Lots of great new singles and releases coming out this week. You’d be forgiven if you were struggling to keep up. Don’t worry, we got you. Here are our favourite new tracks from this week.
As always, follow the Nialler9 Weekly playlist for access to the freshest new music.
1.
Mura Masa ft. Nao
Complicated
Alex Crossan, more widely know as Mura Masa, has come out with one of our absolute favourite songs as of late. ‘Complicated’, featuring Nao on vocal duties, is a lovelorn dancehall R&B fusion track. Full of bounce and life, credit must be given to Masa for the superb production work. Anybody listening through decent headphones will struggle to not be moved by the very punchy bass sounds on this one. We’re not sure about the “I really do, j’adore you” line ourselves, but the tune more than makes up for it in all other departments. Nice one.
2.
Free Love
Pushing Too Hard
Who doesn’t love a good ’80s inspired synthwave tune? Free Love, a new electronic Scottish duo, have produced just that in ‘Pushing Too Hard’. The song wears its very neon heart on its sleeve, offering one tasty synth line after another from the beginning to end. Some very well programmed drums, including that classic ’80s snare sound, are the glue that holds the rest of the song together. Meanwhile, Suzanne Rodden, one half of the group, alternates between French and English in a thick accent driven with sexual energy. Sometimes she’s close to a whisper and at others, a howl. Fingers crossed the rest of the group’s future material will be as good as this.
3.
Travis Scott
Stop Trying To Be God
James Blake has gradually become of the most creative and innovative hip-hop producers in the world. After collaborating with Ye and Kendrick, he’s produced what could be his finest single piece of work with Travis Scott’s ‘Stop Trying To Be God’. Scott’s album Astroworld is a real mixed bag and won’t do anything to soothe his fan’s fears that he’ll never make anything as consistently good as his 2015 debut Rodeo. This is by far the best song on the album, due in large part to Blake’s inspired production and guest vocal performance. The track’s opening half is dark and brooding, with autotuned harmonies wheezing and wooing. When Blake’s voice cuts through the gloom of the mix, it’s hard not to be moved. Check it out.
4.
A-Trak
Djs Gotta Dance More
Revolving around a Todd Terry sample, A-Trak’s ‘DJs Gotta Move More’ is a nostaligic homage to house music in general. With some airtight production and beautiful looped piano chords, this is exactly the sort of tune you can expect to provoke wild cheers at your dancefloor of choice. It’s a bit cheesy but in the totally right way.
5.
Reinen
Masquerede
The Paul Institute, the label and collective run by brothers Jai and A.K. Paul, have had a prolific few weeks, to say the least. REINEN’S ‘Masquerade’ marks the London based label’s 7th release in just over 2 weeks. Not bad. ‘Masquerade’ is a melodramatic pop ballad, almost operatic in tone. It’s the first single from REINEN, who along with HIRA are the two newest additions to the Paul Institute. Weird and wonderful.
6.
Neneh Cherry
Kong
Trip-hop and pop culture icon Neneh Cherry’s latest single ‘Kong’ is sleek and powerful. It’s a strange mix of old and new. There’s plenty of elements of her definitive trip-esque pop style, from the clattering hi-hats to the skewed breakdown around the song’s halfway mark. However, there’s evolution to be heard here too. Here more so than ever there’s a focus on Cherry’s vocals and the lyrics which propel them, as poetic as they are cryptic. Its produced by both Four Tet and 3D of Massive Attack
7.
IDER
You’ve Got Your Whole Life Ahead Of You Baby
Growing up isn’t easy. Case in point is British group IDER’s ‘You’ve Got Your Whole Life Ahead Of You Baby’ which, apart from being the best song title we’ve heard in a while, is a superb indie-pop ballad. Brutally honest and all the more charming for it. Lines like “I’m in my twenties/So I’m panicking every way” give the track a strong sense of character. Add to that a super catchy chorus and you’ve got the recipe for a fantastic tune.
8.
Wild Nothing
Shallow Water
Time now for some dream pop. Wild Nothing gained a ton of recognition by bloggers and the Youtube community with his 2012 album Nocturne, the video for which stands at nearly nine million views. ‘Shallow Water’ is the artist’s third single release this year and is exactly the right sort of shimmery guitar music to help you glide through a long afternoon. We’re excited for the album, whenever it does come.
9.
Low Cut Connie
Oh Suzanne
Taken from a batch of live recordings entitled Dirty Pictures(Part 2), ‘Oh Suzanne’s is a gritty rock’n’roll number courtesy of Philly group Low Cut Connie. Wailing guitars, a driving rhythm section and a classic blues rock hook makes this one of the most adrenaline-fueled tracks on this week’s list.
10.
Mitski
Two Slow Dancers
A heartbreaking piano ballad at its core, Mitski’s ‘Two Slow Dancers’ is strictly for those with headphones and the want to open themselves to the melancholy of lead singer and project visionary Mitski Miyawaki. Taking an honest look at two people slowly growing apart with age, the track pulls no punches lyrically. The addition of those synth strings around the halfway point is the cherry atop this bittersweet cake. Mitski’s new album drops Friday.
11.
We Cut Corners
Rainy Night in Slomo
We Cut Corners new single ‘Rainy Night In Slomo’ hears the band expanding their sound into darker, more ominous territory. 2016’s The Cadences Of Others was the group’s most ambitious effort to date, but this new single seems to fully realise the dark which had only been hinted at in their previous work. ‘Rainy Night In Slomo’ is a fantastic track which offers a lot for the listener to be excited about on their upcoming album.
