BEST AND WORST NEW TRACKS OF THE WEEK 15/07/2015: The Chemical Brothers, IshDARR, Diet Cig and more...

As per usual, I round up my favourite and least favourite tracks from the last seven days. Enjoy!

THE BEST:

‘Sugar’ – IshDARR

This bouncy hip hop single from Wisconsin newcomer IshDARR certainly lives up to it’s name – it’s adorably sugary. Sweet lyrics ride an uptempo beat made up of bright synths and squeaky pitch-shifted vocals. 

‘EML Ritual’ – Chemical Brothers

Built around a sinister synth riff, this new track from EDM legends The Chemical Brothers is a masterpiece in suspense. I was convinced there would be a drop around the two minute mark, but the Manchester duo keep up the teasing for another minute until finally giving in.

‘Sleep Talk’ – Diet Cig

Few songs capture love with such realistic and idiosyncratic detail as this new indie rock single: ‘I can’t play instruments very well and I eat all your cereal/ but I’ll never be a smoker cos the second cigarette makes me feel like shit’. The New Paltz duo might not be all that instrumentally, but their lyrical wit and charm certainly makes up for it. ‘Diet Cig’ is also one of the best band names I’ve heard all year.

 ‘Raindrops’ – CONFZ ft. Jamilah Barry

East London rapper CONFZ offers some impressive wordplay, although it's not quite enough to distract from phenomenally spacey beat in the background. All that's missing from this track is a hook.


'Impression of You' - Giraffage & Viceroy ft. Patrick Baker



If you're looking for a babymaking anthem this summer, look no further than this sexy electropop tune. Trap 808s, synth-harp arpeggios and woozy chords create the perfect backdrop for Patrick Baker's breathy vocals. I hate the word 'eargasm', but I think I just had one.

THE WORST:

‘Stay Up’ – Problem

'Good money, good weed/ that's the way you stay up'. These lyrics are absolute gibberish. It's like listening to a trap rap parody.

Review of 'The Beyond/ Where The Giants Roam' by Thundercat

When you’ve listened to as much soul and funk as I have you begin to get desensitised to the slinky chords and groovy basslines. Everyone becomes another wannabe-Stevie-Wonder, another wannabe-Steely-Dan. It takes an artist like LA producer, singer and bassist Thundercat to prove that funk and soul still has room to evolve.

BEST AND WORST NEW TRACKS OF THE WEEK 1/07/2015: The Game, Toro y Moi, Pharrell and more...

It's weekly roundup time. This week Pharrell gets political, Toro y Moi gets creepy and Puff Daddy attempts a comeback.

THE BEST:

'100' – The Game ft. Drake

 

Whilst The Game still strikes me as a pretty generic rapper, there’s no denying how cool Drake’s passive aggressive sighed guest verse is: ‘I would have all your fans if I didn’t go pop and I stayed on some conscious shit’. The beat is also bloody gorgeous.

'That Instead of This' – Toro y Moi

Continuing to dabble in new genres, singer and producer Chaz Bundick AKA Toro y Moi goes down a brooding electronic route with this new instrumental made up of sinister bass and screeching synths. I wasn’t all too keen on the musician’s recent indie funk endeavours, but perhaps there’s hope with this new darker sonic direction.

'When I Was Your Age' – Mammoth Penguins

Being a twenty-something millennial I’m constantly aware of how little I’ve achieved at my age compared to what my parents did. I don’t have my own house. I don’t have my own car. I’M NOT EVEN POTTY TRAINED (just kidding - or am I?). ‘When I Was Your Age’ is a song that any twenty-something feeling unaccomplished can relate to. Here’s hoping this Cambridge alt rock band continues to put out songs of this calibre.

'Freedom' – Pharrell

Pharrell Williams has dropped his surname and started getting political. 'Freedom' is a far cry from the cheerful sound of 'Happy' (Pharrell even sounds a bit angry as he's screeching the hook) and whilst it isn't quite as catchy as previous releases, it's interesting to hear the singer pushing his lyricmanship.

THE WORST:

'Finna Get Loose' – Puff Daddy ft. Pharrell Williams

I was constantly waiting for Puff Daddy to stop rambling over the beat and start rapping. Pharrell's constant yelping in the background is also prety damn annoying.

'Are You With Me?' – Lost Frequencies

Zzzzzzzzzzzz``

BEST AND WORST NEW TRACKS OF THE WEEK 24/06/2015: Thundercat, Duran Duran, Janet Jackson and more...

Excuse the lack of distorted guitars. I've been in a summery, poppy mood this week. Here are my favourites and not-so-favourites from the last seven days.

THE BEST:

'Them Changes' - Thundercat ft. Flying Lotus & Kamasi Washington

I expected some slinky jazz funk given the production credits, but nothing could have prepared me for the groovy mother of all basslines sported in this track. As usual, Thundercat injects the lyrics with his own warped sense of humour. The song turns out to be about losing one’s heart, literally: ‘Nobody move. There’s blood on the floor/ And I can’t feel my heart’.

'Pressure Off' - Duran Duran ft. Janelle Monae & Nile Rodgers

Rustle yourself up some cocktails and get the barbecue smoking. This new pop anthem from new wave legends Duran Duran has got me right in the summer mood. Funk guitar idol Nile Rodgers and neo-soul queen Janelle Monae add to the feelgood factor.

'Gold' - Kiiara

The chopped up vocals that kick this song off will either strike you as annoying or creative. Personally it’s this Illinois singer’s sweet vocal tone that’s drawing me in, the inflection reminding me a lot of Danish pop singer MØ. It perfectly suits the smooth but icy beat (I love that canyon-reverb click noise!)

'Everybody Knows' - Injury Reserve

Injury Reserve claim to be the ‘only good rap act in Arizona’, which is a bold statement to make, but I’ll roll with it seeing as I can’t think of any other Arizona hip hop artists off the top of my head. ‘Everybody Knows’ is their latest track and comes with an eccentric attitude and left-field instrumental.

'Down For This' - Vanessa Elisha

Australian r&b singer Vanessa Elisha delivers this spacey slowjam with a glitzy hook and lots of 808s. I wasn't too sure about it at first but then the chorus hit and floored me.

THE WORST:

'No Sleeep' - Janet Jackson

No sleep? Give this song a whirl and you’ll soon be out for the count. A lot of people (mostly hardcore Jackson fans I feel) have been hyping this track up, but it just strikes me as dull 80s lounge-revivalism without any kind of catchiness or flair.

Review of '32 Zel/Planet Shrooms' by Denzel Curry

The hip hop community are going to start getting serious bedsores if they continue to sleep on this Floridian rapper any longer. Sporting some of the tightest flows and creative beats in the game, this dude is a clear mile ahead of every other trap rapper in the game.

BEST AND WORST NEW TRACKS OF THE WEEK 18/06/2015: The Weeknd, Vince Staples, Beck and more...

I'm a day late with this weekly section. To make it up to you all, here are six gems - no duds.

Review of 'Drones' by Muse

Muse have never been masters at subtlety. Their combination of classical-inspired rock and Matt Bellamy’s operatic warbling at times couldn’t be more melodramatic if it tried. When singing about black holes and alien invasions a lot of this melodrama came across as charming. Like an explosion-packed action flick that doesn’t take itself too seriously, Muses theatrical sound represented nothing but indulgent fun. But then Muse started taking themselves seriously, discovering politics...