In the increasingly fickle world of popular music, the role of the newcomer is one to be treated with the utmost caution. One minute you’re topping the NME’s painfully irrelevant ‘Cool List’ and being championed as the voice of a generation. The next minute your sophomore album is being panned and you’re venturing into the wilderness to join Razorlight and The Kaiser Chiefs. Grim times indeed.
That the ‘Best Newcomer’ category only contains four nominees isn’t a pretentious damning of modern music, but rather a digression from the outrageous hyperbole so often thrust upon debutants as they spring forth into the limelight.
The four nominees here are simply the ones we’ve enjoyed the most over the past 12 months. Mercury Prize nominees in the ilk of James Blake and Ghostpoet they may not be, nor are there any indie poster boys ala The Vaccines to be found here. However, the amount of time these artists have occupied on our speakers this year at the expense of the aforementioned darlings of the musical media is testament enough to their talents and also a reassuring sign that their best is yet to come.
Ready?
Miles Kane
Not a newcomer Per sae, but riding solo has finally brought the best out of young Mr. Kane. No longer meandering in The Rascals or playing understudy to Alex Turner in the Last Shadow Puppets, Kane peacock strutted his way into singledom with the release of Colour of The Trap in May. His evolution into a lone wolf has undoubtedly been aided by friends in high places (Turner co-wrote half of Colour of The Trap while Noel Gallagher and actress Clemence Poesy also make guest appearances) but one glimpse of Kane in a live surrounding and it’s plain to see that he’s a born rock ‘n’ roll entertainer.
Not content with having an already impressive catalogue of catchy psych pop nuggets in his repertoire, Kane screams, leaps, bounds and high kicks around the stage looking like Paul McCartney’s immaculately cool long lost lovechild. The real acid test for Kane will come when he has a little less help from his friends.
This Midlands quintet first sprung to The Kitchen’s attention back in July in the basement of The Queen of Hoxton during a This Feeling club night. Their fresh faced innocence was offset by their splicing of post punk with ominous electro synths. Ian Curtis-a-like frontman Dylan Williams and towering lead guitarist Michael Darby make for a fine double act who perform beyond their years despite retaining a frenetic youth in their music. Charlatan Jon Brookes wasted no time in making his interest known when he signed them up to his One Beat record label. If handled correctly, The Carpels should be able to take the current synth laden indie scene by the balls and not let go until they say so.
The Black Belles
Imagine if The Munsters had an all-female house band that was managed by Jack White. Configured that image in your brain? Chances are its The Black Belles. Fusing scuzzy 60’s garage with more than a touch of Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride, The Belles are 40 years behind their time while still feeling strangely refreshing and original. Their debut self titled LP was produced by the multi-band troubadour White himself on his Third Man Records label and saw the light of day last month to a whirlwind of acclaim and even an unlikely collaboration with US satire extraordinaire Stephen Colbert. In typically Gothic fashion, their debut LP was also released on limited edition absinthe vinyl that glows in the dark. Perfect if you’re thinking of inviting Syd Barrett and Roky Erickson round for a knees up.
Arriving in February with All Through The Night, Liverpool’s The Sand Band brought with them the melancholic Merseyside pop that has served The Coral so well over the past decade. Whereas Skelly and co tend to channel Jim Morrison in their tunes, David McDonnell’s gang tug at the heartstrings in a way much akin to Richard Hawley. Lead single ‘Set Me Free’ is as delightful a song as you’ll hear this year, with its touching folk simplicity and yearning vocals. So not quite the ‘Psychedelic Alt Folk Space Rock Ballads’ that their Facebook page suggests. Still, space ballads or not, yet another outfit that proves Liverpool’s uncanny knack for churning out fantastic guitar bands.
Stay tuned this week as the nominees for Best Film, Best Album and Best Compilation are also revealed!
Until then,
Keep on Keepin’ on,
Baia
X
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