This one’s very special: I like how every song is built around the human voice as a musical instrument. With their multi-layered harmonies and loops, Michele Finkelstein and Briana Marela aka Swooning create nothing but enchanting moments and an overall sense of warmth and creativity. Some tracks tap into the tradition of doo-wop music, but in the first place it all sounds pretty unique and dedicated.
Andrew Morgan
Apparently there’s quite a lot to discover from this gifted artist, I’m just beginning with his album Please Kid, Remember. It’s a collection of heart-melting chamber-pop, reminding us of forgotten sounds and beauty. Every song is filled with clever ideas, accompanied by interludes. Some might say that it sounds old-fashioned – but only in a good way! This is an astonishing, beautiful album. Re-released by the spanish pop-connoisseurs Pretty Olivia Records.
Unsolved Mysteries
Wieso wurde die Popmusik nicht schon längst begraben? Weshalb enden manche Songs als Ohrwurm, auch wenn man sie gar nicht leiden kann? Warum gibt es keine wasserdichte Pop-Formel mit Hitgarantie? Diese und andere cold cases stehen heute bei Golden Glades zur Wiedervorlage an. Lösungen können wir keine versprechen, wohl aber einen schönen Mix, der den Pop-Mysterien auf der Spur bleibt.
| Artist | Track | Label |
|---|---|---|
| The Perfect Kiss | Broadcast (From You To Me) | Elefant |
| First Base | If I See You With That Girl Again | latidarecords.bandcamp.com |
| Gentle Brent | Never Wanna Make You Cry | Jigsaw Records |
| Julien Baer | Roi de l'underground | Le Pop Musik |
| Forever Calypso | Bungalows | Croque Macadam |
| Hong Kong In The 60s | Diaryland | hongkonginthe60s.com |
| Tennis | In The Morning I'll Be Better | Mutually Detrimental |
| King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard | Sleep Drifter | Heavenly |
| Tall Tall Trees | A Place to Call Your Own | Joyful Noise |
| Rose Elinor Dougall | Take Yourself With You | self-released |
| Magnetic Fields | '88 Ethan Frome | Nonesuch |
| Lusterlit | List of Equipment | lusterlit.bandcamp.com |
| Merk | I'm Easy | merkscoolsongs.bandcamp.com |
| Harry Mud | My Heart Wins The Race | ussb.bandcamp.com |
| Balduin | Mirror, Mirror | Sunstone |
| Starwheel | Through My Window | starwheel.bandcamp.com |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever | French Press | Sub Pop |
| Temples | Mystery Of Pop | Heavenly |
| The Paperhead | The True Poet | Trouble In Mind |
| CaStLeS | Ffrwydriadau o Deimladau | castlesband.bandcamp.com |
| Steady Holiday | Superstar | Infinite Best |
| Carpenters | Superstar | A&M Records |
| Greek Theatre | Still Lost Out At Sea | Sugarbush Records |
| Happy Sadness | Alone | happysadness.bandcamp.com |
| Hand Habits | In Between | Woodsist |
| Ben Reed | Maniac Man | Gare Du Nord Records |
| Andy Reed | The Criminal | You Are The Cosmos |
| The Legal Matters | The Cool Kid | Omnivore |
| Frontier Ruckus | Gerunds | Loose Music |
| Nadia Reid | Richard | Basin Rock |
Happy Sadness
Listen carefully with your headphones on, and it’s easy to get lost in these tracks. Happy Sadness knows pretty well how to create contemplative moments with his floating textures and warm compositions. Sometimes it’s like a soothing soundtrack that tells stories without words. But as well we have a few songwriter-based tracks where Jason Andrew Brown (multimedia artist and the man behind Happy Sadness) gets very close to you with his voice. In these tracks he shows his real quality as a versatile musician.
The Fisherman
All frequent listeners of Golden Glades know by now, that the world is full of talented bedroom producers. Here’s a wonderful project hailing from Nafpaktos in Greece: Tony Panou alias The Fisherman. He calls himself an amateur, but I think he’s just being modest because he obviously has a knack for timeless melodies!
Trials & Truths
Wir haben es ja derzeit viel mit falschen Wahrheiten und alternativer Faktenlage zu tun. Ein Glück, dass die Musik einen ganz anderen Zugang zur Realität erlaubt – einen, der von vornherein keinen Anspruch auf objektive Allgemeingültigkeit erhebt. Vielleicht ist das sogar ein Kriterium, nach dem wir versuchen, unsere kleine Sendereihe zu bestücken: Lässt sich in diesem Song ein eigener Weltentwurf erkennen, und sei er nur auf den 8 Quadratmetern eines Schlafzimmer-Studios gültig. Ihre ganz persönliche Wahrheit lassen in der heutigen Ausgabe erklingen: Lake, Molly Burch und Jens Lekman.
| Artist | Track | Label |
|---|---|---|
| Blue Jeans | False Start | Jigsaw |
| Horse Thief | Another Youth | Bella Union |
| Otago | Ghost Stories | mairisch Verlag |
| LAKE | Work With What You Got | Tapete |
| Benny Sings | One Of These Hearts | Jakarta |
| The Sound Of Money | Tiger T. - Death Happens To A Few | BB*Island |
| Diners | In My Hometown | diners.bandcamp.com |
| Molly Burch | Try | Captured Tracks |
| Steady Holiday | Open Water | Infinite Best |
| Manuela | Supermarket | Lost Map / Schamoni Musik |
| Homeshake | Call Me Up | Sinderlyn |
| alphaequalsfoverm | Ashes | Oh, Sister |
| Dutch Uncles | Streetlight | Memphis Industries |
| Spiral Stairs | Dance (Cry Wolf) | Domino |
| Elephant Stone | Photograph | Elephants On Parade |
| --- | --- | --- |
| BeWider | Beneath The Sky | self-released |
| Jens Lekman | Hotwire With Ferris Wheel | Secretly Canadian |
| The Da Vincis | Friend Machine | thedavincis.bandcamp.com |
| Hippo Campus | Simple Reason | Transgressive Records |
| Merk | Melody | merkscoolsongs.bandcamp.com |
| The Fisherman | Down | thefisherman.bandcamp.com |
| Novella | Four Colours | Sinderlyn |
| The Proper Ornaments | Memories | Tough Love |
| Brent Cash | The Way You Were | Marina Records |
| Real Estate | Darling | Domino |
| Jay Som | Turn Into | Polyvinyl |
| Hand Habits | Sun Beholds Me | Woodsist |
| Christiane Rsinger | Lieder ohne Leiden | Staatsakt |
| The Everywheres | Concede | theeverywheres.bandcamp.com |
Francis Macdonald & Harry Pye
Wow, I instantly fell in love with this new song by Francis Macdonald & Harry Pye! Watch out for their promising debüt „Bonjour“ by the end of May on Glasgow’s finest Shoeshine Records. A rich tapestry of lovely sounds and melodies will fill your ears – just what you need in these times:
You like that? Well, here’s another wonderful track:
Heaven For Real
It looks like Halifax is currently the place to be with its vibrant music scene: there are so many interesting bands and artists to discover. Heaven For Real play a melodic Indierock version with occasionally Pavementesque twists. It’s cleverly and well done.
Cabin Essence
I’m very surprised this well-crafted and sixties inspired guitar pop has not more supporters: I love every moment of this collection! For me, it’s a best harmonized gem.
Dwight Smith
Astonishing, what an acoustic guitar, voices and occasionally a trumpet can do: here, it softly stirs emotions. Some of the tracks have a pastoral quality, others are merely sketches. The guitar picking ranges from folk to classical and creates a very pleasant atmosphere.