The Middle Eight

The Middle Eight's Top 30 Songs of 2017

2018-01-04T22:06:00.001-05:00

Your blog host, skeptical in NYC, summer 2017

It's been awhile, kids! This blog, which was such a part of my life for almost ten years (and gained me numerous "IRL" friendships) is long defunct. BUT I have returned, much like Star Wars, for a new episode. Here, briefly, is a list of my favorites songs for 2017.

You can hear all of these songs on my Spotify Playlist (or try the player below). I left so much off, but the list would have gone on forever.

First, my favorite song of the year is a tie between...

Love To Love Jessie Ware
Alone Stars

Rounding out the Top 10 are....

Tell Me How Paramore
Go Deeper Samantha Urbani
Crying On The Bathroom Floor MUNA
New York St. Vincent
Second 2 None Mura Masa (feat. Christine and the Queens)
Disconnect Clean Bandit with Marina and The Diamonds
Found It In Silence HAIM
No Turning Back Thomas Dybdahl
Visions of Gideon Sufjan Stevens

and more!

Lost In Your Light Dua Lipa (feat. Miguel)
Hell to the Liars London Grammar
Green Light Lorde
Moon in Your Mouth Goldfrapp
Blessed Daniel Caesar
Our Destiny / Roadhouse Garden Prince and The Revolution
Chained to the Rhythm Katy Perry (feat. Skip Marley)
On Hold The xx
Crybaby Paloma Faith
Mystery of Love Sufjan Stevens
Do It Rae Morris
Don't Take the Money Bleachers
Ivy Mabel
Thorns Lo Moon
Chameleon Days Neil Finn
I Could Fight On A Wall Aquilo
What's Love Got to Do With It XY and O
For Forever (from Dear Evan Hansen) Ben Platt
SOS (Overboard) Joseph

Album list coming soon, but know that my favorite album was There Is No Love Under Fluorescent Light by Stars.

XO

Review: Gwen Stefani's This Is What The Truth Feels Like

2016-03-26T17:10:00.004-04:00

I reviewed Gwen Stefani's very personal third solo album, This Is What The Truth Feels Like, for Idolator. They didn't like the bit where I used the word leathery to describe Gavin Rossdale, so consider it a behind the scenes scoop that I did indeed call Gavin leathery!

More here - it's a surprisingly solid album...

Review: St. Lucia's Matter

2016-01-31T11:07:00.000-05:00

I reviewed St. Lucia's energetic new album, Matter, for Idolator. I compare the band to Mannheim Steamroller live at the Acropolis (which never happened btw), but in a nice way...

More here

The Middle Eight's Favorite Songs of 2015

2015-12-18T21:40:00.005-05:00

I'm back for my annual list of favorite songs. Did you miss me? If so, check me out Twitter, Soundcloud and/or Tumblr. 2015 was a year of unexpected pleasures. I celebrated my birthday with friends in Los Angeles (and loved it, much to my surprise) and spent a few amazing weekends in New York. All of that was soundtracked by the songs below, listed in no order. I hope you find something new.

[the page may load slowly because of all the embedded players]

1. White Light Shura SONG OF THE YEAR #1 (it's a threeway this year)

You have to stick with the monolithic 7 minute version. This track was, for much of the summer, my pick for the best song of 2015. There is a shimmery breakdown at 4:40 followed by a stunning rev back up with a wicked guitar solo at around 5:45. Who does that anymore? Note that Shura’s other big single this year, 2Shy, is a like a Janet song that didn’t make Unbreakable.

2. Take Me Away Janet Jackson SONG OF THE YEAR #2

From a near perfect comeback album. No one really knows how long Janet, Terry and Jimmy worked on Unbreakable – the whole thing is shrouded in pleasing mystery – but the songs sound as if they cooked for a long time. Like many of Janet’s records, the ad libs alone are thrilling – I always repeat the bit at 2:40 when she she sings, “take me away, awww just take me away “

Listen to Take Me Away on YouTube

3. Cool On Fire Daniel Johns SONG OF THE YEAR #3
You may not know his name, but you may remember Daniel Johns for two reasons: in the 90's, he was the Jodie Foster-lookalike lead singer of Silverchair. Later he became famous as Natalie Imbruglia’s husband. This track, for me, is about the intersection of desire and vulnerability: “It was getting a little hard / Not to think about each other.. It was getting a little harder / Trying to keep it undercover / I was feeling insecure / Trying to get your body close to mine.”Mmmhmm. I know.

4. I Want You Wrabel

Wrabel was recommended to me, like Daniel Johns, by Chartrigger. By sheer dint of positioning behind the above track on a summer vacation playlist, I became obsessed with this story of clinging to someone who's done you wrong. “ …don't know why I want you, when I know you're the wrong thing / Don't go, you're the only thing that makes me feel something… and I want you.”

5. How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful Florence + The Machine

Hard to choose my favorite lines from Flo’s open-hearted title track, inspired by the big sky of southern California (which I too discovered in 2015). Is it “What are we gonna do? / We've opened the door, now it's all coming through / Tell me you see it too / We opened our eyes and it's changing the view.. “ or this beautiful description of a lover: “And every day I wore your face / Like an atmosphere around me / The satellite beside me.” Find me a more perfect string arrangement than what carries the final two minutes of this song out.

Listen to How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful on YouTube

6. As Far As I Could Get Florence + The Machine

Never released digitally – this is the b-side to the 12” limited release of the album’s first single. But it’s perfect. Again, it’s suffused with Los Angeles:

7. Messiah Madonna
We’d been yearning for so long for this Madonna, wrapping love and religion into a mystical song that recalls her Ray Of Light spirituality.

Listen to Messiah onYouTube

8. Shine Years and Years

It’s very hard to choose one song from the flawless debut, Communion. This one wins for its romantic hook: “It's you that I've been waiting to find,” but I love the chorus lyric that captures the kind of perfect life moment you relive in your head for… years and years: “I'm holding it all tonight, unfolding it all tonight… It's you that I've been waiting to find.” Olly is so ebullient – he’s the sweetest pop star.

9. Paris Fickle Friends
My favorite indie pop group keeps releasing one sweet single after another, with a now recignixael sound. Paris pushed the boat out a bit with a mellower tempo.

10. I Can Change Brandon Flowers.
WHO KNEW this oughties dear would come back and slay with his second solo album (and hairstyle)? It was so left field – and probably not a little due to producer Ariel Rechtshaid. Leave it to the pleasingly ambiguous Lafleuer to build a perfect up-tempo moment of a sample from Bronski Beat’s coming-out classic, Smalltown Boy.

11. Criminals MS MR

"I just wanna be a criminal with you." I never got this band until I heard this track (and the equally strong Painted) from their second LP. It's really all about Lizzy's voice, isn't it? It has a crisp edge that I love - you can't fuck with her.

Watch Criminals on YouTube

12. Cold Rae Morris feat. Fryars

I don’t know who they are either…. and I don’t know that her LP had much impact, but Cold is airtight. The video is clever too, though they look like two librarians smirking through an experience they didn't expect to have.

13. Better Than That Marina And The Diamonds

Wins for the best middle eight of 2015: “Well, I guess it’s just what humans do / Hook up with other people until it all falls through / And when it’s over they go out and try and heal their pain / Hook up with another lover, do it all again… I’m not passing judgment on her sexual life / I’m passing judgment on the way she always stuck her knife / In my back ever since we were starting out / Suspicious from the start, I always had my doubts about you.”

Listen to Better Than That on YouTube

14. Never A Woman White Sea
Another song recommended by a friend on Twitter, Never A Woman that takes its time and eases up next to you until you end up spending the weekend with it.

15. Lights Hurts

This band has embarrassed me from album two onward. But this track, produced by… yep, Ariel Rechtshaid, is a perfect disco jam. It was accompanied by the most electrifying video of the year. In fact, I doubt I would have even bothered to play this track were it not for the revelation of Theo as a dancer extraordinaire in this clip.

Watch Lights on Vevo

16. What Do You Mean? Justin Bieber
I know. but here we are: Donald Trump is a leading contender for President and I’m trilling on this little douchebag. He's made a song so well suited to both himself and the zeitgeist. I even felt defensive for him when Lena Dunham accused him of contributing to rape culture with these lyrics, which I read as a genuine reaction to the mysteries of women: “What do you mean? / When you nod your head yes / But you wanna say no?” Had the no and yes been reversed, Lena would have had a point. Whatever.

Watch What Do You Mean? on YouTube

17. Water Under The Bridge Adele
The ballyhooed 25 didn’t really ballyhoo me, but I appreciate the (much needed) jauntiness of this track – and a very pop vocal from her.

Watch Water Under The Bridge (live on Fallon)

18. Cast In Steel a-ha

Morten is still hot. Thank God. I think he has the Paul Newman gene that will keep him in the game until he drops dead.This is the melancholy title track of their back-from-the-dead album. They're one of those bands that keep fake retiring.

Hear Cast In Steel on YouTube

19. Loudspeaker MUNA
Each year my list has several artists or bands that have yet to release an album. MUNA is sparking new female trio from Los Angeles nails modern pop. The vocalist is fantastic and all three of their released songs are strong. Looking forward to 2016 with these women. "If I feel like crying, I won't hide it."

20. North Circular Real Lies

So distinctly British. I love the East London poetry of this piece, one of the more melancholy on their debut album: "Suicide bridge and the morning watch / The royal fumes and fate wires and the things that pick up and kick off / And the roar of the spit on the roads, the central reservation / The rapturous players at the petrol station."

Listen to North Circular on YouTube

21. My Boy My Town Mabel
First, Mabel is the lookalike daughter of Neneh Cherry and Cameron McVey. Her musical pedigree is pretty epic, but Mabel delivers on this track, which has a strong Jessie Ware vibe. It's smooth af. Discovered on December 19 and put on this list on December 21. BAM.

Watch My Boy My Town on YouTube

22. The Point Of It All Anthony Hamilton
From the Empire soundtrack. [Pause: COOKIE!] This is a rerecording of an earlier song, but this simple piano version is an instant standard. "I can't stay away from you baby / Don't wanna be without you... Whenever we're apart / It damn near starves my heart."

Listen to The Point Of It All on YouTube

23. Pressure Off Duran Duran with Janelle Monae and Nile Rodgers
The best Duran single in about 15 years. With Nile's slinky guitar, it's a worthy follow up to Notorious. This is a pure summer party anthem and it makes me so happy. "Something is happening to me, maybe it's happening to you you YOU?"

What did I miss? Let me know!
______________________________________________

Here are some songs that made it to this list and were cut and added and cut at various times:

Lana Del Rey High By The Beach Kwabs Look Over Your Shoulder Lianne La Havas Unstoppable Little Boots No Pressure Years and Years Memo (actually the whole LP), New Order Superheated Brandon Flowers Can't Deny My Love

Image by me. It's Pasadena in March 2015.

Madonna’s ‘Confessions On A Dance Floor’ Turns 10: Backtracking

2015-11-12T14:41:00.000-05:00

Good evening, babeeezzz. I've emerged from my crypt to write a piece for Idolator called Madonna’s ‘Confessions On A Dance Floor’ Turns 10: Backtracking. It's an anniversary joint. Here's the opening bit for all you discolettes:

It was Madonna’s 47th birthday and she was seriously hung up. Fans had been waiting for over two years for new music, when a horse bucked our Lady Of The Manor right into an English hospital with a broken collarbone, hand and ribs. Going into fall of 2005, Madonna had something to prove. In the highs and lows of her career, 2003’s tense, folky American Life was a comedown from the successes of Ray Of Light and Music. Those fans felt they’d allowed their queen her Indigo Girls moment and now they wanted classic Madonna dance jams. Rumors circulated about a single inspired by ABBA and then… SPLAT! Just weeks before she was to release her new single, she was busted up, drugged up and out of her usual control. The first thought was not really for Madonna… “Umm, is the album delayed?”

Note that I wrote this while spinning the gorgeous double pink disc of this gem. Fabulous.

The Middle Eight's Favorite Songs of 2014

2014-12-30T11:47:00.000-05:00

My blog has been sleeping. I've not ended it because, while I don't tend to post much anymore, I like the idea that it is here when I have something to say. Which I do now! Here are some favorites from the year, in no order. I hope you find something new.

[note the page will load slowly because of all the embedded players]

1 Tough Love Jessie Ware SONG OF THE YEAR
My song of the year's is Jessie's Sign O The Times. Meaning it's pretty obscure on first listen, but then builds into a serious epic by - her usual trick - giving us just enough. U have 2 give love 2 a geeky white Greek girl who builds her song on Prince's red corvette drum.

2 Uptight Downtown La Roux
Like a perfect outtake from Bowie's Let's Dance. That whack lyric ("when did all these people start to change their shoes?") makes sense when you realize it's about looting in the London riots.

3 Gust of Wind Pharrell Williams
The sawing violin sound on which this track was built is unlike anything I've heard on radio - which didn't play it, natch. Pharrell kookiness ("mothership otha!") abounds, but the end result is astonishing.

4 Do It Again Röyksopp and Robyn
This is close competitor to Jessie for my favorite song. The one where Robyn reappears and slays everyone with a perfect pop moment. Fave segment is the sad bridge ("we should not be friends..") merging into that final slamming run: again. again. again. Musicologists note: she wheels out her Madonna Tools with those bells in the final minute.

5 Restart Sam Smith
The Sam Smith album let me down with its 80% somber view of "eggshell" gayness. But the butter dripped off my noodle for this 70's AM gem produced by, of all people, radio DJ Zane Lowe.

Listen to Restart on YouTube

6 Busy Earnin' Jungle
Also my favorite music video of 2014, this track is the sound of London in the summer. I LOVE this.

7 Bring Back the Music Jennifer Hudson
Because Jennifer did what I've been screaming for: an album that mimics Vanessa Williams' amazing 1994 Sweetest Days album.

Listen to Bring Back The Music on YouTube

8 The D Word Toni Braxton and Babyface
This whole album was everything you'd want from Toni and Babyface, all these years later. I hope they do it again. This melancholy album closer has some gorgeous instrumentalist pieces.

9 Drowning Banks
Banks' Goddess album was my big surprise in 2014. Drowning ties with the big ballad, Under The Table. Her live version of this has a fierce stomp to it.

10 Shoot and Run Josef Salvat
Sweeping string-pop with a hint of acid to it. Can you imagine if Rihanna had done this? It's like her life story. The whole EP is solid and contains a - yep - Rihanna cover.

11 Bless the Telephone Kelis
A very short cover of an obscure - and utterly sweet - 70s folk tune. The kind of song that pauses your day. Words I didn't get to say in 2014: "When you tell me how you feel / I feel the same way too / I'm very much in love with you." Next year, maybe?

Listen to Bless The Telephone on YouTube

12 Stay Gold First Aid Kit
For the bridge: "All of my dreams / they fall and form a bridge of memories / where I can get back / to you." Ryan Adams must have cried when he heard it.

Listen to Stay Gold on YouTube

13 Is This How You Feel? The Preatures
Could also be on my top tunes of 1978. Is it dirty rock, pop or funk? Lindsey Buckingham must have cried when he heard it.

14 Trap Door Stars
Torque Campbell blazes the fuck out of this vocal and Stars rages on, ever brilliant.

Listen to Trap Door on YouTube

15 Fine Kylie Minogue
This could easlily have been Feels So Good, but Fine leaps ahead because of it s sweet message, which is simply, "you're gonna be fine." OK, Kylie.

Listen to Fine on YouTube

16 Hold Me Gold Fields
These boys keep giving smooth synth elegance. I wanna feel your love close to me.

17 Old 45's Chromeo
The chorus is pure gold. Should have been a massive hit. And it dovetails nicely with my unplanned acquisition of a zillion rare UK 45s this year.

18 Married To the Night Andy Burrows
Anglo-pop folky wheels out another amazing Fleetwood-worthy rock/pop gem. This one only has a sample on iTunes, so trust me.

19 Blessed Nerina Pallot
A whole year of beautiful songs from Nerina - an EP a month. Hard to choose one song, but Blessed seemed to hit an emotional mark as people around me dealt with sudden sadness.

20 You There Aquilo
This very anonymous UK duo happens to have the best new male singer in years. This guy isn't afraid to sound emotional and their songs are truly beautiful. You There - a totally indie production - is like a lost Britpop masterpiece.

21 For You Fickle Friends
Another indie pop group with a perfect single. If you like a good melody, it only takes one play of For You to be charmed.

22 A Night to Remember Betty Who
I'll say nary a bad word about Betty Who's label (if they can't make this girl a star...). There's a lot of choices from her sweet debut album, but this one gets it for the hook I loved: "I had a hopeless teenage heart I lost back then."

Listen to A Night To Remember on YouTube

23 Sordid Affair (feat. Man Without Country) Royksopp
For awhile it all made sense / It might have been just a dark pretense / But you had me
And I loved it / To be with you, to be the one / To live a life / That really got me all excited /
I felt wanted.


24 Everything We Touch Say Lou Lou
I like to think of this beauty as Daenerys Theme: "I raised dragons by my side, but I had to let them go."

25 Champagne Kisses Jessie Ware
This is from my favorite album of the year and does worthy battle with the title song for my favorite. Jessie says this song is "not about expensive blowies". Amazing production here: it swings low, chimes high, and even has an element of gospel.

Listen to Champagne Kisses on YouTube

26 Losing Becky Hill
The last addition to this list. A flawless MNEK-produced pop song in the late-Girls Aloud vein. Can you hear a bit of Kate Bush in that galloping beat? Nobody heard this one, but now you have.

What did I miss? Let me know!
_________________________________

Some songs that made it to this list and were cut and added and cut at various times:

Florrie Seashells Tove Lo Not On Drugs Eliot Sumner Come Friday Duke Dumont I Got U Sinéad O'Connor Take Me to Church Röyksopp and Robyn Monument Arthur Beatrice Midland Bryan Ferry Midnight Train Nick Jonas Jealous

and Madonna counts for 2015, fyi. Follow me on Twitter, LastFM, Soundcloud and/or Tumblr

xoxo

Everything old is new again, v2

2014-10-20T21:58:00.002-04:00

From Elton (this song is a masterwork)

to La Roux

Jessie Ware gets a dose of tough love

2014-10-15T22:59:00.001-04:00

If you haven't caught Jessie Ware's hottie husband doing a track by track on Instagram, it's a must. He's actually spot on - and he doesn't spare her a negative comment or two. Too funny.

Kind of...Sometimes...Maybe @sbpt_fitness's pearls of wisdom. #ToughLove
View on Instagram

Everything old is new again

2014-10-04T08:51:00.002-04:00

I thought the (amazing) new Theophilus London album cover looked familiar...

I was right.

If you're gonna ~~rip something off~~ offer up homage, this is a fine source. Let's hope credit was given.

T H E Q U E E N S B I R T H D A Y

2014-08-16T14:02:00.002-04:00

Today the Queen is 56 years old. And we are this close to a new album! Because I learned from Madonna how to be opportunistic, check out my Idolator pieces on Erotica and Ray of Light.

Song of Summer #9: Busy Earnin'

2014-08-13T23:04:00.004-04:00

DO I NEED TO SAY ANYTHING MORE?

the album (by Jungle) is laden with jams like this.

Song of Summer #8: Come Friday

2014-08-09T15:52:00.000-04:00

I didn't see this one coming. Eliot Sumner - aka Coco Sumner/I Blame Coco - is back after a few years distance from her not entirely successful 2009 debut, The Constant. That record's best elements, Eliot's powerful voice and forthright delivery, suggested that she just hadn't found her sonic niche.

She's done that with her new EP, Information, and this amazing rager of a song. They say guitar pop is dead, slaughtered by relentless EDM, but Come Friday pounds that storyline flat. You have a proper melody, lyric and performance and suddenly guitar pop is resurrected in the hands of a strange-in-a-good-way young woman who makes the music SHE wants.

"For England's sake I will stay cold / And will not show this hate I've grown"

This song is The Shit. Really good.

Song of Summer #7: You There

2014-08-06T22:33:00.002-04:00

I've had a stressful week and playing Aquilo's serene You There (and the duo's eponymous EP) has gotten me through it. Their bio simply says "Ben and Tom from the Lake District" - we don't really need to know more as long as they continue to make such strong music. They've been in the studio recently with producer/artist Sohn, whose own Artifice was a fave in the spring), so there's more to come.

I suppose we could thank the success of London Grammar for ushering in a new kind of sound. Like that band and Arthur Beatrice, Aquilo doesn't need to hammer it to make their point, a statement in itself in the age of EDM. And yes, the voice on this.

Get Aqulo's EP now on iTunes and a great free track, Calling Me, from their Facebook.

Song of Summer #6: Sanctuary

2014-08-02T13:00:00.000-04:00

"Let's fill these walls with happy times, gonna fill these rooms with peace of mind."

Jody Watley's new single is stone brilliant. A smoooooth jam. If you heard 2006's The Makeover, you know that this Watley era is all about mid-tempo beauty. Sanctuary slides in beside her cover of Madonna's Borderline or even her 1987 Patrick Leonard collaboration, Most Of All. This is the return of quiet storm.

Above is the radio mix, but her new mini LP, Paradise, has a mellow 6:28 mix that allows the song to stretch out as it's meant to do.

Song of Summer #5: Coming Home

2014-08-01T22:21:00.003-04:00

Out of the blue comes a perfect summer night soundtrack, Coming Home by London duo Pacific State. I know virtually nothing about them, other than comparisons to Morcheeba and perhaps a bit of Shara Nelson-era Massive Attack. I'd throw in the great Helicopter Girl as well.

Coming Home is a collage of melody, big soul vocals and strings. There are two versions of the track, a 3-minute radio mix and this extended version, which really builds on the Glen Campbell sample.

This post is for Michael Walter. You made my day!

Pop treasures

2014-08-01T21:26:00.000-04:00

"An extra track and a tacky badge," Morrissey once sang. These are not tacky, they're treasures! A bit of my archives, most purchased between 1982 and 84. Do you have any buttons or badges, as they're called in the UK?

The Return of Bright Light Bright Light

2014-07-18T08:14:00.001-04:00

Before I tramped off on a mini break, I did a short interview with Bright Light Bright Light for Instinct Magazine's blog. Check it out here.

Rod's new album, Life Is Easy, is out now! My faves are Everything I Ever Wanted, Lust For Life and Happiness.

His new single I Believe has also arrived with this surprising video...

...sun and sensuality with the hip Brooklyn kidz.

photo by Alex Petch

Song of Summer #3: Walk It Out

2014-07-02T09:09:00.000-04:00

My surprise new fave song is - get this - a Timbaland production. Jennifer Hudson's Walk It Out. What lured me in was the Chicago-shot video, which reminds me of Janet Jackson in Poetic Justice. But then the track really earwormed: it has just enough old school vibes to keep me happy.

When Jennifer was on American Idol, I loved her so much, I called her Mrs. Sears. Clearly, I know my shit. So here it is, a great strutting song for summer in the city.

"You must have the right producer, with the know-how of putting tracks together on a good recording!"

Song of Summer #2: Tough Love

2014-06-30T08:36:00.001-04:00

If you've read this blog for a few years, you may already know I am "heels head over" for Jessie Ware. I hope we're past the point where people confuse her with [shudders] Jessie J.

Our Jessie has been quietly recording her sophomore album all over the world- the only clues have been studio shots from her Instagram. The first real taste of the record is this BenZel-produced slow burn called Tough Love.

So much to love about this track: It's classic Jessie, in that she doesn't gild the lily. Her choices are never flamboyant, always cool. This time she takes a chance with a vocal an octave higher than usual (she's already fretting about singing it live, which we know she can do). I also love how she cracks the title phrase into multiple syllables ("tough lo-uhv"). The synth washes over the middle eight and end of the track are so rich.

BenZel previously recorded a cover of Brownstone's If You Love Me with Jessie and are responsible for at least half the production on her forthcoming album (released around November). More details at Pitchfork.

I'm still here!

2014-06-30T07:59:00.000-04:00

I've been lax with my blog lately. Life just gets in the way! Here's some of what distracts me...

Songs of Summer #1: Is This How You Feel?

2014-06-12T22:17:00.002-04:00

Dirty California vibes from a band with the best frontwoman in ages. She is Isabella Manfredi and they are The Preatures.

A few more facts. They're Austrialian, they're pretty, they also have a guy vocalist called Gideon, they rock, they're pretty and their forthcoming single is a gorgeous down-tempo called Two Tone Melody.

Spring Songs #11: Young Hearts

2014-05-21T02:00:00.000-04:00

Strange Talk occupies the space that Foster The People departed when they went a bit... avant on their new album. This song is pure pleasure - probably even better in the summer sun.

"We're young hearts, look at us go, all we really need is a stereo." It's that simple, as sometimes it should be.

Spring Songs #11: Pray For Love

2014-05-19T20:56:00.003-04:00

Kwabs is, thus far, the best new artist of the year. As I said in my Sohn post, there is a new movement of contemporary electronic soul. It began with, to some degree, James Blake and Jamie Woon, before moving to Jessie Ware and now Sampha, BANKS, Rhye and Kwabs.

Of the class of 2014, I think Kwabs - Kwabena Sarkodee - is the real contender. There is a richness to his voice - you believe what he is singing is from his experience. If Neneh Cherry and Youssou N'Dour had a child (in seven seconds, haha), it'd be Kwabs.

Before you watch his new Plan B-produced single, Pray For Love, please take some time with the two videos that captivated me. The first is a heartbreaker ballad, Perfect Ruin... I watched this about six times in a row the night I found it. He needs nothing but the song and the voice. And that chorus!

Send your love to move me
My world has powered over me
In perfect ruins
Somehow it towers over me

And Last Stand. There is a moment during the bridge (starts at 2:22) that gives me chills, when the lyric seems to completely overtake him. Some quality in Kwabs reminds me of So-era Peter Gabriel, but I cannot put it in words.

I also think he's hot - he works that see through sweater.

Kwabs has two EPs: Wrong Or Right and the just released Pray For Love. The title track's video is below...

Spring Songs #10: Lost On The Way

2014-05-13T08:29:00.000-04:00

Solange is back in the news today for some pretty dark reasons, which everyone can discover easily for themselves. Instead, I'll focus on the best of my Brooklyn queen: her music. The whole Solange experience was rolling along beautifully with her True EP. And then something went down with her collaborator Dev Hynes. A falling out that has made it look like there's no album coming. Her first post-Dev release, on her Saint Heron label compilation - Cash In - was a bit weak.

Now she's teamed up with Chromeo and found her voice again. This is exactly the kind of smooth jam at which she excels. She even classes up the Chromeo boys.

The Return of La Roux is nigh....

2014-05-06T21:48:00.000-04:00

keep an eye on her site