Three new releases this week from Rae Sam, Junodream and Rosalie Cunningham, all now added to the entssouthwales Behind The Tracks playlist on Spotify, curated to compliment this feature and for you to enjoy at your leisure!
Rae Sam – Wildly Me
Born in Wales, country-pop artist Rae Sam’s third single is from her debut album, The Great Escape and was chosen as the ‘hits brits champion’ by Country Hits radio.
“Wildly Me was written about the journey that I have been on over the last few years” Rae explains to Andy Howells in Ents South Wales My Music DNA feature, “It starts at this bold moment where I decide to not hold back anymore and just go for my dreams. Finally, to just be myself and not worry about whether people will like me! The song describes who I want to be and what I want my music to be like – fearless, passionate, and wild!”
The track evolved as Rae grew as an artist.
Rae continues, “Originally, the song was written to have an acoustic guitar vibe, but it went on this journey of experimenting with different sounds, lyrics and vocals. Finally, it ended up in this place of Country pop, with a slight Celtic edge to the melody, a folk tune on the violin and an emotional build-up of gospel vocals! It reflects my musical journey as an artist.”
Junodream – Travel Guide
Junodream’s recent single Eden Burns set the standard for what looks set to be a huge year ahead. The track was premiered by Jack Saunders as Radio 1’s Next Wave, with the DJ drawing parallels between them and early Radiohead, before he again supported them with an enthusiastic introduction on the Indie Show. Further airplay soon followed, including being playlisted at Radio X and support at BBC Introducing.
Growing in confidence with each release, the quintet take another strident step forward as they share their new single Travel Guide. Lyrically, Travel Guide toys satirically with the advertising fantasy of a holiday offering an escape from your demons.
The band say “‘Travel Guide’ explores the concept of holiday escapism and destructive tourism. For a short while you live a fantasy where your problems melt away. But when you travel, you discover that your expectations are unrealistic: the beaches and the resorts aren’t quite the treasure island you had imagined. It’s fundamentally a sad concept. You’re so far from home, but you still can’t escape your problems.”
Travel Guide is released alongside an official video featuring an allegory for the travel industry, the animation depicts a dinosaur who escapes the rat race of the big city for a holiday escape. She heads to a picturesque island populated by mice, but her erratic behaviour escalates until she wreaks havoc in the island.
Rosalie Cunningham – Number 149
Since her critically acclaimed debut solo album was released in 2019, Rosalie Cunningham has taken to the road wherever possible. She toured the length and breadth of the country twice before the coronavirus pandemic forced things to a halt. After postponing a confirmed European and US tour Rosalie spent 2020 writing the best part of her much anticipated second album.
Her latest single, Number 149 released via Cherry Red is a dramatic, psychedelic hit, with a performance that typifies her previous work whilst evolving it to new places. The singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist has progressed in both style and substance, and Rosalie maintains her theatrical dazzle and focus is still firmly rooted in ‘60s and ‘70s progressive rock and psychedelia.
The development of Number 149 found Rosalie reminiscing about her childhood, a time when things were more magical. Rosalie says: “There wasn’t an awful lot going on during lockdown, so looking back was a source of inspiration for me. Number 149 and (accompanying track) Fossil Song are both heavily nostalgic. 149 is about the house I grew up in that still, all these years later, worms its way into my dreams almost nightly in forever transmuting guises. There is obviously a deep yearning in me to return to a time when the world seemed a much more magical place and those rooms, those bricks and mortar, represent that to me.”
Rosalie has European festival dates this summer and a headline European tour in 2022, with a new album on the horizon. Number 149 is available as a limited edition 7” vinyl.
- Check out these three releases as well as previous Behind The Tracks featured songs on our Spotify playlist.