ListenUp
Róisín Murphy remixed, Animal Collective sings of Florida, Julian Casablancas’ punk duet with Jehnny Beth and more in this week’s music
Jehnny Beth + Julian Casablancas: Boy/Girl
Julian Casablancas and Jehnny Beth of Savages rock out in their cover of an ’80s punk track from Danish band Sort Sol and American singer Lydia Lunch, “Boy/Girl.” It’s a fierce duet that’s rough around the edges, especially with Jehnny Beth’s half-howl, half-singing voice. Even the new music video is a nod to the original—the opening sequence, some body gestures and even actual video clips are taken straight from it, but Casablancas and Jehnny Beth have some fun with green screen tech.
Róisín Murphy: House of Glass (Maurice Fulton Remix)
Róisín Murphy’s already stunning “House of Glass” from her album Hairless Toys just got a glittery makeover courtesy of US-born, Australia-based DJ and producer Maurice Fulton. A house music veteran, Fulton has added plenty of slap bass onto the track, but it steers clear of becoming corny thanks to subtle yet lush touches, and Murphy’s already sublime and quietly haunting vocals. The remix comes accompanied by a video—starring and directed by Murphy—that’s full of her trademark inspired looks and surreal scenes.
Animal Collective: FloriDada
They’re back! Animal Collective’s new animated track “FloriDada” strips away the drone passages and layers of reverbs and aims for something more up-close—almost a cappella like, with some accompaniment from squelchy synths. “Everything seems drenched in reverb these days, and is so distant,” David “Avey Tare” Portner tells Rolling Stone. “In a way, it was a reaction to that.” Painting With, which marks Animal Collective’s 10th studio album, was made with the line-up of Portner, Geologist (Brian Weitz) and Panda Bear (Noah Lennox). It’s scheduled for a 19 February 2016 release, and the limited deluxe LP pre-order is pretty enticing: your choice of one of three painted album covers (each featuring a different member), a zoetropic 12” turntable slipmat, and an exclusive limited 7” with 2 non-album tracks.
Robin Pecknold: Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind (The Five Keys Cover)
Out of the blue, Robin Pecknold of the Fleet Foxes releases a fun cover of the 1956 single “Out of Sight, Out of Mind” by the R&B singing group The Five Keys, with the message “happy holidays.” His rendition starts out sweet and nostalgic, before blooming into a dissonant frenzy of banged chords and noise. It feels like a much more realistic interpretation of the season than the traditional festive tunes.
ListenUp is a Cool Hunting series published every Sunday that rounds up the music we tweeted throughout the week, also found in Listen. Hear the year so far via Cool Hunting Spotify.
