6 songs you should hear this week - w/e 23rd February
Every day we play you a track that has just grabbed our attention. As soon as we hear it, we send it into the digital ether for you all to enjoy. Sometimes it's an exclusive, sometimes it's a favourite artist and, at other times, it'll be someone brand new. Here's this week's choice selection. Just click on the links to see the full Just Added playlist:
Brazilian Girls – Pirates
This is the first taste of Brazilian Girls’ new album Let's Make Love which is due out 13th April. And it’s about blimin’ time, because their Grammy-nominated LP New York City came out ten years ago. Originally based in that city, but now scattered around the globe, the quartet are Sabina Sciubba, Didi Gutman, Jesse Murphy and Aaron Johnston. We went super big on Sabina’s more recent solo record. She’s fab and says of this song: “it’s about sleeping and sleeping together. How we should all sleep more and sleep more together. It would change everything. Actually that's what the whole record is about. It may even be the true meaning of life.” It’s very reminiscent of Aztec Camera’s Somewhere In My Heart which is by NO means a bad thing in this instance.
Alexis Taylor – Beautiful Thing
While Hot Chip are on hiatus, their members are pursuing multiple musical side-projects. Joe Goddard has 2 Beared it up with this week’s session guest Raf Rundell (an excellent session, do listen). And now, after last year’s pared back piano record, Alexis Taylor is releasing another solo LP – which has been produced by DFA Records and UNKLE’s Tim Goldsworthy. It begins quite minimalistically but just wait two minutes for the excellent house-style piano to kick in. A disco treat.
Father John Misty – Mr Tillman
The irresistible FJ Misty’s gone meta, writing a song about himself. Of course. Listener Lesley labelled him a bit self-obsessed for doing this (whilst praising him as a songwriter, we should add) but we reckon he’s just using himself as the lens through which to make a wider point. As with a lot of Father John’s tracks, there’s a lot of lyrical interpretation to be done. But we *think* it’s something to do with a hotel receptionist and some confusion about whether or not there’s a movie shoot occurring outside the hotel.
Bishop Nehru – Rooftops
Bishop Nehru’s been busy! Just weeks after releasing his Emperor Nehru’s New Groove mixtape, he’s back with news of his new album Elevators. It’s produced entirely by MF Doom and Montreal’s Kaytranada, and it’s due for release next month (March 16, to be precise). Bishop Nehru said that the project was “largely influenced by music theory and Pet Sounds by The Beach Boys” - an intriguing musical proposition if ever there was one. This track is the first taste of what’s to come from this project and it’s a beautifully brassy banger that we absolutely love.
Little Dragon – Sway Daisy
You can always count on Little Dragon to bring the smooth, electro-tinged pop moments – and Sway Daisy is no exception. Carried by the instantly-recognisable vocals of lead singer Yukimi Nagano, it’s a track that is going to sound amazing when Little Dragon join us in Belfast at The Biggest Weekend in May. If you were a fan of the last Little Dragon LP Season High – then this will definitely be for you.
Janelle Monáe – Make Me Feel
When Janelle released this track to the world late on Thursday (complete with a fabulous video) we just had to squeeze in a sixth track. Fresh from her time acting her socks off in two critically-acclaimed movies (Moonlight and Hidden Figures). Janelle is back doing what first introduced her to the world – music. This, the first taste of her third album Dirty Computer, is an incredible, slinky guitar-filled, Prince-esque banger that could well be sound tracking weddings and birthday parties in the months, and years, to come. Don’t say we didn’t warn you!
You can hear all the tracks via the Just Added Playlist
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