Now Listening: This Week's Tracks
By Saachi Gupta, Astrid Ortega & Isabella Vega
Omar Addis - “Easy”
Melodious and shoegazy, Cardiff-based Omar Addis’ latest track “Easy” is a stunning balad, reflecting about the people that are no longer in your life– be it friends or partners– and wondering what could have gone differently.
21-year-old Addis has been making and producing music for almost ten years. His music is primarily indie/alternative sounds, fused with electronic influences.
With “Easy”, he expands his sound more so than before– he has been working on the song for over a year, he says– and it shows. The instrumentals are a mix of indie rock, electronic beats and a synthpop chorus, and combined with his dreamy vocals, the song is otherworldly.
Glass Animals - “Heat Waves”
An introspective summer hit with unsettling undertones, “Heat Waves” is classic Glass Animals– psychedelic pop with a stunningly grounding sense of nostalgia. Taken from the band's upcoming album Dreamland, out on August 7th, the track explores how relationships can blur your personality and change you in ways you don't even realize until you take a step back.
Enigmatic frontman and producer Dave Bayley explains, “‘Heat Waves’ is about realising that you can't make everyone happy. And realising it's okay to be defeated by something. We are often expected to ‘be strong’ and to swallow our sadness. Failing to do that is seen as weakness. But being vulnerable should be a positive thing.”
The video of “Heat Waves”, directed by Colin Read, is as intriguing as the song itself finding Bayley wandering the deserted streets of locked-down London, as onlookers watch him slowly make his way to an empty venue.
On making the video, Bayley notes “‘The ‘Heat Waves’ video is a love letter to live music and the culture and togetherness surrounding it. It was filmed at the peak of the lockdown in my neighborhood in East London by the lovely people who live around me, just using their phones. These are people who are usually out at shows, in galleries, going to cinemas, etc. These venues are left empty now, and many of them will not survive. The song is about loss and longing, and ultimately realizing you are unable to save something… and this video is about that but for art, being together and human contact…”
Alfie Templeman - “Obvious Guy”
17-year-old Alfie Templeman does not rest with bringing us continuous music full of energy. His latest single “Obvious Guy” displays his unique sound his listeners will get to hear more of with his upcoming EP Happiness in Liquid Form, out July 17. Bringing in his love for funk music, “Obvious Guy” captures Templeman’s energy in a contagious upbeat way. With drowned out vocals in the beginning allowing the rhythm to build, Templeman unveils his own style with funk music by letting small aspects of his music blend into classic funk. All his songs are energetic and full of life but “Obvious Guy” gets you up on your feet to groove out to. You’ll be repeating “I don’t want to be an obvious guy” all day in your head, you’ll stick to the song and won’t be disappointed with it.
Tim Ayre - “I Want It”
Tim Ayre says you do want to listen to this song, beginning the song with a soft and distant “I want it, you want it” that entrances you to keep listening. Tim Ayre’s vocals are soft yet unique, blending into his music seamlessly. “I Want It” is about exploring a world that isn’t your own, but the more you listen to it, the more you’ll find your own meaning to it. Although the production and creation of the song was quick with ease, the outcome is a timeless and creative staple to Ayre’s discography. This is the kind of song you’ll put in a playlist that makes you feel alive, the kind of song you’ll dance to while driving or walking, the kind of song you’ll endlessly play on repeat because it gives you a certain comfort and feeling that you won’t want to let go of. “I Want It” only makes us excited to see how much Tim Ayre has to offer.
Madeleine Mayi - “Friendly Fires”
An emotional ballad, “Friendly Fires” is reminiscent of musicians of Layla and Aurora and is sure to pluck your heartstrings. The latest single from Madeleine Mayi showcases her ability to capture the listener with a heartfelt flow. Mayi's powerful vocals are at the front of the song, with gentle instrumentals and hauntingly personal lyrics that capture its message perfectly. Mayi notes that “Friendly Fires” is about the worry that her mental health problems and tendency to push people away, may get in the way of her relationships.
Frills - “I’m Going Under”
In “I’m Going Under”, a Pure Heroine-eque track that brings out everyone’s inner happiness, Frills reinstates their well deserved place in the indie world. The Brooklyn-bedroom based collaboration between Simon Oscroft and Dan Gibson, two New Zealand expats created the band through a happy accident. After that, they exploded, with positive publicity in outlets such as Hillydilly, Line of Best Fit, NYLON, and being added onto Spotify’s most coveted playlists, such as Ultimate Indie & Feel Good Indie Rock. They are now split between Los Angeles and Australia, with an unfinished album project to be released in Fall of 2020. On the song, the duo says it is “reminiscent of their time together in Brooklyn”.
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From Pavietra 🕊️ https://t.co/BXVgWlZud8 -
slowthai by Rosie Matheson 🤩 https://t.co/z7SDfFQ5iF
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RT @i_D: Ian Kenneth Bird photographs young punks on Polaroid: https://t.co/MKT0tMUqO9 https://t.co/a0tTl12ML5
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RT @AnOtherMagazine: #DreamHome – this isolated idyll in the mountains of Lanzarote 🌵 📸 via Nowness, photography by Clemence Blr 🔁 https://t.co/GUusdxD0cg