Turtle Tempo Live Music // Suzi Island // Montrell
In one of our build-up articles to Turtle Tempo’s live music events, Sugarthief said that “live music events give small bands a chance to play for people who are fans of live music and independent artists, which would otherwise be hard to do by themselves”. London-based webzine, Turtle Tempo, understand this and decided to give these bands more opportunities. Collaborating with Nexus, TT (we think it’s catchy!) think it’s time to first introduce the bands in our build-ups and then let them wow you with their talent. Here we present Suzi Island and Montrell performing on July 13th at The Notting Hill Arts Club, London. Doors open at 7:30 pm.
Suzi Island
If you had to introduce yourself as a band, in one sentence, what would the sentence be?
Suzi Island: “Genre-bending introspective pop songs wrapped up with a smattering of anxiety, delivered with copious amounts of positivity.”
Why do you think live music nights, like the ones Turtle Tempo put on, are important to emerging artists?
Suzi Island: “Shows like these create incredible moments for audience members. You can stream a record any day of the week, but coming down to a live experience such as this will stay with you for the rest of your life. Promoters, such as Turtle Tempo, help give us the platform to show audiences what it’s really all about – putting on an exhilarating performance.”
If you could perform with three other independent artists, who would they be, and why?
Suzi Island: “TS Graye just released her debut single, MY2, which has mad vibes. I’d want to perform with her just to see what the live set is like.
We performed with Stereo Honey back in February, and they were awesome, some of the most genuine people we’ve ever met. We had a great time hanging out after the show. Let’s go with them as well.
Finally, we’d probably go with NAAZ. We’ve mentioned her before, and we’d be really excited to experience her live show. What better way than to perform with her?!”
What, do you think, is the most challenging aspect of performing live?
Suzi Island: “We might be a bit of an anomaly with this one, ‘cos we love every second of performing live. I mean, the travel is always a bit of a headache, but it’s been so worth it at every show we’ve played yet.”
Do you have a lot planned for the rest of the year?
Suzi Island: “We’ve got some cool shows announced for the rest of this month (see below!!). As well as that, we’ll be releasing so much music before the end of the year. We’ve also been lucky enough to have our song, ‘Show Me The Way’, featured on the Pro Evolution Soccer 19 soundtrack, so keep an eye out for that. We’re always on Instagram sharing what we’re up to, so if you fancy keeping up to date we’ll only be a click away!
17th July – Green Door Store, Brighton
20th July – The Finsbury, London
28th July – Chiddfest, Sussex
1st August – The Islington, London”
Montrell
If you had to introduce yourself as a band, in one sentence, what would you say?
Montrell: “An indie four-piece who mix simple seventies pop with dreamy nineties grunge nostalgia.”
Why do you think live music nights, like the ones Turtle Tempo put on, are important to emerging artists such as yourselves?
Montrell: “These shows are crucial for grassroots bands, like ourselves. This is because we believe you can’t build the confidence to perform onstage without frequent exposure to an audience. The four of us also believe the best way to become a fan of an act is to see them perform up close and personal within a small live venue.”
If you could perform with three other independent artists, who would they be, and why?
Montrell: “Frankie Teardrop Dead, a very cool psych-rock act based in Tottenham, who literally hypnotises their audience. Izzie Yardley, a special artist who needs to be seen in a tight venue to really experience her sound. Matt Maltese, an effortless performer who is an inspiration to us lyrically.
What do you think is the most challenging aspect of performing live?
Montrell: “Playing to London crowds, because they tend to talk during sets, even when they’re enjoying what they’re seeing. Winning them over can be difficult, particularly if you’re contending with an interesting sound system!”
What do you have planned for the rest of 2018?
Montrell: “The band will be releasing a new single this summer called ‘Leaving Me Annie’, dealing with the impact of social media on the modern generation. We’re also releasing our first music video, which we co-directed/edited with a cool German lass who created some really interesting visuals for us.”