Liam Payne

August 29, 2018

August 29, 2018 in Newsletter

This past week and a half has been brewing with waves, and waves of energy. I think us coasting out of Mercury in retrograde may have a teenie, tiny bit to do with this feeling. Maybe it’s the seasons changing? Kids are going back in school, so your favorite lunch joint is more relaxing during your break. Do you feel the gears churning? Change is on the horizon, and it feels damn good.

This coming Friday cmd+f will have its first guest contributor. I’m so excited to share this letter with y’all; since I’ve already had a peek, I can confirm it’s dope! If you’re interested in taking over cmd+f for a week in the future, be sure to check the bottom of this letter for more details.

Now… onto the tunes. I’ve handpicked five songs that’re going to rock your socks off. ¡Dale!

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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“Summer Time High Time” - CUCO feat. J-Kwe$t | Man… this shit is wavy. LA producer Omar Banos, aka Cuco, has made a huge splash over the past two years with a string of massive underground hits. Every song he drops near instantly racks up millions of hits, and he has a strong, growing fan base. Born of first generation Mexican immigrants and raised in Hawthorne, Cuco started tinkering with Ableton in high school and recording laid back tunes in Spanglish. While Cuco is proud of his Chicano heritage, he doesn’t want it to overshadow and solely define the work he’s putting out. In an interview with NPR, he says, “I'm hoping that eventually I can do more than just be an artist of color. Being an artist of color is already a form of activism, but I'm going to try to do more and do better.” Listen here and Watch here

“This Is My Cue” - Eliza Shaddad | Everything about Eliza Shaddad’s music is exactly what I’ve been missing from my soul this year. “This Is My Cue,” taken from her forthcoming debut album Future, is a brooding, melancholic ballad of Shaddad’s struggle to ending crumbling relationships. Striped with cool hues over a smoldering rock song, her lush vocals buoy with tension and frustration over soaring guitars. Listen here

“Son of a Bad Man” - Marcus Atom | After years of singing for other people, Chicago’s Marcus Atom has taken the leap as a solo artist. Infused with soulful R&B vocals puts forth a raw, honest introduction in his debut single, “Son of a Bad Man.” 12/10 recommend for fans of: extremely talented vocalists, particularly along the lines of Leon Bridges, Nick Waterhouse, and Michael Kiwanuka. Listen here

“Hollywood Angel” - SACHI feat. E^ST | This is the second time I’ve featured a song with E^ST in the letter! “Hollywood Angel” is a pure pop bop reminiscent of early Marina and the Diamonds sentiments meets a dive-y disco floorfiller. Listen here

“SALAFI SECRETS” - ZAN | I honestly don’t think you’re ready for this song. “Salafi Secrets” took me by surprise the first time it cropped up in a random playlist, tinny through the speakers in my phone under the noisy faucet running in the kitchen sink. The song is a fusion of fragments seamlessly fused together for one of the most exciting songs I’ve heard in ages. It’s bathed in so many colors, with tempos slinking up and down the track. After living in the song for the past week, I did a bit of research on ZAN to see what this exciting music project all about. Turns out ZAN is an Australian-Pakistani producer from Perth. This particular jam is about his struggles and conflicts of his identity within the LGBTQ community and the Islamic community. Listen here

New Music Friday Selects

Here are my thoughts on Liam Payne’s debut EP First Time: in my unbiased opinion, it’s f*cking great pop music. In my biased opinion, it’s the best post-1D solo body of work released to date. Honey got to flex his vocals and throw down some bops! Happy birthday, Liam! Listen here
Fall Out Boy pay tribute to their hometown Chicago in their new single “Lake Effect Kid” Listen here
UK producer duo Disclosure are back with a string of groovy new house tracks. Get down to “Funky Sensation” Listen here
Grime legend Wiley dropped a new single, “Boasty,” featuring Mucky Listen here
The last time you likely consciously listened to KT Tunstall was most likely back in 2007. She’s back with a soaring new single, “The River” Listen here
cmd+f alum No Rome has dropped an aesthetically soothing music video for his doooope single “Do It Again” Listen here
The baddest, saddest gals in the music game, Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers, and Lucy Dacus, join forces as boygenius. All three releases are sublime, but I high key recommend “Bite The Hand” Listen here
The biggest “boyband” in the world right now, Korea’s BTS, have re-packaged their number 1 Billboard Hot 100 charting album for Love Yourself: Answer so if you like them you’ve probably already listened to the new tracks 343585 times by the time you’re reading this Listen here
Riton and Kah-Lo have reunited again for a new club jam, “Up & Down” Listen here
Kim Petras has a new bop. I’ve listened to it, I like it, but it’s co-written by Dr. Luke. [loud booing noises] Feel free to search for it on your own if you are wont to do; I will not be linking it 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 August 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 FRIDAY!

P.S. Are you interested in contributing to cmd+f? Read more details below!

Last December I launched the cmd+vent calendar: an ambitious project that consisted of releasing a daily newsletter for the 12 days leading up to Christmas. I asked a handful friends to reflect on how music impacted their lives throughout 2017. It was much more exciting to share these reflections than compiling yet another end of the year “Best of…” list.

I’ve been thinking of ways to expand cmd+f’s potential over the last 6 months. To foster a more communal atmosphere all year round in this (mostly) weekly newsletter, I’m now inviting one reader per month to share their music discoveries by emerging artists, or artists likely flying under our radars.

To the readers currently subscribed to this letter via email, I’d like to encourage you to reply to this letter (really, just hit “reply” at the top of your box and I promise I’ll get your message), give me a hello, and let me know if you’d be interested in taking over cmd+f one week. You’ll get to write an opening monologue, introduce yourself, and gush about five songs really hitting at your heartstrings. If you’re unsure how this is going to go down, you can anticipate the first guest feature letter is coming out THIS FRIDAY!

For now this invitation is only open to email subscribers — so if you have a friend with a vibrant musical palette that isn’t currently subscribed, please have them head over to this link right here!

August 17, 2018

August 17, 2018 in Newsletter

It’s been another productive week here in sunny Southern California. Last weekend I moseyed about downtown for the annual KCON LA event and had a total blast. I was so psyched to snatch up some good deals on skincare (which, lemme tell you, surpassed my expectations! I came home with bags of goodies), but the panels were incredible. I learnt so much about the songwriting process for the Korean and Japanese music markets, sat in on a panel with Korean hip-hop and R&B producers from Jay Park’s label H1gher Music, picked the brains of American music journalists covering K-pop music, and got to speak with academic scholars who study Hallyu. Perhaps the most interesting panel they hosted this weekend was Black American music’s influence on Korean hip-hop and pop music. Phew!

By the end of the weekend I was a little overwhelmed and sad for it to be over, but I’m glad I went. 12/10 recommend hitting up KCON even if you only plan to pop in to buy boxes of sheet masks. It’s a must stop for pop culture nerds.

Now, let’s just talk music! I’ve got a handful of songs to share this week, all by artists I’ve never featured before. I have a feeling you’ll like at least one of them!

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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“He’s Good” - Kate Stewart | Once upon a time there was a rising powerhouse vocalist featured on a ton of pop tracks by UK producers name KStewart. KStewart’s label tightened their grip on her creative freedom, so one day she said “bye, bitch,” and rebranded her music identity as Kate Stewart. She went on to release an early 00s-esque R&B bop about confronting her ex’s new partner about her being better than her ex. She named it “He’s Good,” and it was featured on a cmd+f letter. The song was noted for being best listened to via any method of hearing, but was enjoyed being blasted through speakers in a car in the morning/mid-day. Listen here

“Language” - Moodoïd feat. Wednesday Campanella | Moodoïd is one of the most fascinating finds to fall into my lap this month. I have to thank my pal Agnes for sharing Wednesday Campanella with me many moon cycles ago. I spinned some of their records ad nauseum for a while, thus triggering the Spotify algorithm to log “she really likes this artist.” All of that has lead straight up to his magical union of frenetic Franco-Japanese psychedelic pop. Moodoïd was founded by former Melody’s Echo Chamber guitarist Pablo Padovani, and Wednesday Campanella are a Japanese experimental pop group fronted by vocalist KOM_I. “Language” sounds like an early 80s Italo disco fever dream. Listen here

“Any Other Way” - Tomberlin | Sarah Beth Tomberlin: if you’re reading this, thank you. There is an art to writing a song with only your acoustic guitar and your voice–and making it interesting. The production (done by Owen Pallett, aka Final Fantasy!!) on “Any Other Way” is divine. Driven by a single, repetitive chord plucked on an acoustic guitar and melody, the song sporadically fractures into reverberations under feathery vocal harmonies and muted piano chords. “Any Other Way” is stunning. Listen here

“Showgirl” - Sorry | Rock may be dead on Top 40 radio, but for those who know what the hell is going on in the scene, we’ve seen a massive influx of gut-churning, sweat-drenched in seven-feet high ceiling club bands fronted by women. From Wolf Alice to Sunflower Bean, Sorry are flourishing across the pond and tearing it up on stage. Their latest single “Showgirl” is, as quoted by the group, a song about “awkwardness, lusting from afar, desire and disgust,” but the real reason why it’s on here is because the guitars are cool as fuck. Listen here

“These Are Not Your Memories” - TVAM | I had a real “Holy balls” moment the first time I listened to TVAM. While the gag is I saw Joe Oxley (the self-produced mastermind behind TVAM) say he’s sick of our culture being focused on nostalgia (I may be embellishing his thoughts a bit here -- he actually said “The song is about taking society aside and having a quiet word about its shared identity crisis.”), TVAM’s music and visuals are drowning in it. I was immediately spiked with similarities to Suicide, CAN, Ride, The Smiths, My Bloody Valentine, and bits of Kraftwerk on acid. If you like this joint, listen to the rest of his music; it’s soaked in delicious layers of sound. Listen here

New Music Friday Selects

Y’all: there’s, like, too much new music this week. BRACE YOURSELVES!
Rina Sawayama’s new single “Cherry” is a BOP Listen here
Cherryade, a bratpop-y outfit from London I’ve been following for a couple years now have dropped their debut EP, Fractured Fairytales - CONGRATS!!!! Listen here
UK emcee Stefflon Don’s album SECURE is packed with pure heeeeeat and packed with top tier features. Must listen. Listen here
Wasn’t so sure about the new The 1975 single “TOOTIMETOOTIMETOOTIME” but I’ve logged at least 32 listens by the time this is officially published and I don’t think I’m stopping anytime soon. Listen here
Portland rapper Aminé dropped his new mixtape ONEPOINTFIVE and honestly the greatest part of it is Instagram sensation Rickey Thompson’s inspiring opening monologue for “STFU2” Listen here
Cat Power invited Lana Del Taco to lend some vocals for her new single “Woman” Listen here
Pop banger songwriter of the decade MNEK has officially announced his debut album Language is FINALLY dropping September 7th! AAAH! Check out his latest single “Crazy World” Listen here
cmd+f alum Sam Fender has a new single out called “Dead Boys” Listen here
Slaves are back with yet another amazing album, Acts of Fear and Love Listen here
Ariana Grande’s highly anticipated new album Sweetener is here and, well, it’s here Listen here
Baauer collaborated with Instagram computer simulation Miquela??? It basically sounds like a Terror Jr. joint. Listen here
Liam Payne of 1D acclaim has announced he’s not going to release a debut album but a debut EP of four songs next Friday, August 24, aptly titled First Time. Can’t wait, tbh.

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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.

See you next week!

P.S. Are you interested in contributing to cmd+f? Read more details below!

Last December I launched the cmd+vent calendar: an ambitious project that consisted of releasing a daily newsletter for the 12 days leading up to Christmas. I asked a handful friends to reflect on how music impacted their lives throughout 2017. It was much more exciting to share these reflections than compiling yet another end of the year “Best of…” list.

April 20, 2018

April 20, 2018 in Newsletter

Today is one of those Fridays that already feels like a Saturday that feels like a Sunday. You know? Perhaps it was me gorging on Japanese BBQ and all the shots of sake last night for my dear friend's birthday. Eh. I'm feeling an exceptionally poppy mood for my music selections this week, so please prepare for five sweet tracks to shuffle through the weekend.

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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“Rubber Bands” - Nines feat. RAY BLK and Skrapz | Rising London rapper NINES just dropped his album Crop Circle today, and the album is stacked with slick features. My favorite and perhaps the most pop accessible of the bunch is "Rubber Bands," layered over a sinister sampling of Zapp's 1985 hit "Computer Love." The star of the tune is the hook sung by Ray BLK. Listen here

“Alright” - CYN | I'm lighting some candles for CYN to reach the right audience, because this girl is destined to make some waves. the Detroit native has spent the last seven years hustling her way into Katy Perry's circle, and finally landed support from KPez's A&R and signed to her label... meaning CYN is literally breathing the same air as some of the greatest contemporary pop songwriters of the last decade. Now she's touring with pop's favorite Scandinavian wunderkind Sigrid. "Alright" is an ode to all the kids in high school berated for being daydreamers and chastised for "wasting their time" yet made it through their teens unscathed and turned out, well, alright. Listen here

“Too Late” - Nimmo | Dark pop duo Nimmo make music for feelings. That sounds vague, but music is the language of the heart, and nothing heals better than dancing the pain away. Opening with strings before bursting into a relentless thump and piano stabs, the song opens with the lyrics "Can I feel the air resting in your lungs tonight? / You've never known me less, but I keep you short of breath at night." Like, damn. You feel that? I well and truly felt that. Listen here

“GIRLS X BOYS” - alice | This week Peter Robinson, more commonly known as The Voice of Popjustice, was going on about how pop music needs to bring a god damn proper chorus back to pop music. And middle eights!! The landscape of pure pop has been left barren and littered with "drops" and lyricless choruses. "GIRLS X BOYS" is a big single for the freshly signed British singer (Virgin EMI UK, Captiol US). Think the dizzy bass line of Tove Lo's "Cool Girl" -- the only complaint I might make for this song is it's missing at least 45 seconds off it. "GIRLS X BOYS" lacks a clear, distinctive middle eight (which could easily be slipped into that missing 45 seconds!!!), the single is brimming with so much potential that I'm excited to see more of alice over the coming months. I'm banking on seeing her take on a Dua Lipa-esque career trajectory over the next 18 months if her A&R can plug her in with the right people. Listen here

“The Wave” - LION BABE feat. Leikeli47 | Gaaaah daaaamn! LION BABE always pulls through with a dose of sunshine. I'm positively drunk on these grooves. Listen here

New Music Friday Selects

Kicking off the selects with a new music source alert. My friend Sam helped launch a brand new online music site called BANSHEE ZINE. The site aims to highlight music opinions by women and non-binary folks. Please check it out! Read here
After a string of commercially successful but critically lukewarm/disliked singles, Liam Payne has finally stepped up to take on a summer jam con sabor. Featuring Colombian hit maker J Balvin, “Familiar” is by far Liam's best solo effort yet. I've been patiently waiting for Liam to fulfill his destiny as the Latin Keith Urban. Once an all Spanish version of "Familiar" drops, it's over for you bitches Listen here
Kanye West is back on Twitter acting like he's the new Foucault, and allegedly we are getting a new Kanye x Kid Cudi album during Gemini Szn. Whoop whoop.
Janelle Monae! A gift on earth! Has yet another single. “I Like That” is a sensuous, slinky jam Listen here
Scandinavian nymph demi-goddess AURORA returns with her vast, ethereal single "Queendom." BRB, galloping my way to the island of the Amazons Listen here
The Gays™ are creaming over Anita Granita's comeback single “No Tears Left to Cry.” Homegirl lowered her ponytail for this one because she means business. Listen here
Surprisingly, my favorite single release of the week is Khalid's “OTW” feat 6LACK and Ty Dolla $ign Listen here
“Hands On Me” BURNS feat Maluma and Rae Sremmurd is top tier summer dancefloor jammery Listen here
cmd+f alumnus Matthew Young released a new single, “Fix Me Up” Listen here
Leon Bridges has gifted us with a new single, “Beyond” Listen here
It's always nice to see some of my favorite artists that were formative to my music tastes during my teenage years are still going strong. Listen to Tokyo Police Club's new single, "New Blues" 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!

January 26, 2018

January 26, 2018 in Newsletter

On January 27, 2017, the very first cmd+f newsletter was sent out to 12 very wonderful friends via Tinyletter. I initially started it as a new means to share music with friends in a central, organized forum, and as an easy place to document all of the new music I was consuming. It also turned into something I looked forward to writing every week after spending a year of writing empty news bites, elbowing my way through an arms race of publishing passionless content.

Throughout this past year, I trialed a mini radio show through Anchor.FM, and expanded the newsletter into a full on website. I found meaning in this project through the cmd+vent advent calendar in December: understanding ways music brings joy into our lives.

(Nearly) one year later, this project is still kicking. I’m so pleased to have finally established an outlet that aims to highlight the pure joy I take out of my devotion for discovering new music. The act of sharing new music and simply discussing music brings me so much personal fulfillment. The act of putting together cmd+f’s weekly letter alone is deeply satisfying to me. I’ve been vaguely hinting on expanding cmd+f over the past few months, and that next step is a Mighty Big Leap. When the time does come, I hope you’ll take that jump with me.

For now, happy birthday cmd+f!!

So, I’ve rebranded the BONUS section to the freshly titled New Music Friday Selects. It’s more fitting, as a bulk of the bonus content highlights contain the most anticipated releases of the week, surprise releases, and the occasional status update of a new release by a cmd+f alum!

Before you hit that section up, it’s time to check out five smashing tunes by emerging artists!

Remember: if you like what you hear, spread the cheer.

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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“A Foreign Affair” - Client Liaison feat. Tina Arena | Opening this week’s batch of fantastic finds with a gloriously campy 80s-injected pop bop by Australia’s Client Liaison. “A Foreign Affair” is a major, major tune that has been HIDDEN FROM THE UNIVERSE. Australia is generally a wash because it’s covered in spiders and snakes the size of school buses – that’s beside the point! Client Liaison have also included pop icon Tina Arena (who I learnt about via my faaaavorite pop music podcast duo Dan and Andy of Popchops) on this blisteringly good chorus. To those who are unfamiliar with Tina Arena, she’s absolutely massive - like, on par with who Celine Dion is to Canada. For as essential as Tina’s pop career has been in Australia and France, I’m surprised I’ve only just stumbled upon this track in the last couple weeks. I’m not sure if it’s been a particularly successful single in Australia, but it deserves to be heard and played at FULL VOLUME. Listen here

“Here Lies” - Jorge Elbrecht feat. Tamryn | Less than one second into “Here Lies,” and you’re suckerpunched straight in the chest by the force of fourteen thousand sounds booming out of the speakers all at once. The jolt of sound rolls open and outward through the song, graciously unfolding layers of a steady synth loop disrupted by a crunchy, disjointed rumble of sirens, police dispatch comms, and machine guns. “Here Lies” is so busy battling through the thousands of layers of sounds battling to bubble through the surface of the song, it’s impossible to decipher what to prioritize listening to first - the sonics or the lyrics? Are the lyrics even important? It wavers between sounding hopeful and the soundtrack to getting decked in the face by an axe murderer. Listen here

“Arms of Pleonexia” - Cabbage | My fav scuzzy post-punk bros Cabbage announced their debut album Nihilistic Glamour Shots is dropping at the end of March! Cabbage have never been one to hold back on making political statements in their lyrics. Their new single “Arms of Pleonexia” is a hot take on the UK’s bloody history of arms deals that have supplied mass destruction in war torn countries around the world. After recently watching the TV mini series The Last Post, this history of disturbing the peace in the Middle East is rather fresh on my mind. “How long til we take responsibility?” the chorus coos. “Arms of Pleonexia” is the most punk drag I’ve heard in at least a decade. Read those greedy government jerks for filth. Listen here

“Freaking Out” - Yehan Jehan | Imagine: Hall & Oates shared an edible then recorded “Private Eyes” and I’m pretty sure you’d end up with something that sounded very close to Yehan Jehan’s “Freaking Out.” It rests on a low key funky vibe that borders on sounding more careless about enduring heartbreak than complete numbness. The lush harmonies woven through the chorus will stick to your eardrums like white on rice. Listen here

“I’m In Love Without You” - FINNEAS | This song hands down brings the DRAMA. While I’m unsure of FINNEAS’s sun sign, I feel a kindred spirit to this Scorpio-dense bath of groveling for a lover you might not even HAVE to move on from. 12/10 CAN RELATE. The song opens with (no joke) twenty layers of ghostly harmonies echoing “I’m in love without you….please don’t still love me….but you still find a way inside my dreams.” The song chops up the last lyric into a dense, electronic synth line FINNEAS sings over throughout the rest of the song. It’s...fucking genius. It sounds entirely genreless/its very own brand of forward thinking pop, and I am obsessed with it the more I listen to it (pro-tip: it loops perfectly when you have it on repeat). Song aside, the most shocking fact I learnt about FINNEAS is he is the brother and co-songwriter to pop darling Billie Eillish (who’s been doing very well for herself since she featured on cmd+f last March!). I’m excited to hear what other tunes FINNEAS has hiding up his sleeve this year. Listen here

New Music Friday Selects

The powerpop tune of the month, Liam Payne and Rita Ora’s “For You” for the Fifty Shades Freed soundtrack, now has a lush music video. Liam Payne’s involvement on the track has only furthered my Rita Ora stanning, and for that I’m beyond grateful. She looks absolutely stunning in a scarlet gown, swaddled in a bed of roses, while Liam is donning a velvet evening jacket like he’s a baby Enrique Iglesias. This also marks the first music video my man’s reciprocated direct intimacy with another mujer, and honestly, kick up that sex appeal a few notches, please. Watch here
Talented vocalist and global superstar who keeps testing my patience, Stefani Germanotta, commonly known as Lady Gaga, has dropped a stripped version of her song “Joanne” - it’s beautiful, but I am STARVED for a massive pop tune. Listen here, I guess
Migos’ Culture II is here and-there-is-a-Drake-co-lab-bor-ray-shun (raay-shun) [skrr skrrr] Listen here
James Blake has surprise dropped a new, dope single, “If the Car Beside You Moves Ahead” Listen here
Foaming at the mouth ‘cuz The Vaccines have dropped another banger, “Nightclub” Listen here
If you’re looking for an atmospheric instrumental music, one of my favorite composers, Nils Frahm, has a new album out called All Melody Listen here
Franz Ferdinand have gone full-on 1983, whence disco meets the goths, and I’m INTO IT. “Lazy Boy” is a choooon Listen here
The Cassie of the 20-teens, Jhene Aiko, has whispered her way thru yet another single. Swae Lee knows how to write a damn hook, but this Rae Sremmurd drop throughout “Sativa” isn’t meant to be anything other than a very, super chill ass song. The video on the other hand is pretty freakin’ wild. Watch here
What’s more refreshing that hearing Jack White jam the fuck out? Listen to his new tune “Corporation” Listen here
Techno legend DJ Koze has returned with new material for the first time in nearly 5 years with his Seeing Aliens EP. It’s a bit more pop and accessible than other cuts in his archives, but it’s a glorious peak into his forthcoming 16-track full length LP, Knock Knock (out May 4) Listen here
The legendary CRAIG freakin’ DAVID has a brand spankin’ new album stacked with jams. Standout track off The Time Is Now would be “Brand New” Listen here
Color me shocked, but the new Django Django album Marble Skies is actually a rather fun listen. Must hear for fans of Temples, Jagwar Ma, Yeasayer, and (the now defunct [R.I.P.]) Wild Beasts 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 January 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!

January 5, 2018

January 05, 2018 in Newsletter

Whoa. Welcome to 2018.

It’s a brand new year full of brand new flavors and feelings. So far in this first week it’s been a bit of a shitstorm - quite literally on the East coast as y’all suffer it out under a deep freeze (stay toasty, buds).

This year, I wanna take steps to make cmd+f to feel more like a community. After the response to cmd+vent, I believe it’s feasible. I know I spend every week telling y’all what you could be listening to, but that’s from one perspective. To accomplish this, I’d love to hear from you about your music experiences throughout 2018. Was there a song on your Discover Weekly that blew your mind? Were you stopped in your tracks in the middle of picking out a detergent and heard a wicked tune humming over your head? An above average concert opener? How about a song from that party you went to last weekend when your friend’s cousin DJ’d? As I said last year: your new favorite music act is always looking for new fans. Give us the goods, and everyone wins.

If you like what you hear, spread the cheer.

For now, it’s business as usual: strap in for 5 exciting emerging artists to slip onto your radar.

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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“Prune, You Talk Funny” - Gus Dapperton | Gus Dapperton has the full package to dive headfirst into 2018 as one of the most buzzworthy and compelling acts to watch this year. He already has a loyal following of fans trickling in by the day from all corners of the net, racking up millions of streams on YouTube bootlegs and authorized streaming platforms. Gus not only has a formative, definitive aesthetic about him (eccentric art school weirdo who clearly worships David Byrne), but he’s got off-kilter earworms that’ll burrow into your brain for days. “Prune, You Talk Funny” is a whimsical, breezy bop. What’ll assure your love for this tune is the music video - so please watch that before skipping straight to the song stream. You’ll understand this elusive charm that just oozes from him and his music; from his bowl cut, to his oversized polyester suits with deck shoes, and teal eyeshadow. Gus is at the top of my list of artists to watch this year. I have a feeling he’s going to catch on with a large audience. Watch here // Listen here

“Fever Thoughts” - Louis III | This is a debut single. This! A debut single! What in the hell?! “Fever Thoughts” sounds exactly like that hazy, nauseated restlessness an insomniac feels when trying to go the f*ck to sleep. The production is definite Frank Ocean-esque, paired with crisp R&B vocals. The dizzy sample loops scratch at your spine and try to seduce you to sleep. Listen here

“1986” - HÅN | Perhaps the most cinematic single plucked out for the letter this week, “1986” is magical. Italian songstress HÅN’s creamy vocals glide over an increasingly confident chorus of melancholic synths. This song is begging to get tipped by a music supervisor for an episode of Shadowhunters (which, yes, please) - the sweet intimacy and honesty in the lyrics is like fresh, powdery snow. Listen here

“King of Pop” - Roy Irwin | New Zealand artist Roy Irwin churned out one of the catchiest tunes about battling with depression in 2017. The lyrics are pretty vague, but there’s mentions of leaving the house wasted but coming home jade. Sonically the tune sounds like a bike ride in the park on a perfectly sunny day. Irwin’s entire album, also titled King of Pop, is littered with catchy tunes about avoiding Your Actual Feelings to Avoid Getting Into How Bad Things Are Actually Going With Someone You Don’t Really Care to Get Into It With. That was a mouthful, but people with depression will get it: sometimes you gotta fake it, or you gotta circumvent your reality to make it through the day, or a single conversation. Irwin’s managed to bottle this essence of irony so effortlessly. Listen here

“Don’t Fade” - JGrrey | After living with this song for a few weeks, I found out this song was almost never released as a single. Rising South London artist JGrrey whipped up a recorded version for a performance on YouTube channel COLORS (in which artists are invited to perform live in a brightly painted monochrome room), got a rave reaction (duh), and released a proper studio recording. It may be a cheap shot to suggest JGrrey is a “mini Adele,” but girl got pipes and incredible song lyrics. Listen here

BONUS

Running out the gate, the best release of the week is Liam and Rita’s “For You” for the Fifty Shades Free OST. The quality of the tune has come as a surprise to virtually every pop fan who’s laid ears on it, but I knew they had it in ‘em. Is 2018 Rita’s breakout year? Will she finally stop getting lucrative yet shoddy TV hosting gigs and finally be a music artist? Anyhow, ISSA BOP. Listen here
An official press release came out this week announcing Kendrick Lamar and TDE are supervising Marvel’s Black Panther soundtrack, including his new collab with Grammy nominee SZA - “All the Stars” Listen here
Bruno Mars out here, continuing to be the king of releasing the song of the summer in January. He’s dropped a remix of “Finesse” featuring none other than America’s sweetheart from the BX, Cardi B. The music video, an homage to 90s comedy sketch show In Living Color, has caused quite a buzz. I even shared it with my mom and she bumped to it. Watch here
Last week Allie X and VERITÉ officially released a music video for their soon-to-be sleeper hit “Casanova” Watch here
Charli XCX has covered Wolf Alice’s “Don’t Delete the Kisses” and transformed it into a distorted, desperate hyper-pop ballad. Listen here
Interscope labelmates Lana del Rey and BØRNS join forces on a euphoric collab, “God Save Our Young Blood,” and honestly, it’s okay, and isn’t a total waste of your time listening to it Listen here
THE VACCINES ARE BACK Listen here
Raunchy rapper and frequent Charli XCX collaborator cupcakKe has dropped her new album Ephorize. Please proceed with extreme caution if considering playing this around prude co-workers - “Spoiled Milk Titties” in particular is not safe for work (in case the title didn’t give that away). Listen here

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The New Year has brought on a clean slate - thus, a fresh playlist is born. A(lmost a)ll of the tracks I am going to share in the cmd+f newsletters this year will be 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 lists of your own.

See you next week!