On the first of January this year we announced 10 acts that we thought would have a big 2018 - so before we announce our next acts for 2019, we thought it’d be nice to look back and dig deeper into what our 10 got up to this year!

Bandicoot

2018 proved to be a very very busy and exciting year for Bandicoot. They’ve released three tunes - ‘Stuck in Space’, ‘Being Erased’ & ‘House of Fame’, and gigged extensively including support slots for Spring King at Sin City, Al Moses in Clwb (Cardiff) and Estrons in The Parrot (Carmarthen).

As part of Radio One’s Biggest Weekend, the boys played a special showcase show for Horizons, went on to headline the Swansea Fringe Festival at Sin City and played Swn Festival in Cardiff. If that wasn’t enough, the boys ended their year by selling out the Bunkhouse, for a very special hometown show. Do not sleep on this band - they’ve got a massive 2019 ahead!

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King Goon

The Goons have been very busy in the studio this year, preparing to unleash their long awaiting album to the world. As always, the boys have brought the party to multiple venues in the city including Creature Sound and Sin City (twice - once as part of the Swansea Fringe Festival) and also provided the BBC Academy with a special acoustic set as part of the Biggest Weekend!

We’re all waiting eagerly for that album (hopefully due out 2019) and we’re even more excited about the party that’ll accompany it’s release!

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The Zinvandels

Swansea’s favourite rock n rollers spent a lot of time in the studio this year - and released their latest single “Liars” in November. With lots of packed hometown shows including at Cinema & Co and The Bunkhouse the boys also headlined a special Horizons x Swansea Music Hub showcase at Unit Nineteen for the Biggest Weekend back in May.

These guys are going from strength to strength both in their songwriting and in their live shows - we can’t wait for what 2019 will bring them!

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Emilie Merry

Emilie released her debut EP “Not Your One” back in August and rumour has it she’s back in the studio creating her next batch of tunes! Emilie’s also played lots of shows, wowing audiences with her soulful poppy tunes and played a special full band show for the Radio One Academy during the Biggest Weekend in May.

If her next release is anything like her EP, we’re in for something very special from Emilie!

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CrazeTheJack

2018 has been a massive year for CrazeTheJack - lots of gigs and festivals, including The Biggest Weekend Fringe, FOCUS Wales and the Swansea Fringe Festival matched with the release of his long awaited album “Kaleidoscope”. He also provided an insane verse for Rachel K Collier’s cover of Badfingers’ ‘Come & Get It” - created for Horizons in celebration of the Biggest Weekend.

Big things are coming for Craze next year!!

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Cities

Cities have been very busy in the studio this year, putting the finishing touches to their next release (that we’re so so excited about) as well as a storming end of year show in Cinema & Co alongside. They played at the Bunkhouse for the Swansea Fringe and provided us with one of our favourite moments of the festival.

2019 is set to be huge for the band - we can’t wait to hear what they’ve been doing!

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Geraint Rhys

Geraint’s had a very impressive 2018 with a host of super cool achievements. He created a short documentary on the role of music during the Catalan independence struggle and won awards for it! He played for us at the Swansea Fringe Festival for Folk at the Fringe in Unit Nineteen and his latest single Dilyn was released in November!

With new collaborations and creative journeys set for 2019, we’re very excited for what the future holds for Geraint!

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The Riff

A very busy year for the boys in The Riff - with a whole host of gigs! Most notably, the boys sold out the Bunkhouse this month and blew the roof off! They headlined the Swansea Fringe Festival at Sin City, played a headline show at Sin earlier in the year and also played a special set for the Radio One Academy as part of the Biggest Weekend!

Favourites of the Swansea Music Hub, we can’t wait to see what they’ve got planned for 2019!

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Picsel

Picsel are another band who have been busy in the studio this year (their album is due out next year and we cannot wait!!). This year they released their single Alcohol and Drugs, played a bunch of exciting (and sweaty) shows including South West Fest in Cinema & Co and headlining The Bunkhouse for the Swansea Fringe Festival.

Next year is set to be their biggest yet - do not miss out & make sure you listen to their music and catch them playing live!

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Little Folk

Little Folk have had a ridiculously busy year. They’ve played so many gigs and festivals including the Biggest Weekend Fringe Festival, Hub Festival, the Swansea Fringe Festival, the Wales’ Airshow, Americana Fest, Live on the Wye, Countryfile Live and The Longroad Festival for BBC Introducing!

Their single Heading South was released earlier this year and is an absolute banger (we seriously recommend you check it out!). If 2018 is anything to go off, this band has got a very exciting year ahead of them!

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Words by Simon Parton

For our first featured gig of the week at The Bunkhouse (if you don’t know about these guys / been the venue yet - you’re missing out!!) we focus in on the underground / hip hop scene / grime scene of Swansea, as T-Rev and friends takeover for The Anti-Social #2.

We heard nothing but great things from their first event at The Last Resort, and love the ethos behind the events:

“A Night dedicated to showcasing the talent that's left out of the main stream, the talent that's too offensive for radio and the talent that we believe deserves to be pushed out there and shown your support. No Egos. No Troublemakers. A night for the people, By the people.”

And there’s a plethora of local talent on show too (some so underground that we can’t even find links to them online!) Check these hyperlinks for more of what to expect - T-Rev / Don Jon / Hashjams / Native / Big Rick / Dead Crow / Luke RV / CrazeTheJack

Doors at 8pm till very late and it’s just £3.00!!

Something a little different for our featured gig this week, but something we feel very passionate about supporting - the Swansea Hip Hop Scene. 

If someone asked me about the hip hop scene in Swansea before we started the Swansea Music Hub - I would have answered with "little to non existent", but the fact is, there is a really strong underground hip hop scene in the city that needs to be celebrated & supported by a wider audience. With acts and producers like Craze The Jack, Rufus Mufasa, Ananas, T-Rev, F Dot Xtra, Lewis Cullen & Neezo listed on our artist directory and leading the way, you immediately get a sense that our city's hip hop scene is thriving. (I'm sure there's so many more amazing acts missing here too - if so get in touch & let us know!!)

And what better way to celebrate and support it then by heading to Cinema & Co this Saturday evening! With live performances from the artists at the forefront of the scene - Rufus Mufasa & Craze The Jack, this is one night not to miss. 

Your ticket will not only provide you with live sets from these two, but there's also

• a graffiti exhibition featuring the works of Smak, Skroe, Over, Sadsak, Unity & friends
• Breakdance from B-boy 'Rickie the Spin' & friends
• a screening of STYLE WARS: THE ORIGINAL HIP HOP DOCUMENTARY (1983)

Tickets available here: 

Doors open at 19.00

**Age Restriction: 12 and up**

Hip hop artists and rappers in Swansea seem to be a rare find when looking at the music scene at large, but one artist who has stamped his mark on the city is Craze The Jack. 

Craze The Jack (aka Craig Lewis) is both a rapper and producer and has a sound that is undeniably influenced by old school hip hop and artists such as A Tribe Called Quest, Big Daddy Kane and E.P.M.D. which is really fresh to hear in a UK music scene dominated by grime. His production on the tracks certainly have an old school vibe to them and makes you imagine a younger Eminem could have been rapping over the top back in the late 90s / early 00s. 

With a wealth of material on his Soundcloud and bandcamp pages, it's hard to know where to start with Craze's stuff, so we've recommended three tracks to get you started: Murdered It, Extreme Motion and Hanging Over. If you're in from there, we suggest you head to his bandcamp site and listen to (or better still buy!) his EP RAW (Real and Welsh) and debut album E.Motion. What you'll soon start to realise is that not only are his lyrics are really relatable and delivered in a unique way, but the hooks and choruses on his tunes are really catchy!

When Craze played at our Swansea Musician's Forum in February this year he absolutely smashed it!! In a room where I think it's fair to say the majority would not actively seek out a hip hop show in Swansea, he had the ability to win over the whole room, get everyone involved and commanded the stage that made you want to watch, listen and sing along. 

With an album due very soon from Craze this is a very exciting time to start following him and keep up to date with what's to come. We're certainly very very excited. 

Craze The Jack Facebook | Craze The Jack Twitter | Craze The Jack Instagram | Craze The Jack YouTube |  Craze The Jack Bandcamp | Craze The Jack Soundcloud

Written by Simon Parton