Richer Unsigned Session – August
Our latest Richer Unsigned Sessiont went down on Sept. 7, 2017 with two more incredible acts gracing Cambridge Audio’s Melomania event space. As frequent readers of the blog will know, we choose our Unsigned Session acts from our monthly playlists, curated by guests the likes of Q Magazine and BBC 1’s Alice Levine. This time around, however, August’s bank holiday allowed us a unique chance to choose artists from not one but two playlists!
First up was FONX, the latest project from London-based musician Corey Fox-Fardell, who appeared on August’s ‘Best of’ playlist, curated by Reload Sessions. Having written and performed music in the past under a few different monikers, Corey is using FONX as a fresh start, with his first single “Hit Me Hard” landing on our August playlist. Coming from an artistic and musical family (dad is a professional singer, mum is a professional dancer), it’s no surprise that he’s got a knack for both melody and rhythm, describing his sound in his own words as “R&B pop, infused with jazz and soul, with some electronic elements”. In a live setting, FONX enlists friends to accompany him on stage, adding a collaborative element to the project. For our Unsigned Session, FONX was joined by his longtime friend; drummer and percussionist Elliot Agdomar.
The two met several years back while attending The BRIT school and remained close, both as friends and collaborators. Their chemistry was instantly apparent as they took the stage, and for just two performers, they really brought the house down! You can catch FONX at one his upcoming London gigs, and keep an ear out for his next single he tells us should be out in late October:
Next up was Bloom, a four-piece band from Brighton that appears on our ‘Best of September’ playlist, as chosen by Karousel Music. Singer and guitarist/keyboardist Emily moved from Scotland to go to college in Brighton where she met Megan, who also handles vocal duties on top of playing synthesizers in the band. Performing and writing for a number of years in various projects, it wasn’t until drummer Gruff and bassist Scottie joined the fold that Bloom was fully realized about two years ago, with the band releasing their first album What Is Life in October 2016. The band lovingly describes their sound as “cosmic pop” (Megan assures us that the next record will be “double cosmic”), and after hearing their ethereal harmonies entwined amidst bright synthesizers whirling around the Melomania space, we think that’s a perfect description! The band is finishing up their next single “The Ground” – which we got an exclusive sneak peek at – and then jumping feet first into the studio to start writing their next full-length album:
So what do the artists think of Richer Unsigned, and the platform we provide to both emerging and established artists?
“I think it’s amazing, especially being non-profit and at no cost for artists, because there’s not many opportunities out there for artists that are unsigned to get out there and play, so this is great”, said FONX, adding that he thought our Spotify playlists being on in all 51 of our stores nation-wide added massive benefit of exposure for new artists.
Bloom’s co-vocalist Meagan added, “It’s a lovely thing to do. We’ve been making DIY music for years, and it’s so nice to have a reputable ally who knows audio like Richer Sounds, to work with in the music industry.”
