ListenUp
From Chromatics covering Cyndi Lauper to SFIRE’s disco mix: something for everybody this week in new music
Chromatics: Girls Just Wanna Have Some
Chromatics covered Cyndi Lauper’s classic “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” for a MANGO TV commercial featuring Kate Moss and Cara Delevingne. They’re now releasing it along with six other variations of the track, as a “maxi digital single.” One of the versions, “Girls Just Wanna Have Some” (another is called “Girls Just Wanna Have Drums”), gets its own beautiful kaleidoscope of a music video. The airy track is drenched in reverb and synths la Chromatics, but still preserves the carefree spirit of the original.
Ultramajic Mix Vol. IV SFIRE
Sfire is an Italo disco-loving duo consisting of Jeffrey Sfire and a He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named (the Detroit DJ will only reveal that it’s a “friend from London”). Their all-vinyl mix for the young record label Ultramajic (founded by Jimmy Edgar)which released the very simply titled SFIRE6/7 EP earlier in Octoberis boisterously fun and surprisingly elegant. Cruise through some high-energy, obscure ’80s discoveries like Den Harrow’s “Don’t Forget (To Buy This Record)” and Twin Image’s “My Baby Loves Me (Do Do),” mixed in with more modern touches from active artists like German ambient electronica group Wellenfeld.
Peace Arrow: Undo
Released during the calm after the storm that is All Hallows’ Day, Peace Arrow’s album Out of takes advantage of the quiet with layers and layers of unexpected instruments and recorded samplesall the while hitting directly to the point. The Brooklyn-via-Gainesville artist’s track “Undo” is particularly captivating, with the ghostly echo of lady’s voice leading the way. The tail-end of the song, pure instrumental, becomes its own pensive postscript: whistling, vibraphone and simple percussion repeat a motif that gets explored further into the next song, “Fever.” Peace Arrow kicked off a collaborative tour with Bois at Bushwick’s Silent Barn on Tuesday, and the two will be making their way to Florida over the next two weeks.
Connan Mockasin + Devonte Hynes: Feelin’ Lovely
Marfa Myths is a festival hosted by record label Mexican Summer that takes place in the Texan desert art town every March. It’s now, however, resulting in some more permanent music. The album Marfa Myths 001: Collaborative Recordings Captured in Marfa, TX March 9-16, 2015 offers three tracks written and recorded by Connan Mockasin and Devonte Hynes in Marfa during this year’s program, and marks their first collaboration. “Feelin’ Lovely” shows off the strengths of the two talented pop songwriters, and Mockasin’s contorted babyish voice paired with Hynes’ sexy, silky, harmonic whispers makes for a weirdly satisfying pop song. Stay tuned for more records in the new series that will bring Mexican Summer artists together with dream collaborators.
Port St. Willow: Motion
Brooklyn-based Nicholas Principe returns as Port St. Willow for his third album, Syncope, creating atmospheres in what feels like a much larger space (and with more spatial detail) than his previous. Principe’s falsetto travels through a drone tunnel in the six-minute track “Motion,” knocking on percussive doors along the way to finding the exit. Keep an ear out for the impeccably three-dimensional sounds around you, like the jingling of keys. Syncope releases 20 November 2015 via NY label People Teeth.
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.
