The 25 best songs of the last month

15.

Jorja Smith

Blue Lights

‘Blue Lights’ is an album highlight from the English R&B native. Lost & Found which came out on June 8th, is a stunning collection of material which covers the artist’s transition from adolescence into adulthood. Smith originally hailed from Walsall but traveled to London at 18 to soak in the city life.

16.

Laurie Shaw

That’s Life

Taken from Laurie Shaw‘s forthcoming debut album, That’s Life! is an uplifting alt-rock ballad that summons an eclectic mix of imagery including hotel lobbies and humanist funerals. Shaw cites Jonathan Richman and Bill Ryder Jones as influences and it is easy to hear those here. The song is the perfect medicine to remedy a bad day and is a must-have track on your summer playlist.

17.

The Juan Maclean

What Do You Feel Free About?

John Maclean and Nancy Wang hook up again on DFA for a fruitful new song.

18.

James Blake

Don’t Miss It

Having cropped up on an Andre 3000 song recently and the Black Panther soundtrack earlier this year, James Blake returns with a solo track that plays to the core of his strengths. The track, a collaboration with Mount Kimbie’s Dominic Maker, is a piano ballad torch song with Blake’s trademark electronic pitched-up production.“When you get to hang out with your favourite person every day / when the dull pain goes away /don’t miss it,” he suggests.

19.

Pow Pig

Concerned

Concerned is an irresistible concoction of electric guitar lines and backing vocals that rise and fall in all the right places. Taken from the Limerick band’s second EP Buzz Buzz, the song is underground lo-fi rock at its finest and renders the four-piece a definite one-to-watch over the coming year. Catch them in Dublin at Irish Music Party’s Dublin Quays Festival show on July 20th. More on the band from my Irish Times piece.

20.

Spies

Young Dad

Dublin-based five-piece band Spies re-emerged after a two-year break with ‘Young Dad’ earlier this year, a track that presented a new electronically experimental sound for the band.

During their break period, Spies spent their time writing and recording new music, progressing their sound with the introduction of synths and drum machines.

‘Uriah’ is their latest release, a track that continues to reveal the bands evolving electronic-based sound that sparks influences from artists such as Fatima Yahama, Floating Points and New Jackson.

21.

White Denim

It Might Get Dark

Rock music isn’t fun anymore. That’s a conclusion to be drawn from listening to the Texas band’s boogie rock take on the genre, as make their music sound so effortless, dare-we-say groovy, that few can match. Drawing from Mister Sandman and Loose Fur, White Denim hark back to the fun of rock’n’roll without any of the messiness.

22.

James Vincent McMorrow

Me And My Friends

James Vincent McMorrow wrote Me And My Friends at the news of his wife’s pregnancy to preserve the moment in time, “when I found out this was happening, I sat down and wrote something. My intention was so release it when this tiny person showed up and always remember this moment in time”. The bouncy song is faithful to McMorrow’s electronic sound, complete with pinball-esque synth effects, brass lines and gang vocals.

23.

Mr. Twin Sister

Jaipur

Jaipur is the first song from Mr. Twin Sister in just under two years. The song merges funk, disco and pop influences in afro-beat rhythms and vocoders while retaining the smooth vocals and dreamy melodies that the band have become known for.

24.

The Carters

Heard About Us

A highlight from the career-obligating Carters album from Beyoncé and Jay Z. If anything the album just reinforces that Beyoncé is the artist still growing in stature, tone and skill, while Jay Z can only deliver the same verse ad infinitum. This is great though.

25.

Snail Mail

Pristine

Lindsey Jordan has been performing under the moniker of Snail Mail since the age of 15. Venue hopping around Baltimore’s live music scene gave her indie rock sound the time and space to grow as well as providing her with like-minded musicians to form a band with. Her debut album ‘Lush’ came out on June 8th.