Monday 30 November 2015

No Rest in November (Not a Round-Up... Kinda)

I wasn't going to do a round-up this month because I've actually decided I hate them. Buuuut this has kind of turned into one of those so lol yolo etc.

Albums and EPs and That Sort of Thing


I thoroughly enjoyed all of these but you know what I'm like, in typical Natalie fashion I've left this until the last minute and writing about everything just really isn't feasible.


Who knew? Who knew that a band like Crooks could improve so drastically over the course of a year or so. I was genuinely so surprised with the quality of 'Are We All The Same Distance Apart' that I had to check that this was still the same band. I've said numerous times throughout the year that I think rock music is pretty dull at the moment, and whilst Crooks haven't been able to fully restore my faith in "alternative" music they've definitely given it a good go.


Hearing the tracks separately I'd actually slated the songs taken from this EP when I posted the othe track above on the daily blog. Listening to the Genesis Series as one entire package it is immediately clear how drastically incorrect I was about everything. Despite 'Modern Conversation' and 'Automatic', which I think are by far the weakest two tracks on this release (which makes me really sad because I love Alunageorge) the rest of Genesis Series is of such a high calibre that those two don't really matter much. Gallant sounds phenomenal on 'Testarossa Music' and 'Working For It' is the club banger that Q4 has been waiting for. I genuinely feel quite embarrassed that I didn't think this EP was worth much. Forever apologetic.


Steven A. Clark's debut album 'The Lonely Roller' is finally out here and we can all be overjoyed and rejoice at our ability to listen to it. This is the perfect R'n'B soul debut. You literally could not ask for more from one artist. There are absolutely zero holds barred when the title track starts and honestly the album doesn't let up the whole way through. 'Can't Have' has slowly wormed its way into being my life anthem, and 'Bounty' has also become a firm favourite. I can't imagine anybody disliking this, like obviously I like it, but I also can't imagine that my parent would be too opposed to it either, you know? I also went to see Steven A. Clark live and he sounded GR8. Similar to when I saw Alessia Cara a couple of months ago though, I can't wait until he's playing with a full band as opposed to just with a guy with a laptop and a keyboard. Reckon that would sound at least 10 times more #rad.

Shows and Stuff


I was actually supposed to go to a whole load more things than this, but I'm really lazy and a couple of them were cancelled so...


It's actually getting embarrassing, the amount I post about Huntar... like it's making me a little bit uncomfortable. But you know when something is so exciting you just gush about it everywhere to anyone who will listen - and that's literally me right now. This was so good though, even more so because when Huntar headlined New Shapes, the sound in NHAC was the worst thing ever, so seeing him opening for Blonde at Village Underground as part of Community Festival was sick. I live for hearing 'My Drug' - a song that isn't released yet, and I can't wait for it to be released and then we can all sit around and chat about how great it is.

On that same night I learnt a very valuable lesson: Don't attempt to attend more than one show on the same night unless they are around the corner from each other. The journey from Shoreditch to Shepherds Bush seems simple enough but really it's just not worth it. Even when Jack Garratt is on the other end. So in short this meant that we only caught the latter half of Garratt's set, but to be honest, apart from the fact that I'd paid for a ticket, I wasn't particularly bothered. He was good, he always is, but after three times this year, I'm a little bored of it. Maybe post-album I'll enjoy everything more again.

I got to see some of my favourites for the first time ever this month which was COOL. I took a trip to Brighton to catch MS MR at The Arch which was super totally great. It's actually appalling that I haven't seen the New York based duo before now, but all things rectified, they sounded immense with a perfect setlist blending tracks from their debut and songs from their recent second album 'How Does It Feel'. Would pay to see a million times over.

Despite some major venue sound fuckery I managed to see Lany do music live and it was on my birthday and they were so lovely and I made friends and afterwards I got a burrito so in the end everything was great. The trio sounded really tight too. I was gutted that I couldn't make it to their headline show the following night but you can't have it all, can you? I didn't know what to expect from their live show but all in all everything was excellent, to be honest.

Jamie Woon is another one where I wasn't sure what to expect. In my head, 'Lady Luck' was going to be incredible but everything else was going to be a bit boring. This wasn't the case. Despite how much I loathe Scala, (I think it's cesspit of dickheads with the most horrendous security staff making it by far the worst venue in London) everything was okay. It wasn't mindblowing though, thoroughly enjoyable, but after finding Woon's second album a little... dull, I'm not sure how quickly I'd rush to see him live again. Very glad that I did see him once though.


An hour after doors, I guess 8pm is a little "late" for an opening band to take to the stage, but it worked more than in Blood Youth's favour because the crowd that had gathered to see the four piece was clearly one of the largest that they've played to. There's clear potential in Blood Youth as a band and the music that they're making and since they've only been a band for eight months it's no surprise that's there's definitely room for improvement. Matey on vocals was not on form and that's that really, it's a shame when the guy standing in the crowd behind you is singing better than the bands' frontman.

Beartooth are the band that Blood Youth could easily be in no time at all, and if anything, they're exactly the band that Blood Youth should be aspiring to be. It's been a while since I've been to a rock show this big and I almost forgot what it was like. I probably need to be grateful that Beartooth are the band who halted this drought as they we flawless. I genuinely could not fault a single aspect of their set; it didn't dip in excitement or pace even once. This was the first time I'd seen Beartooth headline their own show too and honestly I was surprised to see that they were playing a venue the size of the Electric Ballroom, but it was sold out! I can only imagine the growth this five piece are going to see when they come back with new material. Was this Tuesday night enough to restore my faith in promising rock bands in 2015? Quite possibly.

Sunday 29 November 2015

ICYMI - This Week on WIIHAMB - 2015 Week #47

In case you missed it - You shouldn't have, but just in case you did.

I went to see Beartooth and Bury Tomorrow this week but that's kind of it and just another reason why these weekly excerpts about my life need to stop existing. The big change is probably going to happen next weekend now, I can't remember if I've said this already or not, but I'm saying it now. End of year stuff is also leaving me in an absolute #state. Best/favourite/Songs I liked the most of 2015 are "shortlisted" but I think the list is about 60 long so that list isn't really short at all. Anyway, these I my problems, not yours.

Keep up to date with all of the daily goings-on over at WIIHAMB Daily.

Sunday
‘Feeling Like A God’ is brash. In your face, raw, and brash, and that’s what makes it so great. The Kanye soundbite at the start is only a slight indicator of what follows over the next three minutes. New York based producer IdoVsTheWorld, who has previously worked with the likes of Shawn Mendes, has teamed up with Nottingham based doer of rad covers Joel Baker for this unique slice of… off-the-wall soulful drum and bass madness. Joel Baker’s storytelling here is a pretty cool listen too.


Monday
As a human I’m hard to please and I really don't like change. This is heightened when I really like someone’s stuff and then they go and release stuff that sounds kinda different. But fear not because this is absolutely excellent. 'Pressure' is still very “Youth Club” but not quite as sugary as their last EP was which is totally cool.


Tuesday
Seeing as we’re now edging the end of November, I feel as though it’s a safe time to claim that this is the best cover I’ve heard all year and definitely one of the better collaborations too. IT’S SO PERFECT. In fact, it’s absolutely flawless. I didn’t think that I needed a 2015 version of ‘Easy Lover’ until now, but I really really do, and so do you. Oooh and this is a free download!


Wednesday
Walking On Cars do a thing that other “bands” of this ilk do not do, and I don’t know what that “thing” is but it makes their songs nothing short of perfect. I’m not sure how offensive this comparison is, but the five-piece are almost like 2015′s answer to Snow Patrol. And for the record, I love Snow Patrol. Huge, heartfelt, emotional pop rock that makes you feel things. And if things weren’t great enough, Walking On Cars’ debut album is set for release at the end of January!


Thursday
One Month, Five Albums, and an Air of Disappointment
I listened to some of this month's biggest releases and found them exceedingly average. Then I wrote about how average they were. There's a table. And a new and improved Ellie Goulding album.


Friday
I think that the classic “singer/songwriter” trope has become a little boring and tired… no, that’s a lie, it is boring and tired. But Adam French doesn’t seem to fit that standard mould. There’s something super interesting and different about both his vocals and his songwriting. ‘Hunter’ was released this week along with another new track titled ‘Punchbag Love’. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I’m really looking forward to the prospect of hearing a lengthier release from French in 2016.


Saturday
Imagine being me and ignoring this song when I first saw it and waiting for it to find me again. IMAGINE being that dismissive. What was I thinking? DiRTY RADiO are a Canadian three-piece who do rad as fuck pop/dance music. ‘Numbers’ is really cool, and the vocals are suuuuch a vibe. I don’t really know what I’m chatting about, basically, this song is great and if you’re quick you can get it as a free download here



November playlists so far: YouTube / Spotify / Deezer

Thursday 26 November 2015

One Month, Five Albums, and an Air of Disappointment


November 2015 has seen the release of five of the year's biggest pop albums, four of which come from UK artists. My issue is that I haven't been blown away by any of them. So here, together, we're going to take a look at the deluxe versions (because standard editions don't exist) of each of these albums.

[EDIT: If Rihanna does release R8 tomorrow on a platform that us mere mortals are able to access, this whole concept will be thrown out of whack and it will be really annoying. However, I honestly can't imagine that the new Rihanna album is going to be something I enjoy but you never know. Life can surprise you sometimes.]

Adele - 25


We need to gloss over Adele super quickly. Firstly, no, of course I haven't listened to this album. Are you crazy? So yeah, you're right, I guess Adele's third album '25' hasn't really disappointed me if I haven't listened to it. But in my defence, I loathe ballads and I think that considering Adele is Adele, one can safely assume that 80% of her new album is probably going to be ballads. Therefore I think that it is more than fair enough for me to write this album off entirely. Also, I can't say that I've read many glowing reviews from my peers - my peers on this occasion being people I know who like similar stuff to me and are involved in frequently talking about music in some guise.

Little Mix - Get Weird


When the first two singles from a new album are Little Mix's 'Black Magic' and 'Love Me Like You', I felt as though I was lulled in to some kind of false sense of security on how INCREDIBLE 10/10 this album would be. I thought I'd sort each song into one of three categories in order to determine exactly how I feel about the album overall. Here is how that went:



So in all honesty I wish I hadn't bothered with the deluxe version because even though I enjoyed 'I Won't', the other three tracks were not worth my time. I guess the results above would grant this album a verdict somewhere between a great and a not great... maybe a good? Let's go with that, it's a good'un but there are definitely a few songs worth omitting. If Jason Derulo wasn't as unnecessarily involved in 'Secret Love Song' as he is, we could cut that and just have 'Secret Love Song Part II'; which would in turn just be 'Secret Love Song' and then we could all move on with our lives.



Ellie Goulding - Delirium


The problem with 'Delirium' is that it's just SO long. Popjustice have done a nice little Spotify edit of the album and how they'd re-compile it and I'm very much inclined to do the same. In fact, that's exactly what I've done. I haven't referenced it against Popjustice's version so I've no idea how similar they are, but I know for a fact that the playlist below is wall to wall bangers.


Now we have all the good bits out of the way, it's time for some criticisms. An 'Intro' on a 20+ track album is just downright unnecessary, come on, Goulding, spare me. Having said that, there's only one song on this monstrous release that I never ever want to hear again and that is 'I Do What I Love' which I think is possibly one of the most atrocious songs I've heard from a credible artist this year. It's almost as though Goulding is trying to be Charli XCX, MO and every other quirky popstar ever all at the same time. Goodness only knows how that song made the album. I also can't continue without mentioning that 'The Greatest' sounds like an exact replica of Savage Garden's massive banger 'Truly Madly Deeply'.



Justin Bieber - Purpose


Unlike the rest of the planet, I'm finding it really hard to get on board with Justin Bieber's new material. Not because it's Justin Bieber, but because I genuinely just don't like it. I tried to attempt the same thing as I did with Little Mix but around track ten I noticed that I hadn't been paying attention for a little while and couldn't really work out where I'd dropped off. It was at this point that I thought, "maybe if I'm this disinterested, I probably shouldn't be persevering with the album at all."



There is so much ballad on Purpose. So so much, and I just don't have time for this. And honestly, I can't say that the upbeat songs on this album are particularly... special. There's no ground-breaking here. It's just an alright album from a guy we're used to hearing really "constructed pop music for teenagers" from. There are some songs that I think are good though. Despite not actually liking 'Sorry', I do think it's great, and a far better single than 'What Do You Mean'. Other than that, 'Company', 'No Pressure' and 'All In It' were the only tracks I really liked. Obviously 'Where Are U Now' is an absolute masterpiece but I'm not sure that it really counts, does it? Nas' verse on 'We Are' is great too, and after sitting through four Bieber-centric songs, it's definitely a welcome change, but Christ, the rest of the track is so boring.



It's cool, I guess, that with this material Justin Bieber has been able to expand a fanbase and an audience further than the majority of us probably thought was possible. However the problem that we're left with is his self-righteous entitled attitude and I'm not sure whether that's something that Bieber will ever be able to shake.

One Direction - Made In The A.M.


I'm unsure that much more can be said for One Direction's fifth and final (for now) album than Kate Solomon at Drowned In Sound's review. And even if there was more to say, I'm not sure... no, I know that I couldn't possibly do a better job than that. I don't know about you but upon hearing 'Drag Me Down', despite the minor lack in substance I thought "hey, if the rest of this album sounds like this I could probably deal". But in reality, the rest of Made In The A.M. sounds like worse versions of 'Perfect' and every other boring single that the group have released.

Bar 'Drag Me Down' I managed to scrape together another four tracks that I found enjoyable on this eighteen song deluxe effort. The latter half of the album is far more bearable than the first load of dull ballady nonsense that you're "forced" to sit through. 'Temporary Fix' was actually the MITAM equivalent to Four's 'Stockholm Syndrome' - album banger that should really be made into a single but probably won't be. 'Never Enough', 'What A Feeling' and 'History' were also okay, but honestly I can't remember what they sound like and I have very little desire to listen to them again. It wasn't worth your time, 1D, it just wasn't worth your time.



One month, five albums and an air of disappointment still ringing true.

Sunday 22 November 2015

ICYMI - This Week on WIIHAMB - 2015 Week #46

In case you missed it - You shouldn't have, but just in case you did.

This week has primarily been taken over by end of year lists. Which blows my mind because we're not even near the end of November yet. But with all the blog change that I want to enforce, getting all of that stuff ready before Christmas is now mildly imperative. In other news I took part in my first pub quiz this week and it was entirely music based and also a pretty solid lol. Would recommend.

Keep up to date with all of the daily goings-on over at WIIHAMB Daily.

Sunday
In “celebration” of his 20th birthday, actual love of my life Thomston has released a new song called ‘brain-dead’. The most important thing that we can take from the release of this track is that there is an album on the way/in the works/soon. ‘brain-dead’ is the kind of song we’ve come to expect from Thomston but it definitely holds its own amongst his other material.


Monday
One of my 2015 favourites, Lostboycrow, has just put out this quirky little number titled ‘Talk Back To Me’. This is exactly what I like about Lostboycrow, you never really know what to expect from one of his new songs but you can guarantee that it’s going to sound great. I think I said this quite recently when I last posted Lostboycrow but I’m so so so excited to hear a fuller length release from him. Also, free download!


Tuesday
Another free download, spoilin' ya this week. I love this so much that even my iTunes play count can't keep track of how many times I've listened to it. I haven’t posted anything from Joe Hertz since June 2014 which was absolutely ages ago so I’m really glad that I like this as much as I do. I have noted that there are some lines throughout ‘Tied Up’s chorus that sound quite similar to the chorus of Pharrell’s ‘Frontin’’ however this is definitely not a bad thing but I do get very distracted every time.


Wednesday
After the most gruelling wait of my life (not really, but it has been quite a while) the bookend to KLOE’s 2015 trilogy is here in the form of ‘Touch’. You know you assume that everybody from places you’re not from knows each other? Well, solidifying this assumption is the fact that ‘Touch’ was produced by KLOE’s fellow Glaswegian Lewis Gardiner of Prides fame. There’s a video for ‘Touch’ on the way which I am so so so much more than excited to cast my eyes upon.


Throwback Thursday
Absolutely can not believe that I’m yet to post a Girls Aloud song, and what better choice than debut single and absolute iconic banger ‘Sound of the Underground’. I thoroughly enjoyed this at the time of its inception and I reckon I enjoy it just as much now.


Friday
I have never been a Kyla La Grange fan, and I’m not sure what’s changed, whether it’s me or the music, but I think her new track ‘Skin’ is excellent. ‘Skin’ sounds like FKA Twigs got told to tone it down and then met up with Transviolet and together they poured their hearts out about an old significant other who they want to get one over on. The more I think about it, it’s really cool that Kyla La Grange has managed to encompass loads of things I liked in 2015 into one super thing that I really like. Solid cry into your pillow on a Sunday night vibe, this one.


Saturday
It has taken me a stupid amount of time to get into this, but it’s finally happened and we can now all rest in peace. ‘Superman’ has been great the whole time though, and the fault lied… laid… was with me. I found the lyrics to the chorus mildly uninspiring and kind of just gave up on it. But I’m over that now and we can all sit around and give Louis Mattrs the attention he deserves. Louis Mattrs is in fact releasing his new EP, Slow Waves, next Friday and I am so excited. Especially excited for the LK Faith collab, it’s probably going to equate to multiple fire emojis, let’s be honest.



November playlists so far: YouTube / Spotify / Deezer

Sunday 15 November 2015

ICYMI - This Week on WIIHAMB - 2015 Week #45

In case you missed it - You shouldn't have, but just in case you did.

News this week is that in the new year What If I Had A Music Blog is changing. I won't be posting daily anymore, but I'll still be posting super regularly with a mix of new songs, review type things, thoughts like things. You know, just, keeping it real. Which means that I will no longer be posting monthly round-ups or ICYMIs which is great news for me because they've started to become a bit of a chore. So that's that. For now I'll continue to plod along as usual, but you have been warned...

Keep up to date with all of the daily goings-on over at WIIHAMB Daily.

Sunday
Deaf Havana and I have had a rocky relationship over the years. ‘Cassiopeia’ sounds like a return to the music Deaf Havana were making straight after Ryan Mellor left the band - you know, ‘Smiles All Round’ and ‘My Life Is Average’. This song has come as a really pleasant surprise and I’m actually super glad that I like it. I’d be really happy is this was going to be the direction for all their new material.


Monday
I think Chinah are by far one of my favourite new new new bands to appear during 2015. This is the third track that the Danish trio have put out and it’s just as excellent as the previous two. There’s still no word on an EP release or anything from Chinah though which makes me so nervous. I JUST NEED MORE.


Tuesday
Since first posting XY&O a couple of months back I have been more than eagerly awaiting new material from this Welsh trio. Luckily for us all, we don’t need to wait any longer as their new track ‘Fahrenheit’, the third to be taken from their forthcoming debut EP, is here. This song is so summery it actually almost hurts to be listening to it in mid-November.


Wednesday
Shakka - The Lost Boys EP
In light of events discussed at the top of this post, I decided that I couldn't hold back on easing in the new format. After listening through to Shakka's debut major label release I was so overly enthused about things that all I wanted to do was talk about it. And so that's what I did right here.

Throwback Thursday
Another iconic One Tree Hill music moment. I couldn’t actually remember the scene this was in, but after a quick Google search it would appear that it’s from a scene in Season 1 where Hayley and Nathan first kiss, which is nice isn’t it. This is actually one of the far better songs I’ve posted for Throwback Thursday in a long while. Shout out to my iTunes Library for this one.


Friday
This is a solid little tune isn’t? We’ve all got over the whole “Mabel has famous parents” thing now too haven’t we? And now we can just appreciate her and ‘My Boy My Town’ in their own right. I’m not sure whether this whole vibey RnB thing is going to get a little bit tired over the next six months/year but for the moment I’m very happy with how it’s sounding.


Saturday
‘Cut Me Clean’ was released over a month ago but we’re all well aware by now that my emails and I don’t get along at the best of times. Yo Mighty! are described as a mysterious Danish DJ / production collective which always fills me with a mild amount of fear - why so secretive guys?! Raphaella is a London based artist whose type vocals are the sort you’d hear on your standard pop/dance crossover song but there’s something a littler quirkier about Raphaella’s voice that adds a slightly different element to ‘Cut Me Clean’.


Welcome to Natalie’s Idea of a Ballad Lesson #1568: Sometimes things break the rules. Don Broco’s new single ‘Nerve’, taken from their second album ‘Automatic’, is a prime example of this. ‘Nerve’ is one of the best tracks on Don Broco’s most recent album and although it’s not a single I would have chosen, I think those who aren’t as familiar with Don Broco or ‘Automatic’ will be pleasantly surprised upon hearing it.



November playlists so far: YouTube / Spotify / Deezer

Wednesday 11 November 2015

Shakka - The Lost Boys EP

This isn't something I was going to start until January but I'm too stoked on the idea at the moment and I'm not sure I can hold back any longer. I'm also really fed up with doing the monthly round-ups now. I've tried to make them more exciting for myself, let alone everybody else, but I just find them really tiresome to put together. So these shorter but more in depth but hopefully better posts will illiminate those almost entirely.


After thoroughly enjoying 'Say Nada' (apart from that awful "tasty meat" lyric, but I genuinely liked it so much that I could look past that), I thought I'd check out Shakka's second debut major label EP. I went into The Lost Boys completely blind. Other than 'Say Nada' (the original, not the JME remix) I had absolutely no idea what to expect. There are not enough #OMGWTFHELPME emojis to even begin to explain what I just listened to.

Part of me doesn't want to say another word about this EP. I want others who know absolutely nothing about it to go and listen to it and be as completely taken aback as I was. But the rest of me just wants to talk and talk and talk and talk forever about how RAD I thought The Lost Boys was. So I'm obviously going to do the latter. SPOILER ALERT from hereon in. Bearing in mind I have no press release or official statement (because I can't be bothered to find one) about this release, I'm going to call it a concept EP. But it's not that simple. It takes a little while for what is exactly going on to sink in but when it does you're transported to a futuristic, Black Mirror-esque grey London. The most impressive thing about the narrative segways between the songs is that there's very little explanation for them, yet as you continue listening you're able to build a really clear picture of what this new world is like.

"Wait, what about the actual songs?"
Oh yeah, despite this essentially being some crazy short audiobook, there are actually seven new tracks amongst the narrative. I'd assume the songs came first and the concept later, but everything fits together unbelievably seamlessly. The heartbeat at the end of 'Say Nada' merging into the bass of 'Read My Mind' is a perfect example of this. Shakka's vocals are really cool too, he has that classic smooth R'n'B thing going on but there's something underlyingly (word I just invented) unique about his tone too. 'You Don't Know What You Do To Me' is absolutely lovely (-reasons you shouldn't let me write about music *slanty face emoji*) but final track, 'The Jungle' is my favourite. You can almost feel a real sense of freedom during this song after the final piece of dialogue. Looking back at the artwork once you reach the end of the EP for the first time is such a great #moment as well.

There's probably a deeper metaphor for everything that's going on here, but I'm not an English teacher and therefore I'm not qualified to do any unnecessary analysis into every single word. What I do know is that this is by far one of, if not the, most interesting release I've heard all year. Maybe albums/EPs like this happen far more frequently than I'm aware of, but I've sure as hell never heard anything like it. Especially to have such a vast amount of creativity to come out with something like this as your "debut" release. Absolutely astounding.



Shakka's The Lost Boys EP on iTunes / Spotify / Deezer


Sunday 8 November 2015

ICYMI - This Week on WIIHAMB - 2015 Week #44

In case you missed it - You shouldn't have, but just in case you did.

IT WAS MY REAL LIFE BIRTHDAY THIS WEEK WAHEY! So life is a little delicate today. But it does mean that things I did this week were far more exciting than other recent weeks. I went to see Steven A Clark on Monday which was great and I also bought a copy of his album which still isn't out here for another couple of weeks. Saw and met Lany who were great and I can't wait for them to come back to the UK. By some kind of miracle I managed to fit in seeing both Huntar and Jack Garratt on the same night at opposite ends of the city. And I finally got to see Ms Mr for the first time ever, so that was cool!

Keep up to date with all of the daily goings-on over at WIIHAMB Daily.

Sunday
Contender for song of the year reappears on WIIHAMB thanks to a brilliant remix from Karma Kid. In all seriousness though, what happened with ‘Ocean Drive’?! That should have been at least top five here. Unbelievably there are SEVEN official remixes of ‘Ocean Drive’ which is beyond excessive, if you ask me. This is the only one I’ve heard though, and as a longterm fan of Karma Kid, I thought I’d give it a share.


Monday
I firstly have to apologise for the fact that this song has been sitting in my drafts for a good few weeks now. There was no need for me to wait that long. I think the last time I posted Wolfie I detailed out my plans for a music video but I’m fresh out of ideas today… probably because it’s Monday and that’s nobody’s vibe. ‘Seeds’ is nothing short of lovely though. Really looking forward to hearing where Wolfie is going with all this sweet material in the future because it sounds great. Oh and this is a free download!!!


Tuesday
I often feel as though you can put faith into the majority of tracks from Future Classic before you’ve heard them, like, generally, they’re going to be excellent. And Wafia’s ‘Heartburn’ is absolutely no exception. ‘Heartburn’ is Wafia’s first “official” single and it’s taken from her forthcoming XXIX EP. Wafia hails from Australia and at this rate I’m going to have no choice but to make a playlist of cool young artists coming out of there, aren’t I? ‘Heartburn’ is Banks-esque eerie R’n’B/pop and is absolutely stunning.


Wednesday
Covers of songs as big as The Weeknd’s recent singles can often be pretty uninspired but that is not the case here in the slightest. Jasmine Thompson covered ‘Earned It’ on her YouTube channel 6 months ago but recently young producer Steve James has put his own spin on it turning the track into something else entirely. Thompson’s vocals are next level stunning and haunting throughout too. This is also a free download, hoorah!


My favourites Light You Up just released a new video, which is cool because I no idea this was coming. ‘Monsters’ is taken from their debut album All We’ve Ever Known but they’ve been playing it live for absolutely 5eva, hence all that sweet tour footage featured in the video. Light You Up are also on a little UK run next week which will be fun to attend won’t it!


Throwback Thursday
In hindsight, Still Remains aren’t as good as I thought they were when I was 15, and to be honest I wasn’t rrreally into them but the girl I liked was into them and that’s that really. I did like ‘The Worst Is Yet To Come’ though because of the clean chorus, I thought it was cool. This is yet another tbt spurred from an office argument over which song to post… I don’t care, there’s no way in hell I’m posting Aiden. Ever.


Friday
Firstly, let me be clear, I am generally not a fan of the work of either ZHU or Skrillex but praise the Lord for THEY. because THIS IS GREAT. Another one of those: when things you don’t like come together to form a thing that you do like. I don’t even know where to begin attempting to describe what this sounds like, which is handy really because I don’t have to due to the majority of people who stumble across this post possessing ears. ZHU’s been working on this whole Genesis Series thing which is essentially a bunch of songs with different collaborators. On paper the EP looks incredible but of the songs I’ve heard the only one I’ve really been impressed by is ‘Working For It’, which is a shame.


Saturday
Goldlink just released his new album ‘And After That, We Didn’t Talk’ - REJOICE! Early single ‘Dance On Me’ was probably an indicator that this album was going to be far more pop than his last and God does it sound grrreat. ‘Unique’ is a further display of what ‘Dance On Me’ hinted at; if I was into pointlessly naming things, I’d call this hip pop.


‘Criminals’ is my favourite song from MS MR’s latest album ‘How Does It Feel’ so you can only IMAGINE how excited I am that it’s now a single with a video which looks so so great. I also finally got to see MS MR live on Friday night and they were excellent. Brought down however by overhearing a woman afterwards saying that not only did she not enjoy it (which is fine, you can’t please everybody), she thought they were “bad”. People who have no appreciation for good things should not be allowed to see good things because they are simply just not worthy. I would go on a lone crusade across the globe for MS MR, I really would.



November playlists so far: YouTube / Spotify / Deezer

Sunday 1 November 2015

ICYMI - This Week on WIIHAMB - 2015 Week #43

In case you missed it - You shouldn't have, but just in case you did.

Another fairly dull week in the life of Natalie, although I did get to see Tove Styrke with Years & Years and Brawlers alongside The Hell. Apart from that I have so little to report this week. I'm also so hungry right now that concentrating on thinking of interesting things to say is proving tricky. Not that it really makes any difference to anybody reading this, but I have a super busy couple of weeks lined up starting tomorrow, so hopefully there will be loads of cool stuff to report at the end of November.

Keep up to date with all of the daily goings-on over at WIIHAMB Daily.

Sunday
Remember how much I love Erik Hassle? Well the Swedish singer features on the first new track we’ve had from Bondax for a little while. I would assume that this is probably taken from a new Bondax album but really who knows! Regardless, Erik Hassle possesses the ability to make anything sound like an absolute dream.


Monday
When I first heard ‘Without You’ just before the release of Oh Wonder’s debut album last month, I was so gutted that I hadn’t been able to post it on here. But now I can because it’s a fully fledged single with a video and everything. ‘Without You’ is definitely one of the standout Oh Wonder tracks thus far and now even more people can have the pleasure of listening to it.


Tuesday
I’m a huge fan of the few tracks that Anne-Marie features on taken from the new Rudimental album, but I hadn’t rrrreally been into her solo stuff… until now. I always say how much I enjoy songs that tell a story and ‘Boy’ is no different. It’s just such a nice fun track… a bit like if Little Mix were a solo act and a whole lot edgier.


So last week Alessia Cara announced that her debut album Know-It-All is set for release on 13th November. Yes, in two weeks time the teenage Canadian songstress will unleash her first ever full length record. ‘Wild Things’ is the first track to be strictly taken from said album. Although… the first half of the album is just the Four Pink Walls EP. I don’t rate this approach at all - it seems like they’re unnecessarily pushing albums out to capitalise on current hype and Q4. Bu at least this song is cool.


Wednesday
Imagine a human being went and combined two songs that I absolutely loathed into one song that I thought was really great. Well, Brayton Bowman has done exactly that. For fear of absolutely ruining everything I’m very concerned of saying too much. Essentially, this is a really great mashup of What Do You Mean and Hotline Bling that is 100% worth a listen.


Throwback Thursday
Absolutely in love with the horrendous quality of this video and the audio. Shout out to 2006. Paolo Nutini was one of my favourites as I stepped in to my teenage years, I remember listening to his debut album ‘These Streets’ on repeat for days. I’ve also never really gotten over how much of a bitch I think Jenny is, what was she thinking?!


Friday
I first met Crvvcks about a year and a half ago when they were a duo and they’d just put out ‘Luv U’ which is still one of my favourite tracks on WIIHAMB ever. Since then, Joe has kept the Crvvcks dream alive on his own and has been working with some exciting names including Bipolar Sunshine and as you can see below, Javeon. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Crvvcks is one to watch.


Saturday
October Round-Up
October is Octover! Have a read of my favourite songs as well as some of the things I got up to last month.


October playlists: YouTube / Spotify / Deezer