Singleton - The Ukrainian Indie Avant-Garde

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Published on Friday, 14 September 2012 16:41

Raw guitar-driven sound, emotional vocals and various songwriting, Singleton have taken a while to gain a broader recognition, but now advancing powerfully in the spotlight. With British experience they want to aim greater heights now.

Watch our portrait of Singleton below!

The band, speaking about itself as "the avant-garde of Ukrainian indie music", was founded 2004 and consists of Jim Walt (Lead Guitar), Nikita Yudin (Guitar), Dmitry Chudakov (Bass), Vitaliy Yermak (Drums) and front-women Alina Fedorova (Vocals). Living and recording in the Ukrainian capitol Kiev the band provides typical Indie-Rock: With the drums in charge, the bass followed closely, several guitar excursions and the strong, soulful voice of Fedorova sitting over all they sound a bit like big names as Coldplay or The Verve. Furthermore the band states also U2, Blur and The Beatles as influences.

Singleton, who are contracted by the Indie record label Go Loud Records, released so far two EP and one full length albums: The debut EP Storms (2009) is carried to a great degree by Alina Fedorova's Vocal and changes between Pop and Independent-Rock. Always present and visible on the cover as well as in the song lyrics of Storms is the fascination for the sea, the wind and the waves producing their own rhythm and being independent and original as a great metaphor for the unsteadiness of the human life.
This metaphor continued in The High Sea (2010), their first full length album, which supposed to contain "43 minutes of pure indie". In fact this album is more indie than his forerunner - the guitar and the drums take are more dominant role - and it is the origin of the high expectations: Tracks like "Time To Run", "Get Out Of My Mind" and "If I'm Falling" are catchy, melodic, well produced and mostly responsible Singleton hitting the 100.000 listens on Jamendo long time ago.
Shine (July of 2012) includes only one song of the same name. It is in every perspective single providing a more nostalgic, dreamy, soundtrack-like creation. Nonetheless it is unique and memorable, always changing between sadness and hope.

Altogether, this band clearly reveals hit potential. Step by step also people not coming from Ukraine recognized this: Since the first airplay on a German FM radio station in 2008, Singleton had numerous shows in Ukraine, Russia and Belarus (amongst others within the framework of the Football European Championship 2012). Tim Whale, creator of the Indie Bands Blog, speaks about a "highly capable band, who have much to add”.

And indeed the next album is expected autumn this year and they managed to get well known support: Barney Barnicott, British record producer of bands like Kasabian, Franz Ferdinand, The Temper Trap and The Artic Monkeys - only to name a few - ministers to the talented Ukrainian band. We will let you know when the album will be released.

For now, if you can't wait, you have to take comfort in seeing them live playing songs of their released albums: The next opportunity for that is on 20th of October in Kyiv (Divan) and on 24th of November in the Comlumbiahalle of Berlin.

Or visit Singleton on their official website, myspace, YouTube or Jamendo.

Listen to our portrait of Singleton on Youtube!