May 25, 2018

As promised, I AM BACK! Boom, baby!

I’ll be jetting off out of town for the (American) holiday weekend, so I’m making sure you are STACKED with new music. Impress your friends at the barbecue this weekend with these sweet new tunes.

There are an armful of artists who have been featured in cmd+f in the past who have released new music today, so please be sure to dig through the New Music Friday Selects section at the bottom and support emerging artists.

As always, I hope these songs inspire you to check out more music by these particular artists, or lead to introducing you to another artist you’ve never heard before!

Remember: if you like what you hear, spread the cheer. Tell your friends about these artists and share the love.

You can contact me by replying directly to the newsletter that is mailed to your inbox every Friday, via my Twitter account, or using the contact page on the cmd+f website.

P.S. If you would like to have this letter sent to your email every Friday, please head over to this link right here to subscribe to never miss a weekly roundup!

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“Simple Luv” - Oscar Key Sung | I’ve seen Oscar’s name floating about on my Twitter timeline for a couple years now, and all of the Australian artist’s releases have been nothing short of thrilling. With the release of his No Disguise EP today, I’ve plucked “Simple Luv” to help segue into your latest obsession. Perhaps his most accessible release with a throbbing R&B beat looming in the background, the tune sounds almost familiar yet unlike any other tune you can put your finger on. If you dig “Simple Luv,” I highly recommend digging into his entire back catalogue. Fans of Years & Years, How To Dress Well, and Kelela in particular will thoroughly enjoy his music. Listen here

“Want U So Bad” - Gilligan Moss | I genuinely cannot stop listening to this song. That sticky, watery bassline wavering over a funky disco-dunked groove is so damn good, you can’t help but knock this on repeat. Listen here

“Four Winds” - Opia | From one groove to the next, “Four Winds” is a bonafide bop! The production and vocals on “Four Winds” are electrifying. Opia met while attending Yale a few years ago, packed up and moved to LA to “do this whole music thing,” and have since found their songs cropping up on music playlists around the web. With a few million streams under their belt, Opia are refining their sound and preparing to headline their summer US tour. Listen here

“The Other Day” - Foliage | From the first note I knew I was going to fall head over heels for this song. It sounds like a B-side to the Call Me By Your Name soundtrack, a ding-y 80s-inspired jaunt through the streets on a sunny day. The hazy bedroom pop sounds like early Wild Nothing, a unique blend of feigned hopefulness shrouded in daydreams. When I found out the person behind Foliage, Manuel Joseph Walker, is from San Bernardino, it all made sense. In fact, it kinda blew my mind, but San Bernardino is definitely the kind of environment to inspire a project like Foliage. For context, SB is a suburban wasteland about 50 miles east of Los Angeles that’s saturated with dudes who never got out of their skater phase driving raised trucks, with extremely disgusting desert heat in the summer, and a trip to Target is the most exciting thing to do there. Listen here

“I Go” - KWAYE | My initial reaction when first hearing this song was: “B I T C H!! GO OFF!” Swaddled in brocade jackets and high collared shirts, KWAYE is superstar in the making. He was discovered by giving his demo to an Uber driver (who happened to be a former A&R rep) that hooked him up with a connection at Mind of a Genius. “I Go” is a summer-dusted R&B jam ready to soundtrack your months ahead. Listen here

New Music Friday Selects

• The ultimate summer album is here! J Balvin’s Vibras is so, so good. It’s got features from the biggest names in the Latinx musicsphere -- even a reunited Wisin & Yandel! Listen here
• Shawn Mendes has released his self-titled album and, dang. DANG. Listen here
• James Blake has shared a stunning new track, “Don’t Miss It.” It’s his best vocal delivery and highlights his true artistry. Listen here
• Jay Park is out here taking leaps to crossover and climb his way up the Western charts. The Seattle native turned K-pop megastar has dropped his first single release under Jay-Z’s ROC NATION, “SOJU” feat. 2Chainz. Listen here
• SO MANY FORMER cmd+f FEATURED ARTISTS HAVE NEW RELEASES TODAY!!!! Please listen to their projects and support emerging talent!
• cmd+f alums HAERTS have a soaring new single, “New Compassion” Listen here
• Matthew Young (another former cmd+f feature) has released a 7-track mini album titled Fruit Listen here
• Hatchie’s (who is, you guessed it, a form cmd+f feature!) got a full on EP! It sounds like you’re dancing on a cotton candy cloud Listen here
• Americana queen on the rise Jade Bird’s (wow, look, another cmd+f alum!) got a new song, “Furious” Listen here
• Clairo’s (who’s been mentioned in the last two cmd+f letters) dropped diary 001, a brand new EP, and it’s got features from Rejjie Snow and Danny L Harle Listen here
• A$AP Rocky got a new album, TESTING, and it’s stacked with a lot of features (as must rap albums do), but the most notable feature is he managed to drag FKA Twigs out of a dance studio for “Fukk Sleep” Listen here
• CHVRCHES return with their new album Love is Dead Listen here
• Jake Shears (of Scissor Sisters acclaim) has a new solo release and it’s as much campy deliciousness as you’d expect Listen here
• I CAN FINALLY TASTE SUMMER!!! Diplo and Mark Ronson have linked up to forge a new house music track featuring Daniel Merriweather under the name Silk City, and it’s a FULL ON FACE MELTER. Listen here and listen to their hour long Essential Mix for BBC Radio 1 HERE

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A(lmost a)ll of the tracks I have shared in this week’s letter are archived into a single playlist on Spotify for you to follow here.

Subscribe to that playlist, share it with friends, or take some inspiration from the ever growing list to compile some of your own.

If you’re interested in listening to what I’m rinsing this month, you can follow my May 2018 playlist here. There I will dump a hodgepodge of new and old songs that fit my mood and the trends of the month. Having a personal monthly playlist makes a year in review so easy. Share your playlists with me!

See you next week!

April 27, 2018

Things are starting to sizzle up!

I’ve combed through fistfuls of hours of music to bring you five exciting tunes by emerging artists that may have slipped under your radar. Grab your headphones and let’s dig in!

As always, I hope these songs inspire you to check out more music by these particular artists, or lead to introducing you to another artist you’ve never heard before!

Remember: if you like what you hear, spread the cheer. Tell your friends about these artists and share the love.

You can contact me by replying directly to the newsletter that is mailed to your inbox every Friday, via my Twitter account, or using the contact page on the cmd+f website.

P.S. If you would like to have this letter sent to your email every Friday, please head over to this link right here to subscribe to never miss a weekly roundup!

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“Controller” - Channel Tres | After hibernating for the winter, the DJs are crawling out the their caves and gearing up for festival season. Expect a slough of dance-anthems-in-the-making to check their way onto the letter over the coming months. “Controller” single-handedly knocked me back with an insatiable hunger to dive headfirst into dance music deep cuts again for the first time in months. Compton based producer Channel Tres swirls bouncy, seductive Detroit techno beats with mesmerizing commands. This song is best enjoyed with headphones on a walk, or on a very loud speaker system (duh). Favorite bit? The way my bones rattle under the rumbling bass: "Throw some SUB in that bitch" Listen here

“Lover Boy” - Phum Viphurit | “Thai born, New Zealand raised, Bangkok resident” Phum Viphurit is a budding South East Asian indie pop GEM. He’s had a string of radio hits in Thailand, and a full length album released last year. Citing influences like Bombay Bicycle Club, Ben Howard, and Mac DeMarco, his music is like a rush of cherry limeade on a breezy, cloudless summer day. Listen here

“Out ‘Ere” - The Manor | South London MCs The Manor are a cornerstone of UK grime. Their latest single “Out ‘Ere” is a primed for soundtracking your pre-gaming antics. The club heavy beats are a 5-minute hype machine. Listen here

“4EVER” - Clairo | Clairo emerged last year with the DIY, lo-fi, left of center bedroom pop “Flaming Hot Cheetos,” immediately grabbing the attention of news outlets and a host of serious fans craving new tunes. She’s racked up millions of streams across platforms, and today has returned with “4EVER,” a funky track laced with Clairo's signature nonchalance. This time the production is much more polished yet hasn't lost an ounce of her charm. Listen here

“1999” - Arrhult | The Scandinavians are at it again! Who’s even surprised?! Scandos know pop music best…. Sounding like the best bits of a Daft Punk and The Weeknd collab, “1999” is a pure pop fantasy. The punch of the pre-chorus is electrifying. Listen here

New Music Friday Selects

• This week has been chock full of highs and lows in music, hasn’t it? Survey says: Kanye has fully escalated to new lows, and it’s a bit unfair to say he’s just “lost his damn mind.” Without getting in too deep about this (particularly the tweets on how his house looks like the inside of a jar of mayonnaise), let’s put any more discourse on this subject behind us and think of happier things.

• It’s been a Great Week for The Gays™!

• Janelle Monae’s new album Dirty Computer is out and has officially been crowned as an LGBT queen after coming out as pansexual in her Rolling Stone profile. Highlight of the album is the confident, unabashed embrace of sexual autonomy. Personal fav is “Screwed” feat. Zoe Kravitz, and it’s literally about fucking everywhere, anywhere, anytime Listen here

• Cher performed a cover of ABBA’s “Fernando” at CinemaCon in Las Vegas and None Of Us Could Even about it Listen here

• Years & Years have officially announced the release of the sophomore studio album Palo Santo, out July 6th!!! They also had Dame Judi Dench voice over the official trailer for the album! Pre-order here

• My forever girls MUNA have teamed up with the Yellow Bird Project to release an exclusive, limited edition charity tee (designed by Naomi). All proceeds are donated to Treskstock, a UK-based non-profit organization that does amazing work supporting young adults diagnosed with cancer. Order here

• Heads up: Lil B has dropped a bjillion of his mixtapes onto Spotify for your enjoyment

• Twin Shadow has released his new album Caer which features a collab with HAIM on the track “Saturdays” Listen here

• The Internet return with their funky new single “Roll (Burbank Funk)” Listen here

• Dancer producer ZHU has released a new EP,  RINGOS DESERT PT. I Listen here

• Sigur Ros have shared a new project of 8 songs, all tracks labeled as coordinates, titled Route One Listen here

• Stromae has dropped new music for the first time in 5 years Listen here

• Japanese Breakfast have covered The Cranberries’ “Dreams” for a Spotify session and it is absolutely gorgeous Listen here

• cmd+f alumnus CYN (featured in last week’s letter!) released a new single, “Believer”  Listen here

• Oddnesse has a new single, “Trust” Listen here

• Hatchie’s dropped ANOTHER dreamy single!!! “Sleep” is gorgeous Listen here

• Anne-Marie’s new album Speak Your Mind is out -- half the songs have already been released as successful singles in the UK, but there is enough new content to give it a spin Listen here

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A(lmost a)ll of the tracks I have shared in this week’s letter are archived into a single playlist on Spotify for you to follow here.

Subscribe to that playlist, share it with friends, or take some inspiration from the ever growing list to compile some of your own.

If you’re interested in listening to what I’m rinsing this month, you can follow my April 2018 playlist here. There I will dump a hodgepodge of new and old songs that fit my mood and the trends of the month. Having a personal monthly playlist makes a year in review so easy. Share your playlists with me!

See you next week!

April 13, 2018

Wahoo! We’re back in action, folks. Please accept my apologies for the unannounced spring break last week, but I think not having an update last week is going to make the letter this week that much sweeter to enjoy.
I’ve got five incredible tracks that’re gonna knock your socks off. Not to set your expectations too high or anything… but you should brace yourself. I'm not accepting responsibility for any burnt eyebrows.
Oh, and the New Music Friday Selects this week is a laundry list of tunes for you to check out from the past two weeks. Grab your headphones – it looks like Friday the 13th is going to be a wild ride.

As always, I hope these songs inspire you to check out more music by these artists, or lead to introducing you to another artist you’ve never heard before!

Remember: if you like what you hear, spread the cheer. Tell your friends about these artists and share the love.

You can contact me by replying directly to the newsletter that is mailed to your inbox every Friday, via my Twitter account, or using the contact page on the cmd+f website.

P.S. If you would like to have this letter sent to your email every Friday, please head over to this link right here to subscribe to never miss a weekly roundup!

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“Just A Stranger” - Kali Uchis feat. Steve Lacy | It’s with great delight to share the absolute best song to be released this month. Columbian-American singer Kali Uchis has a steadily growing, devoted fan base and a Latin Grammy nod under her belt, and her debut album Isolation dropped last Friday. Her vibe is heavily influenced by doowop, reggae,  and R&B, and she’s already worked with music heavyweights: Snoop Dogg, Gorillaz, Juanes, Lana Del Rey, Major Lazer, and a handful of other recognizable artists. For “Just A Stranger,” Kali links up with Steve Lacy (of The Internet acclaim) for a deliciously funky bop. Not to get totally obnoxious music blogger on y’all, but it sounds a bit like Billie Holiday with a blunt on the way to the beach riding down the 10 freeway with the convertible top down.This song sounds especially good over car speakers. Listen here

“Evil” - Ruthven | [checks calendar] Well, well, well. Look at the month -- it’s JAIPRIL, aka the month in which musicheads tiptoe around the idea of reclusive music producer Jai Paul actually releasing a debut album after an unfinished (but absolutely solid and highly influential) album informally leaked on the internet. The album was promised in April 2014, nearly 4 years ago to the date, but the entire project was scrapped, and Jai Paul has since kept under the radar – until late last year. “Evil” is one of two songs first released from the Paul Institute, an experimental music project based in London started by Jai and his brother, fellow megaproducer A.K. Paul. I slipped “Evil” into the new music Friday selects section in December, but my pal Amanda brought this back to my attention a couple weeks ago and I’ve fallen in love with it all over again. The throwback production is insane, hoisting a tinny two-step hi-hat. Ruthven is allegedly a firefighter from Lewisham, but deep down I want to believe the Paul Bros have actually broken the Jaipril void and quietly released a bop under the guise of a fictional vampire’s name. Listen here

“Bittersweet” - Only Girl | South London’s Only Girl first released “Bittersweet” in 2014, but has since grown into her voice, and re-released the serene track last week. The song builds on waves of her harmonies, gently rolling through waves in a a bay. Listen here

“911” - Mt. Si | A little over a year ago I plucked a Mt. Si track onto the weekly picks. Like the previous Mt. Si track, "911" ignites a luminous, glistening mood best served for night drives. I'm a sucker for mountains of reverb and a dope saxophone solo. Listen here

“Ride With Me” - Thutmose | Theeeeee hottest record out there you haven’t bumped yet. Holy, holy, holy -- “Ride With Me” is fucking perfect. After two spins, you'll already be humming along to the hook. If iHeartRadio didn't control Top 40 radio, "Ride With Me" would already be rolled out and destined to be a summertime hit. Listen here

New Music Friday Selects

• For those of you reading and consider yourself a pop music fan and happen to not be indulging in K-Pop, I must ask: what the hell is stopping you? How are you ignoring an entire market that is flushed with enough cash to produce excessive, elaborate music videos and promotional photo shoots with ten different wardrobes… and the pop stars themselves? Trained literally as if they are Olympic athletes, and paired up with the most left field, experimental pop producers in the industry. For a while a lot of the K-pop machine sounded a little too off kilter, but with the rise of alt-pop pioneers Robyn, Grimes, Charli XCX, and more, it’s clear western pop is starting to be heavily influenced by Eastern pop’s saccharine hyper-reality, the obsession with commodify-ing every aspect of popular culture to the point they’re labeling their stars as Idols…. Okay, so maybe I’ve freaked you the hell out. But there is a point I’m getting to here, but I have to start a new bullet:
• This week CBX, a sub-unit made up of three members from K-pop super group EXO, released a new mini-album, Blooming Days. Each of the 7 songs are based around a day of the week. Visually: it’s soft boys with pastel hair, swimming in flower petals and Dior Homme, but still managing to look very Lost Boys-esque with the choppy haircuts and dangling earrings. I can’t imagine the amount of youths having a sexual awakening with this content. Anyhow: I’ve been waxing poetic with one particular friend of mine all damn week about it, spending nearly every moment not at work looping this album, and we've both declared it the EMOTION (yes, Jeppo's 2015 critically acclaimed pop masterpiece) of K-pop. It’s a sizzling summer album laced with neo-80s inspired hooks and beats. Blooming Days is just campy enough, just sweet enough, and still manages to not be ridiculously juvenile. While all 7 tracks are great, my top two favorite tracks are “Vroom Vroom” (Friday) and “Lazy” (Sunday). Readers who consider themselves pop purists have got to pencil in some time to listen to this album. Listen here and feast your eyes on the soft grunge “Blooming Day” music video right here
• Janelle Monae has released another pop masterpiece, this time a pussy power anthem aptly titled “Pynk” and featuring dulcet harmonies with Grimes. The video has unleashed a second wave of questioning young women to come forward and declare “wow, I’m gay as hell,” after seeing Janelle gently caress Tessa Thompson’s face that’s very clearly between two lips–anyway, you get the gist Watch here
• RCA threw Tinashe a bone and finally let her release her second album Joyride Listen here
• Drake sampled Lauryn Hill who sampled Wu Tang who sampled Gladys Knight to foster one of the greatest onions of music history in decades for his latest single “Nice For What” Listen here
• Lord help us: Gallant’s beautiful ass has shared a new song and video for "Gentleman" Watch here
• Other K-Pop legends Super Junior released an entire album, but the highlight here is their lead single “Lo Siento” featuring the delightful Domincan-American Latin pop star Leslie Grace. It’s in Korean! Then it’s in Spanish! Then it’s in English! Then it’s in Spanglish! “Lo Siento” is fire Watch here and listen here
• Princess Nokia got a whole ass EP out! Listen here
• The new 5 Seconds of Summer single “Youngblood” somehow passed by my ears and since they’ve dropped the pop punk sound for more mature rock songs, I was pleasantly surprised. You will feel that, too Listen here
• cmd+f alumnus Hatchie released a sinfully sweet new single, “Sugar & Spice”  Listen here
• Nicki Minaj is back with two new songs: “Barbie Tingsz” and “Chun-Li” Listen here and listen here
• CHVRCHES share the desperately lonely, crowd stomper “Miracle” Listen here
• ALMA has remixed Years & Years’ “Sanctify” meaning she’s jumped on the track to add a verse Listen here
• Kylie Minogue served us an entire album last Friday, and it’s perfectly fun Listen here
• Everyone has been bumping Cardi B’s debut album Invasion of Privacy all week, so if you haven’t yet: GET ON IT Listen here
• Billie Eilish recorded a new COLORS session last week Watch here

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A(lmost a)ll of the tracks I have shared in this week’s letter are archived into a single playlist on Spotify for you to follow here.

Subscribe to that playlist, share it with friends, or take some inspiration from the ever growing list to compile some of your own.

New month, new playlist! If you’re interested in listening to what I’m rinsing this month, you can follow my April 2018 playlist here. There I will dump a hodgepodge of new and old songs that fit my mood and the trends of the month. Having a personal monthly playlist makes a year in review so easy. Share your playlists with me!

See you next week!

March 23, 2018

It couldn’t be a better time for it to be Friday than right now, dear reader. This week has been filled with many hours of planning budgets and orchestrating a massive, two-day photo shoot for my day job - and it all went way, way better than anticipated. Los Angeles has been raining non-stop for the past 48 hours – and it’s Florida rain, not that insufferably light Pacific Northwest mist that spits down on your enough to make your hair frizz up as soon as you step indoors.

I’ve slimmed down the selections to five songs again this week, and each one of them is a true gem. Some weeks I am so nervous I won’t find enough songs to muster up the enthusiasm to share them with you, but there is so much exciting music waiting to be heard out there.

To completely gas myself up (everyone needs to give themselves a pat on the back time to time) I can’t tell if I’m getting better at this, or if new artists are stepping up their game, but the picks for the past month have been ridiculously good.

As always, I hope these songs inspire you to check out more music by these artists, or lead to introducing you to another artist you’ve never heard before!

Remember: if you like what you hear, spread the cheer. Tell your friends about these artists and share the love.

You can contact me by replying directly to the newsletter that is mailed to your inbox every Friday, via my Twitter account, or using the contact page on the cmd+f website.

P.S. If you would like to have this letter sent to your email every Friday, please head over to this link right here to subscribe to never miss a weekly roundup!

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“Set It Off” - JessB | It’s the third week in a row I’m opening the letter with a track by a female MC! How could I not when ladies are killing the fucking game right now. JessB was brought to my attention via my dear friend Ana (who tips me off about what’s happening in New Zealand), and I completely lost my mind from the moment I heard “Set It Off.” She’s an exciting rising rapper from Auckland, making big wakes in the Kiwi hip-hop scene. Her EP Bloom packs pure HEAT, y’all. Keep your ears open for JessB; she’s only just getting started. Listen here

“Falling Into Me” - Let’s Eat Grandma | The best way I could describe the vibe of UK duo Let’s Eat Grandma is a cross between the brutal honesty and organic listlessness of MUNA meets the brutally calculated and left field-ness of Björk. “Falling Into Me” sounds like Lorde channeling CAN and Stevie Nicks all at once. It’s maddeningly fresh. Listen here

“Duck Hunting” - Gundelach | This week’s wouldn’t be complete without a song about melancholic nostalgia. Norway’s Gundelache has you aching with nostalgia in your chest. Between the analog synths and his sweet falsetto, “Duck Hunting” paints a vivid memory of beckoning for hopefulness when you’re on the brink of giving up on everything. It’s beautiful. If you dig “Duck Hunting,” give the rest of his new album Baltus a spin - it’s chock full of glossed up Tangerine Dream-esque vibes. Listen here

“Sure” - Hatchie | Back on my shoegaze bullshit. With swirling guitars stick in a My So Called Life-esque daze, “Sure” is a long lost Cocteau Twins daydream. Hymns to fractured relationships never sounded so gauzy. The Australian singer has garnered a lot of buzz, and I can't wait to hear more from her. Listen here

“Bedroom” - Litany | Alright, y’all. This song turns one year in a handful of months – but that aside, “Bedroom” is that song. "Bedroom" is a simmering, two-step lite, atmospheric pop bop. It's the audible nervously biting your finger and trying not to look at that person across the room. Their 4 Track EP is stacked with cottony jams and has steadily been raking in new fans over the past year. They're allegedly working on an album that's set to drop this year, and I hope the hooks stick as hard as the seductively sing-songy "Bedroom." Listen here

New Music Friday Selects

• Hallelujah! Old boy George Ezra has done it! He’s released his sophomore album Staying at Tamara’s. Stand out track that wasn’t a pre-released single has to be “Shotgun” Listen here
• Neo John Mayer Shawn Mendes has returned with not one but two new singles. One sounds very retro-James Bay, while the other sounds like a pseudo Mayer Hawthorne bop. Both are good each in their own ways. Listen to In My Blood here and Listen to Lost in Japan here
• A collab I never could have foreseen… but Thirty Seconds to Mars and A$AP Rocky???? It doesn’t even slap. Listen here
• Drake is back on his bullshit and gearing up for a comeback. This time brother Aubrey has dropped a “remix” (aka slipped a verse onto) N.E.R.D.’s “Lemonade” featuring Rihanna (which DUH) Listen here
• Superorganism have covered Carnitas Cabezza “Havana” and now THAT really slaps Listen here
• Queen Nadine, the only surviving member of Girls Aloud, has a new EP out  Listen here
• cmd+f alumn FINNEAS hs a new song, and it’s gorgeous Listen here
• Sunflower Bean’s sophomore album Twentytwo in Blue is out today Listen here
• Resident brat pop cmd+f alum GIRLI has a new single called “Play It Cool” Listen here

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A(lmost a)ll of the tracks I have shared in this week’s letter are archived into a single playlist on Spotify for you to follow here.

Subscribe to that playlist, share it with friends, or take some inspiration from the ever growing list to compile some of your own.

If you’re interested in listening to what I’m rinsing this month, you can follow my March 2018 playlist here. There I will dump a hodgepodge of new and old songs that fit my mood and the trends of the month. Having a personal monthly playlist makes a year in review so easy. Share your playlists with me!

See you next week!