Here are the best new songs we’ve heard in the past week, tried, tested and ready for your ears.
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1.
Elma Orkestra & Ryan Vail
Arrival
Ryan Vail and Eoin O’Callaghan (aka Elma Orkestra) are two musicians from the two sides of Derry/Londonderry who have who have a common ground in the ambient, electronic and neo-classical genres. This new track ‘Arrival’ is taken from their collaborative album Borders set for release on June 14th. Coming in just short of eight minutes, it makes for truly compelling listen: think ambient, experimental soundscapes fused with electronic detailing in percussion and synths.
2.
Tame Impala
Borderline
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vpbblMR_jUo
Tame Impala‘s new single finally materialised on Friday ahead of their set at Coachella and neither disappointed. ‘Borderline’ shows Kevin Parker doing everything he does best, and it also illustrates that he is most comfortable when cocooned in an abundance of synth sounds and tones and rich bass melodies, neither of which ever take away from his stellar vocal lines.
3.
070 Shake
Morrow
070 Shake is an artist that came to prominence through her feature on ‘Ghost Town’ from Kanye West’s Ye and it’s easy to hear why she caught his attention with this new track. ‘Morrow’ is a melancholic bop that sounds a little like early The Weeknd material but with more grit. The drums are the driving force from the get go with relentless energy and zest that, teamed with 070 Shake’s captivating vocals, is a concoction we’re liking a lot.
4.
Kaytranada, VanJess
Dysfunctional
Kaytranada’s follow up to 99.9% has been highly anticipated and on Friday we got a taster of what to expect. ‘Dysfunctional’ features Nigerian-American duo VanJess is groove saturated that feels like a natural sonic development from older material it’s more refined and polished but still possesses the character and textures that we know the producer for.
5.
Anderson .Paak
Jet Black feat. Brandy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lXhQcblmoZQ
Anderson .Paak‘s new album Ventura saw release on Friday and ‘Jet Black’ is one of our favourites from it. It’s a fun, uptempo and groove filled track that renders head bobbing a natural reflux and additional vocals from Brandy give it an extra allure. Yes please.
6.
Club Kuru
Film Credits
Club Kuru release their new album Meet Your Marker on May 3rd and ‘Film Credits’ is the latest offering from it. The track is dripping with nostalgia thanks to chorus saturated guitars and and grainy vocals, it’s a song that revels in it’s classic, no frills instrumentation and arrangement. The music video is great too.
7.
Kevin Abstract
Georgia
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Er9lC74gWxg
Kevin Abstract is the founder of Brockhampton, the boy band made up of 15 various artists from rappers and producers to art directors and artists, and this track ‘Georgia’ is taken from his new EP as a solo artist ARIZONA Baby. The song plays on lyrics from the classic ‘Georgia On My Mind’ and gives them a hip-hop makeover with pitched vocals and smooth synth lines.
8.
Boy Harsher
Lost
‘Lost’ is our favourite track from Careful, Boy Harsher‘s most recent album which has featured in this series before. It’s a moody track with serious disco leanings thanks to the grating saw bass and 80s drums, not to mention the hook laced vocals (that you will have in your head all day).
9.
Fontaines D.C.
The Lotts
Fontaines D.C.‘s debut album Dogrel has been one of the most talked about Irish debuts in a long time. It’s an album that has Dublin placed at its epicentre both in lyrics and in lead singer Grian Chatten’s Irish accented vocals. ‘The Lotts’ is one of the more downtempo songs on the record, there’s a hint of melancholia there in the chord structure and guitar melodies. Read our full review of the album here.
10.
Mutual Benefit
Diamond Day
Mutual Benefit are releasing an album covering Vashti Bunyan’s Just Another Diamond Day on June 23rd and ‘Diamond Day’ is getting us excited to hear it. The song is sympathetic to the original in that the instrumentation is still quite stripped back but this version is a little moodier, Jordan Lee’s vocals give the song a darker meaning and undercurrent.
