First Impressions is an interns roundtable review of songs on their first (or second) listen. Each week we review six new songs from the past week, each giving them a score out of five and awarding our pick of the week. This week we pick apart tracks by Golden Features, Tink, Shura & more.
Purple
The Deepest Night
[soundcloud width="750" height="200"]https://soundcloud.com/purplepurplepurple/the-deepest-night[/soundcloud]
Sam: I love seeing a vocalist in the WeDidIt ranks. He retains that whole dark sound but brings a vocal element that makes it a lot easier to latch onto early in the piece. The Deepest Night is as dark and haunting as the title suggests. Its melody is so tight and the chorus nearly manages to elevate amongst a pretty dense atmosphere. I think in the context of a whole album this one’s really going to stand out. 4
Zanda: I seriously can’t find any other way to describe this vibe than heavy and incredibly dank. The beat is dank and the vibe is heavy but enthralling. Slow and steady stuff topped off with carefree interplay between those expectedly high-pitched intro synth samples and some silky smooth vocals. 3.5
Tink x Tazer
Wet Dollars
Sam: Tink has just taken it to another level in 2015. She really feels like the first female rapper since Nicki Minaj that could really compete at the top in what is a really male-dominated industry. Wet Dollars shows that she can take her flow over anything and make it sound good. She’s one of those rappers who can bring their flavour to any track and while this sounds distinctly British, it has Tink written all over it. It reminds me a lot of what Vic Mensa did with Down On My Luck and should serve her really well commercially in Europe and potentially in the US. I couldn’t be more excited about the prospect of more Tink material in 2015. 4.5
Zanda: I don’t normally find myself enjoying a track with so little melodic content, but Tink really seems to be able to build the other elements of this track so that I’m almost not bothered by it. There’s a real depth to the rhythm and groove that carry this tune. It’s that incredibly funky groove that is set up from beat one and supplemented by a very cheeky sample from Rapper’s Delight that has me interested in what else she may have to offer this year. 3.5
Golden Features
No One (Feat. Thelma Plum)
[soundcloud width="750" height="200"]https://soundcloud.com/golden-features/no-one-ft-thelma-plum[/soundcloud]
Alex: I’ve never know Golden Features to disappoint and with this new track he definitely does not. Bringing to the table that deep groove powered electronic production that I’ve come to love this track is getting me more and more excited for his next release. Thelma Plum’s vocals wrap around the club house beats in an almost sinfully delightful way. 3.5
Sam: This track is going to do very well this year, particularly on triple j. It’s got that certain aesthetic that Aussie electronic music-enthusiasts have been eating up and while that’s great for him, it’s not anything really different. You’ve got a pleasant vocal over deep, bass-driven beats with a bit of vocal sampling. There’s no doubt that it’s polished and a step in the right direction for him but I can’t help but feel a little ho-hum. 3
Zanda: I’ve had this on high rotation for the last week or so. It’s got a bit more depth than Baxter, although I’m not necessarily sure that’s why I’m a fan. Although its essentially a relatively simple set-up in terms of its rhythmic and melodic aspects, I think Thelma Plum balances it perfectly, whilst at the same time Golden Features is able to add just the right about of deep elements to intrigue without pushing into anything on the Motez scale of house music. A cool track. 4
Shura
White Light
[soundcloud width="750" height="200"]https://soundcloud.com/shura/shura-white-light[/soundcloud]
Sam: Yes on so many levels. White Light proves that you can never have too much of a good thing. Seven minutes of disco-pop bliss that just cuts like a knife through soft butter. At this point in her career, this is Shura really making a statement that she’s in it for the long run rather than just looking for a few radio hits. Radio is going to hate the length of this just as much as they did Green Day’s Jesus of Suburbia but this is going to glisten like a diamond ring on the album. It’s the type of song you could get down to in a roller-skating rink and also listen to when you’re sitting at home twisting your hair. It’s got two distinct modes - its soft, alluring side and its funky, blazing side. And yet they’re both rolled into the one aesthetic.
Heaps of people on Soundcloud are commenting that she sounds like early Madonna which is an awesome compliment for a girl who’s working the whole indie-pop thing. She’s not trying to but she could well crack the mainstream purely by being herself. And if she can do that with a seven minute song then I take my hat off to her. 4.5 Sam’s Pick
Zanda: What a fantastic achievement here by Shura. There’s so much to like here; from the deeply captivating if slightly altered vocals setting up a Euro vibe, to the almost Nile Rogers-esque guitar licks that just sit in the spaces behind them. The production is gorgeous as well, with just the right amount of instrumental samples layered on top of some equally ear-pleasing synthetic sounds. 4.5 Zanda’s Pick
Foxes
Body Talk
Alex: Probably my one of my most anticipated releases of 2015. Foxes can do no wrong. With an impending collaboration release with disco master Giorgio Moroder the 80’s vibes have rubbed off on her with this new track. Excuse me whilst I put on my roller blades and go for a roll to this track, leg warmers and all. 4.5
Sam: I’ve never really understood Foxes. I feel like she’s never had much of an identity as an artist flicking from Zedd’s Clarity to the lite-pop of debut. But Body Talk is tight. The ‘80s is definitely making a comeback in the pop arena and this track uses that to its strength. It’s one of those tracks made for bedroom singalongs with a hairbrush. It’s lyrically very dramatic but instrumentally colourful and airy and that makes it just sink under your skin. 3.5
Zanda: Fun is how I would describe this track. The vocals by Foxes are really fun and the track overall has a very happy vibe. The production is nice enough but I find myself really frustrated by the lack of melodic or sectional development. It all sounds kind of the same, and it’s a bit of a shame especially because we know how diverse Foxes can be vocally and melodically. 2.5
Tourist
Waves
[soundcloud width="750" height="200"]https://soundcloud.com/touristmusic/tourist-waves-free-download[/soundcloud]
Alex: I’ve only ever heard Tourist’s remixes of other tracks so coming into the track I wasn’t sure what to expect from an original piece. There’s a freshness about his production. It all seems to be so clean and crisp in it’s finishes and neatly packaged together. Juttering samples peak out from behind poping beats whilst the synth builds in the background of the track. Considering I wasn’t sure what I was actually getting myself into, I’m rather pleasantly surprised. 3.5
Sam: After a few vocal-driven tracks it’s nice to hear Tourist deliver an instrumental cut. I love dance tracks that feel as if someone is holding a pump just to keep this pulsating beat going and going. It’s this organic banger that sounds effortless but at the same time would require some real energy if you were to pump along to it on the dancefloor in the early morning. As always with a pacing dance track like this, you needa have a preachy vocal-sample at the end and Tourist delivers on that. 4
Zanda: I love the layering and texture that Tourist manages to achieve on this track. The subtle addition of layers of sound and messing around with the way these levels of sound interact and interplay is really quite masterful. Following it up with a heroic climax that still manages not to boast too much, It’s got everything I look for in this sort of electro track. 4
[poll id="43"]
