We love the cool classic-sounding reverb pop of songwriter Young and Lost Club songwriter Natalie McCool “Dig It Out”. Soulful while maintaining a neat ethereal quality in the vocal, “Dig It Out” contains a modern pop sound that’s miles ahead most of its peers.
Natalie McCool 
: (Soundcloud)
Rating: 8.6
SAFIA’s silky tenor vocal inhabits JVM’s “Cavalier” like the most beautifully-toned ghost over future beats production. Do not miss this one.
Safia
(Soundcloud)
Rating 8.7
Those who frequent B3SCI are familiar with the soulful talent of the young Laura Welsh. The rising British singer songwriter has been causing a flurry amongst the blogosphere for almost 2 years now. Having just recently dropped her debut and self-titled EP in the States, Welsh’s new single “Break The Fall” has been chosen by iTunes as there new Single of the Week — you can grab a free download of the track here. B3SCI writer Cheryl Dunn recently had a chance to chat with Laura Welsh about her new EP, songwriting, and her experiences collaborating with John Legend and Gorgon City, amongst other things. Have a look at their conversation below.
B3SCI: We’re curious, do you like to set aside time to write songs, or are you always writing on the go, as you are inspired?
Laura: I tend to write lyrics or sing stuff that comes into my head into a recorder on my phone no matter where I am. I usually get ideas very late at night and have to put them down. Sometimes they don’t make a lot of sense in the morning (!) but there will sometimes be a line or melody that sparks off a song idea. Sometimes I will just sit at home with a guitar and write and other times I’ll go into the studio and experiment with sounds. It just depends on my what mood I’m in.
B3SCI: Do you always pull from personal experience when writing? Or are you inspired by friends, books or stories you hear?
Laura: I only write from personal experience. I find it easier to say how I’m really feeling through writing as opposed to having conversations about them with people. I write in an emotional and reactive way to situations going on around me.
B3SCI: Your new self-titled EP just dropped in the US. What was the writing process like for this EP?
Laura: “Ghosts” was one of the first songs I wrote on my own which was quite a defining moment direction wise for me. It was written during a period of time where I needed to take a step back and just have the freedom to write without any opinions or expectations. I wrote the other songs for the EP over in New York and LA and recorded them out there. The approach for me was no compromising at all with these songs and that included the shape and feel of the production too.
B3SCI: Can we expect some or all of the tracks on the EP to appear on a full-length album? Is that something you are working on now?
Laura: Yeah, all of the songs on the EP will be on the album which is finished now! It’s coming out early next year.
B3SCI: Do you have a favorite song from the EP that was particularly moving to write or record?
Laura: I would say “Hardest Part”. I wrote the song with John Legend over in LA. We just sat around the piano and wrote and recorded a demo of it in a few hours. It came out really quickly and was good to just keep it simple writing wise with just a piano.
B3SCI: For us US fans, what is your live show like? Is there anything you would like to do with your live shows artistically?
Laura: I’ve recently been putting together a set of visuals for each song in my live show. It’s a projection of imagery & video clips that I collected and put together with the help of my friend Babysweet. I have a few short black and white clips online and that’s the kind of feel I wanted to try out as a backdrop to the live show.
B3SCI: What are you upcoming tour plans and where would you like to play?
Laura: I’m hoping to tour in the Autumn time in the UK and also come over to the US before the end of the year.
B3SCI: You’ve recently worked with the very talented production duo Gorgon City on the infectious single “Here For You”. Much like Disclosure, they have an opportunity to break singers into stardom and give them a ton of exposure. How did you meet and what was it like working with them?
Laura: I went to write with Matt and Kye back in December. We did a day together at their studio along with MNEK and “Here For You” was what came out of that session. We pretty much wrote the track and laid down the vocals in one day. I just clicked with them to be honest and liked where they were coming from musically. They create a really relaxed environment to write and thats how like to work also. Musically, it’s a different world to my own music but I enjoyed stepping into their world.
B3SCI: After working with Gorgon City, is there anyone else you would really love to work or collaborate with?
Laura: There’s loads but right now I’d say Flying lotus, James Vincent McMorrow and Evian Christ would be up there.
B3SCI: On your twitter you sometimes post songs you are currently loving and listening to. What are some songs or artists you think people should know that you are listening to right now?
Laura: Collapse by Vancouver Sleep Clinic and I really like Ben Khan and Raleigh Ritchie at the moment.
Jugu is Sydney AU songwriter Juliet Guterres. “Rolling”, Gueterres’ second track online, is built on a simple pulse of rhythm track and crunchy synth which is an effective spare frame for Jugu’s airy (and melodically great) vocal.
Jugu (Soundcloud)
Rating 8.3
Pop star on the rise, Jack Garratt leads the charge for the next frontier of the one man band. His new ‘Remnants’ EP is a spectacular display of songwriting and nimble musicianship, with a soulful ethos that crosses genre and holds a candle to any of today’s best new talent. B3 staffer Brian Litwin recently had the chance to catch up with Garratt to discuss the new ‘Remnants’ EP, his passions for tech-gear, and (of course) his beard. Have a look at their chat below.
B3SCI: Please introduce yourself to our readers…
JG: Hi everyone, I’m songwriter/producer/Muppets enthusiast and beard representative Jack Garratt.
B3SCI: Your single “Worry” is a stunner. What is the story behind this track?
JG: Thanks very much! I’m glad you’ve enjoyed it. It’s a pretty long story, so bare with me.
Worry came about VERY unexpectedly. I was writing with my really good mate of mine, Bastian, and we’d set ourselves the challenge of writing anything we could (i think we were trying to write something J-pop-esque). As it turned out, we ended up creating this Flute loop on a great little synth, which I then started to write some chords around. After about an hour, we’d come up with a rough demo of the chorus (no lyrics) and proceeded to write the the rest of the track over the following 2 days.
Interestingly, “Worry” was written in the same week that I wrote/produced “I Couldn’t Want You Anyway”, “Water” and “Remnants” (the other three tracks on the ‘Remnants’ EP). Though i didn’t notice it at the time, the lyrics I wrote for “Worry” ended up becoming a kind of answer to one of the other tracks on the EP. I won’t explain it too much or say which one, as it should be up to people to make their own connection between the two songs, if they even think there is one. I’ve already said too much!
B3SCI: Your remix on “Worry” is also just as refreshing as the original track. I have not typically seen new artists remix their own material. Do you have any other remixes in the bank? Is there a chance that you will do side gigs as DJ?
JG: Thanks again! The remix was a lot of fun to work on. It was just a great excuse for me to try and create a different perspective of a song that people had started to listen to. There’s a couple of remixes that are going through the same process at the moment, but i’m keeping quiet about them. Remixes, for me, are a great opportunity to better myself and hone in my production and ideas. If they end up becoming available to the public, then great! But I mostly use them as an exercise.
No plans to DJ anywhere just yet, unless I’m drunk and at a Communion Club night and nobody is listening.
B3SCI: Any plans on touring the States?
JG: Not yet no, there are possible dates here and there depending on when I’m back in the USA but for now, nothing official.
B3SCI: What was the catalyst for the ‘Remenants’ EP and how was the recording process?
JG: Well, in that week where I wrote the whole EP I still didn’t know it was going to be an EP. I was just writing, exploring ideas and trying to get my production up to scratch. It was only later on that I realized these songs all had a consistent theme. They all talk about unhealthy obsessions and self-proclaimed necessities. It’s a very self-depricating EP actually. Each song comes from a different stand point about self-loathing, or self-degredation for sake of somebody else’s needs. Selfless selfishness. Essentially, each song tells the story of someone who will try (and sometimes succeed) in destroying themselves for good of somebody else that possibly doesn’t need or ever even wanted them.
So you know, the real happy stuff. Puppies and rainbows and shit.
B3SCI: Great work on the beard sir! What is the single best thing about having something that impressive growing off your face?
JG: The fact nobody ever asks me about it.
Oh no wait… The best thing about having a beard is having a neck pillow wherever you go. It also doubles up as a scarf that protects me up to Scandinavian levels of cold wind.
B3SCI: What is one essential piece of gear that you must have for your live shows?
JG: It’s impossible to write this without sounding arrogant and I PROMISE I don’t mean to! The gear I’m using at the moment is incredible, but a good workman never blames/or congratulates his tools(?). If anything goes wrong, or if anything goes well it’s because I’ve spent a large amount of time working and rehearsing and teaching myself to become the best that I can possibly be at this very moment. I have such a long way to go, and I have so much more to improve on and I will do so for as long as I’m doing this but the gear doesn’t play itself.
I mean, the Roland SPD-SX does actually play itself if you tell it, so I guess that’s the most essential piece of gear. Yeah, my drum machine.
B3SCI: Your dream co-writer (dead or alive) – who would it be and why?
JG: This is VERY difficult. There’s too many! I was raised on Stevie Wonder so he would have to be one. I think Dave Grohl is one of the most underrated melody writers alive so he’d be another. Lianne La Havas, I think, is the most interesting vocalist/songwriter/performer around at the moment so she’d be another. The list goes on and on and on and on…
Jack Garratt 
(Soundcloud)
