Highasakite – Someone Who’ll Get It

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Norway’s Highasakite have announced a new album to be released later this year, which will be the follow-up to their 2014 debut LP Silent Treatment. Just as they did on their first album, the new material will grapple with social issues and tackle today’s turbulent political clime with their acclaimed brand of dark indie-pop. In fact, the theme of the album is war and terrorism, according to vocalist Ingrid Helene Håvik. “It’s not a political album in the sense that I want people to side with specific party or mindset, but it has been central in my life,” Håvik says. “There are not many love songs on the album, because I haven’t been in that state of mind for a long time. Global warming and war have been my main concern.” Regardless, encased in her smouldering vocals — the stormy and newly released track “Someone Who’ll Get It” shows Håvik exploring this heavy subject matter in a relational context.

Stranded Horse – Monde

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Stranded Horse is the project of Parisian artist Yann Tambour, whose third album Luxe is out today via French label Talitres. Tambour, who began experimenting with an array of instruments at a young age—including the kora (a 21-string lute-bridge-harp made from calabash gourd and cowhide popular in West Africa)—continues to challenge himself instrumentally on the new effort. Nonetheless, the opening track of the album, “Monde,” is also the most simplistic, amounting to an exquisite french duet with Eloïse Decazes of pop-rock-folk act Arlt. Although according to Tambour the lyrics are meant to be ambigious, our french is a little rusty so some assistance with the translation would be appreciated, s’il vous plaît. Stream below.

Mt. Si – Either / Or

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Mt. Si captivated our attention in 2014 with shimmering tracks “Oh” and “True.” While their identity was unknown at the time, it was recently revealed that the group is made up of singer Sarah Chernoff of Superhumanoids, Jesse Kivel of Kisses, and Michael David of Classixx — and now suddenly everything makes sense. Since realizing their potential as a trio, the dreamy three-piece “have been slowly chipping away at songs for almost four years now,” explains Kivel. “[We take] a relaxed and loose approach to the project, never settling until we have a great track has been one of the guiding principles.”

Their new single “Either / Or” showcases just that, and serves as a shining example of electropop at its most stylish and fluid. The track will be featured on their upcoming EP Limits, out February 5 on Cascine.

Chet Faker – In-Between

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Even the inimitable Chet Faker isn’t immune to the perils of winter storm Jonas. The Australian artist and NY resident has released a new instrumental and blizzard-themed track entitled “In-Between,” an apparent byproduct of being snowed in along with the rest of the East coast. The track features a vocal sample from NYC mayor Bill de Blasio during a state-of-emergency speech (from a 2015 snowstorm) and a melodious guitar line. While we miss his rhapsodic vocals, we’ll take a dosage of Faker’s creative impulses anytime.

Brave Shores – More Like You

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The honor of first post from the first wave of 2016 submissions goes to Brave Shores, a brother-sister duo based out of Toronto. Comprised of Jay and Stefanie McCarrol, the sibling duo released their eponymous debut EP in the fall, although their promo efforts seem to have just picked up. Listen to “More Like You,” a dreamy synthpop number below and also watch the whimsical video for their single “Surfs Up.” Sort of Mary Poppins meets Jungle Book.

Kisses – The Nile

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While we wait patiently to be wowed by new releases in the new year, we thought to share a recent effort from alt-pop outfit Kisses, who released their third album Rest in Paradise this past October. The LA duo has always been a reliable source for groovy dance beats, and standout track off the new LP “The Nile” is no exception. According to singer Jesse Kivel, “The Nile” is a nod to a Rod Stewart track that he felt mirrored some of his more obscure disco favorites from the ’70s. “Both me and Zinzi are really interested in pop artists who ‘went disco’—Paul McCartney, The Stones, Blondie, Rod Stewart, the list goes on. Putting these two worlds together was something we felt destined to do,” Kivel explained to Interview mag. It’s the best, so stream below.

CCP’S TOP 20 TRACKS OF 2015

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Well another year has drawn to a close, which means it’s time for all the ‘best of’ lists in music to emerge. Most of the heavyhitters (Pitchfork, NPR, etc.) have already weighed in at this point, and now it’s time for CokeCanPoetry to toss in our humble, synth-doting hat as well. This year we’ve pared down our list to a selective top 20, which have been conveniently collated in a Spotify playlist below. Yes, we aim to please. Of course, you can click on the artists links for individual past entries as well.

It should be noted that these picks are representative of great records in general, and that selecting the best track is subjective and even arbitrary in some cases. That is just to say that we suffer from an “utter conflict of love and duty” in assembling these best-of lists, as Inverted Audio so aptly put it. In any event, enjoy these tunes anew — plus our top five remixes of the past year below. Thanks for listening and following along with CCP in 2015!

1. Jose Gonzalez – Let It Carry You
2. Natalie Prass – Bird of Prey
3. Unknown Mortal Orchestra – Multi-Love
4. Braids – Sore Eyes
5. Sufjan Stevens – Fourth of July
6. Purity Ring – stranger than earth
7. Leon Bridges – Better Man
8. Farao – Bodies
9. Father John Misty – Chateau Lobby #4 (in C for Two Virgins)
10. Florence + The Machine – Queen Of Peace
11. Panda Bear – Boys Latin
12. Shura – White Light
13. Beat Connection – Illusion
14. Beirut – No No No
15. Mac Demarco – No Other Heart
16. Thundercat – Them Changes
17. Empress Of – How Do You Do It
18. Years & Years – King
19. Youth Lagoon – The Knower
20. Grimes – REALiTi

 

 

TOP 5 REMIXES OF 2015:

 

Lost But Not Forgotten Electronic in 2015

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As stated earlier in the week, we’ve been working on clearing out submissions from the past year to make room for 2016 — and in the process realized there were several noteworthy electronic tracks that never quite made it to post. Thus, we’re just going to drop them here for the sake of expediency.

The following efforts derive from emerging new artists, including debut singles from three-piece electronic band Arbitraire, European electro-pop artist Von Sell, and a London producer called Couros. The list is rounded out by the mysterious downtemp artist Nemea, Berlin-based trio Say Yes Dog, and UK singer/producer Chris Savor. If you’re into the electronic music scene, get these artists on your radar for next year. Stream below!

 

Caravan Palace – Russian

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And now for a group you may not know — a Parisian act called Caravan Palace who caught our attention with their modern-day big band sound. Lauded as an exhilarating electro-gypsy-jazz group by NPR and tagged under “ragtime EDM” by Flood Magazine, the band has received critical acclaim in France for their swinging, early-20th-century Left Bank bohemian sensibilities.

Fronted by vocalist Zoé Colotis and founding members Hugues Payen (violin), Charles Delaporte (upright bass) and Arnaud Vial (guitar) alongside Antoine Toustou (trombone, machines), Caravan Palace cites influences as diverse as Cab Calloway and Daft Punk. Their cheekily-titled third album <|°_°|> was released on Le Plan Recordings this October.

Following a stint at Coachella last year, Caravan Palace will be returning to the US in spring 2016. Listen to “Russian” from the latest LP below — c’est magnifique!

Ephemerals – You’ll Never See Me Cry

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Clearing out the CokeCanPoetry inbox for 2015, there are a few notable submissions we never got around to featuring — so this week (culminating in our year-end ‘best of’ list), we remedy this. One such instance is neo-soul group Ephemerals, who released their sophomore album chasin ghosts this past October. The UK act came together when musician Hillman Mondegreen met singer Wolfgang Valbrun while on tour in France with another project — an intersection which would eventually lead to the band’s formation and current identity as a seven-piece. For a sampling of their capabilities, listen to the soaring piano anthem “You’ll Never See Me Cry.” With soulful gems like this, let’s hope the group is longer lasting than their name would suggest.