Hype List: 23 New Artists To Watch In 2023
Drop what you’re doing, do yourself a favour and get ahead of the curve before your mate beats you to it.
As we move into the new year, emerging artists and bands are pushing the boundaries of music and creating some of the most exciting and innovative sounds out there. From post-punk to hip-hop, the music scene is bursting with fresh talent. To help you discover the best new music of 2023, we have compiled a list of the most exciting up-and-coming acts from across the globe. From the rising stars of rap to the next generation of indie, these are the bands and musicians who are set to make a big impact in 2023. So sit back, turn up the volume, and get ready to discover the hottest music of the year!
This time last year we had Wet Leg in our list so we must be doing something right. Without further ado, here are 23 artists we think are going to make waves in 2023.
Alien Chicks
Alien Chicks is a post-punk power trio from Brixton, London who have been making waves in the music scene with their unique sound. Their music is a twisted fairy tale of modern Britain, mixing elements of post-punk, pop, and rock in an energetic and exciting way. Their live shows are full of energy, with mosh pits and singalongs accompanying the band’s exhilarating set. Their upcoming single ‘Cowboy’ is a must-hear, with its catchy hook and clever lyrics. Alien Chicks is first on our list of bands to watch in 2023, and we are excited to see where their journey takes them.
Baby Cool
Baby Cool offers a unique, transporting experience with her psychedelic soundscapes. Slow, bass-heavy instrumentals create a dreamy atmosphere, complemented by Grace Cuell's ethereal vocals, reminiscent of Grace Slick's. Their upcoming album is intended as a tender reminder to take care of ourselves, with soothing, sublimely psychedelic reveries that will melt any stress away. It’s like if King Gizzard and Aoife Nessa Frances did a collab.
Black Bordello
Black Bordello are a five-piece art rock band from Southeast London consisting of vocalist Sienna Bordello, Anthony Boatright, Eddie Amos, Rachel Asafo-Agyei and Henry Carpenter. Formed in Peckham in 2017 and playing all over London, releasing several singles before the arrival of their self-titled and self-released debut album Black Bordello. The album received stellar reviews from the indie press and is a dizzying genre-defying affair with Bordello’s emotionally layer vocals taking us on a journey through an underworld of sultry jazz clubs and noir carnival nights.
Butch Kassidy
Made up of Fionn, Aron, Levent, Anders and Tom their sound is a mix of post-punk, electronica and post-rock. Their songs are bursting with vitriolic energy, and their live shows are captivating. With an ever-growing fanbase and major anticipation for their debut, Butch Kassidy are the best post-rock band in recent memory to come out of the London music scene.
DEADLETTER
DEADLETTER began as a three-piece in the far reaches of North Yorkshire before relocating to London to further develop their evolving sound. The band is now made up of six musicians, including lead singer Zac Lawrence. The capital would prove to be a stark contrast to the pub circuit that constituted the total of their chances up north, which Lawrence acknowledged as a more "fertile breeding place" for the band. Any aspiring artist finds it difficult to gain recognition in a city populated by ambitious creatives. Still, the band quickly established a reputation as one of the most exciting acts in the emerging post-punk scene thanks to their acclaimed live performances and the critical acclaim they received from industry heavyweights and tastemakers like Steve Lamacq.
The Dinner Party
Probably top of everyone’s hype list at the moment, The Dinner Party are a band from London that should be on everyone's radar. They’ve already been touted by a variety of magazines as the next big thing. With music set to drop in 2023, The Dinner Party is likely to be one of the hottest acts of the year. Get ready to hear a lot more from The Dinner Party this year!
Funhaus
Funhaus are a self-described religious organisation based in London. The five-piece consists of Joby (vocals), Donovan (guitar and vocals), Vinny (guitar and vocals), Connie (drums and vocals), and Elena (bass), and they guarantee to bring the noise. Their brash post-punk swagger has emerged out of the bleak political nightmare of post-pandemic Britain, and 2022 saw their cathartic rage start to build momentum. Though this list is in alphabetical order, Funhaus are definitely our favourite underdogs. Their incendiary live shows, stand-out whistle anthem, and erratic energy makes them one of the most exciting bands we’ve seen in a long time.
Girl Scout
It’s a familiar story. Four young people meet while at university. Our Swedish characters in this story met recently at Stockholm's Royal College of Music, where they were studying. They played together and learned jazz. Two of them initially "formed a duo in an attempt to earn money, playing mostly evergreens and covering anything from the Beatles to Burt Bacharach at cocktail events and openings," but soon after they started playing original songs, their enthusiasm caught on and they expanded into a four-piece.
Girl Scout have been gaining notoriety in recent months through live performances throughout the UK and Scandinavia, supporting Holly Humberstone, and obtaining early festival slots. "Where can I find your music!?!?" is the most often asked question underneath their social media posts. Songs followed. The debut song "Do You Remember Sally Moore" by Emma Jansson (guitar, vocals), Evelina Arvidsson Eklind (bass, vocals), Per Lindberg (drums), and Viktor Spasov (guitar) came out. A second single, “All The Time And Everywhere” followed.
Gretel Hänlyn
Gretel Hänlyn is a songwriter and vocalist from West London and has been simmering in the background of the London music scene for the last year or so. Gretel picked up a guitar and began composing her own gothic stories and songs at age 11, having been weaned on a diet of Nick Cave. Contrary to conventional parental counsel, Gretel's mother pushed her to reconsider her decision to attend university. Gretel took that advice and devoted herself entirely to her music, combining hi-fi grunge, goth-pop, and alt/indie ballads and quickly pulled together songs for an EP. 2022 saw her brandy wine voice slither around moody melodies, indie guitars, and soaring choruses on her seven-track album, Slugeye. 2023 should see Hänlyn continue to weave her special kind of midnight-pop magic.
HighSchool
Formed in Melbourne during the Lockdown, Luke Scott and siblings Lilli and Rory Trobbiani signed to UK-based label Dalliance Recordings. They left for London before playing a gig in their hometown. The band have seized the last few years by the horns, releasing a number of catchy songs and Forever at Last, their critically acclaimed debut EP. The band played shows with CHVRCHES, Mitski, NewDad, and Wet Leg, as well as appearances at All Points East, End of the Road, The Great Escape, Manchester Psych Festival, Sea Change, Standon Calling, and Visions. Speedy Wunderground co-runner Pierre Hall saw one of their early Great Escape performances and immediately leapt at the chance to work with them, saying, "They're like the perfect mixture of all my favourite bands... When we returned to London, we ran into them and requested them to perform at the launch of our collection a few weeks later. They immediately felt like family since they blended in so well.”
Humour
If you’ve ever wondered what an EP would sound like if Hamlet were from Glasgow and decided to form a band with his mates — then Glasgow band Humour’s 2022 debut EP, Pure Misery, would have scratched that itch! The insane charismatic incantations of frontman Andreas Christodoulidis strain and pull against the pulsing bass lines, gunshot drumbeats and soaring guitars. The songs oscillate from sordid and menacing discordant post-hardcore and post-punk to the almost transcendent clarity of indie-pop — a perfect blend of humour and pure misery.
Juni Habel
Juni Habel's beautiful finger-picked lullabies will take you to the Norwegian hinterland as her sweet, intimate voice weaves through glittering compositions and intriguing percussion accompaniment. Her melodies glow like fires in the night and are odes to life and death, the joy of belonging, and our connection to nature. January 2023 saw Habel release her sophomore album, Carvings, with hopefully a tour to follow. With the cold dark climb back to the warmer months, there is nothing better than hunkering down to the music of Juni Habel.
M(h)aol
M(h)aol, an intersectional feminist post-punk band based between Dublin, London, and Bristol, is comprised of Róisín Nic Ghearailt, Constance Keane, Jamie Hyland, Zoe Greenway, and Sean Nolan. The band's debut album, Attachment Styles, is set to be released on 3 February via TULLE Collective. This record is an exploration of social connection, queerness, and healing. Róisín used the theory of Attachment Styles as an overarching theme when writing the album's lyrics, which looks at the impact our family relationships and society have on how we relate to one another.
Man/Woman/Chainsaw
Man/Woman/Chainsaw are a noisy punk six-piece from London. The band stormed onto the scene on the hot, sweaty floor of the Amersham arms in October 2021 and, since then, have been killing it, winning over fans all around London. Over the course of the year, their live performance has undergone significant change. Through the help of close friends, they have added horns, strings, and backing voices to the mix, producing a gorgeous cacophony of sound.
Mayaid
Whirling out of the south London Windmill scene MAYAID (pronounced Made) are Sophie Coppin vocals/keyboard; Adam Brennan (Scud FM, Fat White Family & Brian Destiny) vocals/guitar/bass, Dan GB (Scud FM & Meatraffle) guitar/bass; Harry Mchale (meU) saxophone and Fells (Children of the Pope & Brian Destiny) on drums. The band’s frenetic, punky-maximalist-jazz has been blowing audiences’ minds through 2022 and will be setting the streaming platforms on fire soon.
Moreish Idols
Formed in a small Cornish coastal village before moving to London, The Moreish Idols are Jude Lilley - Guitar and Vocal, Tom Wilson Kellett - Guitar and Vocals, Caspar Swindells - Bass and Backing Vocals, Solomon Lamey - Drums and Backing Vocals and Dylan Humphries – Saxophone. In 2022 the band released their debut EP, Float, which they recorded over an intense five-day session with Speedy Wunderground’s Dan Carey. The EP found them channelling their feelings of disenfranchisement and boredom from living in the late capitalist world into a moreish sound that fuses jazz, funk, krautrock, dub, and punk.
O.
O. is a London-based band signed to Speedy Wunderground that have been making waves in the music scene with their unique take on psychedelic jazz. Their music combines elements of punk, electronica, and jazz to create an infectious sound that is sure to get listeners moving. Their saxophonist uses a variety of effects and pedals to create sounds that you would never expect to come out of a saxophone. These guys will be a hit with anyone who was a fan of Black Country, New Road’s early erratic energy.
Panic Shack
Comprised of Sarah Harvey (vocals), Meg Fretwell (guitar/backing vocals), Romi Lawrence (guitar/backing vocals), Em Smith (bass) and Ed Barker (drums), Panic Shack, a DIY punk band formed in Cardiff back in 2018, immediately plugged into the zeitgeist with the explosive and incisive subject matter of their releases. Most of the members of Panic Shack started learning their instruments from scratch when the band was formed because they were dissatisfied with the male-dominated nature of the music industry and wanted to make their mark on the Cardiff music scene and beyond. Their single from their 2022 debut EP Baby Shack, ‘I Don't Really Like It’, tackles the problems of toxic masculinity and predatory male behaviour while using driving riffs and a melodic sense that distinguishes the group from being labelled as merely ‘punk’. More recently, the band have collaborated with Metronomy on their 2022 release, ‘It’s good to be back.’
Picture Parlour
Picture Parlour are a South London-based band made up of guitarist Ella Risi and singer-songwriter Katherine Parlour. Originally from Northern England, the two met in Manchester post-university. The pandemic pushed them together, and the two created their own style, taking inspiration from musicians like The Last Shadow Puppets and Nick Cave. Since then, they have moved to London and have added Michael and Sian on drums and bass to form an electric 4-piece full band project. They recently made their debut on a Friday night slot at The Windmill in Brixton, generating buzz and excitement around an EP they have spent 2022 working on, which they describe as: ‘A sleazy commentary on contemporary romance, and an ode to the omnipresent dystopia.’
The Queen’s Head
Featuring the dual vocals of childhood friends Joel Douglas and Tom Butler, the five-piece spent 2022 winning over fans with their frenetic, post-punk-disco-pop and impressing indie tastemakers like indie label Permanent Creeps and Speedy Wunderground’s Dan Carey. The band’s name alludes to the mythical place pubs hold in British culture. Talking about their eponymous first single, the band said: ‘We wanted to write a theme song to the project – a sonic scene-setter to our world. Welcoming you into The Queen’s Head... a fictional pub floating through the cosmos, a musical space where you can explore your desires to dance, have a drink or to cry. Always unsettled, the chord progression constantly turns in on itself, and the chorus compels you to dance out of anxious ecstasy, backing voices talking of a place where even the furniture is haunted by trauma and melancholy. After all, where does Britain take its sadness, if not the pub?' If you are anxious about 2023, The Queens Head is always open.
Redolent
Finally getting the attention they deserve, Redolent are an Edinburgh five-piece fronted by brothers Robin and Danny Herbert, alongside drummer Andrew Turnbull, bassist Robbie White, and Alice Hancock providing live samplers. Redolent yearn to capture that sense of joy that comes from looking back and seeing progress. Their upcoming EP marks a shift in their music, away from traditional guitar-driven sounds towards the use of electronic samples and experimentation. The word ‘redolent’ carries much more significance than just its definition. For the band, their name is evocative of both a journey through history and a destination to be reached.
They Hate Change
With the recent slew of club-infused hip-hop, you’d be forgiven for thinking They Hate Change were jumping on the bandwagon. But you’d be wrong. Voracious musical magpies, the Tampa natives, have been a long time coming. Cutting their teeth as DJs on the Tampa DIY scene, Dre and Vonne brought their exhaustive musical knowledge to the clubs. The two started to find a cohesive style and, more importantly, saw first-hand what made people move. When they made the move into making beats and rapping, they brought that experimentation with them, jumping head-first into the post-genre scene that defines modern music. 2022’s Finally, New, saw them frame thick and fast East Coast raps, drum’n’bass, and UK breaks with the Miami bass and Tampa jook sounds of their home state. Where they take us in 2023 is anyone’s guess. It’ll not be dull, that’s for sure.
Wednesday’s Child
Last on the list, but certainly not the least - Wednesday’s Child are the witchy band you need in your life. Based in London, they effortlessly fuse jazz, psychedelic rock, and punk into something truly unique. Their dreamy and twisted single last year ‘I Want You To Want Me’ was definitely one of our favourites tracks from 2022. We can’t wait to hear a longer project from them. One member of the band is also in The Dinner Party so if you like them you should definitely check out Wednesday’s Child too!