amini - with a new EP release and live gig this weekend!
Part 2 of our New Bands / Artists of the Day from last week features 2 Norwegian bands, the 1st of which, ‘amini’ (new band of the day no 34) are based in London. The band is based around Norwegian singer-songwriter Nio Amini and was formed after the addition of Norwegian-born drummer Mattis Moviken. Bass player Adam Lamont completes the band, and Snow Duevski joins them for most live shows. Their debut EP “between dreams and worldly things” was released in March 2014, and they have a Brand New EP release due this Saturday called ‘A whisper in your ear’.
There are a number of things I really instinctively like about this band, an individual sound, powerful lyrics and a real presence about them - they clearly really believe in what they do. I loved the little promo video they’ve done from the new EP, and I’ve had a sneaky listen to 2 of the tracks from the EP and I like them, they’re melancholy, expressive and interesting . Their videos are quirky and pretty brilliant too, as shown by this one – ‘Her’, which was released last year and which i've just watched 3 times in a row, i really love it.
Anyway go and see them live at the Seabright Arms, Hoxton, this Sunday, if you live in London, and if not we’ll do a reminder of where to get the EP when it comes out – we might not have chance to do a full review, but we certainly wont forget about them.
French Press – brand new from Norway!
I occasionally like to search through new releases on Bandcamp, just to try and find the very latest sounds out there, and the very same day ‘French Press’ (new band of the day no 33) had quietly announced themselves to the world by dropping their EP on there. So… French Press are an acoustic Indie Folk Pop type band from Oslo, and they take inspiration from some artists we love like Asgeir and the Tallest Man on Earth – as well as Mumford and Sons. They’re so new that whilst they’ve been playing together for almost a year, they’ve chosen not to do any live gigs until now, but will shortly be launching themselves in Oslo. We’ll give it mention here when they do. I like the songs theyre beginning to write, its really interesting to catch a band so early, their sound will develop and improve, and we’ll try and keep an eye on how theyre getting on from over here. Highlight of the EP is ‘White Lies’, i love the opening and the band has an overall good sound to it. Listen for yourself here: