Play/Listed Weekly, Dec 4th, 2020
Another week of new music as we quickly approach the end of 2020 (finally)! Since I’ve already started compiling my year end highlights, this week will be a bit more minimal. Still, December 4th marks both a new week and new month, which means the playlist below has been refreshed, but all the previous month’s playlists are still accessible on my Spotify page.
All Good - Samm Henshaw
Get ready for a fairly Brit-heavy playlist! Samm Henshaw is the ever-upbeat soul singer destined to get people up and celebrating. I’m looking forward to playing this once we can have proper celebrations again.
Peng Black Girls Remix - ENNY featuring Jorja Smith
Another of my favourite vocalists of the past few years, Jorja Smith, provides some support to a remix of the collaboration between rapper ENNY and singer Ania Brave; they’re both South East Londoners, but it’s a celebration of Black women everywhere.
Não Tem Nada Não - Kaidi & NK-OK featuring Blue Lab Beats
This is my first experience with the jazzy production duo Kaidi & NK-OK, and I’m stoked to listen to them side by side with the likes of Masego.
Superstar - Malia
Ever since being mesmerized by Malia’s presence when she opened for Syd in 2017, I’ve been following her every move. Suffice to say I was stoked to see she released a new track this week, and it is exactly the mellow vibe I’ve come to love from this singer/songwriter.
What Am I Gonna Do On Sundays? - Olivia Dean
One more UK artist who’s made a beautiful, emotional song about loss, which is also the opening song of her 4-song EP of the same name that explores feelings around a recent breakup. I have to say, if I was still hung up on my ex-church, this song would have been absolutely perfect. ;)
PRENDIDA - Jessie Reyez
An acoustic Spanish-language song that shows off Jessie’s ability to bring her full energy and personality into even a stripped-back track.
Sawayama - Rina Sawayama
Although Rina Sawayama’s sophomore album SAWAYAMA has been in existence since mid-April of this year, this first Friday of December, Rina has brought her collection to the forefront of streaming services again with an expansive and delightful Deluxe edition. It felt like a gift to revisit this record as I make considerations for my year-end lists, without adding an exorbitant amount of brand new music to also sift through.
The most striking thing about this album is how it evades every attempt at categorization. The first track, “Dynasty,” sounds like a lost Evanescence song about generational trauma, but then before you can fully process what’s happening, “XS” begins with its commentary on the greed and consumption of the rich, over a slick production reminiscent of Britney Spears circa “Toxic”. This and the next track, “STFU” (that has been compared to bands like Limp Bizkit and Korn … on the verses at least), are both best experienced in video form, as Rina’s use of visuals really pulls together her messaging. In “STFU,” Sawayama describes several racist stereotypes and micro-aggressions she has repetitively run into with label executives, dates, and various other people creating barriers for her artistry as a Japanese-British queer woman.
“Comme des Garçons (Like the Boys)” is a fun synthy dance track inspired by and in honour of gay men in the 90s, and it’s the biggest banger of the album. I have definitely pulled this into a Zoom set or two, and intend to keep it in my rotation. “Akasaka Sad” is another fun-sounding track, despite being a reflection on the common immigrant experience of being displaced from one’s homeland. Plus the second verse is written in Japanese, which is pretty rad.
I did not intend to highlight every song from this album, but I’m not sure what to skip. “Paradisin’” is a nostalgic song about playing video games as a kid that seems to mimic the structure and sound of those games. I thought that “Love Me 4 Me” might be a throw-away track, but it’s bouncy and honest in a way that I don’t expect from a song with this title. Next, the earnest friend-breakup song, “Bad Friend,” is possibly my highlight of the whole collection, partially for its productions and for the relatability of the line, “so don’t ask me where I’ve been / been avoiding everything”. Oh yeah, and it has a video that stars Rina as a businessman in drag that could rival both Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga’s performance of the male gender.
After the “Fuck This World (Interlude),” Sawayama goes into the final third of the album. “Who’s Gonna Save U Now” opens to a screaming crowd of fans, and a epic 80s-like head-banger, complete with synthesizers and distorted electric guitar. Naturally, we move from the rock anthem to a driving pop song that could have come straight from a Carly Rae Jepsen b-side in “Tokyo Love Hotel”. “Chosen Family” is a sweet, queer family ballad that sometimes feels a bit on the nose for me, but I refuse to complain about it until there are so many more songs with similar themes in the world. And even then, I will remember this as a standout moment.
The final song on the original album is “Snakeskin,” which is absolutely stunning, and manages to incorporate a sample from the Victory Fanfare of Final Fantasy IX. After unrolling her genre expansive collection of personal and political music, she leaves us with her own struggle with marketing and profiting off of her art and her story. I for one am very grateful for both the gift of her music and the ability to support Rina Sawayama as an artist, because I am very interested in all of her next moves.
And wow! I haven’t even talked about the Deluxe additional volume! To summarize, we begin with 4 new bonus tracks, including “Lucid” which I highlighted last week upon its release. Next there is a live version of “XS,” 3 lovely acoustic versions (of “STFU!”, “Bad Friend,” and “Chosen Family”), and then 3 remixes! I was excited to see some extra features from other artists I admire here, like Bree Runway on the “XS” remix, and Pabllo Vittar on the remix of “Comme des Garçons (Like The Boys)”. Happy early Christmas to all of us Rina Sawayama fans!