It’s actually been a bit more than a fortnight since I did one of these, but hey ho – here’s the best (and worst) new music I’ve heard since the last roundup I did. Artists featured this week include Lola Young, Benjamin Earl Turner, Knower, Lil Yachty/J Cole, Olso and Cher.
THE BEST:
‘Conceited’ – Lola Young
This South London singer and BRIT nominee has an incredibly
unique voice. It’s got a soulful Shirley Bassey swagger to it, while also sporting
a raw indie rock vibe at times (especially when she lets her accent poke
through). I’m also loving the eccentric beat, which gets excitingly noisy towards
the end. I can definitely see this song blowing up.
‘Headspace/Bent’ – Benjamin Earl Turner
I was wondering how the hell an unknown rapper could produce
a music video this top notch (the costume design for that dino/rhino creature
is insaaane!!), but then I researched this dude and he has an IMDB profile with
a Blindspotting credit. In other words, the dude has connections to Hollywood
and Daveed Diggs, so it makes sense he was able to put out a video this good. And
he deserves these high quality visuals, considering just how high quality the
rapping is. This is Kendrick Lamar level stuff. In fact, he sounds just like Kendrick
in that ‘Bent’ latter section, albeit with a much more slurred delivery.
‘Do Hot Girls Like Chords?’ – Knower
One of my favourite tracks off of the genre-bending
duo’s new album Knower Forever (which I’ve reviewed here) has now been
released as a single along with a live (at least I think it’s live?) video. I’m
loving the proggy riffs, Artadi’s heavenly vocals, Cole’s intricate drumming
and the sweet jazzy guitar solo at the end. And, of course, those beautiful chords! Any
hot girl who doesn’t love those chords immediately goes from a 10 to a 1 in my
opinion. True hot girls have taste.
‘The Secret Recipe’ – Lil Yachty & J Cole
I never expected to see Lil Yachty and J Cole on a track
together. Even more shocking is the fact that Yachty manages to hold his own against
Cole. Okay, maybe that’s going too far – Yachty can’t stay on beat to save his
life, and seems to be audibly running out of breath during his verse. But he is
spitting some surprisingly witty bars (I liked the checkers line). J Cole’s
verse is of course the true reason this in my weekly roundup. Just listen to
how he doesn’t just rap, but performs his verse. The way he signs off with ‘signed,
the greatest yet’. Could that be the secret recipe?
‘The Same’ – OLSO
Salt Lake City vocalist/producer OLSO delivers this
dance-pop song with a very playful beat. The choppy staccato sample grabbed
me straight away, and there are some cool pianos and synths in there too. We
even get a guitar solo at the end. Combined with the Matt-Healy-flavoured
vocals, it kinda sounds like if The 1975 were actually good.
THE WORST:
‘DJ Play A Christmas Song’ – Cher
It’s still October, Cher!