All the Latest Music News on Nagamag

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Rising queer pop-star Beks has returned following her #3 iTunes charting single ‘Devoted’, with multi-million streamed artist and influencer Lucy Neville for the dreamy electronic pop ballad ‘Make Believe’. Co-writing their experiences with losing who they thought to be the ‘love of their lives’, the ethereally penned track produced by Jim Elliot captures a raw emotional vulnerability in Beks’ artistry.

Introduced at an APRA event in 2018 where Beks was a guest speaker and Lucy had just amassed 10 million streams of her Crowded House cover ‘Fall At Your Feet’ the songwriters became instant friends. For the following years they supported each as they simultaneously endured traumatic break-ups, sharing books and tips on recovery. Finally, in 2020, the pair sat down in Beks’ bedroom studio in Sydney with a bottle of wine, opened up Abelton and poured out ‘Make Believe’.

Having been a huge fan of UK producer Jim Eliot’s work on Ellie Goulding and E^ST tracks, Beks sent Jim the song for which he produced an ethereal pop landscape to support their heart-wrenching lyrics. The song was then mixed by Lee House and the UK, with further engineering by Magnus Murphy in Aus. The final mix feels reminiscent of Charli XCX ‘Cross You Out’ and Grimes ‘Delete Forever', with its vulnerable, ball-your-eyes out lyrics and crescendoing electronic production.

For the music video, Beks and her cinematographer, Beau Bressington with whom she has collaborated with on all her past visuals, traveled to Newcastle to shoot a pastel fantasy piece to translate the emotion of the single on film. Styled entirely by Beks using pieces she hand sewed and drew from upcycled designer, Kimbra Lou’s eclectic wardrobe, the final film showcases a stunning Australian landscape interpreted as the planet Venus.

https://www.facebook.com/Beksmakesmusic

“The concept of the film was a story of two heartbroken romantics (myself and Lucy), who find themselves on Venus and are reincarnated into goddesses of love and healing. A story of grief and hope” - Beks

https://www.instagram.com/hi_im_beks/

Beks announces global signing to the Wise Music Publishing Group, joining the likes of local artists Donny Benet, Harts, Ngaiire and Josh Pyke, and international artists like Ólafur Arnalds, The Zombies and Fallulah. The full term deal has been in the works for the artist since signing her first single ‘The Thing About Us’ in 2021 when she was first scouted by Wise’s A&R Manager Larry Heath.

Larry Heath said of the signing, “We’re thrilled to have such a talented writer and performer join the Wise Music family. With the music she’s already released as a prime example, and an impressive array of collaborations, Beks will be a name on everyone’s lips in the coming years, releasing music sure to stick with you long after you’ve heard it.”

Beks previous work has seen her become a consistently iTunes charting artist with her song ‘Devoted’ peaking at #3 on the global iTunes Dance Charts and receiving online coverage from NME Australia, Pilerats, Purple Sneakers, Tone Deaf, and Thomas Bleach. Beks has also achieved two consecutive Australian ad campaigns for Channel 7 ‘ Home and Away’ and her music is played in over 8k retail stores Aus wide. Her appearances on IKEA Concert Roulette, Mardi Gras and Pride Festival have prepared her for her upcoming role & performance in Young Rock Season 2.

Dubbed by Teen Vogue USA as the latest breakout artist for her debut EP Lady, Lucy Neville is a 26-year-old singer-songwriter from Sydney, Australia who has made her mark with her self-penned indie-pop sound. To date, Lucy has amassed over 14 million streams. She has been selected as a finalist in the prestigious Vanda & Young Songwriting Competition twice over, including her debut single 'On My Own', which peaked at #13 on the iTunes Electronic chart. In 2017, Lucy’s streaming presence blossomed as she reached 600,000 monthly listeners and featured on playlists and radio stations all over the world with her viral cover of Crowded House’s "Fall At Your Feet". With a sold-out debut headline show and a national tour under her belt, Lucy now mentors other young independent artists in the early stages of their careers and has established a career in media, releasing music on a passion project basis.

“”Grace” was once again recorded with Ben Kempel, usually I send him a demo version and then we go through and add our parts. I’ve typically played most of the guitars and Ben took care of the drums, bass, piano…but for this one the playing is all mostly done by Ben. We have a good relationship that way, whoever’s parts end up working better for the song is what is kept. This was one of those songs that I wrote in what seemed like 10 minutes. Sent it to Ben, he put the music together, I came by and sang it, and done!” – Matthew Ryan Jacobs

https://www.facebook.com/matthewryanjacobs

The song's text is by Daniil Kharms, an absurdist poet of the early 20th century

https://thedaniilkharms.bandcamp.com/releases

After a pandemic that severely hit the artists, keeping them away from the stage, the song ‘96, written by Runa and produced by Andy Platon, is the result of a heavy state of pain caused by the war between Russia and Ukraine.

https://www.instagram.com/timebelle/

“’96 tells the story of a child who reaches maturity and fails to find his place in this big, scary world. It is a foreign world to him, full of rules and pressure that force him to deny his true personality and to embrace superficial, petty, material values ​​that have nothing to do with him.

‘96 is not a year chosen randomly, it is the year in which Ukraine gave up the last nuclear warhead in exchange for Russia’s promise of never attacking Ukraine. The betrayed adult, who now lives in the real world, where people are constantly hurting and betraying each other, wants to go back in time to correct this mistake made in ’96, which today created this apocalyptic scenario, “says Runa.

The video, made by Leonid Cojocaru, follows the same narrative thread, of a world that has come to an end, destroyed by human nature, which sometimes can have such a harmful dimension.

The filming took place in Chisinau, in a setting that mimics a state of conflict very well, more precisely in an abandoned factory and a deserted field, to which were added apocalyptic images, processed through graphics.

“Besides the heavy and dark atmosphere, we froze as usual from the cold, which became very normal for us, if we think that in another video I had to film in a lake that did not have a temperature higher than 7 degrees. I hope you like what came out, listen to the song and buy it, it is a simple way to help those affected by war from the comfort of your home. ”

Timebelle believes that music heals, and through the new single – “’96” – they want to heal souls, but also to bring their financial support to those who had to leave their homes, their lives and everything behind.

They have many memories of Kyiv, the city where they sang for the whole world, when they represented Switzerland at Eurovision in 2017, with the song “Apollo”, which went viral in Asia, garnered tens of millions of views on YouTube and is still enjoying success abroad. Now Kyiv, that beautiful city with hospitable people, is struggling to survive.

All revenue from the song ’96 ‘will be donated to the refugees in Ukraine.

Washing off a friend’s blood, after rescuing her from a brutal beating by her abusive boyfriend.

This image lies at the heart of “A Million Lies,” the groundbreaking debut single by Zoal.

This bedroom angst pop from Malaysia’s Generation Z combines the soaring highs of Radiohead and raw emotion of Post Malone.

The song tackles a taboo subject matter using stark language rarely heard before in Malaysian pop.

"A Million Lies is a song I made after a really tragic event that happened to a close friend. I wrote this song to remind her of her worth after an abusive relationship. It can be really hard to leave your abuser, especially when you only see the good in them. But even the worst criminal has at least a little good in them. I hope if someone in a similar situation finds this song, they could realize that fixing someone is out of your control — and the sooner you leave, the sooner you'll recover, just like my friend. One year later she found a new love who treats her right, and she is the happiest I've seen,” recounts Zoal, who was born and raised in Kuala Lumpur.

The story behind its production reflects the revolution in music that has allowed young stars like Bille Ellish to produce lush hit records in their bedrooms.

Zoal, a 20-year-old culinary college student, took a recording of the lyrics he wrote to producer Reuben “Blastique” Samuel at Kuala Lumpur’s Mile High Sounds.

They built up the simple recording into a moody, infectious song with a pop structure and haunting melody.

Samuel, who produces and performers under the stage name “Blastique”, said he used 16 falsetto tracks to recreate the feeling of a chamber choir, using off axis microphone techniques.

Zoal initially hired Samuel as a producer, but the young singer was so intrigued by the process of transforming his thin vocal recording into a lush professional track that he is studying how to use Ableton music production software at Mile High Sounds. Samuel is the only certified Ableton instructor in Malaysia.

Local designer Alex Krasnikov made the cyber punk album art, set on a Kuala Lumpur bridge, based on a sketch by Zoal.

"A Million Lies” by Zoal and Blastique is available on all streaming platforms starting February 5, 2021.

https://www.facebook.com/keith.rayburn.90/

This music video is a powerful call for awareness and compassion, giving a voice to animals that silently cry out for their freedom.

https://www.facebook.com/shalibi.leoralala

This song was written in the midst of the turbulent year of 2020 in a secluded monastery in the desert of Monegros, in the north of Spain. It tells the story of heartbreak and adaptation.

https://www.facebook.com/J.J.Malimusic

http://www.instagram.com/drewskiidrake