The single’s expression of jealousy and heartache is exacerbated by an addictive indie grunge sound. The singer paired the track with a music video inspired by popular BBC Three Drama Normal People. Directed by Bonnie MacRae, the video recreates iconic scenes from the show.

Fans are obsessed with the parallels, likening the narrative to the show’s protagonist Marianne. One fan wrote in the comments, “Chloe nailed that ache of being “the other girl”, even the toothbrush line feels so Marianne after the Debs fiasco.”

Slater told Dork Magazine how the concept came about, saying: “What started as a running joke about me looking like Daisy Edgar-Jones turned into a full-scale recreation of my favourite scenes,” she goes on to share, “We were laughing on set when the shots matched perfectly. I’ve never eaten so many ice lollies in my life!”

When teasing the track, fans were convinced that lead actors Daisy Edgar-Jones and Paul Mescal were filming for the show, since Slater has posted about her resemblance to Jones.

@chloeslater333 haha do i look like her? #fyp #normalpeople #daisyedgarjones #mariannesheridan ♬ original sound – maria..editssz

Slater has been on a release streak these past few years, sharing her ‘Love Me Please’ EP in February this year, including one of her most streamed songs ‘Fig Tree’. The punchy indie track resonated hugely with her fans, with praise for its criticism of female beauty standards.  The punchy indie track resonated hugely with her fans, with praise for its criticism of female beauty standards. Across her series of intimate shows, the single was one of her most widely loved and anticipated.  

@crazyconcertbestie @Chloe Slater wrote a literal anthem and now we’re singing along with her in a record store #fyp #chloeslater #figtree #chloeslaterlive #acoustic #acousticguitar #thesubstance #feminism #aging #beautystandards #ageism #agegracefully #girlhood #girlhoodcore #relatablesong ♬ Fig Tree – Chloe Slater

Following the video release, Slater announced news of her Choose A Life tour, with title inspiration from the ending hook of ‘Fig Tree’, playing venues that she describes as “a real milestone”. The singer will be commencing her tour at Portsmouth’s Night Currents Festival, and ending at Academy 2, Dublin, hitting some huge UK spots on the way including The Fleece, Bristol, and The Garage, London.

 

 

 

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Catch Slater on tour this November with tickets available on her official website.

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The event saw amazing indie acts such as Bloc Party, Nothing But Thieves, Kasabian and even Courteneers. Nothing But Thieves saw themselves perform their first UK exclusive headline slot with a huge show accompanied by lasers, lights and confettis whilst Bloc Party kicked things off with music from their debut album ‘Silent Alarm’. Iconic indie band Kasabian saw themselves perform some of their most famous songs and were hailed one of the greatest acts of the festival and Courteneers were the closing act of the whole weekend with a huge performance ending with their famous song ‘Not Nineteen Forever’ whilst fireworks exploded all around the stage.

Other performances saw acts such Blossoms, The Last Dinner Party and Wunderhorse, the latter bringing one of the largest crowds in Truck history from a non-headliner act. Superstar CMAT brought her amazing songs and dance moves to the Main Stage, leaving the best feeling surrounding the crowds. Franz Ferdinand had the crowd bouncing and moving whilst The Reytons, Fat Dog and Sports Team ignited the craziest mosh pits.

The festival, true to itself, also showcased up-and-coming artists, from Luvcat to Courting. They also provided the crowds with singalongs with Natasha Bedingfield, Scouting For Girls and more.

Festival Manager Lily Brimble and Head of Marketing Sam Harris thanked the “Truckers” for embodying the festival’s spirit and making 2025 “truly unforgettable.”

Truck Festival will return from July 23 to 26 2026. Super Early Bird tickets go on sale this Friday, August 1st, 2025, with pre-sale beginning at 10 AM and general release at 11 AM on the festival’s official website.

The box set, which is available to pre-order now, will comprise of four LPs. Two of the vinyl records will contain the original album, with the third including a collection of B-sides and rarities including ‘Little Thoughts’, ‘ Skeleton’, and ‘Storm and Stress’.

It is the fourth LP which may excite fans the most though, as it will comprise of the band’s legendary 2004 John Peel session for BBC Radio 1, as well as seven original demos from this era. 

The deluxe box set is the main attraction, but they will also release a smaller two-LP variant of the album, a two-CD edition, and an Amazon Music Exclusive Vinyl Reissue.

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This announcement comes as the iconic indie band are already well into the swing of celebrating their debut album. Last summer, they played their biggest headline show to date – performing in front of 25,000 people at London’s Crystal Palace Park – as they marked the 20th anniversary of ‘Silent Alarm’.

The era-defining band are gearing up to head on tour throughout the summer, as they have many UK festivals booked including Splendour Festival, Live At Leeds: In The Park, and Bristol’s Siren Festival, which mxdwn covered here. They will also head on a tour of North America throughout May and June.

Frontman Kele Okereke explained how great it has been for the band to celebrate their debut album, saying: “We’ve been having so much fun playing shows over the past year, so it makes sense to do something special for old and new fans, celebrating 20 years of Bloc Party.”

Speaking before their massive Crystal Palace Park gig last summer, Okereke said: “We heard from a lot of people that they couldn’t get tickets for the 2018/2019 ‘Silent Alarm’ gigs, so a one-off summer party playing that and the bangers feels like the right thing to do.”

‘Silent Alarm’ was a huge hit when it came out, a true pioneer of the 2000s indie sound that dominated Britain, along with the likes of Franz Ferdinand, Hard-Fi and The Libertines. NME gave it a glowing 9/10 review and the publication has since named it one of the best indie albums of all time, thanks heavily to its hit singles such as ‘Helicopter’ and ‘Banquet’.

Speaking in 2023 of the albums success, Okereke said: “I’m completely thankful that ‘Silent Alarm’ connected with people; but it’s at that point when I hear any record that we’ve made, I hear the things I’d do differently if I had the opportunity to do it again.”

The 20th anniversary reissue will be released on 26th September and all versions, including the huge 4-LP box set, are available to pre-order now here.

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The two shared their appreciation for the talk show, showing behind-the-scenes footage and expressing their gratitude on Instagram.  

 

 

 

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The duo is formed of Chicago born Kristin Mcfadden and Louise Macphail from Bristol. The two met by chance at a song-writing course before the Covid pandemic in 2019, when Mcfadden’s study plans fell through and she found herself in the UK. From their initial meeting, they instantly clicked and decided to form their band Prima Queen.

Since their formation, the band have released several singles and their EP ‘Not The Baby’ on Bandcamp, which was then released on Spotify as a Deluxe version.

Prima Queen’s heart warming chemistry is undeniable and provides a charm to their discography which fans adore. Originally signed with Red Light Management, the record label described their music as “a secret whispered between best friends – confessional, charming, and irresistibly catchy.”. The two are now signed with Submarine Cat, home to several notable stars by the likes of American indie-pop band Swim Deep and Coventry indie band FEET. Their new label describes Prima Queen similarly, noting their magical, ethereal sound is “built not on romantic love, but something immeasurably stronger: female friendship.”. The family-friendly Brunch show was an apt environment for the band’s sugar sweet stage presence which invites you in and lets you in on their magic.

In the run-up to Prima Queen’s debut album ‘The Prize’, out on 25 April, the band have released several singles, most notably their album’s title track ‘The Prize’, which was performed on the Sunday Brunch show.

In an interview with Dork Magazine, the band explain the uplifting feel-good message of the single, stating “It’s a song to remind you that YOU’RE THE PRIZE which is easy to forget sometimes!”. Further to this, their latest single release ‘Sunshine Song’ shares a similar warm sentiment, described by the band as an “antidote to the messy thoughts in our heads”. They released the song with a montage of footage filmed on a camcorder of their song-writing process, sharing a nostalgic, cosy feel for fans. 

Prima Queen will be going on an intimate in-store tour around the UK where they will perform acoustic versions of their new tracks as well as providing a signing of fan’s records. 

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Following this they will be performing at All Points East and touring the UK at larger venues as well as a few dates in Europe with tickets still available here.

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The song is a heartbreaking and emotive alt-pop single, which has quickly become a fan favourite with the Instagram video shared as a response to a comment where a fan said ‘orla i’m begging on my knees please release iiiittttt’. The snippet was shared by the artist in a recording of its live debut in Paris on the ‘EVERYBODY NEEDS A HERO’ with several openers including Emma Harner and Hohen Ford. The tour comes after the release of her latest album ‘Everybody needs a hero’ .

 

 

 

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In classic Gartland style, she performed the track first for fans on social media singing emotively alongside the acoustic guitar playing that brought the singer to fame.  

 

 

 

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Gartland explains the creative process and concept behind her latest album in an interview with Billboard. The artist shares her musical desires, stating “I wanted the good, the bad and the very ugly.” in terms of writing songs surrounding love and relationships. The style is reminiscent of her self-made creative independence, but pushes past homemade ambitions and instead revels in a heavier alt-pop sound.

The artist has revealed the monetary difficulties touring the US as a small independent artist, especially post-pandemic, after the tour commenced in November 2024. However, this has not discouraged Gartland from live performance announcing several upcoming opportunities to catch her live. The artist announced her involvement in this year’s Glastonbury Festival last month, promising to give ‘everything we’ve got’.

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Only the week before, she also announced that she would be performing in the Lollapalooza festival as well as her role supporting Glass Animals for their ‘TOUR OF EARTH’ this August.  

 

 

 

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The band have also spoken about their thoughts of touring after the pandemic in an interview with The Independent. Their album ‘Dreamland’ was released in 2020 during the lockdown, and tours for the release were postponed until 2021. They discuss the fear of ‘petrifying financial shortfalls’ if they were to need to end the tour abruptly.

With Gartland’s YouTube beginnings, live performance is understandably important to the artist. She has shared these performances on her YouTube channel in her series ‘tour diaries’.

With the latest album still recent in its release, it will be exciting to see fresh music from the artist.

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On SoundCloud the artist released a privated additional note ‘Stream Introduction’ where she explains the concept of the EP and its significance to her growth. She states, ‘I wrote this EP about my dreams of having a little house with my future partner and my dreams of having lots of land, a small house and having animals’. The concept is reflected in the album cover of the artist sitting on a picturesque stretch of grass with a little cottage-like house in the distance.

Chinouriri’s previous album ‘What A Devastating Turn Of Events’ in 2024 gained immense popularity in the indie scene with the most popular track ‘So My Darling- Acoustic’ reaching over 67,000,000 listens since its release.  The album talks love, trauma and belonging, inspired by her upbringing in a Zimbabwean household in Croydon.

The artist explains in an interview with Teen Vogue her experience being raised by her parents who were teenage soldiers in the Rhodesian Bush War, “There’s a sense of pride and real toughness from being a soldier…but I think the trauma that it leaves — no matter what the outcome is — from war is one of the worst things I’ve been able to witness firsthand.”. This heartbreaking vulnerability comes through in the album, and we follow her soft, dreamy tone similarly into ‘Little House’.

‘Little House’ begins with a fun dance track reminiscent of a teen coming of age film from the 2000s. Think Angus Thongs and Perfect Snogging with a hint of Wild Child. This is the kind of song imagined as a romantic montage over the top of Chinouriri’s candy-sweet vocals, fitting with the song written as loving dedication to her partner Isaac.   

Following this is ’23:42′, which shows the artist’s breathy voice bouncing along a synth beat. It has a slightly sadder tone with pained lyrics ‘What the hell am I doing thinking you’re right?’ ‘What the hell am I like?’. The artist debuted the track in Copenhagen on Sabrina Carpenter’s Short N’ Sweet tour. 

@rachelchinouriri 23:42 in Copenhagen Out with my ‘Little House’ EP Tomorrow xxx #rachelchinouriri #newmusic ♬ 23:42 – Rachel Chinouriri

Her third track ‘Judas (Demo)’ is immediately soft and sombre with a thin acoustic guitar and light sorrowful vocals. The heartfelt track reminds us of how the artist is able to pull us into the throes of emotion, placing us in the dark image ‘in the dead of night’ as she pours out ‘I’m too young to die’. The magnetic evolution throughout the album has been praised by fans. 

wow rachel chinouriri does not know what a bad project is. her debut album was perfection. and this ep exceeded all my expectations. https://t.co/dpnpFLgbvp

— looms ⋆˚✿˖° (yj spoilers) (@mollygordonsgf) April 4, 2025

The EP closes on ‘Indigo’, a hopeful slow building dedication to love, finalising a beautifully crafted collection of songs.

@dellaxoz0 @Dayglow ♬ UnHinged – DellaXOZ

The artist has recently risen to fame with her alternative pop, indie tracks, such as her most popular ‘AHH!!’, which has amassed over 3m listens since its release in 2021. DellaXOZ has been making waves with her music, initially gaining the majority of her following from TikTok with songs blowing up on the app which blend lo-fi and hyper-pop sounds, particularly seen in the energizing, indie glitch track ‘BORING’ from her EP ‘DELARIUM’. In an interview with Dork Magazine, the artist revealed her cultural influences as she noted, ‘my parents always played Congolese music’, whilst also discussing musical influences from artists such as ABBA and Rihanna. Additionally she has noted the midwest emo feel in her guitar riffs, particularly with new track ‘UnHinged’, a relatable hit discussing the woes of modern dating apps. These influences make for a uniquely soft and dreamy sound, which can’t help but be admired.      DellaXOZ has also discussed her experiences of being labelled as an R&B artist, despite her clear indie sound, an issue widely known with black female artists in the music industry.  The artist makes it known that her music is genre-defying and she has been vocal on social media when uplifting black female artists in the indie-rock scene, posting a TikTok in support of names such as Willow Smith and Rachel Chinouriri.

Tonight, the artist will join Dayglow on his tour for two UK dates on 26 and 28 March, as well as at their show in France on 29 March and Amsterdam on 30 March. Indie singer Dayglow has had a similar timeline to his musical journey, gaining an audience on TikTok during the Covid lockdown. Following this, he has been slowly accumulating his number of performances, playing 89 live shows in 2022. The singer has expressed excitement on Instagram in having indie trailblazer DellaXOZ join him on his tour.

 

 

 

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Fans have shown similar enthusiasm, building hype for the artist’s upcoming shows on social media by counting down the days until the tour begins.   

@dellaxozhq who will be seeing @DellaXOZ✰ supporting @Dayglow on the uk & eu tour ? #dellaxozhq #dellaxoz #dayglow #tour #uktour #fyp #newmusic #unhinged #ifpdbgylhsc ♬ UnHinged – DellaXOZ

DellaXOZ is an artist to watch fervently as she grows in popularity, and the public is clearly excited to see what she does next with this touring spot being the first step in an exciting artistic journey. 

The first single from the album, ‘Solitude Of The Night Bus’ has been released with a music video to go with it directed by Dom Foster. The video follows Courteeners frontman Liam Fray on the number 17 bus going on a cosmic journey as the artwork for ‘Pink Cactus Cafe’ coming to life around him during the bus journey.

The band originally formed in Manchester in the early 2000s and this will mark their first album in over four years with the band’s last album ‘More. Again. Forever.’ being released in January 2020.

Speaking in a press release about the song, singer Liam Fray said that “This came at a time of real questioning. Things weren’t going particularly well. No confidence. No direction. I think that’s why – whisper it – it’s on the fun side. This is the new us. I’d previously worked with Ola [Modupe-Ojo] on ‘Hanging Off Your Cloud’ and, like then, there was just a magic in the room that was irresistible.”

He continued talking about how his uncle influenced the track: “It’s a summer breeze. But it’s a winter’s night. Either way, sometimes you have to block out the noise. My late Uncle Pat loved a whistle so it’s a bit of a homage to him. Get on the bus; headphones in; go your own way. It’s the feel good, imposter syndrome hit of the summer.”

The upcoming record sees contributions from various friends of the band including Aussie indie band DMAs, Brooke Combe, and Pixey. You can pre-order the albumn in various formats including CD, LP and cassette along with signed albums and heavyweight and various limited edition and coloured vinyls. All vinyl formats come with a bonus track. Pre-order or pre-save ‘Pink Cactus Cafe’ here.

The track listing for ‘Pink Cactus Cafe’ is:

‘Sweet Surrender’ (featuring Brooke Combe)
‘Weekend Shy Of A Feeling’
‘Pink Cactus Cafe’
‘Where Are We Now?’
‘The Beginning Of The End’ (featuring DMA’S)
‘Solitude of the Night Bus’
‘First Name Terms’ (featuring Pixey)
‘Lu Lu’
‘Love You Any Less’
‘Bitten By Unseen Teeth’

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Along with the announcement of the new album the group also told fans that they will soon be announcing dates for a UK tour this Friday (12th of July) in which they will play a homecoming gig in Manchester at a venue that they have never played at before. You can access the pre-sale for the tour by pre-ordering a copy of the album

Courteeners are getting ready for a string of big festival performances this summer, coming off the back of a set at Lytham festival. They are set to perform in Glasgow and TRNSMT Festival this Saturday (13th of July), followed by performances at Boardmasters on Friday the 9th of August and then they will take the stage at Victorious festival in Southsea on the 24th of August.

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According to front woman Heather-Baron-Gracie, ‘Perfume’ is “the perfect introduction into the new world we’ve created”. It’s an infectious track heavily inspired by bands like The Cranberries and The Cure and just the notion of being head over heels for someone. Try to think back to all the diary entries you wrote as a teenager about your first crush and then plug that straight into an amp then add some gothic undertones and an 80s backing track. You can check out the single along with the music video for ‘Perfume’ below.

It premiered on Wednesday night as BBC Radio 1’s Hottest Record and Baron-Gracie describes the track as “queer, feminine and romantic”. The track feels reminiscent of 80s synth ballads and it seems the band are exploring a new sound that is devoted to the reflective and romantic through the new single and the upcoming album. According to NME, Baron-Gracie noted that she feels she falls very deeply in love and finds it interesting ‘that you can feel so fascinated and smitten with someone, and then they can become a total stranger. So, I feel like Smitten really summarised perfectly what I felt for others at a certain point.”

Pale Waves have also released the album art for the upcoming record which is said to move away from the pop-punk sound of its predecessor, their third album, Unwanted which was released in February 2021, and lean more into the ‘jangly indie pop sound that takes influence from their home city’ according to the article by NME on the new release.  Their third album was a huge success debuting at number 4 on the UK Albums Chart and receiving a score of 72 on Metacritic so the band can only hope for an even greater success with Smitten. You can take a look at the artwork for the upcoming album below.

Pale Waves are currently on tour supporting PVRIS and have an exciting few months ahead as they are currently continue playing shows across the US throughout June and into July. They are also heading back to the city that made them, Manchester, to headline Manchester’s Neighbourhood festival in October alongside a number of other acts including Seb Lowe and The Mysterines. You can buy tickets for the day festival, which spreads itself across a number of iconic Manchester venues, from the following websites; Dice, Ticketmaster, Gigs and Tours and See Tickets. 

You can check out the full track list for the upcoming album, Smitten, below.

1. “Glasgow”
2. “Not a Love Song”
3. “Gravity”
4. “Thinking About You”
5. “Perfume”
6. “Last Train Home”
7. “Kiss Me Again”
8. “Miss America”
9. “Hate to Hurt You”
10. “Seeing Stars”
11. “Imagination”
12. “Slow”

Liam Gallagher, when replying to a fan, has said that despite an offer for his brother Noel to join him on the tour, “he’s refused”, leaving the celebratory tour as a solo tour. The two brothers, who defined Britpop in the 2000s, haven’t performed together since their backstage feud in Paris in 2009 that resulted in their seemingly indefinite split. Despite Liam being without his brother, he is joined by the Oasis guitarist Paul Arthurs.

Later this summer, the duo are releasing ‘Definitely Maybe (30th Anniversary Deluxe Edition)’, set to release August 30th, exactly 30 years on from its original 1994 release. The remastered album will include new outtakes, mixed by Noel for the first time, alongside once abandoned tracks from the original recording.

Until then, fans can enjoy Liam Gallagher’s UK and Ireland tour, as he visits Sheffield, Manchester, Dublin, London, Cardiff and Glasgow, including lots of much loved fan surprises, such as a performance of ‘Sad Song’, a bonus track from the original album. If you did not manage to grab tickets, then fans can also watch a performance of the ‘Definitely Maybe’ album in full at Reading and Leeds festival this summer.

Watch the performance here: