Watch / Review: Emperor Yes - Paramesse To Tannis

Driven by unrelenting synth lines and soaring vocals, Emperor Yes are truly a band who will take you to another place very far from reality, and you’ll find it tough not to dance around your bedroom alone while this is playing. Picture this: Passion Pit actually developed a more danceable groove, took a gram of mushrooms, and shot off into outer space.
From the album ‘An Island Called Earth’, single ’Paramesse to Tannis’ displays the band’s strengths well – mind-altering synth arpeggios, addictive indie-rock drumming, otherworldly lyrics and reverb-soaked vocals. Emperor Yes do a stellar job of incorporating elements of other genres, so we’re not left with a bland pile of synth-pop mashed potatoes. In the hook/chorus alone, we hear little flavours of The Flaming Lips, MGMT, Phoenix, and plenty more. The inclusion of these other influences is the keystone that will mark Emperor Yes as unique, and help them build a crossover fan base. And then there’s the rest of the album…
For fans of: MGMT, Passion Pit, The Flaming Lips, Phoenix
Emperor Yes are playing the following London dates: Nov 1st St Pancras Old Church; Nov 11th The Old Blue Last; Dec 11th The Finsbury
‘An Island Called Earth’ is out now on Alcopop! Records
Words by Mike Guerard: Follow @Mike_Guerard on Twitter

Listen: Kate Miller – Collar Up

Dispensing with the sort of ostentatious nom-de-plume that has improved the prospects of countless pop stars from Reg Dwight to Elizabeth Grant, Kate Miller is gambling that her music alone will be enough to linger in the memory banks, aggrandising her rather bland title by proxy. Fortunately, her first release, ‘Collar Up’, is packed with promise. An infectious meld of glossy AOR and sensual R&B, the lead track from Miller's debut EP ‘Neophyte’, out on September 29, builds on a neck-straddling bassline that strides towards a soaring and singable chorus on which choral backing enhances the 19-year-old London art student's pristine pop vocal. Kate Miller – remember the name.
‘Neophyte’ is out on 29 September via Karma Artists
Words by Nick Mee: Follow @Nickjmee on Twitter

Watch: Xinobi - Mom and Dad

Though accompanied here by a vague conceptual promo (she needs to work on that golf swing), this sonically clinical offering would be best appreciated on a high-end hi-fi, or potent club soundsystem. You’ll get your chance when Portuguese producer Xinobi releases his ‘1975’ album on his own Discotexas label later in the year. Meanwhile, this taster, ‘Mom and Dad’, is all refined space and reverb, a dubbed-up ambient outpouring of electro-pop comprising Duane Eddy-style guitar twang and a crisp bass groove traversing an insistent kick-drum. The plaintive vocal by Margarida Encarnação adds a touch of Iberian seduction to what is a finely crafted studio piece.
Mom and Dad is out now on Discotexas
Words by Nick Mee: Follow @nickjmee on Twitter

Listen: Kormac Feat. Speech Debelle - White Noise

Dublin-based DJ Kormac shares with Lost in the Manor the fourth track from his upcoming album 'Doorsteps', featuring Mercury Music Prize-winner Speech Debelle on vocals. Kormac is getting championed by the likes of Annie Mac, DJ Food, DJ Yoda and Mr Scruff, and we wholeheartedly endorse that. Give it a listen.

Kormac's new album 'Doorsteps' is out on Oct 20 via Bodytonic Records
Words by Chris Sharpe (Musicborn)

Watch: Sinkane - How We Be

The solo project of Ahmed Gallab, Sinkane continues to build on the hype of his new album ‘Mean Love’. We are delighted to share Sinkane's video for 'How We Be', directed by Nick Bentgen.
‘How We Be’ is a gorgeous ode to New York and a love letter to summer as it explores various neighborhoods through dance. It’s a beautiful visual representation of Sinkane's fluid, worldly sound as it mixes step, ballet, breakdancing and more. Buzzfeed introduced it by saying: "Ahmed Gallab is known for blending African beats, funk and soul into joyously kinetic concoctions. His new video for effervescent single 'How We Be' celebrates those moments when everything is going your way, the sun is shining and you just want to move."
Sinkane plays Oslo in Hackney on Oct 1st - Get Tickets

Introducing / Listen: Lomboy - In The Chamber Of Vanu

If you've just had a hard day's work and want to do nothing but just chill, then the best option is to sit back, relax and let the sweet sounds of Lomboy float right through you.
The band are based in Brussels. If you are wondering what Lomboy means, it's an evergreen tropical tree native to Southeast Asia.
"In the Chamber of Vanu" is out now on Philippine indie label Lilystars Records.
Enjoy and share if you like the track!

Listen / Free Download - Cocoa Futures - Scotland

As you all know, after much passionate debate, the Scottish have finally voted 'No'. To celebrate the whole referendum campaign, and indeed the country, Scottish band Cocoa Futures are giving away a free download of their brilliant track, 'Scotland'.
Greg from Cocoa Futures said: "This song is about the place where we grew up - Scotland. The day after the referendum will be a happy or sad one for most, and some of us will also wonder if a big opportunity has been missed. Either way, we wanted to remember that, whichever way you voted, Scotland is still great."
Cocoa Futures play the Finsbury on Nov 13th with The Ghosts & Hero Fisher - Get Tickets

Watch: The Incredible Magpie Band - This Chose Me

They may have first attracted attention as a trigger for Liam Gallagher to have yet another dig at his older brother (“There’s only one high-flying bird and that’s The Incredible Magpie Band”) but this Wakefield five-piece certainly have an easy swagger and ear for a hook that would appeal to those who yearn for the cocksure retro clarity of early Oasis. ‘This Chose Me’, one half of their double-A-sided debut, is a gratifying stomp of northern beat-group skiffle, accompanied by a video centred on a duplicitous evangelist figure. A band to keep your beady eye on, you might conclude.
This Chose Me/Money is out now
Words by Nick Mee: Follow @Nickjmee on Twitter

Listen / free download: Louis Berry – 45

‘I think I would like to play chess with the devil’ rasps Liverpudlian Louis Berry over the opening salvos of his debut single’s lean psychobilly shuffle. And, sounding like Dan Sartain turned Scouse and streetwise, or a modern-day P Paul Fenech from The Meteors, Berry has a malevolence to his voice that insists you believe him. It’s the spark that illuminates this lively slice of unidirectional rock’n’roll.
45 is out now as a free download

Words by Nick Mee: Follow @Nickjmee on Twitter

Live Review: The New Finsbury, HOO HAs and FURS - Sept 4th 2014

Words By Nick Mee - Follow Nick on Twitter @nickjmee
So the stage has changed position, the sound-system has been upgraded, there’s a new dressing room, back bar, toilets and space for a few more punters to lively up themselves on the dancefloor. Essentially, The Finsbury has had a makeover, giving it a slicker aspect and spec yet, crucially, without sacrificing the low-lit easy ambience, welcoming lack of pretention and fabulous acoustics. A grand redesign that would have Kevin McCloud spewing superlatives over the closing credits. Were he a live music fan.

First to grace the new crescent-shaped stage on one of many unofficial relaunches this month were HOO HAs, whose blend of blues-rock and Britpop was driven by rough-and-ready lead licks, evoking the current surfeit of post-White Stripes duos but given greater range and scope by the simple factor of being fleshed-out by a four-piece. Their reach was extended further by each of the band weighing in on vocals, the backers layering laddish unison chanting to HOO HAs’ catchy tunes, bringing to mind bygone bands such as early Kaiser Chiefs and – mainly due to the Albarnesque quaver of frontman Jamie – Blur, most obviously during the earthy tale of a day by the Westway, ‘Carnival’. HOO HAs’ rootsier stateside flipside was best captured on closing number ‘Early Film Noir’, a ballsy riff-fest driven by the raucous chops of guitarist Mark, animating the band and indicating there’s plenty of stage-stealing rock’n’roll posturing in these fellas when the fires begin to burn.

Follow-up four-piece Furs’ poppy electro-soul was enhanced by sample triggers and loops, leading to a vibe that fell somewhere between Spectorish wall-of-sound and indie twee, waving in the general direction of Camera Obscura or a more proficient Alvvays. Vocalist Elle is aptly named due to her chic, Jane Birkin-like Sixties allure, and her compact band dished up sweet helpings of sugary psych-pop on tracks such as ‘Just Kids’. Furs have a look and a sound that never seems to go entirely out of vogue, and, although their set needs the odd tweak to maintain the standard, are clearly a band of some potential. The Finsbury, too, requires a few final nips and tucks before the overhaul is truly complete, but in the meantime it’s just a pleasure to be watching bands there again.

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Review: Jane Allison - Just Another Girl

Welsh-born and Bristol-based, but with an ear cocked somewhere to the south of the Mason-Dixon line, Jane Allison releases her pretty collection of Celtic Country & (Great?) Western in September. Backed by an able assemblage of Bristol’s finest folk players, Allison’s expansive vocal and beautifully formed harmonies are top-drawer, lending emotion and authenticity to her rootsy musings. ‘Just Another Girl’ is being marketed as Americana, and certainly the delightful Southern swing of ‘Hymn To Hope’ (listen below), the homespun ‘Country Lovin’ and the poppy title-track display many C&W tropes (chicken-peckin’ steel guitar, standup-bass-and-brushes shuffles, hell, even banjo). Yet a chunk of the album is actually taken up with ethereal piano balladry, the most striking of which – the powerful gospel lament ‘Real Life’ and the mournful AoR of ‘Wait For Me’ – touch on mystic folkisms that are more Brecon Beacons than Blue Ridge Mountains. The intersection of these two approaches is reached on ‘Fading Moon’, which, lovelorn subject matter aside, sounds like something off PJ Harvey’s ‘Let England Shake’. All considered construction, polished instrumentation and consummate vocal, Allison’s songs have bountiful commercial scope, in whatever style she chooses to perform them. Already an established actress, she plays two musical roles equally effectively on ‘Just Another Girl’: her next move may be to decide which one suits her best.
Just Another Girl is out on 6 September.
Words by Nick Mee: Follow @Nickjmee on Twitter

Listen: Candy Darling - Money

Candy Darling are named after Lou Reed’s transgender muse, so it’s perhaps no surprise that their debut single is all brash melodrama. Yet the camp theatrics of the Bristol trio’s grinding electro noir is shot through with malice on ‘Money’, a spurned lover’s defiant stand given edge by the cold-hearted clarity of Emily Breeze’s powerful vocal (reminiscent of Karen O’s), as she proclaims: “Next time I see you I’ll be laughing/and you’ll be shot down with regret”. Her memorable couplets adorn an industrial meld of serrated synth oscillations, distorted glam guitar and piercing snare claps shattering a lazy 4/4 that gives the track an unhurried, peacocking swagger. ‘Money’ is a sleazy, bittersweet egocentric shout-out which, like all the best comebacks, is delivered with a good deal of wit.
Money is out on 1 September
Follow @Nickjmee on Twitter

Watch: Happyness - Anything I Do Is All Right

We've already flagged up Happyness' ace 'Anything I Do Is All Right' EP, thanks to Ali Waite's great review, but LITM have been enjoying Adi Parige's offbeat video so much that it only seems fair to share it:

‘Anything I Do is All Right’ EP is out on Noisey on 1 September

Listen/Review: Wampire - Wizard Staff

Listening to Wampire's latest offering, 'Wizard Staff', it becomes clear why the band titled their upcoming sophomore album 'Bazaar'. This chilled-out 70's soft-rock inspired track is a jumble of assorted sounds and styles. Carried by a solid but lazy drum beat, it strays from the path at will, its Mayer-esque guitar riff unexpectedly accented with blues licks and fleeting saxophone flourishes. The combination of Eric Phipps and Rocky Tinder's vocals bring an air of psychedelia as they drift blearily through the song, and just as the listener begins to get comfortable, that sax floods through and commandeers the bridge, sounding as if it's crying out into the night from high on a lonely rooftop. 'Wizard Staff' won't become Wampire's go-to encore hit, it's not going to incite a frenzy. It's the song playing in the background when you're sat in an empty bar in Shoreditch on a Tuesday night, waiting for it to get busy, yet it never does. We can't say it's exactly what you'd expect from a song called 'Wizard Staff', but we think that's probably a good thing...
'Bazaar' is out on October 7 on Polyvinyl.
Words by Holly Warren - Read more of Holly's work here

Artist: Keymono - Agency, Press

Live Bookings: Chris@lostinthemanor.co.ukPress: Chris@lostinthemanor.co.uk, Nick@lostinthemanor.co.uk

Justifiably massive in their homeland, where they have released two albums, soundtracked two films and won numerous awards, including Best Song, Album of the Year and Best Dance Song, Keymono’s unique fusion of digitalism, fluid percussiveness and pulsing rootsy horns is now set to take the UK by storm. The band’s instrumental arsenal encompasses keys, trumpet, flute, sax, bass and drums to colour the bytes and beats that drive their sound. Citing influences as diverse as Prince, Chaka Khan, Little Dragon, Pink Floyd and Beethoven, theirs is a truly original mash-up of nailed-on floor-fillers that synthesise man and machine into an irresistible tribal groove. Trust us, Keymono’s rapturous high-energy electronica is not a sound you will be able to, or will be willing to, forget.
In 2013 KEYMONO signed a publishing deal with EMC/SONY music and released an album combining their past creations from their first 2 albums.
"A perfect blueprint for anyone who dares to fuse futuristic electronic sounds with strings and brass. The lower bass rumble in the drops is definitely one for the sub. This is pop the way we deserve it." Scott McGerty, Amazing Radio
"Keymono’s performance and energy was absolutely amazing and their adventurous sound will delight anyone with an ear for good dance music" Dylan Statow, The Peoples Music Awards
"This band just get better and better. 'Run Boy' is a beautiful slice of pop magic: slick and crispy and, as always, Daiva kills it on the vocals. A real summer hit" =EVM128= DJ/Producer/Somethinksounds
The Peoples Music Awards (international) Bubble in a trouble best Dance track Online Music Awards (international) Everything best Dance track.
Past Festivals UK: Soundcrash Alldayer, Sheep Music Festival Lithuania: (Be2Gether, KaunasJazz, Vilnius MamaJazz, Karkle, Tamsta Music Festival, Galapagai, Satta festival) Latvia: (Positivus, Pestivals) Estonia: Tallinn Music Week Russia: Don Chento Jazz Festival Georgia: Black Sea International Jazz Festival France: Europavox.

Past Supports Dephazz, Candy Dulfer, Club des Belugas, Gotan Project.
https://www.facebook.com/keymonosound http://www.keymono.org/

Listen: Rökkurró - The Backbone

In a year when the sombre balladeer pining across forgettable laptop-lite has become the default delivery for the unimaginative, we should applaud the return of Rökkurró, whose new single, ‘The Backbone’, a paean to their Reykjavik home, is a triumph of slow and moody electronica-edged introspection, thanks to its orchestral approach. Sure, the chord progression holds no shocks, but listen to that compatible lope of kick-drum and snare, those gorgeous fretless bass runs, that misty synth enveloping slivers of piano, the track’s measured wax and wane, and, of course, the voluptuous vocal of Hildur Kristín Stefánsdóttir (we’re guessing ‘Hildy' to friends). Kate Bush-like in its outlandish scope and inevitably Bjorkish in stress, her voice forms the emotional vanguard to this Icelandic tearjerker, a lesson in how to wallow opulently.
The Backbone is out now.
Words by Nick Mee: Follow @Nickjmee on Twitter

Review: Happyness – Anything I Do Is All Right

Hailing from South London, but sounding like they’ve been locked up in J Mascis' basement for the past year, living on a strict diet of fish heads and fuzz pedals, alt-rock three-piece Happyness are the slackers’ and sofa-surfers’ new favourite band.
‘Anything I Do Is All Right’ is the first single from their debut album ‘Weird Little Birthday’. Powered by a riff that wouldn’t sound out of place on Graham Coxon’s ‘Happiness in Magazines’, this track is their most disorderly and frenzied offering. Like a Tasmanian devil causing chaos in a field full of Daisies of the Galaxy, picked by E from Eels, the single has instant intensity and mass appeal. Don’t expect the rest of ‘Weird Little Birthday’ to resemble ‘Anything I Do is All Right’, though, as most tracks lean towards a more minimal, elegant sound, which brings cohesion to an albu, bathed in an opulent, lo-fi vocal effect. Standout track has to be 'Pumpkin Noir', which could be the soundtrack to most Ouija-board enthusiasts’ evenings.
Everything Happyness have released so far bleeds 90s Sub-Pop. From the scribbled handwriting on their artwork to the video for ‘Great Minds Think Alike, All Brains Taste The Same’ (which could be something out of Garth from Wayne’s World’s VHS collection), the band have a clear direction of where they are going from an artistic and recording viewpoint. They know how to trigger their fan base’s pressure points by giving them well-constructed college-rock pleasers. With appearances on the BBC Introducing stages at Reading and Leeds later this month as well as Bestival in September, it’ll be Happyness’ turn to soundtrack your t-shirt tan and lukewarm can of Carling this summer.
‘Anything I Do is All Right’ EP is out on Noisey on 1 September
Words by Ali Waite: Follow @Alister_88 on Twitter

Listen: Prawn - 'Glass, Irony'

Such is the vigorous collision of crunching guttural bass, pummelling drums and distant distorted guitar riffage that the initial 50 seconds of Prawn’s ‘Glass, Irony’ could comfortably be extended into a zippy alt-metal instrumental, dispensing with such conventions as lyrical angst. In fact, it’s almost a downer when singer Tony Clark introduces his emo-esque New Jersey drawl. But hang in there, listener, as that uplifting opening sequence returns to underpin the chorus, and is only enhanced by Clark’s “Let’s Keep Swimming” line, before the track goes rollicking off in unforeseen directions towards fade-out, even finding room for a blast of trumpet among the controlled clout and overdrive. One senses, despite the occasional ugly Durstish belch, that these boys relish in scratching at the frontiers of streamlined stateside punk, and ‘Glass, Irony’ certainly preps the palate for Prawn’s second album, ‘Kingfisher’, washing up on this side of the pond next week.
Kingfisher is out on 12 August on Topshelf Records.
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