Hey!
It’s been a minute (again!).
I’ve decided to roll with seasonal mixtapes from now on. Hopefully that’ll make my life a little easier. I can still share music I love but on a more manageable timescale.
Excitingly, I’ve opened a new Instagram page which is slowly developing a following. If you’re interested, you can follow me on: @themusicboxlistens.
August is always a funny month for music. I stop listening to the radio and probably consume the least amount of music compared with the rest of the year. I think that’s reflected in this playlist. A slightly strange selection of songs, but there are still some gems here.
Hope you find something you love!
Thanks for reading as always,
Marc x
The Essential 5
Madonna: ‘Love Sensation’
A glorious, euphoric house disco track packed with pulsating electronica, disco strings and pure uplifting joy.
FLO: ‘Don’t Break Her Heart’
A huge 90s R&B inspired sisterhood anthem with warm harmonies, skittering beats and gloriously nostalgic production.
Bradley Simpson: ‘Suzy’
An infectious, slightly cheeky alt pop anthem packed with windows down, wind in your hair summer energy.
Yeuku: ‘Say It Twice’
A hugely fun, vibey alt pop track blending bouncy 90s energy, smooth vocals, jazzy piano and bursts of electronica.
John Mayer: ‘Stop This Train’
A beautiful and deeply affecting reflection on the passing of time, driven by gorgeous guitar work and a rhythm that mimics a moving train.
The Long List
Madonna: ‘Love Sensation’
I love Madonna’s sequel to 2006’s Confessions album and this song has quickly become a favourite of mine. ‘Love Sensation’ is a glorious house disco hybrid with no frills, just bog standard, euphoric and uplifting house with pulsating electronica, disco strings and an affirmative sample of the line ‘there’s nothing that we cannot do’. It mirrors the electronica of Daft Punk and the disco of Kylie, so much so that she’s jumped on a remix version. I personally prefer the album version. The remix plays around with the chords and bassline a bit, which I’m not as keen on. Still, love this! Madonna herself described it as ‘just joy’, which I can’t disagree with!
Filed Under: house disco euphoria, pulsating electronica, joyful dancefloor pop
FLO: ‘Don’t Break Her Heart’
FLO frustrate me no end. I love their 90s R&B leanings, their vibe and their brilliant blend of harmonies. But the music often falls a little short for me. Still, this song has captured me and has been massively on repeat throughout August and continuing into September. The 90s R&B vibes are HUGE on this sisterhood anthem warning a friend’s lover not to break her heart, over gloriously warm electronic piano, skittering R&B beats and even 90s brass keyboard stabs. I adore this!
Filed Under: 90s R&B, sisterhood anthem, warm harmonies
Bradley Simpson: ‘Suzy’
Remember The Vamps? Bradley Simpson is their frontman, and we caught him opening for Charlie Puth in Birmingham in July. I hugely enjoyed his set, with this track closing proceedings triumphantly. Love the windows down, wind in your hair vibes on this infectious, slightly cheeky summery alt pop anthem. Glorious, and deserves more traction!
Filed Under: summery alt pop, windows down energy, cheeky pop anthem
Yeuku: ‘Say It Twice’
This vibey alt pop track from US singer Yeuku is huge fun with its bouncy 90s style hype man infused rhythm, smooth vocals, jazzy piano chords and quick blasts of electronica. Love, love, LOVE this!!
Filed Under: bouncy alt pop, jazzy electronica, 90s energy
John Mayer: ‘Stop This Train’
This has long been one of my favourite John tracks. ‘Stop This Train’ is a song about the fragility and ever moving nature of time and the inability to turn back. It’s a song which has the ability to punch you in the gut and always hits hard whenever you find yourself in a vulnerable state emotionally or navigating transitions. The guitar work is beautiful (courtesy of James Valentine from Maroon 5) and I adore how the rhythm emulates a train moving along a track. Simply gorgeous.
Filed Under: reflective acoustic pop, emotional gut punch, beautiful guitar work
Lucky Daye: ‘Ego’
This is Lucky Daye at his best, opening with heavenly, angel like a cappella vocals and transitioning into an acoustic guitar R&B flavoured song with Lucky’s usual velvety vocals and warm chords. It’s a track about balancing self love and emotional vulnerability in a troubled romantic relationship. The chorus is a particular highlight with its staccato vocals and falsetto ‘ego go go’ echoes. Gorgeous track!
Filed Under: soulful R&B, velvety vocals, vulnerable romance
Lenny Kravitz: ‘Honey’
Spotify autoplayed this and boy, I’m glad it did! Lenny Kravitz is brilliant anyway, obviously. I love this funky slice of R&B with its huge soul, catchy rhythms and particularly the seductive pre chorus, ‘If you feel it, don’t hesitate, I am ready, I won’t be late, Babe, I need you, I can’t get enough, ooh yeah’. Vibey!
Filed Under: funky R&B, seductive soul, late night groove
Shaggy and Rik Rok: ‘It Wasn’t Me’
An oldie, obviously, but it still stands the test of time. A reggae infused hip hop track with Shaggy’s trademark toasting style vocals, Rik Rok’s smooth vocals and those irresistible thumping beats. Cheeky, fun and still an absolute banger.
Filed Under: reggae hip hop, cheeky storytelling, timeless banger
Justin Bieber: ‘What Do You Mean’
This song is the perfect example of how pop is often at its best when kept simple. Using little more than a handful of piano chords, tropical house electronic elements and skittering synths, I never ever tire of it. Also, the ‘you’re running out of time’ with the metronome ticking over the beat is a genius touch!
Filed Under: tropical pop, minimalist production, pop perfection
Lainey Wilson and John Mayer: ‘Phone, Keys, Wallet’
I’ve got quite into country music this year and this song is another addition to my growing collection. Love John, obviously, but this track is lovely in its own right. Lainey’s vocals are beautiful and John’s guitar work is the perfect accompaniment. The song addresses how, despite Lainey’s hectic life, she will always remember and value the people, possessions and influences that are important to her.
Filed Under: modern country, warm guitar work, heartfelt reflection
Melanie C: ‘Drum Machine’
Another brilliant belter of a track from Melanie’s brilliant Sweat album. It utilises her trademark powerful vocals over a funky synth bassline, thumping beats and echoey, trance like synths layered over house beats. Summery, euphoric and brilliant.
Filed Under: euphoric dance pop, trancey synths, thumping house beats
MUNA: ‘Dancing on the Wall’
I love MUNA’s solid electropop sound and think they are hugely underrated. This is a brilliant track from their latest album of the same name, Dancing on the Wall. Utilising earworm melodies, reverberating beats and 80s synths, this song is huge fun and pure pop perfection.
Filed Under: 80s electropop, earworm melodies, pure pop
Carlita and Sofi Tukker: ‘Manhattan’
This euphoric, fun and hugely energetic house track is a fitting tribute to New York City’s frenetic nature. Spoken word segments over glitchy electronica and house beats blend beautifully. A triumph of a song.
Filed Under: high energy house, glitchy electronica, New York rush
John Splintoff: ‘Far From Here’
This is a lovely laidback, soulful track with hints of city pop and yacht rock. John’s warm vocals flow beautifully over the organic instrumentation. It feels very autumnal. Lovely!
Filed Under: soulful yacht rock, laidback city pop, autumnal warmth
Charlie Puth: ‘Losing My Mind’
Finally delved back into Charlie’s entire discography and discovered this gem on his debut album. The production feels very Timbaland with its ‘eh’ vocal samples, skittering beats and a sample of Vera Hall’s ‘Wild Ox Moan’ over lovely piano chords. A lovely track and reportedly the final song to be written for the album.
Filed Under: Timbaland style pop, skittering beats, hidden debut gem
daste.: ‘Butterfly So Free’
This is a hazy, psychedelic track which begins with a soulful feel before morphing into a more electronic track with murmured vocals, gentle acoustic guitar strums and dreamy pads. Love this!
Filed Under: dreamy psych soul, hazy electronica, psychedelic chill
Leven Kali: ‘Raining Sun’
In his usual style, this is soulful R&B with filtered guitar licks and chords, Leven’s syrupy vocals, a vocoder on the pre chorus and catchy percussive drums. Lots of fun on this!
Filed Under: soulful R&B, syrupy vocals, filtered funk
The Magician and Alioth: ‘NEVER ALONE’
This is a delicious slice of nu disco and house by Brussels based musician and producer The Magician, featuring vocals from Moroccan Belgian singer and songwriter Alioth. Funky, catchy and fresh!
Filed Under: nu disco house, funky electronica, fresh club energy
EASY FREAK: ‘If You Want It’
Keeping the nu disco vibes going, this is fun, uplifting and catchy with its funky basslines and guitars with a touch of Nile Rodgers.
Filed Under: nu disco groove, feel good funk, infectious guitar grooves
Ryan Beatty: ‘Secret Language’
This is an emotive, raw soft rock track with hints of Americana and country. In it, Ryan describes how special it is to convey love ‘in a secret language’, using touch and mutual understanding as opposed to outright saying ‘I love you’. A gorgeous song.
Filed Under: intimate soft rock, tender Americana, emotive storytelling
If for any reason you wanted to hear the whole thing, you can find it below:
the-music-box.co.uk 