AS the country enjoys an unprecedented heatwave, get your weekend started in the right way with this week’s edition of New Music Radar. Top tracks include The Vanities, HYYTS, Pixey, Sunflower Bean.
The Vanities ‘Reality TV’
Following the release of their popular single ‘OTC’ The Vanities have returned with another incisive punk rock banger, ‘Reality TV’. The song takes aim at vapid mass entertainment talent competitions in its lyrics and with its quirky and playful music video, which follows the band as they storm an audition room after several uninspiring acts. The Vanities have to be credited as one the country’s most unpretentious and uncompromising punk bands; they write up straight up punk, drawing influence from new acts like Fidlar to pioneering groups like The Clash. The growing notoriety of Alan Hannah’s fierce snarl and cutting lyrics is quickly placing The Vanities among the vanguard of Scotland’s punk scene, and ‘Reality TV’ will only strengthen that position. Check the song below.
HYYTS ‘Lonely People’
Following the release of ‘The Low Sound’ and ‘Dreamkiller’ earlier this year, Glaswegian duo HYYTS are back with another massive pop banger called ‘Lonely People’. With an enviable knack for crafting neon-drenched pop hits that climb to soaring, euphoric crescendos, ‘Lonely People’ is another triumph that pairs their kinetic electronic production with an emotive, coming-of-age narrative. Opening in rather understated fashion, it’s more of a slow-builder than what we’re used to hearing from the duo but the climactic build-up pays off in the end with a massive release.
The band said “Lonely People is about growing up and realising that you should always leave yourself open to be hurt because any kind of happy life needs some sadness in it. It’s better to feel anything than nothing. It’s a coming of age song and basically a wee bit of advice I wish someone had given me when I started going out and getting full of booze and drugs”
Pixey ‘Just Move’
Fresh from signing a deal with Chess Club Records, Liverpudlian singer Pixey has emerged as one of the UK’s brightest new pop stars with the release of her euphoric single ‘Just Move’. Driven by a highly addictive guitar line and 90s-influenced drums, it’s an absolute earworm; a dance-like-no-one’s-watching anthem that will seizes your attention right from the off. Born out of the initial frustration of being cooped up in locked down, it’s a potent and refreshing slice of pop music that sets the bar for what’s to come over the next few months.
Pizza Crunch ‘Twelve Month Seasonal Depression’
After making their debut appearance with the riff-heavy ‘Fraud’ earlier this year, the Glasgow band known as Pizza Crunch have returned with their second single ‘Twelve Month Seasonal Depression’. Casting their eye over the long-lasting impact of depression, the band use sharp, catchy indie-rock as a vehicle for their sombre message with frontman Euan Pearns a charismatic presence throughout, readily offering up wry observations against a backdrop of stomping rhythms and bright, unruly guitar lines. Shifting between the playfully witty and daringly introspective, it’s a track that has firmly placed Pizza Crunch on our radar.
Sunflower Bean ‘Moment In The Sun’
Sunflower Bean have been nothing short of prolific over the last couple of years, following up two phenomenal albums with last year’s hugely popular ‘King Of The Dudes’ EP which featured standout anthem ‘Come For Me’. Now the trio are back with a new summery banger called ‘Moment In The Sun’. It arrives with a message of togetherness and love, touching down on elements of disco and indie while staying true to their nostalgic roots.
“‘Moment In The Sun’ is about finally recognizing what is important in one’s life, the people you decide to spend it with,” say Sunflower Bean. “All of these things we distract ourselves with, the never0ending mountain of career climbing, the pursuit of financial success, and the hope that after all that trying you could finally be cool. All of that is meaningless in comparison to one great day, hour, or moment with someone you really love.”
slowthai ‘feel away (feat. James Blake and Mount Kimbie)’
slowthai teams up with James Blake and Mount Kimbie on his poignant new single ‘feel away’. Dedicated to the memory of his younger brother, the Northampton rapper reflects on fractured relationships over a plaintive piano loop before delivering the understated hook “suddenly I’m half the man I used to be”. He said of the track “It’s about the doubts we have, whether it be within friendships, your partner or with our family. It’s about putting yourself in the other person’s shoes so you have a better understanding of the situation.” Despite dialling his outspoken persona down a notch, the rapper is still frank and unwavering in his delivery with Mount Kimbie on production duties and James Blake lending his affecting vocals to the memorable chorus.
DEADLETTER ‘Fit For Work’
Barging their way in to claim a space at the post-punk revival, South London-based outfit DEADLETTER have shared a tempestuous and frustrated new single called ‘Fit For Work’. Mixing angsty spoken word lyrics with dissonant guitars and stuttering bass lines, the track offers a spiky commentary on bureaucracy and the despicable narrative that has unfortunately befallen many in the UK in the battle for benefits. Sneering in its delivery but driven with a real sense of purpose, a searing trumpet rears its head as the intensity reaches fever pitch.
Barrie-James ‘Flame’
Never one to rest on his laurels, Barrie James has underwent another micro-metamorphosis on new track ‘Flame.’ Beginning with the brooding atmospherics that Scandinavian pop artists normally wield such an enchanting hold on, the eclectic singer-songwriter is in contemplative form on his latest offering. Euphoric and macabre in the same breath, his ability to contort tone- and by virtue, the listener’s perception- remains undiminished throughout its near five minute duration. Sultry and revelatory in a way that wouldn’t be out of place in David Lynch’s film universe, it’s another triumph for this chameleonic talent
Porridge Radio ‘7 Seconds’
Just six months after releasing their Mercury-nominated album ‘Every Bad’, Porridge Radio have shared a synth-heavy new tune called ‘7 Seconds’. Dipping into similar themes as the record, the new track shines with a greater sense of optimism – reinforcing their intelligent lyricism and melodic charm.
Hachiku ‘I’ll Probably Be Asleep’
Signed to Courney Barnett’s Milk! Records, Melbourne singer Hachiku channels the likes of Warpaint and Beach House on her enchanting new single ‘I’ll Probably Be Asleep’. Mesmerising layers of guitar and dark atmospherics surround the singer’s gentle vocals and it makes for a very dreamy and immersive listen.
Sufjan Stevens ‘Sugar’
With his new album ‘The Ascension’ coming out next week, Sufjan Stevens has shared a third preview single called ‘Sugar’. Spanning seven minutes, the track opens with a lengthy instrumental built from electronic loops and anxious glitches before Stevens’ soft vocals lean into gentle dystopia – yearning for resolution against an arrangement that becomes increasingly intense. It’s a deeply hypnotic listen from start to finish.
KLEOPATRA ‘Machina’
Lifted from her new EP of the same name, Glasgow-based singer-songwriter KLEOPATRA elicits themes of modern dystopia through her latest slice of invigorating dark-pop. Exploring the blurred lines between reality and fantasy and “the increasing machine-like nature of the modern man”, the EP’s title track shifts between dark, unsettling verses and loud, crunching electronic sequences. The influence of Grimes looms large throughout with smooth, hypnotic vocals weaving in and out of the distinctly modern production. KLEOPATRA’s ‘Machina’ EP is out today.
Check out our New Music Radar playlist below which is updated on a weekly basis.
