Friday 17 August 2018

BEST AND WORST NEW TRACKS OF THE WEEK 17/08/2018: Twenty One Pilots, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, False Advertising and more…



Twenty One Pilots sound less poppy, whilst The 1975 have gone the opposite way.

THE BEST:

‘Levitate’ – Twenty One Pilots


Frontman Tyler Joseph is rapping his butt off on this new single and the beat is insane, melding 808s and raw percussion whilst topped with various moody sounds. It’s very different to the band’s usual poppy material – there’s nothing to sing along to and it probably won’t get any radio airplay, but I’m digging it (and my opinion is all that matters).

 ‘Don’t Forget About Me’ – Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs


Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs is an awesome band name – I’m glad they’re not a totally enormous disappointment and that they’ve got an awesome sound to match. After a slow and ethereal build-up of sparkling synths and ghostly vocals, the song starts to warp in pitch at the three-and-a-half-minute mark before breaking into a defiantly feelgood groove.

‘FOA’ – wwoman



Pittsburgh artist wwoman is actually a mman (I think). A slinky bass riff and glossy chords make up the hypnotic instrumental, which is topped with reverb-soaked wistful vocals. It reminds me of a more intimate Tame Impala.

‘Don’t Think You Wanna’ – Star The Moonlight



New York based group Star The Moonlight deliver this slice of delicious future soul. The instrumental is an amalgamation of squelchy synths, deep bass, funky clarinet and other jazzy sounds, offering a number of exciting twists and turns. Vocalist Hattie Simon meanwhile delivers some classic smoky soul singing over the top. It’s an impressive debut single that has me hungry for more. 

‘You Said’ – False Advertising


I’ve featured these Manchester rockers on my blog a good few times – they’ve grown in popularity since I interviewed them, which I’m happy to see. Their latest single ‘You Said’ features their signature mix of scuzzy grungy guitars and belting anthemic vocals. They’re one of the few rock bands that I hope will never change their formula, because it’s so reliably good.   

THE WORST:

‘TOOTIMETOOTIMETOOTIME’ – The 1975


Well, for starters, whoever came up with that obnoxious track title deserves to be slapped. As for the song itself, The 1975 are no longer ripping off INXS and now sound like Maroon 5 with a vaguely dancehall-flavoured beat and a bit of autotune slathered on top. It’s the sound of a band letting go of all authenticity and selling out to the zeitgeist. They’ll be teaming up with Drake or Cardi B next, mark my words…