Brika is the alternative pop project of Cuban-American, Briana Martinez, who has been a musician since the tender age of three.

Whilst her music maybe lyrically mature, it has a profound pop swagger, which envelopes you immediately upon first listen until you reach the end and don’t quite remember how you got there, much like a taxi ride (which incidentally ties in nicely with her current release, ‘Taxi Man’).

Brika has kindly put together a playlist for Indietronica. Check it out below.

Steve Lacy – Some

Music is a very visual art form that constantly draws pictures from moments of your past. I generally believe that one of the many elements that determine if a song is good, is its ability to make you instantly daydream. The first time I heard this song, it was very early in the morning as I was driving, and it instantly provoked exactly that. Since I’ve been hooked.

Beach House – Space Song

I love this song because there is something very bittersweet about it. It reminds me of the general music I would listen to a lot in high school.

A$AP Rocky, Frank Ocean – Purity

One of my recent late-night “what is life” songs for me. I think the structure of this song is very unique and refreshing. Frank Ocean’s voice makes me instantly nostalgic.

Thom Yorke – The Eraser

This… I mean, Thom Yorke is everything. Although this song isn’t in one of my more recent plays, it is definitely a song I always go back to. The production is timeless and Yorke is anexcellent lyricist I have spent several nights just analyzing his ability to make one song perfectly summarize so many emotions.

Demo – Sunshine Girl

The song you blast in your apartment with a bottle of wine as you’re cooking a delicious meal. I am a sucker for excessive harmonies that feel effortless, old-school elements, and wavy sounding tracks.

TOPS – Easier Said

Tops is a very underrated artist.

ROSALÍA – Catalina

Rosalía embodies what the future of music is. She mixes Spanish Flamenco with modern Pop and Hip-Hop beat elements. The music she releases is extremely innovative and her lyrics are also very tasteful. Even in her attempt to do a more commercial sounding track with J Balvin in Brillo, her unique palate of influences thrive.

Feist – A Man Is Not His Song

A Man Is Not His Song is special to me. I love how she uses ‘song’ as a kind of metaphor for saying, just because an artist sings or a person portrays a certain image, doesn’t necessarily mean that is their reality. Her message can be interpreted further to say, that no one can live up to first impressions forever, in the same way, that writers of beautiful songs often create things beyond them. I think this song analyzes and embodies perfectly, what is found often in the music industry, when an artist plays the role of something they are not. Every track in album Pleasure by Feist, had a lot of interesting insights in the lyrics, and inspired me in the creation of my new EP.

Rhye – Song For You

This is a great song to drive to. I saw them live, and was extremely shocked to find the singer was actually a male and sounded exactly as the record!

Lykke Li – I Never Learn

Although this album has been around for a very long time, these are one of the songs I’ve only more recently discovered.

Moses Sumney – Plastic

I think Moses Sumney is incredible and very underrated. Everything that this artist puts out is real music. I love the soft Jazz guitar, the distant reverbed harmonies, and subtle use of strings at the end. He never disappoints in creating beautiful arrangements that are topped by tasteful lyrics.

Sounds like: Frank Ocean, Beyonce, Macy Gray

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