Over the past few years, guitar-led British indie music has entered a new phase or – rather should we say – re-entered. There’s an increasing wealth of socially conscious, mental health aware and entirely honest set of songs from artists like Sam Fender, Yungblud and now Dan Selwood. The fact that these are all names from the North of England is also not lost on us; that part of the world has a long history for both setting social change and trends in music.
Back to the name of the moment – Dan Selwood. This Manchester-based artist is pretty fresh to the music scene with newest single ‘Cigarettes’ being his second ever release, but already he’s gaining traction. Upon listening to this indie-rock track, with its subtle singer-songwriter influences, we were instantly captivated by the artist’s rich baritone vocal which perfectly suits the epic-sound that he’s cultivated through this track. The energetic combination of guitars and drums are nothing short of passionate.
Expanding up that heartfelt atmosphere we initially detected, Selwood shares:
“I wrote Cigarettes at quite a pivotal point in my life, after just starting college and not yet feeling like I belonged there. It’s about pretending to be someone that you’re not and the internal struggle you face when doing that. It captures that feeling and time in my life well for me and when I play it, I can take myself back there, retrospectively, now I am comfortable with who I am as a person.“
He continues to address the recording process, saying that “In the studio with Mickey Dale, we aimed to create a song that will get you in your stomach when you hear it for the first time, with an anthemic chorus and climactic halftime guitar solo.”
For certain, those poignant lyrics transports the listener back to those shaky times, but there’s no denying that Selwood‘s bold performance exudes confidence. Thus, ‘Cigarettes’ is a bridge between the past and the presents. As for what the future holds… you’ll have to keep an eye on Dan Selwood to find out.
You can also find ‘Cigarettes’ in our Indie Rockers playlist.
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