DOWN WITH BORING.
ISSUE 73 · FEBRUARY 2023 · READDORK.COM
Biig Piig
INDEX.
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Issue 73 | February 2023 | readdork.com | Down With Boring
Welcome to the first issue of 2023! It’s hard to believe that we’re already starting a new year, but here at Dork, we’re excited to see what the next twelve months have in store for us. Looking back on the past year, it’s clear that 2022 was a difficult one for everyone, and the music industry was no exception. Live shows were cancelled and tours were postponed - and not for the reasons they were back in 2020 and 2021. Many artists faced financial struggles, from a cost of living crisis and a disastrous Brexit which made live dates - especially those outside their home territory - too expensive to embark on. But through it all, music continued to bring us together and provide a sense of comfort and escape. It’s powerful stuff. As we move forward into this new year, we’re hopeful that good music will always find a way. There’s enough of it about. I know. Sincerity. Yuck. In the meantime, there are still plenty of amazing new releases to look forward to something we’re showcasing over the first few pages of this issue. Yeah, we’re getting a new Paramore album. No, we won’t shut up about it any time soon. Sorry-not-sorry. And who knows what other surprises the year may bring? I hope you enjoy this issue and all the amazing nonsense we have in store for you. Let’s make 2023 a year to remember for all the right reasons.
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Associate Editor Ali Shutler Contributing Editors Jamie Muir, Martyn Young Scribblers Abigail Firth, Alex Ingle, Finlay Holden, Jack Press, Jamie MacMillan, Jessica Goodman, Neive McCarthy, Sam Taylor Snappers Ewan Ogden, Frances Beach, Jamie MacMillan, Jennifer McCord, Marieke Hulzinga, Nicholas O’Donnell, Nikos Plegas, Patrick Gunning, Sarah Louise Bennett, Storm Walker PUBLISHED FROM WELCOMETOTHEBUNKER.COM
UNIT 10, 23 GRANGE ROAD, HASTINGS, TN34 2RL
INTRO.
FEATURES.
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2023 ALBUM PREVIEW A DAY IN THE LIFE OF... KID KAPICHI VIVA SOUNDS
HYPE. ‘Editor’ @stephenackroyd
Editor Stephen Ackroyd Deputy Editor Victoria Sinden
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NELL MESCAL CONNIE CAMPSIE SOMEBODY’S CHILD
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BIIG PIIG MIMI WEBB THE MURDER CAPITAL SG LEWIS CIRCA WAVES RAYE JOESEF
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DORK’S CHRISTMAS NIGHT OUT BLACK COUNTRY, NEW ROAD HOLLY HUMBERSTONE BLOSSOMS MUNA
All material copyright (c). All rights reserved. This publication may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form, in whole or in part, without the express written permission of The Bunker Publishing Ltd. Disclaimer: While every effort is made to ensure the information in this magazine is correct, changes can occur which affect the accuracy of copy, for which The Bunker Publishing Ltd holds no responsibility. The opinions of the contributors do not necessarily bear a relation to those of Dork or its staff and we disclaim liability for those impressions. Distributed nationally.
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COVER STORY
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BIIG PIIG
From lo-fi beats to expansive alt-pop: BIIG PIIG reflects on her journey to icon status and her new mixtape ‘Bubblegum’, filled with personal growth and genre-blending experimentation.
WORDS: MARTYN YOUNG. PHOTOS: SARAH LOUISE BENNETT. STYLING: PHOEBE BUTTERWORTH. MAKE UP: GEORGIA HOPE USING DANESSA MYRICKS. HAIR: TOMMY TAYLOR @ STELLA CREATIVE ARTISTS USING GHD.
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FEATURE
From viral TikTok fame to sold-out tours and chartbothering hits: MIMI WEBB reflects on her journey to becoming a rising star and shares details about her highlyanticipated debut album ‘Amelia’. WORDS: ALI SHUTLER. PHOTOS: SARAH LOUISE BENNETT. STYLING: LAUREN GROVES. MAKE UP: JACINTA SPENCER. HAIR: ANDREW KYRIAKOU. 28. DORK
MIMI WEBB
h, I’ve always wanted to be a huge pop star,” grins Mimi Webb. Following the release of her debut EP ‘Seven Shades Of Heartbreak’ at the tail end of 2021, the past twelve months have seen the 22-year-old singer living out those ambitious, glitzy dreams. There’s been her own UK headline tour, a run across North America supporting Tate McRae, festivals and TV appearances. She even crashed the UK singles chart with the snarling revenge anthem ‘House On Fire’, which reached Number 6. “I was always just very driven. I wanted to be huge. I wanted to be a superstar,” she continues before pausing. “I think we’re getting there.” You can say that again. Despite “dreams upon dreams” coming true throughout 2022, it was still something of a warmup for Mimi Webb. Zooming from her London flat ahead of some last-minute Christmas shopping and a trip back to her hometown of Canterbury, she’s busy gearing up to release debut album ‘Amelia’. Based on what we’ve heard, it’s the sort of swaggering pop album that’ll turbo-charge her rise. “I was always the girl next door who was confident enough to sing all my emotions,” explains Mimi of her success so far. “People can obviously relate to all the breakup songs.” What’s also helped is how Mimi has handled the spotlight. Her social media is a giddy mix of outrageous, bucket list moments, shared with all the excitement you’d expect from someone living out their dreams. In fact, Mimi owes a lot to platforms like TikTok. Her first viral moment came in 2019 when Charli D’Amelio (dancer and one of the most-followed people on the site) shared a video of Mimi singing a cover of Adele’s ‘Someone Like You’ and her own unreleased song ‘Before I Go’ in a restaurant. It might sound horribly contrived, but the reality is a lot more normal. Mimi was in New York having meetings with labels. Her manager knew Charli’s and thought the two would get on, so they went for dinner. “I had no clue what TikTok was,” admits Mimi. “But Charli was so lovely, and we had such a great time together. We ended up making a couple of TikToks because we thought it would be a laugh. It really was just a bit of fun. “Then Charli posted one, and it got something like 100 million views,” which gave Mimi’s label the push to actually release ‘Before I Go’. Charli then used it on a few of her dance videos, which only amped up the buzz around Mimi Webb. But Mimi had been working towards being a pop star long before that viral moment. Growing up, she performed at school talent shows and plays as well as starting piano lessons at age 12. Her debut album also features a song she started writing when she was just five. After finishing her GCSEs, Mimi knew she wanted to take singing more seriously, so she left home and moved to Brighton to study songwriting at college. “It was such a big step for me, leaving my friends and my family behind and practically starting a new life for myself, but I knew I needed to do it because I wanted to be confident enough to
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FEATURE
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With their debut, THE MURDER CAPITAL made a big splash - but this isn’t a band to simply do the same thing twice. Back with new album ‘Gigi’s Recovery’, this time round they’re bringing something truly special. WORDS: JAMIE MACMILLAN. PHOTOS: JENNIFER MCCORD.
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FEATURE
Having already proven to be worth his weight in gold when it comes to dancefloor bangers, SG LEWIS is now stepping up as a frontman to deliver a new double album of pop hits exploring the duality of love and lust. WORDS: FINLAY HOLDEN.
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SG LEWIS
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he last time we caught up with SG Lewis, he was so desperate to get back to overpriced drinks and dirty dancefloors that he dropped a whole album in service of transporting us right back into that late-night euphoria. His first full-length project, released in 2021, was an ode to rose-tinted memories of the club and followed the trails blazed by a series of multi-faceted EPs. “It was funny – in many ways, ‘times’ didn’t feel like a debut album to me, but just another project,” he reflects. “For the first time, I had enough to say and enough to express musically that I wanted a full-length runtime. It felt like a very
natural process, and I wasn’t looking back at any point; I wasn’t thinking about music I’d made before or trying to better myself. I was just facing forward throughout, and that kept my momentum going.” The forced stagnation of the last few years didn’t halt that progression, as the producer started to formulate new ideas with their own unique challenges. “Instead of taking inspiration from things externally, this album is a lot more introspective in its processes; its thoughts, the song topics, the feelings are more from an internal perspective because that’s the nature of isolation that was enforced upon us.” Quickly finding new ambitions and more nuanced concepts with
MY COMFORT ZONE IS ALWAYS GOING TO BE BEHIND THE BOARDS; THE IDEA OF FRONTING THE SHOW WAS PETRIFYING” SG L E W I S
the confidence instilled by the success of ‘times’, Lewis began to flesh out a double-LP of new material through month-long stays at residential studios across the globe. The intensity of the methodology forged relationships that grew deeper than any previous collaborations. “With ‘times’, there were more features, and as such, you’re almost speed dating; you’re forging a creative partnership for one track,” he explains. “With this album, there’s a lot more consistency of the teams that I was writing with. That pushed things further because we built a level of trust through the process, which allowed us to try things that we wouldn’t necessarily be willing to do in the studio with someone you’re only working with READDORK.COM 37.
FEATURE
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CIRCA WAVES
With concern for the future, and a sense of hope that we can sort it out, CIRCA WAVES are back with their fifth studio album, ‘Never Going Under’. WORDS: FINLAY HOLDEN. PHOTOS: PATRICK GUNNING.
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By now, RAYE’s story of major label frustration is well known. Those tales don’t often end up with a happy ending - but with a debut album and a chart busting single on deck, this isn’t just your average pop star either. WORDS: ABIGAIL FIRTH.
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FEATURE
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JOESEF
From the very first notes, JOESEF’s debut album ‘Permanent Damage’ promises to take listeners on a cinematic journey of heartbreak, triumph, and self-discovery. WORDS: NEIVE MCCARTHY.
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THE NEW ALBUM, OUT JANUARY 20TH themurdercapital.com