The number is 69,000 in total. Due to the crippling financial devastation that COVID caused on the music industry and UK Music, it’s certainly Project Revitalise for our music industry as we long for the return of the numbers we once pre-COVID in 2019.
With hundreds of festivals and music events cancelled and/or postponed – with no valid insurance scheme to fall back on – a wave of job losses surged through with the uptake simply being too much for small to medium promoters and event organisers.
As predicted, the slump was hit the hardest with the live music sector which saw revenues collapse overall by 90% to a mere thousand pounds.
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“We have listened carefully to UK Music’s arguments about a market failure regarding events insurance,” said Nadine Dorries, the culture secretary. “The UK music industry is one of our country’s great national assets, and I give my commitment that the government will continue to back it every step of the way.”
That may be all well and good but with many insurance schemes and crisis funds coming far too late for many, will a financial release from the Government be enough this time around?
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Our music industry is slowly beginning to revitalise itself with the mass sprawls of major festivals returning, international artist tours rekindling music venues and with it, comes the investments of music consumption. But revitalisation as always, starts with you. What will you do to help our UK music industry?
As a day to encourage young musicians and young learners from every community and every city to perform outside, World Music Day has returned today on the 21st June. Celebrated with over 120 countries worldwide, it’s a fantastic sight to see as musicians across the globe pick up their instruments, sharpen their vocals and simply play, perform and just enjoy themselves simply for the love of music.
Despite the pandemic restricting a lot of events to showcase our love of music outside, there’s been plenty of community collaboration and live performances done solely online. Emphatic music works have been going on since the early hours of this morning and despite us being confined to our time zones witnessing live music first-hand, we are undoubtedly drawn together with our love for music.
So, despite the often rare fanatic exploration of World Music annually, take some time out today – no matter how long you have left of the Monday – … and enjoy some music that is culturally, and artistically, inspiring.
After a month’s hiatus, we’re back for Hidden Gems and its thirteenth instalment. Looking for new artists to sink your teeth into? Wishing to show your support to those undiscovered but worthy artists? Well, look no further.
Previous Hidden Gems – y’know .. in case, you missed it:
Simply put, Audiokicks are out to make you feel good.
Almost like one of those perfect buoyant music backdrops to an ending of an instant film classic, their indigo-indie work is completely unblemished.
Drawing inspiration from indie-alternatives, Keane, Radiohead and Stereophonics, their prolific song-writing, emphatic vocals and their perfect band balance is ever-present in the likes of, One More Shot, All I Ever Want and of course, their most recent single release, Grow.
As we remain in an uncertain world right now, Grow carries themes of exactly that. Attempting to grow – in a time where we seem to not be growing at all. Lush in its complexion, it is a fitting soundtrack. Let’s hope we’ll see each other on the other side once this is all over, eh?
Unrivalled with the wit, charm and the drawl of 90s Britpop, Spooky Goose are bringing a sense of the same with their distorted style of Blur and Supergrass –
and it comes with a whole new fresh outlook on it all.
Having released their second EP, Where’s My Title? earlier this month, they are looking to pick up where they left off from their debut, Whelking Accident – with a much darker, twisted version of events.
Colossal quips of Am I Gonna Die? and Lover Boy are stoic feats that smash through the normal and enter terrority that the likes of even Damon Albarn would be impressed to call his own. The trio originally harking from Kent are setting the standards on what originality looks like – and an unfamiliar force comes with it.
If you like your music with a splash of colour and a lick of life to it …
then you shouldn’t have to worry with these lot.
Setting their place firmly in the ether of rock and indie music, Daydream Runaways are an act to be reckoned with. Smashing it live as you would normally expect, they are set to light the spark creating more anthemic indie-tales of dreaming nostalgia, tempting arousal and satisfying uplifts of nothing but … happy music.
Simply put, it’s a joy to listen to. If they are set to have a year like they expect, they will soon cut through the noise and end high up on the lists of booking agents across the UK. Releasing their three-parter EP Dreamlands back in 2020, it features tasty works of Fairytale Scene and Light the Spark that alone, have seen countless radio plays, worthy attention and a result in us as music fans, hungry for more.
Music that makes you wish you were somewhere else is hard to come by.
Sultry single, Amsterdam does exactly that.
Glorious in shade and beautiful in quality, the three Worthing lads are setting you on a course to your owndaydream. Proposing an entirely DIY ethic to their music construction, they have not been the opposite of quiet throughout lockdown spending countless hours writing up countless songs that all manage to do a something a little extra than the last.
They have since chalked up an EP in the form of Paint the Sun last year (featuring favourites, Invincible and If I Leave) and now are looking to tempt us with more music on the horizon with two-parter Amsterdam (featuringself-titled and September). Recent release, Amsterdam really wishes you were somewhere else. Enjoying summer without a lockdown in its way, is hard to come by.
But with Amsterdam, comes the well-deserved future we are all looking hoping for. We’ll be on those festival fields in no time. Keep looking forward.
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That’s all for this week, folks. Keep your eye out for more artists you need to sink your teeth into …
For this week’s singles review, it seems we are discussing the fashionable return of Avril Lavigne. In a bid to stay majorly relevant among the revitalised punk scene that is happening right now, Sk8er Boi punk-queen has since signed with Travis Barker’s DTA Records, and released snap-and-heel single of “Bite Me” in quick succession. Since […]
Why do we go to live music tribute shows? We do we fork out – almost the same monetary equivalent of that as an original act – our hard-earned money to sit and listen to a mildly generic and a poorly modified version of a band we actually like? If we loved that band so […]
Amidst a worldwide pandemic, indie-alternative favourites Nothing But Thieves screech out what we’ve been asking ourselves throughout this turmoil of tyranny with … MORAL PANIC. Mixing the collusive works of elusive alternative rock with the freeing styles of pop, Nothing But Thieves have risen to crucial acclaim from such singles like Amsterdam and Sorry which […]
Quirky London music-making boy returns with yet another indie triumph
Luxurious indigo-indie with a eccentric reception to follow, London-based music-making boy Chris Pidsley is set to turn heads with his eclectic blend of sorrowful quips and tales that draws inspiration from Vance Joy and Kodaline with “Quirky”, “Cinnamon” and his most recent release, “Alex’s House” leading the way in Pidsley’s sound.
Whilst lockdown has been a difficult time for most musicians – especially with the lack of live music gigs and tours allowed to go ahead due to restrictions – Pidsley has been getting his thoughts to paper, marking himself in the musician head-space, as he adds six singles to his growing collection since the first lockdown in March.
His latest, Alex’s House, is a sincere triumph and truly sparkles Pidsley’s quirky flair and writing approach to making music in his bedroom. Perfect for any lazy Sunday playlist or for those scenic beachy walks with sand in between your feet, Pidsley’s music sits comfortably among the greats who Chris himself follows in admiration for ideas – for whom he will surely see himself in the same bracket in the future.
Simply easy-listening, it marks a venture into the world of catchy licks, outlandish quips and fast-paced beats –
Here we are again, folks. The twelfth week of Hidden Gems. With four more up and coming artists to add to the collection – be sure to have these on your music radar in the coming week for more releases – and more music.
Transpired with the tranquility of lo-fi hip-hop beats, emphatic Edited People are set to reach the industry headlines with their outreach of a music deliverance I’m calling “haunted pop.” Creating diversity with every beat, they have begun to explore new terrority and reach new depths to their sound. Kicking off the year with Dream Chaser followed by It’s Always Been You, they are set to trail-blaze on all festival fronts when they hopefully return during the summer of hope in 2021.
After sifting through their collection, the four-piece make it look far too easy creating work that sticks in your noggin’ the whole day. It is somewhat annoying and inspirational at the same time. Nice work, folks!
Telling us outright, Pizza Crunch are an electric mix of suave, class and style that presents itself in unfamiliar situations to ourselves. Deemed as nothing but essential listening, the Glaswegian four piece don’t restrain themselves into one single genre, but rather, cover the basis of many, so is simply enjoyed by many. Sprinkled with The Vaccines‘ Justin Young’s wry vocals and the arse-rearing of The Libertines, Pizza Crunch are one to watch out for. Especially now, as we may potentially get the chance to see them live this Summer…
The three lads from Sheffield comprised of Andrew, Gabe and Joe – who make up the feats of BrunchBox – have deemed it nothing else as a passion project. But don’t be fooled. The fruits of their labour are emphatically shown throughout their collection of carefree – and simply beautiful – tales of fleeting youth that is thesoothing medicine to anyone who is feeling remotely alone during this period.
After reuniting from their uni hiatus, they decided to drop everything else and have another crack at doing what they loved – and frankly, missed out on. Flyover and Dreaming are the perfect comeback songs ending their distance from one another, and with another release on the way, it is unlikely they’ll stop anytime soon. In the same ball-park of a Circa Waves banger, Palace is set to release in the early days of March on the 5th, it’s summer splendour will resonate with everyone’s desire to return to that much-loved and missed festival atmosphere yet again. With Boris’s recent plan to returning back to normality, hopefully we can see them perform the song live itself within the Summer of Hope this year. We’ll see you there, eh?
Falling well within the bracket of modern indie-pop, eclectic four-piece The A.V. Club have gone the extra mile, and stepped out amongst the crowd. Their usual blend of modern indie-pop is infused with refining synth patterns that are scattered throughout, which has no doubt brought defining success to the band since they embarked in 2018. Their eponymous EP, Youthful Illusions, set the benchmark for the band, solidified their place and allowed them to rise higher in the listings.
The successive follow-ups of Real Love and Over U were no different. The new material allowed them to relax, fully aware and comfortable of the sounds they were willing to make. The tidal of The A.V. Club will soon enter your ear nodules and they’ll ask for only one thing – do you wish to join the club, too? Expect their next single in more than then days with Mistakes.
Man v Music 