These Fresh Faves were picked by our readers over the weekend – and reviewed by Fresh On The Net’s Louise Toal this week. You can hear all these tracks in a single Soundcloud playlist here.

AODHAN – Get It Right

Aodhan (Aidan Whitehall) is a singer/songwriter/producer from Wollongong, Australia who already seems to be taking the world by storm. His early releases caught the attention of Communion Publishing UK, who cleverly snapped the youngster up and he signed a deal where he joined the likes of Bears Den and Catfish & The Bottlemen as label mates. Not bad going for a 16 year old.

Get It Right is a nice little slice of indie pop which sports some fine guitar and drum action, along with Aodhan’s confident vocals, to deliver a catchy groove with a subtle edge. Lovely stuff!

Official | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube

BETH AND BLUE – Take It All

Beth and Blue are the experimental side project of musicians and married couple Imogen Grist (Babitha) and Marcus Gordon (Spookyland). The duo also hail from Australia — this time Sydney — and apparently they bonded over a mutual affection for classic love duets like Nancy and Lee, Sonny and Cher and Gram and Emmylou. They describe themselves as being conceived as a means to experiment with the tradition of the love song.


There’s a lovely little harmonious chemistry within Take It All that sounds a little like First Aid Kit. You can tell how comfortable the pair are working together, as the vocals marry effortlessly together and it’s beautifully easy on the ears. A winning recipe for all the romantics amongst you.

Linktree | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube

BLAKE HARLEY – Linger On

Blake Harley is a Berlin-based musician whose idiosyncratic dark wave combines stark Berlin industrial sounds with UK goth attitude. Whilst the music is full of longing, it is rebellious, as if sung on the dancefloor of a secret bunker rave. I love that!


Blake has been releasing her debut singles this month and has some upcoming live dates in both London and Berlin.

I can hear a little of the 80s goth influence in Linger On, I like the vibe that Blake is going for here, and her bio describes it as being enticed into a world of nostalgia, romance and horror. I’m loving the dark synths and xylophone on this track too. A sophisticated piece of work.

Instagram | Facebook | X

BLOKEACOLA – Lost Connection

Blokeacola is a Welsh artist, now based in Hangzhou, China, who sports a shiny helmet (not a euphemism) and makes psychedelic indie pop. He is a fellow silly person whom I’ve come to know over the years through the socials. He is both a fun follow and a fine fellow!


Lost Connection is an infectious piece of synthy pop. I like how Blokeacola can throw some dark subject matter into his lyrics but deliver it with a happy, clappy beat and vocal. I’m basically bopping to bomb disposal robots, much like the bin fire that is life, there’s not much else to do but dance around it.

Blokeacola has support from the likes of Adam Walton on BBC Wales, our own gaffer, Tom Robinson on BBC 6 Music, and also Amazing Radio and Exile FM. Blokeacola also has some CDs you can treat yourself to with — links on his instagram page.

Instagram | Facebook | X | Bandcamp

BORED AT MY GRANDMAS HOUSE – Inhibitions

Bored At My Grandmas House is the project of Leeds-based, Cumbria-born musician, Amber Strawbridge, who is currently signed with Clue Records. I see she’s had a busy few years, especially in the festival circuit. Having played the likes of BBC Introducing stage at Glastonbury last year and Standon Calling, she’s definitely making an impact and it’s not difficult to see why.

Inhibitions was mostly written and recorded at home. Amber linked up with Alex Greaves at the Nave (Bdrmm, Yard Act, Working Mens Club) to add the finishing touches. The result is an accomplished track that surfs classic indie pop, shoegaze and lo-fi dream pop.

Amber wrote the song as a homage to all the over-thinkers in the world and all the day to day anxieties we face.

Amber has gained support from the likes of BBC 6 Music, DIY, and Clash and appears to be on the verge of breaking through to the mainstream.

Official | Instagram | Facebook | X | Bandcamp

FLEXAGON AND LIHOU – Un Vert Bocage

Flexagon is a Guernsey-based sound mangler and musical instrument collector; he is also a DJ, music producer, sound engineer and composer. He has teamed up here with Lihou, a band comprising Channel Island, French, and English performers to explore the traditional music of the islands.

I must admit that this track passed me by on the initial inbox, but such is the beauty of having other mods and getting to write the reviews, I’m finding myself rather mesmerised by Un Vert Bocage. The haunting vocals are provided by Emmanuelle Bouthillier. A dark and stunning piece of work that I may just be falling in love with!

Official | Instagram | Facebook | X | YouTube | Bandcamp

SHORT SHARP SCRATCH – Wolf At The Door

Short Sharp Scratch is the music of Brighton-based songwriter, guitarist and producer, Jak Chantler and vocalist, Aimee Montague. I’ve reviewed Jak’s work before and it’s a privilege to do it again, especially with such a funky track as this.

Wolf At The Door explores how fun and interesting bad things can be and how easy it is to become addicted to them. Dark subject matter with a sultry and sexy delivery. I liked it from my first listen and I like it even more now.

After a bit of digging, I see that Jak and the crew are supporting Fun Loving Criminals on their current tour and you’ll find a list of all the dates on Jak’s instagram page.

It’s no surprise that Short Sharp Scratch have had support from Tom Robinson on BBC 6 Music and it’s lovely to see Jak flourish!

Linktree | Instagram | Facebook | X

TELSTEP – Be Interested (Not Interesting)

Telstep is the project of Scottish-born but Manchester-based, hip hop/ambient beat maker, Lewis Bigham. Focusing on piano/minimal house music, Lewis has also made music under the guise Glassmasterer.


Coming in at just 1 min 53 secs, Be Interested (Not Interesting) demanded my attention straight away from the main inbox. The first bar had a swagger that I was instantly smitten with and leads us into a housey, scratchy, jazzy sliver of loveliness that makes me want more. I’m so glad our readers felt the same. It proves that you can make your point without outstaying your welcome, and as soon as I finish my work here, I shall be investigating Lewis’s work further. You have my interest, sir! *inserts winky face*

Instagram

THE MANTECAS – Black Nile

Okay, so, think Coltrane, Shorter, Davis, Hubbard and Perkins injected with an infusion of Latin rhythms whilst staying true to the language of jazz, and you get the wonderful and exciting sound of The Mantecas.
The band are made up of the finest musicians in the Latin, jazz and pop scenes in London, and quite frankly, there are far too many for me to name — the list is long but you’ll find it on their Soundcloud bio. They were originally formed by Colombian singer, Martha Acosta and bass guitarist/MD, Don Flora (Javier Floramonti) for the Hogmanay festival in Edinburgh in 2001. They are well known throughout the UK festival circuit.

Black Nile is warming my bones this morning with its Urban Latin Funk vibes and I’ve had a lot of fun exploring these guys. The Black Nile LP is available for pre-order now before its release on the 8th December for my fellow vinyl junkies!

Official | Facebook

XY BIRD – Had No Words

Xy bird are London-based, Afro-indie/R’n’B duo, Daisy and Andrew. They describe their music as “the love child of Scott Walker and Leikeli47.”
Had No Words is a single, written about the frustration of not being able to represent yourself accurately in the right moment. Daisy’s soulful vocals melt beautifully into Andrew’s spherical guitar work and I love the funky bassline. There’s a lovely flow and groove to this track.

Daisy and Andrew are hoping to one day earn the right to compose a song with a really, really long intro. Crack on, I say. Life is short and it sounds to me like it’ll come easier to you than you might think! *inserts another winky face*

Instagram | X | YouTube

PS from TR: If you’ve submitted a track that hasn’t been picked for the Listening Post, our team has definitely listened to it and there’s no need to send it again: feel free to send us an even stronger track another week. The same goes if you were picked for the Listening Post but didn’t feature in our Fresh Faves.

But if we’ve recently featured you in our Fresh Faves – or on my BBC Introducing Mixtape – please wait three months before sending us another track, so we have space to help other deserving artists… For more info see Robinson Has A Good Old Moan.