About

Manchester is steeped in British history as a thriving hub of music and culture, particularly for the 90s brit-pop scene that gave birth to The Stone Roses and Oasis, but TONICA, an emerging duo from the northern city are avoiding the cliché with their vibrant brand of electro-pop. TONICA encompass a contemporary, hook-heavy alt-pop sound, but with a dark, mysterious edge that brings something new to the table. This can be heard on the band’s first two releases in 2017, ‘Save Yourself’ (https://bit.ly/2tGhOr3) & ‘Nightmares’ (https://bit.ly/2AzvmF1) both of which received strong support from BBC Introducing in Manchester and Amazing Radio, as well as blog coverage from Eq Music blog, Sonic News, The Prelude Press and many others. The band have also played a string of sold out, live hometown shows to promote their recent releases, providing tour support for Fickle Friends, Y.O.U.N.G and Wyvern Lingo. This Summer, the band are set to drop their highly anticipated new single,’California’ (https://bit.ly/2Gt1Mb2). ‘California’ tells the story of a stranger in LA, searching for a lost-love. Written from an outsider’s perspective, the song portrays an alternate view of the 31st state; exploring themes of loneliness and loss in an adopted city, and the darkness beneath Hollywood’s glamorous exterior. Powered by brooding electro beats, soaring vocals and vibrant synths, ‘California’ was co-written & produced by Joe Cross (Hurts, The Courteeners). On their recent collaboration, the band enthused about trading production roles to keep things fresh: ‘We’re used to writing, recording and producing on our own pretty much all the time, so it was cool to switch things up and have someone reinterpret our sound. Especially someone like Joe, who we’re big fans of – his work with electro-pop acts like Hurts & Performance made him a perfect fit for us’ 1 Consisting of Amory (singer, songwriter) and Sam (songwriter, instrumentalist, producer), TONICA was formed in mid-2017 of the back of a previous project which was more rock focussed. Now, the pair are looking to hone their craft in a more niche area that represents their new alternative electro-pop outlook. The change in direction of sound has been fuelled by a desire between the duo to ofer indie-pop music that has substance, ofsetting the typical ‘all out pop’ image with the band’s self-labelled ‘neon-noir’ stylings. Many of TONICA’s songs encapsulate ideas of the romantic and melodramatic, giving them a certain cinematic feel that reflects the ‘neon-noir’ aesthetic. To convey this, the duo have employed the artistic talents of graphic designer João Oliveira for their artwork; an artist greatly admired by both Amory and Sam for his work in the style. You can check out his artwork here: http:// onrepeattttt.tumblr.com/ TONICA explained their fascination with the film genre, stating: ‘The mood and aesthetic of 80s/modern neon-noir cinema has definitely inspired what we do. Films like Blade Runner & Drive have this shadowy, mysterious, sinister feeling to them – we feel like our music captures that sense of drama & suspense too. We love the use of neon glamour & rich colours mixed with industrial gloom within NN cinema, especially in film posters’. In terms of musical inspiration, TONICA list contemporary electro alt-pop acts such as Banks, Honne, Chase Atlantic, CHVRCHES, and The Weeknd as influences.