Artist of the month: Hockeysmith
March Artist of the month by WWSC Music Writer: Georgina Crowther.
Image source: @hockeysmith_
Self-described as 'Kylie on acid', Hockeysmith is a rising star within the underground acid-house scene.
Based in Cornwall, the up-and-coming singer has devoted to expanding her craft around the rave scenes that influence her; from Cornwall's underground rave scene, Copenhagens acid-house and Paris' music influences, Hockeysmith's sound blends the different cities sounds perfectly.
She is set to release multiple singles throughout the pandemic, working in Paris with the Ed Banger producer, Borussia, on a sequence of trippy, psychedelic grooves. 'Hyper Kobra' and 'Down Love' are the two release thus far from the hypnotic duo.
'Down Love' was inspired by Maggie Nelson's hybrid book 'Bluets', and Hockeysmith's idyllic hometown seaside scenery.
In an Instagram post, Hockeysmith stated, 'I wrote the lyrics [of Down Love] with my best friend Alice, inspired by going to beautiful places in Cornwall.'
Similarly, 'Hyper Kobra' was focused on poignant topical themes like Coronavirus and isolation, drawing on influences from writers like Ali Smith. "They [Cobras] represent many things besides danger, venom, death and malice: cobras are also seen as graceful, elegant and fast. The Cobra sways in response to the movement and music of the charmer, who knows how to avoid the relatively slow strike".
Hockeysmith originally started out as a duo between sisters Annie and Georgie Hockeysmith. The duo released a debut EP 'But Blood' in 2014, attracting widespread attention for their use of post-punk noise and acid bass; however, due to University, Hockeysmith became a solo project with Annie being the sole face.
In 2019, she released her debut EP 'Tears at My Age', which compromised of four tracks. The EP speaks to overcoming the hardships of love, and blends iconic influences such as Kylie Minogue with Hockeysmith's signature glittering synth-pop sound.
On the title track 'Tears At My Age', Hockeysmith told The Fader, that "this is one for the girls out there and their tears for undeserving boys. It's the coming together of like-minded musicians over new loves and lost loves".
Hockeysmith advocates for rising talent within the Cornish community and co-founded her record label, EEL, with Lukasz Kucharski (@omoo_gosh).
EEL was created to support the local Falmouth rave scene, supporting musicians and collaborators within electronic music and highlighting the local Cornish talent.
On her label, Hockeysmith said: "I wish to support the local scene and give a platform for it. It's genuinely buzzing down here with exciting electronic music. My vision is to bring a focus particularly to the electronic music from the region and to present it to the wider national and international stage".
The independent music collective released their first compilation of tracks from their artists named the EP' eel.comp1', which also features 'Never Knowing' by Hockeysmith.
Hockeysmith has received wide acclaim for her new atmospheric tracks.' Down Love' reached number 2 in NME's 'New Bangers' playlist and number 3 in Line of Best Fit's 'New Music Discovery' playlist.
Set to release more tracks throughout 2021, Hockeysmith is definitely one to watch and support along her journey.
To hear Hockeysmiths variety of influences, follow 'Hockeysmith Picks' on Spotify, which features artists including Tricky, Burial and Smerz.
Sources
https://getinherears.com/2019/02/03/ep-hockeysmith-tears-at-my-age/
https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/news/latest-news/hockeysmith-returns-with-first-single- of-2020-hyper-kobra
https://www.nme.com/news/music/hockeysmith-shares-atmospheric-video-new-song-down- love-2854947
https://www.cornwalllive.com/whats-on/music-nightlife/cornwall-leading-way-record- label-2797751