SCARED TO DANCE

Umarells headline the Scared To Dance and For The Rabbits monthly showcase gig night on Saturday 3rd February.

Support comes from Ailsa Tully at The Victoria and you can get your free tickets on DICE.

Hailing from Manchester, Umarells are a quartet of old friends and new bandmates. What originally began as something for guitarist Josh Yeung and synth player Imogen Badrock to do after shifts at their local Indian restaurants, it was only after a fateful night on the Blackpool strip that they decided to do something more with those sketches. The addition of flatmates and bassist Ryan Marsden, and school friend and drummer Sarah Knowles, completed the lineup and Umarells were born. Now signed to Fear of Missing Out Records, the band have released their debut 7”, “You’re Not Here” / “Closer”.

A self-described, “liberation song”, “You’re Not Here” tackled ideas of unhealthy relationships to a soundtrack that nodded to the dreampop of Beach House and the woozy Americana of Sun June. “Closer” adds a distinctly autumnal hue that marks the band out as ones to watch for anyone who admired Unknown Mortal Orchestral or the hushed vocals of Crumb. We’re delighted to host their debut London show of this band who are very much on the rise.

Ailsa Tully has created an ethereal world rooted in folk, tinged with indie, and grounded by lo-fi field recordings. Ailsa’s vocals are tender yet determined, central to the haunting soundscape she has crafted. Her lyrics are unflinchingly honest, rousing and poetic as she explores themes such as her own mental health and her experiences as a woman. Ailsa released our favourite EP of 2021 with the magnificent Holy Isle quickly followed by the standalone singles “Mothering” and “Easy”. More recently she has been collaborating with Hana Stretton and Catrin Vincent.