EDM

Today’s Track: Fasme – ‘ICI’

December 7, 2021 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Fasme (aka Tom Ferreira) playing a live DJ set at Gaîté Lyrique, Paris (2020) (Photo by Underscope TV)

Good Morning to you! You are reading the words of Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for some big room melancholy that comes courtesy of 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! Said ‘big room melancholy’ is one niche that the Belfast-formed dance duo of Bicep (Matthew McBriar & Andrew Ferguson) have become a pair of unofficial kings of, scoring Best British Group and Best New Artist nominations at last year’s BRIT Awards for their concoction of Italo-inspired Electronica and multi-layered Breakbeat production. However, the duo have set a few new parameters for curatorial duties with the launch of their appropriately titled imprint label, Feel My Bicep. Their first signee is the Paris-born and Nantes-based experimental electronic dance music producer Tom Ferreira, who releases his music under the moniker of Fasme. Having caught the attention of the big-league’s Bicep when he released the ‘Stretched World’ EP last April, Bicep found ‘ICI’ on YouTube and so began playing Ferreira’s music in projects like a Friday Guest Mix for Mary Anne Hobbs on BBC Radio 6 Music and the duo’s own FMB radio podcast on Apple Music. Fasme has recently supported them on tour in October and he performed a live DJ set at Sarcus Festival in France in late September. Ferreira has said that “Fasme” is a nickname that his aunt gave him at her house during the summer one year. He takes his style from the Braindance, IDM and Techno Ambient scenes of the 00’s and he has named acts like RX 101, Binary Digit, James Shinra, David Harleydson and EOD as his influences. ‘ICI’ is taken from the new ‘Home’ EP which he released in late October via Feel My Bicep, of course. Check it out.

Bicep, as the co-managers of the Feel My Imprint indie EDM sub-label, writes that “his melodic sound is created on analog synths, evolving between Acid, Electro and Braindance” on the Bandcamp listing page for Ferreira’s recent ‘Home’ extended play, adding that Ferreira describes himself as “more of a live performer than a studio man” in the product’s description page. A track that reminds me of Aphex Twin’s ‘Druqks’ double album released in the early 00’s of misfit recordings with it’s set of minimalist Classical influences and Tin Man-esque Acid Jazz wiggling production that aims to conjure up some ‘Alien-like’ qualities overall, ‘ICI’ is a mid-tempo Trance serving that wants to provide a great example of why Fasme is a decent fit for Bicep’s Feel My Bicep label. Thankfully, this is a goal that Ferreira seems talented enough to succeed within, and ‘ICI’ has all the building blocks required to be in place to keep the festival crowds grinning, as well as feeling soft and melancholic enough to please those who would rather listen while tucked into their beds with their headphones at a good volume late at night because the chords never feel too overpowering and the distorted electronic Keys sounds never feel too harsh or aggressive for the scene either. It has it’s moments of melodicism with some moody chords that take a dark approach to the layered Lo-Fi production and some big emotive Synth hooks, as well as some mechanical electronic drum kit programming that gives the tone of the track a suitable uplift, but it never quite channels these sounds into an explosive track full of beat-driven sounds and plenty of ‘Bro-Step’ energy. Instead, it feels like a more pensive and contemplative wind-down for the end of a long night. A nebulous mix of acidic Synths, heartbroken Piano chords and neat, warm Bass stabs – ‘ICI’ is more concerned with multi-layered Synth loops and powerfully entrancing moments. Overall, ‘ICI’ is an impressive little recording that pulls off the fairly difficult task of making the Bicep-esque rave-ready despondency sound a tad more positively wistful.

Pictured: Fasme (aka Tom Ferreira) photographed for a wertn.com Q&A feature (2020) (Picture via Leviet.org)

That’s all for now! Thank you for checking out my latest post, and we’ll be counting down to Christmas with another festive-themed post featuring a track that left its mark on the niche in 2005. At the time, the track was written and performed by a Philadelphia-based indie rock band, but the project is now the solo work of multi-instrumentalist and producer Alec Ounsworth. The band appeared in the 2008 film ‘The Great Buck Howard’, and David Bowie was famously seen at some of their shows.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/OneTrackAtATim1?fbclid=IwAR2demHDssZESnHDMi6gzTGNZJvdS42Ot930CA9Rttw7n4CJ5nvB8VJbWxE

Today’s Track: Confidence Man – ‘Holiday’

November 18, 2021 — Leave a comment
  • Pictured: Janet Planet, Sugar Bones, Reggie Goodchild and Clarence McGuffie (2019) (Photo via PR)

Good Morning to you! My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for me to ensure that yet another daily track on the blog bursts your eardrums in spirit, because it’s always been my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! A quirky Alternative Dance group, led by the wacky characters of Sugar Bones and Janet Planet, the Brisbane native indie pop band Confidence Man have continued to find success throughout their musical journey since their debut album, ‘Confident Music For Confident People’ brought their dorky concoction of costumed rhythms and lightly acidic beats to the international club circuit in 2018. The band have found themselves performing at many festivals like Splendour In The Grass Festival and Falls Festival, while also remixing the likes of DMA’s, Working Men’s Club and Erasure over the years. They have also received wins and nominations at the AIR Awards, J Awards, National Live Music Awards and Queensland Music Awards over the years since they became active in 2016. Although singles like ‘Does It Make You Feel Good?’ and ‘First Class B**ch’ have filled the gap a little, Confidence Man have just announced their first album in four years. Their second studio album, ‘Tilt’, will be released on April 1st, 2022 via the I OH YOU label. According to a press release, the new album is “fierce, flirty and full of anthems” and listeners “might need to sit down before you hit play”. Back in September, Confidence Man also unveiled an extensive run of rescheduled and new tour dates across the UK and Ireland that will hopefully start in May of next year. The list includes dates in Brighton, Cambridge, Norwich, Nottingham, Edinburgh, Sheffield and more. Before then, let’s book a ‘Holiday’ below.

Talking about the inspiration behind ‘Holiday’ – the Aussie dance outfit’s latest euphoric anthem – Janet Planet stated, “No one tells Confidence Man what to do. Who said a holiday can’t last forever?”, explaining, “Spend big and live free, that’s our motto. And it can be yours too. A vacation is just sunburn at premium prices but a holiday is a state of mind”, in her joint press notes with Sugar Bones. Elaborating on the ideas of holiday and relaxation as a mindset instead of a physical destination, Planet and Bones join their fellow bandmates in conjuring slightly acidic Synth beats and some high tempo Drum rhythms to the tune of lyrics like “Best weed back on the block, I’ll take it” and “When I was a child, I was so naked” that creates the distinctly nerdy and comedic attitude that Confidence Man are known for evoking. The instrumentation continues to add some variety to the proceedings, with a lengthy sequence of backing harmonies in the opening sequence and some 80’s film soundtrack-esque Synth stabs to create silky ambient washings in the closing sequence, continuing to give off a light-hearted and care-free Summer formula. The vocal hooks are super sized, with the likes of “I live it up on the go/I’m getting high, I’m never low” and “Kicking off and I lose control/I’m born to fly/I want it all” being recited quickly, as to match the frivolous energy of the Acid Disco rhythms and neatly aligned basslines. While there’s no subtlety to the vocals, the brief String sections and the stinging Synth stabs are complemented by the floor-filling feel of the sound. A decent reminder that Confidence Man are all about having fun, ‘Holiday’ is a familiar summer anthem to see their own country of Australia throughout the summer months. Due to this ‘summer release’ feel, however, it feels a little odd when you are listening from the rest of the world as the rain gets frequent and the bitterness of the cold keeps sharpening. This also feels a bit more straight-faced than usual from the group than usual, although they’re still donning some Synths that wouldn’t sound out of place on the ‘Top Gun’ soundtrack. Despite not being in season for me, this is still a solid return from Confidence Man. Camp, unique and irreverant, ‘Holiday’ is everything you might want (and expect) from the forward-thinking Australian project.

  • Pictured: Janet Planet and Sugar Bones in a promotional photoshoot (in 2019) (Photo Credit: Zac Bayly)

If you liked the sound of ‘Holiday’, you may like the various other tracks by Confidence Man that have appeared on the blog over the years at various points. If you want something still recent, you can check out my review of ‘First Class B**ch’ here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/10/20/todays-track-confidence-man-first-class-bh/. If that doesn’t mate you feel right, you can see if this ‘Does It Make You Feel Good’ here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/02/26/todays-track-confidence-man-does-it-make-you-feel-good/. Or, for something more in tune with the festive season, you can view their seasonal single ‘Santa’s Comin’ Down The Chimney’ here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2019/12/04/todays-track-confidence-man-santas-comin-down-the-chimney/

  • Pictured: Confidence Man performing at ‘The Great Escape’ (2017) (Photo via Brighton & Hove News)

That’s all for now! I hope that you enjoyed the trip, and thank you for continuing to support my content like this. I’ll be back tomorrow for ‘New Album Release Fridays’, as we divert our attention to an indie rock band from Croydon in South London who have been signed to the Boston-based label Counter Intuitive Records. They have toured in the UK with NOAHFINNCE and they went on a debut headline tour this year.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/OneTrackAtATim1?fbclid=IwAR2demHDssZESnHDMi6gzTGNZJvdS42Ot930CA9Rttw7n4CJ5nvB8VJbWxE

Today’s Track: Maya Jane Coles – “Night Creature”

October 21, 2021 — Leave a comment
  • Pictured: Maya Jane Coles in the official music video for ‘Run To You’ (2021) (Photo via PR/EDM.com)

Good Morning to you! You are reading the words of Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for me to add yet another daily post to my monstrous tally of past uploads, because for the last two years, it has always been my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Today’s track is ‘Night Creature’ – and this aptly titled drum-and-bass tune comes your way from the award-winning Maya Jane Coles, an electronic house music producer and studio engineer who was born in London, and Coles is an icon of the LGBTQ+ music community. Her success is no overnight sensation, however, because Coles has instead spent numerous years playing at festivals and clubs, and she has gained attention from making remixes for the likes of Ella Fitzgerald and Depeche Mode, along with getting sampled by mainstream stars like Nicki Minaj and Katy Perry. Ever since Coles became active in 2006, she has collaborated with names like Tricky, Peaches and Young M.A. on her own original work. Coles has a new album coming out, ‘Night Creature’, which is her first release under her actual name since her ‘Would You Kill (4 Me)’ EP that was issued last year, but she also released her second album under the Nocturnal Sunshine side alias – ‘Full Circle’ – in 2019. She was previously a part of the electronic Dub duo of She Is In Danger with Lena Cullen, and you may also recognize her from her other secondary alias of CAYAM, which she has also released her music under. She confirmed her latest album last month alongside the release of a Triple Single where she shared the mixes ‘Night Creature’, ‘Survival Mode’ and ‘Need’ from her new LP, which sees the light of day on 29th October via her own label, I/AM/ME, and it features guest feature spots from the likes of vocalists Julia Stone, Lie Ning and Claudia Kane, and her frequent collaborator Karin Park, who are all participating on the new 13-track collection of cuts. For Coles, a DJ of Japanese descent, her new record feels like the antidote to our recent collective experiences under Covid-19 restrictions, as the LP will be exploring the allure and energy of the rave experiences which comes to life when the evening gradually turns into night and the light becomes dark. Check out the title track below.

This is spooky season after all, and after performing recent DJ sets at Fabric and Leeds’ Mint Festival late last month, Coles has been building up a sense of terror and dread for next week’s perfectly timed release, explaining about the new LP in a press release, “When it comes to my music-making, I’ve pretty much always been a creature of the night. My creativity tends to work at its best during those peaceful hours when my surroundings are at a standstill and I feel completely in my own world”, before contrasting and comparing with, “Then on the flip side, in the club, the night can shift into the most energetic and ecstatic moments in time” in her press statement. ‘Night Creature’ – the title track of the record – feels like a fitting musical transfer of these ideas, starting off with a mix of twinkling and otherworldly Horn melodies, before the Bass kicks in and the tranquil Synth melodies continue to run through some rougher melodies and a paced increase in aggression. There’s a little distortion to the bassline, which begins with a relatively slow-burning energy before the tempos frequently become more erratic and irregular in their nature. Shimmering patterns in the later portions of the track contrast the more extra-terrestrial themes naturally, as the Techno-inspired drops of Bass rumbles and kick Drum melodies become more versatile and display contrasting moods to the other aspects of the single. It feels like an eclectic dance track that would really benefit from the high energy of the crowds within the European festival circuit, and there’s a rather ominous atmosphere that undercurrents the whole package. Although there’s not a great deal left to say about the track, it certainly feels groovy and danceable in an unconventional way as the Halloween theme fits the harder melodies and the cerebral production, and it is nice how the track never veers into an over-the-top ‘Bro-Step’ style of production, sticking to her roots in club-oriented Techno and rumbling Hyperdub-like, UK-synonymous Dubstep flavours instead. A monster-mash of good ideas, both visually and musically.

  • Pictured: Maya Jane Coles performing a DJ set at Parklife Festival (2015) (Photo by Derek Bremner)

That’s all for today! Thank you for checking out my latest post, and I’ll be back with more posts to celebrate ‘Spooky Season’ next weekend. In the meantime, though, ‘New Album Release Fridays’ is another matter for me to deal with, so feel free to revisit the site tomorrow as we talk about the new LP from a Florida-based musician of Ecuadorian descent whose previous album got a rave review from Pitchfork. He was the recipient of 2019’s Grants To Artists award in music from the Foundation For Contemporary Arts, and he appeared on a tune from Ela Minus’ debut album last year.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/OneTrackAtATim1?fbclid=IwAR2demHDssZESnHDMi6gzTGNZJvdS42Ot930CA9Rttw7n4CJ5nvB8VJbWxE

Today’s Track: Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs – “The Distance”

October 16, 2021 — Leave a comment
Pictured: TEED (Orlando Higginbottom) in an ‘I Can Hear The Birds’ EP shoot (2020) (via Pia Riverola)

Good Morning to you! You’re reading the words of Jacob Braybrooke, and I’ve got a new dance track to jumpstart your weekend for your daily track on the blog, because it has always been my day-to-day pleasure to write about a different piece of music every day! As I teased yesterday, ‘The Distance’ comes to you from a London-born Electronic House producer who I honestly believe is frequently at the top of my own underrated lists. The musician who consistently lives up to that pressure is Orlando Higginbottom – aka Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs – who swept me right off my feet and onto both the dancefloor and the bedroom with 2012’s ‘Trouble’, his major label debut album on Polydor Records. Although he has not released a full-length follow-up album since that year, to say the prehistorically-themed producer has been in hibernation until now would be simply far from the truth. In 2014, he launched the Nice Age cross platform label with a collaborative track featuring Anna Lunoe, and he’s continued to release a string of emotive yet vibrant singles like ‘Energy Fantasy’ and ‘Body Move’ and he even released a breath of fresh air during lockdown last year with his ‘I Can Hear The Birds’ EP, which was immensely enjoyable. I was delighted to hear ‘The Distance’, the title track from a new forthcoming EP that he will be releasing on his Nice Age label on October 27th, which is his first piece of new music since his ‘Heartbreak’ collaboration with Bonobo early last year. He is also a classically trained musician and the son of a former Oxford choir conductor, and he’s been injecting some colour into the UK’s club environments with his music and costumes since his late teens, commenting to Spin that he was looking for a name that “couldn’t be cool, couldn’t be put into some kind of scene that gets hip for six months and then falls out of fashion” in 2015. His 2012 album, ‘Trouble’, also found places in best of year lists compiled by DJ Magazine, iTunes UK, NME and the BBC. Let’s go ‘The Distance’ below.

Higginbottom has kept rather hush-hush about the influences behind his new EP, but his Bandcamp page has been teasing that ‘The Distance’ finds him stripping the sounds back to the core roots of his very early material that he released as mixtapes on the Greco-Roman label in the late 00’s and the early 10’s, where he explored warm Jungle melodies and ambiguous melancholy with a unique twist of emotional, quintessentially English heft of depth. The title track starts off with some chirping birds and a trickling series of Synth lines, with a muted croon about a lost lover from Higginbottom floating nicely over the top, before a more cinematic burst of Bass and some carefully treading Drum beats provide a more melodic and boastful bassline. The rest of his lyrics are delivered quite hazily and nostalgically, with Higginbottom singing quietly about the memories of a past romance of which, however much that he tries to let go and live on, continues to submerge him in memory and youth. There’s certainly a slight hint of nostalgia in his vocal performance that feels small but profound, and it works very smoothly when married by the atmospheric instrumentation and the diverse tones of the electronic production that he creates. The melodies are a little disorienting and they feel fragmented in nature, which fits the themes of temporary pleasure and preserved sentimentality that is explored by the irregular time signatures and the wistful textures of his sound. Overall, ‘The Distance’ is an outstanding tune that continues to cement his status as one of the UK’s most exciting talents over the course of his career, and he lives up to my lofty anticipations once again pretty confidently and easily. It really takes me back to why I enjoyed his work so much in the first place, and that’s because he makes ‘The Distance’ feel like more than just another dance track from one of the UK’s hundreds of electronic music producers. He takes me back to the tone and style of his previous work by recording vocals that sound deliberately shaky and plaintive. They are imperfect, and this gets a wealth of genuine emotional depth across to my ears as the listener. The diffracting melodies feel deep and fractured, yet the Synth lines feel as refreshing as the first rays of sunshine after a pitch black and frosty January night, and the combo of the Drum and Bass sections continue to inject vibrancy and energy into the recording, with a cohesive variation of dance-based genre influences and an archetypal English feel to the harsh, but fair, bleakness of the songwriting. A truly exceptional effort from a genuinely talented and fulfilling, remarkable music creative.

Pictured: Cover Art for ‘The Distance’ (EP) (Available on October 27th, 2021) (via Nice Age Records)

I hope that you enjoyed my latest blog post, and that you feel encouraged to check out some of Orlando Higginbottom’s other work. You can start with a few snippets on my blog, with a short review of his Bonobo-led collaboration for ‘Outlier’ here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/10/06/todays-track-bonobo-totally-enormous-extinct-dinosaurs-heartbreak/. I have also talked about his birdsong EP released in lockdown in 2020, which makes for a refreshing change of pace and it was named my second favourite EP of the year. Sample ‘Los Angeles’ from it here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/08/05/todays-track-totally-enormous-extinct-dinosaurs-los-angeles/

Pictured: TEED with Bonobo (Simon Green) in a ‘Heartbreak’ PR shoot (2020) (Photo by Grants Panier)

Thank you for checking out my blog today, and please feel free to revisit some of the ghosts of Pop-Punk past with me for a fresh new entry in our ‘Scuzz Sundays’ library tomorrow. This week’s entry marks the debut appearance from a Florida Rock group who met at an AP Music Theory class in 2001. They have released five albums to date.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/OneTrackAtATim1?fbclid=IwAR2demHDssZESnHDMi6gzTGNZJvdS42Ot930CA9Rttw7n4CJ5nvB8VJbWxE

Today’s Track: Wayward – “Camden Road”

October 14, 2021 — Leave a comment
  • Pictured: Lawrence Gayle Hayes (Drums/Synths) & Louis Greenwood (Sampling/DJ) (2021) (via PR)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and it is time for me to get typing up for yet another daily track on the blog, because it has always been my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Wayward is the fast-emerging Experimental Electronic music project of the London-based duo Lawrence Gayle Hayes and Louis Greenwood, who have gained acclaim from Pitchfork, Mixmag and Vice. They have worked as A&R’s for Silver Bear Recordings, and released material through the Australia-based Beasts Of No Nation label and Fort Romeau’s Cin Cin Records label, and they have been in the studio with the likes of Ninja Tune’s Park Hye Jin and Grammy-winning producer Skrillex. In March, the pair of producers released their debut LP, ‘Waiting For The World’, which was influenced by Burial’s ‘Untrue’ and they combined Drum & Bass, House, Breakbeat and Ambient elements into a concise record. Their latest release is ‘Sapphire Eyes’, a four track EP which was self-released on September 29th. It was inspired by the rave experiences they had while growing up in London – an ode to nightclubs and community. Let’s spin ‘Camden Road’ below.

Citing influences like Addison Grove, Machine Drum and Overmono for their latest short form release, the duo shared on their own Bandcamp page in a press statement, “If our debut album showcased the more reflective side of our yearning for clubs, and a softer side of the lockdown experience, this EP is the anger, frustration and urgency coming out”, concluding, “Stuck indoors again just wanting to band it out in a club with the intention of making something completely focused on the dance floor” in the notice. Their fourth track on the record, ‘Camden Road’ sticks out amongst the others for the emotive feelings which it shares, coming across to me as more nostalgic than euphoric. It boasts a similar sound to some early 00’s Hyperdub recordings and more recent Footwork releases, where the Synths and the propulsive basslines feel as vibrant as the mixed multi-cultural community that their hometown, which they are paying tribute to, has become known for in recent developments. Their vocals play with escapism, with Lawrence reciting the likes of “So much life, so much fun” and “Festivals in Hungary with black people” with a slightly muted Spoken Word delivery that doesn’t feel massively poetic, and feels grounded in approach instead, with a soft Hip-Hop rhythm and a mumbled tone of speech which fits the wonky production aspects and the very metropolitan aesthetics of London. The rest of the instrumentation goes down a treat too, with a looped Piano melody and light Synth pads creating a gentle opening, before Wayward flip the switch for the big chorus where they replace the light-hearted beats with a more rugged dance style, using some swooping drums and syncopated vocal chops to hit a BPM of around 130, which feels subversive and unpredictable when the earlier melodies are flipped on their head. Overall, I was very impressed with ‘Camden Road’, a modern dance track that has an ability of conjuring up some feelings and visuals for their listeners, a rare technique that greats like Aphex Twin and Burial have achieved in their career. It feels as fresh and lively as the street it is based on – A sprawling, multi-cultural metropolis.

  • Pictured: Cover Art for ‘Sapphire Eyes’ (EP) (Released on September 29th, 2021) (via Self-Released)

That brings us to the end of the page for another day! Thank you for joining me, and I’ll be back tomorrow for ‘New Album Release Fridays’ tomorrow as we take an in-depth look at the soon to be released new LP from a US female Funk, Soul and Alternative R&B singer-songwriter who performed a medley of her hits on an episode of major US talk show ‘The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon’ earlier this year. She completed her studies at USC Thornton School of Music in 2018, and she was also a contestant on ‘American Idol’ in 2014. Her latest album is named after her dog – Juno.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/OneTrackAtATim1?fbclid=IwAR2demHDssZESnHDMi6gzTGNZJvdS42Ot930CA9Rttw7n4CJ5nvB8VJbWxE

Today’s Track: Caribou – “You Can Do It”

October 11, 2021 — Leave a comment
  • Pictured: Dan Snaith (aka Caribou) at a mural to accompany the ‘Suddenly’ press kit (2020) (via PR)

Good Morning to you! My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has come for me to fulfill my everyday challenge of delivering another daily track on the blog, because it is always my day-to-day pleasure to write about a different piece of new music every day! As a PhD degree holder in Mathematics from Imperial College London and as the son and brother of a pair of Mathematicians in his family, the 43-year-old Canadian-born Experimental Electronic Dance music producer Dan Snaith (Primarily known for his main alias of Caribou) has always been known for his very complex patterns and layered Synth work in his compositions across notable releases like 2010’s ‘Sun’ and 2001’s ‘Breaking My Heart’, which landed a spot on Pitchfork’s list of ‘The 50 Best IDM Albums Of All-Time’ in 2017. His latest LP – 2020’s ‘Suddenly’ – earned similar praise from different publications and my humble little blog that your eyes are focusing on right now, earning a spot on my list of the ‘Top 25 Best Albums Of 2020’ late last year. The associated tour for the record, however, was originally set to take place in 2020 before the Covid-19 pandemic reared it’s ugly head into our lives. Snaith’s world tour was postponed again for 2021, before it was later to be indefinitely shelved. Now, the meticulous craftsman has announced that he will indeed be hitting the road in the UK this month and the US in early 2022, and ‘You Can Do It’ is a new single that avid Caribou fans will be hearing across headline festival sets and solo arena shows from Snaith over the course of the next year, as a bonus treat to coincide with the cheerful announcement that was made by Snaith a handful of weeks ago. Snaith has also released music as Manitoba and Daphni, and he has been working with Shynola’s Richard Kenworthy for the official music video that sees adorable pooches catching some frisbees to the beat of Snaith’s mastery. Be reminded that ‘You Can Do It’ below.

Dan Snaith gave a shout out to Migle / Kennel UPE in the description for the music video for ‘You Can Do It’ on YouTube, and the beloved IDM producer made his return to touring with a performance at London’s All Points East festival in late August and he premiered the new track during his set at Green Man Festival over the weekend prior. You can catch Snaith playing some shows in Liverpool, Nottingham, Manchester and a few more locations in the UK later this month, and he’ll be hitting sites in Glasgow, Bristol and Brighton in January 2022, before touring in the US, Canada and Europe across the new year. ‘You Can Do It’ will likely not suprise you if you are familiar with Snaith’s work already, but this is still classic Caribou at his finest. The sparkling lyric of ‘You Can Do It’ is layered over and over again to a brain-dancing degree, before a slowed down ‘Do It’ sequence takes a decent precedence over the repetition, with the continuous vocals becoming more garbled and warped as the literal distillation of the hook continues along. The warm and 90’s-leaning instrumentation makes up for the lack of variety in the songwriting for the diverse array of moods that it creates alone, however, and the rippling sentiments of the echoed vocals are spread across the coherent duration of the tune with a signature heartfelt sensibility and gets packed into the euphoric sound of a festival-ready dance hit. The energetic delivery of the Synth arrangements whip up a tone that feels celebratory and jubilant, while the sound strikes a fairly similar style to 2020’s ‘Suddenly’ where the tempo changes feel drastic, but they feel light-hearted and boundless in flow. Overall, while the sugar-colored theme lacks a little inspiration, the production is faultless and the warmly lit mood sounds appealing to a diverse group of audiences. He is ace – is our Dan Snaith.

  • Pictured: Dan Snaith in a PR photoshoot for a ‘Stereogum’ Q&A interview (2014) (Photo via PR)

Dan Snaith is a familiar face to us on the blog, and so his music has been covered a few times on the site before. His ‘Suddenly’ single landed a place on Pitchfork’s list of ‘The 30 Best Electronic Music Releases Of 2020’, and made an appearance on the blog here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/02/28/todays-track-caribou-never-come-back/. You can also read my thoughts on ‘You & I’ here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2019/12/09/todays-track-caribou-you-i/, and check out his initial comeback track ‘Home’ here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2019/10/28/todays-track-caribou-home/

  • Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Suddenly’ (LP) (Released on February 28th, 2020) (via Merge Records)

That brings us to the bottom of the page for another day! Thank you for checking out my latest blog post, and I’ll be back tomorrow for an in-depth look at some brand new music from an Essex-born Neo-Soul singer-songwriter who grew up playing the Celtic Harp – and she attended the Purcell School For Young Musicians with Mica Levi.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/OneTrackAtATim1?fbclid=IwAR2demHDssZESnHDMi6gzTGNZJvdS42Ot930CA9Rttw7n4CJ5nvB8VJbWxE

Today’s Track: DJ Seinfeld (feat. Stella Explorer) – “She Loves Me”

September 27, 2021 — Leave a comment
  • Pictured: DJ Seinfeld in an official photoshoot for the ‘Galaxy’ EP (2019) (Photo via TicketArena.co.uk)

Good Morning to you! My name is Jacob Braybrooke and, as you’ve probably figured out by now, it is time for me to get typing up for another daily track on the blog, since its always been my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! DJ Seinfeld is the alias of the Swedish House music producer Armand Jakobsson, who now finds himself being based in Germany after rising to prominence a few years ago as a key part of the new wave of Lo-Fi electronic music producers alongside names like Saint Pepsi and Ross From Friends around the time of 2016. He’s been known for releasing his electronic dance material under names like Birds Of Sweden and Rimbaudian, and he is the founder of the Young Ethics indie label. Jakobsson has since played DJ sets on the stages of The Warehouse Project and Sonar By Night, he has curated one of BBC Radio 1’s ‘Essential Mix’ sets, and, to top it all off, none other than the legendary tinkerer Aphex Twin has been known to play Jakobsson’s track ‘Sakura’ in one or two of his live DJ sets. The latest release from Jakobsson is ‘Mirrors’, his first solo album in four years following his 2017 debut, ‘Time Spent Away From U’, which is out now on Ninja Tune. It’s an expansion of the style that he explored on 2019’s ‘Galaxy’ EP and 2020’s ‘Mezcalita’ EP, with the ten-track project being recorded between Berlim and Malmo, and leaning into the realms of Ambient Electronica and late-90’s Dubstep for inspiration. The album is titled ‘Mirrors’ as a reference to how the producer views a reflection of himself in the mirror and how the throes of a nasty breakup in recent times has changed these internal perceptions. He tells us in a press release, “On this album, I wanted to retain a lot of the raw emotionality that brought people to my music in the first place, but I also wanted to become a much better producer. It’s been an arduous process but it’s a real statement of where I’m at as a producer and person right now”. The new LP includes a stunning opening track, ‘She Loves Me, which finds the experimental creative working with the emerging South African-Swedish vocalist Stella Explorer. Check it out below.

Speaking of the collaboration, Stella Explorer said in a press statement, “The fine line between self-affirmation and paranoia is alluring to me, and in music it’s always present. It’s deceptive, and lyrics can change meaning at any time”, before expanding on the duality that she feels in ‘She Loves Me’ by writing, “I think the fewer words you use, the more they shift and by combining that with different intentions like you do when you collaborate with someone (like this), it makes the outcome exciting” for her press notes. For me, as a listener, ‘She Loves Me’ highly reminds me of Burial – not necessarily in the sound itself, but the way that Seinfeld selects a very small snippet of an emotive vocal and twists the context and textures of the piece, and he has a way of saying a lot without really saying anything at all, which is similar to the techniques that Hyperdub legend Burial built his career on using as his niche. ‘She Loves Me’ are the first words that can be heard on the new album, and it sets the stage going forward by exploring diverse, new avenues of his production style. The vocals feel confused and drowsy, with lyrics like “With you, so much time/Still pieces of my mind” and “She loves me/Why does she?” morphing their way around skittering Trap beats and sparkling Synth textures that evoke a little bit of Seinfeld’s Garage roots, but they largely feel focused on a bittersweet melancholy. Lyrics like “She loves me/Yes she does” float seemlessly above a meticulous amount of saturated tape effects that evoke feelings of lost nostalgia, and the more euphoric combination of gentle lo-fi synths and very thick basslines mix the nice energy that runs underneath with an inescapable feeling of change, and a tightrope between longing and reminiscence. Overall, this track was a real suprise, and I find myself to be absolutely loving it whenever I hear it. I wasn’t quite as keen on some of Seinfeld’s other material with the more Big Beat-based Garage sounds, but I love how Seinfeld plays with the meaning of vocals on this track, and the contributing vocals from Stella Explorer adds some even more delightfully clunky emotion to the formation. This one is a real treat.

  • Pictured: DJ Seinfeld producing an ‘After Party Playlist’ mix for BBC Radio 1 (2018) (via BBC.com)

If you loved what you just heard, you may be pleased to know that some other DJ Seinfeld-related content has been posted on the blog before. Check out what I thought of ‘Electrician’, a single previously released from the ‘Galaxy’ EP here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/01/28/todays-track-dj-seinfeld-electrician/

  • Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Mirrors’ (LP) (Released on September 3rd, 2021) (via Ninja Tune)

That’s all for now! Thank you for checking out my latest blog post, and I’ll be back tomorrow for more of the same shtick. My next pick comes from one half of one of my favourite rap duo’s in quite a long time, who have released great projects together via Mello Music Group. You may have caught them at Sound City in Ipswich last weekend.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/OneTrackAtATim1?fbclid=IwAR2demHDssZESnHDMi6gzTGNZJvdS42Ot930CA9Rttw7n4CJ5nvB8VJbWxE

New Album Release Fridays: 박혜진 Park Hye Jin – “I Need You”

September 10, 2021 — Leave a comment
  • Pictured: Cover Art for ‘Before I Die’ (LP) (Released on September 10th, 2021) (via Ninja Tune)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and it is finally time for me to whet your appetite up for one of the weekend’s biggest new album releases, because it is always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of new music every day! ‘New Album Release Fridays’ is the feature that really does what it says on the tin, and this week’s helping of new long-players include fresh servings from the likes of modern West London-based modern Rock ‘N’ Roll unit shifters The Vaccines, Welsh legends Manic Street Preachers, the Montreal-based Experimental R&B producer Homeshake (I’ve got more on that one coming up shortly on the blog), quirky Melbourne-based Pub Punk revivalists Amyl & The Sniffers, and Margate’s 80’s-inspired Lo-Fi Pop crooner Art School Girlfriend (Refer back to Tuesday on the site for more on that one). However, my personal pick for this week’s iteration of the feature comes from Park Hye Jin, a Seoul-born DJ from South Korea who now spends her time between Los Angeles and Australia, who you may remember as a familiar face on the blog in the past, since she appeared on my ‘Best EP’s Of The Year’ list with her second EP release – ‘How Can I’ – released last June on the excellent and forward-thinking Ninja Tune record label. I was not alone in handing her that praise because Billboard and The Guardian also included that release on their year-end best lists, and Park Hye Jin has continued to earn decent reviews from publications like Rolling Stone, Exclaim and Hypebeast, and she has been played on the radio by stations like KEXP, KCRW and SiriusXMU. Her first full-length album recording, ‘Before I Die’, has been released via Ninja Tune today. Check out her latest single – ‘I Need You’ – below.

A fan-pleasing Experimental House record from Park Hye Jin, ‘Before I Die’ builds on her pre-existing sonic palette, as she draws on a range of Ambient, Downtempo Hip-Hop and Chillstep influences that she has pulled into an ambitious 15-track release that was entirely self-written and self-produced by her, and it includes some guest spots from the likes of Blood Orange, Nosaj Thing, Clams Casino and Take A Daytrip. A soothing single that leaves the typical slow-winding melodious chimes of Park Hye Jin’s low-pitched vocals for a more intimate space of a softer and low-lit delivery, ‘I Need You’ feels more akin to a West Coast 90’s Hip-Hop artist with House influences than having a chillout atmosphere that thrives on sustained chords and ethereal percussion. She uses a rather direct form of emotional expression, simply delivering the line of “I Need You” in both English and Korean vocabulary throughout the tight three minute duration of the new track, with a sense of longing in her voice that allows for her to fully conjure up a mood, which, in essence, totally plays up to her strengths. Her lyricism feels ‘grounded’ enough, but they never feel too dark or foreboding to put your mind at much unrest, and the skittering breakbeat dressing gives the main melody a sense of propulsive, melodic percussion for Jin’s delivery to bounce off. It’s always been a balancing act for Hye Jin’s music, where she has a sense of aggression that feels moody enough but the synth tones have a more upbeat quality to ensure that her beats never feel too rigid in character for her own good, and so there’s a decent level of tenderness to be enjoyed on ‘I Need You’, although determining whether this style feels suitable for an extended album listen may feel questionable at times, since her simple formula runs the risk of being a bit tedious at times. ‘I Need You’ really works as a standalone single, however, and so this may not be something to feel greatly concerned about. There’s a soulful approach to her songwriting that calls back to Little Dragon or RHYE, and the airy electronic sounds dabble in a sensual manner that’s often reserved for Bedroom Pop, and so there is enough variety to keep things moving. A plentiful exercise in digital tightrope walking.

  • Pictured:박혜진 Park Hye Jin performing at a live DJ set (2019) (Photo Credit: The VinylFactory.com)

As mentioned earlier, Park Hye Jin is no real stranger to the site, and I initially caught up on her steam in the industry with ‘Like This’ last July. Find out more here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/07/10/todays-track-%EB%B0%95%ED%98%9C%EC%A7%84-park-hye-jin-like-this/

  • Pictured: Cover Artwork for “How Can I” (EP) (Released on June 26th, 2020) (via Ninja Tune)

That’s all for now! Thank you for reaching the end of the page with me, and I’ll be back tomorrow for more of the same fresh content, as we turn our attention to one of the most high-profile recent Hip-Hop releases from a bigger name, and this release comes from a legendary 90’s New York-born rapper who has released seven Platinum-certified albums over the course of a career that spans over 25 years, and he used to record demos for Large Professor. Last year, he won the Grammy award for ‘Best Rap Album’ and he’s recently released a direct sequel to that record through his own label.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/OneTrackAtATim1?fbclid=IwAR2demHDssZESnHDMi6gzTGNZJvdS42Ot930CA9Rttw7n4CJ5nvB8VJbWxE

Today’s Track: Mochipet – “Godzilla League Of Legends”

August 19, 2021 — Leave a comment
  • Pictured: Cover Art for ‘Godzilla Resurgence’ (EP) (Released on May 11, 2021) (via Daly City Records)

Good Morning to you! You are reading the text of Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has come around again for me to get typing up for your 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! You’ve probably read the title of today’s track, and it looks pretty absurd, but this is a little EP release that I genuinely felt was pretty cool. My mother reads the blog every single day, and so this one’s also a not-so discreet nod and a wink at her, since we’ve been having a few little jokes about the ‘Godzilla’ franchise lately. She was very thrilled to see the latest one was added to Prime video. This one comes to you from the Taiwanese-American electronic house/EDM producer David Wang, who uses his own musical alias of Mochipet, which was based upon his long-term obsession with dinosaurs. As Mochipet, he has released music for several different labels – including Peace Off, Violent Turd and Death $ucker, and he is also the founder of the Daly City Records indie label. Wang’s latest EP, ‘Godzilla Resurgence’, was released in May as a tribute to his late father, who passed away as the project was nearing its completion. It is, of course, named after the mythical Kaiju who has starred in many films since the 1950’s. Proceeds are going towards his dad’s burial costs. Give it a Kaiju breath below.

“I saw my first ‘Godzilla’ movie when I was around 10 years old in Taiwan”, Wang told MixMag Asia late last year, later adding, “I actually didn’t like it at first. I didn’t understand why Godzilla was destroying Japan and I didn’t like that it was in black and white. It was not till later in my life, I began to appreciate Godzilla for its representation of human need for control and the Atomic Bomb that devastated Hiroshima and Nagasaki and destroyed many lives during World War II”, Wang spoke of how Godzilla’s symbol of death and destruction due to mankind’s quest for power has become an influence for his heavy blend of psychedelic EDM and no-nonsense ‘Brostep’ style of electronic production. On ‘Godzilla League Of Legends’, Wang really doesn’t pull back any of his skills for another day, and he instead mimics the fire-breathing giants of the EP’s namesake through the variety of weighty Bass sounds. The slower fade out at the beginning sets the tone for a cinematic affair, before the instrumentation comes in and displays a much more fiery side by putting the harsh distortion and the thick basslines into full throttle. The gears are changed slightly, in intervals, by a whimsical female backing vocal that goes for a little ethereality, and I felt this part of the equation was a nice touch since it was textured more gently than the core drum and bass melodies. The tune, in its entirety, is a solid evocation of Japanese manga animation series or action-heavy video game soundtracks, with a sonic palette that feels packed with rather aggressive melodies and it creates a very Animated feel to the heightened atmosphere overall. There’s plenty of tension found in the segmented decrease of the overall tempo, while the synths feel pretty playful at times. The drums feel smooth, and the long fade-out brings a cooling energy to the tune when it nears its conclusion. It may drag on just a little bit, but I rather enjoyed the unique style that it goes for and the subject matter feels pretty original, as this is not a single about typical topics like a break-up or a night out, and so it demands some attention to get the most out of. If you enjoy the heavier stuff, this one’s for you.

  • Pictured: Mochipet (aka David Wang) at a monster’s tea party (2019) (Photo via aaronswartzday.org)

That brings us to the end of the page for another day, and many thanks again for sticking with me until this point. If you’re looking for some exciting new releases to get a hold of tomorrow, please look no further than the blog as we delve into ‘New Album Release Fridays’ tomorrow. This week’s pick comes from a Dublin-formed indie folk band who will be performing at The Junction in Cambridge in October. They have been shortlisted for the Mercury Prize twice, and won the Choice Music prize in 2010.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/OneTrackAtATim1?fbclid=IwAR2demHDssZESnHDMi6gzTGNZJvdS42Ot930CA9Rttw7n4CJ5nvB8VJbWxE

Today’s Track: Peggy Gou (feat. OHHYUK) – “Nabi”

August 5, 2021 — Leave a comment
  • Pictured: Peggy Gou in a recent press shoot (2021) (Photo courtesy of Jungwook Mok/Edm.com)

Good Morning to you! It’s Jacob Braybrooke here, and now is the right time to cheer yourself up with your daily track on the blog, as per usual, since it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Her first new solo tune since 2019’s ‘Starry Night’, the South Korean DJ and Producer Peggy Gou has brought her A-game to the global clubs again with ‘Nabi’. We last heard from her on 2020’s ‘Jigoo’, a guest spot on Maurice Fulton’s ‘Earth’ EP. She’s had an interesting career trajectory so far – from releasing her ‘DJ Kicks: Peggy Gou’ mix on !k7 Records, to launching Gudu Records, an independent EDM label of her very own. She has also released her material on Ninja Tune and Phonica, and Gou has even spent her time in London, at 18 years of age, studying for a degree in Fashion at the London College Of Fashion, before graduating and subsequently working as the London Corresponding Editor for Harper’s Bazaar Korea. She is now currently based in Berlin, Germany – where she spends her time tinkering away with downtempo dance anthems like ‘Nabi’. Gou’s new single sees her enlists the help of OHHYUK, from the South Korean rock band Hyukoh, who added, “It’s been a long time since Covid-19 has adapted to the changes it has made in society. It contains the desire to become a butterfly and fly away from the beautiful days before” to Gou’s press release. Give ‘Nabi’ a spin below.

“We’ve all been through so much over the last year and it’s {Nabi} about facing up to the problems and negativity in our lives and learning how to deal with it”, says Gou on her process for creating ‘Nabi’, who added, “When people hear ‘Nabi’, they’ll hopefully feel the same sense of healing – that feeling that everything’s going to be OK – that I feel when I listen to the songs that inspired it”, to her press notes. Starting off with a kick drum sample and Hi-Hat snares, we’re treated to a feel-good 80’s-style dance track with gorgeously plush instrumentation and sultry Korean vocals. Some of these lyrics roughly translate to “Time, amid that emptiness/I’m about to leave now” and “In my silence time/I can only see hatred in the distance” in English, some cryptic and poignant songwriting about the passages of time, and how the natural progression of time can lead to positive change. I loved the 00’s throwback feel of ‘Starry Night’ and also the wonky experimentation on ‘Jigoo’, but I’ve noticed how ‘Nabi’ skews more towards a retro-revivalist aesthetic, with more focus on building an atmosphere with the floaty vocal harmonies and the thudding drum machine riffs. The BPM framework isn’t wildly frenetic, but the subtle Dub influences of the bright Piano rolls and the late-80’s Lounge Jazz feel of the more soulful chorus keep the pace moving quickly due to the refreshing extracts of these influences being pulled from. The spoken word piece from OHHYUK adds another intriguing layer to the sound, while the subdued warmth of the hazy, sunshine sounds of the sparse percussion and the earworm vocal hooks hints towards Gou possibly exploring a more 00’s ChillOut or Chillwave style of electronic production in the future, but the fundamentally nostalgic dressing of the laidback beats keeps the cohesion in balance rather robustly. Overall, this was a very satisfying return from Gou, with an eclectic palette of some varied influences that are embossed neatly into the soundscape, and this would be a great pick for BBC Radio 2.

  • Pictured: Peggy Gou performing at Dimensions Festival (2018) (Photo via TheVinylFactory.com)

Thank you for sticking with me until the end today, and, if you’re new to the blog and would enjoy more of this style of content, then please feel free to join me again tomorrow for the ‘New Album Release Fridays’ as we shine the spotlight on one of the weekend’s notable new album releases. I know that Kanye West is dominating the headlines tomorrow for the release of ‘DONDA’, but I’m instead going to be writing about something that got delayed to this Friday, in July, that I’ve been very excited to hear. This is a collaborative LP between the frontman of Bombay Bicycle Club and a 28-year-old rapper from East London, who first popped up in 2012 with the ‘BAEP’ EP.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/OneTrackAtATim1?fbclid=IwAR2demHDssZESnHDMi6gzTGNZJvdS42Ot930CA9Rttw7n4CJ5nvB8VJbWxE