It’s hot enough to fry an egg on the pavement, your honour!! GIITTV Editors are sat on deck chairs on the roof of GIITTV Towers, sipping mojitos under golf umbrellas held up by the work experience guys. Here’s this week’s TOTW, they’re flippin belters. Cheers!!
Thus Love – Birthday Song
Why we love it: because Thus Love are comfortably one of the best bands coming out of the U.S right now. ‘Birthday Song’ is the first single taken from their second LP, All Pleasure due on 1st November on Captured Tracks. Echo Mars rabid guitars are as frenetic and visceral as before, bolstered by the addition of synth and guitar from Shane Blank, Echo has free reign to lose herself. She says “‘Birthday Song’ is a simple song about friendship and how we sometimes don’t give those kinds of platonic relationships the respect and care they need to thrive. We don’t have the same language that we do for romantic partnerships but I think those relationships are every bit as important in making us feel safe, secure and validated. When it came time to select the first single, ‘Birthday Song’ felt like the perfect way to introduce the new version of Thus Love and our new friends, Ally and Shane.”
The verse has Ally Juleen’s bass incredibly high in the mix, dueling with the guitar, a slow, almost swampy tempo but with bright, iridescent production and infectious chorus like everything Thus Love have released; it’s brilliant, life affirming stuff: “remember to breathe, it’s the worst it’ll ever be” . (Jim Auton)
Delicate Steve – Baby
Why we love it: because on ‘Baby’, Delicate Steve lives up to his name. Here, the American multi-instrumentalist goes back to 1979 to retrieve this song by his fellow countrymen Donnie & Joe Emerson from their debut album Dreamin’ Wild before gently extracting the more spectral qualities from the tune, transforming it into a modern day classic. The shadow of his voice adds to the wraith-like texture of ‘Baby.’
Talking about the song – which will appear on his forthcoming album entitled ‘Delicate Steve Sings’ (due out 16th August on ANTI-) – Delicate Steve says: “While working on my new album, I only listened to one artist at a time when I listened to music. Whoever it was, that was all I wanted to listen to for about a month, until the next artist would find me. First it was Frank Sinatra, followed by Fats Domino, Chet Baker and Portishead. Donnie & Joe stopped by out of nowhere one weekend, and I found myself listening to ‘Baby’ all over again while driving back and forth to recording sessions. It was in one of these moments that I decided to sing it.” (Simon Godley)
Yard – Bend
Why we love it: YARD the three-piece electro-noise band from Dublin, release their latest single ‘Bend’. The opening industrial clanging soundscape is accompanied by the vocal of Emmet White full of aggression, and distorted fury. The techno dial has been turned down as this sits nearer the noise rock end of Yard’s sonics extremes. ‘Bend‘ is laboured, heavy and pounding. The guitar riffs add a density and tension to the track. There is an edge throughout but the thumping beat is a constant maintained to the very last note. Yard state amongst their inspirations SUUNS, Gilla Band, Death Grips, and Nine Inch Nails. As ‘Bend‘ continues it has an almost hypnotising effect with its metronomic pacing, capturing the listener. White expands on the inspiration behind the new single:
“When you are caught in cycles of ‘bending over backwards’ for people and find it hard to realign yourself. Overextending yourself into others’ realities so much that you can’t find your own. Not recognising the contorted version of yourself that is left after accommodating the wants of many. Leaving you with physical reactions to this situation with tight, tense and involuntary body movements.”
A recent review perfectly described Yard’s live performance:
“In their presence, you see – and feel – them painstakingly crafting every note and sound with their bare hands, wrestling with different sockets, switches, strings, or even their voices. The venue was transformed into this factory of raw, unadulterated noise which kept us all at the mercy of the sound – collectively banging our heads in synchronicity. (Julia Mason)
Kitty Williams – Black to Blue
Why we love it: because ‘Black to Blue’ feels so refreshingly brand new. Entirely self-produced, it is the very first release from Kitty Williams, a 17 year old singer-songwriter from Cardiff. ‘Black to Blue’ was recently selected by BBC Radio Wales as part of their BBC Introducing Music segment and the DJ Adam Walton described the listening experience as a “rare goosebump moment on your soul.”
And such wholesome praise is most certainly due. The song is an elegant example of contemporary indie-folk, beautifully arranged and seriously enhanced by the expressive charm and dynamic range of Williams’ voice. ‘Black to Blue’ brings with it much joy and promise for her recording future. (Simon Godley)
Nala Sinephro – Continuum 1
Why we love it: because just as the title of the latest music to arrive from Nala Sinephro suggests, ‘Continuum 1’ is evolutionary. It is the opening track on the second album from the Caribbean-Belgian composer, producer and musician who is currently based in London. The new record is called Endlessness and will be out on 6th September this year via Warp Records and it is a natural continuance from her 2021 debut album, Space 1.8.
Featuring the subtle drumming of Morgan Simpson and the delicate textures of James Mollison’s saxophone, on ‘Continuum 1’ Nala Sinephro again enters the realms of ambient jazz, only this time the listener is transported into another sonic dimension, one that features cosmic vibes and highly-nuanced beats.
Endlessness is described as “an audio diary of the 25th and 26th years of Nala Sinephro’s life.” ‘Continuum 1’ makes for an impressive first entry in that personal record of events. (Simon Godley)
Kerosene Kream – Mindkiller
Why we love it: Kerosene Kream release their PNKSLM debut EP Buying Time on August 30th on limited edition vinyl and digitally. The EP is announced together with the release of lead single ‘Mindkiller’, a playful synth- heavy jive of psychdelia and garage rock, replete with snakey synths, hand claps and joyous melodies. It reminds one of early B-52’s gyrating with 60s garage bands, encapsulating the mantra of let’s dance and sing despite the fact that things are falling apart, it’s an absolute riot.
Having shared the stage with the likes of Dungen, Illuminati Hotties, Holograms and Powerplant, the quintet Kerosene Kream is the latest group to step out from the Stockholm underground that gave birth to the likes of Vi**ra Boys and Holograms and the band have grown a reputation as a ferious live acts with shows around northern Europe.
Following the new EP the band is set to head out on dates including an appareance at the Left of the Dial Festival in Rotterdam, Netherlands as well as making their UK live debut in September alongside Scandinavian shows. (Bill Cummings)
Phantom Handshakes – Apart
Why we love it: Phantom Handshakes release Apart the third single release from their upcoming LP, Sirens at Golden Hour, it finds them moving into the dark wave corners with heavy atmospheres, glistening riffing laden with Tassano’s ethereal and haunting vocals that are ripe with stone cold and elusive melodies that sink their teeth in. Pregnant with melancholic reflection it’s got echoes of mid period of The Cure and the early work of the Cocteau Twins, it’s intoxicating. They say: “The song is a poignant cry for awareness and a somber reflection on the urgent need to combat climate change. The tense, constricted rhythm mirrors a sense of claustrophobic dread. The lyrics, laden with a heavy heart, convey deep anxiety, fear, and feelings of helplessness.“
Phantom Handshakes is a collaboration between Matt Sklar and Federica Tassano. Based in New York City, the band has released two full length albums, an EP and a number of singles since it began in the Spring of 2020. Their newest album, Sirens At Golden Hour, will be released on August 21 of 2024. (Bill Cummings)
Adjua – Hiraeth
Why we love it: Hiraeth is a Welsh word for a deep longing for home and culture. On her new single, ADJUA reframes it beautifully on this slow burning, and effortlessly soulful song. Pairing muted and cyclical acoustic motifs, and a whistling solo (yes) with her wonderful vocals that are moving and run deep as the rivers that flow through the Welsh hills. The release is part of AffriCerdd – Tŷ Cerdd’s partnership with the National Eisteddfod, supporting artists of colour to work in Welsh. The release of two new Welsh-language songs by rising Welsh artists ADJUA and Aisha Kigs on Tŷ Cerdd’s artist-led label Sionci.
The songs were originally created by the two artists for the 2023 National Eisteddfod as part of an initiative driven by Tŷ Cerdd and the National Eisteddfod, aimed at supporting musicians of colour to create new songs in the Welsh-language. The project grew from both organisations’ commitment to supporting music-creators from all backgrounds to engage with making work in the Welsh-language.
Adjua and Aisha were mentored through the process by leading Welsh artists Eädyth and Aleighcia Scott – who also performed at the project’s culminating concert on the Encore stage at the National Eisteddfod in Boduan. Eädyth worked with the artists (both early in their Welsh-language journey) on developing their confidence in writing and performing Welsh-language lyrics – with support from Aleighcia Scott, herself a new Welsh-speaker. (Bill Cummings)
