Following ‘Diamond Light’, New York’s Breanna Barbara shares new single ‘Landslide’ – the second track to be taken from new album Nothin’ But Time out November 11 via Fuzz Club. Barbara’s second full-length is a raw and immersive trip through the sounds of psychedelic rock and blues, anchored by her powerful vocals and unforgettable songwriting. Over the driving beat of ‘Landslide’, Barbara zooms in on the ways that fate affects our daily living, and the complications that come from taking the wheel yourself. She states, “’Landslide’ is about trusting your intuition and how you can sort of fall off of listening to it at times. I envision when you are in tune with your intuition as sitting at the top of a landslide with the nighttime sky and stars, being close to some sort of God or the truest version of yourself versus when you do fall off from that closeness it can often feel like you’re lost but you can see yourself trying to find your way through and walking away from things that you know aren’t right for you. I think ‘it’ in the song is referring to your fate and what is meant for you.” On the video, directed by Fatos Marishta, Barbara adds, “The video was inspired by a dream I had where I was speaking to someone else but when I woke up I quickly realised it was just another version of myself. It got me thinking about how each person in your dreams can be interpreted as different parts of yourself and how mysterious the subconscious & dreamworld really are. The song also very much evoked visuals of 1970s mystery-spy detective scenes so from there my friend/director Fatos Marishta and I came up with the idea of four subconscious dream characters, all different versions of themselves, running in & around NYC trying to keep, find & perhaps even kill hidden truths about themselves.”
Newcastle folk/chamber-pop artist and songwriter Ruth Lyon announces her new EP Direct Debit To Vogue will be released November 26 via Pink Lane Records. The new EP was produced by John Parish (Aldous Harding, PJ Harvey, Parquet Courts) at his Bristol studio, and features the recently released single ‘Trouble’ – a new video for which is out now. Commenting on the release of the new video, Ruth Lyon said: “I loved making this video! I wanted to explore my love of Japanese avant-garde fashion – big asymmetrical shapes, raw edges, deconstructed patterns. There’s such a beauty in something unfinished. So, I made all the clothing (my room was a total mess for weeks) and created something that I am really proud of. It took over 100 metres of fabric! Movement is also really important for me on this – how to move as a disabled person is really interesting. I have to think outside of the box. I really loved how the big white dress totally hides any sense of body with accentuated shapes. I was sat down the whole time – but you can’t tell. The body is private as I sew myself into a new reality. Frida Kahlo inspired me to do that.” Influenced by acts such as Fiona Apple, Aldous Harding and Regina Spektor, on new single ‘Trouble’ and her soon-to-be-released new EP Direct Debit To Vogue, Lyon explores themes of self-doubt, insecurity, emotional masochism, and the weight of arbitrary expectations – all unravelling through offbeat, sophisticated chamber pop and anti-folk, commanded by her soulful vocals and witty yet raw lyricism. New single ‘Trouble’ opens with the line “I woke up wondering when I’m going to die.” It’s a track that captures the essence of anxiety, of the expectations heaped upon us at every turn; yet at the same time, it celebrates unknowingness and wildness. Speaking more on the lyrical inspiration behind new single ‘Trouble’, Ruth said: “This is a reaction against this idea of perfection that society has us believe is the goal, when actually it’s a short cut to death. I’ve never been able to tread the path of least resistance, but nor would I want to. I am hard work, I am difficult, I don’t want to be boxed up with a neat little bow with my labels printed on it. I am trouble and I love it.”
Harpy is back. 364 days since her last single and she presents to us ‘Medicine’, the long awaited follow up to her single ‘Into the Dark’ which dropped in 2021. Despite it all seeming quiet on the music front, Harpy has been busy behind the scenes writing new tracks as well as devoting her time to her dedicated Tiktok following of over 100,000+ followers. Dripping with menace, ‘Medicine’ is a catchy, carnal, bloodlust anthem. The song explores addiction, specifically the desire to return to someone… or something that you know will only bring you suffering. “Sometimes we don’t want to be saved. Sometimes we want to feel the pain, to revel in the misery. We do things that are bad for us, because sometimes they feel good… so good that we go back to them again, and again, and again. That’s what Medicine is about.” Working again to produce the track with collaborator Philip Strand (Normandie, Hot Milk, Icona Pop), there is truth in the sorcery Swedish composers bring to a record, with the middle eight of ‘Medicine’ feeling more like a ritualistic incantation, Harpy’s voice sounding almost serpentine.
Back in February, Cate Le Bon released Pompeii. She’s about to head out on a run of tour dates in support of it, and now she’s shared a new one-off single called ‘Typical Love.’ “‘Typical Love’ was a product of a rare jam session with dearest genius friend, Stella Mozgawa,” Le Bon said in a statement. “The outline, written on bass along to one of Stella’s infectious grooves, was taken into the Pompeii sessions where I disassembled and reassembled it many times but it always felt like a second cousin to the other tracks so was put aside for a rainy day.” It comes with a music video co-directed by Stefan Ramírez Pérez and Phil Collins (not that one). [via Stereogum]
In a few short weeks, we’ll get to hear Fossora, the new album from Icelandic hero Björk. Last week, Björk released ‘Atopos,’ the first sing from the LP. Now, she’s followed that one with ‘Ovule,’ a new song that seems to travel in a bunch of different directions at once. Björk produced and arranged ‘Ovule’ herself, and the only other credited musicians are Bergur Thorrison on trombone and Soraya Nayyar on timpani. (Björk arranged the trombones and timpani, too.) The horns gesture at jazz, while the drums sound like a reggaeton beat pattern that’s slowly falling apart. Over that track, Björk sings a sort of futuristic love song: “I have placed a glass egg, above us floating/ An oval ovule in a dark blood red void/ Carries our digital selves, embracing and kissing.” Here’s how Björk describes the song on Instagram: “‘ovule’ for me is my definition of love. it is a meditation about us as lovers walking around this world and i imagine 2 spheres or satellites following us around one above us that represents ideal love one below us representing the shadows of love and we ourselves walk around in the third sphere of real love , where the everyday monday-morning meet-in-the-kitchen-love lives in. In the ‘Ovule’ video, Björk wears some truly head-spinning fashions — including, in one moment, what appears to be a gigantic CGI Juggernaut helmet. [via Stereogum]
After joining SEVENTEEN on an updated version of ‘WORLD_’ last month, Anne-Marie has returned with a new collaborative single with Aitch titled ‘Psycho’, which is accompanied by a Samuel Douek-directed video. “This song was inspired by personal experience,” Anne-Marie explains. “I was once in a situation where the guy I was seeing was gaslighting me when I suspected he was cheating on me, which he was (total mug)! It wasn’t ok and I called him out. This one’s for everyone out there who’s been in the same situation.” [via Line Of Best Fit]
Former CLC singer Sorn has released her fourth solo single ‘Nirvana Girl’ alongside a music video featuring bandmates Yeeun and Seungyeon. The new dance-pop track was released on September 15 alongside a music video featuring all three former members of the seven-piece CUBE Entertainment girl group, who disbanded in May this year. Yeeun performs her rap verse in the video, while Seungyeon, who is not credited on the song itself, makes an appearance alongside Sorn on a dancefloor. “I’m on my way to be Nirvana girl, a newer better me / Out of this world, enlightened and free / Nirvana girl, that’s what I’m gonna be,” Sorn sings on the liberatory chorus. Speaking to NME on her creative process behind ‘Nirvana Girl’, Sorn shared that she drew inspiration from a visit to a temple. The Thai singer described the new song as a mix of her personal relationship with religion as well as her experience being part of the K-pop industry for the past 10 years. “I sat down with my producers and talked about my journey when I was with CLC and the struggles I had, so we [fused] religion with the story and came up with the theme of ‘Nirvana Girl’,” she told NME. “The song is really special because I really wanted a rapper on this track so I couldn’t think of anyone better than Yeeun,” Sorn said, adding that she had been in discussions with the former CLC rapper since the start of 2022. “I also have Seungyeon, who is our leader from CLC, on board. I wanted a dance for the song, and I was like, ‘Who else would be the best at making [the choreography] other than Seungyeon?’” Despite having not released new music together in two years, Sorn shared that returning to work with Yeeun and Seungyeon felt comfortable. “We have that chemistry of working together for the past 10 years; we work together really well as though we’re still CLC,” she gushed. “It’s like working with your best friends, where you just sit together in a room. You don’t really have to talk much but you just connect with each other.” [via NME]
Dora Jar has shared a brand new song and video, ‘Bump’, as she continues her tour in support of Billie Eilish. The new track follows recent single ‘Bumblebee’, which was her first track since signing to Island Records. Speaking about the new song, Dora says: “I wrote ‘Bump’ when I was living in Poland & for the first time in my life I didn’t really know anyone in that city except for the family I was staying with so I wasn’t bumping into people I knew anywhere. “This song felt like a prayer to encounter a meaningful coincidence & eventually it began happening, not with people I knew, but I would see images from dreams manifest in real life, and it sparked this feeling that life had been waiting for me to take note of all the little details because they are leading me somewhere. I drank a lot of black tea with family during this time & became obsessed with teapots. I had an image in my brain of a long human with teapot feet.” [via DIY]
With ‘A Little Better Every Time,’ Milk & Bone introduces us to a new facet of Chrysalism, a third effort that marks a departure into an unmistakably pop-forward territory. Unfolding in full intensity as a poignant ballad, ‘A Little Better Every Time’ is a reminder to love yourself in order to move forward. This new track is complemented by a powerful, highly symbolic video – think angel wings and a snake that molts and coils around its prey – directed by Lian Benoit and Derek Branscombe. Steeped in both fury and tenderness, the footage resonates with the intensity of the drums and guitars. The video features Camille Poliquin and Laurence Lafond-Beaulne, the two halves of Milk & Bone, finding the strength to remain whole, as their image is slowly distorted. [via Bonsound]
With GAYLE gearing up to release her new EP a study of the human experience volume two (out next month), the young star has teamed up with blackbear to give fans another preview of the record. The pair join forces on ‘fmk’ (which, if you listen to the lyrics, stands for ‘fuck marry kill’), with GAYLE explaining of the meaning behind the whole thing: “’fmk’ is about the intensities of young love. How someone can make you feel great and terrible simultaneously. Not fully knowing if you’re in a toxic relationship or not, because you’ve never had anything else.” a study of the human experience volume two is due out on October 7 via Atlantic Records / Arthouse Records. Watch the video for fmk – directed by Chris Ullens – above. [via Kerrang!]
As we found out earlier this year, a whimsical “Ouch!” can add some much-needed levity within stormy heartbreak. Belgian artist Tsar B‘s new single ‘Auwtch’ walks that fragile tightrope between pain and pleasure. The blowback of allowing yourself to feel too deeply, too romantically can sting. ‘Auwtch’ molds that raw feeling into a cascading 80s-indebted torch song, propelled by volcanic drum computers and gloom-ridden synths. Tsar B’s sweeping, icy vocals cut through it like a shard of glass. “I wrote that song when I fell in love, that same night. In fact, I was able to put those first moments, that adolescent naivety, in a bottle,” she told Belgian magazine Knack Focus. “Falling in love is a very interesting experience for me. I don’t experience it often, but once I have a crush on someone, I very quickly start imagining new worlds and a full future with that person. Then in my impulsiveness I sometimes turn out to be much too romantic for someone I just met. Ultimately, I’m a big fan of ‘Heroes just for one day.’” In the video, Tsar B – whose real name is Justine Bourheus – is seen riding a fake hobble horse: it starts out lavish and beautiful, but as the shot slowly fades out you see the cut-and-dry mechanics behind the movie magic. It’s a fun visual extension of seeing a relationship through, each layer of idealism slowly peeled off until you realise its true nature. By chance, that eager honeymoon phase is also symbolised by how the video – directed by Lennert Madou – was made. “When filming the video, I had to lip sync twice as fast as the original song. My friend recently told me that I live twice as fast as normal people. We concluded that’s why shooting this video went so well: my brain is trapped in a universe where everything goes twice as fast.” [via beatsperminute]
