Banoffee‘s back with a new single—which, while part of her debut EP released in August—wasn’t officially dropped on Soundcloud until this week. Refusing to conform to any one genre, the Australian artist’s sound is a fresh eclectic blend of 80s synthpop and 90s urban soul in what may best be described as new wave R&B.
Lighter than Banoffee’s previous offerings, “Let’s Go To The Beach” is a bouncy, ebullient track imbued with her staple syncopated beats and layered synths. The track really takes off at 1:53, breaking out into a sportive and rollicking beach number (seasonable in Australia although not so much here).
Hemisphere of origin aside, you can catch Banoffee performing stateside at CMJ’s Music Festival happening this month in New York. Check out her schedule below, and purchase her album (via Two Bright Lakes) on iTunes.
Banoffee CMJ Dates:
10.22 – Aussie Beat Pie – Santos Party House – 8:50-9:15PM
10.23 – College Day – Rosenthal Pavillion – 9:45-9:55AM
10.24 – The dFM + Vitalic Noise – Mondrian Soho Hotel – 7:00-7:25PM
10.24 – The Green Room – Knitting Factory – 9:00-9:25PM
Flying Lotus’ suite of singles off the upcoming You’re Dead! LP — slated for release October 7 — runs the gamut of diametrically opposed servings we’ve come to expect from cutup savant Steve Ellison. Clocking in at 2:40 and 3:54, “Coronus, The Terminator” and “Never Catch Me,” respectively, are two of the longer cuts on an album comprised of uncharacteristically short tracks. Thankfully, our expectations of frenetic jazz samples and live recordings mashed together with the warmth of Flylo’s signature production are met on Lotus’ latest release, harkening back more to the psychedelia of Cosmogramma than the laconic Until the Quiet Comes.
On “Never Catch Me,” Kendrick’s machine-gun verses nicely ride the wave of Pastorius-like basslines, floating along smoothly with an accompanying piano line and slick drum programming that keeps pace with the track’s overall flow. Lotus has a keen ear for bringing experimental jazz to the fore in what is otherwise a highly contemporary package, and this track does not stray from the format.
As for “Coronus, The Terminator” arguably one of the album’s finest tracks — Lotus significantly dials up the thickness and dials down the BPM. From the opening licks of shimmering triangles and claves (it sounds like those instruments but who knows), this track is lush. Soulful melodies in the vein of an old spiritual drip viscously throughout, fleshed out by a warm lo-fi hiss. For an album conceived around meditations on death, “Coronus” drives home an aspect of weighty, peaceful release in that regard.
If you’re so inclined to see FlyLo live (with support from Thundercat), his upcoming tour should bring him to a city near you.
October 2014
• 09 Orlando, FL, The Beacham
• 10 Miami, FL, iii Points
• 11 Atlanta, GA, The Tabernacle
• 12 Chapel Hill, NC, Cat’s Cradle
• 13 Washington, DC, Lincoln Theater
• 14 Philadelphia, PA, Tower Theater
• 15 New York, NY, Terminal 5
• 17 Boston, MA, Paradise
• 18 Burlington, VT, Higher Ground
• 20 Montreal, QC, SAT
• 21 Toronto, ON, The Danforth Music Hall
• 23 Detroit, MI, Royal Oak Music Theater
• 24 Chicago, IL, Concord Music Hall
• 25 Minneapolis, MN, First Avenue
November 2014
• 07 London, The Roundhouse
• 09 Austin, TX, Fun Fun Fun Fest
• 11 Phoenix, AZ, Marquee Theater
• 12 Santa Ana, CA, The Observatory
• 13 San Diego, CA, North Park Theatre
• 14 Los Angeles, CA, Wiltern
• 15 Santa Cruz, CA, Catalyst
• 17 Portland, OR, Roseland
• 18 Seattle, WA, Neptune
• 19 Vancouver, BC, Commodore Ballroom
• 21 Salt Lake City, UT, The Complex
• 22 Denver, CO, Fillmore Auditorium
While we were hard pressed not to dedicate this edition of Remix Roundup to the surge of Odesza “Say My Name” remixes, we restrained ourselves. So instead, we’re kicking off this week’s installment with WKND‘s rendition of Jai Paul’s stellar track “BTSTU,” which frankly we feel didn’t get its due. The German producer mashes up the captivating JP original with a cover by Niia. Since getting turned on to “BTSTU” we haven’t been able to get enough, and this luscious deep house rework keeps us equally enthused.
Naturally, we couldn’t escape this week’s roundup without sharing at least one of the Odesza mixes which have been sprouting up all over since the inception of the TSIS contest. While we’re psyched about the awesome amount of innovation the contest has inspired — and appreciative to those artists who’ve shared their efforts with us — there are simply too many to feature all. (The moral of the story may be that it helps to have good raw material). And though we do not recommend trying to listen to them all in one sitting, we do encourage everyone to check out the fresh new crop of talent before the contest ends October 27.
Amidst the chaos though, the one remix that’s stayed with us is the Jordan James edit (currently no. 5 in the rankings). We love that the Australian producer keeps the sultry vocals of Zyra at the forefront over a shimmering stratum of synths, even brassing it up in the bridge with the addition of some French horns.
And finally, in celebration of Caribou‘s much anticipated album Our Love that drops via Merge in the US and Canada October 7, stream the title track below. Collaborating with Owen Pallett (as if Dan Snaith releasing a new album wasn’t exciting enough), Pallett helps Dan to achieve greatness by adding some spectral strings and sparing baroque riffs. In an interview with Stereogum, Dan explains: “When I sent it to Owen and asked him to write parts I was talking about the arrangement and layout of the song as a kind of chess game where the parts move around one another in a sort of dance.” The result is pure electro-alchemy.
Purchase the album Tuesday on iTunes, and be sure to catch his show at DC’s Black Cat if you’re in the area November 15.
PHOX first stole our hearts whilst seeing them perform live this last summer at DC’s The Hamilton. The Wisconsin indie folk band made up of six close friends exudes Midwestern charm and mutual adoration for one another on stage. Lead singer Monica Martin is at once charismatic and relatable—whose soulful vocals lent themselves effortlessly to the intimate venue. Although their songs are filled with latent themes of heartbreak, their breezy almost retro-sounding music is also a joyous and heartwarming affair.
Which is why when we heard that PHOX’s hit single “Slow Motion” had been remixed by Partisan Records labelmate Sylvan Esso, we could scarcely contain our excitement. The North Carolina duo put their inventive art-pop spin on the track to dazzling effect. Stream the mix below, along with a couple of our favorite PHOX tracks.
Both groups released their eponymous debut albums earlier this year, available on iTunes. Don’t miss your chance to see these spectacular artists live — check out upcoming tour dates below!
PHOX On Tour:
10/2 – Dallas, TX | Granada Theater*
10/4 – Houston, TX | Warehouse Live*
10/6 – Nashville, TN – Marathon Music Works*
10/7 – Atlanta, GA | Variety Playhouse*
10/10 – Austin, TX | Lambert’s
12/6 – Portland, ME | State Theatre^
12/7 – Northampton, MA | Calvin Theatre^
12/8 – Providence, RI | Lupo’s^
12/11 – Columbus, OH | The LC Pavilion^
12/12 – Cincinnati, OH | Taft Theatre^
12/13 – Chicago, IL | Aragon Ballroom^
* denotes w/ Paolo Nutini
^ w/ The Head and The Heart
Sylvan Esso On Tour:
10/18 – Irving, TX | Cultivate Festival
10/23 – Baltimore, MD | The 8×10
10/24 – Philadelphia, PA | Union Transfer
10/30 – Saxapahaw, NC | Haw River Ballroom – SOLD OUT
10/31 – Saxapahaw, NC | Haw River Ballroom – SOLD OUT
11/8 – Oakland, CA | Fox Theater*
11/9 – Davis, CA | The Davis Graduate
11/10 – Sacramento, CA | Memorial Auditorium*
11/14 – Los Angeles, CA |– Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall*
11/15 – Santa Barbara, CA | Santa Barbara Bowl*
1/15 – Atlanta, GA | Variety playhouse
1/16 – Charlotte, NC | The Neighborhood Theatre
1/17 – Charlottesville, VA | Jefferson Theater
1/23 – New York, NY | Terminal 5
1/24 – Uncasville, CT | Wolf Den at Mohegan Sun
1/31 – 2/4 – Riviera Maya, Mexico | My Morning Jacket’s One Big Holiday
poetry in an empty coke can 