Alternative R&B

Today’s Track: Jitwam – ‘Brooklyn Ballers’

May 5, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Chalo co-founder Jitwam in a promotional photoshoot for ‘Brooklyn Ballers’ (2022) (Photo via PR)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has come for me to give a shout-out to the Broolyn Ballers and each of the readers from elsewhere as we get prepared for yet another daily track on the blog, since it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! A self-described “Psychedelic Soul Savant” who was born in North-East India, now based between New York and Sydney, moved to New Zealand and Australia to spend his formative years there, later living in monasteries in Thailand and washed-out apartments in London, Jitwam is the co-founder of Chalo, an ambitious creative project alongside Dhruva Balram that supports up-and-coming Indian, Pakistani and Kashmiri artists, with a full-length self-titled album being released via The Jazz Diaries in 2020 that had its proceeds donated to the Human Rights Law Network and the Zindagi Trust. As a solo artist, however, he’s released a string of EP’s and a few albums, with 2019’s ‘Honeycomb’ serving as his latest LP. Jitwam has also collaborated with numerous artists including Dam Swindle, Mike Bloom and renowned Broken Beat maestro Kaidi Tatham. Other career highlights include his placements on Moodyman’s DJ-Kicks compilation series, embarking on a national NTS Radio tour in India, touring across the US and Europe, and opening a show for the acclaimed Funk virtuoso Roy Ayers with his full live backing band. His brand new single – ‘Brooklyn Ballers’ – is a one-off release from what I gather, but it offers an energetic ode to his passion for (just) one of the area’s that he has lived in throughout his eventful lifetime. Give it a spin below.

“Brooklyn Ballers is a homage to the city in all its hustle and bustle“, Jitwam explains about the far-reaching notes of the track which are delivered below the soulful and radiant instrumentation, adding, “The magic in the air, that can make dreams come true and can turn your fears into your worst nightmares“, in his own single’s product description on the Bleep website. The opening reminds me of one of Skule Toyama or Night Tempo’s modern Chillwave records, where the summer atmosphere shines right through thanks to the raucous sampled guitar hook that induce the nostalgia of the 70’s Disco-Rock era, before the track soon evolves into more of a Detroit House style of record with additional elements of Hip-Hop and World Fusion music. The lead vocals have a spoken, but catchy and rhythmic, delivery to them where subtle nods to Guns ‘N’ Roses ‘Paradise City’ and Joe Smooth’s ‘Promised Land’ creep in due to the lyrics and the key song structure. A myriad of styles, including Psychedelic Soul and Vaporwave, make their way into the instrumental-driven sections of the track. Jitwam melds together the Gospel-esque backing vocals, some Madlib-style sampling and some Maribou State-style cues of World-Funk and Dub into the mix too to finalise the package, which plays out as a chilled soundtrack to his simple love for the location and a very deep, percussive groover that acts as an ode to some of New York’s most respected producers. The area’s energy is almost embodied by the Jazz inflections and the Detroit House influences, creating a laid back shuffle that gradually builds and draws upon various elements to expand it beyond the original state. A chef’s kiss.

Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Brooklyn Ballers’ (Single) (Released on March 23rd, 2022) (via Roya Records)

That’s all for now! Thank you for checking out my latest blog post, and I’ll be ready to take you through a new entry of ‘New Album Release Fridays’ tomorrow as we take a quick preview of one of the weekend’s new and notable album releases. The record in question comes from the Prog-Jazz and Electronica sides of the Alternative Music spectrum by a duo made up of two members from The Comet Is Coming. The duo’s drummer has also toured with Sons Of Kemet, Melt Yourself Down, and Yussef Kamal.

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Way Back Wednesdays: Beryl Marsden (feat. Gospel Garden) – ‘Hello, Stranger’

May 4, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Cover Art for ‘Changes: The Story Of Beryl Marsden’ (Released on January 31, 2012) (via RPM Records)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has come for us to go ‘Retro’ with another old-school edition of ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ on One Track At A Time, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! The latest favourite of Cherry Red Records to grace the feature, Beryl Marsden’s story began in the Merseyside boom of the 60’s where she found fame on the Liverpool club circuit after singing with local groups like Howie Casey and The Crew, after she won a talent competition at the age of 14. One child in a family of ten, she would start performing at the Star Club in Hamburg, re-locate to London and subsequently sign with Decca Records as a solo artist with Tony Stratton-Smith as a manager. In her career since then, Marsden supported The Beatles on their final UK tour in 1965 and participate in projects like Shotgun Express (Which Rod Stewart, Mick Fleetwood and guitarist Peter Green were also all members of), The She Trinity, Simbad, Gambler and The Beryl Marsden band. Her material was mostly centered around a then-contemporary Pop and soulful R&B style, although her solo records unfortunately gained little commercial success. Nevertheless, she has built up a reputation as an undeservedly neglected talent praised by sites like AllMusic and The Liverpool Echo. She has also been remembered in recent times with a theatrical musical – ‘One Dream: The Beryl Marsden Story’ – that was performed at the Cavern Club for two nights, which Beryl Marsden would close with a live performance. She was also portrayed by actress Gemma Sutton in 2013’s ‘Cilla’, a three-part TV drama series about Cilla Black. Her lack of success commercially was mostly contributed to how her singles were never released in a traditional album format, and this notion did not change until January 2012 when her first compilation – ‘Changes: The Story Of Beryl Marsden’ – was finally made available. Check out ‘Hello Stranger’ from it below.

‘Hello Stranger’ is likely one of Beryl Marsden’s more well-known original recordings because it was used in the 1997 film ‘Another 9 1/2 Weeks’ (Which was also released as ‘Love In Paris’ in certain markets) which starred Mickey Rourke and Angie Everhart, which features the clips that you just saw in the video above. It was also credited to “Gospel Garden (feat. Beryl Marsden)” in some territories too, but it was nonetheless one of her more radio pop chart-friendly works. Gospel Garden’s blueprints are also clear, as the track gets off to a start with some ethereal Synths and ambient washings of Bass that conjure up an atmosphere that, to fit the title, feels strange yet familiar. Marsden’s lyrics are more emotionally driven, as she waxes nostalgic with sustained refrains like “Have you had a good time?/It makes me smile when you look at me that way” that leads melodically into the bridge, where she questions the interest of a former lover with lyrics like “Can I come home with you tonight?/Is that what you’re asking?” and “You say you’re gonna treat me right/A stranger’s touch is what I need tonight” as the bassline builds up to some playful keys that lead nicely into the heightened pace of the chorus, where catchy hooks such as “It’s a strange kind of magic/When we touch” and “Strangers you and I will always be” play out above the soulful combination of keys and drums, which feels different to the slow-burning energy and gradual progression of the main verses that establish a slightly more gritty and subdued quality. The track is still quite lushly produced, and it demonstrates how richly her voice has aged throughout the decades too as her darkened vocals are conveying a decent variety of emotive qualities during the verses before the more formulaic Dance-Pop song structure creeps in around the halfway mark, but these elements still work cohesively together because of her uncertain presence. Her voice was enough to give you a light tingle down the spine, and that’s executed clearly here.

Pictured: Beryl Marsden in a rare promotional photoshoot (Date n/a) (Photo via REX/Associated Newspapers)

That’s all for now! Thank you for checking out my latest post on the blog, and I will be back tomorrow to review a recent, eclectic single by a self-described “Globetrotting Psychedelic Soul Savant” who is one of the co-founders of the Chalo project. I can’t wait to bring his exciting new single ‘Brooklyn Ballers’ to your notice and it follows variable collaborations with artists such as Dam Swindle, Mike Bloom & Kaidi Tatham.

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Today’s Track: Sondre Lerche (feat. CHAI) – ‘Summer In Reverse’

May 2, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Avatars Of Love’ (LP/Album) (Released on April 1st, 2022) (via Self-Released)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has come for us to wish for warmer weather as we get settled down for the Bank Holiday with yet another daily track on the blog, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! A Norweigan singer, songwriter and guitarist now based in Los Angeles, Sondre Lerche grew up in a Bergen suburb where he became fascinated by 1980’s Pop, Bossa Nova and Neo-Psychedelia, captivated by bands like The Beach Boys and Prefab Sprout. He began formal guitar instruction at the age of 8, played regular acoustic gigs at the club where his sister worked as a teenager, wrote his first track at the age of 14, and got scouted by eventual mentor H.P. Gunderson. Since that time, Lerche has released eight full-length studio albums, signed up to a lucrative record deal with Virgin Norway, and he’s gained praise from various sources including Brooklyn Vegan and Stereogum, additionally earning the award for ‘Best New Act’ at the Norweigan Grammy’s within his first year of writing and producing music. Lerche’s been busier than ever lately, having released ‘Avatars Of Love’ – a double album featuring 14 tracks that run past 90 minutes in total – on April 1st, 2022. The project was created at home in Norway following what Lerche thought would be a temporary move from Los Angeles in March 2020, but it was completed in a brief yet intense period of a year. Rather than letting his material pile up, Lerche decided to just simply record each track as soon as it had been written, working with a variety of musicians and producers in-person in Bergen as well as reaching out to a variety of international collaborators over the internet. Among the guest list are AURORA, Mary Littlemore, Dirty Projectors’ Felicia Douglass, Anne Mülle and Rodrigo Alarcon. A melancholic but sweet new single from it, ‘Summer In Reverse’ features the Japanese Alternative Pop outfit CHAI, who admittedly seem to be cropping up on everything nowadays – having worked with Gorillaz, Superorganism, Mondo Grosso, JPEGMafia, MNDSGN & Ric Wilson in recent times. Let’s check out the official music video below.

“This song was written on January 1, 2021, so it’s a bit of a hangover song really. A hangover jam about trying to unhook and ready yourself for a new year through facing some brutal truths“, Sondre Lerche says about the soulful single, adding, “I wanted someone else to sing the pre-choruses, kind of like a soft Greek chorus and I had just heard and loved ‘Donuts Mind If I Do’ by CHAI, so I reached out. I’ve been immensely inspired by Japanese city Pop and ambient New Age, and I love how the two go hand in hand somehow. I was thrilled to have some company on the song, so it didn’t feel so pathetic and sad“, to amusingly describe his collaborative experiences with CHAI. The jumping ramp for the single starts with a glitched drum beat and a looped, light Samba-inflicted guitar melody. The playful combination introduces a slightly twisted, widescreen splashing of Synths after the opening verse, as Lerche’s radiant crooning blends together with the dream-like qualities of CHAI’s backing vocals to create a breezy groove that doesn’t cool down and lets up for the occasional sampled String crescendo, adding a virtuosic feel to the section that reminds me of Jens Lekman or The Avalanches from a production standpoint. I like how there’s a melancholy and a bitterness to the instrumentation, but it still retains a warm feeling due to the soulful and Prog Jazz-leaning influences. I really like a lot of the lyrics here too, with refrains like “We should get together every summer/and make each other miserable all fall” and “Or can you only love me in the summer?/Or, never at all?” managing to convey a wide spread of emotions while also seeming endlessly quotable at the same time. In conclusion, this is a fantastic single that really took me by surprise in how it feels both aesthetically pleasing and dynamically rich in texture, unleashing a tapestry of moods that feel like the definition of bittersweet. Clever, playful and elegant. A total package.

Pictured: Sondre Lerche in a recent photoshoot to promote ‘Avatars Of Love’ (2022) (Photo by Tonje Thilesen)

That leaves me with little else to say today, other than to thank you for supporting the site today. I’ll be back at it again tomorrow with an exciting in-depth review for ‘Fine Everything’, which is probably the most well-known single by an emerging indie rock band that I discovered on a recent episode of Steve Lamacq’s ‘Roundtable’ on BBC Radio 6 Music, where it gained positive reviews from the show’s panel. This trio have worked with Blood Red Shoes’ Steven Ansell as a producer. They have also supported the likes of Sasami, Penelope Isles & She Drew The Gun for live gigs across the UK too.

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Way Back Wednesdays: Eric B. & Rakim – ‘Don’t Sweat The Technique’

April 27, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Don’t Sweat The Technique’ (LP) (Released on June 23rd, 1992) (via MCA Records)

Good Morning to you! My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has come for you to send a distress call to DedSec (A short soundtrack-related reference for those who know) right after reading your latest retro-filled edition of ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ on the blog, because it is always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Although not entirely remembered in the discussions of Hip-Hop’s greatest artists to lace up a pair of rhymes by the general public, Eric B & Rakim have still been named as two of the genre’s greatest talents by publications like AllMusic and NPR, while Rolling Stone have ranked them as #5 on their list of the 20 Greatest Duo’s Of All Time published in 2015. They were also among the many victims who were affected by the 2008 Universal fire, which caused their tapes of lost material to be destroyed in the incident. They could still take a lot of the newer artists to school though, and we are currently in session with them today on One Track At A Time, and so I’m going to pay attention and listen up to the title track from their final album – ‘Don’t Sweat The Technique’ – released in 1992 via MCA Records. Like many of the Long Island-formed duo’s critically acclaimed albums, the LP was handled mostly by Eric B. & Ralim themselves in terms of production duties at The Hit Factory in New York city. The titular track itself was a minor radio hit, while the associated album reached #9 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Chart in the US. This is a powerful track, but it is somewhat disfigured in the memory by a music video that is riddled with the typical tropes of 90’s Hip-Hop in which the album, and Rakim’s career as a whole in particular, usually stood in a more creative opposition against. It strikes me as a piece that was designed by label executives in order to sell more records. That said, the album debuted at #22 on the US Billboard 200 chart in its first week of release, a healthy result for an alternative act. Try not to Sweat The Technique below.

Eric B & Rakim’s ‘Don’t Sweat The Technique’ was not intended to be the duo’s final album, but their contract with MCA Records was due to expire, eventually leading to lots of legal wrangling, including a court case, that would cause the duo to disband completely. However, things did not meet a grisly end because a re-union tour took place in 2018. Summing up what they do most thoroughly on releases like this LP with the frantic beats and cuts, ‘Don’t Sweat The Technique’ (the title track) is built off an infectious and funk-driven instrumental that expands into Rakim’s rhymes that feel razor sharp and cutting edge on arrival. The main bass line (Which is a sampled loop from Young-Holt Unlimited’s ‘Queen Of The Nile’) is a perfect partner for the recurring blasts of Horns (A Kool N The Gang sample), developing elements of Jazz and Soul among the Boom Bap style of production and the percussive, clicking Drum loops. Lyrically, we are dealing with a love letter to the art form of rapping itself, with Rakim giving light testimonies about his career and his relationship with Eric B. as he continually performs his methods of mental alchemy. He uses sequences like “They want to know how many rhymes I have ripped and wrecked/But research has never found all of the pieces yet/Scientists try to solve the context, Philosophers are wondering what’s next” to give the boisterous track its energetic and conscious character. His delivery is absolutely swift and nimble too, as his syllables bounce between the elastic bassline like a rubber band and syncopated rim-shots, as to aid the rhythm of the instrumentals with his internal melodies. Together, they boast a DJ/Producer dynamic that has still influenced combinations like Run The Jewels and Nas & Hit-Boy to this day, and that’s simply because the formula feels timeless. To conclude, it is a classic track that Eric B. & Rakim delivered without breaking a sweat.

Pictured: DJ Eric B. & MC Rakim (William Michael Griffin Jr.) (2018) (Photo by JLN Photography/REX/Shutterstock)

That brings us to the end of roughly another 24 hour period on the blog, and I thank you, as always, for reading what I had to say about Eric B. & Rakim today. Tomorrow, I’ll be reviewing a recent single by an all-female Pop, R&B & Funk trio who became mainstays on the DIY L.A. club circuit after they started jamming together in 2017. They are currently signed to Stones Throw Records and they have a new LP – ‘Excess’ – releasing in June. They will also tour with Tame Impala and Parquet Courts in 2022.

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Today’s Track: Sudan Archives – ‘Home Maker’

April 25, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Sudan Archives (Brittney Denise Parks) in a CN Traveller photoshoot (2018) (Photo by Ross Harris)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and its time for you to put those D-I-Y tools down for a few moments while I deliver yet another daily track on the blog to your eardrums and eye sight, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Also known for her recent cover of Yoko Ono’s ‘Dogtown’ for last month’s ‘Ocean Child: Songs Of Yoko Ono’ compilation album, Sudan Archives (the solo music project of violinist and vocalist Brittney Denise Parks) is a psychedelic soul and experimental R&B artist who has built up a reputation amongst the internet music community with her well-received blending of organic, African-inspired instrumentation with more futuristic, electronic music elements. She is yet to follow up on her debut album, 2019’s ‘Athena’, which included the fantastic single ‘Confessions’. Nonetheless, her resume includes the headline artist slot for the Stones Throw Showcase at the South By Southwest cultural festival earlier this year. Parks has studied ethnomusicology at Passadena City College, she has performed as part of a string quartet and she has earned plenty of support from sources like BBC Radio 6 Music, KEXP, The Guardian and The Quietus. Her latest single – ‘Home Maker’ – is an exploration of the bliss which Parks can feel in her domestic life, and it was prompted by her emotions when moving from Los Angeles to her place of birth in Cincinnati, Ohio. Let’s watch the Jocelyn Anquetil-directed music video for this below.

Parks is set to perform live at the All Points East Festival in London this August, and, talking about the single’s themes of approaching the mundanity of domestic chores by re-imagining them as dream-like activities set to a lush, Utopian background, she says, “It took nesting – building a home, investing in partners that were worth my investment – to shake my anxiety and depression”, explaining, “For me, homemaking is a service to mental health and coping with fear and isolation. This song is about the effort put into making a relationship work and giving love a place to live”, in her press release. The opening has a darker tone than expected, as Parks recites a rhythmic series of lyrics like “Only bad b**ches in my trells/And baby, I’m the baddest” and “I’ve just got a wall mount for my plants/And hoping that they’ll thrive around the madness” with a sturdy Hip-Hop deliver that contrast the warmth of urging a partner to be around you at your lowest times with the darkness of cultivating a nest of your own self-doubt. Shifts between utter confidence with later lyrics like “Won’t you step inside my lovely cottage/Feels so green, it feels like f***ing magic” and self-created uncertainty with other lyrics like “My mood’s been real sloppy/I cry when I’m alone” that feel confessional in mood while self-accepting in total as she concedes her issues with mental health, and these shifts similarly show contrasting qualities between self-assured pride and self-loathing jabs. It is also quite interesting when “I’m a home maker” is made to sound like “I’m a heart breaker” in the chorus, as it shows that she’s conjuring up a seductive vision of home life despite nothing explicit being argued, while the more cheerful sections effectively banish any thought of anxiety. One of the big highlights is the bridge where, elevated by percussive hand-claps and the occasionally sweeping string, Parks chants the refrain of “Do you not feel at home when you’re with me” as she goes full throttle into Nu-Disco mood with the Jazz influence. The rest of the track’s instrumentation soundtracks her journey to discovering self-worth, through all of her trials and tribulations mentally, in similar ways. We start off with a high-Bass synth that evolves into a smoother Synth groove punctuated by glistening Keys and the rare strum of a rhythm guitar, which is all based around the programmed drums too, before the bridge allows us to breathe a sigh of relief with its more upbeat qualities. Overall, ‘Home Maker’ is a truly excellent new single that evokes a sense of really inviting us into her world, while feeling diverse enough to tell a loose narrative and feeling experimental with its blend of different genres, proving that she’s capable of bending genre rules to meet her needs.

Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Home Maker’ (Single) (Released on March 16th, 2022) (via Stones Throw Records)

Thank you for checking out my latest post on the blog, and don’t forget how much that your support has meant to me today, as I just reminded you of it. I’ll be back tomorrow for more music-related musings as we review one of the latest singles by an emerging indie punk 3-piece formed in Glasgow and London born out of a shared interest in unconventional songwriting. They have received support from DIY, The Line Of Best Fit and Amazing Radio. The group have over 2k monthly Spotify listeners.

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Today’s Track: Neil Frances – ‘Dancing’

April 21, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Jordan Feller (Drums/Synths) and Marc Gilfrey (Samples/Producer) (2022) (Photo by Victoria Smith)

Good Morning to you! My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has come time to shine your favourite pair of dancing shoes before we get invested in yet another daily track on the blog, because it is always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Saying “We like the idea of our music sound-tracking people’s weekends” to Karen Gree of NME in a recent interview, Neil Frances is not a solo artist – but rather the Los-Angeles based Alternative Soul duo of Sydney-born musician Jordan Feller and Southern California native producer Marc Gilfrey, who have named their debut studio album ‘There Is No Neil Frances’ to illustrate the fact. Out now via Nettwerk Music Group, the LP was recorded in Echo Park Studio over the past year and it follows the loose narrative of an insect who is trying to find its place in a utopian dreamscape. Exploring a wide assortment of Alternative Pop and Experimental House sounds on previous releases like 2018’s ‘Took A While’ EP and 2021’s ‘Stay Strong, Play Long’ EP, Neil Frances met in New York and began the project in 2016 with their intention of creating honest and authentic music. The duo have opened up a sold-out show for SG Lewis at The Shrine. They have also supported the likes of Jungle, Unknown Mortal Orchestra and Poolside on tours across the US. The duo will also be performing at the Shabang Live Music & Arts Festival, WonderStruck Festival and Firefly Music Festival throughout 2022 as well, and so there’s a handful of places that you can find them love if you thoroughly enjoy the new album like I have, which features contributions by Benny Sings and GRAE. Give ‘Dancing’ a listen below.

Neil Frances have gained support from KCRW, Under The Radar, Magnetic, Flood and Brooklyn Vegan in the past few years, and their own cover version of Stardust’s ‘Music Sounds Better Than You’ has amassed over 70 million streams. Explaining the concept behind their latest outing, the duo say, “Our new album is about self-realization and becoming the person that you dream of. The concept is that we are insects on Earth who ascend into outer space to become divas at a galactic ball”, in their descriptive press statement. As the ninth track on the long-player, ‘Dancing’ marks a transition point into more accessible sounds that seem easier to groove to, compared to the slower build of the earlier tracks, with it’s silky and smooth Nu-Disco vibe. An airy, gently processed lead vocal mixes together with the World Fusion-based Drums in the opening as atmospheric lyrics like “As the sea comes speaking to me/Time will voice its drift out of key” and “When I see this all to my brain/Tell the lord we’ve trouble where we went” cleanly kick-starts the dense journey of Psych-Funk, Trip Hop and Progressive Soul that flows cohesively throughout the single. A bold, one-note hook of “When dancing is seeking delight” illustrates the themes of the track beautifully in the chorus. Musically, the instrumentation represents an ethereal blend of Future Funk and soft R&B that gets stretched out by effective sampling, light vocals and manipulated sounds to create the slow-burning textures and give the groove a hypnotic quality in the process. The sparse danceability reminds me of ‘The Slow Rush’ by Tame Impala, while the vintage-leaning dance music elements recall back Gilligan Moss to my mind and the calming mood of the soulful vocals makes me reminisce over MNDSGN’s material. There’s an eclectic range of influences in here, but Feller and Gilfrey manage to make the spatial trip through these layers of music their own by developing their 90’s New-Age influences with a neat amount of detail and showing their versatility as producers who are not constrained to one specific genre. Overall, ‘Dancing’ is a song that will make your feet move involuntarily to the rhythm.

Pictured: Neil Frances in a photoshoot for ‘Finding Rhythm’ (2021) (Photo via NorthernTransmissions.com)

That brings us to the end of another roughly 24-hour period on the blog, and I really want to wish you great luck for the rest of your week in return for your generous support. I’m going to be back for ‘New Album Release Fridays’ tomorrow as we turn our attention towards the long-awaited and slightly delayed debut album release by an Australian Psychedelic Rock 4-piece who created their own Lazyfest music festival.

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Way Back Wednesdays: The Knife – ‘Silent Shout’

April 20, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Karin Dreijer (Lead Vocals/Keyboard) and Olof Dreijer (Splicing/Effects/Bass) (2006) (via NPR; press shoot)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has come for us to go retro with a striking piece that will tell you a story of fairly recent history with another entry of ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ on One Track At A Time, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Ever an elusive and dynamic duo, cult Swedish electronic music duo The Knife (Comprised of siblings Karin and Olof Dreijer) were never afraid to, somewhat uninentionally, capture the attention of the mainstream with their dark-leaning blend of Dubstep, EDM, Art-Pop and Psychedelia, also including some slower and darker strains of Hip-Hop and R&B, throughout the years to create music that, although Pop, was more far-reaching and progressive. First gaining an international following through their 2003 album ‘Deep Cuts’, the duo managed their own record company – Rabid Records – throughout their years of activity between 1999 and 2014. They were known for donning their Venetian masks to hide their faces in many public appearances, and they have won a number of Swedish Grammis awards despite refusing to attend the ceremonies. Although the duo decided to call it a day and disband in 2014, Karin started her own solo project Fever Ray in 2009, while Olof performs as a DJ under the monikers of DJ Coolof and Oni Ayhun. Last year, The Knife celebrated their 20th anniversary by announcing a range of re-issues on Vinyl and concert streams including BTS footage of their various album’s development. ‘Silent Shout’ – their third LP and arguably most well-received release – was among the works being featured. Let’s remember the title single below.

‘Silent Shout’ spawned four singles and the music video for the title track, along with some of the promo photos doing the rounds of the album’s press campaign, were equally inspired by the works of German-American animator Oskar Fischinger and the ‘Black Hole’ series of comic books created by the American cartoonist Charles Burns. This was also a highly influential release – with fellow artists like Lykke Li, Niki and The Dove, Tove Lo and Denmark’s MØ picking up on The Knife’s Dubstep-influenced blend of Dark Electronica and subversive Dance music rather noticeably in the years following its release in 2006. ‘Silent Shout’ – the title track – is an amalgamation of the record’s club-driven musicality and rewarding lyricism, as the deep House-leaning anthem starts off with a drawing set of Synths that evoke a Sci-Fi aesthetic as they waver along to a chilling, unearthly electronic backdrop of multi-tracked Keys and brooding Drums. A barely audible vocal comes in shortly, which also evokes a ghostly – not to mention a slightly haunting – atmosphere at times as the processed vocals are crashed through the ringer of digital manipulation. The severe distortions of Karin’s lyrics create a daring and jarring presence that pulsates from the mid-tempo opening to the early 90’s Techno and Trance qualities of the slowly bubbling outroduction, telling a narrative of a life gone awry that feels tense and high-octane while suiting the template of unpredictable Pop that shapes the rest of the full-length album. The lyrics give the tempo a slightly melodic uplift with their robotic feel, but the rich electronic backdrop incorporates a wide-ranging series of Lo-Fi Hip Hop and Dark Ambient elements, especially in how the reverb keeps the Drums and Synths feeling grounded, without overstating their direct influences. Overall, ‘Silent Shout’ represents some of The Knife’s most consistent and layered work, both in terms of the heightened production and the forward-thinking concept, from their golden years. The stunning title track marries elastic vocals and cosmopolitan instrumentation to a perfectionist level and there’s clearly a valid reason why it is remembered very fondly.

Pictured: Vinyl bundle of ‘Deep Cuts’ (Released on January 17th, 2003) (via Rabid Records)

Thank you for checking out my latest blog post and supporting my creativity, as you have no idea how much that it means to me to see some love being registered for the site. I’ll be back tomorrow, as always, to do ‘Thursday’ with a cheerful dance track by a Los Angeles-based Alternative Soul duo with a confusing name who, originally formed in Chicago, met in 2012. Their debut LP is out now via Nettwerk Music Group.

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Today’s Track: EARTHGANG – ‘All Eyes On Me’

April 18, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Olu (aka Johnny Venus) & WowGr8 (aka Doctur Dut) (2022) (Photo by Jordan Payne/Rolling Stone)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time to wipe the chocolate from those Eggs off of your face for a few moments as we listen to yet another daily track on the blog, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! The music video for ‘All Eyes On Me’ has recently surpassed over one billion views on YouTube, a great result for the Atlanta-based Hip Hop duo of Earthgang, which is comprised of southern rappers Olu (aka Johhny Venus) and WowGr8 (aka Doctur Dut – who was born as Eian Parker) who were co-founders of the Spillage Village collective which also includes JID, Hollywood JB, JordxnBryant, 6LACK, Mebera and Benji. Earthgang mostly feels like a side project for the two creatives, who have released a trilogy of EP’s and one major album on the Dreamville Records label that fellow rapper J. Cole heads. The duo released a few singles like ‘American Horror Story’, ‘Aretha’ and ‘Erykah’ to showcase the diversity of subjects being disected throughout the record, but ‘All Eyes On Me’ seems to be one of the most symbolic examples of their new album’s sound and core values. ‘Ghetto Gods’ – their second studio album – has received positive acclaim from publications like AllMusic, Exclaim, NME and Rolling Stone, along with consistent radio airplay from KEXP, making their top ten list of albums being featured regularly on their DJ’s shows. It was produced by Kawan “KP” Prather and SinceThe80’s, and it features a varied range of guest collaborators too. Among these names are people like CeeLo Green, Baby Tate, Future, JID, Ari Lennox, and more. Check out ‘All Eyes On Me’ below.

Referencing the hardships that everyone has been dealing with throughout the pandemic, such as the loss of jobs and the missed opportunities in our lives due to the long-term effects of recent years for their music video, Olu and WowGr8 encourage us to enjoy the most profound things in life while celebrating their survival as black people in America. An effective opening sets the scene with lyrics like “Warriors die, but they live in the sky/I’ve never seen a Gucci watch in my future, sign of the times” that Olu spits out to reference the financial difficulties that many have been struggling through. WowGr8 tells his side of the coin in the next verse, as he raps about taking care of his family despite personal issues in order to tell a larger narrative of the ‘target’ that is placed on the back of his community and the judgment that black people are still constantly subjected to within the environment. The chorus brings together the themes of poverty, addiction, police brutality and prejudice in the legal system with an upbeat spin anyways, as the pair shout us out with sequences like “You survived last year/Get your hands up” and “I know that money tight, that slimmy check light/I should stash some, but we gon’ ball for the night” that illustrates the point of living for today and not showing an overload of concern for tomorrow. The rougher topics of racism, tragedy and horror stories from the hood are still gently crammed into it, but the general vibe is a more relatable and uplifting one overall. These lyrical musings play out to the calming tune of hi-hat’s, chirping backing vocals and an 808 knock that creates a mellow groove throughout, and the duo’s production has a similar energy that drives the emotional, booming Bass beats forwards as the two celebrate their simple achievements of chasing your dreams in a world full of creatives that is plagued by external struggles, and I can see why the track has found so much popularity recently because the points being made are rather universal, but they still feel deep enough to stand out a little bit. I’m not sure that I would revisit it hugely often because it is straightforward, but the verses feel very conscious and the chorus has a catchy energy to it, which makes it feel engaging despite clearly being influenced by mainstream trap. An important act of just patting yourself on the back.

Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘GHETTO GODS’ (LP/Album) (Released on Febraury 25th, 2022) (via Dreamville Records)

That brings us to the end of another roughly 24 hour period, and the end of another daily post on the blog. Thank you for showing me your support as always, and I’ll be back tomorrow to review a single from an upcoming new album being released by a Canadian singer-songwriter, of Serbian heritage, who is based in London. She has recorded two sessions for Marc Riley’s show on BBC Radio 6 Music, and she recorded a cover version of King Crimson’s ‘I Talk To The Wind’ as a charity single in 2020. Monkeybiz, a website, have described her previous album as “a beautiful work of art”.

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Today’s Track: Yunè Pinku – ‘DC Rot’

April 14, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Yunè Pinku in promotional artwork for the ‘Bluff’ EP (2022) (Photo Credit: Joshua Onabowu)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has come for me to get typing up for yet another daily track on the blog, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Teen Techno music producer Yuné Pinku is an emerging name in the alternative dance music community with a love for Madonna and Billy Joel drawing from her influences of 90’s Acid House and classic UKG recordings. Her sturdy profile includes a collaboration with Australian experimental music producer Logic1000 for the track ‘What You Like’ from 2021. She has also been co-signed by Joy Orbison, who invited her to contribute a guest mix for his residency on BBC Radio 1 last year. The 19-year-old artist has her roots found in Malaysia and Ireland, and you can hear her most recent work through her debut EP release – ‘Bluff’ – which is out now via PLATOON. She says, “Bluff is about letting go and reeling in, finding your feet in the night life world. I think this song is kind of an ode to London night life and it’s a song I think really sums up my feeling of the good times I had as a teenager in London, but also with the slight paranoia of the danger that exists in the night world”, when explaining her experiences of carving out her niche as a bedroom pop producer in the EDM world. If you live in London, you can also catch her playing at The Bermondsey Social Club for her debut headline show appearance on April 29h. The penultimate single to be lifted from the EP is ‘DC Rot’, and the music video acts as an ode to the homemade skateboarding reels of the 00’s. It stars her sister Faith – who also happens to be a pro skater. Let’s check it out below.

Acknowledging her passion for the craft of Skateboarding in Synth-heavy style on ‘DC Rot’, the London-based DJ says, “DC Rot is an exploration of a year and all the things you can do in one”, adding, “Whether it’s coming out of hibernation and getting older, experiencing in excess whether that be negative or positive. Putting yourself out there and sometimes getting hurt, but just going on a pilgrimage of all the things you can and can’t do. In this case, a motif is skate culture hence the title DC Rot, it can be such a freeing culture but can be pretty shakey at other times, constantly shifting”, in her attached notes. ‘DC Rot’ captures the vibe of a 00’s throwback like Peggy Gou and Park Hye Jin, balancing out a multi-tude of wavering beats and interchangeable grooves that are initially built from dissonant piano house keys and a robust kick drum sequence, while Pinku’s nonchalant vocals recite melodic lyrics like “Funky baby on the clock/Vodka tonic, 3 ‘o’ clock” and “3 more lover, down with hot/I can’t not see you enough” with a hazy, relaxed feel that makes the EDM-driven track feel like a suitable accompaniment to an evening where you are preparing for a night out. The phased-out breakbeats and the crystalline synths make for an intriguing contrast to the conversational, gently spoken-sung delivery of the vocals. This successful blurs any idea that Pinku is placing herself into a box of specific genre conventions, and the gleaming warmth of Pinku’s production manages to make the melodic progression feel quite futuristic. Her voice, meanwhile, sighs and demures magnetically to draw you into her sonic pallete before the pace spirals more uncontrollably. The pipe harmonies and the Chill Hop-oriented breakbeats pull the scene back on course later, creating a sense of unpredictable layering that feels reflective of Pinku’s lyrical themes of expressing her perceived loss of purpose in life outside of the night club’s doors. Charming and refreshing, ‘DC Rot’ shows that Pinku has the talent to disregard old traits and step into a more futuristic sound instead, while carrying herself as more than just a monetisable project with her more gripping statement of intent creatively.

Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Bluff’ (EP) (Released on April 1st, 2022) (via PLATOON)

That brings me right to the end of another daily post, and thank you for continuing to support the site every day! I’ll be back tomorrow, where it’s shaping up to be a ‘Good Friday’ because there’s another entry of ‘New Album Release Fridays’ in store for you. We’ll be previewing the new solo album from a Tom Petty and Neil Young-influenced rock star known for his work as the former lead guitarist of The War On Drugs, if you’d like to join me then. He also co-created ‘Lotta See Lice’ with Courtney Barnett in 2017.

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Way Back Wednesdays: Betty Davis – ‘Come Take Me’

April 6, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Betty Davis in an unknown official photoshoot (date n/a) (Photo via The Vinyl Factory/Baron Wolfman)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for us to go retro for ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ on the blog, which helps me to fulfill my goal of writing up about a different piece of music every day! We’re going to be remembering Betty Davis today, a North Carolina-born singer-songwriter who made an erotic string of Afro-Funk, R&B, Soul and rock-tinged Blues albums during the 1970’s. Davis was also known for her sexually provocative lyricism and her flamboyant live performances and, although she never became a household name, she developed a cult following and she has been cited as an influence by contemporary artists like Janelle Monae, Outkast and Jamila Woods, as well as fellow icons like Prince and Grace Jones, for her experimental blend of genres. Davis wrote, arranged and produced all of her own music in her time, a rarity for any female artist, yet alone a Black woman, during her era. She started out as a model, appearing in magazines like Glamour and Seventeen and working with designers, before she became the second wife of the legendary trumpeter Miles Davis. Although their marriage ended after a year due to implied abuse, she personally introduced him to Jimi Hendrix and Cream. She also penned material that got The Commodores signed to Motown Records. Davis sadly left us, aged 77, in February in Homestead, Pensylvania – where she had lived since her childhood – after being diagnosed with cancer a week prior. At one point, Marc Bolan of T-Rex fame encouraged her to write music for herself and she took that advice to heart when her self-titled debut studio album was released in 1973. Originally released by Just Sunshine Records (an upstart label), the record preceded three more solo albums and it got a CD and Vinyl re-issue in 2007 via Light In The Attic Records. She enlisted the help of The Pointer Sisters, Neil Schon, Sylvester and more guest contributors to bring the distinctive record to life and my focus track – ‘Come Take Me’ – was previously an unreleased track until 15 years ago, when it was included on special editions of her self-titled LP. Get a better idea of her sound with the cut below.

Her AllMusic profile describes Betty Davis as “a wildly flamboyant Funk diva with few equals… [who] combined the gritty emotional realism of Tina Turner, the futurist fashion sense of David Bowie and the trend-setting flair of Miles Davis”, according to the website, and so the music world continues to feel the effects of her tragic loss earlier in the year. ‘Come Take Me’ feels like textbook Betty Davis at her finest and most distinct, although the Vinyl re-issue of her entire back catalogue felt as though it was long overdue before the mid-00’s and it had not happened properly yet. That said, if you like the Jazz-tinged Psychedelia of Sly & The Family Stone, the loose Funk influences of Beck’s ‘Midnite Vultures’ era and his unconventional song structures, and the aggressive delivery of 70’s Rock ‘N’ Roll stalwarts, this one is for you. The intro feels a little unorthodox, before the guitar stabs and the wonky bassline comes in, with Davis croaking lyrics about not disrupting the rhythm and treating a lover right albeit with a frenzied and rather crazy attitude. The drums progress nicely throughout the track, starting off with a slow and steady vibe, before controlling the rhythm with a more frantic pace. Davis recites her lyrics with an instructive growl in her voice that complements the unapologetically Funk production of the track, where the warbling vocals carry the wobbling guitars and the trickling fusion of the Motown-esque Bass and Drums to create a rather irresistible groove. It doesn’t sound too out of date and although the songwriting may sound dated, Davis’ imagination of combining then-contemporary Blues-Rock sensibilities with creative, provocative explorations of lust, desire and sexuality in her howling vocals and erotic Jazz/Funk melodies is still there. Davis was a class act who was ahead of her time. The wide world wasn’t ready for her.

Pictured: Betty Davis in an official erotic photoshoot (date n/a) (Photo by NewYorker.com/Native Voice Films)

That’s all for now! Just to let you know that if you enjoyed today’s tribute to Betty Davis, a re-issue for her final album is also planned to be happening through her label sometimes in 2022. Thank you for checking out my latest post because your support is always highly appreciated, and I’ll be shifting our attention back to new music releases tomorrow with a review of a recent single by a South London-based indie rock band who will be releasing their self-titled debut album via Dan Carey’s Speedy Wunderground label on April 29th. They have performed at festivals including Green Man Festival, SWN Festival in Cardiff, and Fred Perry’s All Our Tomorrow’s live Festival.

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