Le Souriant

Listen to it and much more on the #MusicMonday playlist.

RIP William Orbit :(

Listen to it and much more on the #MusicMonday playlist.

Circuit Zandvoort is a 4.259 km (2.646 mi) motorsport race track located near the North Sea coast line and 35 km (22 mi) west of Amsterdam.

The first street race was held on 3 June 1939, but the first race as a circuit, the Prijs van Zandvoort, took place on 7 August 1948.

In 1995, the government of the Netherlands began building an international Grand Prix Circuit. This project was finished in 2001 when the track was redesigned to a 4.307 km (2.676 mi) long circuit and a new pits building was made.

On 14 May 2019 it was confirmed that Zandvoort would host the Dutch Grand Prix for 2020 and beyond for a duration of at least three years, with the option to host another two years beyond that.

In this issue we let music help us explore dark themes like unhealthy infatuation, addiction, and existential experiences, with the glowing positivity of every version of you. Give them a listen, with a word from the artists themselves. 🎧

Suns of Rest – Overflow

Trust your gut Fill up on your own cup Let them fall In love with the overflow

We begin our travels in Coventry, England, with a shoegazey Post-Rock track about not waiting for something that might not ever happen. Band member Daz explains:

"The track started when our bass player came up with this bass line. It was an unusual bass line for him because he normally plays moody bass lines but this one seemed more positive. 😂 Then our drummer, Sean Carroll, started banging away with this almost tribal beat and then both myself and the guitarist, Sean Cunningham, joined in with melody and guitar lead.

It had this positive feel to it and needed the words to be positive. Weirdly that night I went home and just was scrolling through my phone and this picture appeared of this big jug being filled up and spilling over the side with this caption just saying "fill your own cup first and let the world benefit from your overflow" and was like "yes!!" That's it!! Positivity!! And I jumped up put the bedroom light on, and wrote the song in about 10mins. Next practice I put the words to the melody and the song was pretty much done and dusted, and it felt naturally done, like no more was needed to be added.

So basically it's a song about positivity, loving life, loving yourself, filling up on your own cup to the top and letting the others enjoy your overflow. 🩵"

Patchwork Dots – Blurry Eyed

Ignore your instincts, Keep me up all night I want you face to face, Til I’m blurry eyed

Own your image Switch from frame to frame You choose whichever filter makes you feel ok

Ain't no reason to apologize you do you, the way you do till your satisfied

Let's travel north to Sheffield, for a Lo Fi Alternative Rock track about finding a way to a place that's meant for you in your own terms, somehow, someway:

"It’s written about addictions and getting lost in your addictions to the point where it becomes routine, but however “routine” it becomes there’s always a way out with other distractions or friends to help if you can recognize that it’s an addiction."

Souls in Rhythm – Gaslight

The first spark was when I saw her getting down in the second row A smoke show so hot her pants were literally on fire She caught my eye he was the only one clapping on the 1&3 After I called her out she claimed the drummer dropped the beat (...yeah right)

Burn it up. Blow my mind. Steal the air. Waste my time. Crazy. (Silly conversations) Her tongue is hot. Working me. Smoke & mirrors. Wear me down. It’s hazy. (An insane situation) A five-alarm inferno. Truth verses a pyromaniac. Hey!

We fly now to Calgary, Alberta, Canada for an 80s infused Classic Funk and Soul track about falling for the wrong person, and getting burned for it:

"I was really looking for something fast with a funk groove and a little bit of a rock edge... So I jammed a bunch of riffs until I came up with the main bass line/riff... then lyrically yeah, you called it... the whole gaslight concept came from a past relationship I had where this person would gaslight me about little insignificant things... really strange, unusual and manipulative behavior for no good reason. It wasn't a long relationship haha. I ended it pretty quickly, but man it messes with your head when someone repeatedly gaslights you about things you see or hear with your own eyes!"

Vulture Twin – Messorem

I've died a thousand times Raise me up now Harvester of dreams Smoke to sky

I know where shadows lie Cells breaking down They don't say what they mean They don't know why or how

Let's go now to Chapel Hill, NC. for an Alternative Rock track that brings surrealistic images up front, and makes you see the unseen with open eyes.  Band member Elizabeth explains:

"We like for theme to be open for interpretation by the listener, so we’re interested to hear what could come up for others and how things resonate differently from person to person.

I feel like most people have probably experienced at least one “dark night of the soul” in their lifetime, brought on by any number of internal or external influences. I personally have had a few, and Messorem is like an existential meditation that emerged from that place.

The way Eddie and I create together really inspires me. I’m able to bring forward something deeply personal and vulnerable, messy or weird or whatever, and there is space for all of it. I don’t have to shrink or contort myself or my ideas in order for him to pick up whatever it is I’m putting down. We do that for each other, and it makes the creative process really fun, cathartic, and interesting."

Nina D. – Dear Younger Me

I know you're staring at the ceiling thinking you were always one step behind trying so hard to be what they needed just to feel like you were enough

you're counting every little failure like they're written into stone you don't know it yet but one day you'll stop searching for somewhere to belong

Our travels end up in Østfold, Norway with an acoustic Emotional Pop track that serves as a reminder that life may not carry on as expected, but you will always find your way:

"Dear Younger Me was inspired by the idea of writing a letter to my younger self. It reflects on mistakes, growth, and learning to show yourself the kindness you needed all along. It’s deeply personal, basically straight from my diary. 🌼"

Listen to them and much more on the complete playlist:

Listen to it and much more on the #MusicMonday playlist.

Listen to it and much more on the #MusicMonday playlist.

The 'Maeslant barrier' is a storm surge barrier on the Nieuwe Waterweg. It was constructed from 1991 to 1997. The barrier responds to water level predictions calculated by a centralized computer system called BOS. It automatically closes when Rotterdam, especially the Port of Rotterdam, is threatened with flooding.

Maeslantkering has two 210-metre long barrier gates, with two 237-metre long steel trusses holding each. When closed, the barrier protects the entire width (360 metres) of the Nieuwe Waterweg, the main waterway of Port of Rotterdam. It is one of the largest moving structures on Earth.

This storm surge barrier had to be located in the waterway that connects Rotterdam with the North Sea. This played an important role in the planning stage of the construction, as this waterway is the main route to the port of Rotterdam.

RIP Kavinsky :(

On this issue, our travels take us to the UK, for a selection of Indie gems, with a bluesy touch at the end. Give them a listen, with a word from the artists themselves. 🎧

KATANES – Is It Too Soon to Tell You I Love You?

you got me moving on overdrive you're the calm inside my chaos you're the reason I want to stay alive

and i want to know if you're gonna save me

We begin our music trip up in the very north in Caithness, Scotland for an Indie Rock track about taking the initiative for love. Sometimes good things come to those who don't wait:

"The song is about a certain person, wanting to take a risk to tell them something that could either go two ways.

[Band member] Adam took the risk and it went very well I’d say."

Lyra – Way Out

Sometimes I feel like I can't get a prayer Not even a whisper to tell me that you’re there

Running the wheel, breathing without air, I swear life is but a dream and now I'm looking for a way out

waiting for the day when you can show me the way

We now travel to London, England, for a poppy Alt Rock track about hoping to detach from someone, but not knowing how to do so:

"It's the cost of tying your self-worth to external validation. At its core, the track reflects on dedicating everything to a singular purpose—only to realize it doesn’t bring the fulfillment you expected.

During the creation process we experimented a lot with building tension and release - keeping parts more stripped back before letting the chorus fully open up. We also leaned further into a bigger pop/rock-inspired sound with driving production, layered vocals and a more euphoric feel overall.

The final version ended up sounding much bigger and more energetic than the original demo, but that emotional core stayed the same throughout mainly thanks to Larry [Hibbitt] for helping massively in creating this energetic song."

Tiny Vessels – Fix It Up

will you call me now will you call my name breathing in, breathing out the pain i miss you

and i know it's not the same crying on the drive home leave you where you lay

Let's go now to Cambridge, for an Indie Rock track about wishing to go back, at least just once, and be together. Band member Harry explains:

"So the track started with our guitarist Lee, who arranged the synths and original drum pattern, he sent it over to me and I immediately felt a wave of emotion in the song, I had been working on the theme of loss, losing someone very close to me far too early in their lives, and wishing I had another 5 minutes to say what I didn’t get the chance to say to them, so it’s in essence a sad song! I think it works on multiple levels too, it can also be associated with relationships, etc."

Polo Lounge – Paradise

If I see you now and then, an hour or another day it doesn’t matter anyway

We pick up where we left off then we go and then we go until we go again

Don’t be a stranger If you wanna follow me We can get lost together Anywhere you wanna be We can get lost together

We drive now to Ramsgate, Kent for another Indie Rock track about that place you, and another person reach, where both would like to stay. It could be anywhere:

"The song is a story of friendships. Sometimes you don’t speak or see someone for a long time, but when you do see each other it’s like no time has passed. It’s inspired by different times and different friends. But in the end you’re still good friends and a sign of a good friendship is picking up where you left off!

“We could be anywhere”, which is a lyric in the song, is a quote of something me and my mates used to say while growing up in Ramsgate looking out at the sea or the harbour.

“You’re the one I’m needing now” that’s just about times when you might be missing your friends."

Benny Bianco – Mountain Blues

I'm going up the mountain just to clear my mind. The woman that I love is proving hard to find.

I still love her ways and her smiling face. But I feel our love is drifting. Now I need some space.

My case is packed. My route's already planned. I've already made my peace about her having another man.

Our last stop is Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, for a Blues track in the most classic way, a painful song about unattainable love:

"It wasn't inspired by an experience per se, more of a mood found in the old blues of Leroy Carr and Scrapper Blackwell, a mood I could almost parachute into, we've all felt like we want to just leave our worldly possessions and just go be a hermit but I think it was realizing bringing that blues idea into being through my own voice and way of saying it."

Listen to them and much more on the complete playlist:

Listen to it and much more on the #MusicMonday playlist.

Listen to it and much more on the #MusicMonday playlist.

Listen to it and much more on the #MusicMonday playlist.

Listen to it and much more on the #MusicMonday playlist.

Listen to it and much more on the #MusicMonday playlist.