THE BEST:
‘Keep the Devil Off’
– Big K.R.I.T
Hallelujah! Praise the lord! The speedy-spitting Mississippi
rapper is back with a track that can only be described as ‘gospel rap’. Over
wild organs, choir harmonies and 808s, K.R.I.T bellows bars with a passion of a
Pentecostal preacher. A new album is set to drop soon, the first since 2014’s Cadillactica.
‘Mosquito’ – Kode Maya
This genre-defying Finnish duo make music that’s both somehow
experimental and poppy, cheery and dark. It’s not often you get a hook like ‘there’s a killer on the loose’ over washed-out
synths that could appear on a Disclosure record. Then, just as you’ve got the
song figured out, it completely changes direction, making way for some jazzy
guitar chords, wacky pitch-shifted vocals and a beat that’s practically hip
hop. It’s a true adventure into the unknown.
‘Butterfly Effect’ –
Abbi Press
This New York singer’s wistful vocals are like spa treatment
to my ears. But it’s the instrumental that sets this apart from everyday lounge
music, starting as chilled electronica and then morphing into some glitched-out
house beat.
‘Candygram’ – Valipala
Valipala dub
themselves a ‘progressive r&b’ act, which is exciting as it sounds. Frontwoman
Lauren Scales delivers belting Whitney-like inflections over an everchanging jazzy
instrumental sporting everything from trumpets to electric guitars. The big
apple band have an EP titled Mango City
out today which is full of equally bananas jazz-pop hybrids ( I got carried
away with the fruit references there) available to listen on their Bandcamp
page here.
THE WORST:
‘It’s Okay To Cry’ –
SOPHIE
SOPHIE’s strength is claustrophobic bangers, not soppy
Europop-style ballads devoid of percussion. Also where are the digital vocals?
Is SOPHIE a real person now? It’s all too human.
‘I Love You Jesus’ –
Trisha Paytas
Youtube’s most annoying vlogger has made a corny Christian
song. Jesus wept.