Because I've been away for so long, I've had a lot to catch up on so this is probably going to be long and tired, but there's some really great tracks here, so I suggest you stick around.
Upon returning from my Stateside holiday (in which the sad but true highlight was exiting a shop in Greenwich Village, NYC only to have frickin Joseph Gordon-Levitt (fellow feminist and star of my two most favourite movies of all time EVER) stroll past me as tears blind the eyes behind my sunglasses), I could finally settle down and sift through all the new releases I'd missed while I was across the Atlantic. Here are some of the stand-out fresh tracks from the past few weeks.
--- LOST ON ME / PEACE ---
Following the less-than-satisfying lead single Money from Peace's upcoming second LP, comes their frankly not crap latest single Lost On Me. This time around the Birmingham boys offer a track a bit more summery and bit less dull. Lost On Me seems to be a lot looser than any of their previous tracks, as their vibe has shifted away from mismatched indie rock and more into a sort of foot-stomping funk. Lyrics like "chemically so heavenly" leave Peace very safe in the boundaries of what we heard on their acclaimed debut In Love, yet it feels like they need to take some risks in order to up what their audience is already used to. However, the sunny blend of raging 80s sticky guitars and spirited harmonious backing vocals make for an exciting taste of Peace's potential new sound.
Along with the groove of Lost On Me comes their offbeat new music video in which some serious boyband vibes are channelled as the quartet delve themselves into some smooth moves in perhaps a commentary on the robotics of manufactured pop acts? Hmmm...
read my 2013 live review of Peace //HERE//
--- THE WAY YOU BREATHE / SOUTHERN ---
Irish brother-sister duo Southern have been slowly but surely been sneaking their way onto the radar of fast emerging music that needs to be heard. Following monster tracks like Shout It and Where The Wild Are, the blues-infused Where I Want To Be has crashed into the stratosphere. Since it's release it has pleased critics and the Fearne Cottons of the world, yet it is the B-side to this single that I find to be most compelling - and oddly it's electrifying in it's own right.
The chilling The Way You Breathe is a simmering contrast to their signature folk rock - think Jake Bugg with less of a twang. Raw in talent and feeling, but rich in melodic supremacy makes The Way You Breathe a subtle, haunting track that cascades the listener with a healthy amount of curiosity and awe.
An epic UK tour awaits including an appearance at Reading and Leeds Festivals this weekend (a set which I will definitely be in the audience for) and support slots for the Irish leg of Jake Bugg's upcoming tour. Buy your tickets //HERE//
Southern were part of my favourite new acts for 2014 in my 2013 mixtape which you can listen to right //HERE//
--- NEW DORP. NEW YORK. / SBTRKT + EZRA KOENIG ---
(photo creds: casablanca sunset + tumblr)
Take two heroes of their respective genres: electronic dubstep underdog SBTRKT and king of everything indie pop, Vampire Weekend's Ezra Koenig. The London-based producer and the ever-wonderful frontman aren't the most likely pairing - ask anyone who their ultimate collaboration would be and it's seldom a chance that these two names would pop up and be brought together. But apparently, it happened. And it's really quite brilliant.
NEW DORP. NEW YORK. is the lead single from the breathlessly anticipated follow-up to SBTRKT's 2011 self-titled debut, and certainly does not fail to impress. It begins instantly with Koenig's unmistakeable vocals rambling and bouncing along to SBTRKT's familiar percussion beats. As Koenig gives us a verbal tour of a darker Big Apple, a killer bassline so slyly develops before a descent into tribal electronica. You can almost taste the vibrant vibe of New York through the slick production and Koenig's bragging of his oh-so-city girl. Oh Ezra, let me be your girl :(
--- SHAKE IT OFF / TAYLOR SWIFT ---
I DON'T REALLY KNOW WHAT TO SAY
Do I like it?
Do I hate it?
Would I hate it if it wasn't by her? If, like, Katy Perry or someone released this, would I want to beat the radio with a baseball bat every time it came onto the airwaves?
Or would I like it if it wasn't by her? Is my uncertainty stemming from the fact that it's not exactly what I wanted her new music to sound like?
I DON'T KNOW
Shake It Off is the first single from Miss Swift's upcoming fifth album 1989 - her first "full pop" record (boooooooooooo!) that was inspired by a lot of "late 80s pop". The track, album, and video were unveiled in a worldwide livestream which marks, what seems to be, the golden girl's full-blown departure from country music. It's all a bit... hmmmmmmmmmm.
Shake It Off itself is a generic pop song; it won't be putting her name in any history books but it will be looping around in the minds of just about anyone who comes across it. A you'll-catch-it-like-aids chorus is accompanied by the kind of brass that's been whacked into mainstream radio recently (a la Jason Derulo's Talk Dirty, Ariana Grande's Problem, and Cheryl Cole's Crazy Stupid Love). Perhaps that it's so contemporary and uninnovative is the reason why it's so disappointing - her catalogue showcases immense songwriting capabilities, so it's a bit of let down to wait all this time and hear something that doesn't make your spine tingle. In fairness to Swift, her 2012 smash We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together was arguably worse but Red was record breaking and nothing short of wonderful, so we will have to wait until October 27th (!!!so close!!!) till I most likely put my foot in my own mouth.
Yet Shake It Off is a little more than just a generic pop song because it has genuine heart. She has a good laugh at herself which is something to admire about the 24 year old songstress who has had a lot of shit thrown at her for the past two years, mostly surrounding her infamous dating life - something she pokes fun at from the get-go: I go on too many dates / But I can't make them stay / At least that's what people say. It may not be lyrical genius and it may actually contain the word "haters" but it's so adorably tongue-in-cheek, who are we to dislike it?
It's kind of like a more grown-up sequel to the GRAMMY winning single Mean - a niche of banjos and teenage lonerism that had never quite been matched - in which now she, and hoards of her fans, have beaten high school bullies are looking for what's next. And what follows is a hollering of self-confidence in a glittering, shimmering rainbow of self-love. Shake It Off gives you the frame of mind that's all "hell YEAH I will walk, no STRUT, into that party and the boy who doesn't care any more and all the poisonous people will stop and stare because I look fabulous and feel fabulous, and they don't matter because I am fabulous and don't care if you try to tell me otherwise honey".
And if that wasn't enough to make you want to congratulate her on her cuteness, she then releases an authentically sweet video in which she throws herself into the middle of various talented groups of dancers and embarrassment follows. (Though I love her FOREVER, my favourite YouTube comment was "Kanye tried to get rid of her years ago, and we didn't listen".)
Why do you hate Taylor Swift again?
She dates too much? She knows. She doesn't care.
She makes pop music? She knows. She doesn't care.
She can't dance? She knows. She definitely doesn't care.
read my review of the Red Tour //HERE//
--- END OF THE AFFAIR / BEN HOWARD ---
While cocooned in my bed to catch up on this particular track, I was oblivious to how ridiculously unprepared I was for the tidal wave that was just waiting to hit me before I pressed play. This would be the release that sent me into the most emotional turmoil of all; almost three years after Every Kingdom hit the shelves and went on to achieve platinum status, comes End of the Affair.
The first listen left me with a plethora of feelings; honestly, it was the most incredible and beautiful piece of music I'd heard in the longest time, yet I felt like I needed a while to recover from the initial shock that followed the gorgeousness in my ears. After listening to it very, very loudly while walking home in the stilness of the night a few times and kind of figuring it out a little bit better, maybe I could attempt to adequately discuss the song's impact? Probably not.
The first listen left me with a plethora of feelings; honestly, it was the most incredible and beautiful piece of music I'd heard in the longest time, yet I felt like I needed a while to recover from the initial shock that followed the gorgeousness in my ears. After listening to it very, very loudly while walking home in the stilness of the night a few times and kind of figuring it out a little bit better, maybe I could attempt to adequately discuss the song's impact? Probably not.
But first, a little bit about my experience with Ben Howard's music which likely holds the reason why this song makes me feel so much:
In 2012, I was a lowly 15 year old whose experiences of live music consisted solely of pop concerts and small-time gigs where the guy didn't even have a band. Until I saw Ben Howard at Brixton Academy that year I never really knew that music could be experienced in such dynamic possibilities. It's unlikely that he's the world's greatest performer, but his gig made me realise that music doesn't have to be just what's on the record you illegally download from the Internet - it can be taken to so many different levels and even in the flesh, a musician can connect with an audience in ways a studio recording can't. I guess it allowed me to understand this whole new world of live music; and perhaps if he was a little bit shit, I wouldn't be so ardently invested in music...
BUT ANYWAY CRINGE ASIDE
A good song leaves you gripped even after it's finished, but when you're hypnotised within the first few seconds and still hanging on at the end of the final chord, what further proof do you need that what you're listening to is great? End of the Affair begins with a slow burning twanging intro that is sure to silence you. As the lick progresses, and confirms his music is still deep-rooted in folk, his tired vocals begin to croon about "the weight of the war" and you're transcended into a state where the gravity of this battle with love can almost be felt. Perhaps if the physical act of your cold skin breaking out into goosebumps was channelled into music, it would sound something like that. It's reminiscent of something of the Every Kingdom era yet still manages to be flavoured differently; he could've stuck with commercial folk but this risk is a true blessing to us all.
And just when you think it's all over, an effort that has come so far but seems somewhat wasted and unfinished, there's still a moody underground thundering stirring the senses. 7 minutes and 48 seconds could appear to be self-indulgent, but End of the Affair would be a lonely deflection without the roaring capstone that appears around the 5 minute mark, in which a sublime ruckus breaks out slowly but surely till he erupts into a wail of "what the hell, love?". Melodic acoustic sweetness dissolves, and more something shifting towards a potential Foals song. What follows is a fury of energy carrying the bottled feelings of reckless loneliness, desperate exasperation, and electric passion - it's feeling translated into sound and it's magic.
