were Beautiful is happy to share Maycomb with you, a pop-punk quartet from Wolverhampton who have just announced the release of their debut album 'I Opened My Heart To Caustic Things' via I Am Mighty records.

I've had a listen to the album, which is an energetic pop-punker of a CD that kicks off like a freight train with opener 'New Storms'. Maycomb are setting their stall out early, beating the crowds on an early Sunday morning with all the bite and energy of any well-established pop-punk outfit from across the pond. Frantic drums and a steady mix of half-time/double-time feels ensures this sits well within the established comfort zone of the genre and, at just under 2 minutes long, is a real snapshot of things to come from the album; a warm-up to the main event if you will.

'Dynamiter' kicks off with an extended Parmore-esque opening feel, before making way for the vocals that are often dual-layered adding a little more depth to the lead vocals which feel a little thin at times. I'm reminded of the All American Rejects at times, so if you're a fan these guys might just be for you. Verse 2 looks to develop ideas previously explored in the track to maintain the listener's interest whilst remaining true to the good-old pop-punk recipe.

'Out of the Darkness Cometh Light' offers a little audio-respite; a wise move from Maycomb as they opt for a mid-album electric guitar/vocal ballad to ease off the intensity, if only for a minute or so, allowing the listener a bit of breathing space. The segue into 'When The Time Comes' is rather effortless and definitely adds to the track considering the afforded toilet-stop.

The album ends just as it started, full of energy and drive with 'Also Ran' that particularly showcases some great drumming and lead guitar work. The rhythm section are working hard throughout the album holding things down; the guys are evidently tight and doing a great job on the song-writing front which should hopefully allow them success as long as the genre remains relevant.

If you like what you read, check out the album-sampler in the video below. Hopefully then your appetite will be well and truly whetted and I'm only too happy to send you in the direction of iTunes where you can purchase an album for yourself. Be sure to keep up to date with the guys on Facebook too, and catch them live when you can. Enjoy :)

Video Alert: The Sharps - Cage of Love

It's always nice to share something from friends of mine, and The Sharps are a great band that I've had the pleasure of sharing the stage with during my time at Uni on a number of occasions.

Enjoy the band's video for 'Cage of Love' below; The Sharps always have a lot of fun with their videos and never take themselves too seriously. They're always refreshing, entertaining, and original and Cage of Love is no exception.



The Sharps are a hard-working 3-piece rock/funk outfit hailing from Norfolk, and have a real Chili Peppers/Strokes vibe about their sound. Be sure to keep up to date with the guys on Facebook.

New Artist Alert: The GoAround

There are many brothers who join forces to create a band and attempt to hit the big time, and Anthony and Alexander Saddic from The GoAround are no exception to this rule. Since its inception in 2006, the band has seen many-a plethora of members come and go, but A and A have held firm and, as The GoAround's core members, released their debut album 'Restating the Question' in August this year.

Hailing from Pennsylvania on the East Coast where they are still based, The GoAround, an alt-rock/pop duo, have video plans in the works for the singles from the album, 'Her Love is Like Glass' and 'When I Hit the Bottom'. Of their songs, the band say: "[Our] songs lyrically serve to motivate people to analyse what they stand for... Everybody is essentially chasing the same things: love acceptance and happiness. That to me is the common thread that unifies all of mankind..." Profound words indeed, and these guys really sound like they've got something to say.

'Her Love is Like Glass', a steady alt-pop tune, manages to draw in influences from country rock to fist-pumping stadium feels, whilst churning along delicately thanks to some great vocal harmonies. The texture thickens somewhat as we meander into the second verse, the layers slowly building as the track progresses, ebbing and flowing with its short verse and chorus stabs. There's a lot of ideas crammed in here, perhaps some not as effective as others, but the track's got a feelgood quality to it that you can't help but love.

'When I Hit the Bottom' is torn from a slightly different cloth; the country flavours are still nestling in the mix but there's an altogether grittier, bluesier tone apparent. The vocals are as strong as ever, the music busy and rich, and introducing and returning to little stabs and riffs often to maintain the listener's interest. Unlike 'Her Love is Like Glass', the second verse feels a little flat, maybe I'm used to the building blocks and expected a little more the second time around, and the second chorus drops into a short-ish guitar solo section; I'd love for an explosion that vamps upwards to match the passion and energy of the lead vocals. Again though, there's a great feel to the track and that's what it's all about. The mouth-organ towards the end is lovely and the 'jam-band' drive assures me that these guys are ones to catch live.

Keep up to date with all things The GoAround on Facebook and grab yourself a copy of Restating the Question on iTunes now!

Video Alert: Lower Lands - Socialise with Closed Eyes

This just in! I Am Mighty Records are pleased and proud to announce Lower Lands have released a video for their track Socialise with Closed Eyes which you can check out for yourselves below. Fans can get a copy of the single and a B-Side 'Conversation 2.0' by joining the I Am Mighty mailing list.

The video has barely been up a few days and has already notched up almost 4,000 views! Here's the what the band have got to say about the track:

"This song is a letter to a Someone who stopped being a friend because they let things in life get on top of them and they stopped listening to others around them and started just pitying themselves. It's sort of a last resort wake up call from us to them. It's also sort of a good guide to 'how to be a bad friend' by Lower Lands! Do all these things, and people will 100% guaranteed think you're not a fun person to hang out with."

And here, the band share their views on the video itself:

"The video is kind of our take on the whole reservoir dogs thing. It's like "what if we took this open letter to this person, but then kidnapped them and read it directly to them?"
We wanted to keep it light though to match the vibe of the song so we brought in the humour element with some ridiculous torture methods going on and they seemed to really work because by the end of the video our boy's nothing if not compliant! Filming in suits, although it looks badass, was a pain. We had to do loads of running and LOADS of performance takes with the hot sun beating down on our adonis-like figures. So things got a little bit sweaty out on the locations, but we had bottles of water at the ready etc. We shot the video with Oh My Dog! films and it was an absolute pleasure. The guys were all really professional, had loads to input in the video and even brought us some lovely food to keep us going throughout the pretty much half marathon we ran to get that 10 seconds of a chase scene! We put so much thought and effort into this video and really wanted to step things up in terms of production value, storyline and the song in general so we really hope you enjoy it. Peace!"

Here's the video, it's a great pop track with a fun video! 



In other I Am Mighty Records news, 'Maycomb' have joined the family which is great to see this indie label growing and developing and extending their rostra of artists. The bands debut album, 'I Opened My Heart To Caustic Things', will be released later in the year and the opening track 'New Storms' is available for a listen here. Enjoy!