Albums | TikTok Viral Hit ‘Bloody Mary’ gets official release on Perfect Havoc
Posted by VMan on March 10, 2023
Polish vocalist, Naja and UK producers Alfie Cridland and Adam Griffin, unleash a
charged-up version of Lady Gaga’s ‘Bloody Mary’. The original of ‘Bloody Mary’ went viral
following the TikTok craze of users, including Madonna and Gaga herself, recreating the dance
scene by Jennifer Ortega in the Tim Burton Netflix hit series, Wednesday. It’s out now on
Griffin’s chart-topping record label, Perfect Havoc.
Born out the viral TikTok edit of ‘Bloody Mary’ by Naja and the multi-platinum UK producer,
Harrison, this new version by Cridland and Griffin notches up the bpm’s into a hypnotic,
dancefloor stomper. While the Gaga version wasn’t actually used in the now famous scene of
Wednesday – it was soundtracked by ‘Goo Goo Muck’ by The Cramps – ‘Bloody Mary’ has
captured the hearts of music lovers worldwide and this latest version is set to follow suit.
For the producers at work here, breaking talent Alfie Cridland has already had a taste of
success with his 2020 release of ‘New Levels’ with Tobtok, Milwin and Mia Falls. It has
streamed over 20 million times, synced on numerous primetime TV shows including Love
Island UK, and was made Tune Of The Week on BBC Radio 1 and subsequently spun 49
times on air.
Producer and A&R at Perfect Havoc (co-founded with Robert Davies), Adam Griffin, has been
having his own success in recent years with releases in collaboration with the Swedish
sensation, Tobtok, US-house legend, Todd Terry, Anton Powers, James Hurr and more. Over
25 million streams have been generated by this versatile label head alongside accolades that
include a ‘Future Anthem’ from Radio 1, several spins across Party Anthems and Dance
Anthems, and further certifying playlist adds on Capital Dance and KISS Dance.
‘Bloody Mary’ is yet another creative move for Perfect Havoc. Shortlisted for Best
Independent Record Label at the 2022 Music Week Awards, Perfect Havoc’s niche of
commercial dance with a smattering of the more club-focused sounds has given rise to six UK
Top 20 singles including ‘Fake Friends’ by PS1 feat. Alex Hosking, and the No.1 single ‘Head
& Heart’ by Joel Corry & MNEK.
Now having generated over 10 billion streams, the London-based Perfect Havoc is one of the
most consistently successful indies in recent years. Keep an ear out for more releases in 2023
with cuts also from Tobtok, CHANEY, Freejak, Ben Pearce, Varski and much more is lined up.
Albums | Conflict Choir Release “Don’t Let Me Drown”
Posted by VMan on September 29, 2022
West Midlands alternative rock band Conflict Choir started out as a band for frontman Ali Clinton’s solo project, but quickly became a much deeper connection. The trio consists of some of the UK’s most diverse session musicians, Ali Clinton, George Cook and Jack Bowles, twisting through multiple genres from rock, R&B, pop, electronic, jazz, metal and many more. “Don’t Let Me Drown” is their latest body of work, taken from the forthcoming album ‘Strange Game”. Sounding like the lovechild of Muse, Radiohead and Jeff Buckley, the astonishing single sounds like an instant classic. Receiving previous support from BBC Introducing, playing venues around Birmingham and Brighton, the group have built a strong fanbase ever since their creation before the pandemic.
Speaking about the single and upcoming album, Conflict Choir share: “This is a single from our full album ‘Strange Game’, which will be released single by single throughout the year. Each single wil have alternative versions that we will sometimes release online but will reserve special versions only available as physical copies for liveshows – something for hardcore fans to dig their teeth into. We’re looking to release a visual representation of our world with each single to immersive the audience even further.”
Turning the pandemic into something positive, the turbulent time and constraining experience gave the band numerous sources of material to write about. ‘Strange Game’ has a heavy mental health theme throughout yet questions philsophical pondering, dystopian outlooks and abuse. Speaking further on the album, Conflict Choir’s frontman Ali Clinton adds: “This album is a mirror of the struggles of living in today’s times through sonic poetry and texture.”
Engineering with the help of their friend Thomas Atlas, the release was further mixed and mastered by Greg Chandler at Priory Studios to take the sound to the amazing HiFi sound that you hear in the finished project.
As session players, the members of Conflict Choir have previously worked with Uli Jon Roth (Scorpions), Bernie Marsden (Whitesnake), Girls of the Internet, Thomas Atlas, Sheddy Maria, Mnelia, Gaby K, Cleopatra and Indigo Marshall (who opened up the Birmingham Commonwealth Games).
Albums | Shoffy Releases new Album, …Onward & Announces Tour
Posted by VMan on September 22, 2022
Shoffy’s new album …Onward came out a few weeks ago and I am a massive fan of the full thing front to back. The electronic infused pop record is filled with catchy music that is on the cusp of commercial but in the best way. Working on the LP over the past year, Shoffy has been focused on uber focused on creation as of late and is now gearing up for a national tour that starts at this month. A few of my personal favorite songs off of this one are easily “Fade” “Nightmares In NYC” and “Sad Man” but there a ton of great music on it. If you are on the look out for a new album to run through, tune in to …Onward by Shoffy above now.
Albums | BLACK MARBLE COLLECTIVE Drop ‘Rave Tools 2’
Posted by VMan on July 16, 2022
“This project has been a long time coming! Originally, it was supposed to come out Spring/Summer of 2020. Due to Covid-19, Black Marble Collective pushed back this compilation release time and time again.” Stated Black Marble Collective on their latest drop, RAVE TOOLS 2. Clearly well worth the wait, this one has been worked on for a while now and you can tell by all the different vibes and sounds gathered together within. The music speaks for itself, but from a visual branding and collective name, these guys go above and beyond. Tune in above now and don’t sleep on BMC.
Electronic | Juuku Drops Vibey New Song “Undo”
Posted by VMan on November 7, 2021
Magical, powerful, glimmering, these are a few simple but potent words I would use to describe “undo”, the latest release by Juuku. Likely being the last release of the year, he’s ending out 2021 as strong as possible. The single has influences of future bass and chi trap, while subtly injecting them with a glitchy sound design and gritty textures for a stunning end result. Tune in above now and read a quote from Juuko on “undo” below!
“this song is about me finding some sort of serenity in the fact that i cannot undo my most painful mistakes, and that i need to find hapiness moving forward alongside it”
Pop | Gillian Heidi Releases Impressive Debut LP
Posted by VMan on August 17, 2021
Rising Boston-based singer/songwriter Gillian Heidi has finally released her debut album, ‘3AM’, a project where she flawlessly blends elements of Pop, Indie and Alternative Rock and more. While their are plenty of rising stars in the Pop space I hear something special in this project: not only lyrically but from a melodic standpoint. Listen to the LP above now and read a quote from Gillian Heidi on the release below now.
“I’ve been building 3AM for almost 2 years now, and I have never been more proud of music I’ve released. To me, the album is all about growing up, falling apart, and coming back together. It is my coming of age story. As I get older, I look at the songs on this album as different stages of growing up. Some songs I wrote in eighth grade, some I wrote throughout highschool. They all have different meanings to me and have helped me process different emotions while becoming who I am today. I have never been more excited to release something into the world as I am about 3AM, and I hope everyone loves this project as much as I do!”
Alternative, Pop | Jessie Reid to release folk-inspired heartbreak single “Wake Up”
Posted by VMan on May 14, 2021
Jessie Reid returns with her new single “Wake Up”, staying true to her signature folk-inspired, percussive fingerstyle guitar style. Her angelic top line smoothly floats on top of the electro-acoustic textures, all of which come together for the perfect storm of sounds. Jessie never fails to deliver poetic, vulnerable lyricism which tugs at your heartstrings, and ‘Wake Up’ is particularly stirring. Discussing the meaning behind her new release, Jessie reveals: “I suppose the song is best summarised by the line ’the harder we try, the closer we get to goodbye’. It attempts to recapture some of the frustrations of unsuccessfully trying to fix a relationship. In a way the lyrics represent what I would have said to myself at that moment in time and telling myself to ‘wake up’ to the reality of the situation. There is a sense of anger in the song in some kind of way and I think this is mirrored in the build up towards the end of the song with the heavier use of electronic instrumentation which is something I don’t usually do!” Tune into her latest release “Wake Up” above now and keep Jessie Reid on your radars!