This is dense and atmospheric and immersive. There are many many (more or less) solo women artists making music in this genre — female vocals with intense electronic backing. Mostly they all just remind me of Lorde. But Okovi is a cut above. When I listen to a bunch of albums on random play, the Zola Jesus tracks stand out. And listening to the whole album at once gives me goosebumps — it evokes This Mortal Coil at times, which is quite a recommendation. I will soon be investigating the Zola Jesus back catalogue.
Depeche Mode — Strangelove
It’s quite pleasant, in a glossy New Age sort of way, but I do tend to put it on and then forget that I’m listening to it. It’s ambient music (Brian Eno) or maybe furniture music (Erik Satie). “Vaporwave” seems like a slightly tryhard name for a genre anyway.
Oppressive, broken-down, hollowed-out dance music. A bit like Burial but a bit more upbeat. Which isn’t saying much.
Matthew Sweet — Get Older
This Greek electronic pop duo have scratched my Ladytron itch with this excellent album. They have a few albums out — the latest is a song-for-song cover of Depeche Mode’s A Broken Frame; the versions are so faithful that that album is both very good and entirely unnecessary. Inhale is the real deal though — much more original (I mean, apart from sounding like Ladytron).
I discovered this album when Spotify put a Marsheaux track in my Naivepop or Petitfool radio station. Not sure how it got there, but I went with it anyway.
Spotify: Marsheaux — Inhale
You will not hear a more perky, cute, nagging, simple, childish, catchy or silly song this year. KPP has started singing in English and that spells the end of your sanity, even though you’ll have a smile on your face as “Ring a Bell” slowly turns your brain to paste. “I’m Happy Today” indeed.
Spotify: Kyary Pamyu Pamyu — Ring a Bell
Source: Nihongaku Radio 53
Perfume — Laser Beam
Patrick Wolf — Hard Times
Lots of familiar old rhythm tracks underlie the icy songs on the Raveonettes’ latest album. Maybe a bit more downbeat than previous albums, which makes it all feel a bit shoegaze. That’s good.