The Glastonbury Festival Emerging Talent Competition judging is now underway, with a main stage slot and £5,000 up for grabs for the winner.
As one of around 30 long list judges I’ve been given my list of acts to listen to ahead of my deadline to submit three acts for the shortlist judges next month.
Now at the half way stage I wanted to highlight six of the acts to impress me so far, who could be among my final contenders.
But there are still dozens more for me to listen to and as ever the array of talent on show is incredible.
Here are six acts and their songs that have impressed me so far.
Joe T Johnson – Twist
London based Joe will appeal to fans of early Tame Impala with a lo-fi psychedelic feel to his music. He has already performed on smaller stages at Glastonbury so will be well known to some regular festival goers since the release of his debut EP English Elegance. Twist is a great entry with a melody that has stayed with me since first listening.
Natalie Lindi – Keeper
The best vocal performance I’ve heard so far belongs to Natalie Lindi, who is a former national Open Mic UK winner and has also won a MOBO award. Living in London and with South African heritage Natalie blends her global influences through soulful melodies.
A debut release is set for 2024 and on the evidence of Keeper it should be excellent. This track starts off slow and builds into a ready made radio friendly hit. A true talent.
Cat Ryan – Mannerism
With its intricate guitar that’s reminiscent of Vampire Weekend, Cat Ryan’s track Mannerism instantly appealed to me. It’s also impressed Spotify listeners, with more than half a million listening to this track. She and her band have already been featured on national and their appeal has also earned them a support slot recently with Sundara Karma.
Recruitment – Overdrawn
London band Recruitment are lucky I’m listening to a lot of Gang of Four and Minutemen currently, as the fast bass line of Overdrawn is clearly influenced by those great acts. Parquet Courts are another clear influence for this act that are very much one to look out for both live and for future releases.
Lacross Club – Welsh Weather Heather
These are a great punk band from Wales called Lacross Club that has never played lacross and has already impressed BBC Introducing, which has featured them. Welsh Weather Heather is a blast from start to finish and one of the best from a new punk band I’ve heard for some time.
Jay Eatwell – Wake Up
The Billy Joel of rap. Not only is Isle of Wight’s Jay a great vocalist but a highly accomplished pianist that has already impressed on Channel 4 show The Piano.
As I go with my judging I’ll keep adding tracks from those to impress me via this Spotify List.
By Joe Lepper
Related Posts
Do you view new acts or only those who have ‘previously impressed’ just seems like you are adding acts you already know???
I’d never heard any of these acts before. They impressed me though at this stage of the judging. All acts in my long list were new to me by the way. Found out more about them since though. 🙂