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Track Reviews

Boy + Kite – Touching the Sun

boypluskite

Tragedy unfortunately struck Boy + Kite last year when their lead singer Darvin Jones fell and fractured both hemispheres of his brain, forcing the band into a temporarily hiatus. They are back with a new 3 song EP, which is sure to reinvigorate their fan base and assert their position as shoegaze royalty. Their single “Touching the Sun” exits the gate in a blistering haze of riff and rhythm, accented by the hushed vocals of Darvin and female counterpart Beth Puorro. The introverted wordplay gives us some insight into Jones’ recovery process, a healing that eventually led to his most profound output to date. The Blueprint EP is out October 21st, and though light on material, is sure to satisfy with its hardy doses of brooding dream pop. Reviewed by Mike Olinger

Boy + Kite texas (Soundcloud)

Rating 8.5

brown8

reviewed by
10-16-14

Marian Hill – Got It

unnamed

Marian Hill are the Philadelphia-based duo of vocalist Samantha Gongol and producer Jeremy Lloyd. The twosome make broad palette hip hop-influenced pop. We’re very pleased to announce the “Got It” 7″ b/w “Lips” as the latest release on our B3SCI Records. Stream “Got It” below and watch for the 7″ on December 2nd.

Marian Hillpennsylvania: (Facebook) (Pre-Order “Got It”)

Rating 8.3

brown8

reviewed by
10-16-14

Soft Touch – Get On Up (Feat. Kianah)

softtouch

Soft Touch is the BK duo of Stones Throw artist Chrome Canyon and ex-VHS or Beta Feel Saarid. The funky “Get On Up” takes cues from a varied melange of rhythm music including disco, R&B, and Nu Shooz (I Can’t Wait). If that sounds up your street (it’s most definitely up ours) and then you’ll want to give “Get On Up” your attention below.

Soft Touch newyork (Facebook)

Rating 8.4

brown8

reviewed by
10-15-14

RITUAL – Visions

ritual

“Visions” is the sophomore track from UK R&B buzz act RITUAL. On “Visions” a deep in the mix drum track frames a compelling male/female dual vocal as intoxicating synths fill in the atmospheric white spaces.

RITUAL (Soundcloud)

Rating: 8.8

brown8

reviewed by
10-15-14

Public School – Don’t Wake Me Up

publicschool

L.A.-based Public School team-up with rising songwriter Allie X for the precise pop of “Don’t Wake Me Up”. The minimal solely bass-backed track wins on its accomplished A+ melodic stylings. The band just wrapped recording with the hard to beat Kygo and are readying a EP release out soon.

Public School california (Soundcloud)

Rating 8.2

brown8

reviewed by
10-15-14

Premiere: Osca – Blood (Feat. The Night VI)

OSCA BLOOD WITH THE NIGHT VI- Artwork by Anna Pesquidous & THE NIGHT VI

Duly Noted band The Night VI collaborates with labelmates Osca for this cinematic remake of Osca’s track “Blood”. The Night VI singer Sophie Rose-Harper is cast as vocal foil for Osca frontman Jack Kenworthy relating the original song’s high arc-ed narrative to a remixed instrumental lined with flourishes of harp and acoustic guitar. Stream below the B3 Premiere of The Night VI’s rework of Osca’s “Blood” below and look for new EPs through Duly Noted Records from both bands on November 17th

Osca (Soundcloud)
The Night VI (Soundcloud)

reviewed by
10-15-14

Bonobo – Flashlight

bonobo

Ninja Tune vet Simon Green a/k/a Bonobo announces new EP with scintillating title track. “Flashlight”‘s strengths include a wide and global palette of sound and textured instrumentation constructed with the most meticulous precision. December 1st is the release date for Bonobo’s “Flashlight” EP on Ninja Tune.

Bonobo newyork (Soundcloud)

Rating 8.4

brown8

reviewed by
10-14-14

Oyinda – The Devil’s Gonna Keep Me

oyinda

The dark pop of “The Devil’s Gonna Keep Me” is new from Nigerian-born New York-based singer/producer Oyinda. “The Devil’s Gonna Keep Me” is stark and spare. The track’s Bass piano chords, synth mechanizations, and flourishes of strings are all effective rudiments which help power Oyinda’s arresting vocal and phrasing.

Oyinda (Soundcloud)

Rating 8.5

brown8Joey Bada$$

reviewed by
10-14-14

Run The Jewels – Close Your Eyes (Feat. Zack De La Rocha)

runthejewels

RTJ share Zack De La Rocha collaboration “Close Your Eyes” from forthcoming second EP. To get big bro De La Rocha on tape these is not the easiest ask so any feature from the former Rage Against the Machine vocalist is rare real estate. Here, a looped ZDLR provides “Close Your Eyes” its main (heater of a ) hook. “RTJII” is out October 28th on Mass Appeal.

Run the Jewels (Official)

reviewed by
10-13-14

Kate Boy – Open Fire

kateboy

The Swedish pop darlings Kate Boy follow-up blog breakthrough “Self Control” with equally strong and compelling new single “Open Fire”. Taken from the Stockholm trio’s upcoming debut LP for Fiction Records is “Open Fire”, a superb exercise in on trend forward-thinking indie pop. December 5th is the date to know for “Open Fire”s retail release.

KATE BOY sweden (Facebook)

Rating 8.2

brown8

reviewed by
10-13-14

Rave’s Fave: Digitalism – Wolves (Feat. Youngblood Hawke)

digitalism

These consistent Hamburg peeps are back, sporting a perfect blend of electro and pop. It’s a fine comeback following a couple of quiet years. With help from Youngblood Hawke, Digitalism deliver a track that is immediately hooky and melodic. I can see it having mainstream success if given the chance by radio. Reviewed by Bruce Rave.

Hear Bruce’s “Go Deep With Bruce Rave” weekly new music show on Indie1031/Los Angeles, KX 93.5-FM/Laguna Beach, and WSUM-FM/Madison. Details and archived shows can be found on his blog and be sure to follow Bruce on Twitter too!

Digitalism (Facebook)

Rating 8.3

brown8

reviewed by
10-10-14

BADBADNOTGOOD – Velvet

badbadnotgood

Canadian wiz crew BADBADNOTGOOD (who are best known for their jazz infused hip hop covers and reworks) succeed with flying colors on their recent original track “Velvet”, a light and easy deep breather with a distinctively cool vibe. BBNG strike quite a sweet balance among the elements of this discordantly melodic swooner; from the song’s lively staccato percussion to the twinkling tones of its electronic keyboard, the wonderfully dramatic “Velvet” truly lives up to its name. Reviewed by Erin Shay.

BADBADNOTGOOD canada: (Soundcloud)

Rating: 8.7

brown8

reviewed by
10-10-14