EL MICHELS AFFAIR - SHA NA NA FT THE SHACKS
Cinematic soul, Turkish funk anyone? If you are looking for something slightly left field from our usual suggestions this month, then you shan’t look further than the El Michel’s Affair’s latest record - Yeti Season. Our pick is Sha Na Na, featuring the Shacks, which sees the retro-soul group finding a new groove and smothering it with layers of emphatic instrumentation.
SKIIFALL - TING TUN UP PART 2 FT KNUCKS
Skiifall’s Ting Tun Up was an instant hit last year. The diasporic, Caribbean influenced Hip Hop single revelled in industrial 808s and a patois-embracing flow. Getting Knucks to pattern a verse for the remix took us all off-guard, but his velvety tones work surprisingly well over the production. The link up shows just the reach Skiifall has had since his single, and that Knucks fails to be confined to the essences of his inherent sound.
REJJIE SNOW - RELAX
There’s a clear message to Rejjie Snow’s latest single that we feel everyone can adopt from such a rogue year. Taken off the Dublin rapper’s forthcoming album, Relax’s polyrhythmic instrumental, wholesome melody and vibey verses are just what we need at the season’s turn. Just relax.
A2 - AKOLADES
A2’s latest, self-produced single has left us craving his forthcoming album Just So You Know. Set for release this summer, Akolades is all we have to guess what direction he wishes to take sonically on the project. This is unsurprising given his intrinsic, enigmatic nature, but the track holds proof that he is one of the most lyrically intriguing artists Britain has.
KAYOWA - AND, SCENE
The multifaceted Kayowa blessed us with another dexterous spoken word single single last month in the form of ‘And, Scene’. Emphasising positivity, and leaving no room for clout chasers, the wordsmith bodies the Super Mario-esque beat with her vocal harmonies and intricate lyricism. Take a listen below.
YT - ARC’TERYX
YT marries British Trap with a unique G-Funk twist on his ode to streetwear’s favourite high performance outerwear company. ‘Arc’teryx’ is a contagious, high-hat heavy bop with infectious hooks and an equally captivating music video, which comes via LAUZZA. The drip goes far beyond the goretex too, with YT donning Skepta Shox, C.P. Company and OG 95s.
BINA. - MERCEDES TO HADES FT INTALEKT AND LEX AMOR
Warranting a shoutout from Jamz Supernova, who made This Is Not a Film their EP of the week, BINA.’s latest project sees her expanding the diverse sonic landscape she has crafted thus far. Our favourite cut is the lucid Mercedes to Hades, which features an ever compelling verse from Lex Amor. As always with the South Londoner, the whole EP is well worth checking out, so we’ve linked it all below.
PINTY - FOUND IT
Pinty’s sound encompasses a lot of what we love about music: rap, garage, house and inflections of jazz play out through all of his previous projects. Found It, released on Winged Feet Records, sonically leans towards the vivacious, clubbier elements of his discography, heralding a groove that few other emcees boast. Production comes via Tomos.
BLAZEYL FT CHRI$DAPRINCE - SWEEPERS
Jamo Beatz’ production on Blaze’s latest, Chri$daPrince featuring joint is too wavey. The rapper’s go back-to-back with 16 bar verses over the drill influenced instrumental, spraying braggadocios rhymes and potent lyricism. House of Pharaohs have been on it this year, so we are hoping for a new project very soon.
Written by Liam Cattermole (@liam_cattermole)
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