Listen: Ela Minus – “megapunk” [2020]

Posted on August 20, 2020 by Very Warm

If you need a new, motivating anthem to get you through this deluge of political inaction (or destruction), pandemic fever, idiocy in the form of policy, and the stifling suffocation of the arts, look no further than the new Ela Minus song “megapunk”, released at the end of last month.

Minus is a Colombian-born, Brooklyn-based, Berklee-educated (got enough superlatives?) producer + musician that started off in hardcore, but has packed up those bags and moved into synthesizer music, bringing that same urgent energy into a field that stands to be just as revolutionary. “megapunk” has got a great, dark beat bringing me visions of early DFA Records releases, but also definitely staying firmly in the present. The groove is rather steady, but there are moments when slight electronic deviations seem to rip out of the stitching the song has tried to lace together, encouraging the same burst of nervous energy in the listener. It’s an awesome track, and as far as I know there’s no album announced yet… please let there be an album.

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Listen: Dntel – “Anywhere Anyone” [2001]

Posted on August 19, 2020 by Very Warm

I’ve posted about this song in playlists and retrospective lists, but never given it its own spotlight. If you have never listened to this song, change that right now. This is one of my all-time favorite songs and a mainstay on my depression playlist. Don’t let that superlative make you shy away. This song came out in 2001 and somehow sounds totally of its time, but still fresh. I love the glitchy dreaminess of electronic music from around the turn of the millennium and Dntel’s foundational Life Is Full of Possibilities is near the top of my list for albums all-time. Please listen to this damn album! Also support the postal service!

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Listen: Land of Talk – “Love In 2 Stages” [2020]

Posted on August 18, 2020 by Very Warm

I already featured the Land of Talk album on my Recommended Albums of July post, but man I gotta feature this simmering beauty of a track, “Love In 2 Stages”. It’s not upbeat and pummeling like a regular single, but the band hooks you in with glowing ember guitar lines and a smooth vocal delivery & melody from Elizabeth Powell. The whole album again though, is fantastic. I just ordered it on vinyl for Bandcamp Friday and I’m so excited to hear it in hi-fi.

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10 Best Songs: Joanna Newsom

Posted on August 18, 2020 by Very Warm

I’m finally attempting to fell this giant that has been lurking in my blog drafts for at least three years. Joanna Newsom is one of my all-time favorite musicians with a repertoire of purely flawless songs with bulletproof songwriting, lush expansive instrumental arrangements and truly unique vocal deliveries. She may be the most essential songwriter of the last twenty years (??) and man has she made some truly unforgettable songs. If you’ve beaten around the bush for the past two decades on checking out her music, I recommend you use this handy, heavily-biased list of tunes for you to start your journey. Reminder, Spotify is a banana and her music is not on there! Go out and buy it!

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Listen: Marie Davidson & L’Œil Nu – “Renegade Breakdown” [2020]

Posted on August 12, 2020 by Very Warm

Montreal’s Marie Davidson, along with Pierre Guerineau and Asaël R. Robitaille have formed Marie Davidson & L’Œil Nu, and their new album Renegade Breakdown is coming September 25 via Ninja Tune. Full disclosure, I’m promoting this album to radio at my real person job so I’ve been able to listen to this record for the past few weeks. I can surely say it will be in my AOTY running. It’s incredible and wild shift from Davidson’s previous albums, except for one thing: her stone-cold confidence + ice-cold delivery. Those are the same and she still can kick my ass.

Guerineau and Davidson have worked together as Essaie Pas previously, making music that’s more similar to Davidson’s previous solo output, so it’s cool to see the two of them together + Robitaille making this wild, guitar-driven synth + glam music.

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Recommended Albums: July 2020

Posted on August 9, 2020 by Very Warm

Because I make my own rules on this site, I chose to feature 12 albums this month instead of the usual 10. July really brought it and I’m supremely happy about that. Some really wonderful records that I had been greatly anticipating from artists like Jessy Lanza and Land Of Talk paid off, relative newcomers Thanya Iyer and (Liv).e wowed me, and jazzy blasts of brilliant creativity from Kamaal Williams, Lianne La Havas and Keleketla! kept me moving and inspired. This list is airtight and I hope you find something you love here. Favorite songs of the month below the list of 12!

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Listen: Cut Worms – “Sold My Soul” [2020]

Posted on August 5, 2020 by Very Warm

I’ve listened to this new Cut Worms track maayybbeee 10 times in the last 24 hours. Something about it is totally addicting. It feels like a stone cold classic from decades ago, with a familiar-enough melody that it sounds exclusively like Cut Worms, but potentially someone else’s. I’m not crazy about the music video though, maybe forget that part. But man, this song totally blindsided me. Didn’t think a slice of retro country pop would affect me in this way in 2020, but here we are. Melancholy in all the right ways, buoyant but feeling weighed down. I can’t wait to wander around NYC on a HOT day, fogging up my glasses with mask breath, listening to this.

New Cut Worms album Nobody Lives Here Anymore coming Oct 9 via faves of the blog Jagjaguwar.

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Listen: Yalc123 – “Free Throw” [2020]

Posted on August 1, 2020 by Very Warm

Somehow came across this great album by Texas musician Yalc123 and their record Yalc Nitsua Mailliw today and I really wish it came out in July so I could feature it in my upcoming Recommended Albums post, but alas I think a standalone post works alright too. The record is a totally futuristic sounding collection of pop songs, all full of bouncy, elastic production and creatively layered and affected vocals, totally plowing over any perceived genre lines and instead opting for a gelatinous playhouse of sound. Yalc sounds like they has a good sense of humor when it comes to putting their music together, as the whole record is a blast to get through. I could have picked any song off this record, but with the NBA back I thought featuring the basketball-themed tune “Free Throw” would be appropriate.

If you buy the album via their Bandcamp page, all the proceeds will go to “various mutual aid funds”, so I highly recommend it. Get ahead of the curve on some futuristic-ass music and support a good cause. I can’t think of a bad step here.

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Listen: Alexia Avina – “Fit Into” [2020]

Posted on July 30, 2020 by Very Warm

If you’re looking for a dreamy, airy new song to drift you into this weekend (totally through Friday, please disregard Friday), look no further than the new song from MA’s Aleixa Avina. Got tipped on this song by a few folks and yep, it’s definitely my thing. Slowly developing, featherlight vocals synergize with gentle guitar and delicate synths. The whole song feels like you can blow it away if you breathe too hard. Very interested in hearing more from this artist, and if it’ll all be this porcelain.

Also gotta shout out the stop-motion video. Hell yeah.

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Listen: TENGGER – “Water” [2020]

Posted on July 24, 2020 by Very Warm

Finally got to a record I’ve had on my to-do list for the last few weeks, the lovely Nomad but South Korean/Japanese duo TENGGER, out now via Beyond Beyond Is Beyond. The record as a whole is a treat, providing some of the most calming and introspective melodies, textures and sounds I’ve heard all year. The song “Water” immediately stuck out to me on my first listen, so it makes sense that this was a single. Blissful synth passages meander over a steady, plinking pattern, while disembodied vocals provide alternative layers to the gorgeous equation. Like I said earlier, if you’re looking for a peaceful, meditative listen, I cannot recommend Nomad enough, but if you’re just plain interested, I highly suggest you start here.

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