Found in London - LED Festival feat. Deadmau5

Festival season is well under way, with the biggest of them all, Glastonbury just around the corner...but for those who don't fancy using baby wipes for 4 days straight, London has some of the best day festivals that cater for all tastes, whether it be Tom Jones at Kenwood House or Snoop Dogg at Lovebox.

A couple of weekends ago, I decided to risk the London weather (which paid off nicely) to go to LED Festival in Victoria Park, with Deadmau5 performing at his first ever headliner outdoor event. They had strong support from DJ's like Skrillex, Zane Lowe and Calvin Harris but let's just say I wasn't willing to leave the comforts of the VIP area until the mouse came out to play. With vocal support from Sofi, the appearance of Deadmau5 on his giant light cube was an awesome sight to see as the sun began to set over Victoria Park. Check out the legendary "Ghosts n Stuff" below:





Special thanks to the Welsh DJ & producer who shared the deadmau5 love by giving us free glow stick mouse ears which we in turn paid forward and gave to the random blokes who kept trying to steal them.

No thanks to the boys behind us who kept referring to the headliner as Deadmau five - was funny at first until I couldn't help but say it too...

Can't get enough of Deadmau5?
You can download the Deadmau5 remix iPhone app here
The new mix album 4x4=12 is available to buy here
Deadmau5 Miawington Hax Tour (N America) tickets are now on sale

Found in London - Ellie Goulding

Found in London made a trip to FoundTrack HQ a few weeks ago and despite all good intentions of keeping up my posts, LA sucked me in and have been playing catch up ever since! Anyway, I'm back and you can all breathe a sigh of relief - better late than never I say...

So committed am I to experiencing live music, I found myself at Music Box in Hollywood a few hours after landing, just in time to catch the talented British singer-songwriter Ellie Goulding. Having gained popularity in the UK with her album Lights (Polydor) last year, it was re-released as Bright Lights with extra bonus tracks including a cover of Elton John's "Your Song" which featured on a popular UK TV commercial over Christmas.

Having spent 11 hours on a plane, of course I hit the bar first and so only showed up at the gig at the tail end of her support act, The Knocks. The NY electronic music duo who have made a name for themselves as producers and remix extraordinaires, but knocked (!) it out the park with their original songs like "Make it Better" and "Something I Can Dance To". Free downloads available here. 

Once Ellie came on stage, my Red Bull had kicked in and the high school audience were ready to go. She worked the stage well, engaged the audience with decent chat and came across as a genuine talent enjoying herself on stage. Due to technical difficulties (i.e. jetlag) I wasn't able to record the performance but check out another set of performances in LA filmed for T-mobile's Live Rising gigs.

Soundtrack aficionados will recognise this from the Kick Ass OST, "Starry Eyed":



My personal favourite, "Every Time You Go":



Lights and Bright Lights are available to buy now.

Found in London - Katy B

As the beautiful weather seems to be taking a break over here in London (but seems to have found its way back to LA), I find myself back at my computer and looking for the best and brightest of British music to share with you fine folks. Having played the part of iPod DJ this past weekend, I'm looking at an artist that definitely set the crowd going (except maybe that one person who requested Fleetwood Mac!).

Katy B, a pure bred Londoner, has just released her debut album in the UK, On a Mission (Sony/Rinse), and with a few chart-topping tracks under her belt, she's already a regular presence in the UK club scene. A female vocalist in the dance genre producing a solid album is not the easiest of tasks but Miss B pulls it off effortlessly. With hits such as "Katy on a Mission" (see below) and the recently released "Broken Record", this talented lady has already flown into the UK charts at #2 (just behind Adele).



For those who remember the explosion of the garage scene in the UK charts almost a decade ago (boy, I suddenly feel old), you may remember Ms. Dynamite who features on the single "Lights Out", check out the video below:



Next week: am off to LA, and will report back from the Ellie Goulding gig at Music Box LA.

Found in London - Fenech-Soler

My music tip of the week comes in the form of a Northampton "synth-pop" band called Fenech-Soler. Although not quite new to the scene, featuring on one of my most visited new music sites back in 2008, they've only really taken off in the last year, and released their début self-titled album (on the B-Unique label) at the end of 2010.

To put it simply, listening to their songs makes me want to dance around like a crazy person (kind of like this) and I would have found it difficult to pick which tracks to release as singles - good thing it's not my job then! Instead here's the video for one they did release, "Demons", which happens to be my favourite track to watch the sunrise to on a Thai beach after partying all night long (that story is for another time...)

And how's this for symmetry, they also did a beautiful acoustic cover of former Found in London featured artist Jessie J's "Do it Like a Dude"

As I'm feeling extra generous today (and guilty for missing last week's post) I'm going to point you to the "Kiss of Life" video of a band that released one of my favourite albums of 2008 and would also fit in the "synth-pop" section of my music library - Friendly Fires. 

If you're wondering what those St. Albans boys have been up to, listen to their new track here, from the upcoming album Pala (to be released May 24th on XL Recordings).

And yes, this week's post was brought to you by the letter F.

Found in London - Purl Bar

Taking a break from my otherwise awesome music posts, every now and again I'm going to share with you some local hangouts in London that, as the late MJ once said, rock my world.

First up is Purl Bar in Marylebone - tucked away in the basement of an unassuming cafe, this cocktail bar is inspired by Prohibition-era speakeasies (which are, like, so in right now!) You can book an area, even if it's just you and your date, in their dimly-lit alcoves, which in a city where people spill onto the streets just to enjoy a drink, is a true luxury. With room to breathe, and just the quiet sounds of old Americana style music playing in the background, this is the perfect place to catch up with friends without having to shout over each other or fight through the crowds to get a drink. 

The minimalistic cocktail menu focuses on a "bitters" inspired selection with favourites such as Mr Hyde's No. 2, described as "a devlish elixir of Ron Zacapa 23, Cola reduction and Orange Bitters served in a smoke injected wax sealed potion bottle". Having tried this concoction myself I have to say it was a little strong for my tastes (a little different from my usual g&t) but half the fun was being warned of the dangers of touching the dry ice and pretending like I was in Harry Potter's potions class! All in all a cosy atmosphere, elaborate cocktails and great service makes this a worthwhile stop if you're ever in London.


Purl is open Monday to Thursday from 5pm - 11.30pm and until midnight on Friday - Saturday. 

Found in London - Chase and Status

This week my post has been inspired by the fact that some of my friends from across the pond have never heard of some of the biggest and brightest bands in my fair city and I feel that it is my duty to share with you these hidden gems.

Today I'm featuring one of my favourite drum & bass bands, Chase and Status (now signed to Vertigo), who have only released two albums but are one of my favourite live acts ever and have a huge following here in the UK. The duo, Saul Milton and Will Kennard, met at Manchester University in the mid 90s and have been steadily producing and DJ'ing until they released their début album, More than a Lot, on Ram Records in 2008. With fans in high places, Pharrell Williams called them "the most exciting producers in the UK" and Rihanna was quoted saying that they were "the backbone" of her Rated R record.

I saw them when they headlined the MTV Brand New gigs at Koko in Camden recently and let's just say I was not disappointed. Performing many of their tracks from their new album No More Idols, it didn't matter that a lot of it was new material, I was happy to embrace the mosh pit, jumping up and down everytime the MC told me to jump (which was pretty much every 2 seconds)! Let's just say I ended up pretty sweaty and had a shoe thrown at my head...all in good fun of course! 

I can't get over how much I love these guys and I want you to love them too! So check out one of my favourite tracks "Hypest Hype" feat. Tempa T below (which was a difficult choice since they have so many awesome songs - check out End Credits, Blind Faith and Let Me Go also)


For those of you in the U.S. they'll be touring in April, with dates at Coachella and at Music Box in LA on April 23rd...I promise that you will not be disappointed! 

As you know I love giving you guys a little bonus, so here's a track off their debut album which is something a little bit different - check out "Eastern Promises" below.

Found in London - Misty Miller

I have a confession to make...I'm in love...in love with the ukulele that is! This week's Found in London artist Misty Miller is a young lady who's talent on the aforementioned instrument is only surpassed by her superb vocals and songwriting skills.

 

Having worn out the Rumer album (figuratively speaking that is, since I'm pretty sure you can't wear out an itunes download) I'm pleased to say I've found a worthy replacement for when I'm in my folksy mood. This little gem of an album is pure sunshine on a rainy day in London and only brings thoughts of the cider-fuelled summer that is to come. Bare in mind the talented Miss. Miller is only 16 years old but has a highly polished album full of songs that would not look out of place alongside your Jack Johnson or Colbie Caillat records. If you don't believe me, you can trust Burberry who filmed the acoustic session below of her song "Remember".

One of my favourites off the album is her first single, "Little Thing Called Love" - watch the video below. Her self-titled debut album is available to buy now on iTunes(UK), released by AWAL.

It's only my second week back in my blogging chair and I've already got a bonus rec for you. Now that I've declared my love for ukuleles, I had to share the clip below. I was lucky enough to witness this performance of a newly formed ukulele cover band called KoaSound (aka my friend's potential wedding band). Witness their genius below, live at Monto Water Rats in London (hit me up if you fancy watching their Justin Bieber performance)...

Source: The Guardian

Found in London - Jessie J

A few weeks back I was lucky enough to attend the MTV Brand New gigs at Koko (by far one of the best music venues in London) which showcased some of the artists up for the coveted title of MTV UK's best new artist of 2011. Now funnily enough, I'm not going to talk to you about the winner - Nashville based band Mona, who although worthy of the title, didn't make as much of an impression as the artist I'm featuring below.

If by now you haven't heard of Jessie J then where have you been??? Great stage presence, engaging chat in between songs and an amazing voice to boot, I have to say her performance reminded me of Lily Allen back in the day (all be it with very different musical styles). As her website states, mix up some Rihanna, Gwen Stefani and Aretha Franklin-esque vocals, and you'll see why she's one to watch. Her performance was was definitely the highlight of the night, with most of the audience already singing along to her yet to be released songs.

She may be blowing up now as a solo artist but this 22 year old lady from Essex definitely isn't new to the music scene. With writing credits including songs for Alicia Keys, Chris Brown and Miley Cyrus, her talents are appreciated by some of the most successful artists out there today. She may have come in second in the MTV Brand New competition, but she's riding high in the UK singles charts with "Price Tag feat. B.O.B" (check out the official video below) and "Do it Like a Dude".

Her album Who You Are is out on Feb 28th in the UK and April 12th in the US.