Happy Friday! Coming at you live from Portland, Oregon! I’m here to provide you a brief break from the reality of (most of) America (just) waking up to a racism problem (understatement), and I come bearing a lot of music. So much, I got it coming out my ears and into yours (that sounds gross).
Before I share the SEVEN tracks I’ve scooped up for you this week, I’d first like to give a shout out to my friend Elise. She’s the header picture for this week’s edition of cmd+f, and she’s getting married this weekend (that’s why I’m in Portland!). I’ve spent this past week dusting off the cobwebs of some ancient iTunes playlists in my archives and compiling a list of songs I remember we listened to whilst living together in college (that was 7 years ago!!!). I remember when Gaga’s “Bad Romance” demo leaked and I played it on repeat for hours in our room, and the rich irony of me snapping at her for playing La Roux’s “Bulletproof” everyday. I got her a gigantic poster of Eric Northman for our dorm because we were obsessed with True Blood, we danced to Metronomy regularly, and bonded over our fascination with Patrick Wolf. The list is evergreen and I’ll dump new tracks in there from time to time, but it’s mostly a time capsule of tunes circa 2010. I get strong emotional attachments and associations with songs - and I can say 100% of the songs dumped onto this playlist bring me such great memories of my friendship with Elise.
You can listen to my mix for Elise anytime here. Love you, girl!
Please reach out to me via the handy dandy contact page on the cmd+f website, or on Twitter with your thoughts about any of the tracks I’ve selected this week. I love chatting about music. Let me in on your new favorite band; they’re looking for new fans, too.
As always, you know the drill: if you like what you hear, spread the cheer. Tell your friends about the songs you liked in this letter, but most importantly, let the artists know. There’s a good chance they’ll see your comments. Let them know how good their tunes are, and they’ll crank out even more magic.
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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“Waking Up Slow” - Gabrielle Aplin | This little slice of pop perfect has been on loop for the most of this past week. It’s got the lowkey sunpunched mellowbanger quality of a Carly Rae Jepsen track, aka it’s amazing AND will implant itself in your brain. Gabrielle’s had massive international success the past few years, particularly in Brazil, mostly pushing soft vocals over acoustic instrumentals… but Gabrielle Aplin the cinematic power pop princess? Into it. More, please. Listen here
“Water Me” - Lizzo | Lizzo is a damn goddess. “Water Me” is a celebration of her entire self, declaring she is her own source of inspiration, embraces the practice of self-acceptance and love, and she’s the source of her own personal growth. As a fat woman of color myself, Lizzo truly is the most refreshing and exciting acts out there killing the game. She is marching her way into the spotlight as a proud, big black woman, and she has written anthem after anthem about how much she loves being in her skin. The “Water Me” video takes it a step further, and celebrating the outward beauty of blackness. Beautiful, beautiful song. Listen here and Watch here
“Hot Mess” - GIRLI | I know what you’re thinking - another GIRLI song?! So long as she cranks out these bops… I will not stop until she’s somewhat of a household name in the pop music community. “Hot Mess” is frantic, bold, fun, and high key relatable. Listen here
“Warning Signs” - Boilermakers feat. KLP | Boilermakers is Matt Okine, a jack of all trades of the entertainment industry from Australia. Beat is dope, but the hook carried out by KLP is luuuuush. “Warning Signs” is smooth as hell. Listen here
“Every Day’s the Weekend” - Alex Lahey | Heyya! Would you look at that? Alex Lahey is another fellow Aussie cranking out fun, relentless rock tunes. “Every Day’s the Weekend” is a delirious, insatiable flask of indie pop. Listen here
“Favorite Girl” - Henrik the Artist | Henrik the Artist stems from the self-proclaimed “first club music boi band” collective Rytmeklubben which they blend club and pop music. “Favorite girl” is cut from the same vein as the UK’s PC Music producers, but in this instance he mixes a slightly less demented and softer brush of late 90s/early 00s commercial pop vibes. “Favorite Girl” is a sticky, sweet delight. Listen here
“Black Cat Heavy Metal” - Dan Luke and The Raid | Last but certainly not least is the debut single from Dan Luke and the Raid - a fast and heavy psych rock jam. With a weighty distortion on the vocals, the only words I can manage to slur my way through deciphering are “black cat” and “neon sign,” but I can’t help pretending how to sing the words all the way through. The hook on that chorus is so clutch. Listen here
BONUS
BRAND NEW RELEASED (their final????) AN ALBUM !!!!!! A select handful of fans who pre-ordered the album today, but you can buy and download Science Fiction here
A$AP Mob’s most consistent member A$AP Ferg dropped a surprise Still Striving mixtape and it’s doooooooope. “Plain Jane” is my shit. Tape includes features from everyone relevant in rap right now and Meek Mill Listen here
Justin Bieber has released yet another country song disguised as a pop bop. Producer BloodPop had his hands in this one so it’s fuego Listen here
New Weezer album is in the horizon. For now, listen to their new song “Mexican Fender” if you are in a mood to rawk out Listen here
1000% not fronting: Miley Cyrus’ new song “Younger Now” bangs Listen here
Katy Perry has added Purity Ring and CARLY RAE JEPSEN as openers for her upcoming tour. Yep, Jeppo is opening for KPez. Bet that woke you up
The sound of 2008 has evolved: Alice Glass, formerly of Crystal Castles, has released her debut EP and it was produced by Jupiter Keyes formerly of HEALTH, and I forgot how much I missed a wet, juicy bass line. Listen here
Dance yr nite away “tonite” with new LCD Soundsystem Listen here
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If you’re interested in hearing what else I’ve been rinsing this month (aside from the tracks listed above), peep my personal August 2017 playlist. There I will be dumping in new (and occasionally throw back) tracks as the month carries on. You can dive into the cmd+f archive to hear what I’ve been listening to in previous months this year.
A(lmost a)ll of the tracks I’ve shared this week and past cmd+f newsletters are archived into a single playlist on Spotify for you to follow here. You’re welcome.
See you next week!