Play/Listed Weekly for July 31st, 2020
I’m starting a new project! For the moment, I’m practicing sharing a few new songs and an album or two every week that have stood out to me from my New Music Friday listens. I’ll be adding the songs to an updated monthly playlist, with the newest (freshest) tracks on the top.
Here are my picks from last weekend (Friday, July 31st):
Water (FKJ Remix) - Little Dragon & FKJ
I dig this. The original never really stood out, but this is a real head-nodding jam!
Dance - Toni Braxton
I mean… Toni. Braxton. And it’s well named, because this track channels classic disco and has me wishing I wasn’t currently depending on a cane for moving around my kitchen
If I Wunna - Toulouse & Seinabo Sey
Toulouse is a new artist for me! I listened to this 100% for one of my all-time Swedish faves, Seinabo, and was not disappointed. If you don’t know either of these artists, they are worth checking out further.
Double Negative (Skeleton Milkshake) - Dominic Fike
Dominic Fike’s vibe is fire and elusive of any description beyond that. I’m not sure why this song stood out to me so much from his album, What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
By Any Means - Jorja Smith
Jorja is another artist that rarely falls flat for me. Her voice is so silky and wonderful, though this particular track is not about making anyone comfortable. This is the perfect anthem for anyone who is amped up about working and fighting for change. On top of that, “By Any Means” is the first single released as part of ROC Nation’s Reprise project, which seeks to bring some attention and awareness to issues of social justice, and will divide all profits between The Gathering for Justice, The Cop Accountability Project, NACDL Foundation for Criminal Justice, and the Equal Justice Innitative. Check out the links for more info… while listening to this great track.
I Just Wanna Live - Keedron Bryant, Andra Day, Lucky Daye, IDK
It was especially hard to narrow this down to 5 tracks this week, because this is such a great track expressing the gap between the phrase “Black Lives Matter” and the reality of what Black people experience everywhere. The lyric that hit me hardest was “it’s a fake win if all Black lives don’t make it across the finish”. Also is this the first time Andra Day raps? Don’t worry, she also provides great vocals all over this. Finally, one of the greatest things about this track is the story behind it; it was written by Keedron Bryant’s mother in response to George Floyd’s murder, and it has basically launched his career as a singer. He posted himself singing the original on social media back in May, and now he’s got a remix with Lucky, Andra, and IDK.
This record was actually released back in February, but I just recently found out about The Seshen, a San Fransisco’s 6-piece group fronted by Lalin St. Juste. Better late than never, I guess! Cyan is their third album ever, and first in 4 years, and it’ like nothing I’ve heard before. It’s not easy to categorize, as it has a real electronic vibe - sometimes with an 80s synth flavour - that’s held together by St. Juste’s distinctive and expressive vocals. Oh yeah, apparently she’s queer, so I will be adding her to all of my pride playlists, thank you very much! Also I’ll be adding this group to my live concert bucket list… if we’re ever allowed to do that again.
Anyway, I would give Cyan a chance. Listen to it while driving to the beach, or wherever you’re going this summer. And if you’re someone who likes to purchase physical albums, they have a really beautiful vinyl copy available on their Bandcamp!
Did you know Alanis Morissette released a new album last week? Yeah, I’m not joking! And I’ll be honest, I have not given Such Pretty Forks in the Road a real chance yet. It kind of messes with my mind to hear Alanis’ wavery voice on new songs when I so associate her with my teenage years. I started listening and gave up around the 5th track, but that’s when my wife showed me this sweet, adorable video of Alanis debuting her song “Ablaze,” with/to her daughter Onyx on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon.
So in short, I decided to give it another try, but I haven’t done that yet. I’m not expecting another Jagged Little Pills or anything, but I’m curious about how Alanis has grown as a songwriter and performer. If you give this a listen, please let me know what you think too!