Listen: Hands On The Horizon by Lucky Number You

Hailing from Birmingham, UK, Lucky Number You are a three-piece looking to combine the best of pop, rock, and synth sounds from the 80s and 90s. Having unveiled their debut album, Aftercare, back in 2022, the band are now back with Hands On The Horizon, their latest single.

Taking inspiration from Talking Heads, The Police, and Janet Jackson, Hands On The Horizon is a song about the power of hope in times of confusion and self-doubt. Written, recorded and produced by Lucky Number You, the song was mastered by Tom Woodhead.

With crisp, steely guitars and the kind of jerky, rhythms, Hands On The Horizon wears the band’s inspirations on its sleeve, but combines them to create something new. The overall sound has an uplifting and optimistic sound, with a clean pop aesthetic, that establishes a modern take on a classic 80s sound. The layered vocals provide a level of engaging humanity here, as the group’s first sax solo, courtesy of collaborator Matt Telfor, gets to work in the song’s bridge. The result is a warm, joyous and inspirational song — check it out below:

EP Review: Scream - Distorted Beauty feat. Danique

Distorted Beauty are Alexander koning and Andy Slate.

Scream is the new release from Distorted Beauty, a collaboration between Los Angeles' Andy Slate and Alexander Koning, based in Berlin. The duo have release through Global Underground in the past so it is unsurprising that Scream itself is a deep tech-house record.

The original is minimal, delicate and deep track with nervous vocals from Danique that contrast with the robotic motion of rolling sub-bass, slow pads and extended chord sequences. It is a reserved record, moody and stark.

Three remixes of Scream are included on the EP. The Mario Aureo Remix is a little more peaky, taught bumpy drum beats and reverb creating a track a little more upbeat but just as atmospheric. The Kid Culture Dark Dub is much darker with a focus on carving out a tight techno-orientated groove.

The fantastic Gabriel Anada delivers the star mix however. The vocals from the original are put front and centre even higher in the mix. Long pans are kept in whilst Ananda adds some warmer, almost funky touches that introduce more humanity into the track. The result is something that feels all the more heartbreaking, highlighting the anguish in Danique's brilliant vocals.

Original track Butterflies rounds off the release and it is a bouncy techie track with lots of crackle and life in the background giving it a timeless feel.

Scream is out on 28 May through [Percep-tion] Records.