THE BEST:
‘Birthday’ – Disclosure ft. Syd & Kehlani
Off of the EDM duo’s brand new album ENERGY, this new single sees the Lawrence brothers teaming up r&b vocalists Kehlani and Syd for a seductive
slowjam. It’s a bit of a change of pace from the house tunes they’ve been dropping
lately and kind of sounds like something Kaytranada would conjure up. Syd's angelic vocals are definitely the highlight. I want to marry her voice. It’s a shame Kehlani has to come in and ruin it (nah jk her vocals are sweet too).
‘Rufus Lives’ – Mastodon
Atlanta metal band Mastodon have released a new surprise single - and
it’s a monster of a track. The vocals during the verse are a little weird, but I’m loving
the loopy main riff (it sounds like Gojira’s ‘Stranded’ but sped up). The song is
part of the soundtrack to the new Bill & Ted movie Face The Music.
Having never watched a Bill & Ted movie, I’m not sure if this is an odd
soundtrack choice or not.
‘Sleepless’ – Milk White Throat
‘Sleepless’ sounds like something Tesseract would release if
they were less djenty and more hardcore. The drumming is arguably even more impressive
than on ‘Nearly Alive’ (the last single I featured from this Brighton prog rock
band) and I can only assume they’ve upgraded their robot octopus drummer to a
robot kraken (the video features a human drummer, but it's all lies. Gotta be an actor or CGI.). All in all, it’s an exciting taster from their new upcoming EP Hierarchy,
which is scheduled to drop September 18th.
‘Around You’ – 1996
This new single from Austin artist 1996 (not to be confused
with The 1975 or Old 97’s) combines dreamy vocals, swirling guitars, energetic
digital percussion and a groovy New Wave bass riff. Both the dreamy instrumentation
and the teenage crush lyrics carry a nostalgic feel, while the electric drums give
it a modern edge.
‘You Sad’ – Tkay Maidza
Aussie singer Tkay Maidza has all the makings of a star. She’s
eccentric but also accessible. ‘You Sad’ is proof of this – its chirpy chorus,
bossa nova guitars and psychadelic visuals are off-the-wall without being extreme
enough to scare away pop fans (I also love how they’re completely at odds with
the lyrics).
THE WORST:
‘Midnight Sky’ – Miley Cyrus
What’s happened to Miley’s voice? It sounds like she’s aged
by 40 years. The Weeknd-esque 80s-flavoured beat isn’t bad, but something about
the vocals doesn’t sit right.