New music Fridays and here are our top ten favourite new releases out today in no particular order.
1. The Avenues release Part Of The Problem’
‘Part of the Problem’ is the first taste of new material from The Avenues. Two and a half minutes of driving indie rock that’s as confessional as it is anthemic, the band describe the track as “relating to the burnout and growing apathy due to being overwhelmed constantly with the world’s problems all over your news feed every day, and the guilt for feeling those things.”
It’s a bold statement, and The Avenues release ‘Part Of The Problem’ one that everyone can all relate to, at least on some level. And while it’s true that the world certainly does seem to be burning down, at least the view’s amazing.
2. Dizzy & Flyte release new single ‘Primrose Hill at Midnight’
Following their recent JUNO Award nomination for Alternative Album of the Year, Dizzy are excited to release their new single ‘Primrose Hill at Midnight’’ featuring Flyte – watch the visualiser here. Today, the band also release their new collaborations EP, Separate Places on Communion Records – stream here.
The Separate Places EP sees the Canadian four-piece reimagine some of the standout tracks from their second album, 2020’s The Sun and Her Scorch. Each track features a different guest artist on vocals: ‘Primrose Hill at Midnight’ is a reworking of album standout track ‘Primrose Hill’ now featuring Flyte.
Upon its release, the album was praised for its “blissful 1990s pop sound” (Sunday Times Culture) and its candid exploration of the messiest, most raw emotions young people experience in the modern age. “I wanted to be completely honest about the things nobody ever wants to admit, like being jealous of your friends or pushing away the people who love you,” frontwoman Katie Munshaw says. “So instead of being about romantic heartbreak, it’s really about self-heartbreak.” The Sun and Her Scorch has been nominated for Alternative Album of the Year at the prestigious JUNO Awards, a feat previously achieved by the likes of Arcade Fire – and Dizzy themselves, for their 2018 debut Baby Teeth.
3. Calum Scott debuts new single ‘Biblical’
Multi-platinum-selling singer/songwriter Calum Scott returns with his soulful new single “Biblical” and its beautifully surreal video. The first single from his forthcoming sophomore album, “Biblical” is the artist’s first new music since his full-length debut Only Human — a 2018 release that hit No. 1 on the iTunes album chart in 21 countries across the globe, in addition to selling more than 3.6 million in adjusted album sales and amassing over 7.5 billion combined streams. Listen to “Biblical” HERE
Showcasing Scott’s soulful voice and deeply personal songwriting, “Biblical” speaks to the extraordinary power of unconditional love. “While I know it has spiritual connotations to many, ‘Biblical’ to me is about unquantifiable love, a love beyond description or measure, a love of biblical proportions that transcends everyone and everything,” says Scott. “If I can aspire for one thing for this song, it’s that the listener hears it and fits a name, a face, or a passion to the lyric and makes it their story.”
4. Novelty Island release ‘Listen’
An absence of normality lets a wild crop of creativity bloom and for Novelty Island – the engine of multi-instrumentalist, Tom McConnell – it’s time to harvest what endless strolls and empty skies have sown, revealing his latest single, Listen. Squinting into summer with perky piano lines and multi-colour splashes of brass, the single is the first track to be lifted from How Are You Coping With This Century? the very first Novelty Island album.
Wired into a grid of supercharged, primary-colour songwriting, the former Abbey Road-residing Liverpudlian, chased back to the banks of the mystical Mersey on the insistence of global pandemic, makes good use of his study of popular song across the promised, 12-track album set for a late-summer release.
5. Regard, Troye Sivan & Tate McRae Share ‘You’
BRIT nominated power-house producer Regard has released today, a stripped-back acoustic version of single ‘You’ via Ministry of Sound with global pop stars Troye Sivan and Tate McRae. Listen here
Offering up spacious instrumentation in the form of wide cinematic synth textures, and filtered drums, the unapologetically emotive melodies courtesy of Tate and Troye sit even further at the forefront of this sultry new offering.
The original version of ‘You’ has received over 60 million streams and was recently performed by the trio on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon for its TV debut. The official music video – which explores the narrative of an obsessed fangirl who creates deepfake versions of Troye and Tate – has now surpassed 2.5 million streams.
‘You’ has also broken records in the dance world – it is currently #1 on Dance Radio in the States, tying for the quickest coronation in the survey’s 17 year history. The single’s success has caught the attention of the music elite too, with electro pop superstar Lauv crowning it as “one of the best songs of all time.”
6. Nuuxs shares new track ‘Lemongrass’
NUUXS today releases her sentimental new single and video ‘Lemongrass’, via Goldun Egg / Absolute. The track is the latest single taken from debut album Heirloom, which she announces will be released on 3rd September.
Placed over an elegant piano and with a gentle, soulful sway, the track is a dedication to NUUXS’ father and her heritage. With powerful lyrics such as “You would tell me in your silence / you will always have me”, ‘Lemongrass’ beautifully tells the story of NUUXS’ childhood and her relationship with her Laos-born father, which is emphasised by the accompanying video, which features snapshots of NUUXS’ childhood and her Laos traditions. It’s a perfect example of the deeply personal inspirations found throughout Heirloom
“This track is a dedication to my Papa and just from an adult point of view as to what he must have been through as a Lao refugee. I will be forever grateful for what he has shown me in his silent ways and I also wanted to touch on the beautiful Lao culture I am so lucky to know and be a part of. Thank you to my family and all the Lao community,” NUUXS explains.
The news of her first album follows a stream of acclaimed EPs from the French-born, London-based singer, culminating in 2019’s Red Tape Mixtape, which garnered widespread tastemaker support from the likes of Annie Mac, CLASH, tmrw, The Line of Best Fit, BBC Introducing and Mahogany.
7. Snakehips and EARTHGANG link up for infectious single ‘Run It Up’
Genre-defying DJ and production duo Snakehips have collaborated with Atlanta hip hop duo EARTHGANG for infectious new single ‘Run It Up’, out today. Melding together Snakehips’ signature chilled out house beats with smooth, melodic vocals from EARTHGANG, ‘Run It Up’ is ready and waiting for when the dancefloors begin to open up over the coming months.
Made up of James and Ollie, Snakehips have previously collaborated with the likes of Chance The Rapper, Anderson Paak, MØ, Anne-Marie and A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie. Their catalogue of hits include lush and sultry ‘On & On’, dreamy single ‘Days With You’, mega-hit ‘All My Friends’ (ft. Tinashe and Chance The Rapper), pop banger ‘Cruel’ featuring ZAYN, and 4-track EP Forever (Pt. II). The platinum-selling hit makers have also played at Coachella, Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo and many more.
8. Wuh Oh shares latest release ‘Daddio’
Avant pop producer, composer and artist Wuh Oh has unveiled his latest hyperpop infused offering ‘Daddio’. Watch the video HERE. The single follows Wuh Oh’s recent collaboration with The Magician on ‘Life’.
The infectious track embodies Wuh Oh’s signature experimentalist style, and laces disco synth sounds with glitch hop edits, creating a hyper modern clash of jubilant energy and off-kilter melodies. Today, also marks the release of the psychedelic official video directed by long-term collaborator Joe Crogan AKA ZONES Productions.
Wuh Oh says: ‘Daddio was a creative breakthrough for me. Coming from the electronic underground scene in Glasgow, It was the most Pop I had ever gone with a Wuh Oh track. Creating my own idealised version of universal pop music has since become a major artistic pursuit of mine. So many hooks smash together to create one hyperactive whole, from the old school piano riff to the blaring synth line to the vocal, which I intended to land somewhere between The Beegees and Macy Gray but ended up sounding unavoidably me. This track just wants to help you feel better.
The music video was made by just myself and creative partner Joe, an extraordinary visual artist who operates as Zones Productions. With only fifty quid, in the upstairs room of a Glasgow pub, we shot the video. For the next few weeks we would chat nonsense for hours each day, throwing around ideas to make each other laugh. Joe then took the best of this inspiration and went to work creating the magical world and characters you see around me. Special shout out to Andrew Sutherland, an extremely talented Glasgow artist who kindly lent us wonderful masks he’d designed based off of childrens’ drawings.
9. MANTARAYBRYN releases new single ‘Mayfly’
MANTARAYBRYN is back with the uplifting, evocative new single: “Mayfly”.
At just under the 4-minute mark, the Welsh/Cornish singer delivers a piece of otherworldly piano-pop as concise, enigmatic and purposeful as its namesake. The track is the latest to be taken from Mantaraybryn’s upcoming EP, ‘Year Of The Heron’, which will be released via the Modern Sky UK label on 16 July.
Coupling expansive James Blake-esque arrangements with playful metaphor and incisive lyricism, “Mayfly” finds Mantaraybryn reflecting on the short-lived nature of modern dating. As confessional as it is commentative, Bryn elaborates of the track:
“Technology and apps help conversations filled with promise flicker up to last a few days, maybe hours (just as a mayfly only lives for a day). In the same way, I’d find myself trying to build a relationship only to feel that frost creeping onto me, I’d grow bored, and start looking for the next. As always, I’m trying to be a better person, and despair at the thought of leaving a trail of emotional wreckage behind me. The lyrics might seem cruel but they’re sung with a dry smile.”
10. The Taylor Twins release ‘Lost All The Summer’
The Taylor Twins first emerged as Butterfly in 2020, earning introductory airplay at Radio 1, 6 Music and Radio X for their EP ‘Ranger 1’. They were also tipped by veterans musicians and rising talents alike, with praise from artists including Ruban Nielson (Unknown Mortal Orchestra), Sean Ono Lennon, Willie J Healey, Blaine Harrison (Mystery Jets) and Dave Gregory (XTC). They even gained traction in the US, with plays from the larger-than-life industry icon Rodney Bingenheimer.
Having decided to capitalise on their distinctive image by relaunching as The Taylor Twins, the duo now share their debut single ‘Lost All The Summer’. The track is out now on their own indie label Rørvig Records, a name which references their Scandinavian roots.
