As always, here’s what I’ve been listening to this past month.
Tag: fresh music
July Mixtape
Can you believe that it’s July already?! We certainly can’t.
Here’s the July Mixtape – a testament to our love of Pop. Enjoy.
June Mixtape
Happy June! Here’s 20 songs we’ve been loving this past month.
February Mixtape ’17
Better late than never, here’s 20 songs old and new that we’re loving right now.
Music Monday – Volume Ninety Eight
Welcome back to Music Monday. We’ve been a little bit AWOL in the last few months and for that, we’re sorry! Music Monday blogs will now feature five tracks instead of ten to enable us to continue to bring you the best in new music. Enjoy these 5 massive tracks!
1) Mollie King – Back To You
Member of The Saturdays, Mollie King has delivered an incredible and triumphant debut solo single. ‘Back To You’ is a moody electropop track with an equally stunning cinematic video.
2) Usher – Crash
Usher at his most underrated is Usher at his best. Minimalist yet slick and catchy, this moody piece of R&B utilises Usher’s gorgeous and faultless falsetto over jittery percussion.
3) Sons of Sonix ft Melanie C – Numb
Ex member of the Spice Girls Melanie C once again proves her versatility and worth as a solo artist on this huge summer smash. This huge tropical house track is a collaboration with London production duo Sons of Sonix.
4) Christine and The Queens – Tilted
This simplistic yet effortlessly catchy artpop track is without a doubt one of the best tracks of 2016. It may have been around for a while but we haven’t had the opportunity to include it in a Music Monday edition yet so here it is!
5) Tieks FT Dan Harkna – Sunshine (Extended Mix)
This huge house track has earned a surge of popularity from its use in the new Fiat 500 TV advert. Repetitive, maybe but its house piano riffs and sturdy vocals make it a feel-good classic.
Music Monday – Volume Eighty Nine
1) Panic! At the Disco – Death of a Bachelor
Brilliant brass-infused tune which utilises a range of genres such as jazz, hip hop, EDM, trap and swing impeccably. Front-man Brendon Urie does his best imitation of Frank Sinatra amid hip hop beats, jittery synths and organic brass instruments.
2) The 1975 – Somebody Else
Powerful, emotive and raw song which lyrically tells of dealing with a past over moving onto somebody new. Gentle, tinkling synthesisers evolve into slamming ’80’s-influenced beats on this stunning love song. One of The 1975’s best ever songs.
3) Shura – Touch
Gentle and tentative synthpop track featuring fuzzy synths, pretty piano chords and ethereal vocals from Shura. Gorgeous.
4) Netsky ft Digital Farm Animals – Work It Out
Catchy EDM track with gospel vocals, fierce drum patterns and catchy piano riffs. Much in the same vein as Sigma’s ‘Nobody To Love’ two years ago in terms of repetition, catchiness and the use of piano riffs.
5) Gwen Stefani – Make Me Like You
Gwen Stefani resurrects her solo career with this catchy and funky disco-pop track. Chanelling The Cardigans’ ‘Lovefool’ and elements of Kylie, it’s one of Stefani’s best.
6) Zayn – It’s You
Gorgeous downtempo R&B ballad on which Zayn fully utilises his gorgeous feathery falsetto.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QoB7c3miDrg
7) MUNA – Winterbreak
Dark electropop track featuring hollow beats, heavily processes vocals and gentle guitar riffs. Absolutely gorgeous.
8) All Tvvins – Unbelievable
Fierce electro-guitar track with a brilliant chorus and reverberating guitar riffs.
9) BJ The Chicago Kid & Kendrick Lamar – The New Cupid
Chilled out, retro inspired R&B/hiphop track with soulful guitar riffs and syrupy smooth vocals.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heRre3KXLGY
10) The Knocks & Walk The Moon – Best for Last
Brilliant electronic infused track with catchy bass riffs and Nicholas Petricca’s smooth vocals.
Music Monday – Volume Eighty Four
1) Rationale – Something for Nothing
Soulful R&B track featuring fluttering synthesisers, jittering guitars, broken samples and funky bass lines.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Q79owpLDjo
2) Beachbaby – Sleeperhead
Energetic guitar-driven indie track from four-pieced band Beachbaby. It’s a moody but powerful track, integrating other genres such as shoegazing, Pop and post-punk.
3) Field Music – Disappointed
Low-key indie rock track from Sunderland band Field Music.
4) Walk The Moon – Avalanche
Energetic, catchy Pop-py track from US pop-rock band Walk The Moon. Indie-guitar riffs, synthpop synths and a driving beat makes it particularly reminiscent of the ’80’s and it works beautifully.
5) Travis Mills – Don’t Need Much
Dirty house track featuring little more than club beats, a funky bass lines and Mills’ rap. Incessantly catchy.
6) Craig David & Big Nastie – When The BassLine Drops
Craig David returns to his roots with this huge Garage track, aided by grime artist Big Nastie. It’s reminiscent of his 1999 début ‘Re-Rewind’ and is a welcome return for David after six years away from the music industry.
7) Selena Gomez – Hands to Myself
Saucy, steamy and sultry dance-pop track, reportedly inspired by Prince’s signature sound. Gomez whispers over minimalistic instrumentation comprised of little more than bouncy percussion, hand clips and tribal-pop elements.
8) Reba McEntire – Just Like Them Horses
Sweet piano-led Country ballad by American country music singer Reba McEntire from her twenty seventh album ‘Love Somebody’.
9) Nate Reuss – Take It Back
Gentle waltz-like ballad by Fun. frontman Nate Reuss. Dreamy, reserved with a delicate sprinkle of Reuss’ quirky, idiosyncratic vocals.
10) Walk off The Earth – Hold On (The Break)
Uplifting, inspiring and catchy Pop track from Canadian rock band Walk off the Earth. Ascending bass lines, clinking percussion and gorgeous layered harmonies result in an epic arena anthem.
Music Monday – Volume Sixty Six
1)Tamzin Archer – Sleeping Satellite
Moody 90’s pop track with lovely lyrics and an incredible vocal performance by Tamzin Archer.
2) Des’ree – You Gotta Be
Self empowering, sunny pop-soul track bound to leave a smile on the listener’s face. Featuring a tinny keyboard sound and R&B percussion, it is SO 90’s but with a lovely message.
3) Kate Bush – This Woman’s Work
Stunning piano ballad by Kate Bush, written for the John Hughes movie ‘She’s Having a baby’. Featured in the film’s dramatic climax, it’s a fitting accompaniment to the emotional scenes but is just as beautiful as a stand-alone song.
4) Maxwell – This Woman’s Work
This may be the first time Music Monday has included two different versions of the same song in the same playlist but this had to be done. The original, as previously mentioned, is a beautiful piano ballad by the ever-elusive but incredibly talented Miss Kate Bush. Maxwell, known for his slick falsetto vocals gives this an R&B makeover complete with a twinkling harp, weeping guitars and R&B percussion. It’s a gorgeous interpretation of a lovely song.
5) Joe Jonas – Levels
Joe Jonas has certainly reinvented himself from the cheesy teen-rock he produced with his brothers and is fast becoming the latest pop-prince in the music world. The bar was set high by Jonas’ debut single ‘Jealous’, a huge pop hit which charted well around the world. ‘Levels’ is just as good, however; if not, better. Incredible falsetto vocals and funky production carry this catchy track.
6) The Weeknd – Shameless
Moody Ed Sheeran-esque ballad with gorgeous falsetto vocals by Abel Tesfaye, better known as The Weeknd. Obsessed with this right now.
7) The Weeknd – Tell Your Friends
Soul-infused R&B jam from The Weeknd’s latest album ‘Beauty Behind the Madness’. Produced by Kanye West, it’s much in the same vein as some of West’s early material.
8) Oh Atoms – Sugar Mouse
Pretty and gentle little folk ballad featured in cult favourite ‘Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging’. Gorgeous harmonies too.
9) Robbie Williams – The Road to Mandalay
One of Mr Williams’ most underrated works and one of his best lyrically. Genius, poetic lyrics crooned over gentle guitar strums and a gorgeous French melody leading the chorus. Simple but beautiful.
10) Michael Ball – Love Changes Everything
A very personal choice by myself as this was played at a funeral I attended last week. Beautiful song composed by theatre guru Andrew Lloyd Webber for his musical ‘Aspects of Love’ and sang flawlessly by Michael Ball.
Music Monday – Volume Sixty Four
1) Chris Brown – Your World
Verging slightly on Beiber territory, on paper, this shouldn’t work but it somehow does… It’s easy to see why this didn’t make the main tracklisting for Brown’s album ‘Fortune’ (it only appears as a bonus track on the Japanese edition) – it’s a little on the cheesy side but it’s a pretty little R&B track.
2) Liberty-X – Holding on For You
Slushy pop ballad from one of the UK’s best and most underrated pop groups. A beautiful melody leads the track, lined by tight harmonies and catchy production.
3) Razorlight – America
A song too easily forgotten until its occasional re-play on the airwaves. Gentle dreamy verses escalate into a huge stadium-anthem chorus. Irresistibly catchy; one of the greatest indie-rock songs ever recorded.
4) Rita Ora and Chris Brown – Body On Me
Steamy and sensual R&B track with crashing beats and a rousing chorus. It’s a massive track; another success in both artists’ ever-increasing discography. One of the hottest tracks currently around.
5) Sigala – Easy Love
The song of the summer. Cleverly sampling massive Jackson 5 hit ‘ABC’, it’s a huge dance track full of house-tinged piano riffs and synthesisers mimicking steel pans, not too dissimilar to Duke Dumont’s huge 2014 summer hit ‘I Got U’. It’s impossible for this song not to leave the listener with a huge grin on their face.
6) Stylo G & Gyption – My Number One
Catchy reggae track. Depends on mood for the enjoyment of this one but it’s a great summer song.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPoHZ-IifZ0
7) Jess Glynne – You Can Find Me
Brilliant Prince styled track full of punchy percussion, gospel layered vocals, funky bass and 80’s synthesisers. SO good.
8) Galantis – Peanut Butter Jelly
It’s hard to determine if this is meant to be taken seriously or as a novelty track. Either way, it’s an impossibly catchy dance track full of sweeping 60’s styled strings.
9) Robbie Williams – Nan’s Song
Beautiful acoustic ballad which closed Williams’ best album ‘Escapology’. Williams croons about the loss of his grandparent, aching with sincerity. One of very few tracks Williams wrote alone, its a well-written and lovely track.
10) Michael & Janet Jackson – Scream
Aggressive and explosive electro-rock track by two of the Jackson siblings. Both Jacksons more or less spit the lyrics in assertion as they demand the press to “Stop f*****g with me”. The fury in the track is understandable considering it was Michael’s first single release since his 1993 child molestation allegations. Awesome, powerful track.
Music Monday – Volume Fifty Seven
1) Take That – Hold Up A Light
One of Take That’s best songs in their twenty five year career. So much optimism, so much energy and so much power. Mark Owen’s vocals are on point and the harmonies are perfect too. Since seeing the Take That boys live and seeing this performed live again, it’s completely reinforced what an incredible song this is.
2) Take That – The Garden
Absolutely stunning song, opener of ‘The Circus’ album. I love the little touches of production by John Shanks – from the eerie and soft opening to Howard’s stomping bridge leading into the second chorus. It’s perfect that each member gets to perform lead vocals during different sections and once again, this has to be one of the best Take That songs in their back catalogue. Gorgeous, inspiring lyrics, stunning falsetto vocals from Gary Barlow and so much power in those final explosive chorus’.
3) Take That – Flaws
Gentle but powerful ballad from the ‘III’ album. I’ve always loved this but its beauty has certainly been reinforced since seeing Mark Owen & Howard Donald’s stunning contemporary dance to it on Take That’s current tour. Very raw and very beautiful.
4) Take That – Up All Night
This was never one of my favourites from ‘The Circus’ album but I always appreciated the musicianship within it and what a great song it was overall. As the years have gone by, however, I’ve finally come to love it. I love its energy and it is the epitome of fun.
5) Finley Quaye – Sunday Shining
Heard this on the radio the other day and fell in love. Love its almost grunge-rock feel but it’s also infused with elements of Soul. Catchy with a distinctive vocal.
6) Olly Murs – Beautiful To Me
Probably my favourite Olly single in years! Catchy and emotive with beautiful lyrics, it’s a perfect pop track. Love the stomping percussion and Olly’s vocal is very strong (although the autotune usage could be reduced a little…) Can’t get enough of this right now.
7) Jennifer Lopez & Trey Songz – What You Mean to Me
Beautiful rendition of a stunning song written by Gary Barlow and Eliot Kennedy for the Finding Neverland musical. Gorgeous lyrics and JLO & Trey sound fantastic together.
8) Rixton – Let the Road
This is utterly refreshing. The majority of this track is performed acapella before launching into a dynamic album opener. Like this band a lot.
9) Rixton – We All Want The Same Thing
I know this only featured the other week but I honestly can’t get enough of this right now. Irresistibly catchy. Pop music at its best.
10) Tinie Tempah & Jess Glynne – No Letting Go
Catchy as hell and bound to be an integral part of the soundtrack to summer 2015. Jess Glynne’s voice is just awesome. A winning combination of artists.
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