Emerging talent is the new talent that are on the rise to becoming a part of the music industry. This could be bands and artists who have not yet “made it big” in the industry and aren’t recognised by the public as successful musicians. We have selected three bands, all emerging talent, that we take an interest in.
Driving Station
Diving Station are a British dream pop band from Manchester. Dream pop is an expression used to describe their sound. Sean Rogan is the lead guitarist who focuses on atmospheric guitar, along with the tone of the lead vocalist Anna McLuckie and her Celtic harp. The bands arrangements are comparable to the likes of Big Thief and Dirty Projectors and the band focuses on grounds such as angular art rock to indie folk and pop minimalism.
Driving Station’s lead single ‘You’re Not Listening’ has been featured on BBC Radio 6 shows, as well as BBC Introducing in Manchester. However, their EP ‘Feather Mouth’ is the band’s most successful musical contribution. – Skye McBride
Just Mustard
Just Mustard are an emerging rock band from Ireland. Vocalist/guitarist David Noonan, guitarist Mete Kalyon, vocalist Katie Ball, bass guitarist Rob Clarke and drummer Shane Maguire work together to create their own unique combination, influenced by trip hop and electronic music. They released their debut album ‘Wednesday’ in 2018 and have been on set at Other Voices and have been involved in two nationwide tours in 2018. Just Mustard will be going on tour around Ireland, the UK and Europe in 2019.
Just Mustard are being seen as the return of shoe-gaze with their latest single ‘Tainted.’ The song consists of elements of shoe-gaze and trip-hop and give a very refined and distinctive sound with a significant twist. – Thomas Armstrong
The Jungle Giants
The Jungle Giants are an Australian indie band, formed in 2011. The Jungle Giants have toured with The Vaccines and Two Door Cinema Club and released their first album ‘Learn to Exist’ in August 2013. The band consists of Sam Hales on vocals/guitar, Cesira Aitken on lead guitar, Andrew Dooris on bass guitar/backing vocals and Keelan Bijker on drums/trombone, and all work together to create an intense, catchy melodic indie vibe to their songs.
The song ‘Used To Be In Love,’ from their album ‘Quiet Ferocity’ has great flowing rhythm created with a funky bassline, toned vocals & guitar solo. It is clear the musical structure and sounds are influenced by bands such as Two Door Cinema Club with the rhythm and lyrics. – Skye McBride
HeavyMetal– Metal came about in the late 1960s and had a huge impact on society, as rock and metal popularised sex and drugs. Metal associates with blues rock, psychedelic rock, and acid rock and uses similar structures and instrumentation which usually consists of a packed sound with an amplified distortion, that is generally overly loud. The lyrics in metal are mostly to do with with aggression and violence.
Metallica, a heavy metal band from America, fit into this genre with their heavy sounds and aggressive lyrics. In the chorus “Hardwired to self-destruct” this hints to the self aggression and the feeling of anger as he questions “Do you feel that hope is fading?”
Alternative Rock – Alternative Rock is a style of rock music that came from the increase of independent labels in the 1980s. “Alternative” relates to the difference in characteristics from original rock music. Compared to other rock styles, alternative rock lyrics sometimes involve topics of social issues, such as drug use, depression, and suicide.
This song is by Nivarana, an American alternative rock band formed in 1887. This song fits well with the genre style as a few of the lyrics refer to some social concerns. The first line of the lyrics states “Load up on guns” essentially relating to the gun problem that is within America and the self protection that is needed .
Psychedelic – Psychedelic rock is style of rock music which began around the 1960s, which is inspired by psychedelia, or perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The idea of psychedelic music is to reflect mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs, mostly drugs such as LSD, and using this to create a new style of music. Some artists and bands take certain drugs before writing a song which give them the influence and idea of the type of music they produce, however, many psychedelic artists are diverse in style.
Tame Impala, an American band formed in 2007, are one of the most popular psychedelic bands in today’s society. In Australia “nang” is the slang term for N2O, which is an anaesthetic drug. People also use it as a recreational drug because it disassociated you with reality. The song title ‘Nangs’ is a play on this and Tame Impala have tried to create music which represents the way this drug makes you feel.
Indie Pop – Indie Pop is a genre which comes from popular pop genre style structures with its clear and simple sounds. It came about after the rise of independent record labels, just like alternative music, and therefore, more music became independent (indie). Artists usually use common pop structures and instrumentation, such as drums, guitar, bass and vocals, although indie pop artists sometimes use electronics, piano or strings.
The Vampire Weekend are an American band, formed in 2006. Their song ‘Giving Up The Gun’ follows the classic structure of an indie pop song, with the instruments and melody which create a pop like, light sound, however they still represent indie pop music.
Traditional Folk – Folk music is transmitted orally, usually music that is memorised and involves music with which usually has no written rules to the piece. The genre consists of an individual sound with lyrics that tell a specific story. This genre is also known as “acoustic music” as it usually involves acoustic instruments.
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Bob Dylan is a singer-songwriter from America. Bob Dylan’s style of music stands out as it has a unique sound and poetical lyrics. His songs tell a story that consumers can appeal. In Bob Dylan’s ‘Mr Tambourine Man’ he says ” Yes, to dance beneath the diamond sky, with one hand waving free , silhouetted by the sea” which are powerful poetry, which tells a story, in the form of lyrics.
Alternative Country – Alternative country is a sub-genre of country music and rock music. Alternative country usually plays away from the traditions of mainstream country music as this genre usually incorporates ideas from rock and folk which add a different beat than traditional country music.
The Flying Burrito Brothers are an American country band from 1968. There music, as linked above, consists of country, folk and rock all in one. In this song it is clear with the chord progression that it is a sub-genre of country music, however, they have involved some rock and folk structures in order to boost the overall beat and sound of the song.
Classic Blues – Blues began to become more popular in African American music in 1890. The blues, formed around Jazz, works around specific chord progressions, usually consisting of thirds, fifths or sevenths which are flattened in pitch. Blues are most well known for the “walking bass” which is mostly used in this genre and originates from blues music.
This is a song by Muddy Waters which has all of the characteristics of classic blues. The song consists of a specific blues scale, which is very easy to hear as it stands out as one of the most significant characteristics. It also has a strong walking bass which can also be heard.
Acid Jazz – Acid jazz is a genre which consists of jazz, funk and hip-hop. It originally developed in the UK in 1980 and is some what very similar to electronic dance/pop music, and could be seen as the first genre to introduce electronic pop to the music world. Acid jazz usually has continuous loops and a heavy funk bass.
‘Apparently Nothin’ is Young Disciples number one hit. Young Disciples are a British band who focus in the genre acid jazz. This song consists of loops and a funky bass which stands out as one of the most visible instruments in the song.
Barber Shop – Barbershop music is a vocal harmony which came about after the barbershop era, which is where its name originated. Barber shop is a style of a-cappella harmony which is usually a four-part harmony consisting of a chord. Typically the four parts are melody, tenor, baritone and bass.
Here we have a barbershop quartet which consists of a melody, tenor, baritone and a bass. Each person sings their individual part, making sure they have timing and notes perfect to create the a-cappella.
Dubstep – Dubstep is a sub-genre of electronic dance music which is heavily reverberated in the sub-bass. The sub-bass is reverberated at different speeds to give an impression of movement and inconsistency. Dubstep is usually quicker in tempo and consists of heavy beats and rapid drum progressions, depending on the overall tempo.
Skrillex is a popular dubstep artist from America. His work consists of heavy beats however, there is a lot of colour mixed in with the aggressive textures of the song.
The role of A&R has many different tasks other than discovering new talent. A&R also develop and focus on the upbringing of the talent. When A&R have found musicians and songwriters they also find producers to work with new artists. A&R have to evaluate the right time and place in the market for new artists and new music, making A&R a significant role in the music industry.
In early years of music, the music industry has consisted of live industry and music publishing businesses. People could listen to popular songs by going to see a live concert or by radio, in later years. The only way to get music was by buying printed sheet music in music stores which were usually discovered by music publishers.
In the 1920’s, often bigger companies would buy popular songs from smaller companies so that they would become more successful. The only way to find new music and talent would be by the A&R who would scout clubs and pubs, listening to artists to see whether they wanted to sign them. Tin Pan Alley was an area in New York for song writers and publishing companies. Tin Pan Alley was producing music for multiple genres and Broadway shows and more publishing companies began to appear on Tin Pan Alley. There was a lot of music being produced and the invention of the phonograph and records, meant more music needed to be made.
In the 1920’s, radio stations began to use radio for entertainment purposes. Before World War 2, radio was the only form of mass communication. People used the radio as a news source which provided important information, reaching millions of people. A&R would use the radio to their advantage and listen to see what was popular within the music industry. Knowing what type of genre and style is most convenient with the public and certain target audiences meant A&R could find talent that they know would be successful and create a lot of money.
Unfortunately, in 2019, radio is being taken over by digital services such as Spotify, Apple Music and Soundcloud. This has left limited opportunities in radio, such as jobs, says Dave Monks, a BBC Music Introducing Presenter. Digital services are taking over traditional radio which has resulted in younger music listeners turning to sites like YouTube to discover new artists and songs. In newer car models, car-makers have started to add apps like Spotify on their dashboards, decreasing the number of radio listeners. This has also been a huge step for A&R as they now have multiple platforms such as social media, TV and digital music services to scout for new music and talent.
The growth of TV gave a new way to scout new talent. Music television provides artists with a new “experience” with new marketing and visuals such as music videos. Music videos have a large impact and they provide visual context which consumers enjoy as part of seeing an artist in action. This worked in a similar way to radio for A&R, however, this allowed them to seek out new fashion and aesthetics, which are considered a big part in being a successful artist.
The 1950’s is marked as the birth of Rock and Roll. The beginning of rock & roll was not seen as a musical revolution but as a social uproar of an unpredictable step in the music industry. It also represented a major change in the business of popular music. In the business, rock & roll meant that smaller labels were appearing in the upper areas of the pop charts, which caused a revolution as companies didn’t know what Rock and Roll was or how to handle it. Popular artists like Elvis Presley and Bill Haley popularised within the genre. A&R, in larger companies, found this new form of music difficult as they didn’t know what it was. This meant they found it hard to know what they were actually scouting for. Eventually, A&R caught up to date with the Rock and Roll era and it is still one of the most popular genres to this day.
On the other hand the punk revolution in 1976, spawned the rise of independent record labels. It was US band the Ramones that inspired the bands such as The Banshees and The Jam. A&R discovered that people enjoyed listening to Punk and this way they could continue scouting new talent in these genres that they knew would popular with the public. The arrival of punk increased the number of small independent record labels. This was due to changes in major record companies. American and British record companies began investing in new recording technologies, which meant that older studio equipment and studios became available for independent music producers to buy or rent.
In 2019, independent companies such as Sentric Music and Ditto Music are interested in registering new artists songs with organisation rights so that artists get proper value for their music. Ditto Music also focuses on helping mangers on opening their own record labels.
Peter Guy, author at Get Into This, focuses in new talent and music. He explains how getting people to listen to new music today is very difficult. His outlook on this is by using his website he can promote as many new artist as he can to the public. He also holds his own gigs called Deep Cuts in Liverpool which only new emerging artists can perform. This is great for getting people to listen to music as pubs and clubs are great for gigs as there are a lot of young people who will be open to the new music.
Sound City are very similar in this way as they are an independent music festival who focus on new music, other than indie and rock. This is an annual event which happens every year in Liverpool and allows a large number of young people to come together and learn and listen to new modern music of this day.
A manager who I recently had a lecture with, Rob Swerdlow who works for Starwood management, manages artists in today’s music industry such as The Kooks. One thing that Robert explain was that in the industry, when working as A&R, they need to be scouting for singers who have a good sense of fashion and aesthetic. This is because in today’s society, many younger people look up to artists in ways to express themselves and build their own sense of style. It’s important to find someone who is going to inspire younger generations as this is one of the most popular things that people look for when enjoying new music from new artists.
Also in today’s society, Steve Cusack, a national radio plugger, explained the effects of streaming and digital media. Streaming and digital media have become a huge part of daily life. There are many pros and cons to this as it’s easier to discover new artists and genres as music is marketed using playlists and new releases are promoted more effectively. However, it effects the artists as there are limited earnings, with artists only earning 0.00429p per stream. In 2017 76% of global consumption was through a smartphone. Today 1 CD equals 1 sale, however, 150 streams also equals 1 sale.
Skye McBride 