Irish/Australian duo AGE recently released their debut single ‘Peaks.’This widescreen electronic pop gem is laced with male/female vocal refrains looping tropical beats and shimmering synths that flash like strobes, its the soundtrack to the light and shade of city life. Co-produced with mixing engineer Russ Fawcus (Wild Beasts, Noah And The Whale) and mastered by Mandy Parnell (Jamie XX, The Knife) watch the video below.
Despite forming last year and only having played a small number of warm-up shows, they recently supported Temper Trap and played the Radio X/AIM Awards.
Gavin Dwight and Jen Cosgrave aka AGE put together a playlist for us entitled ‘Discovering AGE- 11:11′ we’ll let them explain:
‘We tried to narrow it down and chose 10 influential tracks for AGE. We ended up with 11. Some people think the time 11:11 has mystical power. We think it probably just looks cool on a digital clock. 11:11 is a playlist of music that made us feel something over the last few years. AGE <3Jasmine – Jai Paul
What happened to Jai Paul? Two incredible demo’s put out on XL, an illegal leak of his ‘supposed album’ on bandcamp and then he vanishes. 5 years later people are still talking about it, in fact Fader just wrote a long form piece on it again last month.
‘Jasmine’ – It’s hard to express how immaculate this track is. And it’s a demo.
From the bass sliding and panning across the intro and a sample that sounds like someone dragging around chains, the track just builds perfect element after perfect element, only to strip it all back to nothing. A genius who bailed on us for now. Pls come back.
House – Kindness
Filled with the heady mixture of melancholy and hope, like all good music probably is. Super nice to hear a piano sitting in all that space too, even as it eventually gives way to that loose, slow attack synth and massive snare. If it comes on at 2 am in some living room when you’re with good people, you won’t be able avoid a hazy sing along of mixed vocal quality.
1998 – Chet Faker
Another song that tells a sad tale but makes you feel real good, strange! The production would probably be on the slightly too clinical side for me if it wasn’t for the warmth of Nick Murphy’s voice and the vulnerability of the story he’s telling. I remember walking around Lisbon listening to this for days, trying to work out why it works so well.
Dancing Shell – Wild Nothing
Just when I thought I had worked out exactly what to expect from the Wild Nothing dream pop formula, he went and did this. One part Talking Heads, another part Destroyer with glistening arpeggios. ‘’And I’ll be your monkey every night, if it makes you love me, watch me now, watch me”. Quite creepy lyrics there Jack, could work over that Silence of the Lambs scene?
Yoro Diallo – Egyptian Hip Hop
Jen and I saw these guys play one of their first London shows in a cramped, overrated bar somewhere in Hackney Wick. Not long after that, we saw them play a stage at Greenman festival and it seemed like things were moving fast. They were super young, gaunt, spotty 17 year olds. A classic mix of petulant but super talented. The progression from their first EP to their one and only album is what most bands could only hope for. And then they broke up ffs. Urgh.
Lust for Life – Girls
I love Christopher Owens. Grew up in a cult, ran away and escaped in one piece just to write lyrics that no one else could get any with – “I wish I had a pizza and a bottle of wine – I wish I had a father and maybe then I would have turned out right”. The kind of band you think would be all over the place live, but are actually incredible. Another one who split up. Brilliant.
Your Best American Girl – Mitski
I know Pitchfork have been bought by Condé Nast, but they still have a few good tips. Pressed play on this one when it came out and didn’t stop listening to it for months. The video is great, it kinda sounds like Weezer in the chorus but might be one of the most emotive chorus lyrics I’ve heard in yonks. And she called the record ‘Puberty’ – we’ve all been there.
Friends – Francis and the Lights
Guilty pleasure – soz
Eventually – Tame Impala
Obvs. I can’t think of an album that is more perfect or produced to this level. Kevin Parker is not of this earth.
Depreston – Courtney Barnett
I don’t know if this will be for everyone but she is simply one of the best story tellers in music, drawing from mundane experiences like looking for a flat in the up and coming/crap part of town (Depreston), to being stung in your garden and having an allergic reaction that puts you in an ambulance, (Avant Gardener). She’s going on tour with Kurt Vile later in the year and the two have recorded an album together coming out soon.
