Author: Harry Browne

The Difference (Feat. Toro y Moi) – Flume

Flume was right at the forefront of the golden days of Future Classic – the Aussie label burst onto the scene with a new sound that bridged dance, electronic and pop and had a lot of success with it. Since then, their popularity has only increased, but I haven’t heard anything for a while that has felt as original as the early days.

The Difference isn’t the track that is going to change my mind about that, but sometimes a generic, feel-good electronic song hits just right – and this is one of those. Good times are ahead people. ❤️

More Toro y Moi here.

Snakeskin ∞ Has-Been – Leon Vynehall

It is fair to say that Leon is becoming increasingly experimental. To give you a feel for it, here is the copy accompanying his latest release Snakeskin ∞ Has-Been:

over and over in a snake’s life it will molt and shed it’s old, outgrown skin. it does not grow with the size of the snake itself, and soon hinders its advancement, leaving the skin behind like a memory. an artefact of where it once was. I believe good artists do this too. it’s what I try to do with every record. SNAKESKIN ∞ HAS-BEEN is my recognition of that.

I SHOULD. I COULD. I WOULD.

  🐍

The music itself does pick up where Nothing is Still left off, with introspective, moody soundscapes. They swing and build and fizzle in a pattern that is mesmerising, if not exactly approachable. His style fills you with a huge sense of anticipation, while never quite unscrambling into something that’s easy to ingest. If you like your music challenging, then you’ll find Snakeskin ∞ Has-Been pretty rewarding – if you prefer your Leon more banger-centric scale (and there’s no shame in that) head back into his dicography.

I almost forgot, he is playing at Heaven on 24th November. You can get presale tickets here

José Padilla

José Padilla, long-time resident of Cafe del Mar and all-round Ibiza institution passed away in October last year. As a tribute, Matt Crocker has created this lovely film. Well worth a watch.

If that has piqued your interest and you would like to hear a mixed selection of José Padilla inspired tracks, then look no further:

Cercle

I’m sorry, I’m not writing a Daft Punk post.*

Now that I’ve got that off my chest I want to draw your attention to Youtube channel Cercle. They take DJs to beautiful locations, and let them do their thing. The result is a magical combination of sound and visuals. Until we can get back to the real thing, this will have to do.

*I like Daft Punk, I really do, but I just don’t know if I have anything interesting to add to the avalanche of media that has been created about them this week. Here’s some reading if you want it.

Elastic Heart – Sia

I love the way that Sia transmits the power of emotion through her art. Elastic Heart is an incredibly visceral portrayal of a struggle with inner demons. The song is great, but in casting a pair of immensely talented performers in Maddie Ziegler and Shia LeBoeuf, she was able to create something really special. 1.1bn views later here we are…

P.S. when this video came out it created a decent amount of controversy. A grown man and a young girl in a cage in nude-coloured outfits – sure. But it is worth taking the time to understand it – you can watch a making of video in which Sia explains her intentions here

RAW – KiNK

Okay, a little preface before I get to describing RAW. I’m a big fan of KiNK. He is super creative; capable of making original, inventive house music that is also super listenable. You can find some of my favourite tracks of his, here and here.

Anyway, this isn’t one of those tracks. This just has a short and simple vocal sample (“RAW”) and a piano chord progression that is about as straightforward as they come. Each drop is telegraphed. All things told, there’s nothing creative about this at all. B-side fodder.

BUT, catch you in the right mood, and it bangs.