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

Hey everyone! Welcome to another week of fab fresh faves! As always if you want to be featured on my Islington Radio show drop me an email with an audio file and bio to del.owusu@gmail.com. Clean radio edits only! Thankyou!

Now onto our faves.

Tea? Check.
Toast? Yes I’m going with toast this morning. With a little bit of butter.
Headphones charged? Of course.
Four lit and in the green.

Let’s go.

CRUSADERBEACH – First Snow

The faves start off beautifully today with a piano instrumental. Most of you will know that I play the piano so this is right up my street. It’s gentle, there’s a tendency to add strings or augment piano instrumentals with synths to bulk it out, but this is not the case for this one.

The piece is in C#, and it’s so simple, from my perspective it doesn’t need anything added to it, this is the kind of thing you’d like to hear on a chill out album, something to help relax you, I certainly am relaxed now, this is good for the soul!

CrusaderBeach is the pseudonym of Adrian Webster, a self taught pianist from the NortH West of England, he’s doing VERY well on the streaming side of things as well as sheet music sales – once upon a time it wasn’t about the amount of streams you got or even purchases on Bandcamp – it was purchases in sheet music!

Imagine.

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FLAKEBELLY – What The Thunder Said

Another weather related track in the faves?

Is this a theme?

You never know.

This one is a Wurlitzer led track, very dreamy. It’s got a psychedelic feel to it especially with the whispery vocals. Add to that the way driven given guitars, the big drums this transports you back to the 70s! It feels very experimental and has a prog rock leaning. I love the chord choices on this especially over the whispered sections, it makes it sound so disconcerting but I like that. For one thing the drums are big sounding too which I like a lot…. My favourite part of the song comes in at 1:27 I reckon Cory Henry from Snarky Puppy might have something to say about that chord run! It’s short but effective!

When Flakebelly was last in the faves in batch 534 Poppy noted that he had a bit of a leaning towards the Beatles and Small Faces.

I agree!

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GORSTEY LEA AKA – (My Heart Belongs To…) The Beaches

Gorstey Lea AKA are back and have gone through a bit of a change, it’s quite funny really because just as I was about to embark on the review of this as if by magic I got an email from them requesting airplay – complete with bio and everything!

What I like about this is the way they’ve combined sounds like galloping horses, seagulls and the water lashing against the shore with the actual song. It gives it a lovely wistful feeling, longing for times long past, and I guess that’s what they’re angling for.

It works.

Oh by the way the pizzicato’d strings and cello? Nice touch!

Gorstey Lea AKA originally started out as a duo, but have expanded their number to 5 for live purposes there’s an electric live version coming soon apparently. The coded location Whiskey Sierra 7 tells me that they’re from the Midlands. They were originally known as Gorstey Lea Street Choir but changed their name.

Pity.

I liked that one.

But the AKA works just as well!

Instagram | Facebook | Twitter/X | YouTube | Bandcamp

HANNAH SCOTT – Broken Homes

Another electric piano laden track! I’m blessed. While the chords and melody are very pretty this hides within it the pain of families breaking up:

My father’s scars were etched upon his skin,
By his parents’ fighting and the state it left him in,
They had little choice,
But the world has spun around,
So I stand and I raise my voice and I speak these words aloud.

I want to break down what I interpret these words to mean –
Could it be a reference to the very real self harm as a result of families breaking up and dealing with the trauma?
The world spins on – time passing and possibly affecting another generation?

This to me is hinted in the lyrics because homes is plural.

In any case this song has touched me and I’ve awarded it my track of the week.

On visiting Hannah Scott’s website the first line in her bio is “Your music has moved me to tears.”

That’s not surprising.

She’s a South Londoner like me (SOUTH LONDON CREW!), and she’s been crushing it by all accounts live, she’s got kudos from The Guardian for one thing, Dermot O’Leary, and Clash Magazine.

What a singer. What a voice. What a story.

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IDEINI – Holding Us

To the synths and electronica we go with this next one! This is quite frantic, and brings the analog goodness to the faves. The vocals are drawn out, and brings a husky ethereal tone over a constantly changing instrumental. You just don’t have the time to get used to what you’re hearing because by the time you do that, then there’s something running alongside it that will change your perception of it.

For example, with the synths coming in at the beginning it gives way really quickly to the beat coming in at 0:15, with an arpeggiated bassline which I reckon is at the same tempo. But the vocals are slower, which makes me think that the tempo was disregarded and this was to take freeform. It will explain why the snare sounds like it’s thrown out of a window at one point, no mean when working with a drum machine! Oh and the swap in time signature later on?

Either way, this has really given me a lot to think about.

Chef’s kiss!
Ideini are a Franco-Italian trip-hop/indietronica duo, consisting of producer Theo Duplus and vocalist Francesca Martino. They are based in Lyon France, they have an EP called Shaping The Void due out on 22nd November 2024.

I have been sent an advance copy, and it’s definitely a goodun!

Instagram | Facebook | Bandcamp

INVISIBLE SQUIRREL – Waltz Of The 303’s

At Fresh On The Net, we get music sent from all over the place. The deep stretches of space. Sometimes from the far reaches of the future. Sometimes even the past when the submissions portal decides to open up its doors to that end of things. There’s a certain doll trio close to my heart who make timey wimey wibbly wobbly indie pop that sometimes grace us with their music. No one knows who they are, and there are no hints anywhere but only a precious chosen few do. I certainly don’t but I love The Happy Somethings and the mystery surrounding them.

But this?

This is different.

This is a track from a squirrel.

Yes.

A squirrel.

But guess what?

As if this is not absurd enough, the squirrel is invisible.

Yes.

I said what I said.

Invisible.

And because of this, the squirrel has taken to the stage to release a track that clocks in at 11 minutes long.

The audacity of that squirrel.

At 11 minutes long on the nose, this has squelchy synth basslines -this is the inspiration for the title I’m assuming – people talk about 808s, but you have to be a real synth nerd to reference the Roland TB-303. The impact it had on electronic music is pretty important leading to the Guardian listing its launch as one of the 50 key events in dance music. Essential listening would be “Da Funk” by Daft Punk.

Anyway, back to Invisible Squirrel, this track has got it all going on, it melds the synth goodness with some blues guitar, a lovely bass line in the pocket and guess what?

It has a drum solo.

Of course it does.

It starts at 4:56 and what a groove!

This has prog rock vibes for sure given its length and the way it combines synths and gets very experimental in its transitions…

To finish off there’s a key change and then there’s a fade…

Great job!

Invisible Squirrel’s identity is known to a very select few myself included, I am sworn to secrecy of course. But I will tell you this, it’s the squirrel your dog can’t see. They’ve remixed tracks for other artists, and have been counted as Bandcamp’s new and notable.

Also, the graphic for the front cover made me chuckle. It’s a pun! It’s a fried egg, and it’s a flower – making it an egg plant!

Clever squirrel.

Official | Twitter/X | YouTube | Bandcamp

JULIA-SOPHIE – Telephone

Okay, classic drum machines and nature references are the theme for this week. This has got to be a LinnDrum, along with the pulsing bass. I love the moodiness of this track, it’s got 80s vibes all over it, and I like that. The 80s references go deeper, there’s a mention of a walkman!

What do you mean you don’t know what a Walkman is?

Get out.

Also, there’s a mention of chips.

I like chips. I wonder what Julia-Sophie’s preference is? Vinegar or no vinegar? Personally I prefer no vinegar.

But I’m weird.

The lyrics refer to things we don’t do anymore, like read magazines, talk on the phone and watch TV at least not communally such is the advancement of technology.

It made me feel nostalgic!

Julia-Sophie is an Anglo-French avant-garde electronic artist, this is the closing track from her album “Forgive Too Slow” which came out back in July this year.

She’s my one to watch.

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PORCELAIN MOON – Midnight Drive

This next track comes to us from Porcelain Moon, and this is the title track from their three track EP. The connecting thread through this week’s faves is nostalgia, because this one refers to a road trip taken at a quarter to midnight, and referring to the old days.

Do people go out on midnight drives anymore?

Answers on a postcard please…

This carries really dreamy synths, and what drew me to this is the pitched down drums with a bit of reverb, making it sound really spacious in the mix, add to that the pitched down snare and toms. It has an overall pleasing effect on the rest of the song.

This has such a nice driving vibe to it, it’s like the kind of track you could pop on just to start your journey, it makes me want to check out the rest of the EP, and that’s the whole purpose of sharing something like this! Draw your listeners in.

I like the guitar solo at 3:14 too!

I learned a new word today – Capetonian – which means from Cape Town that’s where Porcelain Moon hail from. They are husband and wife duo Emma Goode (lead vocalist/pianist) and Gerry Matthee (producer/multi-instrumentalist). According to their website have been spinning synth-pop daydreams into reality since meeting in high school.

I love a cute love story.

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PURPLE SUNS – Between The Lines

This is a strong indie rock track, 6/8 time giving it a bit of a bluesy feel too. It’s based around drums, bass and guitars – the bass is actually doing some really nice melodic stuff and for this I’m glad that this song is in the faves. Hats off to the drummer too, they know how to keep it in the pocket! No flashy fills.

The lyrics speak of the uncertainty of a love and the fear that all could be lost if the lines were to be crossed. So the writer wants the recipient of this love to read between the lines from their intimate contact to realise that it’s more than just friendship. It’s a risk that they’re willing to take.

I like that.

Purple Suns are a quintet from Nottingham who met at uni and are known for their easygoing sound and chilled vibes.

Linktree | Instagram

SOL FEO – Lucy

This has such a nice soul rock vibe to it. It starts off with a bit of a wandering guitar, over which some harmonies are sung. The melody’s melancholy, but I like the way that things are switched up by going down a semitone. It gives the song a b section as opposed to chorus, I like this style of songwriting and arrangement – very cleverly done!

There’s a bit of a Latin influence with the guitar playing a bit of syncopation and it all fits beautifully into this, check out the guitar solo at 3:03, good bit of playing here!

What a lovely way to finish the faves for this week…

Sol Feo are a six piece band from Bristol formed in 2018. They formed through an open mic night in Bristol’s thriving music and they’ve been collaborating and working together ever since.

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PS from DEL: 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 – 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.