Hot new tunes in time for the
heatwave. Is it really going to reach 45 degrees next week? I'm getting sunburn just thinking about it...
THE BEST:
‘Mountain of Dreams’ – FEVRMOON
If the ascending piano and dreamy
vocals don’t put you in a trance, then the symphonic strings most certainly
will. This track is utterly hypnotic – I have a tendency to overuse that word,
but honestly, this is some Derren-Brown-level shit. I’m not even sure what
genre to classify this as? Parts of it feel very digital such as the warping sub-bass
and numerous vocal effects, but other parts such as the piano and sighed-out
vocal delivery have a very earthy feel. It’s one of the most fascinating sounds
I’ve heard all year.
‘For All I Know’ – Hugo Cottu
This track’s smoother than a quantum
stabilised atom mirror (and trust me, that’s smooooth). Nocturnal synths, suspended
guitars and slow drums form an atmospheric backdrop for the English/French
singer’s fragile and yearning vocals. From the subdued first verse to the
wailing guitars in the outro, it oozes emotion. The frustrated lyrics really
fit despite Hugo confessing that they were mostly improvised.
‘Hues’ – concrete concrete
A lot of math rock groups favour
technicality at the expense of melody, but Brooklyn rock trio concrete concrete
manage to be both crazily technical and beautifully melodic. There’s a strong
jazz flavour in their sound and the half-whispered vocals provide a nice
contrast to the frenetic instrumentation (even if they do take some getting
used to). ‘Hues’ is straight off the band’s upcoming album Drifter set to be
released on the 2nd of August.
‘A Sun-Filled Room’ – The Warp/The Weft
I have to admit, the vibraAaAaAato-heavy
vocals had me scrambling for the pause button at first, but I thankfully restrained
myself and let the track play out. There’s some really interesting guitar work
in this song and the theatrical vocals start to grow their own kooky appeal by
the end of the track (I’m almost reminded of Serj Tankian at points).
‘Organ Farmer’ – King Gizzard
& The Lizard Wizard
These guys are so prolific I can
barely keep up with their new material. They’re already gearing up to release
their second album this year (although that’s nothing compared to the five
albums they dropped in 2017). ‘Cyboogie’ saw them shifting from prog rock to
synthpop – and now they’re making thrash metal. I’m loving how raw the
production is and the theme is pretty cool too. Hang onto you kidneys!
THE WORST:
‘Generational Divide’ – Blink-182
I’d barely sat down and put my
headphones on and the song ended. I guess it’s still not as short as ‘Built This Pool’ – but it’s not as funny either. GIMME MORE LYRICS ABOUT NUDE GUYS IN
A POOL