Tag Archive for New Artist Thursday

Roosevelt* – Sea | (NAT)

This is a nice and light. A perfect summer tune! If only the weather matched the vibe of the song. For some reason the adjective that comes into my head when I hear it is Balearic. Not if this is at all accurate but it somehow seems fitting.

Roosevelt hails from Cologne, Germany and is signed to the Greco-Roman record label. When choosing his DJ name he obviously wasn’t thinking of how to optimise for use with search engines! Hence I don’t know too much about him. But sometimes that’s okay.

/RjK

*Artist #589

Chad Valley* – Fall 4 U featuring Glasser | (NAT)

I have been reading about Oxford’s Hugo Manuel AKA Chad Valley for a while now. He seems to have been featured by just about every website I look to for ideas on new music. He also seemed to included in every “Best of 2012…” list I read over recent weeks. Sometimes you just have to accept that the universe is telling you something.

While I am not wholly convinced just yet by his sound (Depending on the reviewer “chill wave”, “dream pop” or any number of other banal monikers…), I really like this track. The vocals and synthesiser (not to mention the video) give it an 80’s feel that I am always a sucker for. A friend suggested he has a little of the Rick Astley’s about him, in both sound and look. But don’t hold that against him…

CV:
RA:

/RjK

*Artist #586

 

27th December 2012

John Talabot* – When the past was present (NAT)

Barcelona DJ John Talabot isn’t someone I know a lot about but I have noted that he has been getting a lot of love in Best of 2012 lists that I have been reading in the past month or so. This prompted me to check out some of his stuff, particularly his album fIN from which this track is taken. Pretty enjoyable stuff.

/RjK

*Artist #583

20th December 2012

Twigs* – Breath (NAT)

I have heard varying reports about UK artists Twigs. Some places I read she is portrayed as an unknown, mysterious female version of James Blake. But DJ/Rupture, one of my music oracles, suggested otherwise and I quote “top-down industry product masquerading as white label single. but its good.”

I certainly agree with the last sentiment anyway, and that’s all that really matters. I like the songs quiet intensity. Somehow it was the right song to be listening to on a horrible grey winters day.

/RjK

*Artist #578

13th December 2012

Local Natives* – Breakers (NAT) | (Helen Chandler guest post)

I really love Local Natives. I’m more excited about their new album ‘Hummingbird’ (out January 29th) than any I can remember for a while. Their debut, Gorilla Manor, was among my most played albums of 2009/2010. There’s something about the way they do soaring melodies and inventive percussion that makes their sound really rich. They are at once poppy and melodic and brooding and clever.
Breakers isn’t a huge departure for them – it still sounds very much like Local Natives. They’ve darkened things up a little, perhaps – there’s none of the cuteness of ‘Airplanes’ here. I’m hopeful that it’s a sign of good things to come.
 /HC
*Artist #574

6th December 2012

Alt-J* – Tessellate (NAT)

I know I am very late on these guys. I meant to post them earlier in the year but didn’t get around to it. I was reminded of them when reading NME’s top 50 albums of 2012.

Alt-J are from Leeds and really came to prominence this year when their debut album An Awesome Wave won the Mercury prize.

/RjK

*Artist #569

29th November 2012

FaltyDL* – Straight and Arrow (NAT)

This one’s a grower. Some song make me instantly fall in love with them and other it takes me some time to realise that I like them. This was in the latter category. What really drew me in was the vocal sample, it’s so smooth and hypnotic but also urgent at the same time.

The song’s mellow nature has been a welcome calming influence on me as it has been a manically busy week so far.

/RjK

*Artist #564

22nd November 2012

Werkha* – Le Roitelet (NAT)

I really like the contrasting sounds in this track from Manchester DJ Werkha, which is out on the Cool Kid Music label. The energetic, ultra modern beat and the languid, silky smooth vocal (there is also something alluring about French too, right?) shouldn’t really compliment each other but somehow they just do.

/RjK

*Artist #559

15th November 2012

Homeboy Sandman* – Whatchu want from me? (NAT)

Sometimes the universe is trying to tell me something. There are several sources I rely on for music which are broadly broken up into four (sometimes overlapping) parts: friends, the radio, cyberspace and things that catch my ear on a day to day basis.

When I encounter an artist via a few different sources which are independent of each other it tells me that it’s time to investigate them some more. As it happens two of my friends (and sometime guest bloggers) Rory and Matt both recommend this guy in the last few weeks. And I have to give it up, he is pretty fresh.

I enjoy the energy in this song and it’s old school sound, making me think of Jurassic 5 or Arrested Development. I particularly like the simple piano hook underpinning it; it’s nothing flashy but still very effective.

/RjK

*Artist #554

8th November 2012

LA Vampires and Maria Minerva* – A lover and a friend (NAT)

This is another in a long list of Lo-Fi, washed out songs that I have featured recently. It is a sound that seems to have grabbed me more and more as my blogging journey has progressed. Also a song in English two Thursday’s in a row!

This is from LA Vampires recently release collaboration with Maria Minerva on the well named Not Not Fun records.

Also, I can believe this puts me up to 550 artists! I still remember posting the first (Curtis Mayfield of course) like it was yesterday.

/RjK

*Artist #550