Noted fan of the Belgian national football team and current reigning Queen of Indie Soul Jessie Ware releases the minimal R&B and great “Seen It All”.
Jessie Ware (Facebook)
Rating 8.4
Newcomers Honne (the Japanese word for “true feelings”; as in what someone feels as opposed to what they project) impress on the infinitely soulful and precise “Warm On a Cold Night”. Look for “Warm On a Cold Night” out Sept. 1 on Super Recordings (Bondax, AlunaGeorge).
Honne (Soundcloud)
Rating 8.4
France’s latest sultry disco exports A Rainmaker do like their name suggests they would on the excellent “The Call”. “The Call”s buttery female vocal, not-a-note-out-of-place instrumental and near impossible to resist infectiousness make it hard to beat. “The Call” is excerpted from A Rainmaker’s forthcoming second EP “Sunbelt”. (HD)
A Rainmaker (Facebook)
Rating 8.6
The deep and stylistically varied “River” is excerpted below from German producer Luka’s excellent new four track EP “The Nest”.
Luka (Facebook(/a>)
Rating 8.8
“Change This” is the second single from Oxford UK act Pixel Fix’s due next month “Running Thin” EP. “Change This” operates around a soulful swirl of repeated vocal figures and celestial layered electronics, it’s very very good. August 4th is the date to know for “Running Thin’s” release.
Pixel Fix (Facebook)
Rating 8.4
The majestic and cinematic R&B of “Awake” is the latest from young UK musician Jake Hart. Love.
Jake Hart (Facebook)
Rating: 8.8
Yeah! We like this. Cyril Hahn, the Vancouver-based musician who’s profile has raised steadily since his big breakout “Say My Name” remix, here teams up with one of our favorite voices out right now Rochelle Jordan on the exquisitely-produced “Slow”. Rochelle’s emotive yet ethereal vocal is a remarkable match for Cyril’s airy complementary production style.
Cyril Hahn (Facebook)
Rating 8.1
Jhene keeps intact the creativity and artfulness that’s separated and helped break her on “The Pressure”. On the track, Aiko’s spot on phrasing and tone are excellent complement to “Pressure”‘s reverbed drums and non-obvious swerves. Souled Out is the debut album from Jhene Aiko, due August 25th.
Jhene Aiko (Twitter)
Rating 8.1
The genre of soothing spare alt R&B is a crowded one right now but the style’s latest entrant, sultry-voiced songstress Robyn Sherwell is someone particularly special. Sherwell’s hushed but quite emotive vocal highlights single “Love Somebody” amid spacious tempered production. Robyn Sherwell’s debut EP is due September 7th on Birdland Records.
Robyn Sherwell (Soundcloud)
Rating: 8.8
Remix Ryan Hemsworth boosts Sinead Harnett’s already stunning track with Snakehips “No Other Way” supplementing it with video game synths and layered summertime creeper beats. Sinead’s N.O.W. EP is due August 31st.
Ryan Hemsworth (Facebook)
Rating 8.3
New favorite Pablo Nouvelle continues to impress on the flawless vibed-back indie take on mainstream U.S. R&B that is “You Don’t Understand”.
Pablo Nouvelle (Soundcloud)
Rating 8.6
HANAH is Colorado-born Brooklyn-based Hannah Taxman. The alt R&B as hymnal sound of “Out of Touch” is HANAH’s debut. “Out of Touch”‘s component parts both construction-wise and stylistically are many (dream pop, the aforementioned alt R&B, gospel, etc) and are indicative of wide-palette, studied, potentially very special artist. “Out of Touch” is one of our favorite debuts of the year.
HANAH (Soundcloud)
Rating 8.3