Tag Archives: The xx

Interview: Tessa Dixson

Posted on June 5, 2019 by Indietronica Staff

TESSA DIXSON

Tessa Dixson oozes determination in a chic and playful manner. Her music is often hypnotising and mournful, yet strong.

We had a quick chat with Tessa to find out some more about how she got into music and those visuals.

Describe your sound in three words.
Melancholic. Tauting. Honest.

How did you get into music?
Music has always been a part of my life growing up. I started dancing lessons when I was very young, music would play in our house all year round playing all sorts of different genres and opening my ear to music more and more, I took piano classes as well at a young age then taught myself to play the guitar and shortly after that took singing classes to work on my craft. I always knew I was going to end up making music.

Your music visuals are always exciting and interesting, do you put a lot of effort into planning these?
Absolutely, the visual aspect of Tessa Dixson is as important as the music for me. They go hand in hand. I have surrounded myself with the right people to put my ideas in place and to be honest I wouldn’t say I put a lot of “effort” in the visuals, usually when a song is created I already know how I want it to look and how I want to transcribe it visually.

What was it like winning this year’s De Nieuwe Lichting prize?
It was great. I had the opportunity to meet amazing new people and talents and it’s given me a big boost in my career. I am very grateful!

What are your plans for the rest of 2019?
Performing a lot! This summer will be my first festival season so I’m really looking forward to that because I know it’s a totally different vibe than playing indoors. And really just living my best life, working on music, going out with friends, profiting of my youth and perfecting my craft.

We love new music at Indietronica. What new music are you listening to?
(A lot of what I’m listening to is not new but stuff I’ve just recently liked)

Tyler the Creator – Earthquake
Leon Bridges – Shy
Peggy Gou – Starry Night
Doja Cat – Juicy
Sunni colon – Mornin Dew
Solange – Weary
Billie Eilish – Bad Guy

Her new single ‘Ignited’ is out now on {PIAS} Belgium.

Sounds like: The xx, Kllo, Grace Carter, Lorde, Billie Eilish

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Weekly Gems 66

Posted on May 18, 2019 by Indietronica Staff

RUMOURS – Lights Down

RUMOURS

London-based three-piece Rumours ply us with some smooth R&B-themed vibes on ‘Lights Down’.

Often running the length between indie pop, indie dance and contemporary R&B, they fluidly move from one genre to the next whilst maintaining their distinct sonic identity.

Sounds like: Kllo, The xx

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Michael McQuaid – Alone Lonely

Michael McQuaid - Alone Lonely

Nashville-born singer songwriter Michael McQuaid shares his latest track, ‘Alone Lonely’ – a song that stems from bad relationships filled with isolation.

Taking inspiration from blues and soul, the singer singer uses sparse electronics in order to create a smooth yet impactful composition.

Sounds like: Dan Crossley

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Kean Farrar – On a Roll

20 year old Kean Farrer shares his new single about his current city abode, Berlin.

A talent ahead of his years, Farrar has developed a unique approach to alt-R&B that reflects Berlin, a city mixed in hedonistic nightlife and historical isolation. Seems like he might be on a roll…

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Misty Mtn – Drive

Dark mountain pop duo Misty Mtn (pronounced misty mountain) shares new single ‘Drive’, taken from their debut EP ‘Missed Your Call’.

As with the rest of the EP, the song is absorbed with lavish synth-pop productions and effervescent vocals. Using five natural elements – moon, fire, water, mountains, forest – Misty Mtn creates a melancholic soundscape full of reflective storytelling.

Sounds like: Maggie Rogers, Gabrielle Aplin, Kllo, Oh Wonder, Sylvan Esso, HAIM, Ralph

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Sea Girls – Damage Is Done

Sea Girls is smashing it at the moment, getting bigger and bigger gig slots and playing to larger crowds. But perhaps this was the band’s destiny, following front man Henry Camamile’s fateful decision to start a band and play KOKO in London.

The new single ‘Damage Is Done’ is yet another blazing anthem, and perhaps the new soundtrack for the best night of your life.

Sounds like: The Kooks, The Maccabees, Bombay Bicycle Club, Swimming Tapes, Slow Riot, Two Door Cinema Club

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Weekly Gems 64

Posted on April 28, 2019 by Indietronica Staff

Great Mountain Fire – Look UP

Belgium pop band Great Mountain Fire their shares new single ‘Look Up’.

Comprised of childhood friends, their music echoes of Daft Punk. Tinged with groovy beats, ‘Look Up’ is a fresh, sunny indie pop tune.

Sounds like: Breakbot, Goldroom, Daft Punk, Mirage Club

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0171 – SMTHN RL

0171

0171 is Hackney duo Joe Bedell-Brill and Georgie Hoare.

Creating a beautiful clash of raw and honest music, the nostaglic dark pop duo shares their sophomore single, ‘SMTHN RL’. It explores a yearning for real experiences and real intimacy in a world where you can often feel distant from each other, and from your own life.

Their debut EP is out on 17 May.

Sounds like: Kllo, Kudu Blue, The xx, Myo

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Tropic Harbour – Calm

Canadian artist Tropic Harbour today releases his ‘Calm’ EP.

Not disimilar to his former releases, the lead single continues to serenade the listener, and gives further gravitas to the beat-maker’s own unique take on the chillwave sound.

Sounds like: Summer Heart, DIIV, Jessy Lanza

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Joey Landreth – Cryin’

Meet Juno award winning guitarist Joey Landreth.

Also one half of the esteemed roots band The Bros. Landreth, Joey takes a more emotional approach to his solo material, creating a bold and versatile sound that explodes with energy while also remaining captivating throughout.

Listen to ‘Cryin” below, with its James Bay vibes.

Sounds like: James Bay, Hozier

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ORIION – Siren Call

ORIION

If you’re a fan of anything pop, there’s something for everyone in ORIION‘s latest, ‘Siren Call’.

His self-described ‘nostalgia pop’, walks the line from the 80s up to the modern day, with a one-a-kind vocal delivery that really conveys the lovesick motivations.

Sounds like: Zayn

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Manatee Commune – Growing Pains

Manatee Commune by Allen Daniel

Manatee Commune is exploring music and life in his mid-20s.

His blissful new single ‘Growing Pains’ hits the crux of the issue. Immersed in a sober and earnest landscape, the song features Samuel Eisen-Meyers and is out now via Bastard Jazz.

Sounds like: John Mayer, Teen Daze, Goldroom, Tropic Harbour

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Bokito – Colleen Bawn

Bokito

If there is one thing to do this year, go see Bokito perform live.

Sitting in the gap between tropical indie pop and soulful funk, Bokito’s ‘Colleen Bawn’ is bursting with summery energy and fills you will and irrefutable urge to move. Frontman Moses Moorhouse’s vocal is the perfect compliment to the tasty groove set by the five-piece.

Sounds like: Two Door Cinema Club, Stereohoney, Shiners

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Playlist: Tessa Dixson

Posted on February 8, 2019 by Indietronica Staff

Tessa Dixson

Tessa Dixson has just released the emotive ‘Falling’, which one again feature those trademark yearning and goosebumps inducing vocals. To celebrate the release, we asked Tessa to put together a playlist of inspiration for us.

Listen below.

Tessa Dixson – Prayer

This was my first ever release, and it still embodies everything i am today. It’s still so true to what i believe and i feel it’s the kind of anthem for any young adult discovering the beauty and sadness of life.

Frank Ocean – White Ferrari

His album Blonde is the only album i am able to listen to on repeat without getting tired of it, but on the contrary falling in love with it even more every time. He captures your emotions so perfectly and something quite extraordinary happens, he’s a musical genius to me.

Maggie Rogers – Give A Little

I’ve never really been into pop rock, but Maggie is an amazing singer songwriter, and when you hear one of her songs you will directly know it’s hers, and this song is a perfect feel-good-get out of bed-on a sunny morning-dancing in front of the mirror song, start off your morning right with Maggie!

Spooky Black – DJ Khaled Is My Father

I think Spooky Black may be the artist i’ve listened to the most since i was 16 years old. He has this haunting truth telling that is just so sad and he is able to make poetry out of it, that’s beautiful to me. When i listen to this song i feel i am laying on a bed of white roses in the sky slowly falling into a pool of red.

Ama Lou – Tried Up

To me, Ama Lou is the next big thing in the underground world, she has a really strong concept and her latest project DDD is super interesting. Her songs resonate a cool coolness.

Aphex Twin – #3

I have a playlist on my phone called “starfish” and a lot of Aphex Twin’s songs are in it simply because that’s what the songs make me feel like, a starfish underwater, a certain serenity and peace of mind and just gliding with the slow current, i usually listen to this playlist when i’ve smoked a spliff.
The song is 7 minutes long and is very monotonous in the sense that it is the same chords over and over but that is the beauty of the song, it’s not about the chords itself but more about what happens in between.

Bicep – Opal (Four Tet Remix)

I NEVER GET TIRED OF THIS SONG!!! It has so many ups and downs in it that you never get bored from it. It’s the kind of song you want to listen to when you come back from a party and the sun starts to come up and you still feel a bit buzzed but tired at the same time, thats the feeling i get from this song. Just writing about it gives me sweaty palms and butterflies in my stomach.

James Black / Bon Iver – I Need A Forest Fire

Everything about this song makes me emotional and i don’t know why but that’s why i love it so much. James Blake and Bon Iver is a match made in heaven, everything about this song is perfect, the harmonies, the ad-libs, the beat, the chords, the strength of their voices together, i mean everything.

The Blaze – Virile

If you haven’t yet noticed, i tend to like songs that make me feel some kind of way, that’s usually why i like a song or not. Well this song represents a form of nostalgia and that’s why i like it so much, it tells a story by the atmosphere.

Romeo Elvis/Primero/Tessa Dixson/Halibab Matador – Poliss Massa

Romeo Elvis has really been able to create a sort of empire so i’m very proud to have been a part of it in the very beginning. It’s such a chill song and really makes me think of Brussels somehow.

Sounds like: The xx, Kllo, Grace Carter

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Weekly Gems 52

Posted on January 18, 2019 by Indietronica Staff

Ayelle – Obvious

Ayelle

Mellow music-maker Ayelle shares her self-reflecting new single ‘Obvious’.

The Swedish-Iranian R&B singer-songwriter teamed up with producer Jonah Stevens, to delve furhter into her lyrical clarity and sultry vocals.

Listen below.

Sounds like: Banks, 4AM, Wet, IYES, The XX, SOHN

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Jinka – Ghost 2 U

JINKA

Jinka’s track ‘Ghost 2 U’ is glitchy trip-pop at its finest.

Ghost 2 U” is the Transylvanian artist‘s most emotionally dynamic track to date.
It juxtaposes a heavy, industrial half-time drop reminiscent of acts like Cashmere Cat, Amnesia Scanner or Tommy Cash with touchingly fragile and intimate tale-telling verses.
Jinka’s vocals evolve over a loop of pluck-sounds that unavoidably take your imagination to an underground stalactite cave hidden in the souterrains of Berlin.

Sounds like: Kate Boy, I BREAK HORSES

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daste. – SOBER

daste

Australian trio daste. is comprised of Callum MacDonald, Braxton Tahi & Tyler Harden.

Focusing on the smaller details (with the ‘d’ in daste. standing for detail), their new track, ‘SOBER’ is a summery lo-fi number showcasing simple, yet effective songwriting, and shares the idea that a clear head is always better than a mediocre, intoxicated one.

It’s out now via Mammal Sounds Records.

Sounds like: RÜFÜS DU SOL

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Malihini – Delusional Boy

There is always an air of romanticism with Italian culture and Italian duo Malihini are no exception to this rule.

Their new single ‘Delusional Boy’ has upbeat drums, neatly undercut by its recurring vocal refrain, “Delusional Boy/Delusional Girl” – the downbeat rejoinder conveyed with a typically euphonious duo vocal melody that juxtaposes between a falsetto male part with baratone-esq female vocals, which all in all, creates an extremely easy-to-listen-to pop track.

Expect their debut album ‘Hopefully, Again’, out on 8 March via Memphis Industries.

Sounds like: SAMA, Beach House, Tennis, Chairlift, Au Revoir Simone

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HighSchool Jacob – Cant Get Enough

Highschool Jacob is an indie pop artist who has a serious way with words, so don’t mess.

Based out of Los Angeles, this nu-funk extraordinaire weaves catchy and retro melodies and engrossing stories to make head-nod worthy and heartwarming music.

Listen to ‘Can’t Get Enough’ below.

Sounds like: Daft Punk, Du Tonc

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Jesse Hite – When It All Comes Down

Jesse Hite

There is a definite lo-fi, funk theme in this week’s gems. Introducing Jesse Hite – an exciting solo artist who has just shared his debut ‘When It All Comes Down’.

An American artist living in France, Hite effortless blends sounds thanks to this move across the Atlantic, as well as travels through Asia.

‘When It All Comes Down’ is the first single of a three-song EP to be released. The song is full of character, soulful lyrics, in which Mite manages to create as much blooming sound as music troop, Jungle between a large number of them!

Sounds like: Shy Girls, YAKUL, Jungle, LCD Soundsystem

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youthxx – New Frontier

youthxx

Taking on the challenge of a new anthem for millennials is youthxx (also one half of Golden Coast).

‘New Frontier’ achieves anthemic territory with an inspiring, unforgettable vocal and sharp contemporary production that mixes synthetic and organic sounds with finesse.

Sounds like: Imagine Dragons, Golden Coast

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Tessa Dixson – Crystal Waters

Posted on December 19, 2018 by Indietronica Staff

Tessa Dixson by Alice Pallot

Led by effortless strings, Belgian-based songwriter/model Tessa Dixson‘s new single ‘Crystal Waters’ is emotive yet soothing in the same breathtaking moment.

Baring her soul once again, Dixson explains about the song,

“Crystal Waters is a song that I wrote a while ago, and it still stands so true today, it’s all about being crystal clear and people trying to change you none the less. The synths and strings work perfectly together, caught feeling a whirlwind of emotions, you are transposed through sad lyrics but an uplifting arrangement, the strings really brings the whole song together.”

It’s out now on [PIAS].

Sounds like: The xx, Kllo, Grace Carter

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Little People – Skies Turn Blue Feat. Tif Lamson

Posted on November 30, 2018 by Indietronica Staff

Little People - Skies Turn Blue Feat. Tif Lamson

Little People is the beautiful project of Laurent Clerc, who has just returned to the UK following a stint of residing in Portland, US.

Little People combines elements of tech with lush instrumental landscapes, which will rightfully draw comparisons to ODESZA (who he supported on their US tour), Little Dragon and Maribou State.

‘Skies Turn Blue’ is the second single taken from his upcoming ‘Landloper’ album and features Tif Lamson of the band GIVERS.

It’s out now on his own label, Future Archive Recordings, which was co-founded with Sun Glitters, Arms and Sleepers and CNJR. It is a collaboratively minded label, that looks to empower artists to release music as they see fit with the help, clout and structure of a label.

Sounds like: Little Dragon, The xx, Bonobo, Maribou State, ODESZA, RJD2

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Kllo – Candid

Posted on November 28, 2018 by Indietronica Staff

Kllo

We’ve been longtime supporters of Kllo and honestly didn’t think they could impress anymore. That was until ‘Candid’ came along.

Evolving as artists, Kllo is a frank song about maturing emotions within a relationship, laden with slow beats and soulful vocals, courtesy of Chloe Kaul.

Listen below.

Sounds like: The xx, Jamie xx, Jessie Ware, Kudu Blue, Disclosure, Jorja Smith

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Tessa Dixson – Beautiful Pain

Posted on October 30, 2018 by Indietronica Staff

Tessa Dixson - Beautiful Pain

Tessa Dixson is channeling artistic cultures with alternative pop genres in her new single ‘Beautiful Pain’.

The visuals follow Dixson covered in drippings of gold paint, evoking the pleasure and pain of young love and relationships, amidst a vintage backdrop.

The track is out now via [PIAS] and will be followed by three more songs and an EP over the coming months.

Sounds like: The xx, Kllo, Grace Carter

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Weekly Gems 41

Posted on October 8, 2018 by Indietronica Staff

Sugarcane – Bethnal Green Blues

Comprised of Robin French (Cuckoo) and Antonia Thomas (Misfits, Lovesick), these two creatives write seductive bossa nova music paired with calypso pop sensibilities that would fit well on the soundtrack of ‘The End of the F***ing World’.

On the motivation behind Bethnal Green Blues, Robin states,

“Sometimes you write a sad song from a happy moment. This came to me while I was flying to South America to see a girl I’d fallen for. It’s about the emotional ice age after a romance fails, but it was written as that ice melted under the Argentine sun..”

Sounds like: Nouvelle Vague, Men I Trust

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Dancing On Tables – Colour Me Good

Dancing On Tables by Lucy Foster-0009

We love an indie anthem, so thank you to five-piece pop-rock, Dancing On Tables.

The band, school friends from school in Dunfermline, a small town just outside Edinburgh, have released ‘Colour Me Good’ – a groove-laced, vintage indie-pop track that encapsulates sun-drenched, dance-able songwriting with a distinct Scottish charm.

Sounds like: Sea Girls, Biffy Clyro, Circa Waves, The 1975

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Slenderbodies – The One

Slenderbodies is a California-bred duo who write forward-thinking, dreamy synth-pop.

Their new single ‘The One’ is intricately subtle musical medication, shared in preparation of their upcoming EP, ‘SORAYA’, to be released through Los Angeles indie label Avant Garden, which is also home to Emotional Oranges.

Sounds like: Glass Animals, Alt-J, Milky Chance, Mura Masa, Passion Pit, PVRIS

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Dirty Nice – Always Summer

Forget those summer blues.

Mysterious UK-based duo, Dirty Nice, make a positive point in new single – it’s always summer, somewhere.

Released on Kitsuné, the single is an antidote to holiday blues, and the “optimistic twin” to their track ‘Zero Summer’.

Sounds like: Shy Luv, Phoenix, Daft Punk, Jai Paul, Sylvan Esso

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Gavin Haley – Sad Season

Gavin Haley

From summer season to ‘Sad Season’ with former professional cyclist Gavin Haley‘s latest single.

While competing with the national cycling team, Haley suffered an injury that resulted in a collapsed lung, setting back his travel by several months. During his recovery, he explored and found inspiration in Europe’s underground music scene, becoming enamored with energetic live performances filled with a grit and energy.

Starting with a simple West Coast-inspired guitar riff, ‘Sad Season’ soon picks up and exposes determined pop and R&B.

Sounds like: Zayn Malik, Frank Ocean, Ed Sheeran

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ROYAL – Vessel

ROYAL

Canadian songstress ROYAL debuts with ‘Vessel’, the first of six new tracks that appear on her upcoming album, ‘Heart of Shadows’.

Covering the topic of heartbreak, loss of identity and raw self-reflection, this is electro-pop at its finest in 2018.

Speaking about ‘Vessel,’ ROYAL says,

“This song is about heartbreak – having to let go of someone you love, and then realizing the emptiness and loss of identity that ensues. I wrote this song it while trying to find myself after getting lost within a relationship for many years and then feeling shattered by the loss of a love I thought would last a lifetime.”

Sounds like: VÉRITÉ, Lana Del Rey, Evvy, Noosa, Dominique, The xx

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Von Sell – Scene Of A Crime

Last but not least, our favourite breakthrough act – self-taught producer, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, Von Sell.

After a bout of vocal pain and subsequent treatment, we are pleased to say that Von Sell is on the mend and returning to our stereos with ‘Scene OF A Crime’.

Taken from his forthcoming sophomore EP, ‘Digital Sleep’, the song reflects on unrequited love, but, due to its uptempo nature, it will ultimately leave a taste of confusion in your mouth because you can’t help but dance despite the disconcerting subject matter.

Sounds like: Summer Heart, Hazel English, Teen Daze, Peter Gabriel, Alt-J, Thomas Azier

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