The Streets – Boys Will Be Boys
If you were to mention the name Mike Skinner, 99% of the responses you would get back would be references to his seminal project The Streets. Not only are they seen as one of the most legendary outfits to come from the British Isles, The Streets are also seen as one of the most influential sounds in the U.K, and whilst their last musical efforts may have been all the way back in 2011, they’ve never been forgotten. Indeed Skinner has been producing music under various monikers since then, and most recently has found success with Tonga Balloon Gang, which features himself alongside Murkage Dave, Klepto DJ, Smith & more hosting monthly parties, playing festivals and shows across the UK & Europe as well as making vigorous new music together as well.
The Streets embark on their first UK tour in years next month, with a host of sold out dates and with all of that ready to go, they’ve unleashed a new banger for us to sink our teeth into; “Boys Will Be Boys”, which features one of the UK’s hottest talents, Jaykae. The beat is raucous & grimy, with hard hitting drums and synth stabs that’ll make you screw face within seconds. Both Skinner & Jaykae go to war over this one, with Skinner’s profound laid back style the complete opposite of his fellow Brummie Jaykae, who’s aggressive style and delivery has become his signature over the years. The combination of the two together is a stark contrast, but one that works incredibly well, with this tune set to tear up raves across the globe.
Read the rest of this article at Earmilk
A Winged Victory For The Sullen – Long May It Sustain
A Winged Victory for the Sullen are an ambient music project by Redbird composers and frequent collaborators Adam Bryanbaum Wiltzie and Dustin O’Halloran. The duo met in Italy many years ago and initially only intended to release a single record as A Winged Victory for the Sullen, but the project has continued to live on and the pair have recorded a total of three full length albums and an EP since forming in 2011.
In 2013, A Winged Victory for the Sullen were commissioned by famed choreographer Wayne McGregor to compose the score for his critically acclaimed dance piece Atomos. This music would form the basis for their second album, Atomos. Another high note in Wiltzie and O’Halloran’s collaboration came in 2015, when Mary Anne Hobbs enlisted A Winged Victory to perform at the BBC Proms.
Read the rest of this article at Redbird Music
1010 Benja SL – Wind Up Space
The Midwestern singer-songwriter-producer 1010 Benja SL has released three songs so far. The oldest, which was recently removed from his SoundCloud page, is a political piece called “Hell Is Others.” The racially-charged sound experiment samples an interview with Olivia Hooker, the first Black woman in the U.S. Coast Guard, talking about living through the Tulsa Massacre of 1921, where a white mob torched an entire Black neighborhood in the Oklahoma city, leaving an estimated 10,000 people homeless. Then there is “Boofiness,” one of the most slept-on songs of 2017, a mumbled R&B ode to brushing off bums, buoyed by hand claps, spare piano, Benja’s startling vocals, and absolutely nothing else. And now we have “Wind Up Space,” which expands this artist’s promise even further: If you’ve ever wondered what it would sound like if Michael Jackson sang a ballad written and produced by Björk, wonder no more.
“Wind Up Space” is a stark expression of loss, regret, and metaphysical wishful thinking. “Before we get so far away/Can we wind up space?” he asks at the song’s center. It’s a proposition that’s as futile as it is universal; time and space twist for no one, but we’ll always want to go back, to make good, to fix what is irrevocably broken. Composed and produced by Benja, the instrumentation—ever-mutating chords that sound like organs and horns and sadness—is awing in its emptiness, a hollow silver platform floating in the cosmos. Atop that platform is a man singing with uncanny confidence and feeling. It doesn’t just sound like he’s been here before, it sounds like he’s been here forever, collecting lifetimes of emotion and distilling them into this one mini-opera of hurt.
Read the rest of this article at Pitchfork
Pizzagirl – Coffee Shop
Back in January, Liverpool-based lo-fi pop maestro Liam Brown – better known under his moniker of Pizzagirl – dropped his debut single ‘Favourite Song’, his attempt at making “a tune that would fit nicely in a Miami Vice/ Blade Runner soundtrack”. That description alone could be enough to indeed make it your favourite song alone, but the extroverted pop proved to be captivating.
Now Pizzagirl’s gearing up to release his debut EP ‘An Extended Play’ (see what he did there?) on 13th April through Heist or Hit. Before it’s out next month though, he’s shared another track, ‘Coffee Shop’, and it’s as sweet as having several shots of caramel syrup in your latte. Underpinned by his own lilting vocal style and some jangly guitar riffs, the track is really propelled by an exuberant hook and a bunch of upbeat rhythms and melodies.
Speaking of the track, Liam said: “Each listen of ‘coffee shop’ is blended expertly in the bedroom of Pizzagirl to ensure maximum taste for your ears. One spoonful of nostalgia with a dash of 1998 ensures a listening experience like no other”. He’s right too. This isn’t just the type of track you’d hear ambiently playing in the back of your coffee chain of choice; it’s effervescent pop worth fully diving into.
Read the rest of this article at DIY Magazine
Ross From Friends – John Cage
Ross From Friends is the knowingly silly moniker of British producer Felix Clary Weatherall, who first caught our attention with his 2016 EP You’ll Understand. Newly signed to Brainfeeder, Flying Lotus’ label for forward-thinking electronic music, he has a new EP called Aphelion coming out next month, and today he’s sharing the chilled-out “John Cage.”
The song “originally began life as a tune for this goofy hip-hop project that me and my pal Guy from back home always do when he’s in London,” Weatherall explains. “I’d be making the beat and he raps. It’s always a refreshing approach making tracks in that atmosphere because we’re both always on such a spontaneous tip. When I’m making music alone, I’m obsessive and everything takes hours, whereas with Guy, we’d try and get as many tracks finished as possible in like a few hours.
Read the rest of this article at Stereogum