Our moderators listened to every track we were sent this week and have picked their favourites for your listening pleasure this weekend:

Listening Post: Batch 558

You can order the full 'Seven Hours' EP (CD/10" Vinyl/DL) out September 30 on Erased Tapes from http://www.erasedtapes.com/store/index/ERATP051

Lungful

Take in a breath and treasure the light
Don’t let them see you move, you've got nothing to prove
Hold out your palms and place them in mine
Don’t let me feel you shake, in fear they find mistake

Silence the song with bugles that play
You need to hear the call, they’re wishing you to fall
Don’t let them see you fail
I will not let you fail

© Douglas Dare 2013

Seven Hours (Bonus Digital Booklet Version)

Lungful

'WHELM' is out now. ORDER the album incl. poetry book 'Nine Poems' on CD/LP/DL here: www.erasedtapes.com/store/index/ERATP057 
or via iTunes here: snip.ftpromo.net/whelm

TOUR DATES:

12.07. DUSSELDORF (DE) – Open Source Festival
22.07. GHENT (BE) – Boomtown Festival
28.09. SEATTLE (US) – Erased Tapes x Decibel Festival

TICKETS: www.erasedtapes.com/artists/events/22/Douglas+Dare

douglasdare.com · erasedtapes.com

Whelm

Nile

Douglas Dare – Nile

PRE-ORDER the album incl. poetry book 'Nine Poems' on CD/LP/DL here: www.erasedtapes.com/store/index/ERATP057 
or via iTunes here: snip.ftpromo.net/whelm

Whelm will be released on May 12, 2014.

Photograph taken by Dusan Kacan.

LIVE DATES:

08.05.14. BRIGHTON (UK) - The Great Escape Festival

16.05.14. LONDON (UK) - Album Launch at Birthdays
Tickets: http://www.atpfestival.com/newsview/1404081016.php


douglasdare.com · erasedtapes.com

Erased Tapes Collection VI

Swim

Caroline is the lead single from new EP, 'Caroline/If Only' OUT NOW!

iTunes:  http://snip.ftpromo.net/dditunes
Erased Tapes: http://www.erasedtapes.com/store/index/ERATP063

London-based singer-songwriter Douglas Dare releases new EP, following on from his debut album Whelm. Named after album track Caroline and new track If I Knew I Were Alive, it also features remixes by fellow label mate Ryan Lee West aka Rival Consoles and Houndstooth’s own electronic producer Ross Tones aka Throwing Snow.
Caroline has always been a precious track for Douglas, one of the first tracks he recorded and a story in which he imagines his grandfather is writing to a loved one during the war. As the only song on his debut album that is stripped down to just his voice and piano playing, and it being a favourite amongst fans at his concerts, it was a natural choice as a first single.

Caroline

It's been countless days, since last we wrote
And countless more, since last we wrote
But now that's all that remains
The letters that make up your name
And I used to see every line that crossed 
Your face, but now the lines are lost
In stories told and I've grown old
Let me read again the letters that you sent

Caroline wrote to me
Every day of that July
But now that's all I have left
Just thirty-one pages of Caroline

I waited all that time for you
To write be back, to write a new
Verse of our love but it never came
Just hoped my Caroline was safe
And just as I had always feared
Your precious words they disappeared 
In to my mind as I went blind
Let me read again the letters that you sent

Caroline wrote to me
Every day of that July
But now that's all I have left
Just thirty-one pages of Caroline

To pick them up might cut my hands
And blind me 
To pick them up might cut my hands
And blind me

Let me read again the letters that she sent

Caroline/If Only

Caroline

Mandi: Friulian farewell; attributed variously as a diminution of “m'arcomandi” (“I recommend”), or the Latin “manus dei” (“hand of God”), or the Italian mani di deo (roughly, “may you stay in the hands of God”).

Mandi is the debut album from UK-based Canadian saxophonist David Zucchi, which explores a collection of reel-to-reels recorded by his father’s family in 1959 on a Geloso G. 255 recording device. Elaborations on and reconstructions of the words, songs, and music of these tapes, along with the glitches inherent in the recording process and the deterioration of the reels form the basis of the musical material.

Full album available here - https://peopleplacesrecords.bandcamp.com/album/mandi

Salve Regina

Written & Arranged by Fabia Anderson
Produced by Leo Abrahams
Mastered by Michal Kupicz

Piano & Vocals: Fabia Anderson
Cello: Meg Ella Brookes
Flugelhorn: Rick Leigh
French Horn: Sabrina Pullen
Bass: Leo Abrahams
Drums: Chris Vatalaro

Arms of Me

The third record from Oxford's BarrelHaus.

Tracks 1, 3 & 5 written by Marc Challans
Tracks 2 & 4 written by Ian Mitchell

Guitars, bass, drums, percussion, vocals, backing vocals, and production by Marc Challans.

Guitars, bass, vocals, and backing vocals by Ian Mitchell.

Recorded, mixed, and mastered by Marc Challans. Recorded at Glass House Studios, Cumnor, and BH Studios in Abingdon, Oxfordshire.

All tracks performed by BarrelHaus.

Special thanks to Grace and Alice.

All rights reserved.

Black Tar

Lay Me Down

Deep Down (Radio Edit)

'Gathering Storm' is the first track to be released from Christof's forthcoming release 'Requiem For A Lost World' (String Quartet 1)

Released to mark Earth Day 2025 'Requiem For A Lost World' is Christof's first String Quartet. This non-traditional String Quartet features a live string quartet recording of the written piece that has been slowed down and routed through effects to give a haunting and mesmerising sound. 

The first three movements reflect on the catastrophic state of the climate and the environment (and the journey to get to this point) while the final movement asks whether there is still time to save our world. 

By using slowed down recordings (something which Christof has explored previously on releases 'Until I Take My Final Breath' and the score to the feature film 'Messalina's Offer') a unique sound quality is acheieved where you can hear the nuance of the performers playing, producing a very textured sound. 

Presave at: https://tinyurl.com/CDQuartet1
Find all links at: linktr.ee/christofrdavis

Gathering Storm

► iTunes http://apple.co/1gUX8ke
► instagram:  beyriesmusic
► Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BEYRIES-1009419835753208/?ref=hl

Soldier (original Version)

Pre-order the album 'Aforger' out October 14th on LP/CD/DL here: http://phonofile.link/aforger

In a digital age where memories are mimicked by pixels and identity is as malleable as static, Douglas Dare’s new album Aforger questions the boundaries between reality and fiction. 

Inspired by recent events and revelations encountered in his life these songs depict Dare at his most vulnerable, whilst simultaneously reflecting our own obsession with reality and technology back at us.  

Aforger was mixed at the iconic Abbey Road Studios and produced by long-time collaborator Fabian Prynn. In the following conversation Douglas strips back the personal journeys and realisations which preceded its recording.

In a conversation with Douglas Dare on July 11th 2016:

The album title plays with the idea of a forger – someone creating imitations or copies, and reimagines them as the creator of something that’s no longer real. Prior to writing the record, I came out to my father and came out of a long relationship, both were hugely challenging for me and questioned my idea of identity and reality. These thoughts leaked out into the record and formed the core of Aforger. I was determined not to write a break-up album or repeat what I’d done before..

I grew up on quite an isolated farm in Dorset, surrounded by fields and not much besides. My mother taught piano from home and we didn’t have a computer, or the internet or mobile phones. In fact, my family still chooses not to use these things. It’s worlds apart from my life now in London where technology seems to dominate everything I do.

After finding out my boyfriend had been leading this double-life, I became obsessed with the question of what is real and George Orwell’s 1984 felt appropriate for me to re-read. Orwell explains this idea of reality control and Doublethink, and it struck a chord with me. The idea that truth can be steered or changed, and we might be able to believe two contradictory things at once. In my case, ignorance was my protection from the truth and ignorance really is bliss, until you’re no longer ignorant.

Binary talks about the idea that technology is allowing us to live on after we’re gone. A relative of mine whose parent passed away kept a picture of them on their phone as a background image. A friend saw this and asked ‘how can you have that there to constantly remind you of your loss?’ They replied, ‘no I have to, it shows me that they’re still here’. This resonated with me and I thought ‘okay, this is just an image to me but to them it’s more than a reminder or a reassurance, it’s a reality’. At the same time, I was finding myself haunted by the digital reminder of my ex-partner and wishing they would disappear. I had to realise that it’s all just pixels on a screen. 

I think New York can be thought of as this fabricated, magical place. I was there with my boyfriend after touring the U.S., but when I came back to London I discovered all these lies and began questioning everything. I even questioned whether New York actually happened or not. New York is a song that’s literally describing that very real feeling of not knowing who or what to believe any more – scary and magical at the same time. 

Lyrically I wanted to be as honest as possible. The album deals with so much dishonesty, so I felt the lyrics had to be the counterbalance. I was inspired by Björk’s album Vulnicura and how everything is almost awkward in its honesty. Like my first album, Aforger started as poetry, but I consciously tried to be less poetic. For instance, Oh Father is an example of complete unambiguity. It’s certainly the most personal song I’ve put out there, and the realisation that people may hear it makes me feel very vulnerable. That’s the most real feeling of all for me right now. 

Aforger

Doublethink

Buy LP/CD/DL

Douglas Dare - Doublethink

7. Rabbit Hole

Worn You - Harvey Causon & Gabriel Gifford

Fresh On The Net is a music blog hosted by Tom Robinson and Team Freshnet, offering independent artists an open door and a level playing field for their music. Our inbox is open at http://freshonthenet.co.uk every Monday to Thursday morning - if you share a track with us there it will be heard by every member of our moderation team.

IMPORTANT: 
Only send ONE track, and make sure the dropbox says "OPEN".  Sorry, but tracks sent while the dropbox is closed - or shared drectly with this Soundcloud account - will not get heard.

‘Arms of Me’ - all yours, out now

Progressive writing-style, classical roots, and cinematic flair; singer-songwriter Fabia Anderson’s sound is at once timeless and forward-thinking, drawing on a diverse tapestry of influences (Kate Bush, Thom Yorke, Weyes Blood, Agnes Obel, and more). An established session musician, Fabia started out playing for other artists on tour across the UK and Europe, accompanying them in support slots for acts including Ed Sheeran and BANKS. Her acoustic arrangements and live session features for Ministry of Sound, Vevo and 4Music have amassed over 4.2 million plays to date; all while songwriting, exploring and cultivating her own sound behind the scenes. 

September 2024 saw the release of Fabia’s debut single ‘Away From You’ produced with Leo Abrahams (Regina Spektor, Katie Melua) and championed by BBC Introducing’s Abbie McCarthy as “incredible [...] a pour-your-heart-out anthem.” After a string of London live shows including sets at Troubadour, Piano Smithfield and a support slot at KOKO, she releases new anthemic single 'Arms of Me' to kick off 2025. With her piano-vocal trademark at the heart, Fabia’s evocative, ethereal arrangements bring to life songs as pillars of strength; to embrace, process, and overcome.

Arms of Me

Fabia Anderson

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