Listen Up
From dream-pop to jazzy blues and hip-hop, our favorite tunes this week
Jyoti: ORGONE
Super-talented singer, songwriter and producer Georgia Anne Muldrow will release Mama, You Can Bet! this August, under her jazz moniker Jyoti. From the record, “ORGONE” is a minimal but stirring tune, with meandering piano and free-flowing vocals that trace the topic of displacement. The artist explains in a statement the song is multi-faceted and multi-functional, with part of that being “a device for the extra low frequencies that occur to people in places, namely in the African Diaspora, in the way that the diaspora affects the people in places.” She says her process was organic, “I just closed my eyes and played piano, and then I wrote to it, and then I orchestrated on it, and then at the end, I sang the blues on it.”
Knwledge: KOKO EP
One of four tapes dropped in the last week by prolific producer Knxwledge (aka Glen Boothe), KOKO EP proves to be the most straightforward, but that doesn’t make it any less exceptional. Technically, it’s a follow-up to Boothe’s 1988 album (released in March), yet KOKO also creates space for tracks that might not have fit on that record. Hard-hitting and tight, as if it was concentrated for the occasion, the EP is just seven minutes total. Each of the five tracks offers something different while maintaining a cohesive and sonically connected sound that emphasizes the producer’s range.
Widowspeak: Money
Following the release of “Breadwinner,” Widowspeak’s first new song in three years, the Brooklyn-based dream-pop act returns with another stunning single, “Money,” from their forthcoming album, Plum. As the title suggests, it’s a rumination on effort, survival and our collective impact on the world today. The band directed the accompanying music video, which pairs found footage from the agricultural industry (as well as mining and energy) with thoughtful scenes captured at a park in Kingston, New York.
Listen Up is published every Sunday and rounds up the new music we found throughout the week. Hear the year so far on our Spotify channel.
