My Twisted Heart is an alternative genre-blending hip hop artist, and the brainchild of multi-disciplinarian musician Po Ki Ching.  in Hong Kong, and whose life journey has seen him live both there and in Ireland, where he studied at UCC, in Cork.

Developing an interest in singing and playing covers from a young age, while listening to canton pop, j-rock, and k-rock, his creativity blossomed when he met fellow Cork creatives Outsider YP and Kestine, with whom he formed ‘Outsiders’, a creative collective, in 2017.

He has gone onto collaborate extensively as part of ‘Outsiders’, contributing to their output over the course of the past few years, culminating now in an upcoming slew of single releases, and the hotly anticipated ‘Heart Leak EP’, due for release in January 2022. My Twisted Heart reflects on relationships, weaving experiences of relationships in Ireland, and injustice in Hong Kong, on the first single off his upcoming debut EP ‘Heart Leak’.
 
“On the surface, this song is about an individual who feels trapped in a relationship and wants breathing space.” says My Twisted Heart - the moniker of Po Ki Ching - of his new single. “But it has another meaning to me. It reflects my feeling towards Hong Kong – where I grew up, and where injustice was and is still happening.” A collaboration with fellow Cork artist Outsider YP, it sees someone speaking to their beloved, whether person or city, “Sinking to that bottom/You’re not dragging me down”. The pair both contribute vocals, engineering the track together.

Following the release of their debut album, SMALL TALK, Soda Blonde are back with special stripped-back EP, I Still Have Feelings for You, which was released on 26 November 2021 via Velveteen Records. The EP features 4 beautiful, never-before-heard versions of 4 tracks from the album.

The debut album from Soda Blonde may be called Small Talk, but if there’s one thing the Dubliners do not do, it’s mince words. Out earlier this year via Velveteen Records, the entirely self-produced album saw the group reflecting on their twenty-something experiences with refreshingly honest transparency.

“To put it simply, Small Talk is about life in our 20’s,” says Faye O’Rourke, Soda Blonde’s enigmatic front woman. “Every part of us is in here, both subliminally and literally. Lyrically, this record is like a collection of my flaws and insecurities. They’re lingering awkwardly by the bar at a crowded social gathering, waiting to integrate with the wider world”.

All four band members (O’Rourke, guitarist Adam O’Regan, drummer Dylan Lynch and bassist Donagh Seaver-O’Leary) are seasoned musicians, despite their youth. They have been playing together since their early teens, with their previous band – the internationally renowned Little Green Cars, whose seminal debut album skyrocketed to number one on the Irish album charts. O’Rourke is the first to admit that when Little Green Cars called it a day, she felt lost. But a career shift for the four musicians wasn’t in the cards – and Small Talk was self-evident proof, different than anything the group had released before, but carrying on its back all the things they’ve learned.

Now, fresh from the release of the album, comes a special EP featuring new versions of album tracks: with strings versions of both ‘Tiny Darkness’ and ‘Choices’, an early demo of ‘Swimming Through the Night’ and the title track to the EP, a single version of ‘I Still Have Feelings for You’.

Between sublimely arranged strings, radio-ready melodies sit plain-spoken truths and the hard-learned lessons of a group still at the start of what is sure to be a long journey. Undeniably a coming-of-age record, Small Talk was a dazzling portrait of someone who isn’t afraid to hold the messy parts of herself up for questioning, and the ‘I Still Have Feelings for You’ EP is a brilliant extension of this.

​Track list:
1. Tiny Darkness (Strings Version)
2. I Still Have Feelings for You (Single Version)
3. Choices (Strings Version)
4. Swimming Through the Night (Early Demo)

Johannesburg-based singer-songwriter, Lee Cole returns with yet another brilliant power ballad as he releases his brand-new single ‘Cold’ on 3 November 2021 across all digital platforms.
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Following the success of a string of hit singles with ‘I Don’t Wanna Wait’, ‘Pink Dragons’, ‘Honey, Let Me In’ and most recently ‘Emotional’, Lee has managed to create hit after hit with his music. With a swarm of chart toppers across radio, Lee returns with his latest single ‘Cold’.

The single entangles beautiful orchestral parts, creating added powerful moments within the popular ballad sound that has defined Lee Cole. Produced by Lee, he delves into the development of the song and how the production led to the final version he released, saying “The production of the single started off with the idea of creating something very ghastly and haunting. As I produced the song, I slowly began to play with the idea of creating one big resolution within the song and I thought a string section could best bring that to life. The end string section has 12 different string parts all coming together in the end creating that resolution while still keeping the song haunting and ghastly.”
 
Lee shares how the inspiration for the single came about, saying “‘Cold’ was a song I wrote while in the USA in 2019. I was there for 3 months and was at quite a low in my life. ‘Cold’ represents change to me. It’s about admitting that maybe you don’t know how to love and that the person you’re trying to love is better off without you. Its bittersweet because on one hand you don’t want to feel lonely; you crave that companionship, but on the other hand you keep hurting the people closest to you because you’re scared to love.”

‘Cold’ is the last single out from Lee Cole’s debut EP and the body of work will be made up of songs such as ‘I Don’t Wanna Wait’, ‘Pink Dragons’ and all those released in 2020 and 2021, with the EP available following the release of ‘Cold’.