Mirror Kisses - “runaways” (Heartbeats)
Lastly today we have Mirror Kisses from Harrisonburg, Virginia. Mirror Kisses is the project of songwriter/producer George Clanton and drummer Doug Sexton, and man if they don’t sound like they live in the 80’s (in the best way). The band airs on the side of mystery and Clanton’s angst-y baritone is complete with a touch of New Order. This is off their latest LP, Heartbeats, which just came out earlier this month.
Kenzie May - “Hide & Seek” (Hide & Seek)
Here’s another artist whose voice your might recognize from some other tracks - Kenzie May is a 19-year-old born in Boston but living in London, and up to this point she’s just been featured on other artists’ tracks - FTSE and Sub Focus specifically. Now she’s out on her own and if this first track is any indication, it’s a good path she’s headed down. Can’t find any info about what’s next for her, but this track will suffice for now.
The Shouting Matches - “Gallup, NM” (Grownass Man)
I’m a bit surprised I haven’t heard more about The Shouting Matches at this point. Basically it’s Justin Vernon (Bon Iver) and friends performing in the style of Wilco. It’s really good! This song is particularly Wilco-y. Alongside Vernon on this record are Phil Cook (Megafaun) and Brian Moen (Peter Wolf Crier). The band played a show together 7 years ago and have reformed to record this incredible record - it just came out last month around the time they played Coachella. Also, it’s called Grownass Man. That’s awesome.
Hannah Georgas - “Somebody” (Hannah Georgas)
I was tipped off to this artist just before SXSW, but it took me some time to really fall in love with her. This track, specifically, is awesome. Hannah Georgas is from Vancouver and just based on her voice and being Canadian, she will definitely get 100,000 comparisons to Feist. Not a bad thing. This song comes off her sophomore full length self-titled record, which came out in October - the whole record is good, but this song struck me harder than the rest. It’s a song about being broken up with and hoping that person’s heart gets broken someday because you’re still hurting so much. Sad, but I’m sure it’ll ring true to many of you.
John Newman - “Love Me Again” (Love Me Again)
A friend sent me this song yesterday and it was instant love. John Newman is a neo-soul singer from the UK and this is his debut single, which comes out July 1st. If you recognize his voice it could be because he sang on those two big Rudimental tracks last year - now he’s poised for a breakout of his own. John’s voice is enormous and beautiful, and this track sounds like something right out of Mark Ronson’s archives. The music video is also really beautiful, though it does get quite dark at the end. Really excited to hear what comes next for this guy.
Joel Compass - “Fucked Up” (Astronaut EP)
Lastly today we have a pretty depressing song. “Fucked Up” is a song about getting, well, fucked up. And having a night you regret. And trying to figure out what happened. Basically it’s The Hangover as a song in the style of The Weeknd. This is off Joel’s debut EP, Astronaut, which is sure to make waves when it comes out in June. This is sexy music.
MY BODY - “New Cat” (New Cat)
It took me a second to love this song, but it happened. It’s such a chill, lazy electro-pop song - no way to give this anything other than love. MY BODY are a duo originally from Portland but reformed in Brooklyn. The band has a pair of tracks right now, “Gentle Friend” in addition to the above track. Nothing much more I can write about this band other than that I want them to play next to me on the beach this summer.
K H U S H I - “Magpie” (Magpie)
Continuing today’s trend of British artists, KHUSHI is the project of Kalim Patel from London. Patel has only released a handful of tracks at this time, but they show incredible promise. I can’t find much about a full length or even an EP, so maybe he’s gonna keep churning out tracks until he gets signed. Love this track so much - it just builds and builds. I’ve listened to it at least 15 times in the past day. “I want you, not somebody else.”
London Grammar - “Wasting My Young Years” (Wasting My Young Years)
I’m pretty obsessed with Hannah Reid’s voice on this track. It’s been spinning around in my head for a week or so and I just can’t get over it. London Grammar are an English trio, and I think the sky’s the limit for their sound. The band released their debut EP, Metal & Dust, earlier this year, and while that’s good, this is amazing. I could float for days in this track. I really hope we hear more from them soon.
Cloud Boat - “Youthern” (Youthern)
The beginning of this song sounds like a prayer - maybe that’s why I fell in love with it. It is truly a beautiful track. Cloud Boat are a London duo consisting of Sam Ricketts and Tom Clarke, though I can’t confirm who has the dreamy voice. This will no doubt get comparisons to James Blake, but I’d say I like this about 1000 times more. The band’s debut record, Book of Hours, is out on May 27th. Get excited.
