Tag: synth pop

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

With the release of “Ruins,” up-and-coming Los Angeles, CA-based indie pop artist Ryder received attention across the blogosphere for a slow-burning, atmospheric pop sound with soaring and anthemic hooks, skittering drum programming and Ryder’s expressive and sultry alto — all while comparing favorably to blogosphere darlings Phoebe Ryan, CAPPA, Chelsea Lankes and others.

Ryder’s latest single “Fade Away” will further cement her growing reputation for slow-burning, atmospheric and seductive pop as the song pairs Ryder’s expressive and sultry vocals with industrial clang and clatter, swirling and ambient electronics and a soaring, anthemic hook; however, unlike “Ruins,” “Fade Away,” is arguably the most sensual song she’s released to date, as the song’s narrator is urgently expressing her desire for a love object in a dysfunctional and confusing relationship.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Check Out The Trippy Matrix-Inspired Visuals for Field Music’s “Disappointed”

Comprised of its creative masterminds, sibling duo Peter and David Bewis and featuring the contributions Kev Dosdale, Andrew Lowther, Ian Black, Liz Corney, Andrew Moore, Damo Waters and a rotating cast of collaborators, Sunderland, UK-based indie electro […]

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

23 year-old Simon Ebener-Holscher is an up-and-coming German jazz pianist, singer and producer, whose solo production and recording project Moglii has started to receive attention for a sound that employs the use of analog synthesizers, soulful vocal samples, live, acoustic instrumentation and self-made field recordings — that frequently include recordings of coffeemakers, shopping bags, cactuses and other random things. Ebener-Holscher is also the creative mastermind and founder of Moglebaum, a quintet who has performed at festivals across their native Germany, Bulgaria, The Netherlands and India.

19 year old NOVAA is an up-and-coming German singer/songwriter and producer and pioneer of a a new, attention-grabbing subgenre that she has dubbed “Organic Electronic” — a sound that draws from electronica, electro pop, folk and pop. And as a result, the young German artist has been compared favorably to the likes of Björk and Grimes. The two German artists bonded over a shared love of organic, natural soundscapes and higher thinking and as a result they began collaborating on their forthcoming 5 track EP Down Under.

“Down Under,” the EP title track and the EP’s latest single is a glitchy and wobbling track that thematically “”focuses on the connectedness and circulation of energy that is felt, rather than seen” — and sonically, the song pairs shuffling and skittering drum programming, fluttering and undulating synths, wobbling low end, ambient and swirling electronics and raindrops with NOVAA’s and Ebener-Holscher’s vocals bubbling up and then serenely floating over the surface. The song’s shifting rhythms and time changes add to a woozy and trippy feel while keeping the ethereal song from floating off into space — while being remarkably subtle.

 

 

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

If you had been frequenting this site during the end of 2015 and the beginning of this year, you may recall coming across a couple of posts on Chicago-based R&B vocalist and singer/songwriter The Elle and her collaborations with Minnesota-based singer/songwriter and emcee Blaccout Garrison, Hungry Soulful EP — in particular, “Strawberry Cheesecake Dessert.” which was produced by Dthr33 and featured Jackson, WY-based emcee Abstract, had Abstract and Garrison trading charmingly old-school-inspired lyrics about the ladies they loved over, while The Elle sang the song’s soulful and sensual hook over the soulful and jazzy sample that comprises A Tribe Called Quest‘s “Bonita Applebum.” Hungry Soulful‘s second single was the  P-Soul-produced “Wishing On A Star,” which paired a subtly chopped up old-timey, twinkling piano sample and boom-bap drum programming with Garrison rhyming about focusing on one’s dreams and overcoming life’s frustrations and obstacles. The Elle contributes the song’s introductory verses and the soulful and thoughtful hook.

 

Slated for release next month, Soul Art Music is the Chicago-based vocalist’s forthcoming full-length effort and the album’s latest single “Your Love” was produced by South African producer Keith Virgo. The track begins with an introductory sample of Eartha Kitt, setting up the song’s theme as the legendary actress and singer candidly shares her thoughts about love — and in her mind, real love is essentially a process of learning how to share yourself with yourself and others. The song pairs Virgo’s subtly cosmic and trippy production consisting of layers of twinkling and shimmering synths, tumbling percussion, boom bap drums,  electronic bleeps, bloops and beeps with The Elle’s sultry vocals about a love that has made her narrator feel as though she had found her truest self. Within the turn of a phrase The Elle reveals a narrator who is strong yet unafraid to be vulnerable and open, and absolutely appreciative of stumbling about this person at this juncture. Lucky and rare are those who experience such a love.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: JOVM Mainstays La Femme Return with Psychedelic, Egypt-Inspired Visuals for “Sphynx”

Comprised of founding members Marlon Magnée (keyboards), Sacha Got (guitar), Sam Lefevre (bass), Noé Delmas (drums) and Lucas Nunez, along with a rotating cast of vocalists including current lead vocalist Clémence Quélennec, lara Luciani, Jane Peynot and Marilou […]

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Jean Deaux is a Chicago, IL-based electronic music artist, whose sound draws from house, R&B and hip-hop. Her latest single “Father Time” is the first single released off Downtown Records‘ newest imprint Downtown Singles Club, a carefully curated selection of singles that are sent directly to subscribers via email, and the single pairs skittering drum programming, gently undulating synths, tweeter and woofer rocking beats and industrial clang and clatter  with Deaux’s sultry vocals and swaggering rhyming before ending with some soulful yet shimmering synths. The song and its production defy easy categorization — it clearly possesses elements of R&B, house, hip-hop, neo-soul, industrial house and industrial techno but it’s a slickly produced, trippy and sonically experimental work that manages to be approachable and dance-floor ready. And it does so while possesses a deeply existential bent, with its narrator exploring her complex and ambivalent relationship with time.

You can catch the up-and-coming electro pop artist when Deaux and friends play Elvis’ Guesthouse on March 26.

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

If you’ve been frequenting this site over the past three or four months, you may have come across a couple of posts on Sophie Stern, the Los Angeles-based creative mastermind behind the (mostly) solo recording project Sophie and the Bom Boms — and in that period of time, Stern has quickly become one of my favorite, new artists.

Her debut EP’s first single “Big Girls” was a breezy and infectious pop confection that paired big boom-bap beats, cascading synths, anthemic hooks and Stern’s effortlessly soulful vocals in a way that was reminiscent of Nu Shooz‘s “I Can’t Wait” while sounding remarkably contemporary. Stern followed that up with “Appetite,” a single that began to cement a burgeoning reputation for crafting incredibly infectious, breezy and anthemic pop while sounding as though it drew influence from Australian-born Berlin-based indie pop artist Phia, Gwen Stefani‘s “Ain’t No Holla Back Girl,” and TLC‘s “No Scrubs” — with the a similar “girl, drop that loser/girl, drop that deadbeat friend/I’m done with that fool” air.

Stern’s third and latest single “Creme De La Creme” pairs a skittering and tweeter and woofer rocking percussive production featuring gently buzzing synths and an infectious, shout-worthy hook in a song that celebrates the beauty, strength and individuality of the modern women  — that says a couple of things: first, “let your freak flag fly and be fucking proud about it;” second, beauty is not just in the eye of the beholder but within and that should be celebrated instead of being mocked; and third, the ladies of the world need to team up and enact real change. It’s an empowered girl power anthem — with an infectiously playful sense of humor.