DECEMBER 2017 FREE 2017 IN MUSIC M N E K Connected to music... Sorry to be cliché but we cant believe it is already time for our New Year’s edition. And what a year it has been: Mac DeMarco brought out his long-anticipated new album, Oasis boys Noel and Liam Gallagher were both back on top form, (albeit separately), and our cover-star MNEK released his first solo single in three years. The 22-year old Londoner is original, quietly charismatic and ambitious. His writing and pro- duction credits include Madonna, Stomzy and golden-child Beyoncè, but it wasn’t until his solo track Paradise was released in late October, that he finally got the recognition he deserved. This year hasn’t all been peaches and cream however. We only have to cast our minds back to the bombing at Arianna Grande’s concert that saw 22 lives taken. One Love and We Are Manchester charity events came soon afterwards, bringing en eclectic mix of bands and artists to the city and proved the theory that Northerners will never be defeated. We hope you enjoy this issue. Sit down by the fire, put on our Wired Winter playlist on Spotify, and have a merry old time. See you in 2018. Contents What’s going on up north The Rise of MNEK facebook.com/wiredmag Mac Demarco interview Ones to watch in 2018 twitter..com/wiredmag Neighbourhood Festival Mura Masa Fake album tracklists instagram.com/wiredmag Simpsonwave Products spotify.com/wiredmusicmag DJ Corner Chet Faker Albert Hall, Manchester 2 December After six years of working as an inde- pendent artist, Chet Faker - real name Nick Murphy - has suddenly became the golden boy of mellow-electronic-pop. When Murphy killed off the Chet Faker character that made him famous, he seemed to be making a state- ment with his music too. He’s no longer just a moody singer creating songs for hot nights in the dim light of someone’s bedroom. He’s a showman and he needs to be seen. Kasabian Echo Arena, Liverpool Kasabian take on Liverpool on the next stretch of their national tour, after visiting 5 December Manchester last month. The band released their sixth album ‘For Crying Out Loud’ in May and it’s been one of our most-played records. Packed with big tunes and simple pleasures, the album focuses on tracks with an instant impact. It was Kasabian who brought us the one-worded ‘eez-eh’ after all. Their Talking Heads-inspired electronics and Oassis-sized confidence make them an absolute belter of a band to listen to live. 18-year-old Declan McKenna has been called a voice of his generation. With throaty vocals and lyrics about corrupt govern- ments, he has drawn comparisons to Bob Dylan and Elvis Costello. His song ‘Brazil’ vaulted to fame in 2015 and led him to become the youngest ever winner of Glaston- bury Festival’s Emerging Talent Competition. Still, he sounded like just an other indie boy until the debut of energetic album ‘What Do You Think About The Car?’ this Declan McKenna summer. Having warmed up to Blossoms Cabbage, we’re eager Arts Club, Liverpool to see the singer go solo. 9 December King Krule is the project of Archy Marshall, a London-based artist who has drawn com- parisons with 80s icon Billy Bragg and been admired by rap royalty Kanye West. The singer raised eyebrows with his 2010 single “Out Getting Ribs” that showcased his uniquely raw voice and earned him a nomination in BBC’s Sound of 2013 poll. He’s been creating rich-sounding woozy tracks ever since, with his latest creation The Ooz being an hour-long King Krule album written during a three-year period. Make sure to hear the distilled weirdness in the flesh. Manchester Academy 14 December THE RISE OF MNEK Uzoechi Emenike, known to most as MNEK, made his breakthrough in 2012 with his vocals in Rudi- mental track “Spoons”. He was only 18 at the time. Now the singer/ song-writer counts Dua Lipa and Diplo as close friends. His latest track “Blinded by Your Grace Pt 2” features Stormzy and has hit the top 10 charts. Here, Alicia Boukersi explains what makes him a rising star. The hauntingly inspiring lyrics “Paradise is in the mind” ven before he released his own music, MNEK’s E speak to MNEK’s overall message. The 22-year-old also explains the musical inspiration for his latest track, saying: talent was overwhelmingly obvious. Which other 19 year olds can say they have already been involved in “Around the time I wrote Paradise, so much dance music creating 2 UK number one singles? The singer has been was coming out and doing well with literally any 90s R&B using his four letter stage-name for almost a decade, but he song as the main topline, of the whole song. It really both- had mastered 1980s soul way before then. ered me!” he explains. “So, I decided to sample a dance song for an R&B track. I’ve always loved ‘Free’ by Ultra This year marks the 3rd anniversary of ‘Every Little World’, Nate, so it was such an honour to have the blessing of the the debut single by the London born musician. The track writers of the song to sample it on Paradise”. was made up of springy synths, pulsating bass notes and soulful vocals with touches of house and old school hip hop. His latest track ‘Blinded by Your Grace Pt 2’ which was It was good, but never enough to boost him into the released in October saw him explore new musical terrain mainstream failing to reach a top place in the charts. with gospel-like vocals and lyrics that show his most vulnerable and emotional side. Instead, MNEK was known as being the “other artist”, with his barely-there vocals featuring in songs with Gorgon City “Lord, I’ve been broken. Although I’m not worthy. You fixed and Swedish pop star Zara Larsson. me, I’m blinded by your grace”. Disconcerting as that may have been to the young singer, MNEK reads like poetry. MNEK never gave up producing songs, using his spare time to write Misha B’s fiery debut single, and soon enough his It might have been Stormzy that provided the catchy chorus big break came with ‘Never Forget You’ which reached the and energetic rapping, but it’s MNEK who supplies the top 10 across Europe. It certainly got the dance world’s visceral vocals making it an all-out salvation sing-along. attention. First premiering as Annie Mac’s Hottest Record on BBC Radio 1, the track was certified Platinum in the UK It’s impressive to see a mainstream star refuse to conform and played at every nightclub in the country. (Well that’s to traditional stereotypes about what makes a man. In what it felt like). engaging freely with his feelings and exposing his weaknesses, MNEK has shown us his true self and it’s the His ‘Small Talk’ EP cemented him as a game-changing pop soundtrack of our dreams. This is the past, present and act the same year Sampha rose to fame. There’s an eerie future of MNEK. similarity between the two musicians who share the same moody yet beautiful tone of voice. A gentle, shimmering Our exclusive video interview is available on wiredmag.com falsetto somehow strong enough to cause a dent. But it’s MNEK in particular that has an inflection that hovers above Words: @aliciaboukersi music, cracking softly, conveying emotions. Images: @nialllea ‘Freak like Me’ was his next hit in 2016 - the song a wilfully raw, yet playful statement of intent that made everything in its peripheral seem outdated. MNEK has planned, produced and featured in an astonishing amount of tracks, all arriving within months of each other and each more popular than the last. This year, the artist released ‘Paradise’. “Paradise” evokes visions of running away from the hectic and sometimes depressing nature of today’s society in order to find peace, solace, and catharsis. MNEK exhibits his prowess as a triple threat by providing scintillating vocals, stirring lyrics, and a sexy beat which features an ominous throbbing bassline that pulls the whole tune together. “People are attracted to what we It finds him musing on ageing and Mac DeMarco strolls onto the do because they see it as being his difficult relationship with his stage at Manchester Academy and grounded and down to earth,” father, an alcoholic and addict who lines up five bottles of beer on top he admits. “Personally I’ve never abandoned the family when DeMar- of an amplifier. By the time he’s been into those bands who pull the co was five. “Even though we bare- about finished, 90 minutes later, supercool rock-star thing. I was ly know each other, it still hurts,” he’s shirtless behind the drum kit just a kid in a weird prairie town in he sings over a steady keyboard while his drummer Joe McMurray Canada who wanted to play guitar pulse on Watching Him Fade Away. is busy crowdsurfing a full circle and be in bands, so I know there “Home, there’s moonlight on the around the venue and the rest of are plenty of other kids out there river, everybody dies,” he repeats the band is blundering through a like I was, who wanna do it too. on Moonlight on the River. It’s a cover of Under the Bridge by the Hopefully us being kind of sloppy sad, beautiful collection.