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Holds Me Down
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BIO
"Life-affirming Mancunian electro-pop"
- Tom Robinson BBC 6Music
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"That has Manchester's musical heritage running right through it like the writing in rock"
- Guy Garvey (Elbow) BBC 6Music
"Lush"
- John Kennedy Radio X
Test Card Girl is a solo project by independent synth-folk Manchester singer-songwriter Catherine Burgis who started writing songs in 2019 to escape a life of perpetual admin. Having spent a year as a musical comedian, travelling the country with a miniature Yamaha keyboard, Catherine won North West Comedian of the Year before re-purposing the tiny keyboard to write her first single 'Holds Me Down'. The song featured on BBC6Music and Radio X, and she was named amongst Steve Lamacq's 'Ones to Watch' in 2021. Catherine received an Arts Council grant to record 3 more singles in 2021 and released her debut EP ‘Fly’ in September 2022. The EP was recorded at Airtight Studios in Manchester with producer Seadna McPhail and ranges from stripped back indie-folk songs to large-scale synth-pop singles. It features guest performances from drummer Andy Hargreaves (I Am Kloot), bass player Nathan Sudders (Miles Kane, Guy Garvey, Nadine Shah) and co-production from Peter Jobson (I Am Kloot). In January 2022 she was announced as one of ten Manchester International Festival Sounds Artists and longlisted for the Glastobury Emerging Talent Competition and will be touring the throughout 2023.
Photo: Debbie Ellis @asupremeshot