TOPS – Petals
The Montreal quartet TOPS are connoisseurs of simple expression. For about five years now, they’ve written swaying, modest pop-rock ditties with little more than buttery guitar, spare drums, and vocalist Jane Penny’s fluttering coo. The band’s latest single, a lovesick groover called “Petals,” finds them again crafting poignant hooks with just the bare essentials. Penny describes a night spent alone with painful memories and dashed hopes, a classic scene that would verge on cliché if not for her veiled prose (“Make it worthwhile/Inheritor of the shade”) and the way she lets out each intimate phrase like a sigh. Once Penny’s had enough, lyrical guitar wraps up her injured reminiscing with the slightest hint of sweetness, bringing “Petals” to a close just as quickly and effortlessly as it began.
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Dukwa – Thoughts (feat Mar-G)
Italian house producer Dukwa will make his Numbersdebut with the Shattered In A Thousand Pieces EP later this month.
Part of a group of Italian club producers the includes his close friend and Planet Mu regular Herva, Dukwa has previously appeared on labels such as Bosconi, Wo Land and the UK’s Don’t Be Afraid, which released a track by the artist in 2016.
Dukwa appeared at some of the Glasgow label’s parties last year. In a press release, they describe him as “the musical equivalent of Pirlo, a craftsman, tirelessly creating tracks that equally combine pure class and grit.”
Shattered In A Thousand Pieces is his first full EP since 2014, and introduces his bright, bold house sound to a wider audience over four tracks.
Read the rest of this article at Fact
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Ibibio Sound Machine – Give Me a Reason
A master drummer once said that if you can hear a song without it making you dance, you are sick. Hearing “Give Me a Reason”, it’s easy to understand just what he meant. On the second single off of British-Nigerian band Ibibio Sound Machine’s upcoming sophomore album, Lagos meets London in an explosion of retro color and sound. They’ve moved forward a decade since we last heard them, exchanging highlife influences for funky Afrobeat. Singer Eno Williams commands attention with both her voice and her moves, while the electronics pay more than a little tribute to the Talking Heads. “Give Me a Reason” has nothing but grooves; it’s the ultimate feel-good music, and it’s almost impossible to listen to it without jumping up and getting down.
Read the rest of this article at The Fader
Chastity Belt – Different Now
The Seattle rock band Chastity Belt has always been goofy, self-mocking, and, on occasion, vulgar. But their latest, “Different Now,” reveals a vulnerable self-awareness that was buried in their previous two albums. A wistful guitar line sets the tone while they confront aging and solitude. “Take away your pride and take away your grief/And you’ll finally be right where you need to be,” sings guitarist Julia Shapiro. “It’s different now you’re old.” Aging isn’t graceful, nor is it easy, but the four-piece follow a pace of forward motion despite sounding defeated. They’ve opted for a mellow post-punk sound that flushes their slacker indie rock with layers of depth. They end the song, singing in chorus, “And you try and you try,” repeatedly, accepting that there is only so much you can do to control life passing you by.
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Belgian Fog – One Night Man
Belgian Fog is the appellation used by Seattle resident Robert Dale. The man himself has been causing quite a stir within his locality due to the whimsical streams of dream-pop and folky undertones that surround his work; recent release “One Night Man“, is a venture that stays true the Belgian Fog ways and to the cutesy sounds of previous efforts.
From what we can gather, it seems Mr Dale is wearing the metaphorical heart on the aural sleeve as he confesses to his softer musings. Is this modern renegade someone who breaks hearts in the midnight hours or someone who lusts after more when the sun rises and the need for coffee kicks in? Whatever the case this quintessentially hazy affair of furtive beats, tropical synth echoes and candied harmonies is a beautiful window into the psyche of the singer at hand. Like Gypsy And The Cat or Tom Redwood with sincerity at its inner core, this folk-tronic pop nugget of lovely tinkles and charming keys is the perfect track to amble along the pavement to in the summer heat and reveals Belgian Fog’s gentler side.
Read the rest of this article at Owl By Night
