Hi friends,
While less "listenable," than some other weeks, I was more excited to write this week than I've been in a while. Perhaps it's because three of the tracks are related to suggestions from you guys, yet still resulted from considerable exploration on my part. In any case, this one was a lot of fun and I've been digging these tracks on repeat. I'm very curious to hear from you think!
Have you ever just listened to whatever live sets you can find in KEXP's archives? It's something I've begun doing and would recommend. Shawn sent me this trio's first album a while back and they've been on my radar ever since.
Performing tracks from their second studio album ahead of a show at Neumos (remember that place?!), Laura Lee, Mark Speer, and Donald Johnson funk their way through four songs, closing with this one.
Laura Lee's simply spoken yet spectacularly intoned vocals bring a carefree vibe into the track that never fails to bring a smile to my face. It comes across even better live, which you can find at the link above.
Do you like Clairo? Memphis LK might be Australia's more electronic version. Vulnerable, lyrical, and delicate, she delivers brooding productions. This is her fifth track and I look forward to keeping my ears tuned as she progresses toward her fiftieth.
"Ólafur came out with a new album," Alex said to me earlier this week. I queued it up and, as it started with a Bonobo collaboration, I brought high hopes. I discovered that, in its totality, the album is absolutely gripping. However, the denouement stole the show.
This is, I think, the first time I've ever shared an album's closing track. They're usually the slowest, releasing the listener from what was likely a forty minute experience. In this case though, Ólafur saved his most powerful and crushing track for last, sinking the listener into hopeful despair.
Contrasting light, airy piano with heavy, sweeping strings after beginning with a wavering monologue that reflects on birth and the meaning of life. The album is called "some kind of peace," and for me it provides just that.
Sent in by Joe, this group gets labelled as several genres: glitch hop, drum and bass, Neurofunk, Dubstep, and intelligent dance music (the genre I'll always remember for how much Aphex Twin hates its name). When you listen to their discography, it's easy to see how they get called so many different things. Just on their four-track Dynasty EP each song seems to be a separate genre. Speaking of which, the closing track, "Lost in Thought," is shoegazy and delightful, but you'll have to go see for yourself.
Those of you into esoterica will know that a koan is a Zen riddle, used to teach students something about the "inadequacy of logical reasoning" and "to provoke enlightenment." This duo from Bristol crystallizes this influence in the naming of one of their earliest tracks called "One Hand Clap."
This track particularly shines for its display of their intense musicality and ability to make something simultaneously musical and dubby. Its drums, glitchy bass lines, and electronic wub-dub make for a sound I hadn't found before, but can't seem to get enough of.
Of course, don’t forget to reply with what you liked, didn’t like, and what you’ve been listening to.
And, as always, this week’s tracks are added to the collectors for all weeks' tracks on Spotify and Apple Music.
Cheers,
Tanner