February 6th, 2014 
Tarynn Law 
Hello! I’m Tarynn Law, and this is a weekly column I’ll be writing that spotlights some up and coming indie pop / alternative / hipster / hype / buzz bands / you-get-the-idea groups that you should be checking out before they become massive. I mean, we all want to be that person that says “I knew them way back when,” don’t we? I thought so. This week I’ve got the infectious Australian dance-rock group The Preatures, indie rock group Catfish and the Bottlemen, a duo from Brighton called Royal Blood, and a blossoming duo out of Brooklyn, Yellerkin.
Here we go!
The Preatures hate being described as sounding like HAIM or Fleetwood Mac (saying “If anyone says it sounds like fleetwood mac we’re taking it down.” in regards to their new song…) so I won’t offer that comparison – but I’ll let you decide for yourselves. They’ve got that retro sort of feel to all of their music that is the perfect accompaniment for those (hopefully) warm days coming up soon, or if you’re looking to warm yourself up this winter and dance! For those not familiar, Triple J is one of the biggest alternative/indie radio stations in Australia, and each year they hold an “End of the Year” countdown for their top songs – The Preatures’ ‘Is This How You Feel?’ managed to snag the number 9 spot because it’s just that fantastic. They’ll be in the states later on this spring, playing NYC on March 6 before jetting to SXSW for what’s sure to be a packed string of shows, and make sure you catch them if you’ll be headed to Coachella! Those of you in the UK and Europe will be able to see them live as well, and you can find those dates here.
Catfish and the Bottlemen have one of the oddest band names I’ve heard in a while, but don’t let that fool you – this Welsh quartet will have you falling in love before you can finish saying their name. Their genre on Facebook is “explosive”, and I’d say that’s accurate. If You Me At Six were a little less pop-punk and way more indie, you’d have Catfish and the Bottlemen. Honest lyrics paired with Van McCann’s rough voice are a perfect match for their style of a lighter rock and roll. They’ve seen their fair share of airplay in the UK with their lead single ‘Pacifier’ and there’s no doubt in my mind they could take the US radio waves by storm as well. They’re hitting the road with former #WGDCers Little Comets in the UK before departing on a run of headlining dates. Oh, and they’ll be playing the Governors Ball Festival in New York City this summer, too, so I’d keep an eye out for some more US shows soon! If you like what you hear, throw them a like on Facebook or a follow on Twitter.
Royal Blood aren’t your typical group that’s normally on #WhiteGirlDanceCorner, but I was so impressed by their lead single “Out of the Black” that I had to include them. It’s gotten airplay on Sirius XM’s Alt Nation, XFM, and even BBC Radio 1. They’re so enamored with the group that they invited them to play their Radio 1 Future Festival, where they absolutely smashed it. Michael Kerr and Ben Thatcher make up the duo from Brighton, and on your first watch of their “Out of the Black” video you may notice something particularly unique – they don’t have a guitar player. Kerr holds it down on the bass and vocals while Thatcher is on the drums, and much like Death From Above 1979, they prove that you don’t need a guitarist to play powerful, bombastic, rock music. If Rage Against the Machine were a British duo, well, they may sound like Royal Blood. They don’t have any US tour dates out yet, but they’ve got a slew of shows coming up in Australia and UK including a slot at the just announced Reading and Leeds festival. Fingers crossed that they’ll be making the trek across the pond for SXSW! Find all of their tour dates at their Facebook, and follow them on Twitter as well.
You might have a better chance at catching Yellerkin live than the previous three groups, as the duo consisting of Adrian Galvin and Luca Buccallati hails from the lovely state of New York. They just released their debut EP yesterday to a good amount (but not enough) fanfare and it’s one of my favorites I’ve heard so far in 2014. It’s dreamy, infectious indie that will work its way into your brain and never seem to leave. The emotional fragility in the vocals grabs your heart and yells until you pay attention, much like their poetic Twitter bio: “We yell for love and we yell when it fades.” The duo have known each other for twenty years and it seems their chemistry is unmatched. Not only is their music fantastic, but they have a great design element as well. If you head to their Tumblr, you can find the full story to their Where the Wild Things Are inspired music video for ‘Solar Laws’ that was just released last week. Give them a like on Facebook, too!
That’s all for this week! I’ll be back next Thursday, and until then you can follow me on Twitter and let me know who you’ve been listening to lately!
- White Girl Dance Corner featuring Waters, RAC, Mother, and Wild Ones - March 27, 2014
- White Girl Dance Corner featuring Broods, Eliza and the Bear, Clean Bandit, and Tei Shi - February 20, 2014
- Watch Bruno Major Perform Acoustic Rendition of “The First Thing You See” - February 11, 2014
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