Posted in Album of the Month

October: Baio – The Names

Posted on by nolankane706

So here we are, October, the last 4 months have flown by and much of the music I have been listening to has been from the blog funny enough. This in-turn has resulted in me looking back to an album that filled much of the first half of 2016 for me but I have enjoyed listening to once again. On that note, I was late to the game on this as it came out last year.

I spent much of this past weekend thinking how was the best way to say “Sure he’s in Vampire Weekend, but I didn’t know this until about two months after buying this album and it was best to approach it this way in retrospect. I think I would have been letdown if I wanted an extension of the Vampire Weekend albums that I love so much.”

The fact is that I discovered him through a Coma remix he did and my interest grew from there.

On first impressions it look me a while to get my head around Baio and what he was up to. Electro synths with melodies and at times what I though was over exaggerated 80’s vocals. That in mind I liked it, and soon the vocals that made me unsure became essential to glueing together this album.

‘The Names’ was the track that cracked it for me and strangely watching the video a few weeks after getting into the album was very similar to how I pictured it in my head.

“I was Born In A Marathon’ goes deep into the rave, and I can easily picturing myself losing my shit o this in a festival field. I ‘ve risen my hands to this song on more occasions than I can think in the Car, doing chores at home and and once in the co-op on a Sunday morning with my headphones on. I have read that he used to be a DJ and the 4/4 beats do make a strong appearance throughout this album.

In 9 songs he bounces around a bit on this album. Perhaps it’s the luxury of someone that can do this knowing you can always fall back on your main project.  The versatility of the 9 songs is one of the things I like about this album… It’s got a bit of everything.

Perhaps if I was to talk about the elephant in the room ‘Sister of Pearl’ reflects a Vampire Weekend influence, but hey, it’s not a bad thing. Baio in my opinion is far from hanging his hat on his Vampire Weekend work and has released a fantastic album.

I do hope you enjoy the album as much as me. It’s also worth checking out his EP’s on Spotify.

 

Posted in Music chat, New Tunes

Nadia Rose – SQWOD

Posted on by David Allison

I love everything single about this more than I can say. So perfectly formed. What a video. So much colour, so much life. I wonder if a UK rapper like this might blow up globally soon. Feels so much fresher and less bloated than most US counterparts (Kendrick et al notwithstanding). Dunno. Anyway, enjoy…

Posted in Album of the Month

September: Michael Kiwanuka – Love & Hate

Posted on by GuyHornsby

It’s hard to believe that Michael Kiwanuka was being touted as a next big thing a whole four years ago, by BBC Introducing, hot off the back of a fantastic debut single “Home Again”. I loved that at the time but it’s fair to say I’d forgotten about him in the intervening years.

And so while we fretted about the lack of a physical Frank Ocean album, back he popped again. Not randomly: I’d seen him light up Later… earlier in the year with Black Man In A White World, above. It encapsulated why I loved that single back then and – finally – seemed like we may see more of a next big thing, before he became a “whatever happened to…”?

So what do you get with Kiwanuka? It’s not flashy or hip or cool, but that’s the attraction. Sounding like he’s got one foot in Marvin Gaye’s house and one in a smoky basement club in London, it’s modern soul at it’s best. No syrupy production, and while there’s strings, Love & Hate isn’t pastiche, it’s at it’s best an album that’s accessible from the start, with lyrics and a voice that feel heartfelt and powerful.

There’s a lot to love: from Father’s Child with it’s raw, stripped back opening, opening into a chorus of backing vocals and crisp drums. Or Black Man… a track that feels very prescient in today’s world. I’m also a sucker for a long opening track (see Station To Station or Goodbye Yellow Brick Road), and Cold Little Heart is a thing of beauty.

There’s nothing showy, but really in a world of artifice, PR, overproduction, compression, auto tune, this feels much more authentic than any of that without ever trying too hard. And lord knows we need some of that. it’s helpful that Kiwanuka is a genuinely lovely person. I just wish I’d seen him at Glastonbury now.

I’m starting to fall for this record after only a couple of listens, and that’s not something I say often. I hope you feel the same.

Posted in Mixtapes

O Is For

Posted on by nolankane706

It’s been a while since I have done, and even longer since one has been deep. Here are some songs best served on chilled nights, with friends and all round good times. Enjoy!

Tracklist:

Stimming, Ben Watt – Bright Star
Acid Pauli – Nana
Joy Wellboy – Before The Sunrise (Dixon Remix)
Matthew Herbert – It’s Only (DJ Koze Remix)
Lee Burridge & Lost Desert – Lingala (feat. Junior)
Downtown Party Network – Space Me Out (Mario Basanov Remix)
The Black 80’s – Move On (Hollis P Monroe and Wrong Jeremy Mix)
Coma – Lora (Robag’s Fandara Qualv NB)
Para For Cuva – Fading Nights (feat. Anna Naklab)
Francis Harris – Lostfound (Matthew Herbert’s Let Yoursef Go Mix)

Posted in Album of the Month

AUGUST: ‘Next Thing’ by Frankie Cosmos

Posted on by misterstory

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I’m only asking for 28 minutes of your time. 15 songs, at least half of them barely make it over 2 minutes each. Frankie Cosmos (Great Kline) is a 21 year old singer song writer and this is her 2nd full length release. I was aware of the first, slightly more aware of the EP that followed but have really taken to ‘Next Thing’. This was released around Easter but and its been a big part of my life since. It feels like I’ve had it for much longer than 4 months.

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What you will hear is 15 guitar driven pretty pop songs and beautifully crafted if delightfully simple lyrics. If you can spare the time, to sit and listen with the lyrics at hand it is a great experience. Ms. Cosmos extracts heart lifting significance from the mundane and almost never fails to make me smile. I am sucker for singer songwriters, I love the focus that one person pouring their heart out provides. This is a great example.

Frankie_Cosmos

I hope you enjoy. As I say, its only 28 minutes. You could listen to it 2.5 times for every ‘To Pimp a Butterfly’ or ‘Malibu’ so you have no excuse not to get involved if you don’t like it first time.

Look out for Floated In, Embody, On the Lips, Sinister.

Pitchfork reviews and article if you’re interested?

Pitchfork Review