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January 11, 2021

January 11, 2021January 11, 2021 Mike change

Experimental pop duo We Will Kaleid releases evocative EP

Image credit: Anne Ludwig

Absorbing our seasonal sadness, art/experimental pop duo We Will Kaleid released two last songs last year: Revoke/Aphelion.

“Revoke” is about self hypnosis floating on a wave of uncertainty, finally resolving into a stream of regret. The band details the track. It’s about the moment you realise that you did or said something that caused damage beyond repair. You are lost in indecision and uncertainty but somehow still comforted by monotony. A mellow, weightless, translucent, lulling state of mind.

“Aphelion” deals with what lies underneath it all, the one thing that we desire most. Loosing yourself in loosing one another. A void that even though filled with loss and grief, remains empty. Pure, calming, honest, weird.

We Will Kaleid create dense and oppressive arrangements with minimalist sound material. Upon rough textures of analog synthesizers, a dark and intoxicating atmosphere is forged with few but multi-faceted beat and voice fragments. We Will Kaleid are looking for a strong contrast. In dense electronic songs they prefer direct confrontation to comfortable harmony.

Just as on their latest EP “Tongue” We Will Kaleid take up dysfunctional aspects of communication and offers both spaces for self-confrontation as well as an escape from reality. The band’s output is a confusing, unpleasant trip into one’s own aggressive, ugly self. We Will Kaleid are a haunting and captivating appearance, with a clear stance: they do not offer an easy cure, the band remains consistently unforgiving.

Follow We Will Kaleid:

Website / Facebook / Instagram

January 7, 2021

January 7, 2021January 7, 2021 Mike change

Electronic band Little Dragon & singer Moses Sumney collaborate on song, ‘The Other Lover’

Image credit: Arya Haliba

“The Other Lover” sees Little Dragon team up with Ghanaian American vocalist/songwriter Moses Sumney—who released his widely acclaimed double-album “græ” earlier this year—with a track that showcases his unmistakable voice alongside the equally inimitable Yukimi Nagano, the two vocalists intertwined over a gently unfolding swirl of synthesisers, horns, and stripped-back percussion.

The track draws it’s lyrics from Little Dragon’s ‘Another Lover’ taken from their latest album, “New Me, Same Us”, released earlier this year on Ninja Tune and lauded by the likes of the New York Times, NPR, Pitchfork, The Guardian, Mixmag, Crack Magazine and many more. Entirely self-produced and recorded at the pioneering Swedish band’s studio, “New Me, Same Us” saw the band go back to basics, falling back in love with their instruments: drums, bass, keyboards, harp, guitar and voice, to produce some of their most focused and best music to date. The album hit #5 on the Top Dance/Electronic Albums chart in the US, with Mixmag calling it “a futuristic record bursting with lush textures and elevated by lead singer Yukimi Nagano’s sublime vocals” and The Guardian finding them on “on deliciously soulful form”.

The band’s hugely popular and highly regarded live performances have spawned a decade-spanning touring career, including festival highlights such as Coachella, Glastonbury, Lollapalooza, Bestival, Sonar, All Points East, Dimensions Festival, Parklife, Lovebox, Love Saves The Day, Melt and Dour; co-headlining the Hollywood Bowl and Berkeley’s Greek Theatre with Flying Lotus supported by BADBADNOTGOOD and sold out two nights at London’s Roundhouse. While the global pandemic has put touring on hold, the band joined NPR Music for an intimate Tiny Desk (Home) Concert filmed at their long-term home-built studio in Gothenburg, Sweden—watch that here.

Follow Little Dragon:

Website / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Youtube / Soundcloud / Spotify / AppleMusic

December 10, 2020

December 10, 2020December 10, 2020 Mike change

Art imitates life in Axel Thesleff’s music video: ‘2 Down’

Axel Thesleff’s popularity has been paced up by his 2014 release, Bad Karma. Which has been streamed more than 500 million times on Youtube and tens of millions more on Spotify and Soundcloud. Axel is widely known for his highly enthralling, cinematic music videos – Bad Karma has reached 48 million views and counting – and his latest piece of work is no different. Thesleff’s “2 Down” music video premieres on his YouTube channel December 4, available on all streaming platforms the same day. The video progressively reveals to listeners a path to letting go of depression and welcoming one’s inner light and forgiveness. Ethereal vocals and synths in flux pair with a mother’s journey through meadows and streams of Lapland as she endures flashbacks of painful memories.

Thesleff says of the release:

“2 Down is about letting go of depression and the cycle of negativity. It’s about letting go of the past and embracing the future, whatever it may hold. It’s about finding your inner light that has always been there, whether you knew or not. It’s about being thankful for life. It’s about love and forgiveness. I hope that through this song, I can help people look at their own darkness straight in the eyes and see it vanish, leaving behind an empty space of their own inner light. I hope to create a feeling of breaking free of the chains in one’s mind, cleansing away negative emotions, and ultimately finding resolve and gratitude in the end. The 2 Down music video depicts a journey of a lonely backpacker in a vast, dreamlike landscape of a never-ending mountain range. The traveller seems to be completely lost in thought. Painful memories start to arise from the past and she is forced to dive into them. She must fight the demons of guilt, blame and sorrow within in order to break free from this mental dissonance and find forgiveness, acceptance and gratitude to replace them. The story is about overcoming the worst of sufferings and clearing one’s mind from agony. It’s about facing one’s deepest fears and painful emotions head on, and growing from them as a person. No one is perfect and sometimes one needs to accept what is in order to move forward in life and strive to do one’s best. Life is short, and we should be spending it loving each other instead of fighting. Ultimately, 2 Down is about gratitude towards life.”

Follow Axel Thesleff:

Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Soundcloud

December 10, 2020

December 10, 2020December 10, 2020 Mike change

Folk pop singer Rosie Carney announces cover of iconic Radiohead album, The Bends

Image credit: Rosie Carney

Rosie Carney shares two final singles ahead of releasing her ambitious quarantine project covering Radiohead‘s seminal mental health album The Bends in its entirety on the 11^th of December.

“Bullet Proof … I Wish I Was” & “Sulk” follow previous singles “Black Star“, “Bones” and “Just” which found strong support at Stereogum, SPIN, The Line of Best Fit, NME, Consequence of Sound, BPM and much more.

“The whole record is very relatable to me, but Bulletproof in particular really captured how lost I was feeling basically throughout the whole year. So many moments were spent wishing I was mentally stronger and wishing someone could just tell me what to do with my time every day.”

Like “Bones“ and “Black Star”, “Bullet Proof … I Wish I Was” also comes with a home-made video, the song and visual Carney claims as perhaps her most challenging on the album. “I’ve spent a good solid chunk of this year being afraid of literally myself” she says as she looks to capture the dynamic of her internal love/hate relationship.

“Nothing screams anxiety like really fast flashing lights, being half naked and staring down a camera lens at yourself for hours on end. I was completely alone (apart from my sisters hands in one of the shots) on my bedroom floor, which in itself comes with a vulnerability I usually wouldn’t share with the world. It was a weirdly safe but uncomfortable experience”

Tackling a ground-breaking stretch of pop history requires tact and dedication to make it your own. Rosie Carney’s personal connection to the music brings to bear her stunning take of The Bends. Read more about the project in her interview with NME.

“She transformed the whole album into ghostly, Carrie & Lowell-esque folk music” proclaims Stereogum. Co-produced by Rosie and JMAC (Luz, Haux), the project is a poetic example of things coming full circle – it’s not the first time Carney’s battles have dovetailed with her love of Radiohead. She recalls going to see them as a teenager and having an anxiety attack in the arena. She blacked out and woke up in the first aid room and covering the band has acted a a form of therapy, as, like so many others this year, her original career plans and mental health were derailed by the pandemic.

Rosie Carney’s version of The Bends is due for release on December 11th via Color Study and “Bullet Proof … I Wish I Was” is out now. You can pre-order the album here.