[SONG OF THE DAY] BOOTS - "Full Of Stars"

It’s been exactly 2 years to the day since we had an official release from one of music’s stealthiest producer virtuosos, BOOTS (born Jordan Asher Cruz). Instead of a releasing a full body of music as he did on his birthday in 2018 with #DARKDAZE, today we see the birth of not just one but three different projects from the Brooklyn-based beat master. So technically today you’re getting three songs for today’s SOTD instead of just one.

Strap in - we have a range of feels to cover in just one post!

The focal point of today’s post is definitely “Full Of Stars”, which comes from an album called XENOPOP. As the Emperor of Tweet and Deletes shared via Twitter, XENOPOP will be the final full-length album under the BOOTS moniker. I can’t help but fixate on his choice of words for this portion of the announcement.

“Spoiler: he gets killed off.”

Throughout the song he’s incredibly transparent about the seemingly tumultuous relationship he’s had with the BOOTS persona, so the idea of it not just fading away or, to be more synonymous with the language used here, dying out, is such a striking distinction that eager does not begin to describe how badly I need to hear the rest of this album.

These are three different songs from three different albums. I'll be releasing this year.

XENOPOP
My third full-length LP and final ever as BOOTS. (Spoiler: he gets killed off.)

NIGHTDEATH
The dreaded existential club LP.

DAYLIFE
A meditation.

— -|---|- (@B00TS) February 13, 2020

The song itself is such a breathtaking evolution to his artistry, combining his signature production style along with these symphonic swells that leave you feeling like you’re actively wandering through a lucid dream, completely love stoned, and moments away from being in arms of your lover. The kind of dream that waking up from would be frustrating and take at least a full day to completely decipher.

Next up is the track “Language” from an album called NIGHTDEATH, which Jordan describes as “the dreaded existential club LP”. The track features Raye and Deradoorian and clocks in at just a few seconds shy of seven minutes, all of which are packed with so much intensity that movement isn’t an option, it is simply the appropriate response for what the song commands your body to do.

Last but certainly not least is an ethereal ambient cut titled, “Primordial”, which is a track from “a meditation” that Jordan is calling DAYLIFE. It’s lush and full of an almost mystical kind of magic. It’s one of those tracks that sucks any lingering darkness everywhere it goes. Given the range of songs that he’s shared with us today, specifically in the order that he chose to call them out, I can only assume that whatever he was working through when he was finishing up XENOPOP has left him in a much lighter and brighter state of being, and as a longtime champion of his artistic endeavors I cannot be happier for him.

So the only thing this update is lacing is TIMING. No idea if these projects are going to continue to roll out as simultaneously as the announcement was, if this will be a year-long endeavor, or if there’s a way to release three separate projects that I haven’t considered yet. Obviously as updates are made available I will be relaying them accordingly. Regardless, I am more than excited for what’s next.

[SONG OF THE DAY] Duck Sauce - "Smiley Face"

image courtesy of Duck Sauce

I know I’m a little late to properly celebrating this wondrous news but one of my favorite side projects to ever grace the planet, Duck Sauce has resurfaced with a new track and announced a few performances which leads me to believe that there HAS to be an album.

RIGHT!? No one would be that cruel!!

At any rate, “Smiley Face”, is a signature vivacious track from the dynamic duo and features a sample from the 1980 classic “Make Someone Feel Happy Today” from Two Tons O' Fun (who would later go by the name The Weather Girls. Yes, THE WEATHER GIRLS. As in, “It’s Raining Men”. “Hit The Road Jack”, etc. etc.) As previously mentioned, the group has unveiled that they will be performing both weekends at Coachella in addition to a Duck Sauce Block Party in San Francisco on May 9th featuring sets from Chromeo, Yung Bae, The Magician, Nancy Whang, Biscits, and DJ Dials. Not gonna lie, I’m definitely going to be wrapping up this post super quick so I can go look at flights to SF in May.

[SONG OF THE DAY] twst - "Are You Listening?"

image lovingly lifted from twst’s instagram

The internet, do you know about twst yet?

I came to know of the now London-based singer/songwriter/producer because I caught Husky hunny Danio Forni proudly promoting her latest track that he co-produced. Following her string of singles, “Girl On Your TV”, “Always”, and “sad girls club but u gotta be cute”, her latest track, “Are You Listening?” continues to flesh out the framework of the up and coming pixelated pop singer’s persona, which appears to be nestling her amongst the likes of artists like Lights, Poppy, Caroline Polachek, or Ashnikko.

“‘Are You Listening?’ is about the information overload we receive on a daily basis, and the struggle to try and find some truth and meaning in it,” explains twst. “There's a pressure to have strong opinions and present a certain image, but is anyone really listening and do they really give a fuck? It’s an angry, frustrated, helpless call out; inspired by fake news, climate change, consumption, internet addiction, misogyny; an apocalyptic feeling that’s kinda looming right now.”

[SONG OF THE DAY] Arabnormal - "Digital Veil"

Not gonna lie, I have taken to Arabnormal pretty quickly in a very short amount of time. Featuring Younes Faltakh, former singer of legendary Antwerp noise outfit The Hickey Underworld and ex Das Pop member Niek Meul, the duo have been doling out some pretty dope post-punk/psych-centric tunes from their forthcoming debut self-titled full-length, which is out this Friday (2/14). Last week the band shared their latest track, “Digital Veil”, complete with a wonderfully bizarre accompanying video.

Speaking on the track, singer Younes Faltakh recounted, “I remember we had Polanski's Frantic on a loop in the studio while we were recording this. Grace Jones' 'I've seen that face before' directly inspired that bridge section in the song.”

I have been fortunate enough to feast my ears on their debut and I can’t get enough of it. If this is your first taste of the band, I HIGHLY recommend going back and bumping “Scorpio” and “Toy” aka the track that made me yell, “HOLY SHIT ARE WE FUCKING SERIOUS RIGHT NOW” in my apartment. Fortunately you all only have to wait four more days to hear the record for yourselves.

[SONG OF THE DAY] Litche - "But Isn't Love Important?"

photo credit: Taliah Darcy-Shaw

Atmospheric Aussie producer Litche shared a new track this week, “But Isn’t Love Important?” Just in time for the over commercialized holiday that makes us all insecure about love and romance, Litche (born Sam Litchfield) leverages, of all things, a sample from a 1980s horror movie to have us contemplating where we prioritize love in our lives. I’ll admit that even before I knew the source of the sample, I found the question to somewhat haunt me long after the song was over.

For newcomers to the Newcastle native, if you vibe with Tourist, Gold Panda, Rx Gibbs, etc, Litche will be an effortless addition to your rotation. His incorporation of unique samples to his ambient leaning production style make you feel very much at home with yourself. “I like adding something human to my music even if it’s just a field recording of real world noises or someone speaking,” Litche explains, “It helps me connect to the tone and journey of the track on a whole different level. The contrast between bright and dark distorted sounds on this song to me gives the impression of inner conflicting feelings, maybe my inner psyche and its dealings with the ongoing positive and negative thoughts that appear in my mind throughout each day.”

[SONG OF THE DAY] Max Rad - "Old Toy"

London crooner Max Rad has been gaining momentum since his track “Flesh & Blood” inspired me to spend an hour of super sleuthing. After dropping a string of tracks to close out 2019, he’s back with a new number, “Old Toy”, along with confirmation that we’ll be getting an EP from him later this year. Speaking on the track, Max shares, “‘Old Toy’ is about missing someone, the passing of time making it worse. It is about nostalgia. Being stuck in a sadness from missing the person and the issues it causes.”

One thing that always stays with me about Max’s music is he makes gloomy so gorgeous, and “Old Toy” is no exception to this. In just a short amount of time he’s managed to strike the perfect balance with his production and vocals where it evokes empathy but doesn’t drag down the whole mood. It’s one thing to lay lyrics over peppy tunes and dance when you’re sad, but the ability to be able to convey melancholy without totally hijacking your feelings.

No concrete details on aforementioned EP as of yet, but you know I’m good for passing along good news as it becomes available.

[SONG OF THE DAY] The Goods - "Voodoo"

FIRST VIBE O CLOCK ON FRIDAY IN 2020!!!!!!!!!!!

Following the anthemic “Let’s Roll” and the subtly sexy sweet “Peach” (as heard on BET’s show ‘Sistas’), Sydney’s The Goods are back to deliver a track that maintain their rights to their name. Their latest, “Voodoo” is another sultry future funk chune from the Aussie trio, which comes from their forthcoming sophomore full-length, II, which is slated for release on April 27th.

Can we all please just take a moment of appreciation for singer Black Tree’s voice? My dude could sing, “baby I will kill you” (instead of “tell me how do you do”) and I would be like, “😍😍😍 whatever you want”. I guess I should be thankful that he uses his powers for good 😂.

#diSKOAverweekly: Week of February 5, 2020

yes bish 2020 we fancy up in hur!

YES I AM ALIVE!

Yes, it’s been awhile. I’m getting better at figuring out how to keep all these plates spinning, swear to fucking god.

Been sitting on these jams way too long to not share! Next update will actually happen on a Wednesday so please be kind and grab what you like before they vanish!

1. The Brilliance - “How Do We Know”

   Local lads The Brilliance just dropped their latest album ‘Suite No. 2: World Keeps Spinning’, companion album to 2018’s ‘Suite No. 1 Oh Dreamer’. Both are worth a spin!

2. Rafael Casal - “Oxygen”

   Missed this track when it dropped. This guy can really do anything. Jelly.

3. Connor Duermit - “Everything”

   This boy’s voice is smooooooooooooove. God damn. What are they putting in the water in LA right now?!

4. Hydromag - “P.J.R.”

   When that cozy bedroom pop just hits right… *chefs kiss*.

5. Imbibe - “Reflections”

   Fun fact: these guys are brothers! Australian ones no less (lol of course they are). If you’re in Europe and have seen Parcels somewhat recently chances are you caught these guys opening for them.

6. Amtrac - “Radical (feat. Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs)”

   Amtrac is gaining momentum, best hop on! Also very happy to see TEED popping his head up again for some air. When’s that homey gonna give us more than a few random tunes and remixes?!

7. Yuksek - “G.F.Y. (feat. Queen Rose)”

   ICYMI Yuksek is always perfect and here is more proof. Can’t wait to see him with JD Samson at The Dance on April 2nd! Gonna be 🔥🔥🔥!!!!

8. Crush Club - “My Man (feat. Nicki B The Vagabond)”

   As president of the Crush Club - Crush Club, I feel it is my responsibility to make sure that everyone knows about their latest. If My Man had a fragrance, what would it smell like? 🤔🤔

9. LA Priest - “What Moves”

   LA Priest is back and dropping an album GENE on April 24th!! I’m so fucking hype! I have missed him so so sooooo.

10. Tamara Kumbula - “1 to 8”

    It’s wild the things I find while roaming around on Stationhead. Have you downloaded that app yet? I’m going to start doing more shit on there. Anyway, I’m really digging on Tamara’s whole vibe.

11. Cannibal Kids - “I Keep My Eyes Closed”

    Nice to see some fresh meat coming out of my home state (Florida). Gonna keep an eye on these guys.

12. of Montreal - “You’ve Had Me Everywhere”

    If you haven’t heard ‘Ur Fun’ yet you absolutely must. It’s quickly climbing the ranks into my top 5 of Montreal records.

13. The 1975 - “Me & You Together Song”

    Y’all know I’m a sucker for a good love song and this one is def hitting me in all of those warm and fuzzy feels. Also the new music video that dropped today is a nice little Throwback Thursday moment.

14. Gourmet - “Stone Cold Steve Austin”

15. WAAX - “Labrador”

    Sometimes I get bored and look up the bands on a festival lineup that I’ve never heard of. I did this for a fest that I Know Leopard was playing and somehow landed on this delightful bunch of noisy friends. Stay curious! There’s great songs everywhere! You just gotta look!

16. Grieves - “Let The Devil In”

    Been a minute since I caught up with Grieves. Really enjoying his latest, ‘The Collections of Mr. Nice Guy’. This song was how I found my way back to him.

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