Category: New Video
New Luv/Hate Jams: Still Corners + Tyler, the Creator + FS Green Janet Jackson Rework + Fol Chen + Austra
Tyler, the Creator
I’m not sure if there’s something in the air or water (because surely we can’t be held responsible for our own actions or emotions, right?), but there seems to be this influx of bummer break ups and/or newly announced engagements and babies on-the-way. It’s totally weirding me out. Does this time of year bring out the best/worst of us? Or, is this some sort of corny metaphorical new beginning/shedding of baggage that occurs with Spring?
Regardless and luckily for us, these emotions that seem to be running on an all-time high tend to be the inspiration and hence, creation of some pretty magnificent music. So with that, I present to you a plethora of recently released and highly addicting tracks that just so happen to have luv/hate on the brain:
Still Corners is the moniker of London-hailing indie dream pop duo Greg Hughes and Tessa Murray. They made a minor splash in the blogosphere in 2010/2011 with their sickeningly sweet jams, “Don’t Fall in Love,” and “Cuckoo.” A year after their debut LP, the duo is back with a vengeance in the form of “Berlin Lovers” – The first dreamy, hypnotic single from their forthcoming sophomore album, Strange Pleasures (via Sub Pop) due out this May. Have a listen:
Still Corners – Berlin Lovers
Tyler Gregory Okonma aka Tyler, the Creator, is a 22 year-old LA-based rapper, producer, artwork ‘creator’ and co-founder of the alt hip hop collective Odd Future. He just released an interesting video for “IFHY,” a single found on his forthcoming album, Wolf, due out April 2nd. It’s an “emo” barbie-esque inspired video featuring his luv/hate interest and a snippet of Pharrell. Gorilla vs. Bear posted the video on Facebook this morning and so simply but eloquently stated: “nightmares.” Enjoy:
Tyler, the Creator – IFHY
Oooh damn, funky, sexy, smooth Janet Jackson reworked by Dutch producer, FS Green? Yes thank you! FS Green writes on his SoundCloud, “I started out wanting to sample one of my favorite Janet tracks for a beat, but it ended up in this weird rework where the track is pitched down, while the vocals are pitched up.” So glad it worked in our favor, ‘cus I can’t stop playing this jam:
Janet Jackson – Rock With U (FS Green Rework)
Fol Chen, the 6 member LA-based and self-proclaimed “Opera-House” indie-electro-pop group is back, and they’ve recently released their third album, The False Alarms via Asthmatic Kitty. “I.O.U” is a sexy, playful, bitter-sweet single from the seemingly dance-inducing LP.
Fol Chen – I.O.U
Okay, I’ll admit this gem from Toronto-hailing electro Goddess, Katie Stelmanis (& co.) aka Austra has been floating around for about a month already. But, it’s a beautiful and powerful glimpse into Austra‘s second LP, Olympia, due out June 1st. The group is by far one of my most beloved live bands (remember when Grimes opened for them?!) and their eerie, dark, synthy beats combined with Stelmanis’s magnetic, classically trained opera voice is, as always, all-consuming. Enough said:
Austra – Home
NEW Hype-Worthy Roundup: James Blake + G3NESIS + CHVRCHES + Lorde + Azekel + iamforest + Coma
James Blake
Yeeehaaw! It’s officially official: coco stereo‘s goin’ to SXSW! In a series of amazing (and in some cases, extremely lucky) events, everything seemed to come together oh so perfectly and I will be in Austin, Texas for the Interactive + Film and Music festivals. So now that universe has aligned in my favor, I present to you a plethora of new jams from hype-worthy bands:
James Blake, the 24-year-old London-based, “post-dubstep” electro producer has been blowing the blogosphere away this week with his return. Blake recently released an amazingly smooth, crooning, falsetto-hinged and emotionally driven new track, “Retrograde,” which debuted on BBC Radio 1. His sophomore album, Overgrown, is due out April 8th. Listen and watch the video for “Retrograde,” James Blake‘s dynamic return to the music realm:
G3NESIS is a brand spankin’ new and thoroughly addicting female rap/hip-hop group consisting of Kelin Kaardal and Genesis Mohanraj (formerly of Juice). The Vancouver-based duo don just a handful of tracks, “Yes Daddy” being their newest and strongest of the lot, and I’m already eager to hear more.
G3NESIS – Yes Daddy
It’s no secret that people have gone ape-shit crazy for the UK hailing electro-pop trio, CHVRCHES, since their conception merely 6 months ago. The group only dons (now) three songs, their latest track, “Recover” found below, yet their fairytale story of Indie stardom is still going strong and they’re headed to the US. They’ll also be playing with MØ in LA at The Echo, for a spectacular combination of electro-pop hype-mania. Be sure to look for them at SXSW and listen to their catchy new synth-tastic release “Recover.”
CHVRCHES – Recover
Lorde is an up-and-coming New Zealand native singer-song writer with an apparent talent and knack for creating catchy pop-tracks that’ll appeal to just about anyone. She’s released a strong debut EP, The Love Club, which you can stream in completion on SoundCloud. Listen to “The Love Club” and “Royals,” two tracks I just can’t seem to get enough of:
Lorde – The Love Club
Lorde – Royals
iamforest is moniker of Vancouver-based chillwave producer Luke Hartle. His latest beauty of a single and release, “Structures” is full of ambient bliss, yet still maintains a strongly defined beat. Find iamforest on SoundCloud, and/or listen + download his tracks on bandcamp.
iamforest – Structures
Azekel is an East Londoner and alternative R&B producer who may be giving Frank Ocean a run for his money. Have a listen to Azekel’s debut single, “That Feeling,” which officially releases, February 25th.
Azekel – That Feeling
Coma is the alias of pop-infused electro synth masters, Marius Bubat and Georg Conrad. They’ll be releasing a new album, Technicolor, due out in April via Kompakt, and “Hoooooray” is their first single from their debut LP.
Official Stream + Video for The Knife’s Massive New Track: Full of Fire
Am I jumping on The Knife bandwagon? Yes, yes, I am… but at least it’s legitimate.
The Internet was all a buzz last week leaking some, dare I say, shite two-minute blips/webrips and crappy bootleg videos all for an eager listen to new sounds from The Knife. Alas, The Knife has luckily and officially dropped a full 10 minute track via SoundCloud AND a Marit Östberg-directed video for their latest release, “Full of Fire.” – It’s a massive, sexy, sensual, synth-tastic banger of a jam that has everyone easily in a frenzy.
The Knife will be dropping a triple LP, Shaking the Habitual, April 18th, 2013 – their first studio album since Silent Shout seven years ago. The album, (tracklist found below), also features an 11 minute track with Shannon Funchess of Light Asylum (!!) – I can only imagine how unbelievably amazing and intense that track alone will be.
Have a listen to “Full of Fire,” watch the official video, and pre-order Shaking the Habitual here.
The Knife – Full of Fire
Shaking the Habitual tracklist and count courtesy of Gorilla vs. Bear:
A Tooth for an Eye — 6:04
Full of Fire — 9:17
A Cherry on Top — 8:43
Without You My Life Would Be Boring — 5:14
Wrap Your Arms Around Me — 4:36
Crake — 0:55
Old Dreams Waiting to Be Realized — 19:02
Raging Lung — 9:58
Networking — 6:42
Oryx — 0:37
Stay Out Here (feat. Shannon Funchess) — 10:42
Fracking Fluid Injection — 9:54
Ready to Lose — 4:36
Download LE1F’s Brand Spankin’ New Mixtape: Fly Zone
Yeah, yeah, yeah! LE1F‘s new Fly Zone mixtape has finally arrived! The (free) 13-track compilation is, according to The Fader, courtesy of Camp & Street and Greedhead, the Palms Out Sounds side-label run by LEIF.
Fly Zone, (including “Coins,” LE1F‘s teaser and already deemed massive track), follows last year’s provocative mixtape, Dark York, which thrust the openly gay hip-hop artist into the limelight. Since then, LE1F’s sound and persona have become widely and wildly beloved, which you can see and hear for yourself below.
As Interview Magazine so eloquently stated, “The New York-native’s flow is seamless and entrancing, his quick wit and confidence turning hip-hop taboos into future trends, while his hybrid beats are ambient and airy, never losing their bounce.”
Stream LE1F‘s Fly Zone mixtape below or download it here.
And, have you seen LE1F‘s latest video for “Soda“? No? Well here you go, just because:
LE1F – Soda
Fresh Track Roundup! Foxygen + Blood Diamonds + MØ + Doldrums + Widowspeak + Brothers in Law + Flight Facilities
Foxygen
The days are cold (at least in San Francisco), and the new music flow is kinda slow. But (!) despite these hurry-up-and-wait times where new music production seems to be on a fierce hold, I present to you a fresh track roundup! Let’s get on with it:
Foxygen is on just about everyone’s radar. They’ve been deemed a “band to watch in 2013” by many, and all ears are open. The singer/songwriter LA-based duo consists of Sam France and Jonathan Rado. They’re young, yet create the essence of a Velvet Underground/Bob Dylan/Kinks persona.
Foxygen‘s latest release, “No Destruction” will be found on Their forthcoming album, We Are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace and Magic, out January 22nd via Jagjaguwar.
Best line of the song: “There’s no need to be an asshole, you’re not in Brooklyn anymore.” Enjoy:
Foxygen – No Destruction
Mike Tucker, the blonde, giant (almost 7 foot-tall) producer also known as Blood Diamonds (and one of Grimes’ many BFFs) has collaborated w/ex-A$AP member, Dominic Lord. The result? Some seriously funky hip-hop. Have a listen to “Barcode” now:
Blood Diamonds – Barcode ft. Dominic Lord
*This track’s apparently been put on ‘Private’ now – Don’t you just love that? Listen to it on SoundCloud then.
MØ
Karen Marie Ørsted aka MØ, the Copenhagen-hailing electro-pop princess who’s made serious waves amongst the blogosphere with just a couple of tracks, has graced us with, “Glass,” yet another gem. Some are calling her the ‘Scandinavian Grimes’ though I think the two have sounds, and personalities entirely of their own, both of which are still entirely addicting. Have a listen to MØ‘s third song to date:
MØ – Glass
I can hardly contain my excitement for Doldrums‘ upcoming album, “Lesser Evil” (out 2/25 on Souterrain Transmissions/Europe, and 2/26 on Arbutus Records/North America). Airick Woodhead is the Canadian mastermind behind Doldrums, and he’s stead-fast to producing some of the freshest, most interesting experimental/electro music out there. “Anomaly” is Doldrums‘ latest release from his highly anticipated forthcoming album:
Doldrums – Anomaly
Brothers in Law is a new lo-fi, shoegaze, indie-pop outfit out of none other than Pesaro, Italy. According to The 405, Brothers in Law have recently gone from duo to trio and will soon release their second EP, Gray Days, on 7″ vinyl, limited edition, via We Were Never Being Boring, CF-records and MattaLab. “Holy Weekend” can be found on Gray Days due out February 16th. Stream below:
Brothers in Law – Holy Weekend
I stumbled upon Widowspeak via Captured Tracks, and boy, I’m glad I did. The “western-tinged” indie-pop/rock n’ roll group composed of Molly Hamilton and Robert Earl Thomas transcends you into a dreamy bliss. Their second LP, “Almanac,” is due out January 22nd, (but you can stream the entire album on SoundCloud right now).
Windowspeak – Thick as Thieves
Flight Facilities is a funky electro pop production based out of Australia. Remember their 2011 jam, “Crave You” featuring Giselle? Regardless, the duo has recently released, “Clair De Lune,” a breathtakingly beautiful track featuring Christine Hoberg, with haunting video to match:
Flight Facilities – Clair De Lune (ft. Christine Hoberg)
NEW Video: How to Dress Well – & it was u + Elite Gymnastics Cover – Here in Heaven pt. 3
The philosophical falsetto God and dreamboat, Tom Krell, aka How to Dress Well, just released a new video for his amazing track “& it was u” off this year’s beloved and emotionally charged LP, Total Loss. The video was written and directed by Luke Gilford, and produced by Urban Outfitters (Okay?) as part of their UO Music Video Series.
Tom Krell was also warmly welcomed back to San Francisco this past week with another stunning performance at the Rickshaw Stop. The venue was packed three-fold in comparison to Krell’s last visit in June, and his performance was even more powerful, emotionally charged, and profound. Krell didn’t cover Janet Jackson’s “Again,” a track that several people were surprisingly eager to hear, but I did catch snippets of Ghost Town DJ’s “My Boo”/ INOJ’s “I Want to Be Your Lady Baby” tucked into his Total Loss gems. Krell also belt out some of his coveted R.Kelly jams, a new and intimate track written for his brother (sang A cappella), and interestingly, a falsetto-ed version of Elite Gymnastics‘ “Here in Heaven pt. 3.” Tom Krell/How to Dress Well‘s performances are always a breath of fresh air ironically accompanied by a heavy heart – a necessary experience, enough to give you chills.
Watch How to Dress Well‘s new video for “& it was u” and enjoy his cover of “Here in Heaven pt. 3”
How to Dress Well – & it was u
How to Dress Well – Here in Heaven pt. 3 (Elite Gymnastics Cover)
New Track: Pale – Doing My Time
The ever-so mysterious, UK hailing, triangle loving, electro-pop group, Pale, has just released a second track, “Doing My Time” – A darker, slower burning and churning jam in comparison to their debut track, “Too Much.”
Listen to “Doing My Time” + watch a vintage-esque video with a possible glimpse of the two electro-bros in action:
Pale – Doing My Time
New Video: Charli XCX – Cloud Aura ft. Brooke Candy (Prod. by J£Zus Million)
Brooke Candy
Earlier this month, Charli XCX, our favorite Brit goth pop princess, dropped an 8-track mixtape, Super Ultra. The mixtape (which you can download here) includes the track, “Cloud Aura” featuring the ever eccentric rapper/stripper/Grimes music video star, Brooke Candy.
The two have released a video for “Cloud Aura,” which includes a montage of crying pop culture personalities, Charli looking pretty, and Brooke Candy doin’ her ‘thang.’
Watch the video for “Cloud Aura” now:
Charli XCX – Cloud Aura ft. Brooke Candy (Prod. by J£ZUS MILLION)
NEW R&B Cover + Video(s): Jessie Ware & BenZel – If You Love Me
Jessie Ware has been killin’ it. Earlier this year, the South London hailing songstress, once ‘just a back up singer,’ transformed into a soulful pop star with the release her debut LP, Devotion. The highly regarded album also earned Ware a nomination for the prestigious Mercury Prize.
Earlier this month, Ware once again wowed the music world by collaborating with Japanese teenage producing duo, BenZel, to release a cover of Brownstone’s R&B track, “If You Love Me.” I don’t know what’s more trippy, Ware’s first video for “If You Love Me,” directed by Kate Moross, or the fact that the BenZel boys are only fifteen/sixteen. How this collaboration actually came about is a mystery to most, however, there’s yet another video for “If You Love Me,” and hence, another reason to keep the addictive 90s girl-group cover on repeat.
The new video, directed by Haley Wollens, depicts an angel literally and impressively “stripping” her wings. I can’t decide which video I like the most, so you get both!
Jessie Ware & BenZel – If You Love Me
New Track + Video: Heartsrevolution – Not That Hard to Explain
It seems as if Heartsrevolution have come out of hibernation. The NYC based electro-punk-pop duo have released a new track, “Not That Hard to Explain,” a colorful, bubblegum, acid-trip-pop video (produced by High5Collective), and are currently working on releasing a mixtape, Revolution Rising, in December.
The group, Ben Pollock, Leyla ‘Lo’ Safai, and live performance drummer, Terrence Campbell, have released a slew of EPs, singles and mixtapes over the years, on a slew of labels, (iHeartcomix, ISOmorph, and Kitsuné). The group, now managed by Kyambo “Hip Hop” Joshua, was supposedly ready for an LP release as long ago as 2011, but it just never happened. However, with the recent release of “Not That Hard to Explain,” a new track sampling The Strokes, it may seem as if the group is (attempting) to live up to their motto, “Ride or Die.”
According to Vice, the band states the new video for “Not That Hard to Explain” is “more of a mission statement than a music video. After navigating the dark underbelly of the music industry and watching the rapid decline of human civilization… The lyrics/video speaks for itself. Revolution! (or) Run.”
Heartsrevolution – Not That Hard to Explain (Mixed by Just Blaze)
coco stereo 