South Pole - New Music "Introducing"

Facebook / southpolemusic.com/

Here's another new band very much worth the admission fee and in 2012 that means free right, for sure a pint of cat's piss (Carling, Carlsberg and fuck me even Tuborg) at around £4 a go is standard and sinking a half dozen of them is just a normal night out before paying £8-10 to hear a DJ 'spin' an iTunes playlist of 80's pop hits and Lady Ga Ga in a shitty night club is all good because it stays open till late.. but paying bands, normally three or four of them, with real people in who've had to somehow transport themselves (and their instruments) to the venue is definitely not worth the £4 you've just been asked for at the door... oh no, I'd much rather go next door and spend the same amount of money on half a Red Bull and vodka and Jesus wept it gets worse, you wanted me to buy a record as well?! I can download that for nought at home mate...

I jest and exaggerate but it is of course a serious problem for the music industry in 2012. The Internet is an amazing thing and it brings all sorts of music to people who would never of heard it otherwise, who then go and see that band at shows and buy t-shirts and all sorts of things but what happens when that band isn't U2 or Muse with an army of fans? The band make fuck all and spend all day working with the rest of us (not that there is anything particularly wrong with 'working')... I don't like Spotify for the reason it makes people think they have 'purchased' something when in fact they've paid a company a membership fee who in return will give a royalty of about 0.000002 pence for your listens - that's about a banana a decade. That's not really a business model for a musician is it?

Why should music be free? You pay to have a piss in a train station these days. Streaming is great but it has its negative consequences too and while I can understand in 2012 the idea of changing a record every three minutes is a bit far fetched, without spending any money on the records of that band you've been listening to all month, that band aren't going to exist much longer...

Anyway, all that in some vague round about way leads me to South Pole, a band who aren't actually asking you to part with any hard earned (or student loan cheque) yet. A new five piece from Southampton who recently shared their first two demos on Soundcloud for us all to hear, and you'll definietly want to do that, the first and my favourite "Skua" instantly illuminates the mind with vocalist Emily Bacon's warm, soothing voice, wrapping itself around you like a blanket in the cold whilst powerful ambient electronics and drifting guitar textures equally grab your attention, with such luscious, carefully woven instrumentation and heavenly vocals you can't do anything but full for the beautiful, atmospheric gem.

The thicker guitar lines of "Vostok" take some of the attention away from Emily's once-more stunning vocal performance whilst unobtrusive drums guide the melancholic overtures, elegantly subtle and similarly brilliant. I can't wait to hear what's next from this new, impressive quintet.