A round-up of our favourite fresh finds this winter
Taking a slight diversion from the saturated end-of-year album lists, here are 8 tracks you might have missed this winter. Under the radar, overlooked, or perhaps just lost in today’s crowded market, here’s our selection of your must-listens over the festive period.
Mali Hâf: ‘Fern Hill’
Taken from her recently dropped self-titled EP, ‘Fern Hill’ is a spacious dream-pop track that flows intermittently from Welsh to English. With glittering flourishes woven between melodies, here we get a warm, comforting blanket, reflective of the EP as a whole. Relieved to have finally released tracks such as ‘Si Hei Lwli’ and ‘Llygaid Tara’, we look forward to catching Mali Hâf performing live next year.
Alaw: ‘Before I Go / Be Seeing U’
Double-single ‘Before I Go / Be Seeing U’ is the glitchy product of North Wales producer Alaw Rhys. Fresh from INOIS’ HQ, Alaw builds diverse visual landscapes through woozy chops and frantic drops. Inspired by the early 2000’s hip-hop scene, its muffled vocal samples build a misty soundscape that will urge you wanting, needing more.
Daniel Suge: ‘Love U [Yeah]’
Listening through Dan Suge’s five-track EP evokes many a feeling, namely pensiveness, anticipation, and suspense but its highlight comes in the form of the beautifully produced final track ‘Love U [Yeah]’. Producing the EP as a form of therapy after sadly losing his mother earlier this year, Daniel Suge melts the mellow with the franticness. "The samples and interpolations all come directly from a playlist that I found on my mum’s phone" he explains. Daniel adds: “It’s been really therapeutic to create music that I find comforting and reassuring in a time of great sadness and confusion”. Catch ‘Ventifact’ here.
Gwenno Morgan: 'Arnofio'
The latest work from the Bangor-born London-based pianist is inspired by the psychological feeling of freeness, as she danced her way through periods of stress and fatigue in the tranquil lakes of Snowdonia. They say there's no place like home, and for Gwenno Morgan, retreating back to her homeland in Gwynedd was the key to unlocking the elegance and delicacy found in 'Arnofio'. Cinematic, hypnotic, and moving — 'Arnofio' carries profound intricacies that would be at home on your short-days, long-nights playlist. Also soundtracking our recent short film combining photography and film, catch Gwenno’s radiant single here.
Cai: ‘Guidance for Appeal’
INOIS’ growing collection of hypnotic listenings also features Cai’s sixth single ‘Guidance for Appeal’. Made for the daydream, the pondering, and the procrastination, the track’s looping guitar licks and crisp drums linger by your side far beyond its three-minute lifespan. Beneath its carefree indie surface however, lies both textural and lyrical depth as the track addresses the fragility of coming to terms with losing a close friend.
Alis Glyn: ‘Golau’
Hailing from Caernarfon, Alis Glyn released her debut track ‘Golau’ at the age of just 15. Turning passion to practice on the back of attending two of Merched yn Gwneud Miwsig’s collaborative workshops at Gwersyll Glan-Llyn (led by tutors Heledd Watkins, Hana Lili, and Marged Gwenllian), Alis lends her dulcet vocal delivery to the subtle sparkling of the piano. One to look out for.
EDEN MAI: ‘TAKE IT’
Fusing together dance, trip-hop, and experimental sound design, EDEN MAI is the latest electronic musician to blossom in Cardiff. Though still unknown, debut track ‘TAKE IT’ packs enough punch to make her stand out from the rest — and that can be partly credited to Lewys Meredydd’s neon-like futurepop mastering. Attempting to reflect the liminal space between technology and humanity in the 21st century, make sure that EDEN MAI is on your radar in 2023.
Y Dail: 'Whizz Kids'
In what appears to be their first in a string of singles via Libertino, 'Whizz Kids' is a melodic, timeless track that shines light on Y Dail's throwback aesthetics. Siblings Huw and Elan Griffiths from Pontypridd first caught the eye back in 2020 with their debut release 'Y Tywysog a'r Teigr' and are now set to add to their growing catalogue of wistful songwriting. Influenced by his love of Brian Wilson and doo-wop, Huw explains: "I read an old interview with Paddy McAloon (Prefab Sprout) where he said he wanted to sound like Picasso with a JX3P synth...'Whizz Kids' is me trying to be Brian Wilson on an old Casio". Find space on your playlist for this winter warmer.
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