It’s New Year’s Eve and as we contemplate the twin perils of braving the packed bars and compulsory fun of NYE on the town vs the indignity of the Hootenany, we have just the thing to get you through to 2025. Sadly this year’s Joyzine Advent Calendar was cut short (as explained here) but that means we have loads of brilliant songs still to share with you over the coming days to lighten the trudge towards the new year.
As with all of out songs this year, if you enjoy them we’d love you to consider supporting the excellent work of First Timers Fest in creating opportunities for people from under-represented backgrounds to learn an instrument, form a band, write some songs and get onstage, by making a donation here.
Cambridge-based independent label Trapped Animal Records is home to plenty of Joyzine favourites, including alt-psych trio Jemma Freeman & The Cosmic Something, who played one of our 20th birthday shows last year, and garage punk band The Baby Seals, whose 2024 album Chaos is sure to be featuring in our end of year favourites list. The label specialises in limited edition runs of beautiful vinyl records from underground and rising artists across the globe, with artist-friendly contracts including 50/50 profit splits and limited time licensing periods. Check out their Record Club, which from just £6.99/month can fill your year with fantastic new music.
Today we have tracks from three further Trapped Animal alumni for your listening enjoyment: Dear Pariah, Jeremy Tuplin and Sunday Driver – we caught up with them to find out more about their calendar songs.
Folkestone based artist Charlie Hinchcliff, aka Dear Pariah, released a new EP The Weeper Takes in October and has been selected to play the Eat Your Own Ears Recommends show at The Shacklewell Arms on 15th January, which is raising money for North London Action For the Homeless – tickets here. We have a track from the EP for you today.
Tell us a little about your tracks please
‘The End’ is about the end of the world, perfect for Christmas time.
What have you been up to in 2024?
I’ve released a new EP under Trapped Animal Records, did a special EP launch at St Pancras Old Church all whilst recieving Immunotherapy treatment after finding a large lesion in my brain this year (it’s a long story)
And what do you have planned for the next 12 months?
Record a new album! Release a short film I’ve made, create some music for another short film I’m involved in. Gig more, nap less.
Christmas songs – love them or hate them? Why?
Bloody love ‘em. Especially ‘Gaudete’, that’s a banger. Pure joy innit. A brief distraction from the state of the world right now.
Download ‘The End‘
Make a donation to First Timers
Dear Pariah: Facebook / Instagram / Bandcamp
Somerset-based indie singer/songwriter Jeremy Tuplin released his synth-drenched concept album Orville’s Discotheque through Trapped Animal last year, and today we have an alternative disco cut of it’s opening track, which was released alongside an alternative version of album track ‘The Mirrorball’ in October. You can catch Jeremy playing live in 2025 on 1st February at The Betsey Trotwood in London.
Tell us a little about your track please
‘Real World’ sets the scene of an entire made up world in the concept album Orville’s Discotheque. I wanted to touch on the sense of the ridiculous, in the album being set in this left-of-reality, off-kilter disco land where the characters only seem to meet and play out their lives in various underground discotheques, whilst also trying to lure the listener in by highlighting the realness of emotion felt by the characters in the album (who don’t know they’re not real). On one hand it’s all just about that, but on another level a lot of the actual world we live in, ie most of the internet now, policies of peripheral as well as mainstream political parties, is quite far removed from actual reality, so it’s kind of an attempt to critique that too.
What have you been up to in 2024?
I’ve played a variety of shows in and around London either stripped back or solo, or with the band. Highlights being a headline band show at The Finsbury in September, and a solo show at St Pancras Old Church supporting Dear Pariah in November. But I’ve mostly been recording an album at home and at other people’s homes, which is the first time I’ve attempted to make a record outside of a studio, and being fully in control of every part of the process. Let’s just say it’s been a steep learning curve but I’m getting to the end of the process now and I’m (quietly) pleased with how it’s going.
And what do you have planned for the next 12 months?
Finishing the record. Hopefully by early January, then finalising release dates, touring etc. I think so far it’s confirmed that I’ll be coming back to Italy in early May, but the rest is still tbc.
Christmas songs – love them or hate them? Why?
I think everyone knows by now that there’s a sense of ridiculousness about Christmas songs, but we’re mostly happy to go along with it. So it depends on the song – hate: the Bandaid song (but love to joke about how absurd the lyrics are); love Jose Feliciano – Feliz Navidad.
Download ‘Real World [Disco Cut]‘
Make a donation to First Timers
Jeremy Tuplin: Facebook / Instagram / Threads / Bandcamp
Sunday Driver are currently crowdfunding for the release of their new LP Silk & Filth, due out in March 2025 – you can contribute here in return for all sorts of rather lovely perks, including having your name included in the thanks section of the album sleeve, a signed 7″ single and even a pair of socks hand-knitted by a member of the band. Today we have a track from the album, ‘Devils’, to whet your appetite for the full LP release. You can get your hands on a further free song by joining the band’s mailing list.
Pete from the band (who also happens to be a director of Trapped Animal) told us more:
Tell us a little about your tracks please
Well, if you’re looking for a musical ballpark to put us in, imagine if Kate Bush hired Led Zeppelin plus a Sitar player, formed a band and took them through a Steampunk phase. If you want to know what inspires our tracks, we’ve a laaaaarge back catalogue by now, so I’ll tell you about our new song ‘Devils’.
‘Devils’ is a song about impending change and loss, nostalgia and loneliness. It conveys the sorrow that you might feel when one era of your life draws to a close, and another begins.
Chandy’s ‘muse’ for this idea came while she contemplated having a baby. This is often a time when women are expected to feel joyful but, alongside that, many also feel apprehensive and bereft while facing the prospect of giving over control of their bodies and their lives.
Chandy’s parallel career as a scientist inspires in her that same sense of loss in the face of climate change, as we observe the dramatic changes taking place to our beloved planet, its atmosphere, oceans, ice cover and ecosystems. Which is why footage from her 1999 expedition to Antarctica also shows up in the video for ‘Devils’.
What have you been up to in 2024?
As a band, we’ve been slowly preparing for the release of our new album. It’s been a long-time coming – I recorded the drums in 2015-16 – but it’s finally here despite accidently making two albums and having to release that other album first! The pre-launch of the officially titled ‘Silk And Filth’ is live now. So if you want exclusive physical things (limited edition vinyl, T-Shirts, or wackier items like socks hand-knitted by our clarinettist) you can get them on our label’s website (trappedanimal.com).
And what do you have planned for the next 12 months?
Sleep. Rest LOADS. Plus of course, release the album and play a bunch of gigs. Chandy and I will also start working on demos for our next release, which is exciting. We’ve some other big artist releases on our label – which Joel from Sunday Driver and I also co-direct – plus we plan to get out and about on YouTube a lot more.
Christmas songs – love them or hate them? Why?
Haha, they’re whatever you make them. I’m the personality type that wants to explore new things and sing new songs, so being bombarded with the same songs every year is quite strange to me. I enjoy it though – but Christmas food gets my real vote. I don’t see why that should be seasonal – I’d eat mince pies and Christmas pudding all year round…
Download ‘Devils‘
Make a donation to First Timers
Sunday Driver: Website / Facebook / Instagram / Bandcamp / Mailing List
Trapped Animal: Website / Facebook / Instagram / Bandcamp
Catch up on all of this year’s Advent Calendar Tracks so far:
1: Piney Gir – Reindeer
2: Gabriel Minnikin – Said Information
3: LOUD WOMEN ft. Smallways, Butterknife, Daddy Issues, Witch Spit, R.U.B, Vipersnatch, Worm Girlz, Lady Lazarus and Stabbitha & The Knifey Wifeys
4: First Timers Fest ft. Gay Skeleton Club and Skutterfly
5: Goo Records ft. Jopy, The Stanford Family Band, Owners Club and The Roebucks
6: Dead Horse – Historic
7: Gemma Rogers – Never Have I Ever
8: Umarells – Closer
9: MJ Hibbett – Moshi Twistmas
10: The Indelicates – Mom Is Waking Up (acoustic)
11: The Fades – Caca (BBC 6Music Session)
12: West Midlands – Totally Killing The Community Clinic
13: Subliminal Girls – Mid-December
14: How To Swim – Soul One
15: Forming – You What
Festive Finale: Stuffed Foxes, One Big Family + Maps & Muir
Advent Extra: Prismatiqk – Hannah & Gabi
Advent Extra: Electric Pets – Stumblin’ In
Advent Extra: The Middle People – Hello John
Advent Extra: Art Trip & The Static Sound – Algorithms of Mass Destruction
Advent Extra: The Scaramanga Six – Vomit Clock
Keep up to date with all new content on Joyzine via
Facebook | Bluesky | Instagram | Threads | Mailing List