Substance at the Spice of Life

Sunday 21st of May Substance at the Spice of Life Featuring ? Laura Fell + Aly Rowell + Bella Cloud + Rebecca Sykes The Spice of Life is a Soho landmark, historic music venue and is in the heart of London's West End. Renowned for having a great live sound The Spice of Life and Substance have worked together for over 18 years to bring the very best new music to the heart of the capital. "One of the best little venues in London" Evening Standard The Line up Laura Fell Following the success of her debut album 'Safe From Me' in 2020 on Balloon Machine Records, Fell took a 3-year hiatus from music before returning in 2024 with a trio of introspective songs on EP 'At Least I Tried,' an ethereal ode to heartbreak and an evocative journey through the theme of loss. Making up for lost time, Fell also released another EP in May 2025 - ?Talk It All Apart? - where she navigates us through the various phases of romantic relationships; exploring the patterns that repeat themselves, the resulting frustration and confusion as to how to do it differently, and grappling with and striving to overcome barriers to intimacy and connection. Her 2025 EP 'Talk It All Apart' marked a new sound for Fell, enlisting her friend - Berlin-based singer-songwriter and drummer Robert Kretzschmar (Anna Erhard, Albertine Sarges, Kat Frankie) - to produce the EP. resulting in something lighter and more playful than her previous releases - crunchy electric guitar, sparse bass and melodic synth lines reminiscent of Aldous Harding?s production - offering a juxtaposition to the depth and introspection of Fell?s lyrics. Fell is currently working on her next release with Mercury-Prize winning producer Mike Lindsay (Tunng, LUMP, Speech Debelle, Anna B Savage) set to be released in 2026. Fell?s talent for lyrical craftsmanship permeates every song; simultaneously forceful yet fragile, they invite listeners to delve beneath the surface to unearth the profound meanings within. https://www.laurafellmusic.com/ Aly Rowell Brown girl indie-folk https://www.instagram.com/alyrowell Bella Cloud The Limerent, the debut EP of songwriter Bella Cloud, newly released in 2025 is a sonic exploration into the condition of limerence and the process of losing onself in the act of loving another. The arc of the EP loosely follows each stage of limerence-infatuation, crystallization, and deterioration. Beginning with the folk rock track Two Good Actors embodies pure want through its swooping viola and crunchy rootsy guitars. Lapse of The Truth brings listeners into the internal state and seeks to mirror the rounded cycles we find ourselves in through it's shoegazey guitar riffs and energetic beat. The third track You seeks to convey the distance and the unshakable feeling of being the footnote in the life of the person who fills chapters for you. Continuing with the penultimate and melancholic chamber pop ballad Littlest Death that reckons with the toll of limerance: the willingness to die at the one you love's hands as long as they are the one weilding the knife. Finally, ending with a quaint piano rendition of the opening track offering a reflective and new perspective. The songs were honed through a year of live performance with her band in San Diego culminating in the recording of the EP in the end of 2024 produced, mixed, and recorded by Andrew Walsh along with collaborators Rebecca Sykes, Spencer Dugan, and Diego Tidwell. Her songs arrive through fruitful vessels such as open tunings, warm lamplight on a winter night, and are further elaborated through orchestral and standard band outfits. Bella Cloud hopes her music lands with audiences who enjoy folk rock, chamber pop, and indie rock. With roots in San Diego, USA, and currently based in Melbourne/Naarm, Australia, Cloud is at heart a wanderer. Consequently, she is most often found in many places throughout the world when she is able: playing her songs to those with open ears, resting by a river, making cyanotype lyric prints, or off attempting to climb some mountain. https://www.bella-cloud.com/ Rebecca Sykes multi-instrumentalist ? songwriter ? producer https://www.instagram.com/rebecca._.sykes The Spice of Life is an over 18?s venue .ID will be required if you are asked. http://www.spiceoflifesoho.com/ http://substancegigs.com/index.php https://www.facebook.com/substance.gigs