Star Slinger - "I/IV"
Known for his pitch-shifted, bouncing remixes, UK producer Star Slinger's latest effort is an edit of Anita Baker's "Sweet Love" and the first of four reworks leading up to his New Year's Eve appearance at Chicago's Beauty Bar. "I/IV" adds a funky bass groove and soulful piano and synth lines to the track's infectious vocal hook. The result is a smooth, blissful transformation of the more mellow original. Download the track below.
Disclosure - "January (Kaytranada Edition)"
British production duo Disclosure have enjoyed tremendous success following the release of their incredible debut album, Settle, and now will release a collection of remixes from the record with names like Baauer, Paul Woolford, Hudson Mohawke, and DJ Premier included on the compilation. Quickly rising Montreal producer Kaytranada, puts his R&B flavored house stylings on "January," one of the album's most memorable tracks with vocals from Jamie Woon.
HNNY - "No"
One of the most stunning tracks to come out this year comes courtesy of Swedish producer HNNY, as he samples TLC's "No Scrubs" on his latest track "No." Setting up a deep, melodic intro before building to an R&B vocal breakdown, the cut has a strong 90's vibe and an overall warm feel. The track will be released as a single-sided 12" December 16th via vinyl only label Puss.
Katy B - "I Like You"
UK pop singer Katy B is expected to release her new EP, 5 AM, November 4th and has already shared the title track. "I Like You," the latest single from the record, was produced by George FitzGerald, known for his 90's house inspired work and features a straightforward, driving garage flavored beat. With dark synth sounds coupled with a confident delivery, the hook-heavy track has undeniably British club feel that is bound to tear up dancefloors.
Mount Kimbie - "Made To Stray" (DJ Koze Remix)
The excellent new album from Mount Kimbie, Cold Spring Fault Less Youth, has
brought on a slew of remixes from names like Kyle Hall, Lee Gamble, and
now Berlin's DJ Koze joins that list with a stunning reinterpretation
of "Made To Stray." Like much of his 2013 LP, Amygdala, the track
balances strange, almost psychedelic elements with precise rhythms that
border on hypnotic. Stretching to over eight minutes, the blissful
remix is as sonically adventurous as we've come to expect from the
producer while retaining the warmth that make even his zaniest tracks a
rewarding listen.
Disclosure - "Apollo"
One of the biggest stories in dance music this year has been the breakthrough of young British duo Disclosure, whose debut LP, Settle, is a contender for album of the year. Combining elements of garage, house, and bass music coupled with crisp production, the pair make tracks that pack an energy that the genre hasn't seen for some time. While some Settle was more pop leaning, the pair get back to their roots on their latest track "Apollo." With soaring vocals, huge synth sounds, and driving bass, the massive track is yet another hit for the Lawrence brothers to add to their impressive resume.
Common - "I Want You" (Kaytranada Edition)
Montreal producer Kaytranada has been quickly rising with tracks like "At All" and remixes of Azealia Banks and Missy Elliot. His latest rework of rapper Common's "I Want You," is a bouncing, soulful take on the original with just the right amount of dancefloor flair. With a thick bass line and grooving percussion, hip hop and house elements are brought together perfectly to make for an absolutely infectious track.
Mix of the Week: Little Dragon
Swedish dance pop band Little Dragon recently put together this mix full of current house sounds from South Africa that are said to be the inspiration for their new album expected out this spring. Blending 90's house and tribal flavored jams, it's an impressive and energetic display of sounds from a region known for it's rich tradition of dance music.
Coma - "Les Dilettantes (Roosevelt Mix)"
Electronic pop duo Coma debuted their LP, In Technicolor, on Kompakt. One of the more memorable cuts from the record, "Les Dilettantes," a free form, spacey take on post-punk. Cologne producer Roosevelt, known for his smooth disco work, offers a more straightforward, club-ready version of the track in this remix. Singer Edi Winarni's distant vocals sound confident in the context of the funk infused beat that brings to mind Todd Terje's 2012 disco jam "Inspector Norse."
Palms Trax - "Equation"
The title track from Berlin producer Palms Trax's Equation EP, out on October 7th, is a deep, melodic tune that evokes late 80's Detroit techno and classic Chicago house. Built around a strutting, playful synth line and thick stabs, the producer manages to pack as much energy into the analogue jam as you'll find in any contemporary dance tracks. The killer combination of hard hitting techno and smooth house makes this one a continually rewarding listen.
Mount Kimbie - "You Took Your Time (Kyle Hall Remix)"
Arguably the best track from Mount Kimbie's latest album, Cold Spring Fault Less Youth, the King Krule collab "You Took Your Time" has received the remix treatment from several producers including Lee Gamble, Oneman, and now Detroit producer Kyle Hall has given us his take. By stretching the track to nearly 8 minutes and cutting up the vocals, Hall brings out the inner club banger in the UK duo's work as his signature crunchy techno style is paired with house melodies and tense rhythms.
Disclosure feat. London Grammar - "Help Me Lose My Mind (Paul Woolford Remix)" Settle, the incredible debut album from UK house duo Disclosure is full of strong pop infused dance tracks that have led to the young pair being favored to win this year's Mercury prize. One of the more memorable album cuts "Help Me Lose My Mind" features vocals from London Grammar's Hannah Reid over an r&b flavored beat. Producer Paul Woolford rework offers a piano-driven house take on the original, favoring thick bass stabs over the original's feathery synths. Heavy drums and a simple yet effective piano riff elevate Reid's vocals to anthem status. The single which features this remix as well as one by Pearson Sound is out October 28 via PMR.
Editor's note: If you missed any of this week's selections, you can check them out here.
Mac McGuire Album: Phosphorescent - Muchacho Muchacho, Phosphorecent's latest and best release to date, opens with the angelic "Sun, Arise!," itself bookended by the closing "Sun's Arising," Matthew Houck wastes no time in letting the listener know this is an album of awakening. What is found in between is Houck's journey of redemption, religion, and love, highlighted by the successful pairing of both conventional alt-country elements (mariachi horns, pedal steel slide guitar, violins) and non (synths, subtle electronics, dubby beats). Muchacho features a stunning one-two punch, maybe the best of the year, in the weary and reflective "Song for Zula" and the powerful show stopper "The Quotidian Beasts." The former, which would take top song honors if not for my selection below, features a wandering, Johnny Cash quoting narrator who feels to be "disfigured" by love and will be damned if he "opens [him]self up that way again."
Song: The National - "Sea of Love"
Like fellow Brooklynites The Walkmen, The National seem to have mastered the art of aging gracefully. Those “Mr. November” days are long gone, while family and a potentially soon-to-be post-rock ‘n’ roll life seem to be the band’s focus these days upon the release of their latest album, Trouble Will Find Me. On the tense and building “Sea of Love,” though, the men in The National remind everyone that they aren't going soft quite yet in their most thrilling and immediate song since “Abel,” and maybe best since “Slow Show.” While rocking out is great and all, it’s the little things that make this track really stand out: the welcoming heartland harmonica, the haunting backing harmonies, and those passionate pleas to “Joe” to “don’t drag me in” during the song’s thrilling conclusion. The great music video certainly didn't hurt either.
Joe Speranza
Album: The Lone Bellow - The Lone Bellow
Picking an album of the year is a very, very difficult thing to do and without some kind of aggregate it is impossible to do objectively. So all you loyal Daft Punk and Vampire Weekend listeners, and all you Kanye West martyrs, keep that in mind as I explain my choice.
Back in January, I wrote a gushing review of The Lone Bellow’s debut album in which I actually included the line “listening to The Lone Bellow is a potentially life-altering experience.” I wasn’t on drugs and I haven’t quit my job to follow them on tour, but it’s fair to say that my initial bewilderment with how good they are has quietly devolved into casual fandom. I’ve relaxed quite a bit since I proclaimed that “every so often, a band comes along that might just change everything.”
They haven’t exploded like I fearlessly predicted they would, but the release of their album was very important to me and it’s why I’m calling it the album of the year – so far. I previously called them a “kind-of country-sounding band,” which is – I can admit it now – inaccurate. They are very country. And I’m okay with it. And I never thought I’d type that.
The reason they appealed to me back then – and this is doing a disservice to the quality of the album from beginning to end – was that they were a Brooklyn-based band that had just recorded a country album. I grew up outside New York City, in a place where admitting you liked country music was not only frowned upon but a serious character flaw. It was wrong to like country music. So naturally, The Lone Bellow intrigued me. It was finally “okay” for me to listen to country music. And that’s great, because The Lone Bellow is just a beautiful album. The harmonies and buildups are perfect, and – if I can make an intangible tangible – you can hear how much this album meant to them. For more specific details and to read why I loved the album check out the initial review, but what you need to know is that there was a lot at stake for these guys and they really came up big.
The Lone Bellow has easily had the most profound effect on me this year; in case you care, I almost picked Indigo Meadow by The Black Angels – which was a huge return to form for them – but I already knew they were great. The Lone Bellow came out of nowhere and is the sole reason I now consider country music if not decent, tolerable. That’s a pretty big feat, so cheers to them.
Song: A$AP Rocky & Skrillex - "Wild for the Night"
In the same way people remember where they were and what they were doing during major, catastrophic events, I remember where I was and what I was doing the first time I heard “Wild For the Night” by A$AP Rocky and Skrillex. I was driving on that uneven stretch of road around the 219/I-90 merge where you start to think your car might just fall apart when all of a sudden, I heard the unmistakable, ghoulish voice of A$AP talking about his pistol and his morning routine. I thought okay, whatever, if my tires blow at least I’ll go out listening to a decent song. This was also around the time when I was deciding whether or not dubstep sounded better or worse than a fax machine and whether or not Skrillex was a genius or a joke. The 45-second mark of the song – the transition from the talking-with-your-mouth-full voice of A$AP to the button pressing brilliance of Skrillex – settled it pretty quickly; “Wild for the Night” literally made me smile and figuratively made everything clear: Skrillex is the shit and dubstep goes quite nicely with rap.
Ryan Wolf Album: Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Push The Sky Away Perhaps the first contemporary album to use Wikipedia and Miley Cyrus as artistic references without sounding shallow or smugly elitist, Push the Sky Away feels immediately prescient. Nick Cave and company demonstrate their continued awareness of the developing world we inhabit, crawling in its search for knowledge, placing faith in man’s flawed faculties while the Internet gathers and spreads human-generated information that may or may not reflect reality. As the all-knowing Google emerges as a man-made idol, Push the Sky Away returns to the flesh, favoring physical bodies and blood. Finding mystic qualities in seemingly neutral modern technology, Cave’s low-key, mid-tempo pastiche is deeper, darker, and more frighteningly astute than superficial listens suggest.
Song: Vampire Weekend - "Ya Hey"
Throughout Modern Vampires of the City, Vampire Weekend exchange class-focused secular musings in for serious religious introspection. On the record’s boldest, most full-frontal grappling with the spiritual, indie-pop royalty meets its Maker, addressing complaints, doubts, and praises to Yahweh (or “Ya Hey,” according to the inverted Outkast song title). Concealed within Exodus’s burning bush, God refuses to reveal his identity or “name,” obscuring the cosmic plan “through the fire and through the flames.” Earth’s searching onlookers may be left schismatic and confused, but Vampire Weekend’s fusion of inspired chants and chipmunk crooning sees beyond vicious ironies and mortal “mistakes” in this 21st century open letter to the Creator.
Nick Torsell Album: Disclosure - Settle I’ve been having trouble keeping up with the amount of great music coming out this year. Not because I haven’t been paying attention, but because it seems like every time a record takes hold of my mornings and nights, a new one knocks it from its place, clamoring for attention. The past two months have been unbelievably rewarding for me listening-wise, with three of my favorites releasing excellent additions to their catalogs. Boards of Canada, Daft Punk, and Kanye West, whose music has meant very different things at different points in my life but all had an enormous impact on me, all came through, and I’ll be digging through their newest records for years to come. But my record of the year is from a group who more than lived up to my high expectations after following their steady stream of remixes and singles, Disclosure. Settle, the 22 and 18 year-old Lawrence Brothers’ debut record, is body music, joyful and confident in a way that finds a way into your subconscious, coloring the daily rhythm of your routine. Settle is crowd-pleasing in the best way, endlessly appealing and diverse and never once pulling back from the throttle.
Florida-natives Beach Day will release their debut record Trip Track Attack on 6/18 via Kanine Records. The 60s girl-group inspired trio are appropriately releasing their record in the throws of summer, and on the track “Little Red Shoes” its all too easy to see this record on repeat for some time during the ensuing months. Listen below:
9. Young Fathers - TAPE TWO
Young Fathers will follow-up their excellent TAPE ONE EP released earlier this year with TAPE TWO set for official release on 6/11. You can hear the ambitious 9-track EP in-full now over at Dazed Digital’s Soundcloud. 8. Spectrals - Sob Story
Spectrals are back with their sophomore record Sob Story, which was released yesterday via Wichita Recordings. The Record was produced by Girls' JR White and can be slightly likened to the recently disbanded duo with sprawling slide guitar and catchy classic rock melodies. Listen to the title track below:
7. Camera Obscura - Desire Lines
On the Glasgow quintet’s latest single off the forthcoming record Desire Lines (out today via 4AD) “Do It Again” lead singer Tracyanne Campbell is straightforward: “Turn down the lights now / let’s do it again.” The upbeat little number doesn’t seem to stray far from the band’s previous releases in 2006’s Let’s Get Out Of this Country and 2009’s My Maudlin Career, but no one’s complaining. Camera Obscura have made a career out of crafting their perfectly twee-lilted indie pop, but they’ve done it consistently. Listen to “Do It Again” below:
6. Smith Westerns - Soft Will
Smith Westerns impressed a lot of people with their debut self-titled record and 2011’s Dye It Blonde, and with their latest singles “3am Spiritual” and “Varsity” the group looks to complete their glam-rock trifecta with Soft Will, which is out June 25 via Mom+Pop. Check out the video for “Varsity” below:
5. Portugal. The Man - Evil Friends
The first track and video, “Atomic Man,” released from Portugal. The Man’s eighth studio album, has a white-washed sound that Censored Colors and American Ghetto songs don’t. Produced by Danger Mouse, it has a witty likeness to fellow Danger Mouse artists, but the synthetic-beats and metallic quality of John Baldwin Gourley’s vocals lack the rawness they’re known for. The album is streaming now, and will be an excellent alternative to less stimulating pop-rock tracks that can clog the radiowaves of the season.
4. Sigur Ros - Kveikor
Sigur Ros’ seventh studio album, Kveikur(put out by XL Records), returns the Icelandic band to a sound more reminiscent of their native landscape: beautiful, barren, and rocky. The first single and video released, “Isjaki,” retains some of the watery electronics prevalent on Valtari, their 2012 release, but harkens back to the chimes, post-rock guitar, and traditional beats on Takk and ( ). As usual, this album will be released to excited praise; because there’s always someone who will love it more than the last, and probably more than anything else. That’s one of the greatest qualities of Sigur Ros’ music: it never fails to touch a heart. Check out the lyric video to "Isjaki" below:
3. Eleanor Friedberger - Personal Record
Eleanor Friedberger, who’s playing at The Ninth Ward at Babeville tonight, released her sophomore LP Personal Record today on Merge. Anyone who likes the Fiery Furnaces will like this release, it’s full of quirky rhythms and sun-drenched folk-pop sincerity. Watch the video for "Stare At The Sun" below:
2. Disclosure - Settle
UK dance-pop duo Disclosure are brothers Howard and Guy Lawrence. At just 18 and 21, the brothers are crafting some supremely excellent music on their latest record Settle which was released yesterday on PMR. “Latch” is a palpable and airy track featuring Sam Smith that drips with boiling texture, flaunting itself this way and that via bubbling percussion and synth lines. Listen to “Latch” below: 1. Boards of Canada - Tomorrow's Harvest
Tomorrow’s Harvest, Boards of Canada’s first studio album in eight years, streamed over YouTube yesterday, and was reviewed with a special kind of dystopian-fervor reserved for musicians who have stood the test of time—and come back from its brink. Like Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Boards of Canada have managed to meld their former sound into something cuter and oddly current-sounding. The single and video, “Reach for the Dead,” is rhythmic, simplistic, and aerial in a way that might at first strike you as surface, but could actually be deeply beautiful.
Chaz Bundick’s house alter-ego, Les Sins, is responsible for his best music in a year when his much more popular main project, Toro Y Moi, released an album. So it was a nice surprise this morning to see Bundick, under the Toro Y Moi name, but erring much closer to Les Sins, remix UK Garage House revivalists' single “You & Me.” For this remix, Bundick slows things down a bit here, taking Disclosure's pristine single and perverting it, not allowing vocalist Eliza Doolittle to finish her lines, locking her into a hypnotic rhythm.
English wunderkinds ( no seriously, look up their age, it is infuriating), Disclosure are currently gearing up for the release of their debut full length, Settle, set to be released June 3. The newest single, "You & Me," features vocals, driven by a kinetic and clicking groove, by Eliza Doolittle and is further evidence of the duo's ability to produce a top notch pop song. Its mix of house beats, winding melodies, and a strangely "jazzy" quality is a great excuse to take a break from listening to the new Daft Punk single, if only for its duration.
British electronic duo Disclosure have made a name for themselves by creating shimmering house tracks with a heavy UK garage influence. Their latest single, "White Noise" features fellow UK act AlunaGeorge and comes off as a smooth R&B interpretation of house that on first listen is one of the most memorable dance tracks of the year thus far.
The video for the song follows a Detroit security guard through the shell of an abandoned building in the once prosperous city as he shows off some serious dance moves. The clip puts the urban decay of the motor city into a different perspective, allowing the track to provide an optimistic look into what is otherwise a depressing situation.
As the low temperatures continue to slowly whittle away your collective will to live, the Listener, himself long dead inside, sticks to his motto, "the world is a cold dead place." Now usually the world is usually more alive than it has been but this tundra seems to continually prove his longstanding theory, that the world is indeed a "cold dead place," each day. Meanwhile, while you all stay inside probing the darkest most regions of your soul, slowing giving way to your darkest impulses, like getting the popcorn with the extra butter, the Listener has been busy finding new music. Enjoy!
Iceage - "Ecstasy:" What better soundtrack to this week's cold spell then a bunch of noisy Danish kids. Iceage's latest is a clanking, messy, heavy blast of icy angst. The clattering movement of the verses is momentarily halted for the repeated yelling of "pressure, pressure, pressure" before starting back up again. This new track is immediate and unrelenting, much like the frozen tundra outside.
Benoit Pioulard - "Margin:" Because, personally, I am dedicated to digging up every example of new hazy indie pop on a weekly basis (kidding, sort of), I give you the latest from Benoit Pioulard. A spooky bit of psych pop, the song is anchored by Thomas Meluch's distant and unaffected vocals and a high pitched organ winding through the song's melody.
Leif - "Coins:" Leif recently released a new mix-tape, Fly Zone, with "Coins" as its first single. Like his previous work, "Coins" is a grimey beat propelled by Leif's very fluid delivery. Fluid is a key word for this song as the beat and vocals all sound drenched and half under water. Even the producers are named Drippin and Souldrop, so again, liquids and how liquids move. Leif's work continues to be engaging.
Disclosure and AlunaGeorge - "White Noise:" AlunaGeorge and Disclosure are quickly rising stars and for good reason, both pairs have consistently turned out great music in the last year or so. Thus, given the talent here, "White Noise," a collaboration between the two, was pretty much a guaranteed hit. Disclosure provides a playful beat and melody, pulsing and uptempo, which compliments Aluna Francis' vocals nicely. Definitely an exciting song and a great choice for any party you find yourself at this weekend.
Veronica Falls - "Buried Alive:" Slumberland flag bearers Veronica Falls released another single off of their forthcoming second album this week. An anthem for the over earnest living dead, "Buried Alive" is poppy and maudlin with a melody and rhythm section heavily channeling The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. If you are trying to date someone both twee and goth, you should probably put this on the mixtape.
One last thing, that new Strokes song is really weird, isn't it?
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