But Captain are still very much alive.

After their lilting last record, For Irini – written and produced to raise money for the ward on which Mario was treated – 2023 sees a welcome return with new guitarist Seb Wesson on board and a sound that is rejuvenated, elevated and fresher than ever.

Those in posession of Captain’s Trevor Horn-produced debut LP, will likely have fallen for the unmistakeable duel-vocal sound of Rik Flynn and Clare Szembek atop the sort of blissful and uplifting songs that stand them out as unique and unafraid to find their own place in indie pop’s leftfield. With influences as disparate as The Cure, Elliot Smith, Burt Bacharach, Flaming Lips, the Beach Boys and Smashing Pumpkins, theirs are inspiriting pop songs of the finest ilk, capable of lifting the stubbornest of spirits.

The band’s upcoming new album, due for released through Gentlemen Recordings, is in many respects the true sequel to that mighty debut in sound, and this first single, High Beams, is as gorgeous a track as the band have conceived, crafted to showcase Captain’s blissful, emotive and epic sound to a tee.

And, trust us, it’s exactly what the world needs in these worrisome times.

Artists such as Damien Rice, Jack Lukeman, Gavin Friday and Tom Dunne have sung Sean Millar’s songs and praised his musical and lyrical style. Hotpress named him ‘Ireland’s best singer/songwriter’ and an Irish Times journalist described Sean’s lyrical works “the best collection of short stories I have never read”.

In his own way, Sean has been brewing his own brand of beautiful crafted songs, in a tradition set by people like Leonard Cohen, Lou Reed and Tom Waits. It brought him more praise and good press than records sold, but it didn’t stop him just releasing his 2012 album, Of The People, on cassette tape. Yes, you read that well. On cassette tape.

• “Doctor Millar’s These Days is the track that changed in my life” – Paolo Nutini
• “The first time I saw Dr.Millar was years ago in The Da Club, a small musicvenue that used to exist in Clarendon Market. I remember he came on stage andlooked a little nervous. He fumbled a bit, said hi and then started to play. It wasamazing. He was so different to everyone else playing that night. His dark,honest lyrics. His terribly good melodies. So raw. And he sang so low. Iremember trying to sing along under my breath to see if I could reach the notes.He is someone who has made me think about music. I still love the songs ‘Happy Can Be’ and ‘Alcohol Problem” – Damien Rice
• “Extremely affecting…” – The Sunday Herald
• “SeanMillar has once again created a masterpiece” – Hot Press
• “Prescribed listening” – Mail on Sunday
• “Full of honesty and integrity” – The Journalist
• “You won’t hear a better album of original material by an Irish artist thisyear” – State.ie
• “One of Irelands greatest songwriters” – Hotpress.
• “He’s the poet laureate of Dublin’s dark side, an inner-city visionary who sees theugliness beneath the cosmopolitan façade and the beauty in the forgottencorners of the capital.” – The Irish Times
• “An Irish national treasure” – The Irish Times
• “Millaris half Leonard Cohen and half Jarvis Cocker… he remains Irelands bestlyricist”– The RTE Guide.

The band effortlessly combines danceable rhythms with unorthodox guitar parts. Expect contemporary electronics with hints of romanticism.

The band has been playing together for over ten years resulting in the following highlights: big shows in the Netherlands, performing as the opening act for bands such as Other Lives (US) and Flying Horseman (BE) as well as winning and participating in several band competitions such as Nu of Nooit and the Grote Prijs van Nederland.

Deciding it was time to start working on their debut album, the four dark haired men wrote over a hundred songs within the timespan of a single year! An enormous undertaking that was made possible by a vast collection of instruments and an obsessive work drive. Armed with synthesizers, guitars, music production software they went to work. Not only during rehearsals but also at home. Living rooms, bedrooms, storage rooms: they all were transformed into recording studios. Eventually all the effort paid off, resulting in their debut album “1080”.

In little over a year, Jack has gone from playing small local gigs in his hometown of Southampton to appearing at major UK festivals such as the Isle Of Wight, Victorious and Stone Free Festival at the O2 Arena.

Beginning to attract the attention of the industry, his debut EP ‘The Van Wyck Expressway’ has been championed by BBC Introducing as well as a number of other unsigned platforms. His self-titled second EP was released at the start of 2017.

With plays on Tom Robinson’s BBC Radio 6 show, Jack goes into the next phase of his musical career with what is believed to be a “game-changing” song for anyone who has been lucky enough to hear it so far.

“Hauntingly wonderful acoustic tunes tinged in old school Americana.” – Southampton Music Magazine
“Brilliant voice and amazing songwriting talent!” – BBC Introducing

His single ‘A Little Love’ will be released on Friday October 30th. Pre save now!

Anemone is a psychedelic britpop band from Rotterdam, formed in the summer of 2017. Rotterdam was introduced to a new sound with raw edges, psychedelic soundscapes, Manchester grooves and drawn-out brit pop songs. That summer the band dived into the studio to record Silver Star, the debut album that is released a year later. The fall of 2018 was dominated by dozens of shows during the Popronde, including the closing party in the Melkweg.

The band members are influenced by bands like The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Pavement, The Feelies, Oasis. During Anemone’s shows people whisper about The Stone Roses and Happy Mondays. Anemone plays mercilessly hard and will make you sweat during their dirty live shows. You must have seen them live before you die!

March 2023 the band released their newest album Freebird.

The trio is cast in one, the guitars radiate and roam with intent with the support of an understated yet powerful rhythm section. Bass and drums are intensely precise, elegant and seductive.

Their music is the heir of a dark and literary genre. Taking as much from the English and the French culture, they are freed from both.

On Friday 17th of July Versari release Sous La Peau (“Under The Skin“), their third album. It affirms, with strength and power, a new skin after shedding: an exorcism, a rebirth. Incendiary lyrics: Jean-Charles Versari sings stories of purifying pyres: burning lies and false pretenses.

Drawing their influence from the French style of song writing, post-punk and post hardcore sensibilities, the new album is a statement for Versari: an evolution from their previous album, Ostinato (2013).

Sous La Peau proudly features guest musician Adrian Utley (founding member of the iconic trip-hop band, Portishead).

Some quotes about the band:

• “Alternating between raw energy and felt-like atmospheres, darkness is the word, as well as sensuality.” (À découvrir absolument)
• “[…] one of the decade’s freshest post-punk sounds” (StereoEmbers.com)
• “Post-punk to the guts, hypnotic by essence, “Sous la peau” keeps digging into human nature misery as a vital force.” (Muzzart)

Written over the last two years at an abandoned steel works in Digbeth, and recorded in the damp basement of an old whistle factory in the depths of the city’s industrial Northern quarter, embracing the darker sounds and subjects was inevitable. But with lyrics that often touch on matters of love, loss, and loneliness, this is a record born from a cathartic affection of hope and escapism. It is also a thrillingly taut and danceable journey, the band have toured their disco-noir extensively in the UK and Europe (with the likes of EDITORS and Savages), earning the respect of their fans and contemporaries alike. Their debut EP ‘In Memory Of’ gained the band the attention it deserved, particularly via 6music, and in turn built the perfect foundation for the anticipated album to follow.

They’ve influences that range from Mogwai to Factory Floor, Slowdive, through to The Chameleons, but Victories at Sea are far more than just the sum of their parts, with original, exciting songwriting that never loses its pop sensibilities.

Stand out tracks such as ‘Up’ and ‘Poles Apart’ showcase the band at their most danceable, with big chorus hooks and machine beats that timelessly devour and yet are impossible to forget. As the album builds ten tracks towards it’s crescendo, ‘Sirens’ and ‘Future Gold’ both see Victories at Sea explore more intricate musicianship and atmospheric soundscapes that build through layers of impressive electronics and heavily effected guitars, intent to sonically enthral and make you dance in equal measure this is a record with true multiplicity, depth and heart.

On 21^st February 2020 Victories at Sea released their second studio album Everybody’s Lost and All I Want Is to Leave’. This album was conceived and realised as a statement. A permanent marker of the pinnacle of the trio’s possible creation, an honest and direct expression of the collective power of the three band members. It is more than a collection of songs, it stands as a collective of artistic work designed at every point to demonstrate a belief in the power of the album, the power of music, the power of words. Something beautiful that would remain forever. You can order it on limited edition gatefold vinyl, CD and digital download.

The group NOVEMBER was created in Geneva where Bernard Trontin, a Frenchman but lifelong resident of the Swiss city met Simon Jones shortly after he moved there from England in the early 2000’s. An initial idea of Jones recording a vocal for a single track on an album of Trontin’s music quickly changed as it became clear that when combined, their unusual musical talents created a unique and powerful chemistry.

Their sound is without a doubt unique. At their latest album, November 2nd, you hear landscapes… stark minimalism is followed by atmospheric ballads, occasionally showing glimpses of ‘And also the trees’ here and ‘The young Gods’ there but always keeping the separate identity and originality that is November.

Dan’s critically acclaimed last album, “Country And Northern” was released in 2011. Since then Dan has been a full touring member of British Indie rockers The Wonder Stuff and co-wrote their top 40 album “30 Goes Around The Sun.” He has also been collaborating with French super group Celtic Social Club.

We released his 5th studio album Are We Having Fun? on November 9th 2018. Released in the U.K. on The Levellers own label OTF Recordings and in Europe on Holland’s Gentlemen Recordings, Are We having Fun? is an album that has been long awaited.

These sympathetic Belgians have been making wonderful indie pop songs for years. They did so on their self-titled debut album (2015), but even more so on the follow-up to “Heartbreak Hi” (2018). The world of The LVE is a sad, yet beautiful world in which dreamy melodies merge with catchy grooves and flawless harmony vocals. The British legends of The Zombies have already been enchanted and have declared that they are fans of these Belgians, just like The Brian Jonestown Massacre where they were even allowed to act as support act. They have previously played in numerous places in the Benelux with VESTROCK, MEZZ, Botanique, Trix, Reflektor and Gentse Feesten, among others. The LVE is Gerrit Van Dyck (vocals, guitar), Sara Raes (vocals), Thomas Van der Velde (keys, vocals), Rienk Michielsen (bass, vocals) and Joes Brands (drums).

Nederlands:

Deze sympathieke Belgen maken al jaren wonderschone indiepopliedjes. Dat deden ze op hun titelloze debuutalbum (2015), maar nog meer op opvolger ‘Heartbreak Hi’ (2018). De wereld van The LVE is een verdrietige, maar toch prachtige wereld waarin dromerige melodieën samensmelten met pakkende grooves en een feilloze samenzang.De Britse legendes van de The Zombies lieten zich al betoveren en hebben laten weten fan te zijn van deze Belgen, net als The Brian Jonestown Massacre waar ze zelfs in het voorprogramma mochten acteren. Ze speelden eerder al op tal van plekken in de Benelux met onder andere VESTROCK, MEZZ, Botanique, Trix, Reflektor en Gentse Feesten. The LVE is Gerrit Van Dyck (zang, gitaar), Sara Raes (zang), Thomas Van der Velde (keys, zang), Rienk Michielsen (bas, zang) en Joes Brands (drums).