Author Archives: llivelymusic

Female-led artist and event management, PR & marketing agency. From the Netherlands, based in the North East.

Track by Track: underthepropaganda’s ‘AY!’

‘AY’ opens with ‘Don’t Stop With Me’, which addresses the challenge of moving forward and not getting trapped in memories of a past love. It reflects one the importance of progressing, even when it’s difficult, under a psychedelic and aesthetically languid sound. ‘No Longer Friends’ was inspired by the painful reality of losing friends as we age, the song captures the transition from a close relationship to becoming strangers again. The cheerful air of pop guitars masterfully contrasts with the rawness of the song’s narrative.

An anthem to individuality is single ‘OBEY’ which comes with a captivating video. The single questions traditional life and encourages challenging social norms, celebrating the courage to be different, under a calm but forward rhythm and immersive soundscapes. ‘This Morning’ deals with the daily struggle of facing routine when going through a period of sadness, highlighting how obligations can feel overwhelming, through a curious invitation to dance and embracing lament.

A cheerful and simple tribute to football and its chants is ‘¡OHOH!’ capturing the energy and passion of the sport! ‘Lento’ explored the band’s personal experiences with anxiety during the pandemic, describing how everything seems to move more slowly in those moments of crisis, following the line of lo-fi guitars and danceable yet melancholic rhythms.

On ‘Quiero Colarme’ the band talks about the difficulty of romantically connecting, reflecting the frustration of wanting love but being unable to fully experience it, a song that was created in collaboration with Salares. ‘Tanto Tiempo’ represents tenacity and perseverance, focusing on the importance of not giving up, despite repeated rejections and obstacles being in your way. The closing statement of the album comes in the form of ‘wait!’, reflecting on nostalgia and the memory of a past love, thematically linked to the opening song but from a more melancholic perspective. And with that, underthepropaganda comes full circle and have created a concept album standing out from the crowd by sounding honest, passionate, and timeless!

The music and lyrics on ‘AY!’ where created by underthepropaganda, with contributions from Sofía Pilar. The album was primarily produced by the band with Cristobal Cornejo, with the participation of Nicolás Vargas. ‘AY!’ was recorded in various studios and locations, with mixing by Cristobal Cornejo and mastering by Francisco Holzmann. With collaborations from various artists on instruments, choruses, and lead vocals. Album art was created by Javiera Leal and Matías Quintanilla, with promotional photographs by Maite Carrasco.

Behind the music: Benedict October on ‘Lovestruck’

Berlin-based, Dutch genre-bending alternative pop artist Benedict October is back showcasing another side of his musical abilities on his brand new single ‘Lovestruck’. On ’Lovestruck’ Benedict October paints such a vivid picture that it makes us feel like we are on the dancefloor his mother entered when his father first saw her, while he was sitting at the bar with his friends.

The single is taken from his upcoming album. ‘And then the ocean’ is Benedict October’s second LP, a stubborn and daring album different to grasp at first. He moved from Amsterdam to Berlin and has done his utmost to create a new and, above all, unique sound. And it’s worked. It is hard to pinpoint exactly who inspired ‘And then the ocean’, its subjects are more personal than ever, even more so then what Benedict initially had in mind. The death of his father has made a hefty impact on the artist as well as the album, resulting in bouts of big and theatrical sounds and songs. At their core, however, they remain small and vulnerable pop songs that are full of hooks and mesmerising choruses.

Benedict October – Lovestruck

PR results for ‘Lovestruck’

AlternativaHUB • Amazing Radio • Apollo’s Sonic Station • Beach House • Beat Waves • Daily Discovery • Dulaxi Entertainment • EXTRAVANOW • Fresh Finds • From The Strait – Big Indie • Groove Music • IGGY Magazine • Independent 23 • Indie & Alternative Rock • Indie kingdom • Indie Music For All • Indie Perú Radio • INFO MUSIC • Ingrown Radio •JammerZine • KIMU • Lost In The Manor • Mesmerized • mgradio • MusikePOOL • Nova Hits Radio • Obscure Sound • Press Play! • Ricky’s Daily Bangers • Senocular Media • Shades Of Pop • Testing Pop • The Musical Rado • Unrecorded • York Calling • Ze Rock Radio

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Aelius Alternative Music Festival

On Saturday the 6th of April multi-venue all-day music festival Aelius Alternative will make its debut across five stage in Newcastle city centre!

A limited batch of early bird tickets have now been released and are available from sofarsounds.com, half of these have sold out already. Once the early bird tickets have sold out, regular all-day tickets will be sold at £17. There will also be a limited batch of all-day + afterparty tickets available at £20, these allow entry to the entire festival, as well as the official Aelius Alternative afterparty at The Globe!

Aelius Alternative aims to highlight and support grassroots artists, venues, and businesses and does so by offering them a stage and a platform. Our line-up has now been announced and can be found here!

Behind the music: Subterranean Street Society on ‘Focus On The Melody’

On the 27th of October Dutch-Danish trio Subterranean Street Society released their new single ‘Focus On The Melody’, a song about the dying attention span of homo sapiens in the 21st century. The track is a raw garage rock track for fans of Amyl and the Sniffers and IDLES!

This rebellious garage rock track talks about the dying attention span of homo sapiens in the 21th century. After a ruthless rant on how the flickering screens are stealing the ability to concentrate, lead singer Louis gives up and instead invites the listener to sing along to a mindless hook. Essentially the song is posing one main question: “Why are we bombarding ourselves with flashing information whenever a dull moment enters our filled up calendars?”

Subterranean Street Society – Focus On The Melody

PR results for ‘Focus On The Melody’

Alternative Gems • Amazing Radio • Apollo’s Harp • ARIYEL’S DIARY • Banger Roulette 2.0 • Beat Waves • Bedlam Bookings • Beyond The Bridge on Raw Radio • Brand New Tracks • Bright Rocking Compilation • Dive In • Dulaxi Entertainment • Edgar Allan Poets • Existential Magazine • Existential Magazine • EXTRAVANOW • Frecuencia Alternativa • From The Strait • Havoc Underground • Indie Rock and Alternative • Indie Rock Hits • It’s All Indie • JYLA MUSIC • LITM Indie Rock Picks • Marc Roussell • Muse Chronicle • Music For All • MusikePOOL • Mystic Sons • New Music Review • New Music Review • Os Garotos de Liverpool • Pinguin Radio • Pop Rock Radio • Press Play! • Rádio Armazém • Right Chord Music • Roadie Music • Rock and Roll • Screaming Hearts • Static by York Calling • Stone the Crows • Swiispa • Testing Melodies • THE FURTHER • The Musical Road • The Sound Lab • Unis Son • Unrecorded • York Calling • Ze Rock Radio

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Post-Brexit Touring

Last weekend I attended Manchester-based music conference Un-Convention for the fourth year in a row, and once again the conference did not disappoint. One topic that particularly got my attention was post-Brexit touring, on which there was a very informative panel with a very international selection of panellists. We listened to Gordon Masson, Pavla or Colours of Ostrava, Marie of Octopus, Dave of Musicians’ Union and artist Natalie McCool. Here are some of the notes I took.

There are a few changes to keep in mind when traveling between the UK and the European Union. First and most important, every musician traveling between the two will need a valid passport. Working musicians will from now on also need a Creative Worker visa, also called a working permit. When bringing instruments, you will need ATA carnets for them, which is something you won’t need for portable instruments you can bring on the plane with you. ATA carnets need to be stamped at the airport, since the process might take a while, it’s advised to travel a day ahead of your first gig abroad.

When bringing and selling merchandise, you will need to pay VAT on every sale, if you are a VAT-registered professional, you will be able to reclaim the VAT, if not, my advice would be to leave your merchandise at home.

A certificate of sponsorship can be gotten through promoters or venues that have booked you and your act, and will help you getting a visa. You can find more information on this certificate here.

You can find some more resources and help from Viva La Visa and the Musician’s Union, as well as find more information on funding pots from Help Musicians.

World Mental Health Day

On the 10th of October we celebrate World Mental Health Day, I have never been very active in celebrating or sharing these special occasions but with the ever-present imposter syndrome and the world being in shambles, I think that I will take this day to share a few of my favourite songs. These songs have been written about mental health, or have improved mine.