Track of the week: Dinachi - 'Jericho'

As the year draws to a close we bring you one last track of the week feature for 2017, this time from Dinachi. Based in London, her music is "an intriguing blend of jazz, folk, highlife and gospel" and she has recently released her debut album Parables. With highly meaningful lyrics, portraying both political and religious messages, she has honed her craft singing in church choirs and leading gospel choirs during her time at school and University, gaining experience to bring her to this point in her career. She recently performed live on BBC Radio 2, check out the interview and performance here. Our track of the week is Jericho, which you can listen to along with the rest of the beautiful record on Spotify here.

Follow Dinachi online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Gig of the week: Catgod and Holly Redford Jones at Surya, London (20th Dec)

With the festive season in full swing we've got our last couple of shows of the year coming up this week and our gig of the week is with three of our favourite artists playing a show for us in London! Catgod and Holly Redford Jones co-headline at Surya in King's Cross - they've both played many gigs for us and are two of our favourite live acts. With the beautiful Calÿpso opening up the night, it's sure to be a wonderful evening and we'd love to see some of you there! Check out our artists below and grab tickets for the gig here.

Track of the week: Josh McGovern - 'Love Left Lost'

We first discovered Brighton based singer-songwriter Josh McGovern a few months back with the tune The Devil Below Me and absolutely adore his new tune Love Left Lost. We can't get enough of his beautifully raw and unique vocals, which remind us a little of the likes of George Ezra and Fil Bo Riva, which can only be a good thing. Check out the brand new video for the track below...

Follow Josh McGovern online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Gig of the week: BE GOOD at The Cellar, Oxford (14th Dec)

One of our final gig of the week tips for the year is for a show we're completely gutted to be missing out on in Oxford. It's the charming and wonderful local chaps BE GOOD this Thursday at one of our favourite venues, The Cellar, which has recently announced some positive news in it's fight to remain open - from their Facebook page,"the landlord has withdraw it's objection to the grant of a new lease for the venue". Drinks all round?! The band play the venue this Thursday with support from Leicester based Magique who we caught supporting Willie J Healey earlier in the year and loved (Real Love is a tune!), with Despicable Zee opening up the night. Grab your tickets here for what we reckon will be a gig of the year for the city, and catch BE GOOD before they shoot into the limelight they deserve in 2018... (you heard it here first, right?)

Follow BE GOOD online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Track of the week: Catgod - 'Keep My Promises'

Our good pals Catgod are our track of the week this week with their crazy new tune Keep My Promises. It's their first new track since the beautiful Someone Love EP which was released over Summer, earning them acclaim from the likes of Lauren Laverne and helping to secure them slots at some great festivals. We're digging the new tune and can't wait to hear more... Catgod play for us at Surya in King's Cross on 20th December, co-headlining with Tig fave Holly Redford Jones and with Calÿpso opening up the night. Grab your tickets here (and don't forget the Santa hats.)

Follow Catgod online - Twitter | Facebook | Instagram.

Gig of the week: Tempesst at Shacklewell Arms (6th Dec)

If you're in London and fancy a fun evening of cheery, summery live music then look no further than our gig of the week with the Tempesst chaps this Wednesday. They're taking their brand new Adult Wonderland EP to Dalston's Shacklewell Arms as part of their mini run of UK shows and if the live set we saw them play last Summer is anything to go by it's sure to be a wonderful evening! Check out Waiheke from the EP below, and find out more about the show and grab tickets here.

Follow Tempesst online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Track of the week: Sivu - 'Kin and Chrome'

Tigmus are big fans of Sivu and his work, and we absolutely adore his record Sweet Sweet Silent which was released over the Summer. It's the follow up to the beautiful Something On High, and it's track Kin and Chrome has just been shared as a single with this moving video - it's our track of the week! The track is going to be released again as part of an EP entitled This Unfruitful Love on 16th Feb with a brand new track and re-workings of a couple of tunes from the album - we can't wait! He's even playing what sounds like a seriously special evening with a string quartet at The Kings Place on 15th Feb to celebrate the EP's release - find out more here.

Follow Sivu online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Gig of the week: Strong Asian Mothers at Oslo Hackney (30th Nov)

Our pals Strong Asian Mothers are playing their 'Hard To Find' single launch this Thursday at the lovely venue Oslo in Hackney and it's our top tip for the week! With new material (including the sweet new single itself) and Venture Lows in support on the evening, it's sure to be a wonderful evening - so why not celebrate with the band at their last headline show of the year?! Tickets here.

Follow Strong Asian Mothers online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Track of the week: Low Island - 'I Know You'

With another beautiful new tune released this week we had to choose Tig faves Low Island as our track of the week today! Following up recent tunes The Lines and Tomorrow, they've shared the latest track from their upcoming EP I Know You. Check it out on Spotify and Soundcloud and watch the beautiful session they've performed below for Mahogany in a 1930s art deco cinema. 

Follow Low Island online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Gig of the week: 31hours debut album launch at The Bullingdon, Oxford (26th Nov)

Young Oxford band 31hours have just released their debut album Tell Me What You See, and we're honoured to be hosting the launch show party at The Bullingdon in Oxford this Sunday. It may be a school night but this line-up is more than worth leaving the house for, with locals and friends of the band Lucy Leave, Bright Works and Daisy all warming up the crowd, before 31hours enter the stage (to raucous applause, we predict) and play the entire record in full. It really isn't to be missed - find out more about the show and listen to our other artists through the event page here, and check out the cracking new record below (and then buy a copy to support the band!)

Follow 31hours online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Track of the week: Fil Bo Riva - 'Head Sonata (Love Control)'

Since it's release last a couple of weeks back I've had this tune pretty much on constant repeat, so simply had to make it our Tigmus track of the week! It's the new track from Fil Bo Riva, the first of many (hopefully) to come and a taste of what to expect from the debut album which should be out early next year! It's a must-listen and sure to fit in perfectly to your playlists - and if you like what you're hearing he's off on tour early next year including London's Sebright Arms on 17th April (all the dates here.)

Follow Fil Bo Riva online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Gig of the week: John Smith at St Barnabas Church, Oxford (16th Nov)

We've been looking forward to this show for a while now and simply had to make it our gig of the week! In one of our biggest shows of the year touring folk artist John Smith is bringing his mammoth UK tour with US artist Will Stratton to the beautiful surroundings of Oxford's St Barnabas Church this Thursday, 16th November. With Oxfordshire based singer-songwriter Martha Bailey as our local support for the night we're sure that it's going to be a wonderful evening! John is on tour to promote the release of his recent record Headlong which we're really enjoying at the moment - check out one of the tunes from the record, Far Too Good, performed acoustically below in a stunning session! Grab tickets for the show through Eventbrite here (and register your interest on the Facebook Event for the night too!)

Follow John Smith online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Track of the week: Me and the Moon - 'Standing Still'

Our track of the week comes from our pals Me and The Moon with their groovy new tune Standing Still, out now on My Little Empire Records. Described as a "winning slice of breezy indie-pop" in it's premiere on For The Rabbits, the track is two minutes of fun guitar work, complex drum beats and soothing vocals from lead-singer Tamara. Citing inspirations across the band such as Laura Marling, The Staves, Bombay Bicycle Club and Noah and The Whale we'd say that they're definitely worth checking out if you're into those bands! Me and The Moon head on a UK tour to celebrate the release of the single, taking in Southampton, London, Portsmouth, Guildford and Bury St Edmunds from the 11th to 25th November - all the info is here (most of the shows are free entry!!)

Follow Me and The Moon online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Gig(s) of the week: Low Island at Corsica Studios (8/9th Nov)

Our gig(s) of the week this week come in the shape of back to back headline shows from some of our favourite chaps Low Island at Corsica Studios this Weds/Thurs. After team Tigmus caught their set at The Great Escape together we can't wait for these shows - see you down the front if you've got tickets, as the shows have recently both sold out (keep an eye out online for return tickets though!) Take a watch of their new video for the absolute tune The Lines below!

Follow Low Island online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Track of the week: Adam Barnes - 'Electron'

If, like us, you're partial to acoustic music and a superb singer-songwriter then we're pretty sure you'll enjoy our track of the week, which this week comes from Oxfordshire muso Adam Barnes. He's released a couple of singles over the Summer months and has just announced new record Vacancy at Nasa for 2018, his first release since 2015 EP One Day We'll Be Fine. Featuring Bad Luck, Everything and this new tune, our TOTW Electron, the album will be celebrated with launch shows in London, Amsterdam and Berlin - tickets for his show at St Pancras Old Church, London on 21st Feb are available here. This track is "the story of Donald Crowhurst and his attempt to sail around the world as an amateur sailor" and features guitar from Joe Hicks, cello from Barney Morse-Brown and was recorded and produced by Sam Winfield. Get listening below...

Follow Adam Barnes online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Eight questions with Martha Bailey

We can't wait for our show with John Smith at St Barnabas Church, Oxford on 16th Nov, alongside his tour support Will Stratton we've got one of our favourite local artists Martha Bailey opening the evening. We caught up to find out more about Martha, take a read below...

1. First up, who is Martha Bailey?! How long have you been making music?

Hmm, still working that one out. For simplicity's sake, I am a folk enthusiast and singer-songwriter from rural Oxfordshire i.e. the middle of nowhere. I've been making music of a kind since I was 7 which is when I started learning classical guitar. I didn't take it too seriously, and my parents said I sung like Ethel Merman (they weren't being complimentary.) Thankfully something changed, and I started singing and performing around age 16, which is longer ago than it feels. I've been writing with intent since I was 20 - so 4 years now.

2. Tell us your biggest musical influences!

I don't know for sure what influences people can hear in my music, but growing up I listened to a lot of folk (Kate Rusby, Show of Hands), I worship Joni Mitchel, I love Joan Baez, The Staves and Nick Drake. I think Marika Hackman is pretty inspirational, her lyrics are brave and often a middle finger to social convention, or so it seems to me. I do have some Sugababes tracks on my running playlist, but I don't think they've made their way into my sound.

3. Your debut EP ‘A Different Time’ has been out for almost a year - how has the response to that been? We notice that it was produced by the ever talented friend of ours, Robin Christensen-Marriott… how did you meet and decide to work together?

I know, it's gone so fast! And I've learnt so much since then. I think I was afraid of releasing that EP as I'd never done anything other than crumby YouTube videos and demos before, so I just kind of plopped it on Bandcamp and then ran away. It's gone down well, as far as I can tell. I've had some airplay on BBC Introducing in Oxford and Radio 6, and a few nice reviews. I've also managed to flog most of the CDs I had pressed. Maybe that's got more to do with my sister's artwork though.

I met Robin due to a combination of Oli Steadman recommending him to me, and my sister Niamh meeting him at a music festival a couple of years later when I was ready to record. It was so great to work with Robin, his talent is endless. We'll be back in the studio in the next couple of months I hope...

4. Who is your audience and how do you connect with fans - all the usual social media?! Any crazy, fun, exciting stories about your fans are very welcome!

I have a loyal fanbase in my family and friends (perhaps they're just pretending but they're too far in now), and I really enjoy connecting with people at live shows, which I've been doing a lot of over the past few months. A lot of people who follow what I do are those I have met when I've been busking in Oxford and in London. It's usually busking that provides the best stories - a particularly bemusing event was when someone asked me to give him piano lessons so he could 'get to know me better'. When I told him, quite reasonably I thought, that I didn't have time and in any case wasn't a piano teacher, he lost his sh*t at me. That was weird.

5. We’re excited to have announced you as our opening act for John Smith at his Oxford show at St Barnabas Church. What should fans, and those who might be new to your music, expect from your set? We predict a rather beautiful night of music!

Not as excited as I am! It's going to be so good I can't wait. You can expect a couple of songs from the existing EP and a few that I've been working on recently which are a little different in content to those I've written before. You can also expect me to cough awkwardly and say 'ummmm' when I'm re-tuning.

6. Have you played a show in a Church before? Do you find that the setting for a gig has a big effect on the atmosphere of the show and your audience?

I've never performed solo in a church, although I have recorded some things in the past in churches because the acoustics are so wonderful. It's one of the things I'm most looking forward to about the gig I think, because those kind of buildings seem to create an atmosphere that's both very calm and quite intense all at once. It's certainly going to be a different experience to playing in a sweaty basement.

7. Describe your dream gig to us! Any venues that you’re desperate to play in the UK or further afield? Perhaps there’s an artist you’d particularly love to collaborate with?

Probably a good slot at Cambridge Folk Festival or somewhere similar. I've been to so many festivals and whilst being in the crowd is amazing I can't imagine what it must be like to be the act helping sustain that amazing festival atmosphere. I've got one festival booked so far for next summer, but I really want to make it a priority to play some more and do it properly for the first time. In terms of collaborating - I'd love to work with Billie Marten, she's a young singer-songwriter with so much talent and insight. Her songs are crazy beautiful and so well crafted, and when I found out she was in her teens it blew my mind as she sings like she has the maturity and life experience of someone much older.

8. The end of the year is fast approaching, so what does the rest of 2017 hold for you, and looking towards 2018?

Well the plan for the rest of this year is to take my foot off the peddle with the gigs and release a single. It's taken me a lot longer than I'd hoped, but I've only been pursuing music properly since I graduated last year and I've learnt so much since then, so it's not been time wasted. Next year I'll release another EP and this time I won't be scared of my own work!

Gig of the week: Lucy Rose and Charlie Cunningham at O2 Shepherds Bush Empire (3rd Nov)

Our top tip this week comes from the completely magical combination of Lucy Rose and Charlie Cunningham. Charlie joins Lucy on her UK tour which kicks off this Wednesday, and they play O2 Shepherds Bush Empire in London this Friday. We've seen both of them live and can only imagine that together they'll create a beautiful and mesmerising evening of live music, not to be missed! Grab tickets for Friday and check out the rest of the dates on the tour here (but be quick as they're beginning to sell out!) Listen to two of our fave tracks from the pair below...

Follow Lucy Rose online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Track of the week: Evergreen - 'Aux Echos'

In honour of our own Parisian maestro Mindy, our track of the week this week comes from a trio of Paris/London based artists who released their debut album back in 2014 and who we are chuffed to have back releasing new music! Evergreen (formally We Were Evergreen) have just released Aux Echos, a beautiful new tune following up their Towards record which is full of tune after tune like Daughters and Leeway. We've pretty much had this new track on repeat since it's release last week and can't wait to hear more new music from the trio!

Follow Evergreen online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Eight questions with Solo Collective

We recently gave a shoutout to a run of shows from Solo Collective, a trio of artists who have come together to perform their own material and to collaborate, both in the studio and in the live environment. With another run of shows coming up in November, we caught up with Sebastian Reynolds to chat about the project! Grab tickets now for the shows in Newton Abbott (17th Nov), Oxford (18th), London (19th) and Liverpool (21st) and get reading our interview below...

1. First up - who are Solo Collective?

Solo Collective is a trio of myself (Sebastian Reynolds - piano/electronics) with Anne Müller (cello/electronics) and Alex Stolze (violin/electronics). We are releasing a record (Solo Collective Part One) which features two tracks from each artist, one each from our debut live performance in Berlin in Feb 2017, and one studio track each. The record is coming out in Dec 2017 via Alex’s Nonostar Record label. My track that I made with Anne (Holy Island) is available on Spotify/all digital platforms now, and there’s a beautiful video that I made with choreographer Adrienne Hart (Neon Dance) and film maker Adam Hale that we filmed with Adrienne’s dancer Aoi Nakamura on Holy Island, please do check it out!

2. How did the three of you meet, and who had the idea of forming the collective?

We met through the Berlin scene, where Anne and Alex are from, and the idea came for us to try performing in this format, each playing our own sets, but featuring and supporting each other, rather than the band format of a group of people originating and playing music together.

3. Who influences the three of you collectively and individually?

Anne and Alex grew up in East Berlin, under the GDR, so they were drawn to the idea of being able to have strong individual voices within a group environment, rather than just being pieces of a larger puzzle. I’m sick of band politics so this concept was very appealing also.

4. You (Sebastian) have played in a lot of bands in the past - how does it feel heading out for shows and performing solo material now?

It’s simultaneously liberating and terrifying, being in the limelight. I love the artistic freedom of not having create by committee, but I miss having a band to split all the costs between.

5. After a run of shows in September you’re playing four more in Newton Abbot, Oxford, London and Liverpool in November - what should fans expect from the shows?

For Oxford and London I’m planning to play new material, having played in those places quite recently I want to play some different material. I have a pair of mini albums (Remembrance/Epiphany) that I am hoping to bring out next year, and in Sept I played more of the Remembrance material (piano based/sentimental/ambient) whereas next month I’ll play more of the Epiphany tunes (distorted/dissonant/griefy). I dare say Anne and Alex have plenty of tricks up their sleeves too!

6. Describe your dream gig to us! Any venues that you’re desperate to play in the UK or further afield, or an artist that you’d all love to collaborate with?

I used to play at the Vortex and Cafe Oto in London with my old band Braindead Collective, and it would be great to go back there, particularly the Vortex was a home from home for a while. And I know Anne played there with Nils Frahm a few years back so we’d love to play there as Solo Collective. There are some wonderful chapel spaces in London, St John on Bethnal Green and Union Chapel, but I think the Old Church in Stoke Newington, where we are playing in November, is going to be great. We’ve done a couple of great shows in Berlin, and I’d love to play the Radial System there in 2018.

7. What’s next for Solo Collective after this run of shows?

We are booking another UK run in February, and will be doing a full Euro tour hopefully around that time. All three of us are bringing out new solo records in 2018 too.

8. As a regular on the Oxford music scene do you have any top tips for us in terms of new bands to watch? We’re big Low Island fans personally!

Suzy Bowtell who is opening for us in Oxford on behalf of Young Women’s Music Project is great and I’m looking forward to seeing her!

Gig of the week: Public Service Broadcasting at Eventim Apollo, London (26th Oct)

In a week that is packed out with lots of great Tigmus shows, including the Jeremy Tuplin album launch in London, Art Theefe single launch in Oxford, and shows with Sky Coloured and Luke Daniels headlining in London AND a free entry Mt Doubt show in Brighton, it's hard to choose our favourite gig from other promoters, but we're pretty sure we've chosen a total corker!

Public Service Broadcasting play the last night of their current UK tour to support the release of their third studio album Every Valley (a concept album about mining in the Welsh valleys) this Thursday with a show at Eventim Apollo, London. They're completely unique and we love all three records - seeing them live is certainly an experience worth checking out! Take a listen to Progress from the latest album below, and check out their Live In Brixton album to see what the fuss is about! Grab the last tickets for the show here, and for our shows this weekend, head to our Eventbrite page.

Follow Public Service Broadcasting online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Track of the week: Gengahr - 'Mallory'

Following In A Past Life from the Pale Seas chaps last week, a new tune from Gengahr has made it to our track of the week spot today! Back in 2014 when I had just started university I caught them both supporting Dry The River - it's great that both support bands are doing pretty well for themselves now! Following their 2015 debut album A Dream Outside the band, an alternative four-piece from London, have released this new single and announced that their new record Where Wildness Grows is due to be released on 9th March. Get listening to the new tune below!

Follow Gengahr online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Eight questions with Will Stratton

Coming up in November we've got a special show with touring folk artist John Smith - his name is pretty commonplace but his music and guitar style are far from it, and kicking off the evening we've got brilliant support from Martha Bailey and Will Stratton. We caught up with Will in the run up to the show... find out what he had to say below and grab tickets for the show here.

(c) Nika States

1. First up, who is Will Stratton?! How long have you been making music?

I’ve been playing piano for 26 years and guitar for 18, and writing songs somewhere in between. I’m from California, originally, but I’ve lived in the Northeastern U.S. most of my life. I’ve made six records so far and I plan on keeping going as long as the songs keep coming.

2. Tell us your favourite artists and biggest musical influences!

It’s probably pretty obvious to anyone who listens to me that I love the music of Nick Drake and Bert Jansch. I’m also into a lot of North American guitarists like Leo Kottke and Nathan Salsburg, and songwriters like Joni Mitchell and Karen Dalton. I listen to a lot of classical music, though I don’t know how much of it has rubbed off on the way I play and perform. If any of it has, it’s probably been the piano music of people like Erik Satie and Bill Evans.

3. Your latest album ‘Rosewood Almanac’ was released back in May… how has the response to the record been so far, and how does it feel to have it out in the world?

It feels good. People seem to like it. This is my first record with Bella Union, a label that I’ve long admired, and so I’m proud to be working with them, and excited that I get to see so much of the British Isles in touring behind this album. I’m pretty unsentimental about my records once they’re finished, though, and I’m deep into working on the follow-up album, now, so I’m looking forward to gradually incorporating more newer material into my sets.

4. Who is your audience and how do you connect with fans - all the usual social media?! Any crazy, fun, exciting stories about your fans are very welcome!

I think people who listen to my music tend to know that they can reach out to me and expect some sort of response--hopefully things never get so crazy that this becomes too difficult. I prefer meeting people and talking to them in person, and corresponding on e-mail, but of course I’m on social media as well.

5. We’re excited to have you playing our John Smith show at St Barnabas Church, Oxford as John’s tour support - what should fans expect from your set?

My sets tend to just be guitar and vocals. I love playing in churches because they seem to have some of the best acoustics for my kind of music. There will be a lot of variation musically with the simplest of materials.

6. Have you played in or visited Oxford before? We hope you’re planning to squeeze in some sight-seeing… would definitely recommend the University Parks!

I’ve haven’t been to Oxford since I was 6 years old, but I have a great aunt who lives in Oxfordshire in the countryside and I’ve visited her as much as I can. I mostly know Oxford through the murder mystery TV shows I like to watch with my girlfriend. I hope I’ll get a chance to walk along some canals. I’ve fantasized about living in a boat on one of those canals.

7. Describe your dream gig to us! Any venues that you’re desperate to play in the US or further afield, or an artist that you’d particularly love to collaborate with?

I’ve been fortunate enough to collaborate with a lot of people that I admire, either directly or indirectly. Top of my list now would probably be Jim O’Rourke and Olivia Chaney, both brilliant artists in very different ways. I’d also like to collaborate with a film composer like Olafur Arnalds. Making film music has always appealed to me. As for venues, I haven’t given that much thought, but I guess I’d like to play at Town Hall in Manhattan, and at the Barbican in London. I think it’d be fun to do a one-off concert where I write some songs for chamber orchestra and guitar.

8. You’re touring with The Weather Station and John Smith through some of October and most of November, what else does the rest of the year hold for you?

I’m going to try and finish up the songs for my next record so that I can go into a recording studio again in early 2018, and get in lots of time with family and friends in between.

Gig of the week: The Big Moon, Get Inuit & Be Good at The Bullingdon, Oxford (18th Oct)

Another cracking week of live music coming up... it's always tricky to pick a gig of the week but this is one that we'd massively recommend catching if you're in Oxford on Wednesday! As if headliners The Big Moon and tour support Get Inuit weren't enough, locals BE GOOD are opening up the evening - what a line-up! BE GOOD recently released new tune It's Cool But It Ain't You which we've had on repeat constantly since making it our track of the week a couple of weeks back. Take a listen to all the bands before and head to the Facebook Event to find out a little more about the show! It looks like it'll be a sell-out any minute, so grab tickets asap (beg, steal or sell a limb if you have to...)

Track of the week: Pale Seas - 'In a Past Life'

If we could make an entire album the track of the week we would do (album of the week, if you will...) with the new record from our old pals Pale Seas. After being away for a couple of years they returned over Summer with news of their debut album Stargazing For Beginners and the wait was finally over this Friday. We've whittled the record down to one of our favourite tracks, In a Past Life - listen to that below and check out the full record on Spotify and in all good record stores! Also... if you're in London head along to Rough Trade East on Thursday (12th) to catch them performing and signing copies of the record from 7pm - free entry so definitely worth heading along to if you're about, more info on Facebook here.

Follow Pale Seas online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Gig of the week: Fenne Lily, Paul Thomas Saunders, Sivu & Siv Jakobsen at Cecil Sharp House, London (12th Oct)

With lots of our favourite artists out on tour at the moment it's a tricky week to choose our top tip, but we're pretty confident that if you head to Cecil Sharp House on Thursday night (12th Oct) you'll have a brilliant evening with four incredible artists performing. Fenne Lily, Paul Thomas Saunders, Sivu and Siv Jakobsen are currently on a co-headline tour, with shows this week in Glasgow and Newcastle before the tour finishes up in London on Thursday evening with a show promoted by our friends at Parallel Lines.

These are four extremely talented young artists and the show should definitely be on your radar if alternative and acoustic tunes are your cup of tea! Take a listen to the four acts below, and grab tickets for the night here.

Track of the week: Strong Asian Mothers - 'Hard To Find'

In another brilliant week for new tunes, our track of the week this week comes from Strong Asian Mothers. They're back with a new single Hard To Find with some cracking press photography from Dan Harris and they're launching the track with a headline show courtesy of Communion Music at the brilliant Oslo Hackney (London) on November 30th - grab tickets here if you dig the tune!

Follow Strong Asian Mothers online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Gig of the week: Benjamin Yellowitz at The Lock Tavern (6th Oct)

Our gig of the week is the Benjamin Yellowitz single launch show as he takes to The Lock Tavern for the London date of his Erase You tour. The show is this Friday (6th Oct) with special guests and Laura Grandy in support, and it's free entry! Check out the event for more info here.

Follow Benjamin Yellowitz online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Track of the week: BE GOOD - 'It's Cool But It Ain't You'

We loved their debut single Not Waking Up when it was released a couple of months back and we're really digging this smooth new jam from BE GOOD. They're a young Oxford quartet (and your new favourite band) who recorded this new tune It's Cool But It Ain't You in singer Ash Cooke's bedroom, and released it recently through Kitsuné Hot Stream. In the tune's premiere on Crack in the Road, we learn that Cooke "initially met drummer Charles Clark at a ceramics evening class" - very rock n roll! You can catch BE GOOD supporting The Big Moon alongside Get Inuit at The Bullingdon in Oxford on 18th October - a dream line-up if you ask us!

Follow BE GOOD online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Gig of the week: Slate Hearts acoustic at Truck Store, Oxford (28th Sep)

Our gig of the week this week is a freebie at Truck Store in Oxford - because who doesn't love a bit of free entertainment with some record browsing and great tea & coffee thrown in! Cracking local band Slate Hearts just released their new EP Honey Roasted Henry, with a slot on the local BBC Introducing show on Saturday to chat about it, and they'll be performing tracks from it acoustically this Thursday, 28th September. As a notoriously heavy, loud and energetic band and a live favourite for many in the local scene it'll be really interesting to see the guys playing a stripped back set and we hugely recommend you head along and fill up the store for their set! Take a listen to the new EP below (which you'll be able to grab a copy of at the instore) and find more about the event on Facebook here.

Follow Slate Hearts online - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

Track of the week: Banfi - 'June'

Our track of the week comes from the lovely chaps of Banfi, who released the video for their charming new track June last week. The video was directed by Jake Dypka, who along with his cinematographer Nick, had to "sit by the camera as it spun around a circular track for 14 hours straight, so they've both probably come away with permanent vertigo" - in the same vein as the recent Glass Animals video we shared this alone surely makes it worth a watch! They've just finished up a UK tour upon which they played a sold out show at London's The Lexington which we lovely - be sure to keep an eye out for new tunes and live dates, we reckon that they're certainly ones to watch!

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Gig of the week: BBC Introducing Uprising at O2 Academy Oxford (22nd Sep)

Our gig of the week this week is a regular fixture in the Oxford music scene, with BBC Introducing bringing their night of new bands, Uprising, to the O2 Academy Oxford this Friday. With sets from Zaia, Lowws, Laura Theis, Catgod and Wandering Wires and a Zaia DJ set after the show all for £8 in advance it's a bargain and always worth heading along to catch budding talent in the city, including our faves Catgod who you should definitely catch live if you haven't yet (check a video from their performance at Sofar Sounds Winchester below!)

Here's the Facebook Event for the show which is this Friday (22nd September)!

Tour shout out: Solo Collective (Anne Müller, Alex Stolze, Sebastian Reynolds)

We love sharing news about great gigs happening in London and beyond, and we're excited to shoutout a little tour with the collaborative trio Solo Collective, featuring German classical/experimental musicians and composers Anne Müller (cello) and Alex Stolze (violin) and British pianist and producer Sebastian Reynolds. Performing in Oxford, London, Manchester and Birmingham, the shows will feature solo performances from Anne and Alex, followed by a trio performance of Sebastian's music. References for the music include the electro-acoustic piano music of Brian Eno, the counterpoint music of Steve Reich, and the influence of modern classical electronica innovators such as Murcof and the experimental composition of Arvo Pärt. Take a listen below...

A little more bio... Anne Müller is well known for her work with various artists from the Erased Tapes label, including Nils Frahm and Olafur Arnalds. Alex Stolze rose to fame via his place in German pop trio Bodhi Bill and experimental collective Dictaphone. Sebastian Reynolds has guested with stars such as The War On Drugs and Viv Albertine (The Slits), and formed stalwarts of the UK experimental scene Braindead Collective and Keyboard Choir.

Solo Collective start their tour with a show at the Jacqueline du Pre Music Building in Oxford (17th Sep), followed by Servant Jazz Quarters in London (19th) and the International Anthony Burgess Foundation in Manchester (20th).

Eight questions with Bare Traps

This Saturday (16th Sep) in London we've got Bare Traps, Parachute For Gordo and Meyou playing at The George Tavern, with a Flash in the Dark DJ set til late. We loved Bare Traps set in Brighton when they played for us at The Alternative Escape and their tunes have been in our headphones since the show - can't wait to have them play for us again! We caught up to learn a little more about the band, get reading the interview below and check out the Facebook event here for more info and tickets for the show!

(c) Tom Halliday Photography

1. First up, who are Bare Traps?!

In descending order of beardedness: Luke - guitar and delinquency, Sam - vocals and smoulder, Liam - bass and beer, then last and by all means least bearded, Scott - drums, token Essex blonde.

2. How long have you been making music together? What are the band’s biggest musical influences and favourite artists?

In our current incarnation, we've been making music together for ten months. Bare Traps has been knocking around a little bit longer than that, but with two other waste-men that quit the band last year. We mean 'waste-men' in the most affectionate way possible. Now we have two new waste-men. 

Our sound is a mash-up of influences from cool indie shit, like: The Smiths, Bloc Party, Foals; with funky stuff like: Prince, Friendly Fires, Chic; electronic stuff such as: SBTRKT, James Blake, Bonobo; and more obscure math-rock, like: The Fall Of Troy, And So I Watch You From Afar, and Tubelord.

3. We loved having you play a set for us at The Alternative Escape in Brighton back in May - what have you been up to since then? Lots of festivals we hope!

Errrrm, so yeah loads really. We played to an awesome crowd at Fieldview Festival in August. It's a really sick festival with some of our favourite acts of the moment: Clean Cut Kid, Palace, Fickle Friends, and Youngr. We ended up giving a second, impromptu performance in the campsite from the roof of our car in the pouring rain too, which was fun. And wet. The highlight was probably our steel pans player, Rahmel, having to repeatedly pour water out of his pan throughout. Then we played Sundown Festival at the beginning of this month. That was eventful. We snuck on the main stage with Craig David, then nearly got thrown off the site for dropping our trousers in front of security. True story. Headline news though, is that Scott has become a 'flexitarian', which is a poncey hipster way of saying he's a fussy tit.

4. You recently released ‘All In You’ which we think is an absolute tune - anything you can tell us about the writing or recording process for the track?

Ahhh thanks! It was one of those mythical moments where a song seemed to write itself. I (Luke) was just messing around on my guitar before band practice one Sunday morning, and happened to come up with the main riff. When we got to rehearsal, I began playing the riff while we were setting up. Scott asked what it was. I shrugged. We dicked about with it for half an hour, got excited like a bunch of little girls, then voila - All In You was born. The rest is history blah blah blah.

5. You’re playing at The George Tavern for us this Saturday (16th Sep) - what should we expect from the show?!

About thirty-five minutes of music, interspersed with awkward silences, technical difficulties, anxious tuning of guitars, terrible attempts to be funny, futile attempts at asking the audience to come closer to the stage, and bad dancing. 

The thirty-five minutes of music will be sick though. Honestly, our music's awesome. My mum said so and she likes Abba.

6. Who is your audience and how do you connect with fans - all the usual social media?! Any crazy, fun, exciting stories about your fans are very welcome!

Our "fans" are Sam and Liam's friends. That's why we asked them to join the band - so they'll bring people to our shows. Yeah, we use social media. Tinder mainly. At Sundown Festival this year, a fan of ours got me (Luke) to sign her forehead, then randomly, and quite unannounced, showed me her lady garden, which funnily enough had a flower tattooed on it. 

For the avoidance of any issues: the other members of the band, all of whom have girlfriends, were absolutely nowhere near this incident. Nowhere near at all. In fact, I think they'd already packed up and gone home. Honest. 

Liam, I'm still waiting for you to send me those photos.

7. Describe your dream gig to us! Any venues that you’re desperate to play in London or further afield? Any artists you’d love to collaborate with on a performance?

Dream gig has got to be headlining the Pyramid Stage at Glasto really hasn't it?! Errm, London venues? I think we're ready for Wembley Stadium actually. Maybe we could play in the foyer at half-time or something. Would be great to collaborate with Stormzy. He could spit a grimy verse on one of our songs like he did with Little Mix. We'd be worried about ruining his credibility though, so maybe not.

8. As Summer comes to a close and the cold weather sweeps in… what does the rest of the year hold for you… we hope that new music is in the pipeline!

Some new music and some old music actually. I mentioned earlier that we swapped the two old waste-men for the two new waste-men. Well, we thought it would be cool to re-record some of our older tunes with the new guys, which we've done. We've totally re-recorded them; changed the instrumentation in places, used different production techniques - it sounds the tits! We're going to be recording a new single too, so all being well, we'll be dropping a new record before the year is out. We've got some cool gigs coming up too, including our first international show, which will be in the south of France. Got to make the best of that shit before Brexit you know!

Track of the week: Low Island - 'The Lines'

They were our first track of the week once we started the feature on this blog back at the end of May, and Low Island are back again, this time with new track The Lines. The first to be taken from upcoming seven track EP, it's a corker, a tune to dance to - and you'll get the chance if you head to a live show later in the year across October and November. Alongside a performance at Oxford's inaugural Ritual Union all-dayer on 21st October and back to back headline shows at London's Corsica Studios for Parallel Lines on 8th and 9th November, Low Island play Glasgow, Leeds, Bristol, Manchester. Grab your tickets here and dig out your dancing shoes!

Follow Low Island online - Twitter | Facebook | Instagram.

Gig of the week: Gøspel EP launch at Birthdays, London (14th Sep)

There are so many brilliant gigs coming up this week, with Banfi playing a sold out show at The Lexington  on Tuesday, a couple of Nick Mulvey instores at Banquet Records and Rough Trade East and Flyte playing Patterns in Brighton with our faves MarthaGunn supporting. Our gig of the week is a freebie from Gøspel, launching their first EP Bodies at Birthdays in Dalston, London. We worked with the duo on a busy show at Sebright Arms last year and really recommend you get along to this free show, with Volkova Sisters supporting - check the Facebook event here for more info and listen to new tune This Life now!

Eight questions with Benjamin Yellowitz

Check out our interview with Benjamin Yellowitz, a singer-songwriter from London who is heading on a UK tour next week taking in shows around the country to support the release of his new single Erase You. He's kicking off the tour a week today (15th Sep) playing for us at The Mad Hatter in Oxford for our 'Friday Night Live' residency alongside Antony Elvin and Lisa Doscher - info and tickets here!

1. First up, who is Benjamin Yellowitz?! How long have you been making music?

Benjamin Yellowitz is me! It's a strange and somewhat pretentious story actually! I was born Ben Williams, but changed my artist name a few years ago to my family's original name - Yellowitz. It was an excuse to go in a new musical direction and experiment with a new stage persona, strangely I was much more comfortable being 'him', and realised I was holding myself back in 'real life' too. Told you it was pretentious! I've been making music since I was really young, grew up surrounded by it!

2. Tell us your biggest musical influences!

Ahh a real mixture! From thoughtful songwriters like Tracy Chapman, Ben Howard, to awesome producers like Bon Iver, James Blake. I have a lot of pop interests too, like The Weeknd's old stuff, my current listen's are NAO and RAY BLK. There's always this distinction between 'interesting/complex/off the radar' and 'pop/catchy/addictive'. Any music that can join the two together - I will have on repeat!

3. Your new single ‘Erase You’ is being released soon - anything you can tell us about the writing or recording process for the track?

It's a raw one! Haha! But I guess it was needed. Kind of a 'look its a new me!' break-up song... Only kinda the opposite as well. I must give a shout out to recording and mixing engineer - Jonny Breakwell, who did an awesome job on this track!

4. You’re going on tour to celebrate the single release - what do you enjoy most about playing live?

I love performing live, every night is a completely different story. The beauty of performing on my own is that I get to change the songs slightly every time. People say its a really big sound for one person - lots of FX, guitar percussion, a nice subby drum sampler etc. I don't want to be a guy and his acoustic guitar, but I don't want it to be tricky gadgetry either, so it's somewhere between the two.

5. We’re excited to be hosting the opening night of the tour with you performing at our ‘Friday Night Live’ residency at The Mad Hatter alongside Lisa Doscher and Antony Elvin - what should we expect from the show, and have you caught either of them live before?

All live, no looping and dare I say... pretty emotional too! This will be my first time to catch Lisa and Antony live, I'm excited!



5. There are a couple of Sofar Sounds shows in amongst your tour dates. We love Sofar - how do you find that the shows differ to a regular gig in terms of how your music is received by the audience?

I love playing Sofar shows. They're a strange combination between a 'promo performance' and a full-on headline gig, you only play for 20 minutes but to a silent crowd ready to soak it all up. They're always full of interesting people ready to see/hear new things. There's a lot more importance on the first song at regular gigs, it's your moment to prove yourself, break through whatever barriers and whatnot, but once you've captured the audience, you have them for much longer to create a more dynamic performance that tells several stories.

7. Describe your dream gig to us! Any venues that you’re desperate to play or further afield? Perhaps there’s a local artist you’d love to collaborate with?

Actually, I am super-stoked to be playing in the UK more. After touring abroad so much, I am happy to be exploring closer to home. As I said, every gig is different, and thats all I wish for. I don't really have a desire to play huge venues. See more great cities, meet more interesting people, end up in more bizarre situations... And obviously play more gigs!

8. As we approach the end of Summer and festival season, what does the rest of the year hold for you… is more new music in the pipeline, perhaps an EP? We certainly hope so!

Haha thanks, I hope so too! I have SO many songs in production right now, I'm so keen to get them right though. I also need to be home a bit more to actually get them finished! So yeah, I'll probably be sitting with Jonny at the studio more than I'll be on stage.

Track of the week: Little Red - 'Siren Song'

Our track of the week this week comes from Oxford indie-folk trio Little Red, who have recently released Siren Song, the first track from their upcoming album Draw Blood, to be released on All Will Be Well Records in January. Recorded and produced by Tom Hodges (of LR and Club Soda fame), the track was written by the band's Ian Mitchell, performing alongside Ben Gosling and Hayley Bell, whose elegant vocals take the forefront on this track! You can grab the new track on Bandcamp with the beautiful B-side Mr Wolf - both go down a treat when the band perform live, particularly those cracking harmonies in the first track!

Follow Little Red online - Facebook | Twitter and catch them live alongside Tig fave Tom Williams and Old Swing at The Jericho Tavern on 16th September (tickets here!)

Gig of the week: Flatlands at The Cellar (7th Sep)

Our gig of the week is the last Flatlands show of the summer, as they play a hometown headline show for us at The Cellar in Oxford. After a superb set for us at our Yan Tan Tethera all-dayer at Tap Social Movement a few weeks ago we can't wait for this show, with the brilliant Slate Hearts and Who's Alice in the support slots! Ample opportunity to tell you all to sign the petition to help save The Cellar from threat of closure (12,000 supporters in a week!) and join the Facebook Event to be kept up to date with the fight to save the beloved Oxford venue! Check out Flatlands interview in The Oxford Mail talking about the show and The Cellar, and the importance the venue has for young bands in the city.

Grab advance tickets for a bargain £4 (+fees) through Eventbrite here for what is sure to be a brilliant show!

Track of the week: Ady Suleiman - 'Not Giving Up'

Since catching him perform a hugely successful opening slot at Bushstock Festival in 2015 I've been keen to hear more of Ady Suleiman and can't wait for him to release an album of material. It seems he's been plugging away for the last couple of years and his recent new tune Not Giving Up is stunning, earning it the title of our track of the week! Check out a live session performance of the track here.

Follow Ady Suleiman online - Twitter | Facebook | Instagram.

Eight questions with Johanna Glaza

Next up in our series of interviews with Tigmus artists, we caught up with Johanna Glaza recently... she's set to release her debut album 'Wind Sculptures' later in the year and is supporting Lucía Scansetti alongside Emma Ballantine in London on October 13th - tickets and more info here! Get reading to find out more about Johanna!

1. First up, who is Johanna Glaza?!

It's me. Lithuanian born London based independent artist, with lungs full of songs.

2. How long have you been making music? Tell us your biggest musical influences!

I've been singing ever since I remember myself. But my first full time music project was the band Joana And The Wolf when I moved to London. Then in 2013 I've released my first solo EP Silence Is Kind and ever since enjoyed my solitary songwriting experience. It's always so hard to tell what really has influenced us, layers and layers of things we listened to, read and experienced. But when writing this album I've be listening to Arvo Part a lot, Lubomyr Melnyk too, also was going back to 70s - Joni Mitchell, Linda Perhacs, Roy Harper, Laura Nyro.

3. The 405 just premiered the video for your new tune Space Mermaid... it’s clear from the video and a glance through your photos online that visual art is a big element of your music, would you agree?

Very often I draw inspiration for my music from visuals - paintings, photographs etc. So maybe there is some natural correlation between the sound and the visuals. But I think lyrics are much more important to me than visuals. They are the bones that hold everything together. There could be no visuals at all but if the lyrics are evoking some strong images that can stir peoples imagination I feel like my work has been done. I guess the right images are necessary to unlock certain things and emotional codes that are so hard to express. I paint by words and melodies, these are my primal tools, anything else is additional.

4. We hear from the article that your debut album ‘Wind Sculptures’ is ready for release... how does that feel?! What can we expect from the record?

I feel terribly proud and terrified at the same time. Really happy I followed my instincts and recorded the album to tape at analogue studio, it was a very special experience. Very lucky too to have met someone who I think understood me and my songs completely. Ed Deegan has done some amazing work producing it. He helped me to challenge myself and all my insecurities, always walk on the edge of raw and beautiful and didn't let me use any 'make up' on songs. So they feel now very true to me. And the whole approach to arrangements by using tape loops and found sounds instead of usual synths and samples made it even more special.

5. You’re supporting at our upcoming Lucía Scansetti show at The Harrison in London on 13th October - we can’t wait for the show! Have you played alongside Lucia or Emma Ballantine before?

No, I haven't and I 'm looking forward to hearing them live very soon!

6. Who is your audience and how do you connect with fans - all the usual social media?! Any crazy, fun, exciting stories about your fans are very welcome!

I'm very slow with the social media. I was probably the last person to join Facebook and later Twitter. I still don't have Instagram account. I love the actual physical presence during the live shows. It's a very unique experience to be on stage in your own world and at the same time to be able to communicate with the audience. The best part about people who love what I do - very often they become my really good friends.

7. Describe your dream gig to us! Any venues that you’re desperate to play in London, or further afield? Any artists you’d love to collaborate with on a performance?

I dream to have a world tour at abandoned churches...

8. As we glide through Summer rapidly, what does the rest of the year hold for you?

The end of September I'll see my album out and then planning a lot of shows. But also really looking forward to going back to my own bubble to write more songs. That's just what I do.