Thursday 28 February 2013

TOP 10 TRACKS OF FEBRUARY 2013.


10
"Attracting Flies"
AlunaGeorge

GivePopAChance said...
"AlunaGeorge continue to elude genres whilst sounding effortlessly cool and current, and the crumbling beats and battering ram synths of "Attracting Flies" are no exception." READ MORE...



9
"So Close"
Kidnap Kid feat. Sinead Harnett

After a stunning yet mysterious debut on Disclosure's "Boiling", Sinead Harnett returns with a similarly subdued tune. The consistently tasteful Kidnap Kid drops subtle and unusual balearic chords, with just enough ambiance to still please his underground house fans, and Sinead's songwriting takes centre stage. Unlike the distant reverb-laden ad libs of "Boiling", the chorus of "So Close" is full of positive energy, uplifting and warm, and unlike on the Disclosure number, Sinead makes the track her own with her lullaby tones.



8
"XTC"
LIZ

GivePopAChance said...
"This will be, without doubt, a cheesy dated mess to many people, but it's an ultimate retro R&B guilty pleasure for me." READ MORE...



7
"Make A Little Room"
Al Lewis

In the wake of Ben Howard's sweep at the Brit's, it bodes well for a lot of folky British singer songwriters, but there are few as deserving as Welsh sweetheart Al Lewis. There are no awkward metaphors, no pretense, just classic, relate-able songwriting. The flecks of country in the upbeat tempo and cutesy female backing vocal only add to the charm of this modest, clean cut love song.



6
"Falling"
Haim

These girls are so 80s pop/rock that many bands would shy away from their gutsy vocal hooks, shamelessly funky basslines and twinkling synth, but their sheer Fleetwood Mac brand of cheese is to be admired if anything. Even the closing hook of "Never look back, never give up" is forgivable  as these girls stand by every overly confident hook they write and pull them off with panache. And god damn it, "Falling" is catchy.



5
"Sloe Gin"
Dream McClean

GivePopAChance said...
"Over a stumbling, drunken beat and head-swirling synth line, Essex rapper Dream McLean woozily tells partially-blacked out tales of "drinking sloe gin too fast"." READ MORE...



4
"London"
Official-O

So much goes on in the gorgeous yet harsh "London", that it's hard to pinpoint one particular sound Official-O, or "the artist known as Ofe" as his website cryptically states, was aiming for. The vocoders are straight from James Blake's debut, but Ofe's voice is from the Alex Clare school of gritty soul. Every sound, including the optimistic, sunny piano chords and thunderous drums and deafening wall of vocals at the climax, all form a perfect soundtrack to the hectic streets of London. And to anyone who's ever lived there, the sound is crazy but beautiful.



3
"Chocolate"
The 1975

The 1975 simply have to be the next big indie band. There's a level of rebelliousness that a lot of the pretty indie boys of 2012/2013 have eschewed in exchange for a more twee sound, and right from their anthemic lead single "The City", The 1975 have been anything but quaint or twee. These boys tell stories of fumblings in the backs of cars, being young and being stupid. "We're never gonna quit it, never gonna quit it no" yelps their (utterly gorgeous) lead singer, and guitars jump around in a gorgeous tapestry. The pulsing drum machine that is exposed towards the end of the song emphasizes the message even more. There's no point of being a mopey indie band when you can be one that lives for the party.



2
"Retrograde"
James Blake

GivePopAChance said...
"New single "Retrograde" is a total relief, a revelation and a triumphant sign that Blake is no mere BBC Sound-of-year flash in the pan. A seemingly complex acrobatic vocal hook becomes somehow unforgettable by the end of the song, and Blake's voice seems confident and utterly heartwarming." READ MORE...



1
"Metal and Dust"
London Grammar

When a track like London Grammar's (already song-of-the-year standard) "Hey Now" comes along, there's no doubt that there is something really special there. The question is, is it the band that's special or just the song? The Naked and Famous released the epic, heartwrenchingly perfect indie anthem "Young Blood" in 2009, but followed it with an album bogged down with almost exclusively uninspiring synth rock = THE SONG. On the other hand 80s goth-pop revivalists Hurts' released their seminal, timeless song "Wonderful Life" around the same time, and followed it with a benchmark album full of timeless songs; just look at "Stay" or "Blood Tears and Gold" = THE BAND.

As you might have already guessed by my placement of London Grammar at the top of both my January and February lists, you would be very accurate in guessing that London Grammar, two songs in, look like they belong to the latter category  "Metal and Dust" has all the sparkle that made "Hey Now" so spellbinding, the mesmerizing vocal, the sparse, perfect guitar parts, but whilst "Hey Now" was infused with a longing and melancholy, "Metal and Dust" replaces that with a fire and a passion. "We argue we don't fight, stay awake till the middle of the night" chants singer Hannah Reid, and the youth in the band shines through more here than on the drifting loneliness of "Hey Now".

Similarities between "Metal and Dust" and "Unfinished Sympathy" by Massive Attack can be made, but that is no mean feat, and by all means a huge compliment: the busy breakbeat that the track rides on, the majestic strings that envelop it, and not to mention the epic cut and paste vocal loop that cries out towards the end of the track. But once again, as with London Grammar's own "Hey Now", Massive Attack's "Unfinished Sympathy" was a sad song, one that had a lot of emotion wearing it down, whilst "Metal and Dust" soars, totally reinterpreting the sounds it has been influenced by. If London Grammar can demonstrate such maturity, such range and such depth and range of emotion, skill and meaning in just two songs, there can be no other prediction to be made: London Grammar's debut simply must be the album of the year.


Wednesday 27 February 2013

Yadi - The Blow

In an era where female fronted pop is getting considerably more gothic in both image and sound, the dramatic guitar-driven new single from petite London-based singer Yadi is perfectly timed. Everything about "The Blow" is melodramatic and desperate. Distorted guitars rage like a Paramore track and tribal drums pound, whilst Yadi's husky crow-call is halfway between the sultry musings of Charli XCX and the operatic wail of Marina Diamandis. "Your love is like a gun shot... just keep on shooting, 'cause I can't feel the blow" cries Yadi in the hook-laden chorus, and it's very much the effect the song has in general.

FOR FANS OF: Chvrches, Charli XCX, Marina & The Diamonds

Tuesday 26 February 2013

AlunaGeorge - Attracting Flies

AlunaGeorge continue to elude genres whilst sounding effortlessly cool and current, and the crumbling beats and battering ram synths of "Attracting Flies" are no exception. Finding a comfortable middle ground between the silky sweet Post R&B of Purity Ring and the schizophrenic hip hop beats of Hudson Mohawke, this is their most confident offering since the goliath "You Know You Like It".

Their debut record Body Music is out on July 1st.

FOR FANS OF: Purity Ring, Hudson Mohawke, Niki & The Dove

Friday 22 February 2013

Party Tracks of the Week!


> Disclosure feat. AlunaGeorge - White Noise (Hudson Mohawke Remix)
#Trap #Bass


Taking that thunderous chord onslaught HudMo is gleefully infamous for, and matching it to Disclosure's fidgity house bassline makes for a crazy tune with an orgasmic payoff.

> EX$ - Dream Last Night
#House #Dance


The dark south london atmospherics of Burial in the context of a 90s house rave, building slowly before a delicious organ bassline drop.

> Shadow Child - 23
#Garage #2Step #Bass #House


The simplest of 2 step bassline murmers over an old school beat, with a relentless, hypnotic groove that refuses to relinquish its hold.

Monday 18 February 2013

Dream McClean - Sloe Gin

If anyone feels a little embarrassed for still liking J-Kwon's "Tipsy" in 2013, but also feels Kendrick Lamar's "Swimming Pools" is too pro/con on the subject matter to replace it, there's a new shameless booze anthem to enjoy, and this time it's homegrown in the UK. Over a stumbling, drunken beat and head-swirling synth line, Essex rapper Dream McLean woozily tells partially-blacked out tales of "drinking sloe gin too fast". Dangerously more-ish.

FOR FANS OF: Wiley, A$AP Rocky, Kendrick Lamar


Wednesday 13 February 2013

James Blake - Retrograde

James Blake's "Enough Thunder" EP was a little colder than his debut, a little more unfriendly. There might've been beauty and genius in there, but on tracks like Bon Iver collaboration "Fall Creek Boys Choir", there was a distance and unwillingness to emote. The only real warmth came from "A Case of You"... a Joni Mitchell cover, and the only other track Blake had performed based on piano and voice since breakthrough "Limit To Your Love".

Until Now. New single "Retrograde" is a total relief, a revelation and a triumphant sign that Blake is no mere BBC Sound-of-year flash in the pan. A seemingly complex acrobatic vocal hook becomes somehow unforgettable by the end of the song, and Blake's voice seems confident and utterly heartwarming. An uncharacteristically straight beat carries the song from balladic to euphoric territory, with synths advancing on the song, threatening to swallow it whole, but unlike in the defeatist "Wilhelm Scream", the song and Blake stand their ground and never before has his singer-songwriter persona seemed so foregrounded.

With his sophomore effort "Overgrown" out in April, it is time to welcome a new, improved James Blake with open arms; fitter, happier, more productive and, musically, more arresting than ever.

FOR FANS OF: Radiohead, Bon Iver, Jamie XX

Tuesday 5 February 2013

LIZ - XTC

Now as much as I love Diplo's label Mad Decent, its dancehall, moombahton and trap based output never really had a place on a pop music blog like this. That is, until now. This will be, without doubt, a cheesy dated mess to many people, but it's an ultimate retro R&B guilty pleasure for me. A deep, langourous trap rhythm is sweetened no end by LIZ's (I'm assuming it's stylized in capitals) feathery, caramel croon and 80s-tastic grandiose keys. And yet, for me, it all comes together to make something quite gorgeous.

FOR FANS OF: Destiny's Child, Mariah Carey, Ashanti