Leeds based Beluga describe themselves as an instrumental prog-rock trio. I’m going to give them ‘instrumental’ – there ain’t no vocals (except there are voice samples on this) – and ‘trio’ – again I can’t deny that, there are three of them – but I have something of a problem with them describing themselves as ‘prog-rock’. The problem with the term prog-rock is that it comes with a set of assumptions about what that means to the ‘listening public’.

The thing is that the bands – bands, by the way, I happen to love – who are labeled as prog-rock now were never that at the time; they made ‘progressive’ music. Music which mixed influences from all over the place – rock, classical, folk, jazz. African music, Latin music, all sorts of music – in a big melting pot with the added spice of musicians who really knew their stuff, and weren’t afraid to cross boundaries and push the envelope.

So can we go back to the beginning and say ‘Leed based Beluga are a progressive instrumental trio’ who – based on the music I’ve listened to from them, including this single – make music that has influences of jazz and African music, with the sounds of bands that I’d call ‘progressive rock’.

Now I’ve established where I’m coming from, let’s dive in. ‘Painting with Three Colours’ takes as its inspiration, its theme, ‘the art of Piet Mondrian, rearranging simple musical elements into unpredictable and abstract new sections, that remain relentlessly groovy’.

There’s a structure to this, it starts afrobeat, jazzy and light, it ends stompingly heavy. Along the way there are bursts of heavy angular guitar, slower sections of gentle guitar and washes of sound.It changes and changes. Jazz, jazz-rock, afrobeat, bluesy parts, sections that display the influence of King Crimson all have their part.

The first listen I took was an adventure in sound, not knowing where it was going next, being surprised by musical twists and turns. My (by now you’ll know this is how I review) repeated listens revealed layers of sound, unexpected wonderful sounds, the glorious moments where the piece takes off. I mentioned right at the top that this track has voices; it has spoken words, distorted vocal samples. These add a twist, a new layer.

It goes without saying that with instrumental music the playing has to be good, and the playing on this is outstanding; technically fantastic but with great feel. There’s a richness to the sound that comes from the three of them playing multiple instruments. But that richness is tempered by moments of sparseness. I have grown especially fond of the sax on this track – it’s used in different ways with different tones; for me it’s the driver of this piece.

I love this release. There are times when all I want to hear is a group of musicans stretching out, taking something and making it something else, twisting and weaving it into something new. This is the jazz fan in me, the progressive rock fan in me. And my only complaint about this track is that it could be longer; I’d just love to hear it stretched to its limit over, say, 15 or 20 minutes (or, to be honest, longer).

If this doesn’t sound like your thing can I suggest you take a listen with an open mind, let the music take you where it will. If this is your thing, do it, do it now. It’s a musical joy.

The info

The band say:

Beluga formed in 2016 when Joe Kershaw (Guitar, Bass), Tommy Diplock (Drums) and Ross Munro (Sax, Keys, Production) met whilst studying at Leeds Conservatoire. The trio combines rhythmic intricacy, powerful riffs and heavily fxed sax and synthesiser tones, expanding the scope of a traditional rock trio and pursuing a variety of musical textures throughout their compositions. Both the classic Prog giants of the 1970s (Yes, King Crimson) as well as modern innovators in groove based instrumental music (Snarky Puppy, Tigran Hamasyan, KNOWER) serve as inspiration for the band.

Some of you may be asking ‘GracieSouz, who she?’. That’s a valid question, I’m gonna answer that right away – GracieSouz is the ‘performing persona’ (I can’t think of any other way of putting that) of a solo project from Sheffield based Grace Strickland de Souza. Grace is the lead vocalist and lyricist of KIN. ‘Brian Cox’ is the lead single release from her forthcoming EP ‘Better In Space’ (There’s more about this ‘down the page’). So now we all know the basics, let’s dive into the review.

The EP is a themed set of songs; yes I’m trying to avoid using the word ‘concept’ here as that comes with a set of assumptions. But a key thing to bear in mind is that the songs are cinematic in sound, and so act as a ‘soundtrack to a film’; a film that exists nowhere but in your mind. This is going to tell you that the music is big, it provokes emotion, it’s ‘visual’ in nature. I always find that music, or rather music I like, provokes images in my head. And this does that.

The song addresses themes of loneliness, isolation and escapism. As does incidentally ‘Space Oddity’ which this song reminds me of in some ways; not musically, but in mood, in feel. The music is sometimes dreamy, dark and moody electronica alt-pop. Washes of synth contrast with strummed guitar, heavy keyboards contrast with ethereal, sometimes soaring, bleak vocals. Vocally Grace is evoking the vastness of space, the emptiness of space. And yes, the coldness of space. Although space here is defined as a comforting place, a place away from the day to day difficulties of living here.

The most telling line in the song, a line that I’ve found myself latching onto is ‘There’s just something about being grounded that hurts me’. Lyrically for me the song builds around that line. The lyrics are compelling – being loaded with both directness and, at the same time, metaphorical descriptions of feelings, of the song’s character’s needs and feelings.

And yes, there is a reason the song is called ‘Brian Cox’ – although I’m going to have to admit that I have several interpretations of the reason. This isn’t a bad thing, a song can ‘mean’ different things to the same person. I’m going to say listen to the song, come up with your own reason.

The combination of words and music is haunting and compelling. The music is mesmerising – you are drawn into the musical ‘picture’ it paints. The words intrigue – they demand that you listen to them, mull them over. But over and over again I am drawn to Grace’s voice; it’s her voice that first made me sit up and listen to the song. The purity and the bleakness of her vocals add so much to the song; indeed I’d go as far as to say that without them the song would lose so much of its emotional impact.

This is beautiful, there’s no other way of putting it. I’m awaiting the EP with bated breath.

Stream/Buy: https://li.sten.to/BrianCox

The info

What began as a self-fulfilling bedroom experiment during lockdown, has developed into a fully fledged solo project for vocalist Grace Strickland de Souza. Hailing from Sheffield, Grace’s voice is most recognisable leading the alt-pop band, KIN.

GracieSouz is a darker, brooding persona which takes influence from cinematic film scores collected through childhood, epic vocal pieces sung for years as a chorister combined with the experimental electro-pop she has grown to love. Haunting soundscapes, soaring vocals and industrial synthesisers find a balance to create a sound that is emotionally ambitious and celestially hypnotic.

The forthcoming ‘Better In Space’ is a conceptual four track EP inspired by the political and social realities at the time of writing in Summer 2020. Exploring the anxieties of being a young woman, sad, angry at the world and pretty lonely, this record is a magical, expanding journey experimenting with the electro-pop genre. An impressive debut full of bold imagination and emotional vulnerability, it was created as a cyclical record, each track a separate chapter from the same book that steadily grows to a climax reminiscent of epic film scores that it was inspired by.

The EP was produced by, and with additional music from, experimental electronic producer Alexander Comana (Miedo Total, Casi Wyn) and mixed and mastered by Nicholas Alexander (Battles, Dead Slow Hoot).

​Speaking about the record, Grace says “It was written across two weeks as a self-fulfilling bedroom experiment and during that time space, in all aspects of the word, became an ideal, a fantasy with its vastness and means of escape to unknown adventure. This became a motif in each song and the sounds of the EP were made to replicate this feeling. To find balance between bewitching cinematic sounds and more aggressive industrial synthesizers. Industrial and ethereal, gigantic and sparse which is terrifying but also exceptionally beautiful at the same time.”

A release from FUDGE. is always an event, something to look forward to, something you put in the diary – well it for me anyway. Even more so when it’s Y.F.F.G, a song that isn’t quite FUDGE. as you might think of them; that is, if all who’ve heard is the releases and not seen them live.

But first some info, just so that you know if you already didn’t – ‘Your Fall From Grace’ is the second release from the forthcoming FUDGE. EP, called ‘The Town Hall Session’ after the eminent Leeds building where the band recorded the EP live.

The thing about ‘Y.F.F.G’ is that it’s that moment of quiet, that point where you can relax, calm your racing heart, at the band’s gigs. This is because it starts with some sublime and quite beautiful guitar, and then it’s that guitar and Cam. This is before it bursts into life. And the thing is that while it pounds away it does it in an almost restrained way for FUDGE.And it’s that restraint and tension – the is it going to explode, and does it build into something more explosion – that makes it all the more effective. You might consider it to be the band’s ‘anthem type rock song’.

Being slightly more restrained means you can really bear down on the words, and what’s it’s about. It is a kind of love song, well as much as you’d expect them to write a love song – a rebellious love song. Can explains:

‘Y.F.F.G’ was inspired by life in Leeds, the party scene, getting with girls. The song is speaking to a girl you’re close to in the present, and about how she may feel in the future. Will all the stupid shit you fill your body with week after week be worth it when you’re older? It says that no matter what happens it should be worth it because you’re in it together even though it’s probably stupid.’

And listening to the song and Cam’s words; he’s painting a picture of that, and making it relatable, even if you’ve not been there and done that. And who can really say we haven’t?

Explaining the writing process he says:

‘Otto came to me with the guitar part, which is quite different from the usual riffs he comes out with.It was a weird song to write for me because it’s different to our normal stuff and a weird topic, but it’s a fan favourite. It shows a very atmospheric, abstract vibe and I see it as a rebellious love song. The feeling I get from this song is the same as when you’re on your own late at night or early morning; almost surreal. That may sound strange but some of you might get what I mean.’

I’ve already mentioned that sublime atmospheric guitar intro, but there’s also a riff that’s different, Otto describes the genesis of the song musically.:

‘I call this ‘the quiet song’. I wrote it whilst someone was sleeping in the same room as me, so I picked something sweet sounding and played it with compassion. Luckily, the outcome was one of our most palatable songs, for the listener, and honestly one that I never meant to write but am grateful for having written. This is what happens when I don’t get complete free reign on a song and I have to write within parameters.’

When Otto says ‘quiet’ that’s a relative concept! But it explains the restrained feeling in the music, that tension.

Finally, if course, some words from Angus:

‘This is our ‘sit back and relax for a minute then let us wake you up again’ song. You also get to hear Cam’s sensitive side which is usually hidden behind his radginess. It feels like this is more of a classic anthem than any riff-based song though, which does make a change for us. It’s also one of our oldest tunes and has stood the test of time in our minds because we aren’t sick of it yet and it remains solidly in our live set. It’s a lot smoother in its ebbs and flows; playing drums to this one is actually quite a relaxing experience because, for once, I can sit back and let the song do the work. For that reason, I feel Y.F.F.G. is bigger than its constituent parts. A bit of a banger in other words.’

Angus really sums up this song for me – thanks Angus for doing some of my work! It is one of the band’s more accessible, smoother sounding songs. But it comes with that FUDGE. thing – those great, no wonderful, words that are grounded on and come from real life, and musically as you’d expect it’s fantastic. And being recorded live it has that energy, the power FUDGE. have, it captures that. In other words it’s the full package.

I could gush about this for ages. But if you’re a fan of the band already you’ll want to listen to this right now. If you’re not a fan – and are there any of us who aren’t – this is a great way into the band, something to ease you into them gently. Well I say gently, but….

Look, fuck it people, I love this song, and you should too.