Leeds based band The Wedding Present have had a turbulent and epic history since their inception, years ago in the mid eighties. But, the spirit seems not to have been lost, as they seem ready to shoot back on to the scene with their latest album, Valentina, an album recorded and produced by tiny label, Scopitones, set up and maintained by the band’s lead singer David Gedge.

Young artist Maz Totterdell is creating quite a stir in the music scene recently. After her initial success by getting the opportunity to feature on BBC Radio 2 and also 6 Music, her debut album Sweep is out on May 28th 2012, and it looks set to shoot the young singer/songwriter to stardom. At just 15 years old, featuring on national radio, and writing and releasing a complete album is an impressive feat for someone so young, but judging from the quality of album it seems like this is just the beginning for the young starlet.

Deep in rural Hertfordshire, there’s something interesting afoot. Scholars, the Hemel Hempstead-based four-piece indie-rock band release their new, crunchy, single entitled Bad for Business under their own, unsigned steam. This is an impressive feat for any band that are just starting out, but is it actually any good?

Self styled ‘atmospheric dream-pop’ folk artist Jenny Gillespie may well be one of the most unique artists to come out of the USA in recent times. Her newest album, Belita, is a tuneful mix of electro-acoustic folk music and progressive, dreamy sounds, sensuous and atmospheric. Set to be released in 2012, it’s a different, progressive sound that has the potential to capture the attention of many.

Arctic is Swedish artist Thomas Denver Jonsson’s fourth solo album; this time released under the name I’m Kingfisher. The record, produced by the musician himself, is folk, acoustic and indie-influenced, with a relaxed, yet relatively depressing mood, and contains somewhat confusing song titles.

Van Susans W/Support from Daniella Brooker & Orijin @ The Indig02, London 24.09.11

With a happily inebriated Saturday night crowd mixed merrily with smatterings of DB ‘Summer Love’ T-shirt sporting teeny-boppers and the regular melange of diehard fans and musos alike, the scene is set for Van Susans’ biggest gig to date.

It takes a certain style and sense of finesse to properly merge the sound of two very different bands in to listenable music – that said, even the best culmination of Vampire Weekend and Kings of Leon (a band I loathe, despite recent improvement and an outfit I’ve nothing but admiration for respectively) would be an ugly lovechild - and I can’t say with any confidence that Ice Black Birds possess that much needed air of grace about their fusion just yet; they teeter dangerously only the cusp.

I’d never heard of Durham’s Ambershift before this morning and, having only their press material to go on, on first listen of the bands debut single I had no particular feeling, or reason to think, that I was about to be offered anything even slightly new or interesting. I was pleasantly surprised.