THE annual ‘Under The Radar’ awards have been announced for 2023.
I’ve estimated that I’ve played over 1,600 new songs on my Monday evening show this year so it was a hard task to pick one as my favourite but here it is…
TRACK OF THE YEAR – OSLO TWINS ‘Miss Yesterday’ 
Released in May, this was an immediate favourite before falling for EP title track ‘Back To Nothing’ shortly after before going back to my first love! An upbeat dream pop anthem, the Bristol band are fantastic live too. Here’s a few words from vocalist Claudia on hearing the news..
“I’m glad you like the track! Eric started writing it in lockdown, in a makeshift studio in his grandparent’s shed in the middle of nowhere (his words!). He sent me the sounds and we finished it together remotely. I recorded the vocals as a voice note on my phone, which we ended up using in the final mix.”
THE TWO TRACKS MENTIONED ARE QUITE DIFFERENT TO WHAT YOU’VE RELEASED IN THE PAST. WAS IT A CONSCIOUS DECISION TO GO MORE IN THAT DIRECTION AND WHAT DID YOU MAKE OF THE RESPONSE TO THEM?
I would say most of our musical decisions are unconscious. We like to explore the light and shade and not bind ourselves to a particular style.
It’s been great seeing how much Miss Yesterday has appealed to people. I think we all needed something a bit upbeat and summery in these difficult times.
ANY PARTICULAR HIGHLIGHT OF YOUR 2023 AND WHAT CAN WE EXPECT FROM OSLO TWINS IN 2024?
“Our highlight would have to be playing at Supersonic in Paris. It’s such an inspiring city to be in, and the crowd had so much energy.
In 2024? Expect the unexpected.”
You can watch and listen to ‘Miss Yesterday’ here..
www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTa8flBCsgY
www.oslotwins.com
ALBUM OF THE YEAR – PYNCH ‘Howling At A Concrete Moon’ 
An equally hard task to pick a whole album out of the hundreds that I’ve listened to but I knew on release day in April the debut album from Pynch would take some beating and so it proved. The wry political and personal lyrics about growing up in austere Britain are mixed alongside indie electronic pop guitars and glitchy synths. Here’s frontman Spencer’s response to the news….
