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.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

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

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

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.

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 – ‘Blood In The Snow’

April 5, 2022 — Leave a comment

Pictured: Vinyl copy of ‘When The Lights Go’ (LP) (Available from July 22nd, 2022) (via Nice Age Records)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has come for you to get invested in yet another daily track on the blog, despite any incredulous looks on my face, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! 2012 (Although I discovered this soon-to-be specified record a year or two later). Picture the scene. I was a young sprog, sitting on the college bus every morning, beginning to experience alternative music outside of the mainstream for the first couple of times with a hair full of dandruff, finding my place in the world. I was being simply swept away by the vibrant Drum ‘N’ Bass and ethereal Jungle sounds of Orlando Tobias Higginbottom (aka Oxford-born House producer Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs) who injected colour in to the club environments of the 2010’s with his melancholic textures and a sense of longing in his voice, one in few of which I truly connected with at the time, with TEED’s critically acclaimed debut album release of ‘Trouble’. An entire decade later, ‘When The Lights Go’, the follow-up to that “Jacob Classic” of an album, is finally set to arrive on July 22nd. Higginbottom is a classically trained musician who is the son of a former choir conductor from New College, Oxford and he found his own footing through his studies at the Junior Royal Academy Of Music in London, before he became obsessed with electronic music through tapes lent by his siblings. He has since become one of my favourite musicians, and one of Britain’s most underrated exports in my honest opinion, although he is currently based in Los Angeles. To say that this dinosaur has been totally er, extinct between the ten year gap would be totally untrue, however. He has released several EP’s like 2013’s ‘Get Lost VI’, 2020’s ‘I Can Hear The Birds’ and 2021’s ‘The Distance’ to typically amazing results. ‘Heartbreak’, a collaboration with Bonobo, was also nominated for the ‘Best Electronic/Dance Recording’ nod at this year’s Grammy Awards. He has also collaborated with the likes of Anna Lunoe, SG Lewis, Kelsey Lu, Shura, Dillon Francis, Porter Robinson and Amtrac over the years too, as well as touring regularly. There is a great deal of excitement towards the new album, as it represents his most substantial body of material in ten years. Check out the lead single – ‘Blood In The Snow’ – below.

‘When The Lights Go’ will feature seventeen tracks, which were all largely recorded at Higginbottom’s own home in Los Angeles, California. He will also resume touring the US and Europe throughout the spring, including a Brooklyn show at Elsewhere Hall on April 29th alongside Kate Garvey and Heathered Pearls, with solo shows in Miami, Austin, Chicago and more to follow. Talking about the arctic theme of ‘Blood In The Snow’, he says, “The song is about melting glaciers and about wanting a daughter, and where to put love in this tailspin”, in his press assertion. Hitting the ground running with a haunting Double Bass intro accentuated by glistening Keyboard riffs and hazy Synth pads, Higginbottom warmly sings lyrics like “How much longer?, Before the damn begins to break” and “Precious winter, enough will all the growth” that feel downbeat and contemplative, while ominous and slightly reclusive in tone, as he questions his ambitions towards some parenthood and compares the emotions to the cyclical processes of nature. The chorus is gentle but striking, with the colder textures combining to the somber tune of lyrics like “Names for a daughter/Blood in the snow” and “But I want her, More than you know” that feel insular and precise, although the beat-driven pacing is laid out fairly sparsely. The instrumentation blends these arena-level electronics with his human, poignant vocals, where the distorted Synths create some interplay with the melancholic qualities of his vulnerable vocals by building gradually towards a halting crescendo, where his layers of textures simply crunch together. The verses are given space by the progressive Jazz-influenced Drums and the warping Synths that build to a slight alter in pace and mood in the late stages of the track where the different Snare sound comes in and, like his vocals, these changes feel subtle but delicate and merticulously crafted. This feels very different to the more club-driven sound of 2012’s ‘Trouble’ because the assortment of sounds deliver a low-key groove instead of an anthemic ‘danceability’ to them, but the delicate vocals of Higginbottom and the progressive, yet certainly grounded, take on Indietronica is still in there. It is admittedly a slow burn, but it makes for an emotional experience when you hear the different elements come together by the end and it has a similar tone of quintessentially British sadness and almost deliberately ‘flat’ vocals that only Higginbottom could really get away with, while the lyrics promise more maturity and growth from him as a songwriter, and it feels like rarity for him to use his own voice as the producer in this day and age too. ‘Blood In The Snow’ really stands out if you hear it on the radio, and it feels different to the spectrum of genres that he is often associated with, while sounding unmistakably like him in its bold production. Instead of totally extinct, this feels totally brilliant – and I’m stoked to hear the album.

Pictured: Orlando Tobias Higginbottom (aka Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs) (2019) (Photo via EDM.com)

Here’s my TEED-related posts to get you warmed up for this highly anticipated album.

‘Los Angeles’ (2020) – https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/08/05/todays-track-totally-enormous-extinct-dinosaurs-los-angeles/

‘Heartbreak’ (with Bonobo) (2020) – https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/10/06/todays-track-bonobo-totally-enormous-extinct-dinosaurs-heartbreak/

‘The Distance’ (2021) – https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2021/10/16/todays-track-totally-enormous-extinct-dinosaurs-the-distance/

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

That brings us to the end of yet another daily track on the blog, and thank you for continuing to support the site, as your time and attention is always appreciated very highly. It feels quite unbelievable that we’ve almost come up to another ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ post so swiftly, but that feature continues tomorrow with a post regarding a North Carolina-born Funk, R&B and Soul singer-songwriter who sadly left us in February. She was known for her controversially sexual-oriented performance style and songwriting. She was also the second wife of beloved trumpeter Miles Davis.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

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

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

Today’s Track: Röyksopp (feat. Alison Goldfrapp) – ‘Impossible’

March 22, 2022 — Leave a comment

Pictured: Röyksopp (Svein Berge & Torbjørn Brundtland) (DJ’s/Producers) (2022) (Photo via SynthpopFanatic.com)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for us to raise our spirits above from the depths of despair 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! Weaving between Progressive Synthpop, Acid Techno and Dark Ambient across the last two decades, the Norwegian electronic dance duo of Svein Berge and Torbjørn Brundtland have decided to tear up the rule book in retiring the traditional album release format with their upcoming sixth LP release – ‘Profound Mysteries’ – that hits store shelves on April 29th via Dog Triumph Records. To date, the duo – who were formed in Tromsø in 1998 – have been nominated for two Grammy Awards, won seven Spellemannprisen Awards, performed globally on tours, had four consecutive #1 albums in Norway, and collaborated with huge names like Robyn. Therefore, it’s somewhat strange that, aside from a vague familiarity with their name, they have largely slipped my radar in their time. However, I heard ‘Impossible’ on The Current’s Song Of The Day podcast and its deep, dark grooves were enough for me to keep listening on rather than just hitting the skip button like I sometimes do. ‘Impossible’ features the vocal abilities of Alison Goldfrapp, the lead singer of 00’s commercial euro-disco heavyweights Goldfrapp, and Röyksopp are pitching their imminent full-length new release as “an expanded creative universe and a prodigious conceptual project” in their press release. One of these projects is ‘The Conversation’, a recent short film uploaded to their YouTube channel last month that was directed by Danish filmmaker Martin De Thurah. To give you some more context about what they actually mean, the duo say, “As human beings, what we don’t know vastly overshadows what we do know. As teenagers, we would discuss our own fascination with the infinite and the impossible. The most profound mysteries of life”. Check out the lead single below.

It has been a long time since we’ve heard from the duo since their last LP release – 2014’s ‘The Inevitable End’ – launched almost eight years ago. Commenting on the collaboration for ‘Impossible’, guest vocalist Alison Goldfrapp says, “It’s been great working with the wonderful Svein and Torbjørn from Røyksopp. I’ve been a fan of their music for years and it was a fascinating joy creating ‘Impossible’ together. I truly hope everyone enjoys the track as there’s more to come”, in her press notes. Mimicking the visual of a glittery disco ball slowly fading to a liquid ink black in terms of sound, ‘Impossible’ starts off with a smooth set of Synths that recall a clear Disco influence before slowly growing into a barrage of assaulting textures as the bassline becomes more crunchy in style and the percussive Drum melodies contribute to the shimmering delivery. Goldfrapp’s lyrics feel hypnotic and alluring, with vague and enigmatic, in terms of mood, lyrics like “You’re the world ablaze/You’re the space between/Impossible/The perfect dream” and “I can touch the sky/Hear your lion heart/Feel the inside” that reveal little in the way of clear-cut details, but they carry a sensual yet not overtly sexual tone that floats above the more relentless pace of the instrumental parts to give the thumping concoction of downtempo electronica and progressive disco music an ethereal, polished feel. It builds to a neat closing stretch where the same lyrics are repeated amongst a more silk-like texture of electronic beats, where it feels like high-stakes tension has been relieved in favour of more operatic thrills. It sounds far from overly commercial, but it sounds melodic enough to feel like a natural selection for a single rather than purely an album track, and the vocals from Goldfrapp’s vocalist seem musically upbeat in the vein of their more well-known cuts in the mainstream while retaining an experimental, high-pitched finish. The production feels delicate overall, where a diversity of textures and genre ideas have been put together in a meticulous way that makes them feel coherent together when the sum of each part is added in unison. The spaced-out synths grow a little bit tiresome by the track’s end for me, but the pacing feels sublime and the chemistry between the two acts is excellent too, making the disillusioned grooves feel addictive while rewarding and challenging to keep listening to. Overall, although I feel that ‘Impossible’ is more of a “good track” than a “truly special” one due to it’s tendency to grow just a tad tedious by the end, it features an intriguing array of sounds that indicate subtle hints of different dance-related genres that are whipped together in a blender to conjure up a pretty well-textured smoothie. One for a long night ride home.

Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Profound Mysteries’ (LP) (Available from April 29th, 2022) (via Dog Triumph Records)

That brings us to the end of a fairly cryptic new post on the blog today, and I’ll be taking a break from my recent recommendations tomorrow as we go retro for ‘Way Back Wednesdays’. Thank you for supporting me today, and please feel free to join me again then for a look back at an early 00’s UK Hip-Hop classic by a British rapper and producer who has produced numerous singles and albums for the Big Dada label since 1994. His track in question was memorable for it’s intentionally similar melody to the ‘Doctor Who’ TV theme track and it reached the top spot of the UK Dance chart.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

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

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

Today’s Track: Flight Facilities (feat. Channel Tres) – ‘Lights Up’

December 22, 2021 — Leave a comment

Pictured: Hugo Gruzman (DJ/Producer) and James Lyell (DJ/Producer) (2021) (Photo via James Gourley/Getty)

Good Morning to you! I am Jacob Braybrooke, of course, and it’s time for me to help you fill up the funky playlist for the disco at your Office Christmas Party at the end of this working week, since it has always been my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Flight Facilities are the Australian Electronic Dance duo of Hugo Gruzman and James Lyell who were formed in Sydney in 2009 and also perform under the name of Hugo & Jimmy. On previous recordings, they have worked with prominent names in the industry including the ‘Princess of Pop’ Kylie Minogue herself – as well as Bishop Nehru, Reggie Watts, Stee Downes and Owl Eyes. Although the seven year gap has not been a complete drought of material for the die-hard Flight Facilities fans out there – it is still testament to the streaming-dominated state of the modern music industry that their second LP record ‘FOREVER’ – released on November 12th via Future Classic – was their first true album release since 2014. It has reached #6 on the Australian Albums chart and it features another array of guest vocalists including Emma Louise, BRUX, BROODS, Jody Felix, Your Smith and DRAMA. In a statement, the AIR Award-winning duo said, “The best way to describe this album is a combination of where we’ve been, where we are and where we’re going. As true as it was from our first release, the foundations and glue for all our work has consistently been ‘collaboration’. While our musical journey has always been an intentional exploration of multiple genres, our hearts and roots lie on the dance floor. We applied that same explorative ethos to this record, taking a concerted dive delve into the previously untouched niches and era’s of dance. It’s been a long time coming, and only the same time will tell if it was worth the wait “, in a press release. The new album will also be supported by the ‘FOREVER’ tour that will commence in Perth during March 2022. The lead single, ‘Lights Up’, features the high in demand Compton producer and vocalist Channel Tres. Buckle your seat belt up and mount into it below.

With his low-pitched and sensual vocal delivery, Channel Tres has been a lyricist that everybody in the dance industry has been itching to include on their tracks. In the last few years, Tres has worked with a gigantic list of electronic dance producers including Disclosure, SG Lewis, Tokimonsta, Polo & Pan, Emotional Oranges and many more – so he has been everywhere as if he is the Jimmy Carr, Rosie Jones or Rob Beckett of dance music. ‘Lights Up’ features noticeable influences of Future Garage and Detroit Techno – and Flight Facilities note, “We’ve always loved the sound of the early Detroit House scene that crossed over with the Paradise Garage era. Combined with our love for Channel’s voice, it seemed like a perfect fit”, in their press release. ‘Lights Up’ almost sounds like a track that was being recorded whilst at a secluded street party with industry friends in Chicago, with Tres opening the scene with “Y’all should’ve called me to work on the album earlier/We could have been making something great” over a muffled vocal delivery following a lengthy fade-in to the track. The rest of the vocals mix an informal delivery with a quickly paced Spoken Word spin on gentle Hip-Hop, with Tres splurting out lyrics like “Trying to catch a Bass, and I’ll slide on you” and “I’m a MC, BYOB, bring your own bottles” that he recites with the silky and mildly sexual low-pitched croon that we’ve heard him use to similar effect on Disclosure and T’Challa King feature spots before. It definitely feels like his trademark and although it does not feel unexpected, it works smoothly here and plays to familiar strengths as usual. It establishes a tone of confidence for the rest of the track, which jolts along at an uptempo but not overly heightened pace. An influence of Detroit Techno – from the likes of Joe Smooth – drips from every note of Hugo and James’ production, with some velvet-smooth Synths that reassure us that this flight is going to be a smooth and relaxed ride. The personality of the track is charismatic enough, however, and one particular highlight of the track for me is towards the end where Tres repeats the refrain of “Got the whole city going up” while Horns continually whirr in the backbeat, giving off an impression that Horns are lighting things up in the background, as this section gives the Synths some added momentum to increase the aggression of the instrumentation slightly and drive the melodies forwards. Meanwhile, the two-step drum beats and the fluctuating Bass patterns blend together with Tres’ accentuated vocals nicely during the main bulk of the track. Overall, this was a strong effort from all involved that does ‘Dance Music’ in a modern enough way, while also respecting some of the relatively forgotten sub-genres of House and Techno from the past, giving it a retro-futurist feel. The track originally dates back to April so, although it fits more of a summer vibe than a cold December one, remember that it is summer in Australia.

Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘FOREVER’ (LP) (Released on November 12th, 2021) (via Future Classic)

That’s all for now! Thank you for your smooth sailing with me today, and I’ll be back tomorrow to ‘Light Up’ the eve of Christmas Eve with an affectionate lump of seasonal Silton coming from a Rochford-born Jazz singer and BBC Radio 2 presenter who has famously covered Radiohead’s ‘High and Dry’ to mainstream success in the UK charts.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

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

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

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: Jockstrap – ’50/50′

November 29, 2021 — Leave a comment

Pictured: Georgia Ellery (Vocals/Violin) and Taylor Skye (Vocals/Producer/Flute) (2019) (Photo via BBC News)

Good Morning to you! You’re tuned into the text of Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for us to get a little wackier than usual for today’s entry on the blog, not forgetting that it has always been my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! If you have been a regular follower of my blog for some time (Firstly, thank you for doing so), you may already know that I’m an enamored fan of Jockstrap, a wildly experimental electronic duo who have released some masterful singles like ‘Acid’ and ‘The City’, as well as the ‘Wicked City’ EP on Warp Records previously. The link-up is between violinist/vocalist Georgia Ellery (Who is also a member of another stunning band – Black Country, New Road) and the DJ/Producer Taylor Skye, who have been working together since they met while studying at the Guildhall School Of Music and Drama in 2016. They performed at the virtual Eurosonic Festival earlier this year but, other than that activity, Jockstrap have remained a little quiet in recent months outside of a few tour dates and amicably so. However, that all changed when they released ’50/50′, a new single, after some teasing around on social media, last week. It arrives with a new video that was filmed on a handheld camera at The Glove That Fits, a Hackney-based live venue in London, during an encore from one of their recent shows. It also, presumably, seems to feature some of Ellery’s bandmates from Black Country, New Road too. Let’s take a ’50/50′ chance on the new recording below.

Although Ellery and Skye’s genre-fluid material has always been a decent fit for the forward-thinking label of Warp Records, ’50/50′ marks their signing to Rough Trade Records for this time around. A brief press release accompanying ’50/50′ also states that, ironically, Skye constructed the crunching beats for the new single whilst recovering in bed from tonsillitis. It doesn’t seem like too far-fetched a story after hearing how ’50/50′ disregards conventional structure traits so delicately and how vibrant the production feels as the shape-shifting anthem rolls along to its nearly four minute duration. Jockstrap has always worked well by blending a mix of classical training with cutting-edge electronic production that warps the meaning of words around and makes the lyrics sound witty at times, with Ellery’s half-whispered and angelic vocals creating a stunning contrast to the unpredictable beats of Skye that branch out into weird yet wonderful territory that surround her minimalist presence with an often cascading soundscape. ’50/50′ builds on that dynamic, but it certainly feels more club-oriented and a little more melodic than usual. To me, it sounds as if it’s their take on the 2010’s Lo-Fi House movement that saw producers like Ross From Friends and DJ Seinfeld become prominent names in Electronica. This time, it feels even more intense. Ellery quickly calls us to holler in the outset, before the twisted and glitchy sounds unsettle the listener and flip the switch. It develops with elements of Techno and Acid as the track moves along, while Ellery’s vocals similarly come through in patchy emissions that flip between emotive and sardonic when audible, complemented by the mangled beats of Skye behind the decks that feel a little ethereal in the third quarter, becoming equally fragmented and infectious, as they thrash and thump along to their own pace. All inclusively, it has the same slap-bang impact that have made previous Jockstrap recordings a hit with critics and audiences alike. Different but not immediately accessible to mainstream pop charts, ’50/50′ is a treat for those who enjoy their music for the wonky side. A lab experiment gone right.

Pictured: Georgia Ellery & Taylor Skye in a promotional photoshoot for ‘Acid’ (2020) (Photo via DIY Mag.com)

If I have coloured you intrigued about Jockstrap, you can find out more if you revisit my take on ‘Acid’, which was originally one of their earliest singles, here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/03/21/todays-track-jockstrap-acid/. You can also experience more of their unique methods with my take on ‘The City’ from their ‘Wicked City’ EP here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/06/17/todays-track-jockstrap-the-city/.

Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Wicked City’ (EP) (Released on June 19th, 2020) (via Warp Records)

That’s all for now! Thank you for remembering to visit the site everyday, and I’ll be back tomorrow to do it all over again. Much like Jockstrap today, tomorrow’s post will feature a gang of youngsters who made their debut appearance on the blog with peaceful protest anthem ‘Nobody Scared’ during the summer, but I also really enjoyed their latest single and I wanted to write about them again. A Manchester-based Art Pop quartet who will likely appeal to fans of Alt-J or Everything Everything, they supported Cory Wong at Manchester’s 02 Ritz prior to UK Lockdown in 2020. Support has flooded in from Clash, DIY, BBC Radio 6 Music & Radio X’s John Kennedy.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

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

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

Today’s Track: Relaxer – ‘Narcissus By The Pool’

November 23, 2021 — Leave a comment

Pictured: Daniel Martin-McCormick in a Red Bull Studios Spotlight Session (2016) (Via RedBull.com)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has come for you to slip into something more comfortable for your daily track on the blog, since it’s always been my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! A New York-based experimental electronic music producer, Daniel Martin McCormick has enjoyed a career that reads like a long list of small achievements. He’s also known for releasing specialist music under the alias of Ital, and he is known for his frequent collaborations with the fellow DJ Aurora Halal. He has also been a member of groups like Black Eyes and Mi Ami, and he is the co-founder of Climate Of Fear, as well as being the founder of Lovers Rock Recordings. In 2019, he established a new alias of Relaxer and he released ‘Coconut Grove’, an album which delivered something that felt more close to a pure Techno album than his earlier releases. The follow-up, 2021’s ‘Concealer’, is his first album to be released on Planet Mu in ten years. It drifts towards hyper digital sounds and it marks his return to using PC hardware. The album’s cover art, created by the NY-based graphic designer Bjorn Copeland, is an indication of his new album’s sound, which explores the sub-genres of Dark Ambient and Microhouse. McCormick notes that it reflects “this open, airy material squeezed and wrestled into a contorted shape, suspended in air with an empty center. That’s exactly how the album felt. In this sense, I wanted to take myself out of it, to let the materials bloom into their own shape, guided by my hand but not defined by my intellect or any market concerns”, in a press statement. Let’s check out ‘Narcissus By The Pool’ below.

McCormick has revealed that his latest LP was “made in a very private way” and he describes this process as being akin to “peering into materials – the materials defined the record”, adding, “Rather than making a record that’s about an emotion, or a political scenario, or the dance floor, or the empty dance floor, or any narrative, this record was about communicating with the materials and letting them speak with me” in his own press notes. Taking a mellow approach to proceedings on mid-album cut ‘Narcissus By The Pool’, McCormick takes influence from old-school 90’s Glitch and more forward-looking minimalist Techno. By disregarding traditional Dance music traits and the normal contexts of finicky textures and spacial tricks that characterize popular Industrial music, he creates a more detailed recording that is defined by how the music flows and the intimate textures that it creates on its own. Using a slightly acidic Synth line and a chiming Chiptune melody, McCormick creates something simple and effective that would not have felt out of place if it was originally released during the mid-2000’s. It is far from just a nostalgic throwback anthem, however, with some downtempo oddities in sound and a peak-time euphoria feeling that creates something that feels more firmly post-modern. In conclusion, this is a beautiful record that isn’t focused on big hooks and catchy melodies, so it falls into a bit of a niche. However, there’s absolutely nothing that is inherently wrong with that, as it feels diverse enough to appeal to different sub-sections of audiences, like those who study at their computer to the beats of Lo-Fi radio channels on YouTube and those who are likely to take things down a notch right before bedtime with their ear plugs tuned into a podcast like ‘Ambient Focus’ on the BBC Sounds app. Whatever the case, this is meticulous, very thoughtfully crafted music that is approached like a sculpture.

Pictured: Relaxer (Daniel Martin-McCormick) performing with Halal at Rewire Festival (2020) (via PR)

That leaves me with little left to say! Thank you for reading the blog today, and I’ll be back tomorrow to resume the ‘Countdown To Christmas’ this year. Our next entry is a cover version of ‘Frosty The Snowman’ which was released in 1993 by a pioneering Scottish Shoegaze outfit whose lineup featured the head boss of Bella Union Records.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

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

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

Today’s Track: Nightmares On Wax (feat. OSHUN) – “Breathe In”

November 6, 2021 — Leave a comment

Pictured: Cover Art for ‘Shout Out! To Freedom’ (Released on October 29th, 2021) (via Warp Records)

Good Morning to you! I’m Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time to indulge your senses into 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! ‘Shout Out! To Freedom’ is the latest LP to come from the legendary Leeds-born and Ibiza-based electronic Trip Hop producer Nightmares On Wax – the now solo project of George Evelyn that used to be a trio with Kevin Harper and John Halnon up until the early 90’s – who has scored multiple crossover hits like ’70’s/80’s’, ‘Aftermath’, ‘Finer’, ‘Know My Name’ and ‘I’m For Real’ in the UK Singles Charts. He is the longest serving signee to the iconic forward-thinking experimental label Warp Records, and the critical acclaim of classic albums such as 2006’s ‘In A Space Outta Sound’, 1995’s ‘Smokers Delight’ and 2008’s ‘Thought So’ have led to his projects being highly anticipated among electronic music fans as some of the genre’s most important offerings. Sadly, he became more like ‘Nightmares No Vax’ in some Twitter posts leading up to the marketing machine of the new record, but, luckily, none of these controversial opinions have really cropped up on-record or became too preachy, and he opted to explore the general themes of freedom and meditation on his new album, and so it’s quite nice to see that he’s supporting freedom of speech without bringing any harm to others, and I could see his perspective as a creative coming from a non-white background. ‘Shout Out To Freedom’ has instead been released to pretty positive reviews, and it features a solid guest list of names including Greentea Peng, King Shabaka Hutchings of The Comet Is Coming fame, Mara TK, Pip Millett, Haile Supreme and others – each of which have been asked by Hill to collaborate on songs exploring what freedom means to them. The only single taken from the record with a music video attached is ‘Breathe In’, a mid-album track which includes vocals from the NYC duo OSHUN. Check it out below.

“I feel like I’ve been set free of something and I am now becoming who I really am”, says Evelyn of Nightmares On Wax fame, adding, “I’ve been gigging non-stop for 10 years, and that experience has been beautiful but it also drained me emotionally. As a creative, you’re always questioning everything. So, having the time and the space has meant that I could do a proper deep dive into this stuff. So it was all about this journey of going back to myself, and realizing being at home with my wife and my daughter that I’ve not really been here properly. It’s like I’ve just woken back up to what I actually have – and it’s already here”, when writing all about his new album – ‘Shout Out! To Freedom’. ‘Breathe In’ still contains the influences of Curtis Mayfield and Quincy Jones that have all shaped his typical concoction of Funk, Soul, Jazz, Downtempo Electronica, Dub and Techno that have kept his project alive for many decades and have characterized his sound, while putting a more modern spin on these styles predominantly within the lyrics, which discuss the simple act of staying off your phone and meditating instead. ‘Breathe In’ takes a slinky and psychedelic groove, embedded with the lyrical themes of nature and mindfulness, and Evelyn arranges some 90’s Trip Hop beats and a playful 90’s ploy on old-fashioned Dancehall melodies that have a weightlessness and an airy sense of production to them, mixing nicely with the deep and spiritual vocals from OSHUN that echo Dub all over the track. Some interesting String samples and subtle Keyboard loops make up the rest of the instrumentation, and there seems to be a lush 70’s Black Exploitation vibe to things where the usual elements of Jazz, Funk and Soul come together from Hill, some genres that he’s well known for exploring. A mix of darker Piano chords and punchier beats differentiate this track from some of his familiar 90’s and 00’s chilled out House offerings, and the more spacious parts of the vocals build to some longer harmonies and some sustained notes in the latter half of the track. While there aren’t any lyrics that specifically stick out to me, it seems like a variety of ideas are being conveyed through the balance of Urban and Nature that OSHUN evoked here. Overall, ‘Breathe In’ was a track which I enjoyed from the new album, which really strikes me as a good headphones-in-bed type of listening experience. While not as essential as other recent Warp Records efforts from the likes of Yves Tumor or Jockstrap, due to some of the melodies feeling as though they meander along a little bit, I still have a pretty positive perception of it. I like how it manages to not quite sound like any other track that I have heard from Evelyn to date, as the tribalistic drum loops and the psychedelic Soul feel manage to sound interesting. Whereas most of his tracks gives me a warm and comforting feel inside, this one feels more urgent in taking action, which is different to the way that most of his other singles make me feel. While there’s a general sense of positivity, it seems slightly more alarming. A great-sounding return.

Pictured: Nightmares On Wax (aka George Evelyn) performing at Wire (2016) (Photo by Justin Gardner)

That’s all for now and thank you for continuing to support the site. ‘Scuzz Sundays’ is set for tomorrow, and we’ll be focusing our attention to an English rock band who got their big break in 2006 when their Platinum certified debut album won the ‘Indie Album Of The Year’ gong at the 2006 PLUG Awards and each member of the band have continued to work on their own solo side projects in more recent times. Whilst together, the London band have sold over three million albums worldwide as of 2012.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

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

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

New Album Release Fridays: Helado Negro – “Outside The Outside”

October 22, 2021 — Leave a comment

Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Far In’ (LP) (Released on October 22nd, 2021) (via 4AD)

Good Morning to you! My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for me to get typing up for yet another daily track on the blog, because it’s always been my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! ‘New Album Release Fridays’ is the time of the week where we unbox one of the most exciting new LP releases of the weekend, and this week’s line-up includes plenty of options to choose from. The likes of Elton John, Self Esteem, HONNE, JPEGMafia, Parquet Courts, Biffy Clyro and Don Broco are all releasing new albums today, but, for me, the Miami-born and New York-based Nu-Disco producer Helado Negro (the main alias of Roberto Carlos Lange) is the little artist who could. You may recognize his voice from ‘Close’, the closing track of Colombian electronic music producer Ela Minus’ album ‘Acts Of Rebellion’, which he was featured on last year. As a solo artist, Lange won the United States Artists’ Fellow In Music in 2019 and he was later the recipient of the 2019 Grants To Artists Award from the Foundation For Contemporary Arts. He was also the winner of the Joyce Foundation in 2015, so there’s plenty of critical acclaim under his belt. Lange has been producing a significant amount of musical and visual art work since he first became active in 2009 through various aliases, and he’s known for his non-conventional approaches to Avant-Pop while also expressing his Latinx identity and his pluralistic sensibilities. 2021’s ‘Far In’ is his seventh full-length solo album, and it is the follow-up to 2019’s ‘This Is How You Smile’ and 2016’s ‘Private Energy’, as well as his first record to be issued on the 4AD label. Born to Ecuadorian immigrants, the record explores his childhood anxieties of feeling like an outsider in his family’s community, and his road to finding a sense of belonging. Lange simply said, “Escape is never out there, you have to look inward”, in a press release. The notable single ‘Outside The Outside’ is married beautifully to a music video consisting of camcorder footage of his family’s South Florida house parties of the 1980’s, so let’s give it a listen.

“This is a song about intimate partnerships and long-loving friendships. To be loyal freaks and an outsider amongst outsiders”, he says about the standout single ‘Outside The Outside’, while adding, about the video, “My family came to this country as outsiders looking for and finding community. People would come to our house and bond through music, family and dancing. They usually began at 8 PM and lasted until 5 AM”, he says of the guests who would stay up all night to dance the Salsa or Merengue, before he concluded, “I used to wake up and it would be 7 AM in the morning and people would still be downstairs drinking”, with a laugh in a recent interview. I think it’s fair to say that this particular concept is alien to us Brits, and so ‘Outside The Outside’ does a great job of creating a late-night vibe with an infectious groove and calling to mind the alienation that Lange struggled handling when he was being raised as a South Florida native despite his rich descent. Lyrics like “There we were/Up all night/Terrified, kissing you twice” and “They were mine/Changed my life, I forgot to show you why” feel hushed and intoned, while the electronic Synths warping around these words feel Lo-Fi and Minimalist in production. The chorus is a simple one, while a touch of introspection touches the other lyrics, as if Lange is reminiscing over the innocence that he also used to feel at the parties while growing up, as he uses lyrics like “Because my world only opens/When your world comes in” to demonstrate these emotions, and discuss how a group of lost souls coming together has formed close relationships. While the lyrics are well-written and inspired enough, it’s also the instrumentation and production that makes the track come together so strongly like it does. The track has a dance music feel, yet it goes for a more reflective and nostalgic tone instead of a swooping and euphoric one, not relying on dancefloor-ready builds and festival-friendly basslines, and instead going for something more subdued and hushed. It feels like a nice platform for Lange’s crooning vocals to create a variety of moods from, while the glistening Disco melodies and the spiraling percussion feels melodic enough to dance along to, whether as a casual listener or a hardcore fan of his work. Overall, ‘Outside The Outside’ is a cracking single that confidently captures the feelings of fostering an environment that feels supportive and comfortable that have shaped the inspiration of Lange’s new album, and the only light we see is that of a dangling Disco ball on the house’s ceiling.

Pictured: Helado Negro performing for GRAMMY’s ‘Press Play At Home’ series (2021) (Photo via PR)

That is all for today! Thank you very much for joining me, and I’ll be back for more musical musings tomorrow. We’ll be listening to the latest single from the quirky indie New Zealand Psych-Pop group Unknown Mortal Orchestra, who have teamed up with the puppeteer of The Muppets and Sesame Street to produce their latest music video.

Connect with One Track At A Time:

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

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