Stoke-on-Trent newcomer Average Joe proves anything but on smooth, affecting debut track ‘Cross My Heart’

Every weekday, DIY’s new music know-it-all Neu brings you one essential new release to get obsessed with. Today’s Neu Pick comes from Average Joe.

Stoke-on-Trent’s musical activity has been a little sparse of late. Since the city birthed the icon, the legend that is Robbie Williams, and hosted a Jimi Hendrix gig in a venue that later became the city’s Wetherspoons, there’s been little to shout about from the city that once housed a burgeoning Northern Soul scene and was a hub of musical excitement.

The mundanity of the recent past all feeds into the music of newcomer Average Joe, though. On debut track ‘Cross My Heart’ - our Neu Pick for today - the singer makes the monotony sound majestic, weaving sky-reaching tales of the ilk of Father John Misty, all delivered in a beautifully thick northern accent. Lamenting fuck-ups of the past, the blunt delivery makes the message hit even harder, with no place to hide or mask the track’s meaning.

A charismatic performer - shown in the track’s video, which sees him shuffling around the city’s streets - ‘Cross My Heart’ is a wonderfully simple, passion-filled first effort that puts the singer’s emotions to the fore and creates an iron-clad vision.

Watch the ‘Cross Your Heart’ video below.