Halloween Special 2020: Rockwell – “Somebody’s Watching Me”

October 31, 2020 — Leave a comment

Why did the Ghost walk into the pub? For the Boo’s. It’s time for your Halloween post!

Pictured: Cover Art for "Somebody's Watching Me" (Single) (Released in 1984) (via Motown Records) — Pictured: Cover Art for “Somebody’s Watching Me” (Single) (Released in 1984) (via Motown Records)

Spooky Dooky! I’m Jacob “The Howling Beast” Braybrooke, and I felt obliged to write your new daily blog post about something at least loosely related to the holiday formerly known as All Hallows Eve, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! If I’m honest with you, I’m an Ebeneezer Scrooge when it comes to Halloween. For one thing, what actually is it that we are even celebrating? For another, it’s not exactly like we’re able to dress up in silly costumes and go to parties, or beg strangers for sweets at their doorstep, in the first place, this year really. However, at the very least, it does give us the chance to take an in-depth look at a fun track that we can associate with all things Spooky Dooky. It’s a track that many people often mistakenly believe was performed by Michael Jackson. I give you – Rockwell’s “Somebody’s Watching Me” from 1984. This track was a Paranoia-themed radio hit that managed to reach #6 in the UK Top 40 Singles Chart. It was released on the world-renowned Motown label, and it was the lead single from Rockwell’s debut studio album of the exact same title. People often believe the track was credited solely to “The King Of Pop” because of vocal similarities to Rockwell – and Rockwell is the alias of Kennedy William Gordy, who is the son of Motown CEO and founder Berry Gordy. Kennedy was close friends with the Jackson family when he was growing up in the music industry, and so he enlisted the aid of Michael and Jermaine Jackson to perform backing vocals on the track. So, it’s technically true that Michael Jackson was a credited performer on the track – However, he is not the main credited artist to it. Ironically, let’s watch Rockwell perform his global radio hit below.

“Somebody’s Watching Me” also made a very memorable appearance in the Pilot episode of US crime drama TV staple “Miami Vice”, where undercover police officer “Rico” Tubbs performs a striptease routine to it in a nightclub. As you can see from the Twilight Zone-inspired music video, the track had a decent impact on popular culture of it’s time in the 80’s. It turned out to be a one-hit wonder for Gordy though, unfortunately, and so you could say it’s a pity that nobody was listening to him, rather than watching him. Musically, it’s a punchy and humorous take on the 80’s-Schlock B-movie horror film in mainstream pop music form, with Gordy fearfully crooning: “I’m just an average man with an average life” and “I just want to be left alone, in my average home” with a delightfully screeched delivery. Jackson comes in on the chorus, singing: “I always feel like somebody’s watching me” and Gordy chimes in with “And I have no privacy” and “Who’s playing tricks on me” on top of a catchy Synth-Funk instrumental with a tinge of polished New-Wave guitar riffs. A few cascading backing vocal effects are present in the chorus, and the breakdown sees further questioning of paranoia for Gordy when he sings: “When I’m in the shower/I’m afraid to wash my hair” and “But, can people see me on the TV, or am I just paranoid” with a bizarrely old-English sounding accent, over the top of the jovial toy keyboard notes and the tingling little Synth riffs that permeate through the track on top of a typical two-step drum beat. There is a very clear emphasis on the Rock instrumentals for the song’s instrumental backing beat, but the very contemporary 80’s synth and keyboard combination is done quite well. The lyrics perhaps don’t show a lot of progression in the narrative, but the chorus is catchy and memorable. I think that most people would probably agree that Rockwell’s abilities were limited, but it’s still a fun novelty single that was nudged towards the public eye (or ear) by the guest inclusion from one of the world’s most instantly recognizable voices in music. It also shows how far surveillance has come in a way. It’s charming and good enough for me.

Pictured: Rockwell (Kennedy William Gordy) with Michael Jackson (1984) (Photo via RollingStone.com)

Thank you for reading my melodically devilish new blog post! I’ll be back tomorrow with another special post – as it marks the time for a new entry in our Scuzz Sunday series, where we dig out an ancient relic of the Emo-Rock or Pop-Punk genres, from between the late-1990’s until the mid-2000’s. Let me tell you – It may just be The Best Song In The World! If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: Djo – “Keep Your Head Up”

October 21, 2020 — Leave a comment

You may think this release is a bit weird, but I’ve seen Stranger Things. New post time!

Pictured: Cover Art for “Keep Your Head Up” (Single) (Released: September 9, 2020) (via Self-Released)

Good Morning to you! My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and I’m here to fulfill my daily duties of writing up about your daily track on the blog, because it’s routinely always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! A track that prickled my ears a little on a recent episode of 6Music Recommends, curated by Lauren Laverne, is the funky jam “Keep Your Head Up”, and what prickled my ears even more was her introduction of the new track, as it was produced and recorded by Joe Keery, who is best known for playing the role of Steve Harrington in the Netflix flagship series, “Stranger Things”, which I also really like. He records his own music under the side-project of Djo, and it turns out that he even put out a debut album, “Twenty Two”, last year, which was a success, despite releasing with hardly any promotion or fanfare beforehand. If you’re anything like the cynic that is me, the whole endeavor probably sounds rather random to you. However, Keery has actually been pursuing music for a long time, and, he is a former touring member, and a current contributing musician, of the Chicago-based Psychedelic Surf-Rock group, Post Animal. He debuted “Keep Your Head Up”, his first music material since last year, in a conversation with Wayne Coyne, of The Flaming Lips, on Talkhouse’s Instagram, and Keery later promoted it as part of a Reddit AMA on the r/indieheads subreddit. It is expected that more music will follow up soon. Let’s have a listen to the track below.

Keery was planning to embark on a solo tour as Djo throughout 2020, but the Covid-19 pandemic obviously hit, and here we are now. But, in his press release, he commented that his new single represents “a much-needed bolt of positivity in an otherwise dark time”, and he has been enlisting the aid of producer Adam Thein as a collaborator on his new music. “Keep Your Head Up” represents an output from Keery that goes back to 80’s Soul, with a hint of Prince stemming from the glossy production and the sensual elements of Glam-Pop, with lyrics that feel suggestive and provocative, as Keery pleads: “Got to love yourself/Go ahead, touch yourself” to bring a feel of irreverent humour into the fold. The beat gradually becomes heavier and more synth-oriented as the first verse rolls along to “Take that time alone, before your heart belongs to someone else”, before the chorus introduces some robotic backing vocals to the scene, and Keery throws in a George Clinton-inspired Funk sensibility for the chorus, with a joyous set of percussion and a vivid series of piano notes that mix with the jaunting electronics to craft a well-rounded percussion section. The breakdown at the end feels chaotic, with a glitzy set of Funk-laden instrumentals and a heavy use of synthesized vocal effects, before a brief and swinging Horn section enters the picture and the Saxophone solo gives the overly electronic vocals a rest. The production is a flashy and polished affair, while the overall sound is blending elements of 70’s Psych-Funk and 80’s Synth-Pop together with a current EDM undertone, similarly to his contempories like Jacob Collier. I feel there is perhaps a bit of an over-use of the auto-tune effects here, but that’s probably down to my personal preference because it also works well as a stylistic choice with the drowning synth sequences and the experimental layout of the sequencing, but there is a clear love for Nu-Jazz in here, and it feels sophisticated in it’s approach, so it turns out to be a pleasant surprise overall, although I think my heart is set on Natalia Dyer always being my favourite from Djo’s Netflix series – I think she is just wonderful!

Pictured: Djo (Joe Keery) visiting the AOL Build series studio in New York (2019) (via J.Kempin/Getty)

Thank you very much for reading my new post! As usual, please feel free to join me again tomorrow. I will be taking an in-depth listen to a recent single from a British Dream-Pop trio, who nobody seems to really know anything at all about, and they’ve been building up their following with a big sense of mystery, following their delightfully warm singles “Empty Beach” and “One Time Villain”. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: Confidence Man – “First Class B***h”

October 20, 2020 — Leave a comment

You’d think this single is all about my Bachelor Of Arts degree. It’s time for a new post!

Pictured: Cover Art for “First Class B***h” (Released on October 16th, 2020) (via Heavenly Recordings)

Good Afternoon to you, my name is Jacob Braybrooke and I’m here to fulfill my daily duties of typing up your daily track on the blog, as per usual, since it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write about a different piece of music every day! Confidence Man are an Australian Indie Electronic dance group from Brisbane, Australia who I’ve been following closely since my regional college years at Cambridge. Made up of Sugar Bones, Janet Planet, Clarence McGuffie and Reggie Goodchild, the band have never been afraid of taking a quirky and comedic route in their career to inject some vibrancy into the European and American club music scenes, and they’ve just released a new, one-off single “First Class B***h” on the Heavenly Recordings indie label. It’s also a possibility of a tease for a full-length follow-up LP to their 2018 debut, “Confident Music For Confident People”, which won the AIR award for “Best Independant Dance/Electronica Album” that year. Confidence Man have also performed at several popular Australian music festivals, including Falls Festival and Splendour In The Grass Festival. Their debut album really was a ton of fun, but their last single “Does It Make You Feel Good?” left me quite underwhelmed due to it’s more commercial, chart-oriented sound. You may say I’m more “Confident” about the results this time around, with the track receiving airplay from Jack Saunders’ Indie Show on BBC Radio 1, X-Posure with John Kennedy on Radio X, and a recent episode of BBC Radio 6Music Recommends, curated by Lauren Laverne. Give it a listen below!

Janet Planet, the first class b***h herself, found her inspiration for the tune when travelling to London: “I’d been thinking about this for a while now… It all started in London, when I saw a pair of socks with the words “first class b***h” embroidered on them, hanging in a shop front window. I suddenly realized, I too was a first class b***h. I rushed back to the penthouse and penned this hit. Ever wondered what you hear when you die? This is it.”, via press release from Heavenly Recordings. I feel releasing a tongue-in-cheek and feel-good, “dorky” dance single at a time like this is a nice idea, even though nobody can dance to it in clubs right now. But, it’s up to the talents of Janet that she still manages to sell it pretty well. Her vocals are dripping in narcissism and enthusiasm as she inhabits the character of Janet Planet, along to the beat of unashamedly pop-driven EDM production and bouncy drum beats. Her delivery is rhythmic, as she quips: “I’ve got the looks, I’ve got the brains, I’m in the spotlight” and “Yeah, I’m the best and all my friends say I’m sexy/I told you once, I told you twice, you won’t forget me” before claiming: “I’m on a boat with Leonardo DiCaprio” and leading us into a more involving, chant-driven breakdown as she claps along to “I get what I want, I don’t care”, before we’re led to a gentle tempo increase of the upbeat synth melodies and the percussive hip-hop-inspired backing beats. It feels like more-or-less a return to form for the Aussie favourites to me, with a fun and eclectic variety of pop-driven hip-hop elements and entertaining lyricism to boot. The male vocals are drowned in reverb, and Planet’s vocal performance makes the track work nicely due to her humour and energy. It doesn’t quite have the same smart humour that made their debut album an exceptional listen for me, and I think that a little bit more could have been done with Planet’s male counterparts of the band, but this is just a minor constructive criticism in regards to hearing the band make semi-interesting dance music again. Oh, and yeah, Janet Planet really is dead cool actually.

Pictured: Janet Planet (Vocals/Producer), Sugar Bones (Vocals/Guitar), Reggie Goodchild (Synths) and Clarence McGuffie (Drums) at Rock En Seine, Paris (in 2018) (Photo via Kitty Callaghan/RUSSH.com)

If you’re in the mood for checking out some of the band’s other work, you’re in a good place. You can check out their groovy festive tune “Santa’s Comin’ Down The Chimney” here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2019/12/04/todays-track-confidence-man-santas-comin-down-the-chimney/. You can also peruse the link to my post about their single “Does It Make You Feel Good?” here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/02/26/todays-track-confidence-man-does-it-make-you-feel-good/

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

Thank you for reading my new post! I hope that you’re still in the mood for a spot of new indie electronic dance releases tomorrow, because I will be listening to the very surprising new release from the electronic dance alias of an American movie and television actor who is most famous for playing the role of Steve Harrington in the Netflix original hit streaming TV series “Stranger Things”. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: Katy J Pearson – “Take Back The Radio”

September 29, 2020 — Leave a comment

Well, they used to reckon that Video would kill the Radio star. It’s time for a new post!

Pictured: Cover Artwork for “Return” (Available from November 13th, 2020) (via Heavenly Recordings)

Good Morning to you, my name is Jacob Braybrooke and I am typing up about your daily track on the blog, as per usual, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Katy J. Pearson is an emerging musician and producer who was born in the West Country of the USA. Pearson is now based in Gloucestershire and Bristol, and she is one of the most notable new signings for Heavenly Recordings, of which she is set to debut her ironically titled debut LP record, “Return”, on November 13th. Pearson has been on tour alongside Cass McCombs and she was set to perform on a live tour alongside BC Camplight before the global Lockdowns, due to Covid-19, hit earlier on in the year. “Return”, her newest ten-track project, was recorded in Bristol with acclaimed producer Ali Chant (PJ Harvey, Perfume Genuis, Gruff Rhys) and Pearson describes the project, via her press release, as “These are the most honest and proper songs I’ve written: Songs that have come from my own being, rather than a room with a guy prodding me to tell a traumatic story of my life and then write about it”. She is ever the artist to have a quirky sense of humor, and a real grip on how her big industry can sometimes be ran with male-dominated production credits. Let’s listen to “Take Back The Radio” below.

After reading reports of radio listening figures surging up during Lockdown, Katy J. Pearson felt the timing of this release was certainly very appropriate. She told the media: “I enjoyed writing and recording this track so much, it really was a wonderful process,” says Katy. “When we were in the studio, Davey Newington (Boy Azooga) came in to lay down drums and add other textural elements, followed by my flatmate Laurie Nankivell (Squid) who added some cornet.” The lyricism is ripe with catchy pop hooks, as she recites: “Take back the radio, And move along, Take back the things you said, And carry on” over the top of a jovial and buoyant set of electronic synth lines, whilst her distinctly Americana-influenced vocals push her voice, which is reminiscent of vintage Country singers in the years past, as the catalyst for upbeat songwriting that celebrates togetherness and individual advancement. The opening is introduced by glistening keyboard sequences, and a subtle series of Horn-based percussion that softly sits in the centre of the ongoing track. In contrast to this, the outroduction to this track feels less subtle, and a woozy set of Brass instrumentation lurks around the corner to create a more in-your-face convergence of joyous neo-psychedelia and the soothed, emotive backing vocals. Refrains such as “Switch off the TV/Just sing a song” are highly reflective of the cheerful Synth melodies and the colourful Drum beats that permeate as riffs throughout the duration of the track. Overall, it sounds more pop-driven and daytime-friendly than the type of music that I would usually choose to listen to, but I think it feels more textural than your typical mainstream chart pop single, and I feel there is some talent on good display in here. It feels Psychedelic, but only slightly so. It would be great to hear Pearson experiment more with these elements of Neo-Psychedelia in the future, but it’s still catchy as it is.

Pictured: Katy J Pearson in a press shoot to promote “Return” (2020) (Photo via Heavenly Recordings)

Thank you very much for reading my new post! As always, I’ll be blathering on about some piece of music tomorrow. Speaking on that, we’ll be marking the end of the month off with a fairly recent track that I wish I’d got around to writing about a little sooner, perhaps. It comes from a hidden gem of an English indie folk musician who started out by playing the Hang instrument as a founding member of the percussive UK band, Portico Quartet. In 2014, he received a Mercury Prize nomination for his debut studio album release, as a solo artist. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: Erasure – “Nerves Of Steel”

September 21, 2020 — Leave a comment

The 80’s duo who seemingly never want to Erase their sound. It’s time for a new post!

Pictured: Cover Artwork for “The Neon” (Released on August 21st, 2020) (via Mute Artists Ltd.)

Good Morning to you! I’m Jacob Braybrooke and I’m typing up your first post of the new week because, as per usual, it’s still my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Of all of the groups from the New Wave of British Synth-Pop to emerge during the 80’s, Erasure are one of the few still active. The duo have written over 200 songs in their library, and they have sold an estimation of over 28 million albums globally, according to Official Charts Company’s data. Some of their biggest chart hits include “A Little Respect”, “Chains Of Love” and “Always”, and the duo have remained to be a fixture of the LGBT Community, particularly in European territories, with lead vocalist Andy Bell having an androgynous look as part of his openly gay sexuality. Recently, I saw Erasure perform a half-hour set for BBC Radio 2’s Live At Home virtual festival. This comes accompanied by their eighteenth studio album “The Neon”, which was released on August 21 by Mute Records. The new album is Erasure’s most commercially successful album in a while, as it debuted at #4 on the UK Albums Chart with first-week sales of 8,394 copies in the country, making “The Neon” the duo’s highest-charting album since 1994’s “I Say I Say I Say”. Bell described the sound of the new album as “going back to the beginning” with older synth use and it was self-produced. Let’s hear the new single “Nerves Of Steel” below.

Fitting of the current Covid-dominated times, the duo aim for “The Neon” to be “a place that lives in the imagination”, according to their press release. It becomes clear that Erasure wanted to bring back their feel-good New Wave sounds of the 80’s to fit our problematic current affairs on “Nerves Of Steel”, the lead single of their most recent project. Bell opens, layered above a very buoyant Synth riff, “Are you gonna make your way back here?, Who rattled your cage?”, with the analogue synth work reading between the lines of a Glam Rock-infliction that lurks in the corner from the LGBT themes and the echoing syncopated keyboard riffs that provide a flamboyant, 1980’s visual. The second verse is more based around rhythm, with a slightly rougher 80’s synth riff intertwining with the familiar keyboard instrumental backing. It opens the window of opportunity up for an energetic and more Power-Pop based chorus, as Bell repeats: “You’re the object who owns my affection/Nerves Of Steel, turn in my direction” over a bustling synth riff and a glossy Drum Machine riff sequence that blips along to the continuous keyboard backing track. The vocals feel lustful and romantic, if without an explicit intimacy, as Bell recites: “Come and find me in the Motor hotel”, as a subtle keyboard riff twinkles in the background. Overall, I think that it’s perfectly fine. It’s probably not going to be the best track that you’re going to hear all week, or even all day truly, from a technical standpoint at least, but it does have a growing effect on you with repeated listens and it has it’s loyal audience. So, as long as they continue to develop a semblance of culture within music, I’m happy with it. It simply sees this duo stick to what they know – with a Catwalk-like strut of confidence.

Pictured: Andy Bell (Vocals/Writer) & Vince Clarke (Keyboard/Synths) (2020) (via SynthpopFanatic.com)

Thank you very much for reading my new post! As per usual, I will be back at it again tomorrow. We’re going to take an in-depth look at a recent single from a Swedish singer-songwriter and producer of French origin. She was nominated for “Best Newcomer” at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards in 2012 following the release of her debut EP, “The Flower’s Bed”, in that year. She has since collaborated with artists including The Bear Quartet, Camera Obscura, David Lindh and Jonathan Johansson. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: Noga Erez – “NO News On TV”

September 19, 2020 — Leave a comment

A new single that personifies the saying of ‘Ignorance Is Bliss’. It’s time for a new post!

Pictured: Noga Erez in a photoshoot for the AlphaTauri fashion label (in 2017) (Photo via RedBull.com)

Good Morning to you! I am Jacob Braybrooke and, like always, I am writing up about your daily track on the blog, since it is always my day-to-day pleasure to get typing up about a different piece of music every day! Even if you’re not familiar with the name of Noga Erez at all, the chances are that you have probably heard her music before. Her popular 2017 track, “Dance While You Shoot”, taken off her debut album “Off The Radar” released in the same year, was heavily featured in a global advertising campaign for Apple Music, a monthly music subscription streaming service. Noga Erez is a wonderfully talented singer, songwriter and producer, born in Israel, who often produces Electronic Rock music in frequent collaboration with Ori Rousso, her partner and co-writer, who is also a composer and lyricist himself. Erez recently wrote and co-produced a new single, “NO News On TV”, during her time in Lockdown, for City Slang Records. The track allows her to reflect on the Covid-19 pandemic, as she explained in a press statement: “This song was written during a period where I had more time than I’ve had in a decade. I was able to sit down and work my ass off on new music without any emails disturbing the silence. No notifications, nothing. I wanted to write a song that talked about that. I felt a deep need to imagine what it would be like to live in a world with no politics, money, grit, racism, or violence.” as she explains the basis she formed for the production of this single. Let’s hear it below.

Erez later elaborated on the standstill of creativity that hit her in Lockdown, as she explained, via press statement: “I call this song ‘a children’s song for adults’ because it shows a naive, Utopian reflection of reality. I just needed to have a song like that. An escape song. [But] this isn’t time for escaping, it’s a time for confronting. Singing about how ‘everybody’s free’ right now is such an incredible dissonance for me. It says exactly what it needs to say: not everyone is free. Actually most of us aren’t, but some of us are literally, physically not free. And that has to change fast.”, and it’s her personality that combines with the themes of disconnection with reality and “ignorance is bliss” that makes “No News On TV” feel like a memorable little Pop single. She peppers “Man, I’m so bored” throughout the buoyant interludes which run through the track at a breezy pace. In the chorus, she recites: “Tick tock, I just woke up, and I don’t know, what’s the time?” and “No more selling stuff for money, everybody’s free” over the top of off-kilter synth production and punchy electronic guitar riffs that make the DIY-style feel more studio-produced and tightly polished. There are also noticeably upbeat Trip-Hop elements, as her partner raps: “I don’t want to look at my phone anymore/I don’t want to roll like a stone anymore/Bring back the noise” over a cheerful backing vocal from Erez that blends cleanly with the Heavy-Pop elements. It doesn’t feel too artsy and it skews a little more pop-driven than the kind of shtick that I would typically go for, but I feel the hooks are sharp and Erez’s humour is a large component for this. Her slightly Brit-Pop delivery sounds reminiscent of Damon Albarn, with a mid-tempo speak-sing that melodically delivers mumbled musings as the arrangement of Neo-Pop bursts ahead of her. It’s solid stuff!

Pictured: Cover Art for “NO News On TV” (Single) (Released on June 23rd, 2020) (via City Slang Records)

Thank you very much for reading my new post! Tomorrow marks another new weekly installment of our Scuzz Sunday series on the blog, where we take an in-depth look back at an Emo-Rock or a Pop-Punk relic which was released between the late-1990’s and the mid-2000’s to see if it can still hold a candle to the more contemporary offerings of the genre. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: Future Islands – “For Sure”

August 25, 2020 — Leave a comment

Future Islands are back with a ‘Season’ of new music? ‘Surely’ not! It’s new post time!

Pictured: Samuel T. Herring (Lead Vocals/Writer/Producer), Gerrit Welmers (Keyboard/Synths), William Cashion (Bass Guitar/Rhythm Guitar) and Michael Lowry (Drums/Backing Vocals) (in 2020) (Photo Credit: Justin Flythe)

Good Morning! I am Jacob Braybrooke and I’m writing about your daily track on the blog, as per usual, because it is my day-to-day pleasure to review a different piece of music every day! Samuel T. Herring is known for his deep, operatic croon as the frontman of Future Islands, a native band of Baltimore, Maryland, who have specialized in Prog-Synthpop for the adults for the best part of a decade. The band went viral with their performance of “Seasons (Waitin’ On You)” on an episode of US talk show The Late Show With David Letterman in 2014, and they’ve remained to have a strong and loyal fanbase since. Similarly to Sigur Rós, this is a crossover band who are popular, but not. “As Long As You Are” is their sixth album, set for its release on October 4th, and is their first to feature drummer Michael Lowry as a fourth member of the band’s official lineup. The band will also be playing a ticketed live-stream gig from Baltimore on the night of its release. The 4-piece have also taken a production credit for the first time in their 14-year career, collaborating with Steve Wright as an engineer in his Wrightway Studios in Balitmore. Let’s take a listen to “For Sure” below.

The music video for “For Sure” was directed by Sam Mason, and it finds a Knight Rider-style car drive through an idyllic sequence of post-apocalyptic landscapes, paired to the beat of rhythmic synth riffs and propulsive drum basslines, as T. Herring’s signature vocal delivery allows for raw emotions to create a feeling that tip-toes on the line between reminiscence and regret. He croons: “Perish the pain/I was impoverished/Those ties that wind”, as a retro, nostalgic 80’s keyboard aesthetic interlocks with an ascending backing vocal from Wye Oak’s Jenn Wasner. T. Herring croons away, at his retrospective pace, remembering: “Hot as the day/When we sat on stones”, and “Dove from the rocks/Scraping my knees and toes”, layered over a thick guitar groove and reverb-drenched Synth lines. The chorus is very melodic, as T. Herring declares: “I will never keep you from an open door, I know” and “That’s how much I feel in everything you are” after a post-bridge that grinds the pace to a slower fluidity, before the instrumentation leans into a more Psych-oriented visual, as the repeating Synth grooves mesh with the clashing drum pattern to create a cinematic, theatrical quality, as T. Herring signals the end with a gut punch, exclaiming: “I will never keep you from just who you are” as the Synths gradually fade out. It’s certainly a track that does what Future Islands have done solidly well for the best part of over a decade now. It’s true to say that it doesn’t sound much different to their last material, since they just continue to meddle around with the same formula and nurture their unique qualities, and it is a formula which seems to work, so it doesn’t make me feel particularly shortchanged as a result, although I’d like to see them experiment with some new ideas in the near-future. That said, it is the lead single, so it’s designed to be accessible to a wide audience, who are perhaps a little bit more casual. Overall, I really dig this. It sees the band continue to carve out a niche for themselves, with an enjoyable sound that encapsulates the fairly rare direction of Synthpop for the adults.

Pictured: Cover Artwork for “As Long As You Are” (Available to buy or stream from October 4th, 2020) (via 4AD)

Thank you very much for reading my daily blog post! Just like always, I will be back tomorrow for an in-depth review for another brand new single, this time coming from an English electronic duo who are currently signed up to Warp Records, who have steadily nurtured a unique style drawing from UK Grime, Dubstep, Electro-Rock and Ambient. One of their tracks was ranked on Pitchfork’s list of “Top 100 Tracks Of 2009” and it was used in a television advertising campaign for Colette, a fashion accessory retailer. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: Tame Impala – “Is It True?”

August 24, 2020 — Leave a comment

Can’t you see my eyes are open wide? Would I lie to you, baby? – It’s new post time…

Pictured: Tame Impala performing a live set on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury Festival 2019 (Photo via BBC Music)

Good Morning! I am Jacob Braybrooke and I’m typing up about your daily track on the blog, because it is still always my day-to-day pleasure to write about a different piece of music every day! Even if you’re just a casual listener of music, I’m sure that you’re probably at least familiar with the name of Tame Impala by this point – an Australian Psychedelic Rock outfit predominantly steered by Kevin Parker as a solo producer, with touring band members to fill out the band’s line-up. He’s been making huge waves with 2012’s “Lonerism” and 2015’s “Currents”, and he’s been gaining mainstream attention with his latest release, “The Slow Rush”, which was released back in February, by Fiction Records in the UK, and other labels internationally. A new single, “Is It True?”, was released from the new album two weeks ago, alongside a technicolor-inflicted new music video which engulfs Parker in a retro visual format of a Synesthesia-like aesthetic, as he grooves to the track around tripped colour art, created to look like it was made from clippings of VHS Recordings and Amiga 2000 graphic engines. Parker has also kept busy during the self-quarantine period with a remixed version of the new album, “The Slow Rush In An Imaginary Place”. On his latest album release, Parker wanted to craft a variety of Pop soundscapes, and Parker opted to write and record the album himself in his studios in Melbourne and Los Angeles. Also exploring wide themes of growing maturity and coming-of-age, he told the media: “A “lot of the songs carry this idea of time passing, of seeing your life flash before your eyes, being able to see clearly your life from this point onwards.” “I’m being swept by this notion of time passing.”, later adding, “There’s something really intoxicating about it.” Let’s have a listen to the brand new single – “Is It True” – below.

“Is It True?” likely marks the final nail in the coffin as to how far the project of Tame Impala goes as a guitar-based psychedelia rock outfit, embracing a vivid Synthpop flair of production and unabashedly catchy, rhythmic hooks, but it never feels derivative or tired as far as a modern Prog-Pop record can go, as the synth compositions instead feel rich and thoughtful, as “Is It True” marks one of the strongest highlights of his latest album’s material. Parker contemplates taking a promising relationship further, reciting: “We started talkin’ bout devotion/The kind that goes on eternally/And I tell her I’m in love with her/But, how can I know that I’ll always be” in the opening verse, layering his vocals over a smooth instrumental of shimmering West African drum samples and lines of drifting keyboard riffs that flutter across the cut, with an easygoing strip of Horn sections to keep the groove rolling. During the bridge, Parker asks: “That’s a promise I can’t make and I won’t validate, Was I being immature, I don’t know, I don’t care” to an upbeat rhyme over a wistful, bubbling Synth bed instrumental. That’s before the heavy electronic snares hit you hard, and the track sounds very polished in glittering Disco rock. The same kind of Psych-Pop, with a slight R&B infliction, vibe carries on, until a major key change marks the beginning of a mellow and delicate little interlude. The Vegas-inspired bassline is still faintly audible, with the same Strobing effects, which feel gradually slower and more contemplative. Parker sidetracks with: “In my head, I said, we’ll see how it goes, until we know, what the future holds” as the high production values increasingly get detailed with a laidback Conga drum groove and a slow-paced, fizzing bed of Keyboard instrumentals and gentle Synth work. It could disappoint fans fond of Parker’s more guitar-driven material, but I think that it works as a great pop track, sounding danceable and dancefloor-friendly, while using a reflective style of lyricism that complements the awkward narrative. Exciting and sonically stimulating.

Pictured: Tame Impala (Kevin Parker) in the video for “Call My Phone Thinking I’m Doing Nothing Better” (2020)

As previously mentioned, Parker always finds ways to keep himself busy, so he has been collaborating with The Streets on “Call My Phone Thinking I’m Doing Nothing Better”, of which you can read my review of the track here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/05/08/todays-track-the-streets-feat-tame-impala-call-my-phone-thinking-im-doing-nothing-better/, and if you can’t get enough of the sounds and themes that Parker explores on The Slow Rush, you can check out my thoughts on “It Might Be Time” here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2019/11/16/todays-track-tame-impala-it-might-be-time/ and “Lost In Yesterday” here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/02/14/todays-track-tame-impala-lost-in-yesterday/

Pictured: Cover Artwork for “The Slow Rush” (Released on February 14th, 2020) (via Fiction Records in the UK)

Thank you very much for reading my daily blog post! As always promised, I will be back tomorrow for an in-depth look at a recent single, and a new LP announcement, from a popular Alternative Synthpop band from Baltimore, Maryland who went viral with a live performance of their 2014 crossover hit “Seasons (Waitin’ On You)” on the US talk show, The Late Show with David Letterman. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Scuzz Sundays 1st Anniversary Special: The Bloodhound Gang – “The Bad Touch”

August 23, 2020 — Leave a comment

Honestly, I can’t actually believe that I’m doing this, but it’s a special Scuzz Sunday…

Pictured: Jimmy Pop (Lead Vocals/Rhythm Guitar), Jared Hasslehoff (Bass Guitar/Backing Vocals), DJ Q-Ball (Keyboards/Synths/Turntables/Producer), Daniel P. Carter (Lead Guitar) and The Yin (Drums (2015) (via WeGow.com)

Oh, boy! Good Morning, I’m Jacob Braybrooke and we’ve reached the time of the week where we have a look back at an Emo-Rock or a Pop-Punk relic, one that would have been played on the defunct Scuzz TV channel, from the late 1990’s to the mid-2000’s, to see if it can live up to it’s stature! We’ve actually reached the point of an entire year since I began running the feature on the blog, so, therefore, to mark the milestone, we’re actually going there, with… THAT track. Of course, I’m talking about The Bloodhoung Gang’s “The Bad Touch”, a track that was on a VERY significantly heavy rotation on Scuzz TV, for all of the wrong reasons… I feel. It’s known for it’s very silly, memorable music video that made the track become a sizable hit commercially, peaking at #4 in the UK Singles Chart and #52 on the US Billboard Hot 100, alongside a #1 chart position in European countries including Ireland, Germany, Italy, Spain, Norway, Sweden, and a few others. This track came from the group’s third studio album, “Hooray For Boobies”… Yep, which was also released in October 1999 in the UK and the rest of Europe, with a US release early in the year thereafter. In case you were wondering, The Bloodhound Gang were a band who have done quite well for themselves, as they have sold more than 6 million copies of their albums worldwide. I guess, after “The Bad Touch”, they at least had a core fanbase to follow them. The 5-piece went on a hiatus in 2015. Let’s get this over with… with “The Bad Touch” below.

Referenced by Eminem in his hit – “The Real Slim Shady”, The Bloodhound Gang’s “The Bad Touch” is the exemplary track that bought Rap-Rock to the masses in a way that, for at least some merit, is still remembered to this day. The lyrics are sexual and vulgar, as Jimmy Pop (yeah, an apt name, for sure) recites: “Sweat baby, Sweat baby, Sex is a Texas drought” and “So, put your hands down my pants and I’ll be you’ll feel nuts” after a synth-led intro that introduces retro 80’s synth beats and a noticeable element of Space-Pop into the mix. The chorus trades nothing for no subtlety, as Pop unforgettably raps: “You and me/Baby me, Nothing but mammals/So, let’s do it like they do on the Discovery channel”, as he pairs up a very basic rhyme with a melodic Synth instrumental, with very little guitar-based instrumentation to be seen or heard. The rest of the track plods along with it’s established style, as Pop matches simplistic Hop-based hooks with repeating Synth instrumentals, with the odd “Gettin’ horny now” to remind us of the intentionally crass and deliberately oversexualised lyricism, with sexual references with every single turn, and a calming Synth bed undertone to complement the Innuendo-heavy vocals. To be fair, the music video is still rather funny and it elicits a decent chuckle out of me, and the refrains are slightly catchy, so I’m not going to take a No.2 all over this. The trouble is, however, you may notice how the sound never really progresses in any major ways. It never really gets to a point where it gets outright explicit, and, melodically, it’s just the same couple of hooks getting repeated over strikingly familiar Synth instrumental sections and the same old rap chorus. It gets tedious for the wrong reasons, and it simply just doesn’t quite go anywhere. But, where would we all be without this? Blissfully unaware… Perhaps?

Pictured: Cover Artwork for “Hooray For Boobies” (Album) (Released on October 4th, 1999) (via Geffen Records)

Thank you very much for reading this post! Scuzz Sundays will return for the foreseeable future, and although I’ve just about covered all of the main tracks taken from the era, I’ve still got plenty of sources to gather memories from and some lesser-known tracks that could have something interesting to them. I’ll be back tomorrow with an in-depth look at the new single from an established Australian Psychedelic Rock act who recently collaborated with Mike Skinner on his latest mixtape as The Streets. He also won the “Best Song Of The Year 2016” trophy at the APRA Awards in 2016. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: Lynks Afrikka – “How To Be Successful”

August 12, 2020 — Leave a comment

It’s fair to say it feels like we are all living in Afrikka under this heat. It’s new post time!

Pictured: Lynks Afrikka in a publicity shot to promote the release of “Smash Hits, Vol. 1” (EP) (2020) (via LynksCorp)

Good Morning! I’m Jacob Braybrooke and I’m typing up your daily post on the blog, as per usual, since it is routinely my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Lynks Afrikka is the pseudonym of the Bristol-based English EDM producer, Elliot Brett. Brett is an LGBT artist who has been gaining popularity virally on YouTube and social media, particularly within the LGBTQ+ community, by releasing his own music under his self-produced “LynksCorp” label, accompanied by quirky music videos with enjoyably low production values that have been garnering a cult following. “Smash Hits, Vol. 1” marks the release of his first EP, a compilation of his previously released singles including “On Trend” and “I Don’t Know What I Want” alongside new tracks, including his most recent single, “How To Be Successful”. He has sold out headlined live shows across London, Edinburgh and Margate, alongside supporting Goat Girl, Sorry and Shygirl on tour. On his unique alias, Elliot told DIYMag.com: “I’m worried Lynx Africa are going to sue me and I don’t even want to be called Lynks Afrikka because it’s only called that in England, so everywhere else, I just look like this random white drag queen with Africa in their name,” grimacing as he mocks British millennial culture in his Electronic Dance tracks. I first caught wind of Lynks Afrikka by hearing the new track on X-Posure, John Kennedy’s evening show on Radio X. Let’s hear some life advice as he tells us “How To Be Successful” down below.

Using the aesthetic of a deranged Children’s TV show in the self-isolation produced music video to illustrate his self-frustration of young people feeling pressured to lead a successful life by going to university, getting a marriage, kids and a job, Elliot mocks the “ideal millennial life” with sharp wit and intentionally low-quality Electro-Rock beats, paired with a harsh synth line. I can only describe it as “Heavy Pop”. The lyrics (Or should I say.. Lyrix?) are very sarcastic, while keeping an upbeat tone intact. He provocatively hints at the “Conveyor Belt” life pressures with a tongue-in-cheek view of an older person, with the bridge “Oh! 80.96 years on average/Your life, you have to manage” and later challenging the traits with “Your life feels wasted/Your kids have vacated your family home/You should have faced this years ago”, with an earlier verse emphasizing these points with use of repetition: “Now Ruby goes to uni/Then Alex goes to uni/Then Curt does an Art Foundation/and then goes to uni” that feels quirky, but there’s a charming semblance of Pop-Punk with the hint of angst. Melodically, it starts off with a glossy synth line that bubbles underneath the reverb-drenched vocals, and the synthesizer riffs gradually become more danceable and evocative, eventually forming an Acid Techno Instrumental that feels buoyant and energetic. “Cause’ now it’s the end of the show” signals a breakdown which gives across a 90’s “Club Anthem” feel. Scattered dance breaks around the video and lines like “What can you show?, from years and years and years ago?” take the effervescent British humor up a notch. This probably falls into a specific niche and I feel he’s put his hands on the Auto-Tune machine a little bit too much here, but it really makes me laugh and the instrumentation is good fun. At a time like this, I couldn’t really ask for a lot more.

Pictured: Physical CD copy of “Smash Hits, Vol. 1” (EP) (Released on July 1, 2020) (via LynksCorp) (via Bandcamp.com)

Thank you very much for reading my new post! I’ll be back tomorrow, as per usual, for an in-depth look at the popular new single from an Oxfordshire-based singer-songwriter who told NME in a recent interview: “When I was dropped I remember thinking, ‘You idiots – I’m the next Paul McCartney’”. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when each new post is up and like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime