SML Presents - Professor Yaffle, Natalie McCool, Novelty Island

Professor Yaffle are a Liverpool-based psychedelic folk collective that stand apart from the city's traditional guitar-pop lineage. Across a prolific run of five albums, the group has developed a distinct sound that blends folk with subtle jazzy undertones and funky, rhythmic elements.

​This steady output has fostered a devoted, underground following that spans far beyond the local scene. A best-kept secret among those in the know, the collective has built a reputation through word-of-mouth for their atmospheric depth and uncompromising approach to musicianship and songwriting.

Natalie McCool has amassed a ton of organic support and critical acclaim with her truly innovative and beautiful take on pop music.
Recent album Memory Girl has enabled her to embark on a brand-new adventure, reaching its £3k pre-order target within just two weeks of announcing the then-untitled record to her supporters, with album singles Closure and Devils landing radio plays on BBC Radio 1, BBC 6Music, BBC Introducing/Amazing Radio, and singles 'A Sun Going Down' and 'Heaven' securing Track Of The Week on BBC Introducing Merseyside, picking up tastemaker support from the likes of Wonderland, CLASH, Record of the Day, Under The Radar, The Most Radicalist, When The Horn Blows and more.
Its release was supported by a busy live schedule, including an official showcase at SXSW in Austin, Texas, a headline UK tour, a support slot with The Wombats on their Fix Yourself, Not The World tour, and festival appearances at Kendal Calling and Deer Shed Festival, where she performed on the main stage.

Novelty Island's hook-filled dream pop channels surrealism and Northern melancholy through classic songwriting. The project is led by Liverpool-based songwriter and producer, Tom McConnell who describes it as "Paul McCartney having an argument with Bernard Black". Eclectic songs inspired by childhood, motorways, trains, old televisions, cowboys, space, birds and balloons form their first two albums, How Are You Coping with This Century? and Wallsend Weekend Television, which received acclaim from Mojo, Shindig, BBC 6 Music, BBC Introducing and Absolute Radio. The psychedelic, papier-mâché-prop-filled Novelty Island live band have performed at Glastonbury and toured the UK extensively as a headline act and support to Sea Power, The Pale White, Scott Lavene and China Crisis. Novelty Island's new album Jigsaw Causeway is a darker collection of lo-fi songs inspired by the fuzzy, woozy production of Grandaddy, Beck and Boards of Canada. The release was accompanied by McConnell's first exhibition, featuring the large-scale surreal papier-mache sculptures from the album artwork. The album cover piece is made from over 50,000 jigsaw pieces.