Week in Pop
Yuzima continues on their crusade of aesthetic variations on both dissonance & dissent with the track “Black Supremacy”. Turning the alt-right’s white supremacist core inside out, Yuzima raises a clenched fist proudly in the air that shatters the close-minded populist trend of mediocre conformity in the name of rights for all people (despite the luster of their skin, eyes, etcetera).
Yuzima’s other new single “Separation” explores the areas of anguish & anger that strives to awaken the antiquated & long outdated separate but equal schools of thought & deed. Hopes for common goals, enlightened communities & a heightened sense of cultural awareness are wielded to rip the thin veils of society’s systems & mind states of prejudice.
Ezra Furman delivered the energetic new single “Suck The Blood From My Wound” featured off the upcoming album Transangelic Exodus available February 9 via Bella Union. With a tour taking off this forthcoming February & May, Furman condensing enough details in a nearly five minute song that could be adapted into something like a film or novel that revolves around escaping from a hospital with an over-looming power of malevolent overlords. In Ezra’s own words:
It’s a song with enough situational detail and imagery that it could be adapted into a film or a novel. Not that it necessarily should be. It started with me writing a whole album about me and my illegal transangelic hospital-escapee partner running from a hostile government. All of my deepest concerns as an artist whirling into a bizarre dream of perpetual narrow escape.
Born Ruffians announced the new album Uncle, Duke & The Chief available February 16 from Paper Bag Records with a listen to the affectionate call & response energy of “Miss You”. The passions between parties split physically apart from one another ring out into the open air like a klaxon call for all to hear and namely the certain special someone that their heart longs for. In Luke Lalonde’s own words on the new single:
I found this old voice memo on my phone from 2015 called I miss you so much baby. It was just the chorus of “Miss You” with vocal and piano, very early 60s vibe. I guess I just heard it on the right night when I had a guitar at hand and the rest of the song came very quickly. I think the narrator is a mix of pure ego and emotional suffering. He thinks the people walking by him on the sidewalk actually care about him, or are paying attention to him. This guy is sort of full of himself but he’s proud of his pain and his longing, he feels like it elevates him somehow and he wants to show it off.
Bay Area statesman/icon/legend Keak Da Sneak graced the world with the bill burning/dropping “Dawlas” visuals that features the emcee’s signature delivery alongside a plethora of corresponding visuals. That green paper chase is illustrated in real life terms that accentuate the tale as old as time adage of more money, more problems in a litany of quips that surround the subject of currency concerns, fixations, obsessions & everything else that goes hand in hand with the cold, hard, cash game.
American Pleasure Club, the new name of Sam Ray’s (also known as Ricky Eat Acid) longtime labor of love Teen Suicide, presented the self-made visuals for the new single “Let’s Move to the Desert” featured off the upcoming album A Whole Fucking Lifetime of This available February 16 via Run For Cover Records. Every frame becomes a charged visual where Ray’s emotive & evocative style further strikes a certain center core of human resonance made with an assist from dear fellow folks Kitty Ray, Dan Windsor, Sean Mercer, Dexter Tortoriello, Nick Hughes, Jo Jay, Dan Collins, & Martin Forrest. Sam Ray’s American Pleasure Club has arrived to provide listeners & viewers a privy admission into the zeitgeist of the human spirit where desires & dreams intersect.
From the Everybody Works sessions, Jay Som’s new 7″ Pirouette will be available January 26 via Polyvinyl that delivers some of the Bay Area artist’s signature electric DIY sounds of extreme influence. Like the singles heard around the release of Turn Into, Melina Duterte demonstrates the incredible ease to make the most incredible hits that operate in a timeless & relatable space that everyone in the world can connect with in their own respective ways.
Lily of Jawbreaker Reunion is Long Neck who announced the upcoming album Will This Do? available January 26 via Tiny Engines sharing the inspirational declaration of being & terms with “10,000 Year Old Woman”. Lily Mastrodimos illustrates aspects of narratives that feel real that emerge from those raw places of brutal honesty that recalls the places of shared sentiment along with the areas of the foreign, frightening, liberating & beyond what you could ever define. Lead in single “Mine/Yours” establishes a presence of voice & purpose, to expanding the album’s character & richness of lyrical storlylines with “Elizabeth”, offering a shout out to Mastrodimos’s Jersey City stomping grounds.
Readying the release of Gone Dreamin’ available January 19 via Plain Sailing Records; Lukas Creswell-Rost delivers a look at the Bruno Derksen video for “Punchline” that features the artist biking about & the local sights seen. Building upon the song’s featured on Lukas’s Go Dream release from 2014; the artist presents new discoveries and songs of experience from the previous material and well beyond. In Creswell-Rost’s own words:
[Gone Dreamin is] sort of a reimagined version of some of those older songs [from Go Dream] but in a completely new context, but with many new songs emerging…it makes more sense on listening somehow I think! A pop soundscape road trip going through different radio stations that are all haunted by the same voice.
Northwest presented a look at the Blue Calima (Inés Quijano and Javier Piera) video for “Sun” that is full of piano delivered ambient winter meditations. Mariuca García-Lomas & Ignacio Simón’s sound recorded at London’s City University is combined with a wondrous world of snow-strewn hilltops & valleys that pairs breathtaking vistas for a breathtaking composition that you could get lost in. In Ignacio & Mariuca’s own words:
We are Northwest and today we want to show you our latest creation: “Sun”. “Sun” is our brainchild and so it’s difficult for us to find the proper words to describe it. Maybe is a chant for something unattainable; maybe it’s just another song.
NADINE delivered a listen to inquisitive, introspective & opinionated single “Not My Kinda Movie” featured off the upcoming debut album Oh My available January 26 through Memphis Industries & Father/Daughter. Aspects of colloquial exchanges are zoomed-in like a special cinematic shared between two central characters in an involving plot scheme that is softly & slowly unspooled as the tranquil track travels forward.
South London’s James Massiah delivered the expressive & moving single “Smile On a Screen” featured off the forthcoming EP Where Are Your Branches? available January 26. From spoken verse to percussion punctuated brass; Oscar elevates affectionate thoughts to newfound levels of illustrated emotion that moves beyond the moods that move us from the screens of our mobiles.
Vibe to the ghost-like vibes that waft like steam vapors on the new Manu Crooks track “Presence” feat. Anfa Rose with specter-cast production from DOPAM!NE. Crooks lets their presence be known that exhibits the importance of autonomy that boosts up senses of self-esteem without any additional baggage. Also don’t miss Manu’s fresh debut EP mood forever.
Also check out Anfa Rose’s track “All I Need” ft. Manu Crooks & more of that DOPAM!NE production that keeps the mood bouncing between the material & paranormal realms. The triumvirate keeps their needs paired down to the essentials & basics that are anything but basic.
Palm present an inspiring look & listen to the “Dog Milk” visuals courtesy of Richard Phillip Smith, Daniel Patrick Brennan & Darby Irrgang that exhibits a performance piece the shows palm playing pretty much anywhere & everywhere they want. Featured off the upcoming album Rock Island available February 9 from Carpark Records. From impromptu transit station sessions, a day at the zoo, rooftop jam times to everything between the blue skies & trickling brooks of earth; the Palm experience is amplified for everyone to enjoy as we embark upon the thrills of a new year.
Kat Edmonson announced the new album Old Fashioned Gal available April 27 via their label Spinnerette Records & presented a listen to the modern-classic piano ditty of the self-titled. Updating the mores from timeless Americana amour ballads, Edmonson raises a toast to those halcyon days of yore where folks would once hang out (in person), play records (in the same room), get to know each other (face to face) & more beyond today’s online obsessed centered discourse & intercourse of interaction.
In case you missed the new EP Milk Puddle from Providence, Rhode Island’s Edgar Clinks arrived on new year’s day when practically no one was looking (let alone listening). That endearing sound of home & familiarity rings true on tracks like “Sleepwalker”, to the lazy & lovely kick-push beat of “Surfboard” destined to appear on skate-tapes the world over. “Conundrum” is a self-celebration of Edgar’s own oddball aesthetic that spins on it’s own innovative axis with “Coffee Table Popurrí”, before moving into the spaced-out affections of “A Quick Pain (Arm’s Length)”, right before drifting off into the patio ascension of “Lawn Chairs” that stays true to the DIY core through & through.
Tiny Fireflies dropped a listen to the wintry new single “2040” for snowed-in/rained-in days on end, featured off their Nothing/2040 7″ available soon. A dynamic super-duo from Chicago comprised of Lisle & Kristine who have combined powers from their groups Fireflies & Tiny Microphone that seek to make imaginative & epic sweeps of sound to stretch across universe to soundtrack the cinemas of the future.
No No Yeah Okay presented the moody & colorful Mark Gage visuals for “Make Believe” featured off their forthcoming EP Cabal. Games of pretend are illustrated through a midnight mode of masquerades & snazzy synths that add further electronic emotions & atmospheres to the equation.
Take in the creative lyric video directed/designed by konter/Studio für Gestaltung for “You & I” from Berlin’s own Gregor McEwan. Featured off the new album From A To Beginning available today from Stargazer Records/Midsummer Records/Glitterhouse/Finest Vinyl; McEwan pens pop gems that seeks a kind of earthbound sense of solace by way of seeking answers from the cosmic realms.
Fresh from last year’s The Chang Project, Sick Wid It & Vallejo’s own NEF the Pharaoh delivered the new single “Big Boss Chang” that keeps the Bay Area emcee’s movement rolling hard with fresh new slaps & assertive styles. From family responsibilities to hedonistic affinities; NEF maintains V-town’s prolific place on the map alongside local contemporaries from SOB x RBE to LOE Gino & countless more.
Offering a sense of warmth to quell the winter storms, The Cabin Fever presented a look at the video for “Simon Says” that features an intimate performance session (complete with animal masks). Featured off the album Exercise The Demon produced by Husky Hoskulds, available February 2; S Moriarty, Joel Bedolla & Tripp Beam rock their most harmonic & earnest power pop styles forward with a sentimental song that is set straight for the heart of all listeners/viewers.
With news of tour dates and the like, FRIGS announced their debut album Basic Behaviour available February 23 via Arts & Crafts & dropped the photogenic/brooding new single “Talking Pictures”. Bria Salmena & company channel & recharge all post-punk proclivities forward for a new kind of creative clamor to inspire all current & future upstarts to start their own art pop phenomenon.
Available today, grab a listen to Berry’s new album Everything Compromised courtesy of Joyful Noise Recordings. A tale that chronicles the group’s adventures from Chicago, Arizona, NYC to a rural barn in Kansas; the following is a pop odyssey that is emblematic in the exhibition of a group that defines the importance of band perseverance (especially when life moves on all around you).
With news of an upcoming album available later in autumn, London by way of Leicestershire & Kent’s Sea Girls share the new emotive single of conflicts, compassion & connection with “Heavenly War”. Featuring production from Larry Hibbitt, the group trades in bold pop tones, touches & textures that seek something warmer beyond cold hearts with a chance to seize the night with a very special someone.
Those looking for some introspective acoustic strings to bring comfort to these cold days; watch the Jonathan Frey for Sam Himself’s passionate & personal video for “Out of Love” ft. Ashley Robicheaux where the two share a duet of actions & expressions exchanged out of mutually shared endearment.
Featured off Free Dope 2 via Lil Durk’s OTF imprint; Yung Tory presents the melancholy ruminations of “Drink Alone” along with visuals that pit moments of drinking & smoking with besties against being on your own. The highs & lows are seen as the artist ponders the pros & cons of strolling solo to the good times indulgences of good company.
Trace Mountains presented a listen to the catchy, home-spun single “Turn Twice” featured off the album A Partner To Lean On available March 30 via Dave Benton’s label Figure 2 RC. The LVL UP member’s solo work emphasizes a more intimate & personal side where electronic elements further accentuate the deliver that arises from the most protected places of the self.
Charlotte Turnbull from South London dropped the smooth r&B track “Go Along With It” full of harmonies & anxious atmospheres. Turnbull illustrates their vocal range reinforced with backup & overdubs that are met with piano speckled beats & ambiance that moves like light & feelings experienced when the day turns its shades to twilight.
Jared Saltiel shared the beautiful strums of “The Fountain” featured off the upcoming Out Of Clay available February 2. Aspects of contemporary baroque are arranged in sonata that sends forth a stirring & aspiring series of movements forward into a natural delivery of floodgate feelings that resonate like something witnessed from an off-Broadway performance.
Jamo Gang dropped the track “All Eyes On Us: produced by J57 from the upcoming self-titled EP available January 30 where Ras Kass, El Gant, Ms Bodega, Akie Bermiss & company go hard in the presence & paint. The gang establishes themselves as the the new wolf pack on the block that makes sure the spotlights know where the should be pointing their focus.
Young Galaxy delivered the new sublime & meditative single “Under My Wing” featured off their upcoming album Down Time available April 6. Inclusive feelings of safety & the sense of soaring close to a trusted loved one while in flight resonates throughout the track that provides warm washes of inspiration & affinity for those near & dear to the heart.
Indianapolis Jonathan Hay along with Faincarter & King Graint dropped the single “Indiana” ft. CyHi The Prynce represent the Hoosier state hard with a track made for practice warm ups in the court working on that three-pointer game. Representing their Midwest back yards & front yards proper; the production itself lends toward an uplifting effect of ascending beats & keys with woodwind inflections for good measure.
From their upcoming second album Data available February 23 via Frenchkiss, Strange Names delivered the new dance-forward track “UFO” chocked full of illustrious synths. Unidentified objects both flying & otherwise are illustrated in pop tropes of affectionate emotions that croon in testimonials of the terrestrial that leaves the door open for whatever paranormal phenoms that may descend down upon us from the cosmos.
Field Music delivered us with a listen to the infectious synth pop of “Time In Joy” alongside news of the new album Open Here available February 2 via Memphis Industries. Like a throwback from some other alternate-80s universe, Field Music amazes with a blend of arrangements that elevate their harmonies with a dazzling arsenal of electronic items that make for an all around joyous affair.
Lone dropped a listen to the kinetic new track “Temples” featured off the upcoming Ambivert Tools Volume Three available February 23 from R&S Records. The feeling of exploring sacred spaces & realms is manifested in an array of ambient devices that furthers the rhythmic core of the track that will further illuminate both body & mind.
Filmed on location at Site B Studios in New York City, Lovehoney delivers a live & energetic view to their song “Feelin’ No Way”. With visuals provided by Michael Robayo, Stanley Rojas, Irwin Rojas & styled by Haile Lidow; Lovehoney’s Alysia Quinones, Tommy White, Tom Gehlhaus & Matt Saleh provide a privy look & listen at a presence & sound that ups the ante of what blues driven aesthetics can be.
Western Scene dropped the evocative new single “Strange But True” via Grand Jury that enters into the infinite pop depths of the eerie yet real. Atmospheric auras collect with a resonance of both the beautiful & bizarre that feels like entering a dimension into the unknown.
Readying the deluxe re-release of their album Space Age Love Songs; The Tigerlilies shared their rocking salute to the twentieth century with “Contact”. Like a lost single from the in-between era where glam became the basis for proto-punk fancies; Tigerlilies wear the influences of their heroes proudly in their sound that is steeped in the attitudes & action established by the current era of the twenty-first century.
In case you missed it, experience the improvisational efforts of infinite intrigue discovered on the new Infinite Third album Channel(s) that will take you through a litany of motions through the exercises of eight tracks. Billy Mays III (whose dad is Billy Mays) offers the audience an experience where channels of sound are tapped into as a way to entertain aspects of newfound creative inspiration where subtle experiments in compositional aesthetics seeks new sorts of audio expressions.
Fresno’s Planet Asia presents the light blazing visual for “Fireworks” featured off the upcoming Brick Records release The Golden Buddha available January 19. Styling in a mode of self-coronation; Planet keeps everything aligned & enlightened over production from izznyce that keeps the PA’s entire momentum lit like a pyrotechnic NYE/Fourth of July sky display.
Prepping for a massive EU tour beginning next week in Hamburg in support of their City Slang album 1982; Liima (members of Efterklang) present a listen to the track “Always” that was originally hidden on their new record. Featuring co-production from Grizzly Bear’s Chris Taylor, the Jonny Sanders lyric video accentuates the retro-futuristic aspects of the unusual track where the the lyrical information content is displayed in manners of creative textual trickery by way of vintage computer monitors.
With word of tour dates running from February 23 through April 15; Xylouris White dropped the imaginative Lucy Dyson video for “Only Love” featured off their album Mother available January 19 from Bella Union. George Xylouris & Jim White take their Cretan inspirations & inflections to creative heights where their sensational lute strums and other percussive elements are coupled with adventures involving goats, rams & a host of other mystical visual occurrences.
Via an auburn-orange hued motif, Hookworms presented a viewing of their Ciaran Lyons video for “Static Resistance” featured on their upcoming album Microshift available February 2 via Domino. The band’s song about the intricate effects involved with our modern day crises & quagmires is given a video that parodies the existential with the day to day routines of office actions & self-care regiments in some incredibly aesthetically intriguing sequences of illustrative exhibition.
ShitKid shared the moving Moa Romanova visual for intimate & melancholy “Yooouuu” taken off their new EP This Is It available January 19 via PNKSLM Recordings. The details of minutiae that matters to the involved hearts are sung in bedroom-made models of minimalism where echoes & subtle rhythm hums allow everything to resonate in terms of nostalgic reflection.
From the upcoming Kanine album Sleepless Dreamer, Pearl Charles presented a listen to the throwback pop gem “All the Boys”. Charles’ vocal pop is reinforced by an array of electric chords that careen, ascend, dip & dive full of feelings guaranteed to uplift your day.
Behold Hot Flash Heat Wave’s visual for “Raindrop” courtesy of Bay Area duo BOREDOM, oka Luke Lasley & Patrick Sean Gibson. Through the analog magic of 16mm; BOREDOM delivers a bright companion piece for HFHW’s jam featured off the OIM album Soaked that is about to saturate your mind with an illustrious assemblage of colors & local SF spots that band explores by way of go-karts & animated overlays.
Raindrop – Hot Flash Heat Wave from BOREDOM on Vimeo.
Sunflower Bean present news of their upcoming second album Twentytwo in Blue available March 23 from Mom + Pop with a listen to the new single “Crisis Fest”. The trio bring a hard rocking, 70s-steeped anthem for all of today’s most inspired upstarts that refuse to be held back by the weirdness & uncertainty that have consumed the our current times in the clutches of confusions.
