#UKmusic

[lightspeedhunter]

Wham! Photographed by Fryderyk Gabowicz

Photo shoot for Fila (1984)

George Michael & Andrew Ridgeley

[yellowmanula]

Steve Goodman aka Kode9 wystąpił dziś w nocy na Unsound 2024: Noise ze swoim setem-interpretacją 20 ostatnich lat przemian w labelu Hyperdub i zmierzył się ze swoją legendą jako jednego z pierwszych pionierów południowolondyńskiego dubstepu. Pierwszy też raz usłyszałam na żywo WYBITNY set didżejski. Genialną podróż między gatunkami i zmieniającymi się wpływami od garażu, 2stepu, dubstepu, przez grime, trap i eksperyment. Tak sobie myślę, że bez jego wsparcia wielu artystów by nie wypłynęło. Goodman jest też teoretykiem polityczności częstotliwości. Jedne służą machinie wojennej, dystynkcji i kapitalizmowi, podczas gdy zadaniem drugich, tych wypływających z kontrkultury jest brzmieć zawsze w sprzeciwie wobec nich. Myślę sobie też, że ostatecznie dzieło zawsze powinno być ważniejsze od biograficzności w nim zawartej. Musimy się wspierać, bo nigdy nie wiemy co potencjalnie ktoś może kiedyś stworzyć. Jeśli artysta/naukowiec naprawdę kocha swoje rzemiosło, kochać musi również te, nie stworzone jeszcze dotąd, dzieła. Pod wielkim wpływem Kode9 wypłynęła cała generacja artystów: m.in. Skream, Benga, Pinch, ale też znacznie młodsi, którzy poszli w jego ślady. Polecam stronkę Hyperduba 😉 Niech żyje dźwięk UK! (mój ukochany)

[paisleighb]

BEEN ABOUT IT

This track was written for all the underdogs; in a world where we are constantly comparing our progress and success to others sometimes we truly need to remind ourselves we got this and we BEEN about it.

This track is for anyone who’s never felt good enough 🧡

[advancednigga]

When D-Block Europe said "she cant take me home her dad is from Pakistan" yall thought it was joke … ?

[southmusicofficial]

Aitch's Acceptance Speech At The Brit Awards 🏆👏

[philosopheme]

[Review] Fortress Festival

I went to Fortress Festival in Scarborough this weekend just gone and had a blast. Here’s a little review of some of the bands I saw.

Friday

Friday kicked off at 2pm with English BM band Andracca and what an opener it was.   Crowd was disappointingly light for them and I felt a little bad but it was the very first set of the entire festival. They still earned some new fans, myself included. Great energy and intensity.

Next came another English BM band - Andartar. Heavier than Andracca but similarly great intensity. I knew I'd stumbled upon a brilliant festival already at this point. Another pic. Lighting was great throughout the whole fest.

Slight change of pace next with Devastator, a black thrash band from Derby. First pit of the weekend starts, even if it only consisted of around 6 people. They got a great reception and put on a good show and their set was 30 minutes, same as the two before.

Then we get to our first jaw drop of the festival. The Sun's Journey Through The Night. One man band from England recently nominated for Metalhammer's Song of the Week. Incredible performance and highly recommend them. Nice theatrics with the horned skull mask and just fantastic energy from everyone involved. I also got a drumstick from them, cheers!

Wode come next. 40 minute set this time. Manchester black/death metal. Loved his vocals.

Then we have Finnish pagans Havukruunu. Setting the 'atmospheric' tone for the rest of the evening with a nice intro. Place was looking full now, though it was amazing how spacey the room felt. Should also note the crowd was really chilled and friendly. Great set, loved the bassist's bullet crown.

Time for the headliners. I say headliners because they both played for the same amount of time and both felt like they had the right to finish the first day off. So - an hour's set from the magnificent Can Bardd from Switzerland. Beautiful atmospheric folky black metal, many people said they were their favourite band of the weekend. Great set and, as you can see, the place was really alive. Popped out for a smoke and thought 'what a place'.

To finish off, Saor from Scotland. First time hearing electric bagpipes which was a fun experience. Just like every other one that day it was a brilliant set, the crowd were really into it and I especially enjoyed the flute(?). Frontman Andy engaged spoke with the crowd a few times. Nice view leaving the spa. 

Saturday

Back  to Scarborough Spa - which was once again looking ravishing - just in time for the post-black metal openers from Birmingham, Lunar Mercia, at 12:30. Really nice sound and lovely vocalist who I'd spoken to the day before.

Next we have Nemorous. Basically Wodensthrone v2 as it's made up of mostly ex-members. Started amazingly, finished amazingly, but suffered a very unfortunate snapped guitar string in the middle that seemed to take an AGE to restring. The crowd was totally sympathetic but you could feel the frustration from the entire band, I can't imagine how disappointed they were. Think they only managed around four songs but they did a great job and I went and bought a t-shirt afterwards. Visceral vocals and first keyboardist of the festival.

My personal highlight of the weekend came at the end of Nemorous' set. Just before they started I checked in at the Panopticon stand and got myself a copy of Kentucky. £80 on Discogs currently but they were selling them for £35. That alone made me very happy, but, whilst watching Nemorous, I noticed a familiar face. There was Austin Lunn from Panopticon, the reason I bought the ticket to this festival, going ham at the barrier (the guy with the hair, obviously). Once the set finished he very kindly signed my copy of Kentucky after I frantically searched for a marker pen and got a photo with him. He stuck around to chat for a few minutes and was one of the nicest musicians I've ever met. So enthusiastic and asking loads of questions.  My weekend was made and absolutely nothing could've ruined it at that point.

After a short break and a few beers I got back in time for Ard. Described as 'Monastic Northumbrian doom', Ard is the project of Mark Deeks from Winterfylleth. As a one man project he was naturally assisted by the rest of Winterfylleth! This was a real change of pace from the black metal we'd been listening to since early Friday afternoon and he did thank everybody for sticking around for him 'even though there were no blast beats'. Really enjoyable set.

Next, Ante-Inferno, from Scarborough itself, with the drummer being the organiser of the festival, Gary. Really been enjoying their most recent album 'Antediluvian Dreamscapes' and they were a class act. In case you haven't caught on, everyone at this festival was fucking great. Really loved the vocals here.

Here we have one of my biggest highlights of the weekend and a band I've not stopped listening to since I left Scarborough.  Afsky, from Denmark. They rendered me absolutely speechless. Sure, the wood and the torches and the industrial fan were a nice touch, but they played with an intensity I hadn't seen to this point. The sound was amazing and the screams were just top drawer. As you can see in this video, it was way busier on the Saturday. Room was packed but, like Friday, far from cramped. I've listened to them every day since Saturday and I finished one of their albums on the drive home.

It was getting real misty at this point. Eldritch powers or smoke machine, who can say?

Penultimate act of the day, English black metal darlings Winterfylleth. Mark Deeks from Ard back behind the keyboard this time. I'm a fan of Winterfylleth and it was my first time seeing them but I wasn't really blown away. They were good, I think I just expected them to be better. Or maybe it was the anticipation of Panopticon around the corner... either way, there was a better pit this time as well as a few corpse-painted balloons floating around. Very kvlt.

Finally, my time had come. I bought my ticket for Fortress the moment I heard Panopticon were there. One of my favourite black metal bands, with Kentucky being one of my favourite albums of all time. At this point, around 21:30, I hadn't had a pint for about 2 hours to avoid needing a piss and losing my spot at the front. I got right to the barrier, which was insanely easy, and waited it out. Soundcheck took a little while and the whole fest was probably running a solid 15/20 mins behind. Think Austin Lunn spent more time trying to balance his 'Commonwealth of Kentucky' flag on his amp than actually doing the soundcheck, not that I was complaining.

And then we were off. They were fucking amazing in every way. I was emotional. So much Kentucky material, including the wonderful little folky bits. Austin wasn't satisfied with the sound at the start and kept asking for more guitar, not that it interrupted his flow at all. Though, the string instrument they were using (fiddle? violin? idk) could've definitely been a bit louder. Austin's vocals were fantastic but I was utterly blown away by their keyboardist, who's name I don't know. Guitar work was fantastic and at times it sounded just like the studio album.

Austin did an impromptu meet and greet afterwards, just jumped down from the stage and started to chatting to people. Really phenomenal set. Sadly it was the end of the road for me, as I couldn't stay for Sunday's lineup due to work, but I had had an incredible time and finishing with Panopticon was a moment I'll never forget.

I heard Sunday was also good, though I think it would be fair to say the lineup was slightly weaker. Heard great things about Abduction and Cenotaphe, though I've heard a few things about Bolzer having a nightmare with soundchecking (as in it took fucking ages and he had a go at the sound engineer - and someone may have heckled him?) but I can't say much more as I wasn't there. A friend did say they were really good once that got out of the way.

Favourite sets: Panopticon, Afsky, The Suns Journey Through The Night. In that order.

Final thoughts

Fortress is one of the best festivals I've ever been to. Not because it was flashy or had the best lineup or anything like that (though Panopticon puts it up there for me), but just because it was so well organised and chilled. Everyone was super friendly, there was zero hassle, the venue was incredible, and all the bands delivered. 

They've already confirmed they're going again for 2024 and they're moving to the bigger room at Scarborough Spa which holds 1800 and looks awesome. It's going from 3 days to 2 days (Saturday and Sunday).  Here's their Facebook page and there's a forum with plenty more pictures and discussion and links to other black metal gigs in the UK, worth joining.

Thanks for reading.

[ispendyen]

1st ep. go stream it on soundcloud <3

[cyrusdavirus]

Over zesty the most high blessed me……. - - - #hiphopmusic #underground #drill #undergroundhiphop #unsignedrapper #bars #rapmusic #rappers #independent #worldwide #beatstars #unsignedartist #drillmusic #oldschoolhiphop #producergrind #banger #ukmusic #ukdrill #snippet #rapgame #grmdaily #jcole #imjustbait #grime #takeover #hiphopblog #unsigned #unsignedhype #cyrusdavirus #tracks (at London Underground) https://www.instagram.com/p/CqXO_XYoI09/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[lulamusic]

Listen now! Album dropping soon 🕷️

[pilesofbooksandbeats]

One of my favorite songs from one of my favorite albums to listen to,especially at night!

[lightspeedhunter]

Tears For Fears, London 1983

Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith

1983’s «The Hurting» introduced the band that blended bleak musings on the long-term effects of childhood trauma with a razor-sharp synthpop instinct and high end production values (Wyndham Wallace, Classic Pop Presents 1983)

[musicpromotionclub]

Discover the top British rappers making waves in 2024! From Stormzy's dynamic sound to Stefflon Don's Caribbean influence, UK rap is stronger than ever. Check out these rising stars in grime and hip-hop, including Kano, Bugzy Malone, and more! 🔥🎤

[paisleighb]

Morningggg! 🫶🏼 Start your day right by hitting the link in my bio and adding my music to your routine today 🌚 #lie2u #ukmusic #ukrnb #linkinbio #newrnb #rnbmusic https://www.instagram.com/p/Cn6aX14IJX7/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[thetunesclub]

Discover the top seven UK rappers making waves and winning hearts across the globe! Check out this list of talented artists who are shaping the UK rap scene.