SoundsXP is a UK based music webzine. It was set up in 2001 by Paul Mawdesley, Ged McAlea and Kevin Odell and is entirely based on contributions from unpaid writers. [1] The site mostly publishes reviews and interviews covering primarily the indie, indiepop, shoegaze, folk, alt-country and electronica musical genres. It also covers alternative music news and free MP3 downloads. [2] The front page includes a regularly updated music player which showcases current songs recommended by the writers.[ citation needed ] In addition, SoundsXP has forums to allow for discussion and comments on the articles, as well as live event notices which are free to use for bands and promoters for publicity. [3] The site has organised a number of live events over the years featuring artists such as the Broken Family Band, the Bishops, Younghusband, Pete and the Pirates and many more. [4] [5] [6]
In 2006 the webzine set up a label, Sounds eXPerience, with limited 7" releases by Piney Gir's Country Roadshow, the Schla La Las, the Bridge Gang, Santa Dog and a split release by Esiotrot and Foxes!.
Son Volt is an American rock band formed in 1994 by Jay Farrar after the breakup of Uncle Tupelo. The band's current line-up consists of Farrar, Andrew DuPlantis, John Horton (guitar), Mark Patterson (drums), and Mark Spencer. In addition to playing alternative rock, the band is considered a staple of the alternative country rock movement of the 1990s. The band's sound also is rooted in folk rock and Americana. The band went on an indefinite hiatus in 2001, before reforming in 2004.
Jay Stuart Farrar is an American songwriter and musician currently based in St. Louis. A member of two critically acclaimed music groups, Uncle Tupelo and Son Volt, he began his solo music career in 2001. Beyond his established talents as a songwriter, he is a guitarist, pianist, harmonicist, and a vocalist.
Gerling were an Australian electronica, alternative rock trio formed in 1993. From early 1997 the members were Darren Cross on guitar and lead vocals, Presser on drums and Burke Reid on guitar and vocals. Their second album, When Young Terrorists Chase the Sun, reached the ARIA Albums Chart top 50. It provided a top 50 single, "Dust Me Selecta". The group disbanded in 2007.
Brixton Academy (originally known as the Astoria Variety Cinema, previously known as Carling Academy Brixton, currently named O2 Academy Brixton as part of a sponsorship deal with the O2 brand) is a mid-sized concert venue located in South London, in the Lambeth district of Brixton.
Indie pop is a subgenre of alternative rock and subculture that combines guitar pop with DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and subsequently generated a thriving fanzine, label, and club and gig circuit. Compared to its counterpart, indie rock, the genre is more melodic, less abrasive, and relatively angst-free. In later years, the definition of indie pop has bifurcated to also mean bands from unrelated DIY scenes/movements with pop leanings. Subgenres include chamber pop and twee pop.
Drowned in Sound, sometimes abbreviated to DiS, is a UK-based music webzine financed by artist management company Silentway. Founded by editor Sean Adams, the site featured reviews, news, interviews, and discussion forums.
The Violets were an English post punk/indie/pop band from the New Cross area of London, England. Formed initially as a bassless garage punk trio, The Violets early gigs saw them playing stark, spiky and minimalist punk that evoked early art-school punk bands such as Delta 5, Prag Vec, and Siouxsie and the Banshees, as well as more contemporary acts such as Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
The music of Cardiff has been dominated mainly by rock music since the early 1990s with later trends developing towards more extreme styles of the genre such as heavy metal and metalcore music. It, along with the nearby music scene in Newport, has brought a number of musicians to perform or begin their careers in South Wales.
Math and Physics Club are an American indie pop band based in Seattle, Washington, United States. Its members are Charles Bert and Ethan Jones. James Werle played lead guitar until he died in 2018. Kevin Emerson (drums) continues to play on recordings though no longer a full time member of the band. The band has released three EPs and four full-length albums on Santa Barbara-based Matinee Recordings, with UK distribution on Fika Recordings. They are often associated with Australian labelmates The Lucksmiths and twee pop band Tullycraft, and Pitchfork Media described their work as "music to hold hands to" after The Lucksmiths' song on the album "Why That Doesn't Surprise Me".
Northern Star Records was a UK based record label, founded by Scott Causer and Andy Oliver in 2005. The label launched in March 2006 with their first release, the double CD compilation album, Psychedelica Vol. 1. The release soon gained cult status and was praised by Billboard for bringing the genre into the mainstream, as the label was increasing viewed as being the leading pioneers of the third wave of psychedelia. In February 2008, Andy Oliver left to pursue his own interests which left Scott Causer to take the label forward.
How Does It Feel to Be Loved? is a London-based nightclub which predominantly plays indie pop, Northern Soul and Motown music. On the club's website, founder Ian Watson explains: "We love pop, we love guitars that jangle, we love foot stomping melodies and huge choruses." The club's name is taken from the lyrics to The Velvet Underground song "Beginning to See the Light".
The Windmill is a pub and live music venue in Brixton, London, England, with a reputation for championing new music. It was voted the third best music venue in London, in a 2012 poll in Time Out magazine, and #7 by The Guardian in 2008, and has been described as "one of the top-10 music venues in the U.K.".
Metal Storm is a webzine specializing in various forms of heavy metal music. It is based in Tallinn, Estonia, but caters to an international audience, symbolically recognized by the acquisition of an EU domain in 2008. The site features a database of over 5,000 bands, alongside album reviews, news and interviews.
Standard Fare were a British three-piece indie-pop band based in Sheffield, The band were formed in 2005 and comprised members Emma Kupa, Danny How, and Andy Beswick. Standard Fare were named after a sign Emma saw on a bus in Newcastle. The band's sound drew upon their influences of soft rock and punk but is often linked to the sounds of C86 era bands.
Crowns were an English folk punk band from Launceston, Cornwall, formed in 2010. The band consisted of lead singer and guitarist Bill Jefferson, bass player Jake Butler, mandolinist Jack Speckleton and drummer Rob Ramplin.
Indietracks was an annual indie pop music festival at the Midland Railway in Butterley, Derbyshire, England. The main site was located at Swanwick Junction. Bands played in variety of locations, including a restored church, in a train shed, and on the moving trains themselves. The event was staffed by volunteers, with the proceeds from the festival going towards the upkeep and renovation of the site and trains.
Alt-J are an English indie rock band formed in 2007 in Leeds. Their lineup includes Joe Newman, Thom Sonny Green (drums), Gus Unger-Hamilton (keyboards/vocals), and formerly Gwil Sainsbury (guitar/bass).
JAWS are an English indie rock band formed in Birmingham, England in 2012 after singer Connor Schofield had posted a demo (Cameron) online that received enough positive feedback to encourage him to start a band with friends from Halesowen College. They have often been identified as part of the Digbeth-based B-Town scene.
Everywhere is a UK Alt Rock band. The band play 'Post-pop' and their sound has been compared to artists such as 'The Cure' and 'Depeche Mode'.
Black Midi are an English rock band from London, formed in 2017. Their most recent line-up consisted of lead vocalists and multi-instrumentalists Geordie Greep and Cameron Picton, along with drummer Morgan Simpson. Between 2017 and 2020, the band also included guitarist Matt Kwasniewski-Kelvin. Following his departure, the trio were frequently joined by multi-instrumentalist Seth Evans and saxophonist Kaidi Akinnibi, both as session musicians and during live performances. Their name is derived from the Japanese electronic music genre black MIDI, though their own music has no relation to it, instead incorporating styles such as math rock, progressive rock, post-punk, and avant-jazz.