New Music Monday #6 / 18–01–2021 / 34 Chemtrails Over the Skengman
Another music, another lot of new music. UK rap wins this week but we got great alt pop, R&B, East Coast hip-hop and jazzy ambient too. Major news from the past few days are the announcement of a release date for Lana’s Chemtrails Over The County Club (the album — March 19), the release of the music acts to perform at Biden’s inauguration and the death of Phil Spector (absolute musical genius and absolute piece of trash of a human being — let him rest in peace but let’s not ignore the monstrosities he’s committed please). Get your weekly fix of great music below!
— — — Absolute Fave — — —
Skengman — Ghetts (feat. Stormzy)
Skengman is a cinematic slow-burn that foregoes the bombastic qualities of the genre to highlight a sense of impending menace that never feels overbearing but rather inevitable. It’s calculated, measured and subtle, seamlessly integrating its main players with a tension so thick it’s impossible to ignore. The track is from Ghetts’ forthcoming Conflict of Interest and we can only hope this foretells the quality of the LP — rather than overselling it. (also Stormzy rarely misses, now does he?)
— — — More great tracks — — —
Chemtrails Over The Country Club — Lana Del Rey
Provocateur-in-chief (mostly unwillingly so or so I choose to believe) Lana del Rey’s title track for the highly-anticipated album slated for a March release is another deep dive in the songstress’s vintage glamour universe. She manages to create a wonderful song to tease the album despite an initially-underwhelming chorus: her major feat is convincing you the chorus is actually pretty genius, with smart instrumentals and a stellar cymbal dissolve fade out.
34+35 (Remix) — Ariana Grande (feat. Doja Cat, Megan Thee Stallion)
Doja and Megan resuscitated a track that was in dire need of new energy and relief. No doubt an attempt at higher charts placement, the star-studded remix makes the best of its original canvas and ultimately outshines the initial version. Yes, it’s Megan talking about her p*ssy, again. But what in heaven’s sake were you hoping for in a remix of a track called 69? Stick to what you know!
Bad Day — Nyck Caution (feat. Denzel Curry)
Bad Day is a contender for the aggro anthem of 2021 — a year that has already demonstrated age is nothing but a number in less than a month. We might very well remember 2021 as 2020 (the extended mix) so we might as well make the most of it. Turn Bad Days into good ones when we can.
Teardrops — Hayley Williams
Hayley Williams returns after Petals for Armor with a track that takes after Bjork, Kate Bush and Patti Smith. This one is a grower.
He Said — dvsn (feat. Miguel)
Another new dvsn track as he releases the deluxe version of his A Muse In Her Feelings. It’s a pretty great piece of guitar-centric contemporary R&B, the type H.E.R. and Anderson .Paak have popularized in recent years. It’s slick, sexy and groovy.
Mue — Voyou
Fresh French pop act Voyou comes back with an instrumental track to remind us he’s not only a songwriter, a singer and a producer but also a trumpetist (as in ‘plays the trumpet’, not ‘storms the US Capitol’). The result is a luscious arpeggiated amuse-bouche for what’s to come (look out for a release on Feb. 19).
What You Need — Jae Stephens (feat. THEY.)
OK, production is a bit (very) heavy-handed on this new Jae Stephens number. It’s so damn catchy that I couldn’t help myself to seconds and thirds. “I got what you need, yeah, yeah, yeah” *bops in the kitchen*. “I got what you need, yeah, yeah, yeah” *bops in the bathroom*. “I got what you need, yeah, yeah, yeah” *bops in the bedroom*. “I got what you need, yeah, yeah, yeah” *bops in — you get it.
Need even more? Also check out (YouTube links):
Goosebumps (Remix) — Travis Scott, HVME
Doorman (Vegyn Remix) — SebastiAn (feat. Syd)
Thanks for reading, happy listening!
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Best Releases January 2021 Spotify playlist: here
Any and all feedback is greatly appreciated! Hope you enjoyed it
Twitter: @REDTAKES1
