In The City Live

Milk Maid started out as Martin Cohen's 8-track recordings, filling in time between musical and photographic projects. However, a band eventually formed around the songs, giving them a greater strength and immediacy.

On record, Milk Maid mix the front porch dustiness of Kurt Vile and Cass McCombs with the sweaty bored-teen finish of all your favourite rock bands. October sees the release of their first 7" Such Fun/Can't You See on new label Suffering Jukebox.  

It's been a pretty unprecedented rise to notoriety for London / Manchester based electronic duo D/R/U/G/S in the last four months, and although the name might have initially caught the eye of Don't Die Wondering, Vice, Fader and so on - it's the music that's been doing the talking.

The kids in boat shoes love them, the bloggers love them, the bearded plaid lot love them, the Vanity Fair types hate them, and it would be easy to dismiss them as The Emperor's New Beats, except for the fact that they are continually raising a bar all of their own.

Two men. Making music like Muddy Waters brought up in the industrial wastelands of provincial Lancashire, One beats drums, the other holds his guitar high, and together they make dirty noise rock, underpinned with trash, bitterness and loathing.

Brown Brogues are the antipathy of everything that this city has come to represent in the past few decades; visceral, uncompromising and one of the most promising fixtures on Manchester's musical landscape. This is the kind of stuff that makes the likes of Times New Viking seem twee, these are brooding melodies delivered in anger, yet still making your feet move to the sexy rhythm. Their shows are like being in a fight with a friend, but in a really good way.

Formed whilst living aboard in Madrid last year, Monument Valley is the musical creation of London-born and raised songwriter Edward Younger. After early demos found their way to the Communion label and club night this summer, a debut EP is to be released in November, which sees Edward backed by an orchestral section - including the Mumford and Sons horn section playing a very romantically styled (almost Salvation army) colliery brass, and classical cellist Gregor Riddell.

With echoes of Nick Drake, Bon Iver and early Jamie T, Monument Valley’s No Air EP introduces an exceptional talent and songwriter to the world, one with both huge originality and a lyrical talent to clearly mark him out from the off. Younger is joined live by Ridell’s cello and effects pedals whilst he plays guitar, and it's in the whites-of-eyes live arena where he really comes into his own.

Half of Eagulls originate from the Northeast, the other half from the Midlands. They now reside in Leeds, where they practice their slacker-pop in a basement, hanging out with the local scallies and pissing off the old guy next door.

Films Of Colour produce swooning, layered indie; Boy Kill Boy arguing with Bloc Party on a sodden, windy British beach, over their favourite Coldplay track. The London four-piece have been steadily gigging around the country for the past 18 months, and release debut single Actions in October.

Early supporters include Steve Lamacq, 6 Music (New Favourite Band), The Guardian (New Band of the Day) and Myspace Music (Winners - Best of Myspace).

Beaty Heart is a four-man band of Arts students living in South East London who make some noise together. Their live sets reflect their lush and anarchic sound; swapping instruments, throwing drums into the crowd and inviting people to dance on stage. They demand to be both seen and heard.

Musically they strive to create a free range percussive sound clash with an audio collage of samples, loops and chants. Blending a wide selection of rhythmic, melodic, infectious and incessant patterns their sound cannot be easily pinned down or labelled. One factor that perhaps does stay constant amongst their songs is an underlying pop sensibility, with strong sample hooks and vocal circles - Beaty Heart could potentially trap anyone inside their world.

Now living in Hackney, Paul and George recruited band members (James Woodley and Duncan Hillman) and started rehearsing. They developed a new sound, drawing influence from 60’s and 70’s soul and funk, whilst additionally incorporating 80’s post-punk elements. Many critics and bloggers have since aligned them with bands such as A Certain Ratio, Roxy Music and Talking Heads. They take a danceable, groove-based approach with pop sensibilities that are juxtaposed by dark and paranoid lyrics. 

Whilst plying their trade in previous bands (Roland Shanks, The Pistolas), individual members of Foreign Office opened arena-sized venues for major artists including Dizzie Rascal and We Are Scientists. It was only a matter of time before Foreign Office found their feet live and started packing out London venues, headlining well respected showcases such as White Heat and YoYo.

If you’ve been reading Transparent, Neu, High Voltage and every other on-the-pulse blog at the minute, the chances are that you’ll have come across the fizzy neon pop of Slow Motion Shoes before. Drawing influences and comparisons as broad as they are brilliant – shades of Moscow Olympics here, bits of Phoenix there, and all delivered with a homespun, lo-fi charm, this Manchester based band will be playing only their 2nd ever show at this year's In The City. Those immune to the glow that their music emits are nothing short of a lost cause.

Smatka is nothing less than a phenomenon. Rumours have it that she grew up in a forest somewhere in Saxony from where she continuously worked her way up through cities like Dresden and Berlin before finally arriving in London. The music Smatka creates is terrifying and disturbing but has one of the most beautiful aftertastes you could ever encounter. With a voice ranging from innocent schoolgirl to crazed opera singer she is making sense out of the unexplainable nature of her world.

Formed in 2008, Nottingham quartet Frontiers fall between Interpol and early Cure on the post-punk continuum, blending gritty aggression and reverb-drenched ambience to enviable effect. Festival appearances at Reading and Leeds, Camden Crawl and Leicester’s Summer Sundae as well as support slots with We Are Scientists combined with consistent regional and national radio play as a result of working with Alan Smyth (Pulp, Arctic Monkeys) have cemented them as one of the region’s most promising acts.

When your songs are too big to be contained: form a band. Maybe call it after your family name because you like the way it sounds. Record those songs in the basement of your parents house in Tacoma. When that burns down, shake it off and move to New York. Find a new band to play with, start working on a symphony (no really, do it), mix your newfound formal training with the noisy exuberance of youth. Get raucous.

Dead Models is the outcome of a song writing session that took place between Paul Orwell and Nathan Clarke in a smoky little flat in East London.  The pair were drawn together through an affinity for writing that was born out of a mutual love and passion for 50’s and 60’s style song writing and melody.

Within days of this first session a handful of demos were recorded in a warehouse in the middle of a London forest providing the foundation for this debut E.P. from this exciting young group. After selling out their first show in advance, at the Betsey Trotswood in London, Dead Models are attracting plenty of attention – definitely one to watch. 

Sophie-Rose began to write her own music in mid-2008, partnering up with a range of succesful writers and producers.  These varied from Matt Allchin (Florence + The Machine) to William Rees & Kai Fish (Mystery Jets) and Paul Gerrard (The Kooks).  The subsequent months have seen her team up with an incredible bunch of young and exciting musicians to form the latest incarnation of the project - a six-piece live band. Most recently she has appeared as guest vocalist on Mystery Jets latest album 'Serotonin' and following a session with hot-shot Producer Charlie Hugall (Kaiser Chiefs, Florence) the profile and buzz of the band has undoubtedbly risen to a new level.

"Woozy, druggy, sexy pop classicism – you can hear a string of indie pillars from the Velvets through the Mary Chain and Mazzy Star in them – and their closest contemporaries would be the likes of Best Coast and Tennis. Big Deal recreate the feelings of long, lustful summer afternoons in bed. It's intimate and beautiful." The Guardian

Sparking into life in January 2009, Catfish and the Bottlemen have already achieved far more than your average unsigned band ever will. Then, they are not your average band.

Two EPs into their short career and they have been described as having a ‘unique sound’ (Clint Boon, XFM) and have songs that are ‘begging to be on the radio’ (North Wales Pioneer). Turn up the volume and judge for yourself.

The three piece Greta (Vox)  and brothers Lorne (Guitars) and Dario (Percussion) formed the band out of frustration at the lack of music they actually believed in. Picture Book are the antithesis of all three, groove driven guitar/synth hooks, timeless melodies and classic  songwriting underpinned with beats straight off the dance floor.

The band have embarked on their own DIY tours over the last year, honing their craft and gathering admirers. Flooding the internet themselves with bootleg demos, Picture Book have subsequently been picked up by the bloggers and loved on HypeMachine.

Les Cadets are a three piece indie-pop band with excellent songs and a sound influenced by Latin and electronic elements. Formed in Stratford upon-Avon in mid 2009, the band have already played shows with The Like and performed on the BBC Introducing stage at the Wychwood festival in Cheltenham.

Raised on modern American greats such as Tom Waits, Daniel Johnston and Elliott Smith, the industries on both sides of the Atlantic are currently fighting tooth and nail for his signature and rightly so. Combining a voice that sounds as tortured as it does delicate with a repertoire that most singer/songwriters would kill for even at this early stage, it seems to be less a case of "if" and more a case of "when".

Please immerse yourself in the pulsating world of Samuel Diamond. His music is brimming with everything that is right and good about electronic bloops colliding with the thundering of dubstep infused beats and the brilliant use of female vocal samples.

The Kill Van Kulls are all about melodies that get stuck in your head whether you like it or not. A three piece outfit from the illustrious back drop of Manchester, the band bring together influences old & new, such as Joy Division, Grizzly Bear, The Kills and Doves.

The bright young thing that is Thomas J Speight has travelled extensively over the last year, notching up over 150 gigs which has included two full nationwide tours, as well as support slots for the likes of Fionn Regan, Mumford & Sons and Johnny Flynn.

Not content with taking over the UK with his own brand of folk tinged songs, Thomas has recently returned from the US where he played a number of shows around New York.

Poland’s The Car Is On Fire bring you a unique combination of rock’n’roll spontaneity, infectious melodies and experimental psychedelia. Their latest record

“Ombarrops!” was produced by post-rock legend John McEntire (Tortoise,

Stereolab, Broken Social Scene) at his Soma Electronic Studios in Chicago.

Lately TCIOF have been recognised by the New Musical Express who showcased them in their ‘NME Breakthrough Band of the Week’ feature.

Fixers are an experimental surf dance quintet. They have been playing and recording together for just under a year, blending the sixties psychedelic childlike innocence of Brian Wilson and Bruce Haack with the spaced out eighties avant-garde dance of Arthur Russell, Dead Can Dance and Tom Tom Club. 

Misty Miller is an emerging young talent fast gaining global recognition. This 16 year-old singer-songwriter has been writing her own music since the age of eight.

Although strongly influenced by old world classics, like Elvis and Billie, Misty’s style is undoubtedly fresh and contemporary.

Accompanying herself on the ukulele, her pure, soulful voice and clever, poignant lyricism make it virtually impossible not to fall in love. 

In five short minutes over their debut single for Hit Club, Sissy And The Blisters re-establish the primal power of rock ‘n’ roll to touch the soul and fire the imagination. Theirs is a no self indulgent muso behavior policy welded to imaginations that can cram the inventiveness of a Can into the brevity of a Pistols. 

“It's a delicious dash of moody shoegaze, with guitar lines that churn, roll and distort in a nice counterpoint to a hushed vocal. File between The XX and The Big Pink.” – The Guardian

With glowing press already in Pitchfork, Vice, The Guardian and a whole host of super hip blogs, Chad Valley, aka Hugo Manuel, has been described as “a slinky Hot Chip on downers, a disco-infused summer "joint" featuring some shimmering synths, padded drum beats and Manuel's impressive croon” by The Guardian.

Labyrinth Ear is a boy/girl duo formed in South East London's New Cross in the summer of 2010 and have been busy putting out some well received tracks as well as a number remixes and mixtapes. This will be their debut show.

Having now shifted far beyond their LA skate-punk origins, No Age accentuate their development in each and every creak and crack on latest album Everything In Between. The record represents a bold step in their creative evolution, developing their trademark distorted garage into a self-confessed maturity.

Everything In Between is a culmination of reflecting upon life's ruptures and triumphs; the process of moving through these moments banged and bruised, yet better off for the wear and tear.

Male Bonding play fast. Every song on Nothing Hurts, whether a clipped, snarling rock anthem or something more foggy and contemplative carries a hook that’s immediate and permanent. Emerging from the fertile D.I.Y. rock scene in Dalston, the band’s debut album was released through Sub Pop to widespread acclaim earlier this year.

‘Nothing Hurts’, the band’s first full-length, gets it done in half an hour, and most songs clock in at around two minutes. If you will know their velocity, you will remember their melodies.

Factory Floor are a London-based trio of Nik Colk (guitar/vocals/electronics), Gabe Gurnsey (drums/electronics) and Dom Butler (electronics/vocals). They released an untitled, limited edition, 10" and download mini album on blastfirstpetite this spring and have a series of remixes out now from Stephen Morris (New Order), Chris Carter (Throbbing Gristle), Gavin Russom (DFA Records) and Angus Andrew (Liars). 

The NME bestowed a rare 9/10 review on the mini album, and their live performances supporting Fuck Buttons, Liars and other events have become the stuff of legend for their intense, visceral performances. They are currently recording with Stephen Morris for an Optimo Espacio 12" release due out before the end of this year.

Just a year old, quartet Young British Artists have already managed to grab support slots with the likes of The XX, HEALTH and The Drums. Their frenetic, upbeat indie - best showcased in recent single 'Lived In Skin' - has been described as encapsulating all the best elements of Manchester music over the last 30 odd years. 

Young British Artists are signed to Manchester-based imprint Red Deer Club.

Oh No Ono's burnished tunes belie an apocalyptic lyrical bent, the combination recalling an even more tripped-out MGMT, Flaming Lips or Caribou, liberally sprinkled with elements of George Harrison’s Beatles songs, Sparks and the lofty ambition of Kate Bush.

With the wholly immersive, phantasmagorical pop bliss of debut album ‘Eggs,’ Oh No Ono dazzle with their ambition and the scale of their accomplishment of their dystopian feast.

With comparisons to Dizzee Rascal ‘Boy In Da Corner’ era, Missy Elliot and Wu Tang Clan, Envy waxes lyrical over the crisp, heavy beats of Medasyn (aka Gabriel Olegavich, the production & writing talent behind Spektrum and Lady Sovereign) and Scratcha (Rinse FM) as well as ccollaborations with Losers and Riz MC.

Starting out on the Manchester battle scene at just 16. She has won several acclaimed freestyle competitions, ‘Battlescars’ in March 2006 and The Jump Off in September 2008 and was invited to open the MOBOs as a result of her multitude of battle titles.

You can’t miss O Children. They’re the band fronted by the towering Tobi O’Kandi, a six-foot-something force of nature whose growling baritone rips through crowds like Beelzebub’s own bowling ball. You won’t forget their songs in a hurry, either. These are meaty, noirish romps that swagger like the Bad Seeds on a good day.

Already the toast of this summer’s festival season thanks to tent-shakingly assured performances at Glastonbury, Latitude and Lovebox, now the fast-rising east London quartet are set to snare even more admirers with their self-titled debut album released in July.

Dog Is Dead comprise a somewhat eccentric meeting of minds between skate kids and aspiring thespians. Meeting at school, the five have mapped out a unique sound that blends their acknowledged love of the likes of Paul Simon and Cap ‘N’ Jazz with the more contemporary sounds of Mystery Jets and Fleet Foxes amongst other.

Latest single ‘Young’ sees the band further develop their intricate blend of rhythm and harmony, skipping across afro rhythms, analogue bleeps, soaring choruses and campfire melodies.

Philadelphia hip-hop band Chiddy Bang released their breakthrough track Opposite of Adults in May 2009, and have been surfing a wave of buzz ever since. A mash-up of MGMT's Kids and their own inimitable rhymes, it was the perfect introduction to the group, who release their debut album early 2011.

Having released an unofficial remix EP - Air Swell - the band secured an official Gorillaz remix, of Stylo. They support Tinie Tempah on his Autumn 2010 UK tour.

An imposing figure in the often shrouded scene of contemporary ‘noise’, John Wiese has been active for close to two decades, collaborating with Sunn O))), Wolf Eyes, Merzbow and numerous others. Behind walls of synthesizers, drum machines and samplers, Wiese creates soundscapes ranging from frenetic Chris Clark-esque aggression to hushed drone trance.

Having toured extensively throughout the world, covering Europe, Scandinavia and Australia as a member of Sunn O))), the UK as part of the Free Noise tour (a tentet  including Evan Parker, C. Spencer Yeh, Yellow Swans, etc.) and the United States alongside Wolf Eyes, Wiese now returns to the solo arena with his latest solo offering ‘Circle Snare’.

Mazes’ slacker gems have emerged from the same DIY scene as Male Bonding, Graffiti Island and Pens. Their three sold out 7"s are packed with melody and spontaneity, while the group have also released a slew of tapes and compilations. 

With a 30 track tape album available on Italian Beach Babes, Mazes prove an insatiable desire to create their mutilated pop. 

Piano pop Manchester group, Sophie’s Pigeons give their folk-at-heart songs a fresh feel as demonstrated in their fantastic debut mini album 'Names And Pictures' released on 11 October 2010. The band have recently toured the UK and wowed the crowds at their hometown's 'Manchester International Festival' and at several venues across the country. With a sound that has its roots primarily in pop, the outfit have been putting all their charm and quirk in the writing and recording of their album.

Outlandish vocals are accompanied by piano, foot stomping, hand clapping sax rhythms, which combined manage to hit the mark and make for a beautiful pop record, released on the Red Deer Club imprint.

Since their beginnings in 2008, Teeth have toured their chaotic dance-punk with the likes of New Young Pony Club and Is Tropical, bagged slots at Camden Crawl and The Great Escape and had Pitchfork describe their free EP ‘Free Jamz Forever’ as a “fuzzy mushmouthed rumpshaker.”

Most at home at the warehouse parties of East London, the band released their debut single ‘See Spaces’ through Moshi Moshi Records this summer.

Stealing Sheep are three songwriters from Liverpool's music scene post-Capital of Culture, a bountiful wealth of poetry, music and art. They studied at Paul McCartney's LIPA School, where they performed for the first time in a one-on-one song writing session with Sir Paul.

Stealing Sheep tip-toe in the footsteps of songstrells Feist, CocoRosie, Cat Power, Bat for Lashes and golden 60's folk lullaby artist Vashti Bunyan. With a folky picked guitar, vintage synths, glockenspiel, cello, fiddle, harp and accordion, the three pick up an oddment of instruments to culminate in triumphant sounds on their new EP What If The Lights Went Out.

Brasstronaut has emerged from Vancouver’s unpredictable music scene as a sometimes-surly gang of six who draw from a sprawling list of influences to create a sound that is visceral and soulful, while managing not to sacrifice detail and patience in their songwriting process.

They’ve earned a reputation for being equally comfortable playing sweat-drenched warehouse parties as they are to critical theatre audiences. They have been called everything from experimental pop, to mini-orchestral, to jazz and electronica and even ‘low rock’. It appears that Brasstronaut are drawing new threads between unlikely combinations of genres and the results have been surprising listeners around the world. 

Tim and Sam’s Tim and the Sam Band with Tim and Sam are finally realising their ambition of moving folk and rock into pastures new. Based in North Wales, the band use beautiful views of rolling countryside as their muse. Together, they have the gift of creating daydream inducing, intertwining arrangements, that will pick you up and take you to a simpler place, where the stresses of day-to-day life disappear in a musical landscape of beauty and harmony.

Combining intensely oblique guitarwork with solid, Weymouth-esque bass, Fiction’s melodies surface and dive around pounding drumbeats, building up into little moments of perfect joy. Lyrically they steer clear of social realism, but there lies a confessional honesty at the heart of their obtuseness.

Their startlingly idiosyncratic approach to music makes for a hugely energetic live experience, with their lack of a ‘regular’ set up seeing members switch and swap both vocal duties and instruments.

Currently signed to Century Media Records worldwide and Distort Entertainment in Canada, Architects have toured the UK and Europe with the likes of Bring Me the Horizon, SikTh and The Chariot. They released their second album Ruin on June 26, 2007, and released a split EP with UK band Dead Swans in early 2008, following the release with a double headed tour of the UK.

With a deep love of film and sixties-sound production, Still Corners write dreamy pop songs, full of swirling organs, big drums and lush vocals. Building on a reputation for heart-stopping live performances mixing film projection with soaring soundscapes, Still Corners have upcoming releases on Fierce Panda, Great Pop Supplement, and a full length due later this year.

Chapter Sweetheart make kind-hearted beatnik punk music with an obvious soul influence. Whilst this may seem like a real amalgamation of genres, considering that the members bonded over a love for early DC hardcore and the guitarist only listens to the Fall, you’re never really going to know what to expect from this East London five-piece.

Out Of Sight are a Sheffield-based pop-punk 4-piece. They released the EP ‘Something Created By Belief’ in 2006 with John Naclerio (Brand New, My Chemical Romance, The Audition, Just Surrender). The band have recently signed to Slam Dunk Records and their debut album ‘Where Do We Go From Here?’ will be released in physical on July 5th 2010, having been released on iTunes on the 31st May 2010 after major delays.

"Shake Aletti superimpose catchy pop with p-funk and eighties madness, with a dexterity that in a very short time has led them to play in leading venues and to remix giants like Róisín Murphy." (Sonar/BBC Introducing 2010)

"This day-glo group from Sheffield are as in touch with their heritage as fellow townsman Toddla T, but they succeed in redirecting the Bleep towards much poppier realms…………” (National Mercury Prize Recommends)

Vinyl Jacket are a young five piece that hail from the small village of Wylam in Northumberland, removed from any influence of a ‘scene’ the band developed their own sound and created their unique brand of ‘Diesel-Pop’ that has made them stand out in the current saturated music scene with each meticulously crafted song sounding like its own mini festival.

Having only formed in January 2010 Vinyl Jacket have toured the UK and supported the likes of Hockey, General Fiasco and The Holloways. Their self titled EP released in June this year gained them airplay on 6 Music and Amazing Radio, a feature in Newcastle’s Culture Magazine and has seen them develop an ever growing fan base.

Team Ghost is Nicolas Fromageau - founding member of French electronic duo M83 – backed by Christophe Guérin and Jean-Philippe Talaga (ex-Gooom founder, who became Team Ghost producer / manager). Together they create, as Pitchfork puts it, “forays into everything from chilly synth-pop to bruised, echo-laden post-punk.”

Having formed production team Kiss Me First, Guérin and Fromageau released their first EP “You Never Did Anything Wrong To Me” in April to critical acclaim.

Your Demise are a five-member hardcore band from St Albans, Brighton and Salisbury in the United Kingdom. They began in 2003 and have shared stages and tours with Biohazard, Comeback Kid, Bury Your Dead, Enter Shikari, The Devil Wears Prada, Miss May I and A Day to Remember.

The band are signed with Visible Noise in the UK, Earache Records in North America, and with Shock Records in Australia. The band finished recording their upcoming album on the 16th June 2010. It is due for release on 20 September in the UK, Japan & Europe.

"Is there anything more unappetising and sweatily overdetermined than a bunch of white boys straining to convey passion and soul? The Milk seem so gustily intent on proving the point they make the band from The Commitments look like Kraftwerk. And yet there's something appealing about them, which is why their gig at the Water Rats in London saw more A&R people than actual paying punters." - The Guardian

BOZ BOORER: “Richard Dutton is leading the pack as an exciting new performer, writes his own enigmatic songs, sings them in his own inimitable style, it's a privilege to work with such a brimming talent, his originality knows no bounds.”

Originally from sunny Cleethorpes, Manchester-based singer-songwriter Richard Dutton and his band The So and So’s have just completed final mixes for their forthcoming EP ‘First One Off The Waltzers’.

Written by Dutton and produced and recorded by Morrissey’s guitarist and musical arranger Boz Boorer on location at Boz’s Sierra Vista Studios in the picturesque Portuguese mountains.

Carla Fake writes pop songs.  Carla Fakes writes dark, brooding pop songs about your life.  Carla Fake has no recordings so don’t ask.  Carla Fake has played 75% of a gig. You probably weren’t there.  Carla Fake likes to dance, drink, think and perform. Carla Fake is a band of four brothers. This is Carla Fake’s first real show.

A singer/songwriter like no other. With words as dangerous as her guitar playing, Ruth Theodore reminds us why songwriting is important in the first place. Refreshingly original and relentlessly imaginative.

"Guitar-slingin' Southamptonite Theodore has garnered a legion of fans with her witty and fantastical tales of daily observations made magical in her 2008 debut set, 'Worm Food'. Theodore's gripping honesty makes her a compelling listen and an even better live pick" - TimeOut

Patterns are the soundtrack of a different landscape: one with huge foreboding skies and a beauty shrouded in some chilling feeling you can't quite put a finger on. "Forest Law" is still the track that really takes that Chameleons blueprint and runs with it, but there are plenty of other stirring moments created by adding subtle but engaging techno-inspired electronics to what overall is still a classically dark-edged post-punk-indie sound.

This Many Boyfriends are a five-piece shambolic indie pop band based in Leeds, England. They blame boredom. You'd like them if you appreciate the sound of effort. 

Since their inception in 2008, London’s Shadows Chasing Ghosts have been plotting a revolution. And with their mix of razor sharp guitar work and infectious sing along melodies, attracting more fans than you can shake a stick at.

The band have worked hard to establish themselves, and have achieved a lot in 2 short years, without backing or a label. They have toured the UK and Europe several times and more recently completed a 3 week tour of Australia.

Wrigz is a 22 year old MC from South Manchester who has built up a reputation in the Manchester grime circuit through the release of several mix CDs and performances on local radio and club nights. Since then Wrigz has expanded further south by linking up with Wiley on a joint album, of which the first single features Ghettz, Wretch 32, Bashy, Scorcher, J2K, Ice Kid, Chipmunk & Griminal.

In a scene renowned for aggressive lyrics and negative press, KOF is a diamond in the dirt. His music is a fusion of inner city music genres, new school fair and old school favour, mixed with conscious lyrics and big beats that he describes as ‘MESH’ music. 

KOF’s talents lay not only in his unique and undeniable realism, but also in his soulful voice and melodic fow. Add that to his open and unrestricted approach to music and you can understand why he is considered a ‘breath of fresh air’ in the UK Music Scene.

“The iconic focal point of The Steals is lead singer Jayn Hanna, a front woman so intensely beguiling and enrapturing that it’s fairly much impossible to recall anyone quite like her in modern British music.

“Two lead guitars conjure up a towering wave of atmosphere and beautiful chaos around the haunting melodies and words.you rarely see anything this striking and original: it is music of its own place, its own time, its own orbit and its own atmosphere” – Manchester Music

Despite having only formed a year ago, Berkshire based quintet Francesqa have wasted little time in carving out a name for themselves. Having played “everywhere and anywhere people would have them”, the band has already notched up shows alongside the likes of Young Guns and The Automatic.

With a couple of well received demos under their belts and an impressive live show on the build, the five-piece headed to Devon to record ‘We Lived’ with producer Peter Miles (The King Blues, Canterbury, Futures). The result, a 5-track affair, that received 4/5K’s in Kerrang Magazine, has been compared to Muse, Lost Prophets and You Me At Six. 

With her distinctive DIY wardrobe and a pure effervescent take on dubstep, Thallie is Manchester urban music’s Exotic other. Fresh from her spectacular support slot for The Fall at the Ritz, Thallie is pushing pure street-pop from the future with vocals that makes sense of dance underground’s ever shifting and complex beats.

Seerauber Jenny was founded by young Fran Barker in a leaky conservatory with a 4-track, a miscellany of instruments and a bag load of fuzzy influences including Sonic Youth and My Bloody Valentine.  These raw acoustic creations, both earthy and shoe-gazey, captivated the interest of fellow band member Neil Claxton, formerly of Manchester based Mint Royale. Fran’s woodland musings - with its feet on the floor and its heart reaching for the stars - fused with Neil’s electro pop ideals are what give the band their distinctive edge and charm.

R.I.O. is already considered the next big thing to break from the North-West. Born in Moss Side, he began recording music at 18, joining Street Smart Crew through cousin T-Bizzle. He forged his own way after he teamed up with producer Jodz and singer Chris Royal to create 'Dance Like Me' an infectious Electro club anthem, which after signing with management/record label Rare Breed Music has seen him open up for acts such as Ne-Yo, Platnum & Chipmunk across the UK.

An unholy collision of pop, punk, dance and disco is the music that new young five-piece Blitz Kids don’t mind admitting to making – it’s music that draws on the punk/hardcore bands they grew up listening too, but much more besides. So while there are shades of At The Drive-In and Glassjaw in there, Blitz Kids are also unashamedly and unapologetically pop and dance-minded. They don’t mind admitting that the New Romantic records that their parents used to spin have had a major influence.

Christopher Eatough writes and performs songs. People compare him to Ryan Adams, Rufus Wainwright, Neil Young and Sufjan Stevens. 

He plays shows a lot. He has supported Neal Casal, Lisa Mitchell, William Fitzsimmons, Rox, Starsailor and Mark Morriss, along with many others.

Advances in Mathematics are a group of boffins who, in 2008, were brought to Manchester from all over the UK by a mysterious benefactor. Building on seminal work by Braithwaite, Aitchinson, Bulloch, Cummings and O’Hare (1997), the group has been locked away in a secretive research facility believed to be somewhere in Manchester’s Northern Quarter (an internationally-renowned hotbed of advanced thought).

Jaw droppingly raw yet intelligent, the Murkage sound is the result of almost a decade spent watching the party unfold. Unapologetically subversive and willfully aggressive the four MC's and their DJ almost snarl thought provoking and unexpectedly political lyrics around heavy electronica. 

As much influenced by punk and dancehall culture as they are by electronic music, Murkage have a habit of inciting genre crunching sound system riots wherever they play.

If a band does not try to emulate their heroes, then something is very wrong. Rock n’ roll should be about danger and passion and musicians are supposed to incite a desire to rebel and break the rules. While Norway may not be a hotbed like London and New York, there seems to be something pretty special going on there, which is apparent with the emergence of Simon Says No!

Having toured with Maynard Ferguson, Buddy Rich, Duke Ellington Alumni and the Tony Christie Band, legendary trombonist Paul Latham has played almost everywhere with everyone. Splitting his time between modern jazz, blues and latin, Paul’s current project is entitled Nine Northwest, and has been the proud winner of a Best Soloist Award from the Camden Jazz Festival.

Influenced by everything Mike Patton, a bit of McLusky and PJ Harvey, a few false starts have given way to a settled line-up and everything being ‘sweet sweet again’ and ‘buzzing like a fly in the Pocketknife camp’ - leading to support slots with the likes of I LIKE TRAINS, Lightening Bolt, The Joy Formidable, Tweak Bird and Sucioperro.

In June of that year, Dry the River worked with producer Peter Miles (The King Blues, Sweet Billy Pilgrim), live-tracking their debut EP “The Chambers & The Valves” in just two days. This was followed by a thirty date acoustic tour with singer songwriter Matthew Reynolds, and a heavy schedule of band dates with acts including Hjaltalin, Broadcast2000, Plants & Animals, Port O’Brien, Deer Tick and Bowerbirds.

Electricity In Our Homes seem to be discarding the amateur shackles and letting rays of ambition shine through as much as their infectious individuality. this is a band able to produce easily the most exciting music of 2009 & 10 using only half their potential. Great things are surfacing; we should be more appreciative that bands like Electricity In Our Homes exist. a future great. Formed and based in London, Electricity In Our Homes are utilitarian in sound and vision.

Taking inspiration from Talking Heads, Sonic Youth, Prince and the best of British DIY, their live shows are an exercise in conciseness, often teetering on the edge of chaos. Compared to acts as diverse as Captain Beefheart, DNA and Can, EIOH remain capable of blurring the genre lines in a captivating fashion.

Futures is a four-piece rock band from London, England. Futures received critical acclaim and widespread popularity whilst remaining unsigned and in June 2010 the band signed to Mercury Records.

Futures gave away their debut mini album, The Holiday, free of charge in RockSound magazine, leading the issue to becoming the biggest selling copy of the magazine in two years.

Ice Black Birds are an edgy blues-influenced four piece from Brighton via London. They draw influence from 60s and 70s rock ‘n’ roll via Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Sabbath but seem set to bring forth a unique and fresh burst of modern indie blues back into the industry.

Forming from the ashes of old London, Sheffield and Scottish bands, the energy created on stage by this band is second to none. With catchy songs that maintain their own dignity, they are most definitely one to watch. Ice Black Birds are soon to embark on the promotion of the new single 22:22, the release of the single will be celebrated by select UK dates as well as European support shows across Holland and Scandinavia finishing up with a Club NME show at Koko’s on November 26th 2010.

Deaf Havana are a post-hardcore quartet from King's Lynn. The band have recently started to write the follow up to their 7th album, 2009's "Meet Me Halfway, At Least".

Janiece Myers is an extremely talented singer - songwriter and a new breed of Urban Pop talent set to take the UK Scene by storm in 2010. From performing across the UK at top events to working with some of the UK's top talent such as Davinche, Wiley, Virgo and KOF, Janiece is setting herself up to be a megastar.

"Brontide rumble like their name suggests and provide a droning, melodic, vocal-free counterpoint entirely suited to the occasion" - KERRANG

"Brontide are mathy and marvelous, danceable without being dumb. InstruMental in all the right ways. I say: yay!" - Drowned In Sound

A stunning, raw performance film stylishly shot in monochrome that captures Scottish band Mogwai performing an incandescent show in front of a mesmerised audience. Expect a wall of Mogwai sound with immersive visuals. 

Nexus Art Cafe, 5 pm

In terms of attitude and approach, Mount Kimbie – a duo of Dominic Maker and Kai Campos - exist at the forefront of the post-dubstep movement, alongside Joy Orbison, Actress and Untold, floating through dubstep and hip-hop, jazz, techno and ambient, post-rock, UK garage and film scores.

Like these contemporaries, the pair were drawn to UK clubland by the bass seeping from nights like FWD> and DMZ, and their sound – their electronic response to the dubstep moment – is very much their own: sceneless; untethered from etiquette and genre codes.

Released 18 months to the day since their debut came out, Sky Larkin’s latest offering – Kaleide -  takes everything they shot for as a newer, greener three-piece and pulls it into shape. Its title may reference a very pretty kind of fragmentation, but it feels stocky and solid.

Beefing up their angular earlier output, Sky Larkin have maintained their energy while blossoming into a mature songwriting prospect. Larkin 2.0 are go…

Formed in 2005, HEALTH self-recorded their debut album over the course of 9 months at Los Angeles D.I.Y. venue The Smell, birthing an urgent and extraordinary album which seethed with ghostly, epic pop and spurts of chaotic noise. In April of 2009, HEALTH emerged with their second, GET COLOR on CITYSLANG records. 

In 2010 HEALTH returned to the remix realm with DISCO2. Curated and produced by HEALTH, DISCO2 features the epic noise jams of GET COLOR remixed by electronic luminaries Tobacco, Crystal Castles, Salem, Javelin, and Gold Panda (among others). DISCO2 morphed 2009's GET COLOR into an electronic masterpiece. Leading off with the killer new HEALTH single "USA BOYS", mixed by legendary producer Alan Moulder (My Bloody Valentine, Nine Inch Nails, Depeche Mode).

Manchester teen upstarts Egyptian Hip Hop may still be in college, but their quirky take on post-pop hints at a talent beyond their years. They may describe their style as "8-bit doss pop', but they've drawn comparisons with Battles, Late of the Pier and Klaxons.

Recent months have seen them record with Sam Eastgate (Late of the Pier) and Hudson Mohawke (Warp Records), with Wild Human Child being named Nick Grimshaw's Single of the Week.

Monarchy are the latest installment in the history of mystery in pop. Very little is known about them apart from the fact that there are two and that the sound they make – swirling, symphonic, electronic bliss-disco with coolly emotional vocals – could have come from two or three times as many musicians. 

Their tale has only just begun, and they arrive fully-formed. They launched with a single song and one image on a MySpace with no friends in late 2009, just an admission of admiration for star constellations to tantalize and intrigue.

Juxtaposing traditional Basque folk with churning basslines and catchy energetic vocals, Crystal Fighters create raved-up, percussive folktronica, veering from Fischerspooner-style euphoria to Animal Collective-toned delicacy.

Crystal Fighters draw a broader and more profound influence- the energy and wild liberty of the 80s ‘anti-todo’ youth movement, reflected in their distinctive production and vibrant live show.

‘Chaotic’ is a massive understatement for the nuclear-powered PABH live experience, their every show a violent whirlwind of noise and acrobatics - of the body as much as the guitar. In a much kinder sense, the band’s onstage antics echo the medieval execution technique after which they were named. Certainly, the members have the scars to prove it.

Now signed with Transgressive Records, they released their debut album in June. Recorded at Bridlington’s Lodge Studios with producer James Kenosha, the album expertly captures the cavalcade of their live shows while expanding the sound into that of a proper gleaming rock record.

Kisses is a Los-Angeles based disco project featuring Jesse Kivel and Zinzi Edmundson. Though primarily inspired by long-format, instrumental disco (Cerrone, Gino Soccio) Kisses has developed a uniquely concise songwriting style that is equal parts FM radio pop and expansive four-to-the-floor.

Debut album The Heart of the Night Life showcases their minimalist approach to pop music that revels in the celebratory moments of life, those fragments of time that we only remember in postcards or faint recollections.

Creating dark, trance-inspired dance, White Ring formed in the mid-2000s, yet only began to emerge sometime in the middle of 2008. The duo’s releases include a split with oOoOO while an EP release on Disaro is planned for this year, to include live favourites Roses and Suffocation, plus a number of as-yet unreleased tracks.

At the forefront of a new movement in alt-dance, White Ring combine half-speed processed drums and ethereal synth washes to create a soundtrack fit for a Pitchfork-approved Halloween. 

Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs swings between overt musicality and scarily on-point dancefloor sensibility, ripping up clubs around the globe with his live show of bizarre instruments, glitter cannons and of course… dancing dinosaurs.

Invited by Annie Mac to play AMP, TEED has just remixed Tinashe, Sky Ferreira, Fenech-Soler and Wafa, and busy with a summer of festival shenanigans.

Defined by their clattering guitars, the scattergun pounding of the drums, basslines bursting with hooks and the strikingly voiced melodies of otherworldly front woman Rebekah Raa; SC produce an indie-pop of hitherto untapped gems drawn from influences Talking Heads, Sonic Youth, Young Marble Giants and The Slits as well as those lost sources of alternative melodica Life Without Buildings, The Sundays and Bow Wow Wow.  

Having recently been invited to tour the UK with Maximo Park, Stricken City last year clocked up playlists at XFM and NME Radio – as well as support from Radio 1 and 6Music - with their singles Tak O Tak and Lost Art, released through the influential ACTH and Blue Flowers labels.

Causing The Fly to claim “unquestionably, they’re the finest new guitar band we’ve seen in an age,” three-piece The Neat are young, from Hull, and have had airwaves with Steve Lamacq, John Kennedy, Huw Stephens, Lauren Laverne.

They’ve had shows in the big smoke and are now on a delirious little tour of the UK, poking the eye of the industry, with smiles all round.

A tropical punk ensemble with lashings of soul, loaded with steel pans and swirling keyboards, nailed to the wall with the classic guitar bass drums combo and a singer with a move or two up his sweaty sleeve.

Combining intensely oblique guitarwork with solid, Weymouth-esque bass, Fiction’s melodies surface and dive around pounding drumbeats, building up into little moments of perfect joy. Lyrically they steer clear of social realism, but there lies a confessional honesty at the heart of their obtuseness.

Their startlingly idiosyncratic approach to music makes for a hugely energetic live experience, with their lack of a ‘regular’ set up seeing members switch and swap both vocal duties and instruments.

The Supernovas come in the form of four lads from Camden spitting out anthems to soundtrack the fast times and easy highs of life in the big city, driven along by amphetamine riffs and snarling sentiment.

Human Life are made up of veteran house music producers and musicians Joshua Collins (with more than 100 vinyl releases including Urbantorque and NRK), Matt Wasley (a producer of solo work for the likes of Bedrock, Nettwerk and of several rock bands) and Rachael Starr (whose chart topping singles have been released on high profile labels such as Ultra, Azuli, BMI) and cut a fine life in cool, catchy, potent electro with pop vocals and strong song writing.

Citing influences including classic French and Chicago house and pop music as diverse as Genesis, Toto and Depeche Mode along with Prince and Happy Mondays, theirs is a sound which combines the best of the underground and the overground without contriteness or awkwardness – and it’s one that’s already been catching the attention of French legend Alan Braxe and Radio 1’s Jaymo.

Under the shadows, grown from the primordial swamps of the unconscious, Japanese Voyeurs bring you a bag of rot gathered from the festering cesspools of the human psyche. Strip yourself bare, let the shadow consume you, take off your mask and wallow with them in the naked truth of your own humanity.

Catherine and Allison are sisters, songwriters, and singers. Born in Alabama, as soon as they could speak they were singing, and it was always together. The pair now live in New York City, and have created a record as sweepingly, dramatically melodic as it is true to the Pierce’s innately cool, singer-songwriter roots.

With over 25 million unique views of her videos, Ana Free, a singer-songwriter from Portugal, has garnered her fair share of the exploding new media audience. Ana posted her first video online in January of 2007 and quickly became one of the most subscribed musicians of all time, with an opt-in subscriber base of over 60,000 loyal fans who tune in routinely to catch all her latest music and performance videos. 

"The icy electronica of her voice seemed to come from the ocean, Ibsen’s ‘lady from the sea’. The songs are equally magical and accessible, it’s like all the folk stories of the past and the future collided with contemporary beats. THTH are visually kookie and sonically kool they make Lady Gaga & her cronies look like desperate cheap tarts with something to prove." - Buzz Buzz Buzz

Jodie Aysha has been on the music scene since the age of 12 but at the tender age of 11 she'd two poems published by Leeds young authors due to her unique writing style. After leaving theatre school Aysha released one of her original songs entitled 'Heartbroken' which was subsequently remixed. The remixed track caught the attention of the record industry and eventually reached number 2 in the UK charts.

Jodie’s new single 'I'm a Pozer' is to be released later this year.

Let’s Buy Happiness stand apart from the typical sound normally associated with the North East, mixing delayed guitar soundscapes with the clipped Nordic-sounding vocals of lead singer Sarah Hall, reminiscent of Liz Fraser of Cocteau Twins or Sugarcubes era Bjork. 

Let’s Buy Happiness distil their mutual love of North American alt-indie bands such as Modest Mouse, Tokyo Police Club, Brand New and Trapped In Kansas into the polar tinged, aqueous ice blasts of sound that lift their songs into a host of near-celestial formations.

Hailing from Iceland, For A Minor Reflection comprises of four 20-year-olds from Reykjavík, Iceland. Their music is best described as energetic, melodious post-rock, though being the natural creative visionaries they are, the band expand and even subvert their style with almost every song.

Becoming Real is a young producer residing in a forgotten suburbia, busy channeling his very own post-apocalyptic vision of London. A spectre-like entity flitting between a range of electronic frequencies, his self-termed ‘Ghost’ sound is as much influenced by a conceptual future dystopia as by luminaries Zomby & Mount Eerie.

"Calories are a band to make Brum feel proud. The trio's second album, after 2009’s Adventuring, is an almost unblemished indie-rock tome that rewards repeated listening. Basic Nature comes with little hype and a marketing budget of very nearly zero, yet it is one of the best British guitar albums released for ages." - BBC

"Calories are a band to make Brum feel proud. The trio's second album, after 2009’s Adventuring, is an almost unblemished indie-rock tome that rewards repeated listening. Basic Nature comes with little hype and a marketing budget of very nearly zero, yet it is one of the best British guitar albums released for ages." - BBC

worriedaboutsatan’s mixture of rock and electronic can be attributed to bands such as Explosions in the Sky and Mogwai as well as electronic dance music artists, such as Underworld and Trentemøller. worriedaboutsatan's sound is an attempt 'to fuse elements of everything we listen to - glitch, techno, electronica, rock [and] metal'

Mammal Club formed in Newcastle, England in late 2009 with Wilson Astley, Colin Liddle, Calum Howard and Adam Hiles picking up the mantle of ‘people who do the things’. An original mix of pop vocals, weaving guitars, groove and electronica is well reflected in their live and recorded output, picking them up positive mentions on BBC6’s Tom Robinson and Drowned In Sound amongst others.

Holden are a must see live experience, front man Jedd & brother Anthony Holden on electric guitar/ mandolin present their collection of classic songs packed full of raw emotive lyrics & electric shrills.

With Dan Coffey, bass & Kris Lousley, drums, both English Gentry, completing the garage-folk musical glue, they take the listener clear into the stratosphere, via the British Band’s epic live show. 

Manchester has a great tradition of serious bands. Bands that tap into the dark side and turn it into anthemic songs. There is a melancholy about the city - a soulful, sweeping power that fuses all of the best music to come from the city. 1913 are the 21st century equivalent of this proud tradition.

Thee Deadtime Philharmonic are based in ex mining town Swadlincote, South Derby, a town still on its knees from Thatcher's strangle hold on the working classes. Murdoch's songwriting reflects the carnage left behind. Deadtime have a massive chip on their shoulder, welcoming you to knock it off.

Crane are an alternate/progressive band from The Lake District, they emerged from various rock & progressive bands, to produce an eclectic sound of there own. Crane have the ability to lace cheeky ping pong style dance licks with brutal heavy piercing guitar riffs, and funky hard hitting drum beats with a driven and almost haunting bass groove.

Dinner Party is a band drama created by Winnie Holzman and producer by Edward Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz. Set at the fictional Liberty High School, it follows the emotional travails of several self-aware twenty-somethings. The critically acclaimed, but short-lived, beat-combo ended in 1995. Now it’s back.

The Chakras are an Irish alternative rock band from Dublin, Ireland formed in 2006. Their first release was their Build Me A Swan EP, and their debut album is expected in 2010.

The band signed a management deal with Connected Artists/Sound Advice in London, and with booking agents CAA, which has seen them tour extensively with Ian Brown and Gomez.

Aaron Wright has spent the last couple of years building on a growing reputation as an charismatic singer/songwriter. His band The Aprils have helped give his act a fuller sound which has gone done well in a number of capacity crowds in London lately.

With Aaron's musical influences firmly rooted with the likes of Dylan and Neil Young its his lyrical charm that sets him apart from his contemporaries.

The Tapestry are a new Manchester four piece who conjure dynamic, energetic, rhythmically charged sounds with an ear for a pop melody. Quickly gaining a reputation as a must see live act, the band draw inspiration from the Pixies to The Smiths and utilise vocal harmonies and rip-roaring guitar riffs to create rebel rousing anthems.

With a nod to the melodies of Chris Martin or Tim Rice-Oxley, but the intensity and verve of their more obvious influences such as Soundgarden and QOTSA, The Hidden Revolution’s mix of sincerity, angst and optimism has seen them forge their own niche in the current music scene.

Praise has already been lauded upon them from neighbouring Mancunian songsmiths Elbow, it’s not just self-belief that’s building anticipation around this band.

In their short life, From the Kites of San Quentin have gathered momentum at a staggering rate. With one foot planted in the glitch side of Electronica, and the other in the world of future dub and experimental hip-hop, they’re creating music that deserves its ‘innovative’ tag.

Influences range from classic prog rockers Yes and Rush to the more experimental hip-hop sounds of today’s new breed of beat makers: Flying Lotus, Burial & Hudson Mohawke.

Nikki Garnett’s vocal and song style, described as “Amy Winehouse meets Lily Allen” has seen her featured on BBC 1XTRA’s Home Grown and listed in URB magazine’s “Next 1000” while she’s also been invited to audition for Channel 4’s Live & Unsigned.

Constantly recording, performing, writing, Nikki is focused and committed to her career in music. It’s only a matter of time before Nikki steps on to the main stage.

Springing from Manchester the raven haired Eleanor Lou will continue her current residency at hip coffeehouse/venue, An Outlet armed with her distorted electric guitar, guttural vocal and a set of killer songs.

James Mabbett first became Napoleon IIIrd in 2004. Driven by a rediscovered love for The Beach Boys and a continued crush on skewed dance music and loud guitars, he retreated to his newly built home studio in Leeds.

After six months, he remerged with a surround sound system, a 40-year-old reel-to-reel tape machine, an acoustic guitar with built in strobe light, and an impressive battery of new songs.

Rook and The Ravens’ strong harmony driven sound leaves apparent the fact they have stayed true to their original convictions .With a much-needed dose of honesty and awareness, This young band combine exquisite musicianship and songwriting skills that cut to the core.

Rook and The Ravens have mastered the art of effortless stage presentation, whilst delivering a sound which is innovative, definitive and timeless.

Planet Earth are more than your typical twee indie-folk band. There’s something about the unaffected, quavering delivery – a sympathetic turn to their words – in their music that lends it a particular gravitas. It's this incisiveness and this subtle wisdom that sets them apart.

Ellen and the Escapades are finding themselves firmly at the front of the alt-folk wave currently sweeping the UK. Last year’s self released debut single Without You bought them to the attention of music lovers and music industry alike and led to the band being booked to play the BBC Introducing stage at Leeds and Reading Festivals.

This year the band have gone from strength to strength, emerging from the studio blinking in the sunlight to play at a numerous festivals over the summer including Larmer Tree, Summer Sundae and a main stage appearance at Glastonbury as winners of the Q Magazine/Glastonbury Emerging Talent competition. 

The Woe Betides’ story began on a dark night in the dimly lit upstairs of a London pub. Grundy le Zimbra and Simon Mastrantone gave an impromptu performance at the infamous Songs in the Dark night. Their debut EP was released in 2009 by Songs in the Dark records to critical acclaim.

Artrocker magazine called the band "skronky" and described them as being "resolutely lo-fi, DIY, rough around the edges and all the better for it"while NME called the band "Enthralling... deft puppet-masters of Indie." The band are currently working on their debut album, due in 2010.

The gravel voiced troubadour singing songs about sex, drugs, politics, art, tesco, music and stories of his bizarrely fruitful life. Expect to laugh, cry and take a long hard look at the world we live in. 

In the past he's toured and shared a stage with the likes of Frank Turner, Mumford and Sons, Kate Nash and Henry Rollins. Beans’ second album 'Writing on the Wall' comes out this November.

Formed at Edinburgh College of Art in 2007, Come On Gang have clocked up an impressive number of festival appearances including T In The Park, Rockness, The Great Escape, Reading and Leeds and SXSW as well as regular airplay on BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio Scotland, XFM.

“Fortune Favours The Brave” is the lead single from their debut album which was recorded with acclaimed producer Paul Savage (Franz Ferdinand, The Phantom Band, Arab Strap and Mogwai). 

Gypsy & the Cat are 21-year-olds Xavier Bacash & Lionel Towers who only a year ago began making music in a garage in Melbourne. There is no gypsy and there is no cat, but there is a Gypsy & The Cat, an electronic duo who, instead of pumping out house beats and booty-quaking basslines, pen gorgeous mini epics of forlorn beauty and elegiac romanticism that, you can just tell, are about heartache and solitude, past girlfriends and future loss.

Prompted to collaborate by the death of their grandfather, cousins Ed and Laurie Hulme write lo- fi indie-pop gems layered into a collage of memories. The songs recreate a patchwork of childhood worlds, far away dreams and yellowing Polaroids. 

Their debut single Merry Go Round, released on the Drums’ Holiday Records, is arresting, chaotic, and beautiful.

My First Tooth is the totally encapsulating, spine-tingling indie-folk creation of singer-songwriter Ross Witt. Taking influence from modern indie heroes such as Eels, Okkervil River, Joanna Newsom and Neutral Milk Hotel, My First Tooth have crafted ambitious and beautiful songs and display all their subtle heartbroken soul and unwittingly touching melody throughout their debut EP ‘My First Tooth and the Rubies’ – released on lcopop! Records in April 09.

The band have already earned rave reviews in Artrocker & Big Cheese, have been described by The Fly as “seriously impressive” and XFM as “Killer pretty stuff”, and have received radio play from Radio 1, Radio 6, XFM and in Europe and North America.

Walls are a band from London made up of members Sam Willis (of Allez-Allez) and Alessio Natalizia (of Banjo or Freakout). Originally from Manchester, but based in London since '96, Willis has long been an admirer of the Cologne sound, instilling his productions (and dj mixes for the influential podcast series located at www.allez-allez.co.uk) with the euphoric, pop sensibilities and deep grooves that are a KOMPAKT hallmark. Natalizia hails from Vasto, Italy but relocated to London in 2008 to pursue his musical dreams.

Golden Glow is the project of Manchester resident Pierre Hall. Distinguishable in a crowd by his glorious dreadlocks, he makes subdued ditties that draw their influence from all the right places. Hall absorbs the unique atmosphere and ambience that is Mancunian night life.

Golden Glow released his debut single through The Drums’ Holiday Records imprint and has supported the band at recent UK dates.

Flood Of Red formed in Airdrie, a satellite town twelve miles east of Glasgow in 2004. Starting out as a trio who met via school and the local skate scene, they soon expanded to a sextet.

Sitting in the heart of post-industrial Lanarkshire, Airdrie provided an early inspiration of sorts: inspiration to strive for more. Inspiration to get out.

Berlin Berlin were forged in the dark heart of northern England, close to the Mancunian flame but far enough away to get cold at night. Influenced as much by classic novels and films as by the bands they hold dear, they fire out short, sharp bursts of melancholic electronic/guitar-pop.

With a fresh dynamic sound that mixes elements of classic pop with an uncanny sense of euphoric dance, Diagram Of The Heart are a unique new British band that cross different genres with effortless ease and are the first signings to the legendary and recently resurrected Deconstruction label.

Lissi Dancefloor Disaster is Josefin Lindh and Johan Tilli. Having met at a DIY club in their hometown of Uppsala they soon realized that they were destined to make some kind of powerful statement together. Influenced by Le Tigre and Chicks on Speed, they began writing electronic pop songs together

Lissi Dancefloor Disaster's music is characterized by a feisty self-confidence, climate angst and a questioning of stale norms. They invented the term "ecotronica" to describe it. 

Manchester has a proud history of encouraging singer songwriters over the years, but in Danny Mahon the city has embraced a visceral and raw performer. Danny Mahon is a protest singer for the Shameless Generation.

Earlier this year Danny Mahon published his eagerly awaited debut single, Double A Side 7” & Download "Beat Me Up/AK47", under his own label, RAC Records.

Formed in the womb but formalised in 2008, Japanese duo Mont Blanc mix electronica with live instruments (and sometimes a backing band) to create an eccentric style.  Identical twin brothers Gen and Dai ooze an infectious fervour that has seen their party-starting live act spread to venues all over Tokyo, and the fresh vibe of their recordings belies their studio-based creation. In Japan, it seems the best things come in twos.

The silky vocals of an entire Fleet of Foxes, the psychedelic scree of a Whole Lotta Loves, the wispy harmony rush of Belle & Sebastian, Stars, Velvet Underground and Beulah in a bouncy castle pillow fight… Exlovers make the kind of diaphanous musical euphoria that can only come from the most damaged of places.

"Hey Zeus follow a rythmically-driven art rock formula: cerebral and progressive but also packed with infectious hooks - think the sort of literate new wave pop associated with classic Scottish bands like Orange Juice and Aztec Camera, but welded to the broad sonic palette so effectively pioneered by Vampire Weekend." - City Life

“Vondelpark lives in Surrey, a place that feels sad because it’s below London. His music is yearning and ghostly. Vondelpark often sounds stuck in a past, scoring songs from venn ellipses ridden by the sort of orbiting 2-step shuffle that should be soundtracking fights in regional cab queues.” - Vice

Meet Brighton based singer songwriter KLAUS, (formerly referred to as Klaus Says Buy The Record). Klaus is the recognized winner of the Red Stripe Music Award 2008, and is also known for his achievements in reaching the final stages of Channel 4's 'Orange Unsigned Act' last spring. Since last summer, Klaus has toured and performed with the likes of Get Cape Wear Cape Fly, Jo Lean And The Jing Jang Jong, Dirty Pretty Things, and Youth Movies. He has also performed at some of the UK's top major festivals including The Great Escape, Lovebox and Offset.

In August 2009 Klaus signed to Sheffield based indie label Small Town Records. His debut release "Lights Out" was recorded last summer and was released September 21st 2009. Klaus' debut EP received critical acclaim and is available nationwide now. In February of of this year, Klaus recorded his first single 'Belly Of The Sea' which is released nationwide May 24th. 

Eve Wood documents the end-of-the-century British music scene through the eyes of Jarvis Cocker, Richard Hawley and other Sheffield natives. These post-punk musicians journey through Thatcher’s politically charged 80’s and, by accident or design, end up at the epicentre of Dance and Britpop.

Featuring Jarvis Cocker (Pulp), Richard Hawley (Treebound Story/Longpigs), Mark Brydon (Chakk/FON/Moloko), Rob Gordon (FON/WARP) and many more.

Nexus Art Cafe, 5pm

“Yuck’s music is beguilingly interior, evoking inner monologues and sideways glances through eyelashes framed by burning cheeks. Vocals weave through a haze of reverb and feedback arches through frisson-filled dusky melodies. There are moments of angst in songs The Wall and Get Away (the one with the heartbreaker chorus) but it’s ultimately sweetly uplifting, none more so than Georgia, their forthcoming single on Transparent that feels like a forgotten anthem.” - Dummy

Glasser is the one-woman orchestra of Cameron Mesirow, the latest addition to the growing roster of True Panther Sounds artists, joining the likes of Delorean, Girls and Magic Kids on the New York based label, which is now also operating from London. Glasser entered public consciousness in 2009 with her debut EP, Apply and UK-only 12” Tremel on the Young Turks label. The intimate, luxurious music resonated widely, despite being made alone by Cameron, between airplanes and shoe stores, on Garage Band software.

Skepta stands at the forefront of the new rap mainstream, both as a wordsmith and businessman. Alongside Wiley and JME, Skepta formed grime collective Boy Better Know in 2005 and has been releasing mixtapes and chart-scaling albums ever since.

With 3rd album Doin' It Again, Skepta hopes to build on the success brought about by last LP Microphone Champion and breakthrough single Too Many Men.

Andreya Triana’s early love of improvisation would warp and change over the years, hugely influencing her Freeflo Sessions - a hypnotic one-woman show using a sampler to loop vocals, percussive sounds and beats live. To date she has taken her Freeflo Sessions worldwide, dazzling audiences far and wide with her cutting edge and soulful performances.

2010 will see the release of her album Lost Where I Belong, produced by jazzy beat master Bonobo. Fellow Ninja Tune Records singer and superstar songwriter Fink also stepped up to co-write two track for the album. Lost Where I Belong is a beautifully honest album combining Soul, Folk, Jazz and Bonobo's cinematic magic for a highly anticipated and hotly tipped debut... watch out for Andreya Triana!

Established in 2008, the past couple of years has seen Dutch Uncles hone their now unmistakable brand of progressive alt-pop by blending complex compositions and off-kilter time signatures with floating vocal melodies. Combined with an energetic and original live performances this has seen them cut their teeth on support tours at the personal request of Bombay Bicycle Club, Dananananaykroyd, The Futureheads and Maximo Park.

Donae’o aka Ian Greenidge was always destined to make a career out of music after growing up in a house where melodies were a major force. His mother was a singer and as a youngster growing up in north west London it was common place for her to be heard belting out tunes in the house. A young Donae’o was also a regular companion when she was out performing and loved soaking up the atmosphere. In fact you could say this is where he felt most at home.

American Men are a 3-piece synthetic rock band formed of Claude Speed, Alilloyd, Scottt Chevrolet - members of Dananananakroyd and other obscure and fantastic Glasgow Rock bands, with a sound like no other - uplifting, driving synthetic melody accompanied by tightly-syncopated live drums. 

American Men represent a new tone for the often dry scene of math & post-rock, but then this is not a band who are singularly satisfied with their genre. This is fun, clever, cinematic music that plays with timing without losing its bright driving energy.

Bright Light Bright Light is singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Rod Thomas. He’s already found fans in Lauren Laverne, Rob Da Bank, Huw Stephens and Tom Robinson, while the download-only, Boom Bip-produced Bright Light Bright Light track ‘A New Word To Say’ caused pleasing ripples when it appeared earlier this year.

"Creating frequently cacophonous and consistently transfixing songs, they rock like proper nutjobs in a manner that's wilfully experimental but never pretentious. Their growing reputation for putting on one hell of a live show is richly deserved." - Rock Sound Magazine

"An entity of unmatchable interest These Monsters deliver where not many artists of this ilk can, and the fire they breath is sure to burn a beautifully sordid image into your musical landscape." - 8/10, Drowned in Sound

Castrovalva are an experimental noise rock trio (formerly duo) consisting of Drums, Bass and Vocals based in Leeds, England; they blend elements of noise rock/post hardcore and grime to create their valva big beat sound.

Working For A Nuclear Free City formed around brothers Phil and Jon Kay and schoolfriend Gary McLure. Ed Hulme joined two days before the band’s first gig, cementing an unconventional line-up that doesn’t always have a singer, though Phil takes the majority of the vocals. 

Their relatively low profile at home masks considerable US success. Having endured American tours so long and arduous that Gary was rushed to hospital in Texas and left minus three feet of intestines, the band were lauded by taste-making radio stations and blogs and nominated for 2007s Shortlist Prize (America’s Mercury Music Prize equivalent) alongside M.I.A., Feist, Wilco and Arcade Fire. 

Breton began life in a warehouse somewhere in South East London. Born from the creative force of musicians and filmmakers Roman Rappak and Adam Ainger and expanded recently into a multi-instrumental and visual collective with the inclusion of Ian Patterson, Daniel McIlvenny and Alex Wadey.

This year, the very limited and quickly snapped-up EP Practical floated between “eerie and carnival-esque. Combining elements of math-rock, post-rock, straight-up Electro and even tropical” – Abeano.com. The second E.P. in the trilogy, entitled Sharing Notes, follows in July. The physical copy of this E.P. will come mounted on a hand-made circuit board with a list of components and directions which, when followed, creates a fully working synth.

Brought up on a mixture of 60 & 70s soul, motown and doo-wop, Louis Jones’ influences as Spectrals include Phil Spector (hence the name), Diana Ross & The Supremes, The Isley Brothers alongside garage rock. Live, Spectrals play as a band and have supported the likes of Girls, Real Estate and Lovvers.

Set to release his debut EP through Moshi Moshi Records just 3 days before In The City, Spectrals’ output shows the two sides that make up Louis’ music; the more dreamy, 70’s inspired tracks contrast with the more upbeat, rock ’n’ roll sound found on September single Peppermint.

Lisbon-based Youthless produce a relentlessly hook-fuelled snappy racket, taking cues from DFA 1979, Talking Heads and Male Bonding and have been billed alongside the likes of The Horrors, TV On The Radio and Crystal Castles.

They’ve reached the heights of Number Two on the Portuguese MTV charts. They hail from Wesleyan University (US), namely the same breeding-ground that birthed MGMT and Amazing Baby.

Patterns are the soundtrack of a different landscape: one with huge foreboding skies and a beauty shrouded in some chilling feeling you can't quite put a finger on. "Forest Law" is still the track that really takes that Chameleons blueprint and runs with it, but there are plenty of other stirring moments created by adding subtle but engaging techno-inspired electronics to what overall is still a classically dark-edged post-punk-indie sound.

Inspired by Don Caballero, Battles, or From Monument To Masses, Ed Wood Jr hits where it's surprising. Between samples and guitars loops, between equations and pure energy, the two-piece band from Lille create ethereal atmospheres, pierced tight and psychotic passages. But beyond the complex structures combining syncopated rhythms and mathematics passages, Ed Wood Jr is foremost a rock band.

Spark was born in Liverpool and grew up in Walthamstow, London. At the age of twelve, she learned how to play the guitar and started writing her own music. She grew up listening to artists "from the Spice Girls to Shaggy". Now signed to 679 Recordings, Spark has cited "purely people, situations, relationships, losses and gains" as her main influences lyrically.

When it doesn’t have 5 or 4, Black Daniel has 3 members. They are brothers Luke and Lamik2000 from London town and Craig Louis Higgins Jr from New York via Cape Cod. Meeting for the first time in Manhattan through a “friend” on the dancefloor of a Lower East Side disco, they quickly discovered a mutual love of animal tranquilisers and long walks in the rain. Some would say forming a band seemed like the logical progression, but it took a tour of the states with the brothers masquerading as DJs and C.LH. jnr doing his own special brand of tour management before the inevitable finally happened. Sometimes something just feels right. This wasn’t one of those times but they did it anyway.

Past gigs have included playing with Kasabian, We Are Scientists, She Wants Revenge, Ebony Bones, Fat Boy Slim, Secret Garden Party Festival, Shoreditch 1234 Festival, Vice Tales Of The Jackalope Festival, Destroy All Monsters, Juan Maclean, stadium tour of UK and Europe with Bryan Adams, man there are loads really.

Mojo Fury are a Northern Irish alternative rock band from Lisburn, formed in 2004. Originally a three piece, they expanded to a four piece in 2009. Their musical style has been described as "alternative rock" with "progressive" and "hardcore" influence.

Honour Before Glory is the solo project of Whiskas (¡Forward, Russia! / Dance To The Radio), the extension and fulfillment of songs that were written throughout his time in Forward Russia and beyond. After numerous false starts, Autumn 2009 saw the songs finally brought to life in the studio with the help from numerous friends (Simon & Dave from I Like Trains, Jon Duels, Fran ex-Shut Your Eyes.. and Fran Rodgers), and then released unto the world.

Sometimes, a single memory can sum up a pivotal moment in life, or even life itself. For Windmill, aka Newport Pagnell-born Matthew Thomas Dillon, a childhood trip to Florida’s EPCOT centre provided the inspiration for his entire second album, a record about “embracing the perfect moments in life and recognising the sadness of everything passing in the moment of our death.”  

Those familiar with Windmill’s debut album, Puddle City Racing Lights, will understand Dillon’s fascination with limitless ideas. Epcot Starfields is expansive, imaginative and utterly unparalleled. It was recorded in solitude, in a tiny bedroom with the lights dimmed, in a process Dillon describes as being “on the boundaries of madness”, but sounds like it comes from a much a bigger, limitless place.

“Blue on Blue are a stripped-down, garage take on shoegaze; the boy / girl guitarists could be Bobby Gillespie and Kim Deal (both circa 1988) from the way they dress, and there’s something pleasantly retro about the presentation, like you’re discovering MBV for yourself; y’know, circa 1988. Compared to a “now”-band like SVIIB (with their twin vocalists), what Blue on Blue miss out on in terms of harmonies, they more than make up by having a live drummer (when he lays off the high-hat). At the end, the guitar left to feedback in front of the amp gets its own round of applause. I’ve got a wishlist of things that would make them tremendous, but the point is: they could be tremendous.” – Drowned In Sound

Hailing from West London, this 22 year old song writer is just at the start of his own solo career, having helped to pen songs for Roll Deep, Devlin, JLS and Cheryl Cole. As a a child he was part of a family pop group along with his brothers and sisters. The BBC aired a documentary about them and more recently BBC Switch has praised his latest mixtape, called Patience is a Virtue which has also be supported by SBTV and Bliss Magazine.

The music that comes out of the Moss Project is testament to its inspirational and eclectic range of influences. Whilst studying composition and performance at Berklee College of Music in Boston, Moss formed the sextet to provide a platform for new, progressive and exciting music. The outcome was in equal measures Metheny, Stravinsky, Radiohead and Shooglenifty.

Comprising singer Jonny Swift, guitarist Laurie Hulme, bassist Craig Marchington and drummer Chris Carthy, BTR released their acclaimed debut album To The City, From The Sea in November 2009 on Manchester's influential Akoustik Anarkhy Recordings. Packed full of life affirming, guitar breaking, heart making, pop songs. BTR are not your over-styled too-cool-for-school indie band. “We actually spend time writing some proper tunes rather than our haircuts” says Jonny.

The singles Telephone Conversation and 18,19,20,21,22 received strong radio support from Huw Stephens (Radio One), Steve Lamacq (Radio One & 6Music) and John Kennedy (XFM), with their most recent offering By The Sea (an ode to Jonny's home town of Cumbria) being playlisted by XFM.

Animals is released in November 2010 on aA, and is the first song to be taken from album number two. With 40 demoed songs to choose from, they're certain to be hibernating in the studio this winter.

“With local-colour sadness as their starting point, Easter intervene with dream-seeking melodies and lush, multi-textured arrangements to announce an authentic British melancholy unseen since the forgotten Shoegaze bands. Think a musical backdrop of Godspeed and Sonic Youth melded together with the atmospheric vocal delivery of Red House Painters' Mark Kozelek. Wonderful stuff from outta nowhere' - Piccadilly Records

At just 19, Ed Sheeran has recorded over 100 songs and toured and worked with artists as varied as Scorcher, Nizlopi, Gabrielle Climi, Slix and Wretch 32. 

"There's gut-bursting honesty to most of his tunes which brings elements of innocence, politics, sense-making, humour and questioning onto his musical plate....That sums him up more than I could. He just tends to make everything around him better, and more orange'' - Scrabbleformusic

Taking to the stage in trademark masks and cloaked by self-made video projections, Is Tropical’s vibrant live show has seen them recently share stages with New Young Pony Club, Good Shoes and The Big Pink.

Eclectically trawling through post-punk, glam pop and all in between, the four-piece’s refusal to be pigeonholed is captured perfectly on recent single ‘When O When.’

Hailing from East London, Mz Bratt is already an inspirational figure to many in the world of UK Urban/Dance music and TV. Billed by many experts as 2009's one to watch, Mz Bratt has emerged from the current UK Urban scene as the lone female role model within a male dominated arena. Her exceptional talent struck renowned award-winning urban producer Terror Danjah (Kano, Sway, Chipmunk, Shola Ama) who took her under his wing after hearing her at local MC battles and seeing her huge Myspace following.

Hailing from East London, Mz Bratt is already an inspirational figure to many in the world of UK Urban/Dance music and TV. Billed by many experts as 2009's one to watch, Mz Bratt has emerged from the current UK Urban scene as the lone female role model within a male dominated arena. Her exceptional talent struck renowned award-winning urban producer Terror Danjah (Kano, Sway, Chipmunk, Shola Ama) who took her under his wing after hearing her at local MC battles and seeing her huge Myspace following.

“Guy Connelly, who used to be in bands called The Corrections and The Fall Out Trust, now cuts and dices found sounds and instrumental segments with psychotic finesse. He chops up his lyrics as well, finding a story then cutting up the words and reassembling them in a random order.” – The Guardian

Ed Drewett is an Essex-born singer-songwriter signed to EMI Virgin Records. Drewett first came to public attention in 2007 as a finalist on the BBC television show Any Dream Will Do. He is best-known, however, for the single "I Need You Tonight" a collaboration with Professor Green. The single reached #3 in the UK Singles Chart. Drewett's second single has been announced as the solo track "Champagne Lemonade".

Egyptrixx effortlessly straddles many forms of dance music, experimenting with ghettotech, jackin house, bassline and dubstep. This unique approach to bass weight beats have gained him the support from the likes of Drop The Lime, AC Slater, Night Slugs Crew, DZ, Mumdance, Dre Skull, Starkey and L-Vis 1990 to name a few.

GALLOPS are where live electronics and jagged guitars meet on the floor and thrash the s**t out of each other until neither one is left standing. Seamlessly blending organic and synthetic in a cohesive manner, while showcasing progressive song-writing without alienating the listener. This is as much for headphone listening in a dark room as it is for festival dance-offs.

Being influenced by such drastically varied artists as Aphex Twin, Fugazi, Vangelis, Sun-Ra and Steve Reich goes someway to explaining the provocatively unique shape of this, their 5 track debut EP, which firmly stakes a claim on behalf of the 4 piece as 1 of the UK's brightest hopes.

Comprising Emma Kupa, Danny How and Andy Beswick, Standard Fare may be named after a sign spotted on a bus, but they’re the kind who could find romance amid the steamed-up windows and chewing gum-covered seats.Recorded in six days with an indie aesthetic that would have made John Peel proud, their debut album is named for a formative period in the band’s development when they travelled across the channel to play at a festival in Noyelles Sous Lens, France.

Hot off the press and not so fresh from lurking the backstreets of Manchester's seedier side come brand new act PLANK! with their dark rhythmic experimental instrumental sprawlings and motorik manifesto... the band have just released their debut EP on local DIY institution Akoustik Anarkhy. Mogwai are known fans. 

"Think Fugazi crossed with Slint crossed with Stereolab crossed with awesome." Guardian Guide

Having only taken to the stage in early 2008, Shapes have made it their goal to be noticed ever-since, with their unique blend of technical rhythms, driving bass-lines and giant riffs. Following their debut release ‘Get Your Learn On’ in summer 08, the three friends from Birmingham, England toured relentlessly across the UK, receiving top reviews and gaining recognition as ones to watch in 09.

Japayork is a 22 year-old musician and graphic designer currently living in London. As well as spending time designing bespoke artwork for bands, musicians and actors from all over the globe, over the years Japayork has graduated from being lead guitarist in a band to becoming an artist in his own right. As a multi instrumentalist, producer, re-mixer and videographer; he crafts lush, layered synth-pop tunes with meaningful lyrics.

Having supported the likes of Uffie and played to crowds as far a field as Moscow, Japayork is set to release his first single in the next couple of months through the Popjustice Hi-Fi Label.

As Flash Fiktion toiled over their weird, wonderful songs, suddenly strange tales and glimpses of narrative flickered into life – stories that felt grounded in reality, but also somewhere else. Twinkling psychedelia, pounding tropical rhythms, deranged glampunk stomps and sunny electro-pop – songs like Capsules Of Sun and Me And Mr E are broiling, multi-headed studio chimera that melt together totally diverse sounds and influences.

Mafia Lights, when together instinctively jam out slabs of grinding rock and roll, touching on shoegaze sonics and pounding complex drums. As individuals, however, the focus changes and each one delves into something different. From dreamesque pop through to melodic minimalism, samples guitar loops and jazz drum pieces, they have it covered. Combined with a compulsion to attempt whatever they feel, they abandon all hope of being pigeon holed and continue to produce and put out songs individually and as a unit, to unpredictable effect. 

Girl Peculiar has in recent months gained great admiration across the whole industry and press without releasing a single track, her words and melodies are so infectious its hard to put her in a catergory, live, she has the ability to captivate the audience and delivers without effort, simplistic yet catchy ballads and tales from bangers and mash to secrets to stars.

Girl Peculiar is certainly heading for great things, In a recent article in Metro, David Sue described "one in a million" Jenny Shuttleworth (aka Girl Peculiar) as" Salford's queen of kooky pop"

Too Young To Love have shared a stage with artists such as Teenagers, Gaggle, the Big Pink and Cold Cave this year and are now spending time in the studio with Nick Littlemore (Empire Of The Sun) recording their album before embarking on a UK tour next year. Receiving dazzling reviews from NME, Vogue, Dazed, Artrocker as well as playing eclectic live sets (including a live catwalk show during London fashion week) the band have recently signed to EMI publishing.

London-born, Irish-raised singer-songwriter Maverick Sabre is breaking the mould. With his soulful voice and skilful guitar-playing, he draws audiences in and leaves them in wonder.

Silencing crowds with his lamenting social-political content, this young rising star is generating a lot of interest from press and booking agents alike. Recently tipped by Hot Press as being the Irish newcomer to give the establishment some serious competition, Maverick was also nominated ‘Best Homegrown Act’ in the 2008 Urban Takeover Awards.

"Grabbing you with its agitated urgency, Rapids! are giving the otherwise stale unoriginality of English music a twisted kick up the arse...they're amongst Foals and Tubelord..." - Rock Sound Magazine

"One of the best, if not THE best CD I received recently...brightened up my weekend" - Steve Lamacq

"This is a classic combination of mood, epic ambition and just plain lovely, lilting melodies pinned down by some splendid, tumbling percussion. It’s the perfect way to leave the listener wanting more...An unhurried anti-dote to the saturation of facsimile indie and folk, Bugs In Ember serve an exceptionally original brew of sounds and music.”

Manchestermusic.co.uk

Sometime Manic Street Preacher and London native Wayne Murray has been slow-burning around London clubs and dives over the last eighteen months. This November sees him release The Firebrand, a 4 track EP under the name Boy Cried Wolf on School Records. Recorded at Faster Studios in Cardiff with producer Sean Read (Beth Orton/Edwyn Collins) and mixed by Dave Eringa (Manics / Idlewild / Answering Machine), the EP consists of four original songs, one of them featuring lyrics written by Nicky Wire.

Manchester’s Sun Electric Band channel the beatnik harmonies of Real Estate or The Mantles, but with a blues edge that tips its hat to Steely Dan and early Beatles, and sits them alongside Manchester contemporaries Spectrals.

Effortlessly combining a party rocking blend of hip-hop, house, garage, breakbeat, ghetto flavours and drum ‘n’ bass, HeavyFeet are at the forefront of the bass music phenomenon. As the duo continue to roll out their ever-evolving sound through a string of bass-heavy releases with some of the leaders of the game (Skint, Bingo and Passenger) and the coolest indie labels around (Plant Music, Party Like Us and Nightshifters), 2010 is looking like their biggest year yet, with remixes also dropping for the likes of Roisin Murphy, DJ Zinc, Nick Thayer, Mele, Deekline, Two Fresh and KillaQueenz, as well as the explosion of their brand new record label concept, Stamp! Beats.

London’s Bubbz & The Black Notes’ take in hip-hop, electro and dub and afro-beat and put it back out in a funky and fresh style. With Ghettozoid, Butterfly and Roze behind him as The Black Notes, Bubbz takes centre stage on the mic with his own indomitable style. 

With an astonishing sound that brings to mind the likes of Crass and Anti Pasti, the NME dubbed them one of the most uncompromising bands around and picked them up for this year's Radar Tour. More of a kick in the teeth than a breathe of fresh air for the the current music scene.

Expect traces of Jonathan Fire Eater, Elvis Costello and The Velvet Underground from this band dressed in black. Receiving their first radio plays in theUK with BBC Radio 1, 6 Music and XFM followed by back to back tours with The Walkmen (US), Cold War Kids (US) and Paul Weller. The band are currently finishing off their debut record with the fantastic Mr Richard Hawley, mixing in Metropolis Studios, London. 

‘Passion, Pain & Loyalty’, Orphan Boy's second album, is a record that should see them freed from the shackles of the lad band tag that marred their debut. Lead single ‘Pop Song’, with its cyclical three note riff and tumbling drums, is far from terrace anthem fare.

When all of their contemporaries have given up the ghost, Orphan Boy have fought against financial adversity and what they perceive as indifference, to emerge from the rubble of their debut album with a second that showcases a truly special British band.

As Ital Tek, 23 year old Brightonian Alan Myson has carved his own niche with references to 90’s Electronica, Hip Hop and Techno blended masterfully to create his own style of hard hitting and melodic bass music.

A guest mix for Mary Anne Hobbs’ BBC Radio 1 show led to his later appearance opening her “Evangeline” compilation, while the Guardian hailed his set at Glade Festival as a highlight of the festival.

“He lives in London and makes music as Porcelain Raft, which sounds like a delicate, drifting daydream, and that’s kind of how he sounds.” – The Fader

Mauro Remiddi, of Sunny Day Sets Fire, was born in Rome and is now based in London. Performing as Porcelain Raft, he extends the psychedelia of his former band into the realms of wistful, dreamy pop.

'Spearheading Manchester'a resurgence in all it's majestic splendour, IAB posses an arsenal of songs capable of lifting them to the dizzy heights achieved by this city's all time greats' - CityLife

Championed by BBC Introducing following the release of their debut EP produced by Stephen Fretwell and Dan Carey (Hot Chip, Kylie), their second is imminent.

Mujeres are four young men from Barcelona who play sweaty, speed-fuelled garage rock. Though it might be true that The Black Lips are a clear influence, they are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the American garage rock scene that these boys love: Jay Reatard, Jacuzzi Boys, Dead Ghosts and many more...

Mujeres infuse their brand of garage rock with a great talent for finding the perfect balance of vocal harmonies, dirty riffs and relentless rhythms. From these ingredients they conjure up fresh, dance-friendly party songs which grab you and don’t let go – just as their forefathers did before them: The Sonics, The Velvet Underground/The Modern Lovers, The 13th Floor Elevators or Los Saicos.

Under a cloud of reverb and a deluge of guitars lies The Bewitched Hands’ main appeal – mini-symphonies of harmony, so supple and fluid that they hit you as hard as they enfold you. Often more than one melody rising, two, sometimes three melodies come out of a cascade of short verses that all explode in one lethal chorus. You’ll get lost in the former and hooked on the latter.

Like fellow Francophones Arcade Fire, The Bewitched Hands build on dense atmospherics to create anthems that belong in arenas and bedrooms alike. The debut EP Hard To Cry is out now.

Chickenhawk are a mix of Avant-garde prog ideals and chaotic, balls out, rock and metal, taking influences from The Melvins and Dream Theater. Critics have described the band as "the antithesis of commercial metal", "an alternative to the next inevitable slice of franchise-culture". "Chickenhawk are an awesome force, every last millisecond of their songs is completely submerged in rock, giving them an intensity and forcefulness that's a rare find in modern music".

Coming together from different ends of the musical spectrum - blues and blue grass 12 string guitar and electronic studio based beats, it's no surprise Arlo and Fell had to coin a new phrase to sum up what they do. Their description is Hillbilly Dubstep and it's spot on. Friends for 10 years, they've been making music for the last two - linked by Manchester legend Bez, Arlo being his son, Fell being a bandmate from Domino Bones, their debut was to a packed tent at The House Party at Kendal Calling to a rapturous reception.

Justin Van Der Volgen is an American musician, mixer with Out Hud from 1996 to 2005 and !!! from 1996 to 2007. Van der Volgen remixed Maserati's "Inventions" for their 2008 Inventions Remixed 12" on Temporary Residence.

Formed in Brighton in late 2009, are four of Brighton’s rising musicians. With bookings for some of this summer’s hottest festivals such as Wireless and T in the Park, Ramona are already making waves and picking up a following with their impressive Blondie style and punk attitude.

Having released debut single 'How Long' in August, supported by an extensive UK tour, the band are now putting together their first album.

This young female artist hails from Manchester and has been making waves recently following her collaborations with the likes of Tinchy Stryder, Roll Deep and Delvin. Signed to Liverpool dance label 3Beat Records. After recently returning from LA to record her new album, this exciting artist will release her new single in September.

From Tooting, South London, Dignan Porch originated as the bedroom experimentations of Joe Walsh, who pretty much as soon as he'd set up a MySpace, got messaged by Mike Sniper (aka Blank Dogs) and signed to his label Captured Tracks.

Debut LP Tendrils mixes classic slacker psyche-pop melodies with some shoegazey and folky elements and garnered much critical acclaim when it came out earlier this year. Now the band is fully formed - composed of brothers Joe and Sam on guitars, Ben on Bass, Philippa on Drums and Hayley on keyboard.

The RD’s are building a solid movement of fans and peers alike, being described as a ‘kick ass girl group. Their debut single, ‘Alrite Stillll’ has received enormous support from 1Xtra, Choice FM (Hotsteppa and DJ Quincey) and Kiss (Manny Norte). It’s been play-listed on Bang FM Radio, and made weekend anthem on 1Xtra with DJ Twin B. The girls show no signs of slowing down after their recent successful stint supporting JLS, RD have just been announced as support act for Wiley on his forthcoming tour. 

Worship was formed in late 2009 and after a productive couple of months, including gigs with We Have Band, Pete & The Pirates, Esben & The Witch and Minotaur Shock, and culminating with a Maida Vale session for Rob Da Bank, the band decided to retreat and develop their writing. 

They headed out to Norway in May 2010 for a month of writing and recording at a small residential studio. Two of the tracks from this session (Collateral and The Midnight Sun) are available for free download. The tracks were written, recorded, produced and mixed by Worship.

With his own video production company, clothing line, production credits and a successful career as an MC with over 2 million YouTube hits already under his belt, this is now Scorcher’s time to shine. Rising through the underground ranks, it was back in 2006 that Scorcher, alongside friends including fellow scene stalwarts Ghetts, Wretch32 and Devlin, established The Movement; a group for like-minded lyricists to practise their trade together. 

Now signed to Universal’s Geffen Records, the forthcoming album will marry Scorcher’s love of street music with rock and experimentation, mirroring Scorcher’s vast music tastes whereby the likes of Daft Punk, Calvin Harris and Keane to Kanye West, 50 Cent and local lad Terminator are all blasted on his stereo. 

A coming-of-age drama set in the 1970s Northern Soul underground music scene and largely centering around the legendary Wigan Casino. Amidst a strong young cast that includes Martin Compston (Red Road, A Guide To Recognising Your Saints), Huey Morgan (Fun Lovin' Criminals) provides a cameo as the spaced out hippy owner of a record shop and Alfie Allen plays best friend Russ and master of the 'dying fly' dance. 

Band On The Wall, 5pm