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 579

Not Too Late

Somewhere I Can't Hear It

Shame

Big Break

Ain’t It Strange

A song about the realisation that life is short-lived and fleeting but that you can have a positive impact and make a difference

Produced by Sean Hargreaves (Sam Smith, Ella Eyre, Paloma Faith) at Tileyard Studios

Ephemeral

Hey It's Me

This is the 1st single from the bands forthcoming EP 'Could Be Worse'

Produced by - James Sanger - Vibey Studios 
Mastered - Metropolis studios

Hey It's Me

Locksmith Song

BLUE AMBER the Cardiff hip-hop/free jazz/art-punk collective announce their new single ‘Yr Man In The Music Scene’, set for self release with digital distribution via Distrokid.  Radio Impact/Focus Date for ‘Yr Man In The Music Scene’ is slated for 1st Aug 2025. 

BLUE AMBER fuse Lynchian soundscapes, Dadaist and political lyricism with art rock, hip-hop and free jazz.  Starting as an introverted bedroom project, BLUE AMBER blossomed into a supergroup of sorts, featuring members of Cardiff’s numerous jazz, indie and psych groups. Since their inception, the band have made a name for  themselves on the Welsh live circuit with their sonically diverse offerings and songs inspired by an equally divided world, featuring two drummers, samples, saxophone and frontman Drew Noel’s satirical poetic lyricism.    

Their first release, ‘The Blue Amber’ EP was released in 2018. Since their debut they have released a further 7 singles, including the fan favourite ‘Welsh Girl’ in 2021 and their debut LP track Rockland’s Workshop in 2022 and Rockland’s Workshopped remix EP, in 2023  

With an increasing number of Welsh acts gaining critical acclaim, 2025 seems like a good time to turn the satirical microscope/microphone back to their homeland. Says singer Drew, ‘Yr Man in the Music Scene’ is a pastiche of the Welsh music scene, and indeed, the British music scene as a whole. The song satirises competition between artists in a close knit environment, makes light of personal struggles, and brags about accomplishments that aren’t really a big deal. It’s an  exaggeration of how an artist feels when they’re on top of the world, with all the narcissistic qualities that come with it.  It is the audio equivalent of “look how big my *** is”. And as for the spelling on the song the title Drew adds, ‘“Yr” was just a homage to LCD Soundsystem - e.g. Yr City Is A Sucker, and not the Welsh word for ‘The’”. 

BLUE AMBER have played both SWN and Focus Music Wales Festivals. They have also supported Getdown Services, Maruja Deadletter, Italia 90, Stay in Nothing, Rubie, Knives and Diary Diary. 

‘Yr Man In The Music Scene’ was written by Drew Noel with James Minas on engineering, mixing, mastering and production duties.  BLUE AMBER have been through several line ups but are now settled as Drew Noel (vocals and sax), Hayden Lewis (guitar), Billy Stillman (bass), Cadi Thomas (keyboard), Alex Burch and Zach Breskal (both drums and percussion). 

BLUE AMBER - 'Yr Man in the Music Scene' (Radio Edit)

8 HOURS

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Locksmith Song

Samuel Austin

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