*Knock knock*
“Who’s there?”
“5 exciting new musical acts that you may or may not know were worked on at Metropolis Studios.”
“5 exciting new musical acts that you may or may not know were worked on at Metropolis Studios, who?”
“…”

Strong Asian Mothers – Animal EP

This London based trio are extremely hard to pin down. On their “Animal EP”, released on the 3rd of March, they switch seamlessly between Hip-Hop, Indie-Pop, Electro and Trap. What we can say for certain however is that (as well as having one of the best band names evaaaah) Strong Asian Mothers has a sound distinctly theirs and comparing them to influences would be an arduous and ill-fated task. If you are interested be sure to catch them at their next headline gig at Kamio (formerly The Red Gallery) on the 27th of April. They happen to fit in very nicely with the artist below, Seramic, so I guess now would be a good time to transition to…

Seramic – I Got You

P-Funk style vocals and synths, some filthy guitar licks and a bassline Thundercat would be proud of combine to great effect on the track “I Got You” by Seramic. The track mixes live and sampled sounds to help create a cocktail of Soul, Funk and Pop. A second EP is on the way from the London producer and we imagine it will be greeted gleefully. Seramic will be heading out on tour with Bear’s Den across some select cities in the UK, Ireland and Europe throughout March and April so why not see two great acts for the price of one?

Black Honey – Somebody Better

Black Honey are back at their loudest and most urgent with their new single “Somebody Better”. Guitars wail, drums pound away meanwhile Izzy Phillips’ vocals soar triumphantly over it all. The band were one of the revelations at last year’s Great Escape Festival in Brighton and will be returning to the scene of the crime (the crime being playing noisy yet melodic guitar music really rather well) on the 3rd of April when they conclude their UK tour at Concorde 2. This exciting act are really one not to miss!

XamVolo – Old Soul

XamVolo might be telling the truth when he sings “I spend my days listening to Old Soul” but there certainly isn’t anything “old” sounding about his new single. Old Soul, out on the 7th of April, is another hybrid on this month’s list, combining elements of soul (that lead vocal is dripping with the stuff!), jazz (the acoustic guitar flourishes throughout are majestic) and hip-hop (whirring synthesisers, pitch shifting vocal melodies and a killer bass drum). Also for any scat fans out there (I can’t be the only one surely) there is a lovely bit of vocal gymnastics in the final third of the track. XamVolo will be playing the Live At Leeds festival on Saturday the 29th of April (alongside Black Honey and Strong Asian Mothers who you just read about only a few seconds ago!) so if you are in the area get down there, seriously, get out the house and see some live music it would be fun I promise!

Mura Masa – 1 Night

Summer banger alert! Ok I know it’s not really even Spring yet but Mura Masa with “1 Night” has dropped a track that is sure to be blasting out of sweaty cars stuck in sweltering traffic, tinny bluetooth speakers in public parks and one of a group of teens’ iPhones at the back of the 29 bus. The fact that none of these scenarios would be considered annoying is a huge compliment to Mura Masa as the freakishly young producer (with help from another friend of Metropolis Mastering Charli XCX) has served us a bouncy and energetic exploration of being young, popular and good looking. Something we all can relate to surely. His album will be out all in good time so whilst you wait listen to this and “Love$ick” on repeat.To keep up to date with all things Metropolis Mastering related check out our website…

Check out our Spotify playlist which we will be adding to as the year goes on with all our tips and recommendations…

The Playback

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Metropolis Studios is proud to have been a part of Drake’s record breaking release More Life.

Easily taking #1 on the Billboard charts, the playlist-styled project landed the rapper’s seventh consecutive release to debut in the top spot, tied for most number ones of any rap artist, whilst having no less than 36 singles in the UK charts concurrently! More Life continues to smash streaming records having been streamed over 600 million times in it’s first week, and only growing…

While Drake and the OVO team were in London earlier this year – part of his sold-out 8 night stint at The O2 for the ‘Boy Meets World’ tour – Drizzy, and his production team took over Studios A, B and E, or in his own words, stepped back down “memory lane”. After many late nights, Metropolis Studios is proud to also have been credited on two tracks; Sacrifices and Do Not Disturb. 

On Sacrifices, Young Thug‘s vocals were recorded in Studio A by Charles “Bricks” Driggers. Upon sharing a picture on Instagram with Drake from Studio A’s control room, Young Thug said;

“Thanks for this journey my brada, u 1 of the realist rappers I know… very GgenuinNe man and brada, I love the way u treat me and respect me and my heart!!! YOU R NUN LIKE THESE OTHER RAPPERS. I mean ALL OF EM…. And for that I’m with u foreva!”
Young Thug

Do Not Disturb was also recorded here at Metropolis by Noel Cadastre & Harley Arsenault. Our good pal Aaron Ahmad is credited as Assistant Engineer on the record…

I gotta start sleepin’ at the studio
I don’t have no time to be no Romeo
All the love I need is at the rodeo
All the love I need is here at OVO

From the glimpses we saw and kept closely guarded, we were blown away at the tonne of effort that must have went into this release, which deserves all the accolades it’s receiving.

Thank you OVO for making us a small part of this legendary project.

More Life!

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For more information and availability of Metropolis Studios’ services please contact our studios team on studios@https://www.thisismetropolis.com

February has been and gone and with it came chilly temperatures as well as some red hot tunes!

In this second edition of The Playback we are shining our spotlight on just five new, hip, cool and bare sick bands and solo artists with so much buzz around them you’d think they live in a colony, have wings and collect pollen…

White Kite

Falsetto vocals and pinch harmonics do battle throughout London group White Kite’s debut single “Swans”. What starts out as a seemingly standard electro pop number takes a weird left-field turn with a chorus containing disorientating guitars expertly blended into synths. Equal parts hazy and whoozy the song bops along at its own tropical rhythm resulting in a very promising statement of intent. If your interest is piqued catch them at Birthdays at a free entry show on the 10th of March.

Formation

Formation have their debut album coming out on the 24th of March and it promises to be huge. Of the 4 tracks already available “A Friend” demonstrates best how much of a force to be reckoned with this South London 5 piece are. Combining elements of James Murphy style production (including plentiful cowbell), synth lines the French wizards “Pheonix” would be proud of and a spiky punk attitude born from being young and restless in the post-social media age. You can see what all of the fuss is about for yourself at XOYO on the 21st of March.

Doll Duncan

“Love Light” is one of those songs that rings true for everyone who’s ever had a passionate relationship fizzle out and fade away. The track grows wilder and wilder as Doll frantically calls for her partner to “Look at me!”. Doll’s debut EP “Hurricane” was released on the 24th of February and she plays at the Paper Dress Vintage bar on International Women’s day (8th of March) where a portion of all tickets sales will be donated to the UN Women Fund For Gender Equality. (Fun fact Doll was a studio runner here at Metropolis a few years ago!)

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Our Girl

In the time since releasing their debut EP via Cannibal Hymns at the end of 2016, Brighton based Our Girl have been keeping busy hopping around the UK sharing their fuzzy garage rock with the growing number of previously converted fans as well as the uninitiated. It was no shock to us when Our Girl also announced that they had secured funding from the PRS foundation to help them record their debut album. If you want to see Our Girl in action here at Metropolis Studios when the play here live in Studio A on the 6th of March (there are still a few tickets left here…)

The Amazons

Tipped for greatness, (they were on the BBC Sound of 2017 longlist), this February The Amazons released unto the world the riff heavy “Black Magic”. The track has a frenetic energy which keeps moving and growing and the lead vocals are passionate and urgent. Everything builds to a guitar solo which can only be described as face melting. Fans of Royal Blood and Wolf Alice especially will have their boat’s floated by this four piece from Reading. There are also plenty of opportunities to catch them across the UK and Europe throughout March and April if you like what you hear.To keep up to date with all things Metropolis Mastering related check out our website…

Check out our Spotify playlist which we will be adding to as the year goes on with all our tips and recommendations…

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Metropolis Live, in partnership with Clash Magazine, is a series of monthly shows hosted in the intimacy of legendary Studio A featuring some of the best bands around town…

Our March show on Monday 6th has a killer line up featuring two more amazing acts… The Orwells who are over here on tour from the US of A supported by one of the best new bands you are likely to see this year, Our Girl.

• Doors are at 7pm.
• Performance starts at 8pm.

Grab your free tickets here!

American tykes The Orwells return, fresh from the release of their scandalous new album ‘Terrible Human Beings’. Joining the band are Brighton/London three-piece Our Girl, with the Cannibal Hymns-aligned band already making waves. Psyched.

Grab your free tickets here!

Metropolis Studios would like to extend huge congratulations to Liam Nolan, picking up two GRAMMY Awards at the 59th annual award show.

Liam Nolan, credited for his work on Adele’s latest album ’25’, picked up two gongs including Record Of The Year for Hello and Album Of The Year – 25.

“We are absolutely delighted for Liam picking up his awards at last night’s GRAMMYs. The continued acclaim he’s receiving for his hard work and dedication to audio perfection is so well deserved. It’s always a pleasure welcoming Adele to record with us here at Metropolis and with the quality of her latest record, 25, it’s no surprise she’s sweeping up at so many award ceremonies around the globe.”
Ian Brenchley, CEO.

Adele stole the show, held at the Staples Center in LA, picking up a total of five GRAMMYs including Album Of The Year (25), Record Of The Year (Hello), Song Of The Year (Hello), Best Pop Solo Performance (Hello) & Best Pop Vocal Album (25). The singer made history by becoming the first artist to win Album Of The Year, Record Of The Year and Song Of The Year in one evening for the second time, having done so in 2012 with ’21’ (also recorded at Metropolis) and ‘Rolling In The Deep’.

For more information and availability of Liam Nolan’s and Metropolis Studios’ services please contact our studios team on studios@https://www.thisismetropolis.com

Metropolis Live, in partnership with Clash Magazine, is a series of free monthly showcases presenting some of the best acts around town, performing live here at Metropolis Studios. To date we’ve had Saint Leonard’s Horses, Bad Pop, Piano Wire and The King’s Parade. Our February show on Thursday the 16th features two more amazing acts, Nimmo and Ten Fé.

• Doors are at 7pm.
• Performance starts at 8pm.

Grab your free tickets here!

NIMMO

Here’s what the Guardian said…
Nimmo and the Gauntletts are a five-piece band recently signed to Columbia. And when you hear their music hopefully you will be as taken aback as we were because what they do – purvey, specialise in – is superior dance-pop, with some of the lugubriousness of the xx and the ecstatic darkness of New Order. They’re like an outgoing xx – the exxtrovert, if you will. And their tunes are terrific while their lyrics deal in the sort of dismal minutiae that will be familiar to anyone who has endured the breakdown of a relationship.

TEN FÉ
Here’s what NME said…
When London-based duo Ten Fé were recording their debut album in Berlin, they were listening to a ton of bands like The Cure and Bruce Springsteen, and the Drive soundtrack. “These bass, drum and lush string-synth parts just came through quite naturally,” they say. You can totally hear Bruce’s up-tempo, highway-ready drums on their latest offering, ‘Overflow’, along with Ben Moorhouse’s bittersweet baritone, and nostalgia-tapping synths that’ll probably chime well with anyone who enjoyed Netflix’s sci-fi hit Stranger Things: it’s instantly familiar in the best way.

Grab your free tickets here!

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Congratulations everyone! The first month of 2017 is over and we made it through relatively unscathed (just about).

Now here at Metropolis Mastering there is nothing more that we love than being able to help bands and acts with their music before they supernova into massive festival headlining, chart bothering superstars. The following are just a few examples of such acts we’ve had the pleasure of working with so far in 2017…

The Eskimo Chain

The Eskimo Chain formed when they were 16 in Margate and aren’t afraid to flaunt their psychedelic influences one bit! Fresh from recording 3 new tracks with producer extraordinaire Margo Broom, The Eskimo Chain have unleashed “Sun Data” onto the world. Driving rhythms, guitars drowned in tremolo and a warm throbbing bass sound that is impossible not to move your head to are all tightly woven into the 4 minutes provided. You can check the guys out when the play Karma Fest – Part V in Leeds in May.

Starling

One of our acts to look out for in 2017, Starling has delivered a strong and gritty slice of pop music. The Line Of Best Fit agrees and calls “No Rest For The Wicked” the “perfect track to stomp around to and celebrate the power of women in pop”. The rest of the EP, licensed by Distiller Records, is out later on in Spring and now our interest is piqued we expect even bigger and better things to come.

Blaenavon

Currently on a tour of the UK supporting Sundara Karma, Blaenavon have shared a new video from their album “That’s Your Lot” available to pre-order now on Transgressive Records. These soon to be indie darlings have laid down their marker with “Orthodox Man” and on this showing it looks like they can expect to win over many more fans this year.

Honey Moon

Another of our tips for 2017, Honey Moon play their first show of 2017 at The Old Blue Last in trendy East London. Come join us, it promises to be great. We will be the ones at the front marvelling at the relaxed precision of the band’s guitar work. Fans of Mac DeMarco should get on this before everyone else realises how good they are.

2CELLOS

Handsome and dangerously talented, meet Luka Šulić and Stjepan Hauser of the classical crossover act 2CELLOS. Their re-workings of iconic rock tunes are currently racking up the hits on YouTube. “Score” is the name of their upcoming album and to get us excited for it they have shared their gloriously epic cover of the theme from everyone’s favourite dragon and nudity filled TV show “Game Of Thrones”.To keep up to date with all things Metropolis Mastering related check out our website…

Check out our Spotify playlist which we will be adding to as the year goes on with all our tips and recommendations…

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Metropolis Live, in partnership with Clash Magazine, is a series of free monthly showcases presenting some of the best acts around town, performing live at Metropolis Studios, one of the most exclusive recording studios in the world.

Our first 2017 show , features a band called The King’s Parade on Tuesday 31st of January. If you miss the chance to grab tickets for this show, make sure you join our waiting list.

• Doors are at 7pm.
• Performance starts at 8pm.

Grab your free tickets here!

The King’s Parade

“An accomplished sound worthy of reaching a far wider audience”
Tom Robinson BBC 6 Music.

Formed on a Hawaiian cruise liner in 2012, ‘The King’s Parade’ are North-West London’s newest and exciting four piece band, consisting of lead Vocalist and Guitarist Olly Corpe, Bassist Tom English, Drummer Chris Brent and Sam Rooney on Keys. With a style heavily influenced by Motown greats, ‘The King’s Parade’ cleverly combine Bluesy arrangements blended with smooth Soul inspired vocals to deliver a fresh sound reminiscent of 1960’s Rhythm and Blues dubbed as today’s “NuTown.”

Having publically been championed and certified as “London’s best street performers” by Boris Johnson during the ‘Back Busking’ campaign, ‘The King’s Parade’ have been honoured to perform at some of London’s most famous and prestigious venues. One of which saw the band headlining at the legendary Ronnie Scott’s in Soho. Earlier this year the band offered support to JJ Grey and MOFRO throughout their German tour as well as performing at this years Bestival in the Isle Of Wight.

A winning combination of great songs, great presence and superb energetic performances, have enabled ‘The King’s Parade’ to triumph from strength to strength building a solid following along the way, seeing these guys perform live you’ll understand why they have been tagged as true entertainers.

Grab your free tickets here!

It’s that time of year again when the mighty of Metropolis Mastering knock heads together to build the definitive list of acts that will conquer the world of music in 2017.

Considering how on point last year’s predictions were, we’re confident the guys can read the future and guess who will be breaking through into the charts in the next 12 months. We get a buzz from working with new acts at Metropolis, here’s who we think could make 2017 their own.

YAK

YAK have been not so quietly going about their business building a five star reputation for their live shows. Frontman Oliver Burslem thrashes around the stage like a grunge era Mick Jagger and the band’s abrasive style has managed to rub some people up the wrong way (just ask The Last Shadow Puppets).

YAK – Harbour The Feeling
Rough Trade Management. Engineered by Leo Ross, mixed by Claudius Mittendorfer and produced by Steve Mackey.
Mastered by John Davis.

Poté

St. Lucian born Poté is an electronic artist making catchy tunes containing messages about the heart that you can still get down to. “Fire for Fire” is one such tune featuring a guest verse from rapper Kojey Radical that will leave you bopping your head whilst stroking your chin.

Poté – Fire for Fire
SEG Music.
Mastered by Stuart Hawkes.

Goat Girl

This South London riotous girl group make wiry Mark E. Smith-esque blasts of noise. Their lyrics are as razor sharp and cutting as their guitar lines and their attitude is the perfect tonic to a less than perfect 2016.

Goat Girl – Scum
Rough Trade. Recorded and produced by Margo Broom at Hermitage Works Studios.
Mastered by Felix Davis.

CallMeTheKidd

North London’s multi-talented CallMeTheKidd has recently stepped out from behind the scenes producing upcoming artists to release his debut EP “The Becoming”. The title track melds soul searching lyrics with very fresh sounding beats and vocals seamlessly. CMTK even directed his own video… is there anything this guy can’t do?

CallMeTheKidd – The Becoming
Mastered by Andy ‘Hippy’ Baldwin.

Honey Moon

The chilled out grooves coming from Honey Moon are enough to make the most cynical heart soften slightly. For those that like the laid back vibes of Mac Demarco with British Pop sensibilities, “Best In Town” will do the trick.

Honey Moon – Best In Town
Sad Club Records.
Mastered by Peter Hewitt-Dutton.

Beware Of Darkness

Hailing from Santa Barbara, Beware Of Darkness are responsible for the biggest and best riff on this years list. If you are not immediately sold within the first 5 seconds of “Muthafucka” then there really is no pleasing you.

Beware Of Darkness – Muthafucka
Bright Antenna Records.
Mastered by John Davis.

Starling

With a four track EP expected early 2017 it seems a sure bet that Starling will be a name most will become more familiar with. Her songs sound both light and dark simultaneously due to her combination of breathy vocals and whooshy synths. Don’t expect bubblegum pop but something more challenging and a lot more rewarding.

Starling
Communion Records.
Mastered by Stuart Hawkes.

Áine Cahill

This Irish born songstress Áine Cahill croons smoothly over lush retro strings and slinky guitar lines on “Plastic” released early 2017. If there is any justice it will be chosen as the next James Bond theme.

Áine Cahill – Plastic
LAB Records.
Mastered by Peter Hewitt-Dutton.

Aaron Taylor

We could have chosen to highlight any of the songs from “Better Days”, The second EP from the singer and producer Aaron Taylor. Funky, smooth and cool, Aaron’s vocals are the star on this collection of soulful tunes.. Fans of the late great Prince should definitely give this a listen.

Aaron Taylor – Breakfast
Edenic Records Ltd. Written, arranged and produced by Aaron Taylor.
Mastered by Andy ‘Hippy’ Baldwin.

HMLTD

One of the most bonkers live acts you can imagine (picture a canvas like stage surrounded by armless mannequins and creepy baby dolls and you’re nearly there!) with a sound as out there as their fashion choices. You can hear The Horrors’ influence on this gnarly and gritty single. “London is stained” and soon the rest of the UK will be.

HMLTD – Stained
Rough Trade. Engineered by Steve Osbourne and produced by Faris Badwan at Gunfactory and Real World Studios.
Mastered by Felix Davis.

About Metropolis Mastering

Metropolis Mastering was founded in 1993 with the intention of redefining international standards. That same passion, ambition and commitment is still the force that drives us today. Our five mastering suites were designed and built to the highest possible specification, offering the best environment for critical listening, and equipped with some of the most sought after mastering equipment around.

Find out more about the Metropolis Mastering team.

Five Questions With… Tony Cousins

Tony Cousins became a cutting engineer in 1980 at the Townhouse before becoming a fully-fledged audio mastering engineer when he, Ian Cooper and Tim Young started Metropolis Mastering. Since then, Peter Gabriel, Genesis, Adele, David Sylvian, Steve Winwood, Elton John, Carla Bruni, Amadou & Mariam, Amr Diab, Tom Odell and Foxes all have one thing in common… Tony’s worked with them all!

1. What’s been your favourite release you’ve worked on in 2016 so far & why?

Tough one… probably Rumer singing Bacharach & David catalogue. Brilliant songs done with great attention to detail and mood, she inhabits them. But there are several others I also enjoyed mastering – Inconscientes by the Basque guitarist Iñaki Antón, for example.

2. What are your top three releases you’ve worked on in your career so far and why?

Ha! That’s impossible to answer… As a project probably the Peter Gabriel remastering and his other releases. All the work is considered, usually with sufficient time to make further adjustments as required.

3. How can an artist / band best prepare their tracks for mastering?

By having a good idea of what they are trying to achieve and being able to either illustrate it or discuss it.

4. What’s the best piece of advice you’d give to an aspiring mastering engineer?

Don’t be straightjacketed, listen to as great a variety of music as possible… and wash regularly.

5. What artists should we be looking out for in 2017?

Keep an eye out for Jacob Collier and Eivind Aarset. Both incredible artists.

Metropolis Studios invites you to try our unattended Mixing & Mastering services with a special discount offer for a limited time only. Utilising our offer you can book Tony Cousins to master your next project at an unbeatable price. If you place any iMixing orders before the end of the year, you will automatically be entered into our prize draw. Announced in the New Year, you could win a half day studio session with one of our engineers here at Metropolis!