Lav's Music Corner

Review by Lavender: Jamie xx is a writer, producer, and electronic musician who first rose to fame as a member of indie pop outfit The xx. In 2015, he released his first solo album In Colour , which was a massive critical darling for its blend of dance and electronic styles and impressive roster of collaborators. It's been 9 years then and yet it feels like In Waves  picks up right where the previous album left off. After a series of strong singles, Jamie xx has delivered another slice of absolutely excellent electronica that reinforces itself and features one highlight after another.  A surprising half of this album's tracklist dropped as singles in advance of it's release and there really isn't a miss in the bunch. A track like Treat Each Other Right  may not have exactly blown me away at first but its impact on the record is enormous. It comes after the instrumental intro track Wanna  which sets up the punchy beat underneath perfectly. The other single that didn'...

A variety of styles on this weeks list, but an extremely good collection of songs nonetheless.  5.  Exhilarate  - Sophie (feat. Bibi Bourelly) Sophie songs seem to so rarely have a "main character." Even Sophie herself often seemed like she was more of an orchestrator than a principal protagonist in her own music. That's why it was strange at first to see guest vocalist Bibi Bourelly taking over this song with her lyrics and melodies. Despite the surprise though, this is a warm electronic pop effort that I find pretty infectious and one that maintains Sophie's eccentricities, even if they come in a very muted manner.  Listen 4.  Summer Drop  - Cordae (feat. Anderson .Paak) 5 years ago Cordae and Anderson Paak teamed up for one of the smoothest rap songs I've ever heard on the former YBN affiliate's debut album. I haven't loved much of what Cordae has done since but this absolutely hits it out of the park once again. The pair are unshakably smooth together ...

This week some big favorites dropped duds and the best songs came from a few surprising places.  5.  Life  - Jamie xx (feat. Robyn) Even lacking the variety of his legendary debut album, the singles from Jamie xx's long-awaited follow-up have still been satisfying. Life  sees him teaming up with Robyn, who appears to be fully back in 2024, for what may be the most satisfying of the bunch. Jamie's vibrant house beats combine with Robyn's unmistakable direct swagger for a crossover that meets the moment perfectly. Listen 4.  TGIF  - GloRilla Glo isn't slowing down off the release of her admittedly pretty solid mixtape earlier this year. Her voice continues to be one of the most commanding in all of rap and the sparse popping beats she chooses to lend it to make things hit even harder. Even if this track has one or two lyrical moments that tend to drag down the energy with silly punchlines it's still an absolutely thumping song.  Listen 3.  Favourite...

Yet another busy week with a lot of exciting contenders, let's get into it.  5.  Baddy On The Floor  - Jamie xx (feat. Honey Dijon) Even though Jamie xx's drops haven't hit with the most consistency in the years since his stellar solo debut album, his high potential makes them a must-hear moment the second they drop. While Baddy  once again failed to utterly knock my socks off I think this is one of his stronger cuts in the past few years with an irresistibly fun beat straight out of Daphni's Sizzling . It's a punchier and more direct dance cut than I expected but it didn't take much to fall into its whims. Listen 4.  Raat Ki Rani  - Arooj Aftab The announcement of Arooj Aftab's upcoming new album immediately shot it up near the top of my most-anticipated records of the year. That's both because I've enjoyed her output this decade so far, but also because I think this is a strong lead single and increased industry embrace of her music is well deserve...

Given the sheer volume of highly anticipated material that came out this week, it's hard to not see the final product as slightly disappointing. Regardless these are the best new songs I heard this week and they likely aren't the ones you're anticipating. Enjoy <3 5.  Hideous  - Oliver Sim (Feat. Jimmy Somerville) This is quite an interesting track that I've been digesting upon repeat listens because it moves through some very distinct phases. Ultimately it's when Oliver Sim is at his most intimate that the song hits its emotional highs and when the Jamie xx produced instrumental hits its orchestrated peak that it finds the most impact. Unfortunately, I'm not crazy about Jimmy Somerville's addition to the track where he serves as a HUGE outlier. Honestly having another vocalist on the song at all feels like it takes away from what should be really gripping and raw intimacy.  Listen 4.  Freight Yard  - The Garden This is The Garden alright. From the wacko ...

While I've been doing a lot more of watching Coachella sets than listening to new music this weekend, I still took the time to lay out some of the best new songs released this week. Enjoy <3 5.  About Damn Time  - Lizzo Lizzo had quite a big weekend releasing this highly anticipated new single which came with an announcement of the similarly titled album and a performance of the song on Saturday Night Live . While the song itself may not quite live up to those expectations it is a catchy and dancy flavored piece of throwback funk pop with more than a spoonful of confidence mixed in.  Listen 4.  Something Changed  - Interpol After a rough lead single Interpol are back on track with this song which does their methodical and creeping brand of post-punk much more justice. When the slick guitar riff and kick drum open up the chorus it makes for a wonderful moment that harkens back to so many highlights from Interpol's discography.  Listen 3.  Hatefuck ...

The Avalanches are an Australian trio most well known for their heavy use of sampling and their critically acclaimed 2000 album Since I Left You . The band waited 16 years to follow the record up with the feature heavy Wildflower  in 2016 and have thankfully taken a shorter turnaround releasing this, their 3rd album, 20 years after Since I Left You . Review By Lav: I love The Avalanches. I have loved Since I Left You  since I first heard it sometime around 10 years ago and I was thrilled to see the band return on Wildflower  which I also thoroughly enjoyed.  Despite my love of the bands work I wasn't expecting quite as much from this record. The primary reasons being that it was less sample based than either of their first two projects and I thought the singles leading up to the album were a bit of a mixed bunch despite some major highlights. As it turns out there are still plenty of samples used perfectly all over the record, the original instrumentals are used...

            Looking at modern pop music there is a minimalist spike that runs through the vein of a genre that is still so commonly associated with shimmering synth leads and sugary sweet melody. But when we analyze the landscape of modern pop music in 2019 it tells us a different story. From the stark minimalist beat crafting of one of the summer's biggest hits, Billie Eilish's Bad Guy , to the dark, sensual and brooding nature brought on in the influx of increasingly lustful pop superstars the likes of Ariana Grande, Troye Sivan, Charli XCX and Kim Petras. The musical aesthetics and brash lyrical themes have a very clear trail that runs through pops 10 year romanticizing of Rap and R&B music the heartbeat of which was set in place by singer/guitarists Oliver and Romy and beat crafter extraordinaire Jamie xx. 10 years ago when a pop artist wanted to turn over a new leaf and release their edgiest material yet the blueprint was Brittney Spears' Toxi...