Hearing Gold

Summer is in full swing, but that hasn’t prevented new candidates from staking a claim in the season’s ever-competitive soundtrack. Parisian producer FKJ (French Kiwi Juice) recently teamed with R&B singer Tom Bailey for the infectious, “Drops,” a summer jam with a warbling synth melody that swaggers in time with Bailey’s smooth crooning. For a mid-season contender, it packs a powerful punch.

Listen to “Drops” below and grab a free download if the track suits you.

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Myself & Others is a journalistic collaboration that aims to disseminate new and noteworthy music across the internet. The project is celebrating its one-year anniversary with a digital advent calendar, which launched yesterday and will run until Christmas Day. The first offering is from Maryland duo Abhi//Dijon, who mete out their muted R&B textures very systematically on “ECS”. Hesitant vocal swells are eventually solidified by a subterranean bass line that never seems content to hit directly on the strong beats, but necessary security is provided through a synth ostinato and crisp yet understated percussion. Take a listen below.

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Everett Orr has existed on the fringes of the music world for awhile, quietly producing tracks for artists like Don Scott, but “Closer” is his first foray into the spotlight.  And what a foray it is. Guided by sensual trumpet improvisations and guitar work from 10 Fold label-mate Tobias, “Closer” exists as a gorgeous, bass-heavy slow jam that’s capped off by Orr’s effortless crooning and muted mallet percussion that interjects its melody at just the right time.

Take a listen below.

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Sink yourself into the new collaborative duo Blanche’s trance-inducing single, “Fool For You”. Talented vocalist Steffaloo coos her way atop orgasmic bass riffs and dreamy dubstep beats in a new collaboration with the mysterious producer, nknwn. Blanche is a duo that does not disappoint, and a match made in electronic heaven. Keep your ears open and let this soulful melody glide through your veins. Check them out on Bandcamp and Soundcloud and grab the track off of their One EP. Enjoy.

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Paris-based Onra is a producer unlikely to not be on top of his game at any given point. A versatile producer, Onra returns on his forthcoming album this month with a sharp ear for bass-led grooves pulling from funk, soulful vibes in R&B and the aesthetic fusion of New Jack Swing.

“Not Long Ago” is a cut off of the full-length, Nobody Has to Know, a 13-track journey through the tender and tempestuous aspects of a secret relationship. The album drops via All City Records on February 16th. Pre-order the album via Bandcamp.

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“Holy shit” is how Brkthbeat‘s “No Show” involuntarily gets you to blurt out immediately upon hitting play. Seemingly out of nowhere, this mysterious outfit emerges and slaps you across the face and onto the dancefloor without apology. If things got any funkier or groovier, we’d all be slipping on bell bottoms, buying disco balls from the dollar store and practicing synchronized dance moves in front of the mirror for hours.

Brkthbeat describe themselves as “digital meets analog, where 80s boogie meets 70s funk. Brkthbeat is Retro-Futurism – we are the #FuturePast.”  Guess what? They nailed it. Those synths? That bass line? Them vocals? Holy shit.

We don’t know who these guys are, but we’re going to be keeping a close eye on subsequent releases, and so should you. Boogie the night away below.

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New York’s Monolithic just dropped the gorgeous Alone With You EP and we’re more than smitten; it hits us right in our soft spot for dreamy, lo-fi house. We can get down with this any time, anywhere.

Producer Jun Torii of the Monolithic moniker freshly brings forth distinctive beats brimming with hypnotic bumps and simmering warmth to lo-fi house. The title track, “Alone With You”, runs with deep, punchy bass lines and synth melodies that sweep your body into hypnotic oblivion. Sound like fun? We think so.

Peep the rest of the EP over at Monolithic‘s Soundcloud.

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Hey it’s fall here, and it’s kind of gloomy, and while a lot of indie R&B has been on heavy rotation lately, the relentlessly smooth croonings of Mish (aka Mitch Graunke of Melbourne’s PONCHO) has us tapping that replay more often than not.

His latest release amongst a sparse catalog, “ur gorgeous”, is laced with a “’70s fuck feel” vibe that doesn’t ever ease up on that almost too-sensual-for-work bass line funk. Vocally, it’s criminally smooth like a serial con artist, so um, we guess gloomy weather can be romantic now.

Commence swooning below.

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“When I die make sure you bury me in pot soil, and then watch a rose rise from the top soil. If I keep the rhymes hot enough to make the pot boil, then no one in the world can make the plot foiled.”

Patrick “Peezy” Baker of Massachusetts isn’t what you’d expect upon first glance–he’s more than that. He’s proof that looks can be deceiving and that the flows of still water can run deep. With a slow-flow and clever word-play, Peezy is very reminiscent of the likes of Odd Future’s Hodgy Beats. In “Lost”, Peezy reflects on the journey of his rap career, happy that “at least I took a shot like JFK” all the while “everybody saying I should run with plan B”.

If he continues to make music like this, he won’t be lost, he’ll find himself heading in no other direction than up.

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UK-based producer Linden Jay and LA-based vocalist Roméo join up as FARR to bring you down to a state of reflection, down to a place of emotion, and down to a place of purity. The duo’s first release, “Down”, blends the sounds of Future R&B, soul, and even a touch of jazz. FARR will inevitably be compared to the likes of other future R&B artists, albeit only having released a single track. Nevertheless, they have differentiated themselves from the pack in their own unique way.

“Down” begins from a place of depth with heavy reverb and saturated synths, while Roméo’s vocals stay hidden. A repetitive kick commences and the vocals come to the foreground and Roméo describes his relationship: “Can we put this out in the open? / How our ship is no longer floatin’, yeah / But if we’re to sink in this ocean / I’ll be right here by your side.” Heavy on the metaphors, as is throughout the song, Roméo declares his commitment to what may be a failing relationship, while Linden Jay skillfully parallels the emotional ebb and flow of the vocal melody with a thinned out, yet powerful production.

As the track ends, we are left wondering two things; will the relationship stay afloat? And when’s the next single?

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Ewan “Melonade” Mallinson, a resident of the UK, steps away from sample-based production and releases his first self-produced album aptly titled, Solo, via Club Moderato. The album is best described as if Fred Falke was born in the ’90s, spent most of his time in shopping malls and focused his production not on dance music driven by bass-lines, but rather, emotional low-bit music driven by melody. It contains elements that take influence from Daft Punk’s Discovery and the overall french aesthetic. Best of all, each track could quite easily be the soundtrack to a “S I M P S O N S W A V E” video.

A standout from the album is “Feelings Fade” that features Enti & Andrew Turner. The song begins with the low lying rumble of a storm and pitter-pattering of rain, only before the accompaniment of an electric guitar strum and a soft melodic synth progression. Even before the arrival of sentimental vocals from Enti, an amorous mood has already been established and set. The trio harmoniously come together and produce a beautiful track.

Head here to listen to Solo in its entirety and here to buy the album.

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When you think of Alabama, you may think of southern charm, great BBQ, or maybe even literature (To Kill a Mockingbird). What you don’t think of is Future Funk. Ben ‘Cero Rio‘ Robinson is changing that with the release of his debut album, Towards the Future, which is self described as “A story of mutual friends taking a small drive together.”

Now, there are a lot of great tracks from this EP, which you can check out here, but I wanted to point out “To Satisfy Me”. It’s a fantastically produced funk-slow-jam which utilizes a frequent sample in a unique way. The song begins muddled and diluted by a filter until fully revealing itself with a dense mixture of synth chord progressions, wood-blocks, faint guitar licks, groovy bass lines, and vocals that swoon, “ooh baby, satisfy my love“. As the song evolves, more vocals are introduced, elements are re-arranged and filters are faded–a perfect production.

New to the scene and with only one album under his belt, Cero Rio is someone to keep an eye on.

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James Deen, a Vancouver-based beat producer and genre pusher releases his second single, “Girl“, off his upcoming album, Never Been Cool.

Stripped, raw and bare, our song begins with an askew drum pattern. As we progress, gentle synths underlay a beautifully woeful voice in the distance–it’s Clairo. The beat drops and a barrage of high-hats come skittering in as Clairo vocalizes the mood of our song: “All you tell me is I am not worth of your love…that I meant nothing, that I was just nothing…I just was a girl”.

As the depths of Clairo’s emotions grow, so does the depth of production; floating saxophone samples, panned scaling string plucks, and alluding base tones come into full bloom, while Clairo croons, “I don’t want you back…”.

We reach the bridge and final chapter of the song and James Deen further flexes his production talent by adding new elements to our piece, pitch shifting vocals and finally stripping away elements, leaving you with Clairo’s vocal talent.

Never Been Cool will be available on April 13th.

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Slow jams. Cool vibes. Mellow vocals. “Closer” is the most recent release by Vancouver’s Moonmelt, the electronic project of Jackson Malloy and Alexander Reid.

A soft rhodes, chord progression, subtle kick drum and sultry vocals introduces the song and tone. Soon, the beat picks up, the chords pop, and soulful vocalist, Brianna Rose, blossoms. Her lyrics, draped in velvet smooth vocals, bellow “Just come a little closer, and maybe, you’ll get to have a taste. You’re all that’s on my mind, don’t you want to get it on with me”.

The song evolves, elements of a crowded room are added, the setting is set, and Brianna’s harmonizing melodies fade into the back. A sudden rush brings the track full circle and repeats. As the soulful vocals fade, “Closer” is repeated and the listener is left wondering how close she truly got.

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While few indie bands are able to sustain unique songwriting prowess over time, after 4 years of being on hiatus, Allston-based outfit ABADABAD managed, in our opinion, to continue being one of the most interesting indie bands out there. A generous statement, perhaps? Nope, not really and we’ll continue to hold that belief until they prove us wrong.

“10 Fingers” is the latest offering upon the outfit’s recent resurfacing and is so interestingly ABADABAD, you can’t help but pay attention. With amped up psychedelia, swirling sonic atmosphere, and pleasantly plucked and crooned melodies, “10 Fingers” is a song that sounds like it was written decades ago but wasn’t, and we’re very glad that it was written.

The new single comes off of ABADABAD’s forthcoming full-length release, Touch The Feel, which is set to drop next month. We took some time to stream the rest of the album and yeah…please go listen to it.

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UK-based, singer-songwriter, River, is well known for her sultry vocal work for the likes of GRMM, Televisor, The Shapeshifters, and the massively successful cover of Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car” with Tobtok.

Today, River removes the “featuring” preceding her name and steps into the spotlight by releasing her first official single, “Remember Me” through Hoxton-based label, Perfect Havoc. Coming from a featured vocalist background, River understands the importance of her voice being heard as much and as often, by as many people as possible, and on as many channels as possible. As such, she will also be releasing the vocals for any producers looking to put their spin on the record.

Now, as for the song itself, our introduction represents the lyrics quite well; the song begins and our production, a faded flicker of something distinct in the background, muffled yet distinguishable, echoes into the foreground, “Our love is just a memory…”. The chorus crescendos into full depth with skittering hi-hats, heavy kicks, a soft whistle in the treble, panned synths, and deep stabs. River continues to sing about her faded love with lyrics like, “People tell me I should move on / I am better on my own”.  As the song ends, our layers of production are peeled away, and the audience assumes that much like the instrumentation, River has finally let the memory go.

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If you don’t know the name Oliver Nelson by now, you certainly will have by the end of 2017. Oliver Nelson is a leader in the Nu-disco genre, generator of groovy bass lines and all around purveyor of funk. His smash single, “Ain’t A Thing” featuring Kaleem Taylor blew up last year by generating over one million plays on Soundcloud and nearly two million plays on Spotify.

Skogsrå, a fellow Swede and label-mate on Perfect Havoc, delivers his rendition of Oliver’s smash single. Now, just because Skogsrå removed some of the claps, ooh-ahs, and bass lines, does not mean you can’t dance to it.

Contrasting Oliver Nelson’s original mix, Skogsrå’s remix of “Ain’t A Thing” flows in and begins with heavy strings and emotion. The track drops; our subtle piano has been replaced with a deep stabbing synth and is now the lead element of the song. Kaleem’s vocals still echo true. Skogsrå does something quite creative on his pre-chorus bridge; he maintains the tempo with the sound of panning metronome instead of claps. The song progresses and Skogsrå let’s his production skills shine through with elements like synth-interplay, traditional house rhythms, and a fantastic synth solo towards the conclusion of the track.

Now, I understand Sweden is pretty far north, or pretty east, for most us, but there is one more reason to put it on your radar–Skogsrå.

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