#pecq

Los Angeles based indie duo Only Bricks have shared their new single and video entitled 'Smile, It’s Over:)' The track marks vocalist Anne DiGiovanni’s last day at her full time day job. "‘Smile, It’s Over :)’ is our swan song for everyone who’s ever raged against corporate America,” Anne says. Featuring 90's inspired guitar riffs, shiny pop punk melodies, and unapologetic spunk fused vocals, the song is the perfect anthem of freedom, while taking listeners on an enthralling musical rollercoaster. The music video is a vibrant collage of scenes featuring the duo, with Anne transforming into a mermaid who is living it up in a “pity pool” of her former co-workers’ platitudes, finally having found her own voice. 

After signing to Father/Daughter Records last year, Annie Blackman is preparing to release her debut album on the label. It’s called All of It, with a release date of April 8, and it features last year’s set of one-off tracks. “It feels more like a collection than an album in that the songs span a five-year period,” she says, “and have seen me through college, COVID, and my first three months living in Brooklyn.” Blackman shares the video for the slowly gutting single 'How.' The track begins with melancholic acoustic strums that intertwine with swirls of electric guitar, giving it a country ping. “Call me crying please / Beg me not to leave you, now / I’ll say on the other line / ‘I would but I don’t know how,'” she sings during the chorus. Blackman’s voice is crystal clear as she sings about the last breaking threads of a relationship. If it wasn’t already poignant enough, the new visual for 'How,' which was directed by Katrina Peterson, gives us that raw, humorous perspective. Two clowns fall in love; one cruelly messes up, and the other is forced to confront them. It’s a wonderfully obvious metaphor for how we humans are all clowns walking around, responsible for our emotions and how our actions affect others. [via FLOOD]

Surfbort have just released 'Lot Lizard 93' as the latest single from their new album Keep On Truckin'. "Dave Sitek made the beat and the lyrics just flew out of me," says bandleader Dani Miller. "It was a time before I found god hence the quote 'god can never find me' and it’s a common feeling of feeling hopeless and nihilistic and alone but feeling comfortable in that. The song sat for a year or so and then when I showed it to Linda Perry and Surfbort we all came together and transformed it into a full rock song." The video for 'Lot Lizard 93' was directed by pro skateboarder, World Cup Champion and Olympian, Lizzie Armanto. "It was such a treat to direct my first music video, 'Lot Lizard 93' for Surfbort," says Lizzie. "Even after listening to the song a thousand times I still love it. The band has incredible energy and that made working with them a breeze." Dani adds, "We teamed up with Lizzie and let her go wild with her amazing ideas." [via Brooklyn Vegan]

Internet pop artist sophie meiers says their first single of 2022 is "one of the most important songs" they've released to date. Titled 'collar,' the warm, guitar-led cut signals a more optimistic direction for meiers into the New Year, as they innocently sing about feeling "nervous" when a crush is near. "I start to think about you pulling on the collar of my dress" meier admits, their slightly whispered delivery adding to the relatable, anxious undercurrent. "It's everything I love about making music," meiers says of their latest on Epitaph Records. "It’s playful and warm and crunchy and quick-witted and passionate. Honestly, it just fuckin' feels good to listen to. That feeling of sunny contentment when a moment is captured exactly as it is. I am reinvigorated creatively, there is a fire roaring inside of me with the anticipation of what is next to come." For the 'collar' music video meiers teamed up with Director Lindsey Nico Mann to amplify their personal lyrics. Cast in a romantic red glow, they're filmed alone in a bedroom that looks like a location where meiers might've written this intimate love letter. And, of course, they wear a collar to match the song's title, lined with vintage-inspired pearls. Most notably, this is the first time meiers has had "full creative control" over a visual. [via PAPER]

Call Me Loop is ready for competition in her new single, 'Year of the Ex.' The rising English artist, who famously co-wrote The Pussycat Dolls' 2020 comeback, 'React,' sings about 365 days of failed romances — but turns it into a hilarious bop that merely highlights her "process," as she says. "So when I need a pick-me-up, I know it's one of them I'll be calling," Loop warns, before the big, bright chorus: "It was the Year of the Ex/ Doing it over and over/ Which one of you's next?" For her 'Year of the Ex' music video Loop wanted to build a narrative centered on "a love story that showed a constant power struggle," as she herself relates to the dynamic "where you and an ex are trying so hard not to go there, but one of you always breaks or makes the other person break." So they created a "Love Championship," where Loop challenges her ex to different rounds of physical activity, from basketball to badminton and table tennis. The nostalgic visual shows Loop and her former lover "constantly trying to one-up each other, getting super competitive," though Loop ultimately wins. "Whether that's because I got my way and I got him to come back to me, or whether I finally put an end to the Year of the Ex," Loop says. "That's open to interpretation." [via PAPER]

yunè pinku returns with new single 'Affection'. A true original, the rising force blends aspects of UKG production with ravey energy, viewed through a future-pop lens. Out now, 'Affection' continues the rise of yunè pinku, an all-out banger that feels beamed in from another dimension. Part of her incoming debut EP bluff, the single raises the levels yet again. A colour-soaked diorama of yunè pinku's undoubted potential, it blurs the lines between the familiar and the startlingly fresh. She comments... "'Affection' is about all the work we put in to get the attention of a crowd or a person but feeling dissatisfied when you get it. I think it was a really fun one to make because it just had a lot of energy but it’s a bit moodier than other pieces I’ve made." Alice Aires directs the video. [via Clash]

Last June, Grimes took to Discord to tease a new song called 'Shinigami Eyes,' which references both Death Note and her 2019 put-on about getting experimental eye surgery. 'Shinigami Eyes' is billed as Chapter 1 of her new album Book 1, and it arrives with one of her typically elaborate music videos. Grimes wrote the video, which was directed by BRTHR (the duo of Alex Lee and Kyle Wightman) and features Jennie Kim from BLACKPINK, Dorian Electra, and experimental fashion Instagram star Ryon Wu. A press release indicates 'Shinigami Eyes' will appear on an EP called Fairies Cum First to be released before Book 1. Grimes did an interview about “Shinigami Eyes” with Apple Music 1’s Zane Lowe, in which she called it “the label executive decision song.” She elaborates, “Basically, I wrote the whole space opera thing and this is the only song that wasn’t this big narrative plot.” She also announced that Book 1 has expanded into a double album: ” made a bunch of stuff and I just want to make a bunch more stuff. There’s just more kind of sonic, conceptual ideas that I think need to get done to make everything make more sense. And we kind of have two album covers and it seems like a waste to throw on one of them away.” [via Stereogum]

Oxford-based duo pecq share new single ‘Too Far Gone’. Fusing their illustrious penchant for pulsating alt-pop motifs with gorgeous, velvet-smooth vocals, a wide range of crisp instrumentation and bubbling, synthesized atmospherics, this new single sees the pairing at their gleaming best ahead of a freshly-teased new EP project due March 2022. Reflecting on the artistic process behind ‘Too Far Gone’, the duo note that it “came from the experience of trying to ground someone losing their grip on reality. It’s two opposite forces, one anchoring and one pulling away, further and further into their own world. In the drop, we wanted to capture the helpless, weightless feeling as that anchor finally breaks and you both spin out of control.” As has been the theme on their run of recent singles, the video is yet another work of visual art, filmmaker Zak Waston adds: “In 'Too Far Gone', we follow the character into a vibrant, spacious landscape, breaking out of the claustrophobic interiors of parts 1 and 2. Our character is fascinated by her surroundings but wants to find a way out into her true reality, symbolised by blue flickerings amidst the artificial colours of this world - a hint of what’s to come in part 4.” As pecq move through the process of this tantalising new EP, the full, interconnected story of the accompanying videos will continue to reveal itself, resulting in a mesmeric long-form end product.

C’est Karma has shared an intoxicating new single, ‘Bubblegum’. It’s the first single from her newly-announced EP Amuse-Bouche which is set to come out this May. A melting pot of identities, 20-year-old Karma Catena (C’est Karma) was raised in Luxembourg by a Portuguese mother and Italian father. The music she makes also goes beyond traditional borders, combining the punk she loved in her mid-teens - NOFX and Jawbreaker - with the hyper-pop - Charlie XCX and SOPHIE - that influences her today. With the release of new single ‘Bubblegum’, Karma releases her boldest work to date and offers a taste of what to expect from her forthcoming EP. Speaking about the song, she said: “'Bubblegum' is a song about my longest friendship. We have known each other since the day we were born and have been very close friends ever since. I wanted to celebrate and explore our differences and the things we have in common. We both went through a lot of changes over the past 20 years of our friendship but somehow, our ends still meet. We now live in different cities but visit each other regularly. This was fascinating to me, how two people can grow up together but live totally different lives, and 20 years later the love for one another did not fade in the slightest.”

Minneapolis, Minnesota-based rock band Scrunchies are sharing their new video, 'No Home Planet'. Scrunchies are preparing to release their sophomore album, Feral Coast, which continues their consciousness of the intersection of personal and political, pushing the edges of soft and heavy with surrealistic lyrics and melodic hooks. Scrunchies Laura Larson chats more about the single and video: “’No Home Planet’ recalls the messy and cathartic energy of late-’80s/early-’90s punk, grunge, and post-punk bands. The video includes animation from Pacific Northwest artist Violet Crabtree, who has also created videos for Tacocat and Mommy Long Legs.” [via New Noise]

If you have been lucky enough to enjoy the strobe lights of clubs as of late, I’m sure you would agree that the department of pulse-raising beat drops has been severely lacking. Just in time for the weekend, LOWES offer up their leading single, 'Late Night Visions', and it packs more intensity than ever before. Following critically acclaimed collaboration with the likes of CamelPhat, LOWES have been working on their highly anticipated EP — injecting their sound with gritty, pulsating pop. 'Late Night Visions' and its visual take audiences on a journey of distorted reality. The single starts with a stratospheric soundscape, reminiscent of the climax of a night out. Suddenly, Evie Ciruela’s vocals cut through the tension, masterfully switching pace and flow, throwing off their listeners. Though the unmistakeable sample from Loleatta Holloway’s 'Love Sensation' maintains a club-like energy, the haunting melodies behind it offer a unique take on pop classics. The visual is at once satanic, etherial and mesmerising — a total encapsulation of LOWES penchant for provocative performance. Talking of the looming release of their EP, the lead singer explains, “For us it’s the first set of songs we’ve put out into the universe that will be totally our own after a year of collaborations…Working with so many brilliant dance producers has been a fantastic, yet unplanned, surprise for us, and we have learnt so much, but now it’s time for us to get back to the pure LOWES vibe we set out to create when we first got together, taking on board a lot of the energy and style that we’ve been immersed in these past 12 months.” [via Wonderland]

Charlotte Adigéry & Bolis Pupul have shared another single from their anticipated debut album, Topical Dancer. 'Ceci n’est pas un cliché' ("This is not a cliché") is another banger, powered by slinky bass and a winking sense of humor. “This song is an accumulation of all the cliché lyrics so often used in pop music," the duo say. "It came about when we were touring and heard a song on the radio opening with 'I was walking down the street' which made us strongly cringe. But the thing is, cringing is a shared passion of Bolis and I. So we passionately made a song out of it." The video follows suit, as they note: "Even more passionately we performed ourselves into a video about all the clichés we see in the magic world of musical genres. The musician in all its glory, capturing momentum and delivering a top notch performance, gazing into the light that’s called inspiration. And so for once and for all, please leave Magritte alone…!” [via Brooklyn Vegan]

Brazilian star Anitta has released her new banger 'Boys Don't Cry'. The new single, teamed with a video directed by Anitta and Christian Breslauer, is Anitta's first new single since appearing on PEDRO SAMPAIO's 'NO CHÃO NOVINHA' last month. [via Line Of Best Fit]

West London multi-disciplinarian Lava La Rue returns with new single 'Vest & Boxers'. Part of the vital NiNE8 Collective, Lava's artistry is spilling out into different directions. Fresh from her Butter-Fly EP, new single 'Vest & Boxers' is Lava at her most relaxed, and also her most honest. Bedroom Projects direct the colourful video, while the vest and boxers of the title are actually drawn from Lava's incoming Lazy Oaf collaboration. Speaking on the single, Lava states: "I wrote 'Vest & Boxers' to be deeply relatable of what dating was like for myself and my teen lesbian / nblw friends growing up. I reference all the little moments we joke about - not knowing if you’re on a date or just meeting up as friends, walking into their bedroom for the first time and thinking how good it smells, not coming home for two days after the first night together and deciding to just move in. We were all guilty of it! Vest & Boxers is what we would refer to as our ‘dyke uniform’ - we’d wear it under our baggy denim/oversized suits with the waist band showing as a little signal to all the other gays in the room." [via Clash]

Raveena will release her new album Asha's Awakening on February 11. The left-field R&B queen matches her deep heritage with a future-facing take on what soul music means in the 21st century, resulting in a singular catalogue. Asha's Awakening finds Raveena raising the levels yet again, pursuing deeply personal aims. New single 'Secret' is stunning, a wonderful return that blends evocative, scented production with a killer vocal. Vince Staples guests, and the LA rapper adds something totally different to the mix. Raveena comments... “To me, 'Secret' is a song about love that traverses through different dimensions. People on Earth are starting to have sensual dreams ignited in them by a space princess - someone they feel like their body knows, but whom they also do not know and cannot reach in this dimension. What if your lover was enticing you from space and you couldn’t reach them in this realm? What if a spirit from an outer dimension ignited your sacral chakra? This is what 'Secret' explores.” A solitary auteur, Raveena directs the video herself, accessing Asha's alien-like realm. [via Clash]

The original plan was for Alice Glass to release her debut solo album PREY//IV this week. Glass has been working on this LP for a long time, and she’s already shared the early singles 'Suffer And Swallow,' 'Baby Teeth,' and 'Fair Game.' But now, Glass has announced that the album’s release date has been pushed back to next month. She’s also dropped another single. The latest PREY//IV track is called 'Love Is Violence,' and it’s about all the ways that a bad relationship can make you feel trapped, to the point where trauma and affection become a poisonous melted-together whole. Musically, it’s a pop song that lurches and splatters in different directions, refusing to settle into a groove. Director Bryan M. Ferguson‘s video starts out romantic, and then it turns horror-movie gory. Here’s what Glass says about the song: "Almost everyone can relate to the sometimes unbearable ups and downs that occur in relationships. But for those of us who have dealt with manipulative or toxic partners, there is a whole other layer of pain. Any person who uses their partner’s “love” to control, use, and hurt them is using one of the most cruel and disgusting manipulative tactics in human experience. Disguising power struggles and calling it “Love,” it’s a form of violence against a partner. I want to help people to see those red flags and encourage them to remove themselves from those types of toxic situations." [via Stereogum]

Atlanta-based duo Mattiel unveil their new single 'Lighthouse', the second offering from their forthcoming third album Georgia Gothic, due March 18 via ATO Records. Speaking about the meaning behind 'Lighthouse', Mattiel and Jonah share, “We hope ‘Lighthouse’ is a positive, uplifting song for anyone who hears it. If you’re working toward something and it feels like an uphill battle, that can be a sign that you’re headed in the right direction. And there’s always someone or something to help guide you through it.” [via FEMMusic]

Brooklyn-based choreographer, performance artist and musician Kinlaw releases a new music video for 'The Mechanic.' Their album The Tipping Scale came out this past February on Bayonet Records and features an introspective collection of dance-inducing, ornate dark-pop tracks that explore deeply humanistic themes of empathy, loss, confusion, regret, power and hope. On the video, Kinlaw had this to say: “The remixes are playful. It doesn’t take itself too seriously but is still exploratory. Video brought new life into these recordings initially, so I worked with Colin Alexander to weave SFX with the choreography, turning the dance into this added musical element within the track.” [via FEMMusic]

Co-written and produced with long-time collaborator Lee Newell, XYLØ's 'aliens' is a dark, brooding pop song that explores the feeling of disconnection within society. “‘aliens’ was written after a night with my childhood friends“, XYLØ shares in a press release. “We all come from different backgrounds and upbringings, but the one thing that joins us is the commonality of feeling lost. No matter how much or how little we have. And rather than being afraid of it, going along for the ride.“ XYLØ also shared the accompanying visuals for the song. The video itself was actually shot on analog Kodak film and therefore creates a more cinematic feel for the viewer. It follows the life of the singer and her alien friends as they try to escape the monotony of life by – quite literally – going for a ride. For the visuals, XYLØ recruited her parents as well as co-songwriter Lee as actors. The song was written and produced by XYLØ herself with Lee Newell and arrives as the first teaser off of her debut album unamerican beauty, set for a release in 2022. [via CelebMix]

Amber Mark has finally released her debut album Three Dimensions Deep after bubbling under for a few years. To commemorate the very special occasion, she treats fans to a gorgeous visual for album track 'Bliss.' The video for 'Bliss' opens with Amber lying on a bed covered in silk and flowers set adrift in a shallow ocean. She soon stands to dance joyously around as she celebrates finding an inner happiness she wasn't expecting. The scene then changes to her sitting in a glass cube in the midst of a wooded area. She steps outside of her box to explore the nature around her as she professes her newfound love of self among the natural beauty. The clip eventually fades to black at the end before revealing Amber bathed in deep blue light. She appears to be meditating as a fiery glow emanates from her hands and spreads throughout her body. She stares in awe before she becomes encompassed completely in the light and then evaporates into the ether. [via Soul Bounce]

In the music video for her latest single 'A Temporary High,' Norwegian singer and songwriter Aurora is enthralled by the past, present, and future of time. The track appears on her recently released third studio album The Gods We Can Touch, out now via Decca. Throughout the Sigurd Fossen-directed video, Aurora is soaked in various sources of light. She stands out under a spotlight in a sea of people searching for connection. The recurring image of the singer watching the sand drain from an hourglass parallels with the time sensitivity of the lyrical concept. “When you’re ahead, she’s coming after / And when you run, she’s running faster,” she sings. “And when she loves you better hope her / Love is not a temporary high.” Speaking with Apple Music, Aurora shared: “‘A Temporary High’ is inspired by a woman that is very fascinating. If she was your present, she would be confusing; if she was your past, you wouldn’t be able to escape her. If she is your future, you won’t be able to keep up with her.” [via UDiscoverMusic]

Life´s too short for weird music Tagesempfehlung 07.02.2024

pecq / Closer

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