Finally, a month that doesn't start with snow on the ground. Now I can roll the windows down in my hot ride (minivan) and crank some of these tunes for my neighbours..
10 - "1998", Chet Faker
I really missed the bus on watching the Coachella Live Stream online this year. One guy I did not miss though is Chet Faker, a mainstay on these monthly lists. I'm not sure if "1998", "Gold" or "No Diggity" got the biggest crowd response, but it was close. This song has been around an awfully long time to be showing up as "fresh new music", but I have no shame. Plus nobody reads this:). I'm hoping to get to Osheaga this summer to see Faker in person. Fingers crossed.
9 - "Fade Out Lines", The Avener
The Avener is a French house DJ and this is his reworking of "Fade Out Lines" by Phoebe Killdeer and the Short Straws. I actually heard this in a diner in Montreal last month (massive cool points for whatever station was spinning this) and was very surprised. For anyone who wants to hear the slower original without the driving bass thump, here it is.
8 - "Ain't That Easy", D'Angelo and The Vanguard
Holding down the 8-spot for back-to-back months, it's D'Angelo with another single from Black Messiah. For follower(s) of this blog, you know I love interesting rhythm in music so this song gets some points for the seemingly slightly uncoordinated hand-clap every couple of bars. This is a great lead-off single and definitely caught my attention when I first booted up the album. Hope you enjoy.
7 - "Kansas City", The New Basement Tapes
While I might not be all caught up in the new Mumford & Sons single, I do appreciate this cut from Mumford's work on the New Basement Tapes sessions. The album is not really my cup of tea, but it made a great gift at Christmas for some of the classic rock/Dylan lovers in my family.
6 - "Where are U Now", Skrillex and Diplo feat. Justin Bieber
And now for something completely different. I'll probably take some heat for listening to anything associated with Biebs. Shrug. I'm hoping that the Skrillex/Diplo presence works as a sort of carbon offset. I'm not entirely sure if this passes for Can-con, but I've heard it a few times on local radio stations, which has surprised me a bit. In an case, it's a very strange confluence of musical minds that I'm not sure I would have ever predicted would work together.
5 - "Somebody New", Joywave
I first heard of these guys a couple of years ago when "Tongues" (feat. KOPPS) did the rounds (a very different sound from "Somebody New" with a REALLY weird video). Then last year, they were featured on Big Data's alternative smash "Dangerous". I'm very intrigued by these guys and will be keeping an ear open for more.
4 - "Busy Earnin'", Jungle
So these guys love making some choreographed music videos! This is the first of theirs I saw, but "Time", "Julia" and "The Heat" are all along the same vein. Like one, you'll like them all. Jungle exudes a pretty sick retro cool that doesn't sound like much else out there right now. Me gusto.
3 - "King", Years & Years
I'm trying to figure out what decade this hearkens back to. Mid 80s? The synths remind me a lot of Cut Copy from a couple of years ago. Very catchy..
2 - "America", First Aid Kit
I have a monster soft spot for Fleetwood Mac. But I also have a separate part in my heart reserved for Simon and Garfunkel. This is a pretty nice cover of an S&G classic. I promise I'll hook you up with some more First Aid Kit (Swedish!) next month (feel free to track some down yourself if you like;)).
1 - "A Thousand Miles (Vanessa Carlton Refix)", MNEK
Oh my God I can't get this song out of my head. Make it stop! No wait, one more play. Obviously, if you were not a fan of the original, then this won't go well for you. The infusion of "Love Shack" is pretty awesome, imho.
Happy listening!
