Lemonade Baby releases his new single, ‘i blocked ur account’.
Discussing toxic relationships and how easy (or sometimes hard) to cut someone out with a click of a button, the sugary sweet distorted pop track is young and playful, taking production inspiration from Charlie Puth’s Tiktok and Julian Casablancas’ solo album, ‘Phrazes For The Young’.
Sounds like: BAYNK, Aluna George, SG Lewis, Pnau, Máni Orrason, Julian Casablancas
Australian newcomer Lemonade Baby shares new single, ‘You’re Bad For Me’.
Apart from the ace name, Lemonade Baby has an intriguing sound. Moving on from his previous two indie-dance singles, the new one is full of luscious house-inspired loops encased in an infectious indie sad boy vibe.
Speaking about the track, he says;
“‘You’re Bad For Me’ started with the piano chords and then I slapped in some drums. I had a vibe down in about 15 mins and by the end of the day I had a backing track done as well.
The lyrics were written maybe 3 months later when I had something I wanted to write about. At the time I had some friends go through big breakups and those inspired the concept for the song. It’s kinda about being open with yourself about how someone is bad for you, much like how some would say that sugar is bad for you.”
Sounds like: BAYNK, Aluna George, SG Lewis, Pnau
Slouch Online – This Is All Just Part of the Show
Slouch Online makes delectable R&B/hip-hop sounds from Los Angeles. Playing with new sounds, Slouch Online was inspired by new samples and the drive to make an upbeat song. He even says that during the songwriting process, “sometimes I don’t even remember how it all came together”.
Sounds like: Kid Cudi
Shaefri – Joanne
This song is a direct response to Shaefri seeing Leanard Cohen live. Speaking of the experience, Shaefri says, “The way he portrays Suzanne as a torturous siren inspired me to want to almost write a “little sister” for her, ‘Joanne’, and take the character further, displaying her as a gritty, tough woman in unimaginable circumstances, and explore how she has to walk a line between siren and self-preservation. I wanted to paint a more realistic picture of how certain actions and consent can be misinterpreted or ignored and how abuse can so easily take place, especially in sex work.’
Sounds like: Sasa Zola
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VÉRITÉ – Teenage Dream
VÉRITÉ looks back at her adolescent years with rose-tinted glasses in her whimsical cover of the Katy Perry classic. She wanted to reframe the song with her fresh, youthful perspective and altered lyrical content, “Put your hands on me in my skintight jeans, be your teenage dream tonight”.
Sounds like: Birdy
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UNDREAM – Monster (ft. IOVA)
UNDREAM is a talented Swedish producer with a dark, ambient soundscape. The ‘Monster’ single is intentionally uncomfortable and eery. Based on the silent horrors of lying in bed awake and alone, there’s a childlike feeling of being chased within the music.
Sounds like: Billie Eilish
Desmond Myers – Shadows
Desmond Myers describes new single, ‘Playing With Fire’, as an epic voyage of self-discovery. He started writing the track in a time of uncertainty and new parenthood, interspersed with ideas and realisations around like in the music industry.
Sounds like: Victor Solf
Jonah Kagen – Catching A Dream
Single artwork for JP Saxe, “If The World Was Ending (Other Remix)”
Jonah Kagen has released pop-infused single, ‘Catching A Dream’. Of the single, he says,“Catching A Dream” is about the place you go to in your mind when you just want to escape your reality. I really wanted to try to bring out that feeling of escapism and paint a picture of this magical place where nothing weighing you down in the real world could ever follow you. I hope you all love it and that it allows you to escape for a minute.”
Sounds like: Bastille
Kat Frankie – Shiny Things
Kat Frankie by Elina Kechicheva
Sydney-born multi-instrumentalist Kat Frankie shares the folktronica-esq single ‘Shiny Things’. Filmed with romanticism and grandeur in mind, the story tells of the inextricable relationship between beauty and decay.
Sounds like: First Aid Kit, HAIM, Feist, Fiona Apple
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Australian artist Akurei has just released his most exciting EP of the year, ‘CLOVER’.
Lucky for Akurei, venues have now opened up in Australia, which has promoted him to recollect about those nights out where you drink to feel comfortable.
So with all that social anxiety in mind, whack on his dreamy and nostalgic playlist and drift off into a state of bliss.
Hovvdy – Runner
Most of the people I’ve spent time with over the last few months could attest to the fact that I’ve been humming this daily. I’ve made it a goal to write a song that makes people feel the way this one makes me feel – light, hopeful and nostalgic.
Hether – Twinkle
Obsessed with this song, and everything Hether has done really. It all sounds like falling in love.
The Nicholas, Odessa – Rockshow
I’m lucky to be friends with The Nicholas, I’m so inspired by his song writing and production. This songs been on repeat since its release, the melodies are so so catchy.
Buddy Ross, Gabriel Delicious – Bored Again!
This one just feels so good, it’s hard to have a bad time while it’s on.
Porches – I Miss That
I’m a new Porches fan. The drum loop pulled me in and I stayed for the lyrics and the melodies, so infectious. Also the synth parts are really interesting.
Huron John – Why Do People Grow (Long for the Day When I Had That Flip Phone)
This one hits the sweet spot between fun and self deprecating.
Billy Lemos, Tati – Midlife Crisis
I’m new to Billy Lemos. This song is wild, along with the album he dropped this year.
A. G. Cook – Being Harsh
I could just listen to the first 30 seconds of this song all day, that alone is so captivating. It’s just a really beautiful and simple song.
Dijon – alley-oop
Pretty much every time Dijon drops a song I think “Damn I wish I wrote this” and this song is no exception. He has the most expressive voice and melodies, and the lyrics to this song are so nice.
Golden Daze – Blue Bell
This song will probably be in my Spotify ‘Top Songs of 20__” for the rest of my life.
The ‘CLOVER’ EP is out now on sumoclic records.
Sounds like: LA Bouquet, LANY, The 1975, Golden Vessel, Joji, No Rome, Kevin Abstract, Emerson Leif
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milk. – I Hate the Way You’re Looking at Me (Lately)
Hot on the heels of The 1975 is Dublin-born alt-pop quartet, milk.. Their bright new offering, ‘I Hate the Way You’re Looking at Me (Lately)’ is full of looping synths, catchy riffs and lulling vocals that immediately lure you in for more.
Sounds like: The 1975, The Japanese House, No Rome
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Benji Lewis – Stay Around
Benji Lewis has been busy songwriting during 2020. Written with his new friend Tom Eggert and bonding over their love of home-made smoothies, ‘Stay Around’ is about the progression of love in every subsequent relationship.
Sounds like: The 1975, The Kite String Tangle, Antony Hegarty, Active Child, Gallant, Sam Smith, Solomon Grey, James Blake, Yazz, Jack Garratt, Disclosure, Lauv, Boy In Space, Zachary Knowles
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Asha Gold – Oscar
UK R&B artist Asha Gold shares new single ‘Oscar’. It’s written about award-winning liars and cheats who deserve to be called out for their deception and good-for-nothing behaviour.
Sounds like: Nakala, Frank Ocean, Rosalia
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Solå – B Mine
Norwegian songwriter Solå strongly encourages us to value ourselves in new single ‘B Mine’. It’s a hazy piece of electro-pop that perfectly showcases her talent as both a intricate songwriter and performer.
Sounds like: Shura, Dagny, Chvrches, Empress Of, MUNA
whatshisface – Magic Disaster
Intriguing newcomer whatshisface is on the precipice of jumping into our hearts. His new single ‘Magic Disaster’ is a gloriously melancholic invitation, brimming with dense and warming aesthetics, creating an altogether sweeping atmosphere.
Sounds like: James Blake, George Gretton, Billie Eilish
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Mungbean – Slow Motion
Introducing eclectic Ohio-based outfit Mungbean. Performed as only seasoned performers would, new single ‘Slow Motion’ has layered and heavy synths to accelerate the track’s dreamy and kaleidoscopic intention.
Sounds like: Snarls, The Naked And Famous
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Our fav Australian artist Golden Vessel has just released his wonderful 11-track “road-trip” album, ‘colt’.
Led by a bass guitar, it’s a collection of genres and collabs spanning from indie, alternative, electro and pop, influenced by some songs shared in his playlist below:
Alex G – Gretel
This song blew my mind when it came out. I love the video too, it’s so sweet. It’s this really clever mix of light and dark, electronic and acoustic.
Big Thief – Black diamonds
I started listening to big thief just as I started making my album and they instantly became my favourite band. I got to see them play in Cambridge, UK and I had the worst hay fever but it was the best night.
Blood Orange – Smoke (Remix)
I love the mix of hip hop / guitar / sound design on this song. And the vocals are so dry and bolt it’s great.
Porches – Country
It’s such a sparse simple song but it also feels so powerful and that really intrigued me.
Mount Kimbie – Marilyn
A beautiful song, I love how it flows and evolves. Mount Kimbie’s recent use of bass guitar was influential on me, even just to see the way they incorporate it into an electronic composition.
The Nicholas – Addict
I found this song on a Spotify playlist and hit him up to see whether he would want to do a songwriting session. He quickly became one of my closest friends and really influenced the direction of colt (contributing to 6/11 of the songs).
Frank Ocean – Close To You
Blonde was so influential on me when I was making my first record but I found I kept coming back to listen through his entire catalogue whilst making colt.
Ross From Friends – Pale Blue Dot
This was actually my most listened to song of 2018. On colt I finally found ways to implement my love of house music into what I do (on midwest & blinker) and I love the sound design that Ross From Friends brings.
Toro Y Moi – New House
On tour in America we played this album on repeat and so it really feels like long drives and that period of time.
Adrianne Lenker – 10 miles
This is the lead singer from Big Thief (who I’ve already included) but Adrianne’s songwriting really shaped me and so I love her solo music also which is just to focus on the songs.
Sounds like: Akurei, GRAE, Alice Jemima
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Australian pop artist Briskey releases his astoundingly catchy debut EP, ‘Nothing To Lose’.
A first attempt of producing, Briskey eventually teamed up with renowned Australian engineer JP Fung, resulting in an EP full of bedroom dance-pop feelings of loneliness, emotions & ambitions that push the limits of Briskey’s songwriting ability.
You can listen to the EP and synth-pop single ‘I Will Be Here’ below, which is about the butterfly state you feel at the start of a relationship.
Sounds Like: Bazzi, Charlie Puth, The Weeknd, Troye Sivan, Calvin Harris
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Julia Church – Marionette
One of our favs of 2020, South-African born songwriter-producer Julia Church, unveils her breezy new cut ‘Marionette’. A catchy track with clear intentions that showcase her stunning vocal range and innate ability to create a wonderful pop earworm.
Sounds like: London Grammar, Emma McGrath, Violet Days, Birdy, GRACEY, Harlequin Gold, Millie Turner, Louise Burns, Tom Odell
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Jimi Somewhere – Jesus Feat. Kacy Hill
Jimi Somewhere by Dev Dhunsi
Jimi Somewhere combines unique Christian rock and modern, sheeny emo. Inspired by Christian summer camps and his frustration & feeling of loss growing up as a Christian, the track features the angelic vocals of Kacy Hill.
Sounds like: Owen, Máni Orrason
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Lucky Idiot – Mud
Lucky Idiot is an exciting new project from Maxwell Byrne (Golden Vessel), Kalem Woo (Rei So La) and Rei Sakakibara (Sweater Curse). Expect an upcoming debut EP, ‘Low Ceiling’, to be released in October via sumoclic.
Sounds like: Good Morning, Loving, Big Thief, Golden Vessel
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Dr Orange – Take
Liverpool’s Dr Orange – aka Chas Moody – draws on indie alt-rock. His new single, ‘Take’, is luscious, high-frequency rock n roll with authentic nuances of a leftfield nature.
Sounds like: Attawalpa, The Last Shadow Puppets, The Libertines
Australian duo dekleyn are back with a new single titled ‘What We Could Be’.
Fans of LANY, Lauv and Shallou will fall in love with this one, thanks to its powerful combination of indie vibes and glossy textures. This is their more chilled track so far, but they’ve still managed to maintain that catchy element which seems to flow throughout all of their music.
Speaking about it, they share: “This song came out super quick and basically all at once. We were pretty much all set with our album tracks, but there was one song that we weren’t so keen on but decided to keep pushing ahead with it. Then one day this new demo idea came along and we instantly knew it had to be a part of the album, so we switched the two songs and ‘What We Could Be’ was created. We love this song as it is more relaxed and chilled but is also happy and catchy at the same time. It combines a bunch of laid-back pop elements that drive the song. It’s a song that fits all moods and settings and that’s why it came so easy to us and is such easy listening.”.
Stay tuned for their self-titled debut album which is set for release on 7 October.
Sounds like: LANY, Lauv, Shallou
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Releasing his second instalment of the year, Australian artist Briskey returns to our airwaves with exciting summertime pop track ‘Mesmerising’.
‘Mesmerising’ does just that, grabbing your attention with a Charlie Puth quality intro, before taking your breath away with a stunningly soulful vocal. As the track progresses we are treated to funky bass lines and some gorgeous synth sound design, taking a modern twist on the 80s.
As Briskey explains below;
“This is one of those songs that came together quite naturally, it’s a song about finding a sense of purpose and accomplishment, and also acts as a reminder to never give up on what you truly want or need.”
The newcomer to the music scene is still only dipping his toe in the water at this point, but rumour has it that he is working up to his debut EP that could be shared by the end of 2020.
Sounds Like: Bazzi, Charlie Puth, The Weeknd
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