When a song has been played 500,000 times on MySpace and has already been featured on MTV's The Hills, it's not much of a revelation to say Olivia Broadfield is going to be the Next Big Thing. But it is still early days for the UK singer-songwriter with the charmingly thick accent and huge crush on Imogen Heap . Admittedly, her soft electro-pop sound is not the most innovative — it falls firmly into the whole Frou Frou / Dido / Beth Orton camp. But "Don't Cry" is an undeniable gem of a song. Half [...]
This easily could have been placed in my Next Big Thing section, as thecocknbullkid — real name, Anita Blay, an East London native with Ghanian parents — has got future star written all over her. And "Clean Apart," from the upcoming Querelle EP (and which can also be heard on my latest podcast, JeffMix2009.07.26 ) , hits the right balance of funky pop with an indie edge. It's to be expected from an artist with production from both Radioclit (The Very Best, Santogold) and Dave McCracken (Beyonce, Ian Brown of The Stone [...]
Lo-fi may be the sound of 2009 – at least if you read Gorilla Vs. Bear a lot – but it isn't really my thing. The whole point of lo-fi 2.0 seems to be to play super-lazy pop songs with huge distortion, which both masks mistakes and gives the impression that it's okay, dude, to make mistakes. But once in a while a decent lo-fi song sneaks through the beach-and-bong haze, like Wavves' immaculate "So Bored," and this slow-building track, a Weezer-ish ode to surf supremacy by Washington State duo Rainbow Bridge . If you [...]
This month's podcast features music from Stornoway, thecocknbullkid, The Rumble Strips, Terry Lynn and Johan Hugo, Bowerbirds, P-Money, Fanfarlo, Maxïmo Park, Regina Spektor, Discovery, Dear Landlord, Fool's Gold, Jamie T, jj, The Answering Machine, Mos Def, The Sounds, Passion Pit, Rancid, and Tony Lionni. To purchase music from these artists, visit www.jeffmix.com . JeffMix podcasts: 20 songs, every month, the best in new music. MP3 • SUBSCRIBE • iTUNES • WEBSITE • FACEBOOK • TWITTER
Wow, I have such mixed feelings about Lungs, the debut record of Florence & The Machine , surely the consensus breakout artist of 2009 (and recently announced Mercury Prize nominee). On the strength of a handful of previously released and leaked tracks (including "Dog Days Are Over," "Kiss With a Fist," and "Girl With One Eye"), I was ready to declare Lungs the announcement of a major new artist, similar to the feeling I had with last year's rookie phenom, Lykke Li (who also had a string of magnificent pre-release singles before the release of [...]
Wow, I have such mixed feelings about Lungs, the debut record of Florence & The Machine , surely the consensus breakout artist of 2009 (and recently announced Mercury Prize nominee). On the strength of a handful of previously released and leaked tracks (including "Dog Days Are Over," "Kiss With a Fist," and "Girl With One Eye"), I was ready to declare Lungs the announcement of a major new artist, similar to the feeling I had with last year's rookie phenom, Lykke Li (who also had a string of magnificent pre-release singles before the release of [...]
When a song has been played 500,000 times on MySpace and has already been featured on MTV's The Hills, it's not much of a revelation to say Olivia Broadfield is going to be the Next Big Thing. But it is still early days for the UK singer-songwriter with the charmingly thick accent and huge crush on Imogen Heap . Admittedly, her soft electro-pop sound is not the most innovative — it falls firmly into the whole Frou Frou / Dido / Beth Orton camp. But "Don't Cry" is an undeniable gem of a song. Half [...]
I was introduced to Toro Y Moi just last week (via Pitchfork , of course) and have been playing the music from his MySpace page every day since then. It's blown me away. So what better way to start a new Next Big Thing section – I'd be willing to bet the house on Toro Y Moi. How to describe it? I keep thinking something improbable: Wavves meets Prince with a bit of Animal Collective (and maybe Beck?) thrown on top. Crazy good. Influences everywhere. Groovy and aloof. And the book is just [...]
Lo-fi may be the sound of 2009 – at least if you read Gorilla Vs. Bear a lot – but it isn't really my thing. The whole point of lo-fi 2.0 seems to be to play super-lazy pop songs with huge distortion, which both masks mistakes and gives the impression that it's okay, dude, to make mistakes. But once in a while a decent lo-fi song sneaks through the beach-and-bong haze, like Wavves' immaculate "So Bored," and this slow-building track, a Weezer-ish ode to surf supremacy by Washington State duo Rainbow Bridge . If you [...]
I expected this to be a slam dunk, a gimme, a home run, if you will. After all, Discovery has excellent pedigree – it's the side project of Vampire Weekend producer/keyboardist Rostam Batmanglij and Ra Ra Riot lead singer Wes Miles; the Hot Chip-y pre-release singles ("Orange Shirt," "Osaka Loop Line") were very promising, if not spectacular; and the electro-pop side-project collaboration had even been done before – hello Postal Service — so they're following a nicely worn path. But I'm suprised LP doesn't work better for me. The cover of the [...]
I was introduced to Toro Y Moi just last week (via Pitchfork , of course) and have been playing the music from his MySpace page every day since then. It's blown me away. So what better way to start a new Next Big Thing section – I'd be willing to bet the house on Toro Y Moi. How to describe it? I keep thinking something improbable: Wavves meets Prince with a bit of Animal Collective (and maybe Beck?) thrown on top. Crazy good. Influences everywhere. Groovy and aloof. And the book is just [...]
One of the best Michael Jackson tributes I heard all week was this silky smooth cover of "I Wanna Be Where You Are," a minor hit for MJ in the early 1970s, a time when he released the odd solo record while still a member of the Jackson 5. This version, I dare say, outshines the original , which shouldn't be a surprise coming from the ace combo of The Roots and Erykah Badu . Made all the more impressive by the fact they knocked it off during a pre-taping session [...]
I've seen a few lists posted recently of the best songs and albums of 2009 so far, and I thought I'd throw my hat into the ring. My list isn't as thought out as my year-end one will be, but it's an opportunity to take stock of the wealth of great songs already heard this year. Most of the songs can be heard on my podcast, JeffMix , a mix of the best new-music tracks I dig up each month. And check out the imeem playlist I embedded below to hear all 20 of the songs I think were [...]
I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but I really believe we're in a golden age of debut records: fully formed, near-classic first albums (Arcade Fire, Vampire Weekend , Santogold , Lykke Li , Passion Pit ) are becoming the norm, not the exception. Blame blog hype, blame DIY technology, blame whatever, but it's getting so I expect an A+ album from every unknown singer from Sweden or newly formed Brooklyn frat band. But the rookie CD from Norwegian rocker Ida Maria is a reminder that some artists still need time to grow. Not that [...]
If rap in general has suffered in quality lately, then East Coast rap , the original version of hip hop, has been in the most trouble. Lil Wayne is from New Orleans, Kanye and Common are Chicagoans, The Roots call Philly home, and anyone decent from NYC is, regrettably, washed up (KRS-One, De La Soul, Beastie Boys, etc.). So there's plenty of room for Mos Def , a Brooklynite through and through, to bring back the East Coast sound, a hip hop style, if it had to be defined, that is less pop-influenced, more lyric-based and laced with [...]
One part French electro, one part NYC hip hop, eRNEST&AMz answer the musical question: what would happen if someone like Laurent Garnier made a record with someone like Cadence Weapon ? I bet it would sound a lot like eRNEST&AMz. "You Made Me Funky" (downloadable below) and the MySpace-available "Coming Up" push a party-starting, Fresh Prince-ish throwback sound – definitely jiggy-ish. And if you sign up to their Twitter page , the duo will send you their first EP, The Electrophone EP, for free. Good deal. eRNEST&AMz: [...]
One of the best Michael Jackson tributes I heard all week was this silky smooth cover of "I Wanna Be Where You Are," a minor hit for MJ in the early 1970s, a time when he released the odd solo record while still a member of the Jackson 5. This version, I dare say, outshines the original , which shouldn't be a surprise coming from the ace combo of The Roots and Erykah Badu . Made all the more impressive by the fact they knocked it off during a pre-taping session [...]
It's been all Michael Jackson, all the time since Thursday. Dug out my copy of Thriller , the special edition CD released in 2001 (not the 25th anniversary reissue , with horrible remixes by "today's artists"). And after several more listens, piled on to the dozens I had when I was a kid, I can't say my opinion of Thriller has changed. There are still some surprises ("Human Nature" always thrills, despite sounding like a soulful "Sailing" ); a couple clunkers ("Baby Be Mine," and its "doggone girl is mine" lyrics, is especially hard to [...]
I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but I really believe we're in a golden age of debut records: fully formed, near-classic first albums (Arcade Fire, Vampire Weekend , Santogold , Lykke Li , Passion Pit ) are becoming the norm, not the exception. Blame blog hype, blame DIY technology, blame whatever, but it's getting so I expect an A+ album from every unknown singer from Sweden or newly formed Brooklyn frat band. But the rookie CD from Norwegian rocker Ida Maria is a reminder that some artists still need time to grow. Not that [...]
Despite a double-umlauted name that Spinal Tap fans would love, Sweden's Dieter Schöön makes music that sounds more like early Depeche Mode or a more avant-garde Arcade Fire. And I'd name-drop one more band – UK band Fanfarlo – when describing "Mary Jane," the most accessible track on Schöön's debut album Lablaza . I don't like to quote press releases, but their publicist calls the distinctive rhythm of "Mary Jane" as "Scandinavian mariachi." Definitely intriguing. Dieter Schöön: Mary Jane from Lablaza [...]
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