Well-regarded Indonesian artist Dipha Barus is giving all the good vibrations in new song ‘You Move Me’ featuring the jovial vocals by Monica Karina.
The groovy AF track fuses together a dynamic blend of world music with everything from Baile, Afro, Soul, R&B to Gospel, and mixed effortlessly with Dipha’s roots of traditional Indonesian instruments.
Speaking about the song, Monica explains,
“In order to be in love and at peace with our surroundings, we should first be in love and at peace with ourselves. That is why “You Move Me” is the anthem we can sing to all those we love, to what we believe in, and most importantly to our very own selves.”
Expect to see Dipha play the main stage at We The Fest in Jakarta.
Austin-native Kae Astra shares her effervescent alt-pop debut, ‘Dreams’.
One would be forgiven to thinking this is an ode to Kate Bush and Grimes, with it’s wonderfully expressive and falsetto vocals and painstaking melodies crowned in a lush dream pop soundscape.
Sounds like: CILVR, Kate Bush, Grimes, Beach House
Jinka is carving the way for female-led electronic pop from Germany.
Her new single, ‘Bare to the Bone’ features fellow Berlin-based artist, BLVTH and perfectly blends BLVTH’s grungy future bass and Jinka’s happy trip pop.
The singlewill be featured on Jinka’s debut EP ‘Dr. Ara’, which will be released on 8 March.
Sounds like: Kate Boy, I BREAK HORSES, Billie Eilish
We all know many people head to Los Angeles and only a handful make it to stardom, but it doesn’t prevent the never-ending quest by actors, artists and musicians alike.
Chelsea Effect – the music/art/fashion project of Canadian born Emerald Isabella – discusses this such topic in her new single ‘Tinseltown’.
It’s a reflective message about trying to make it in L.A, “the land of almost stars.” It’s out now.
Dan Crossley is calling out an ex-lover in his new single ‘Mind Games’.
It’s a R&B pop anthem from the artist who has a knack of writing honest music written from personal experiences, which has rightfully landed him the BBC Introducing’s One To Watch for 2018.
Listen below.
Sounds like: Charley Stride, Cat Burns, Years & Years
Swedish artist Fred Daniels shares the gorgeously addictive pop number, ‘Wetlands’ – “an anthem for oral sex”!
After learning to play drums at nine and writing his first song at 11, it’s clear a successful career in music has always been in Fred’s destiny, which has included being a member of Södra Station with Shy Martin and collaborations with Andrew Taggart from The Chainsmokers.
Sounds like: SKOTT, The Weeknd, Years & Years, Lane 8, La Bouquet
It’s been a heavy week for us so time to breathe slow and get some bright emotion back in our lives ahead of the weekend.
Broken Back is a singer, songwriter, producer, and creator…as well as of course an advocate of tropical and uplifting sounds. His new single ‘Breathe Slow’ is “a liberating invitation to focus on the glass half full rather than on the half empty one” and is out now via Ultra Records.
Haux is the project of rising photographer-turned-musician Woodson Black.
His most recent release, ‘Heartbeat’, is a stunning piano-led track that once again showcases his ability to effortlessly combine film and storytelling with music.
The short film set in the Cape Cod seaside town of Truro, Massachusetts features Sam Laiz and model Chloe Nørgaard, and explores the depths of love. Woodson explains,
“I get the chills anytime I remember this day at the beach. The landscape was so desolate it somehow made us shiver even more. I tried my best to capture that haunting feeling of being completely alone with your thoughts; those relentless kind of thoughts that never leave you. I wanted to show that while there is always pain in remembering, there is tenderness too.”
His forthcoming sophomore EP & companion short film ‘Something To Remember’ is set for release on 30 March via Ultra Records.
European Tour Dates
12 May – Berne, Switzerland – ISC
13 May – Zurich, Switzerland – Exil
16 May – Vienna, Austria – Chelsea
17 May – Berlin, Germany – Musik & Frieden
19 May – Copenhagen, Denmark – Ideal Bar
21 May – Stockholm, Sweden – Bar Brooklyn
22 May – Hamburg, Germany – Nochtspeicher
23 May – Cologne, Germany – Yuca
24 May – Roubaix, France – la Cave aux Poètes
26 May – Utrecht, Netherlands – EKKO
28 May – Groningen, Netherlands – USVA
29 May – Paris, France – Le Point Ephémère
1 June – London, UK – Omeara
2 June – Glasgow, UK – Stereo
Meet 22 year old Katherine Evans. It says on her SoundCloud page that she likes to sing and sleep. We are not sure about her knack of sleeping, but she sings a damn good song!
With plenty of awards under her belt, she is far from taking it slow, unlike her new single, which is about capturing a fleeting and reckless moment.
It’s out now via Afromartian, an indie record label based in Italy.
Enigmatic singer Teflon Sega is right on point in the modern music scene having wracked up high numbers of streams on Spotify with his previous releases, and we are sure ‘NEØN’ will do just as well.
The track perfectly highlights Teflon Sega’s magnificent range of sultry lows and stirring highs. Listen below.
Standing firmly on his own two feet is the young Copenhagen-based Vera (aka William Asingh).
His latest single, ‘Nobody Else’, was a collaborative effort with Off Bloom, and is influenced by the Caribbean novel ‘Wide Sargasso Sea’ by Jean Rhys, which is about a landowner’s Jamaican wife who is locked up in an attic for allegedly being mad.
The ‘Good Job – No Conversation’ EP is released on 8 December through Ultra Records/Ministry of Sound.
Sacre are hitting some serious Drake vibes with their new single ‘Stereo’.
It’s not the usual sound we hear from the French duo, but we kind of like it. The contrast between the classic electro vocals works well with the addition of rising French artist, rapper Dopize.
Finally, we have the brilliant new indie-pop trio from Portland called Year of the Brother.
We are particularly excited about these guys as they seem to have something special about them. Perhaps it’s the soaring, yet delicate production? Perhaps it’s the on-point falsettos? Or perhaps it’s the enticing lyrics? You decide.
LCAW (aka 22 year old Leon Weber) is sharing an interesting message in his new track ‘Staring at the Sun’, which features the lush vocal tones of New York City-based singer/songwriter, Sophie Hintze.
LCAW says,
“‘Staring At The Sun’ has a clear message – If you feel trapped in a place or a situation you need to break free, pack up your things and just go. The Sun is quite symbolic in this picture, on the one hand it stands for hope, a better future, adventure; and on the other hand it is a burden. Staring directly at the sun for too long blinds you, leaving you on a path without navigation. The lyrics embrace a loss of direction. Hypnotised by yellow lines, moving faster than the speed of light, renegades without a plan. In the end it’ll be worth it.”
It’s out now via Ultra Records / Columbia Records.
Manchester indie band Cassia share the uplifting ‘Sink’.
Despite shows at Reading and Leeds Festivals, the trio’s agenda is to make their fans dance and not mosh, and it’s quite understandable that this would happen with their calypso-infused offerings.
The new song will form part of the band’s debut EP ‘Movers & Shapers’ which is due out later this year.
South London duo Temptress have just dropped the awesome ‘What I Want’, which has been produced by Chris Zane (Passion Pit, Friendly Fires, Holy Ghost!)
It very much has a nu-disco vibe throughout, which works well with Jess’ soulful vocals and the retro basslines.
Production seems to be Sean Turk‘s forte, having already released material on Warner, Spinnin’ Records,and Ultra Records and gained support from some key players.
We wanted to get inside the musical mind of the New York-based #BedroomBass enthusiast to find out where he finds the inspiration for his music.
The result is the below playlist, or in Sean’s own words…
Hey what’s going on y’all! Here is a playlist that kind of encompasses the vibes I’m feeling at the moment. A lot of similar stuff that I am usually influenced by. These songs are my go to for traveling/driving around from day to day. Hope you guys enjoy!
Beautiful vocals and progressive production form SAINT WKND‘s ‘Golden’.
The track features the Australian indie group Hoodlem and has just enough amount of trip-hop elements.
Speaking of his inspiration behind the track, he explains: “I woke up at 2am and had an urgent feeling to make music. I stared writing and finished the song by 8am. ‘Golden’s’ instrumental was done, but I wanted to add vocals to it. I knew about the indie group Hoodlem and luckily when I was on tour in Australia in 2016 I met them in Melbourne and we recorded the vocals in their home studio. It’s a very honest song and I hope people will enjoy it.”
It’s out now via Ultra Records/ Nothing Else Matters, and is the first single from his debut EP ‘Golden Youth’.
Sofi Tukker is a New York based, indie-dance duo, comprised of Sophie Hawley-Weld and Tucker Halpern.
Complete with popping jungle scenes, zebra print and some captivating to camera performances, the vintage video for ‘Drinkee’ showcases the duo’s cool and quirky nature.
If ‘Drinkee’ is the party, ‘Moon Tattoo’ is for the morning after. We’ve included this track as well, just because we love it so!
Their debut EP, ‘Soft Animals’ is out now via Ultra Records, and can be purchased on iTunes.
Upcoming Tour Dates
July 15 – Salacgriva, Latvia @ Positivus Festival (TICKETS)
July 20 – Portland, ME @ State Theatre (w/ Chairlift) (TICKETS)*
July 21 – Boston, MA @ Blue Hills Bank Pavilion (w/ Chairlift) (TICKETS)
July 25 – St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant (TICKETS)*
July 27 – Council Bluffs, IA @ Stir Cove (TICKETS)*
July 28 – Chicago, IL @ The Vic Theatre* (SOLD OUT)
July 30 – Brooklyn, NY @ Baby’s All Right (TICKETS)
August 19 – San Francisco, CA @ Popscene at Rickshaw Stop (TICKETS)
August 20 – Los Angeles, CA @ Pershing Square (w/ Todd Rundgren) (FREE SHOW)
Le Youth (aka Wes James or ‘The Youth’ if you are in France) is the uber cool remixer of the moment.
Growing up in Ohio during the US R&B and UK garage peak of the 90’s (and later moving to L.A.), there are clear cross-border influences in Le Youth’s music. To date, remixes under his belt include those of Sam Smith and Disclosure.
His latest tropitronica triumph is ‘Dance With Me’ featuring Dominique Young Unique whereby Le Youth samples TLC’s ‘No Scrubs’. Check out the cheeky vid below:
It is undoubtedly clear that Le Youth does it all for the absolute love of music, which makes him a pretty loveable guy. Oh yea son we’re talking to you.
He has just finished his UK tour, but we are sure he’ll be back in no time.
