For fans of Rex Orange County and Tim Atlas, we’ve got a new surefire recommendation for you. Joe Nix is a fascinating newcomer whose breezy confessionals are reminiscent of both of those artists, each sharing their own unique take on the Gen Z experience. As an atypical nomad, Nix was relocated to Paraguay from Birmingham, UK at the age of two-years-old and being fully immersed in that culture for two years, he was swiftly moved back to the UK. The return also marked a loss of language, Spanish and Guarani to be exact, and what has ensued since is a life of searching for identity. Music came as a welcome relief to the young artist who tried his hand at songwriting courses, before disbanding from the strict, anxiety-inducing regime. As Joe Nix recalls, “I didn’t want to go in the end - you could have passed the degree without doing any actual complete writing. Anything you did write went through endless re-drafts - it ended up feeling like taught anxiety. I’ve got enough of that as it is, thanks!” In contrast, his song ‘Yikes’ is an easy-going stroll through playful keys and animated ad libs, although even here, the musician’s vulnerability peaks through. Speaking about the experiences that have influenced this single, Nix again tells us: “It’s about the culmination of lots of things, reaching a point where you feel you’ve been chasing something for so long, waiting for it for so long, then when the moment comes being scared as f*#k! But excited as hell. It’s somewhere in the tension between the two.” With collaborator Cashy at the production helm, ‘Yikes’ is an extremely promising introduction to a songwriter who we gauge has much more to say. Keep an eye on Joe Nix. - Hannah Thacker