Be-At

STRICKEN CITY

When Iain Pettifer first met Rebekah Raa, they were wearing exactly the same clothes. “How could they not form a band then?” you’d think, only the pair were actually in a math class. Nonetheless, as painstaking algebra lessons were repeated, it soon became apparent that their love for romantic guitar music couldn’t have been better suited. It was a couple of years later that the pair first began writing together, sparked by Raa’s boredom at university, which resulted in the singer spending her student loan on a guitar and an 8-track recorder. Drawing on influences from The Slits, Life Without Buildings and Young Marble Giants, the band’s debut mini-album “Songs About People I Know” was released to critical acclaim, drawing plaudits from the likes of NME, Uncut, Fader and the New York Times.
myspace.com/strickencity

THE FEATURES

The Features formed as middle-schoolers in Tennessee. The group of classic rock-loving adolescents had big ideas while sitting in the school cafeteria, but they hadn’t acquired instruments yet. Due to the lack of a proper drum set, the Features first percussion section was beat box, and no one was eager to play bass. The band never went without devoted fans, and their kinetic individuality garnered attention from industry folks who believed them to be “the next big thing.” Yet the question remains, why do The Features remain unknown to the majority of the indie culture? Hit Sheet think it won’t be long: ‘We’ve never seen a drummer leap five feet above his stool and land perfectly in time before… If The Features don’t break in the UK, it wont be their fault - this band possesses everything needed to go the distance.’
myspace.com/thefeatures

LIFE IN FILM

Life In Film formed when circumstances found four friends living in the same flat in East London. It wasn’t long before they were putting together some songs of their own, with bands such as The Smiths, The Beatles and Bowie giving influence to the sound. The band released debut single ‘’Sorry’’ which found it’s way onto John Kennedy on XFM, Huw Stevens on Radio 1 and Gary Crowley on BBC London and culminated in them being asked to headline the BBC Introducing stage at Glastonbury. Described by Steve Lamacq as ‘‘a nice piece of fidgety pop,’’ and compared by The Independent to ‘‘the kind of light and dark mind-f*ck that Radiohead used to do so, so well” and having shared the stage with Super Furry Animals, Air Traffic and Mumford & Sons to name but a few, the band execute a live set second to none. They are definitely one of the ones to watch out for in 2010.
myspace.com/alifeinfilm