JENI PARABLES

Omg what the hell so old omg what am i doing??? Song so old. so old. Is that ok? Of course it is. Since I've got that out of the way we can move forward with the singular purpose of writing nice things about this very good song, no matter how old it is. Have you heard it before? If you have, please register your complaints with any good social media outlet - something like "This isn't new music you dimwit!" would be cool. If you haven't heard it, you're in for a treat.

The song is called 'Parables' and it's by a girl who is really good at making music called JENI. She was brought to my attention from a tweet I saw the other day (it was actually from Lidly) and it's that kinda thing where you get sucked into someone's YouTube channel and just can't stop watching. Once you pop you most certainly cannot stop. Especially when the channel is good. JENI makes music defined by futuristic synth sounds, thickets of R&B beats and beautiful vocals, all of which are provided by JENI herself.

She's made her name by covering/remaking some pretty high-brow songs, for example, SBTRKT's 'Wildfire', Justin Timberlake's 'Suit & Tie' and 'Stay' by Rihanna. And they're all beautiful covers. I urge you to check them out. But I thought I'd chat about something original by her. Here's 'Parables'.n

The base of this track is Jeni's fantastic looping work on the vocals she records at the beginning. I have a lot of time for loopers (is that the right word); The mind-power needed to construct things in this way is pretty impressive. But yeah, those oh-oh-oh's sound just gorgeous - and these are only supporting vocals. She brings in some heavenly thick synth, all-encompassing, smooth, mind-tanglingly bassy. It's the perfect contrast to her voice, which is superb, dripping in pop groove and aching with emotion - powerful yet floating above everything else.

Modulating synth chords pierce the softness that comes before to bulge in the chorus, alongside the deep pulse of a beat heavy with kicks and featuring the perfect tap of a snare. All of it is beautifully produced. Her voice is half-shrouded in a mist of reverb, the bass is undulating and organic, she brings in electronic bleeps to decorate the track like glitter and alters the beat at times to muffle it. That voice though. Very nice. All to the tune of what is essentially like future-something. Future R&B. Speaking of futures, hers could be very bright indeed. How wonderful that true talent can shine through in this day and age more than in any other.

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INC. ANGEL [VIDEO]

It was really weird when I stumbled across this song because I was sure, in fact I was rather certain, that I had heard of someone called Inc. before. And sure enough, I had. I scrolled back through the posts I've done over the two years this blog has been active (albeit with some blips in activity - but how art reflects life!) and found a draft post I'd saved for a live performance by Inc.. I really dug it at the time and I suppose I do still dig it now.

[actual words from the draft] It's called 'A Usual Thang', but is actually a live rehearsal of two of their songs, 'Special Tensions' and 'Fountains'. I'm sure you'll agree it's pretty interesting. Nothing but a few guys playing their lovely music in what seems like a warehouse. Formerly Teen Inc., the band is fronted by twin brothers, Andrew and Daniel Aged. As for their music, it's a sometimes speedy, sometimes soul-filled melting pot of 80s jazz fusion and early Prince. Even the guitar effect used during a solo about three quarters of the way through makes the guitar sound like a soft synth.[end]

How funny. If you're interested in that, you can watch it here.

Anyway, now they have some new music. This particular one is called 'Angel' and it's really to celebrate the video release because the album it's from, No World - their debut - was out 19th February this year.

What we have now is a majorly R&B-influenced song. It's undeniably sexy. The beat that's slow and every now and again marks the ends of bars with agitated fills and extra heart-pounding kicks. Speaking of the beat actually, it's lovely. Those snare rimshots (lol I know but that's what they're CALLED) are something else. Wholly ambient synth gives this bubblesome, quilted or maybe isolated vibe to the song - like it's cut off from the rest of the world. Intergalactic whistles chime in and out in slow patterns.

The vocals are really nice, too, striking a pretty balance between whispering and pleading. The lyrics are touching too. Why not listen to them and space out for a bit? You know what I mean? Cause you can. Cause it's that kind of song. That kind of sound. It's just like a futuristic slow jam wearing the filigree of new-school R&B sex music, complete even with cheeseball electric guitar whines that creep in - it's all rather good. I like it a lot. Do you?

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YO'TRUE WILD RICE

I was very worried about even featuring this music. It is because, personally, Tellison do not excite me very much, if at all (sorry). However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that this ex-member of Tellison, Yeovil-native London-based Ben J. Wood - now obviously going by the name of Yo'True - has made some very nice music. Yes, this is his debut album, the enigmatically titled Wild Rice. The image you see here is a drawing done by Mr Wood himself - he apparently has a variegated collection of Sharpies that he regularly makes nice art with. The album itself is musically short and sweet; it is for the most part a quite delightful selection of sounds that embrace pop of the sugary variety.

The beginning of it all, 'The Wildlife', sets the scene with an electric piano against a swathe of tinkling bells and light percussion - a retro electropop kinda sound. Atmospheric and nocturnal sounding. When the vocals come in they certainly retain an indie-guitar-band kind of style; they're at their strongest when they're layered in rich sounding harmonies. This definitely has a wildlife feel about it, the song even sounds like a 'diet' version of Toto's 'Africa' in places. The retro guitar breakdown towards the end shows another type of pop - it's not all electropop.

I discovered that this much was the case with 'Bedford'. Honestly, it feels very out of place. The gallumphing '108' has the rhythm of a Black Lace song and I'm also not sure about this one. It's not because they're "guitary", it's because they're not exciting. Soz. I feel that Yo'True is at his strongest when lending his vocal acrobatics to multi-layered, quirky pop backdrops - as in second track 'The Dough'. This is more like it. The chords of the electric piano in this give it a great ambient atmosphere at the start, but when it kicks in for real there's this wholly danceable groove created by an infectious beat and the glossy virtuoso bass, punctuated with bright synth chords. Catchy vocals too. You can stream that below! Enjoy it!

Thick vocal harmonies also play a major part in the half-skiffling, half-chilled-and-quiet 'Achiever' - where the breathy synths in the faster second half of the song sound like a level from Sonic - as well as final track 'Pilot Light', which powers ahead laden with endless waves of synth chords. But it's not just in speedy songs where this album has its strengths - it's also in the relatively slow, like the first half of 'Achiever' and also 'Time Trials'. The deep R&B groove of the latter is in its laid-back bass and almost sparse beat, making use of the empty spaces between sounds to create an epic sound. Here also, that characteristic thickly sandwiched vocal style jumps out at you, decorated with falsetto adlibs.

Aside from those two tracks I mentioned as not fitting the grand scheme of this album, it's a really nice listen. It is retro pop with a unique touch, playful, quirky and rather infectious in places - a foray into a world of alternative pop. 'The Dough' is, for me, the standout track, it just buzzes through you (in a good way) and just itches to be liked. But anyway, if you like the sound of this, Wild Rice is out 5th August on Rogues Records.

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GANG COLOURS MAN UP GIRL! OPEN FOR BUSINESS MIX

Everyone loves a good mix, don't they? I know I do. There's sometimes nothing better than getting yourself set up - whether it be sunbathing in the garden with blanket, book, suncream (stay safe), drink; eating breakfast on a Sunday morning with TV (for the news), best-breakfast-ever, some kind of juice; or working inside with coffee, inbox open, stressball to hand - and once you're in position and raring to go, blasting a good mix. Ahh, the pleasures of the mix know no bounds. No choosing the songs yourself. No getting up to change CD. Just a set amount of time, decided by said mix, to enjoy a daily task. For in daily tasks there is immense glory.

So anyway, there's a lot to be said for mixes. From 20 minutes to a few hours, they come in all shapes and sizes. Very versatile things. And on that note, you can also use them for a soundtrack to a not-so-daily task, something like - oh I dunno - the Grand Opening of a shop. That's the case in this instance, anyway. Gang Colours, whose lovely The Keychain Collection came as a fanfare of absolute chill last year, has created this 'Open For Business' mix for the opening of Man Up Girl!, a street & skatewear shop for women in Southampton (he is close friends with the founder, it's not a random thing).

Some of the stuff in that shop looks incredible. The prints are bright and funky with more than a little leaning towards the retro - quite frankly I wish I were able to wear some of that stuff. Maybe I could get away with a T-shirt or two... Check it out: www.manupgirl.com

Anyway, Gang Colours has made this lovely mix. Listen to it.

With effortless flow, GC delivers a hip hop-hearted 35-minute mix that really is a mix, I mean like in the literal sense of the word yo. From the dripping ambience of Volcano Choir to Isabelle Antena's pioneering electro-samba, the sultry crooning of My Toys Like Me and the rich harmonies of The Beach Boys, it is a mixed mix. Yet never once does it feel clunky. Not at all. I feel bad even SAYING that word because nothing like that ever even comes near to approaching your ears. It's fluid and summery, the soundtrack to chilling out under the dappled shade of a tree, to the heat of busy streets, to summer-breeze-filled houses.

Toeing a line between retro and modern, attitudinal and nonchalant, it shows off not only the skill of GC but also his wide taste in music. He's got a second release coming up on Gilles Peterson's label Brownswood, and this mix only reminds me of how excited we should be about that.

OPEN FOR BUSINESS MIX TRACKLIST:
Pink Priest - Field of Orgasms
2morrows Victory - Lift Off
Co$$ - Searching
RZA - The Birth
Volcano Choir - Dote
DELS - Black Salad
Isabelle Antena - Naughty Naughty
Common - Testify
Infinite Body - Drive Dreams Away
James Pants - Green Rivers
My Toys Like Me - All Over My Face
Daru Jones - Oh pt. 2
B. Lewis - Dat Juice
The Beach Boys - Walk On By
Rammellzee Vs K-Rob - Beat Pop
Shigeto - What U Really Needed Ft. Brandon Mitchell & Carlos Garcia

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CYRIL HAHN FT SHY GIRLS PERFECT FORM

Wowee... Cyril Hahn has come a long way since I first wrote about him around this time last year. From basically unknown remixer and SoundCloud uploader to being bigged up by various people, such as Annie Mac (and also literally just a few minutes being played on BBC Radio 1 by Zane Lowe), touring and widespread good reviews and success, Mr Hahn is a regular success story. And an internet success story to boot, and who don't love an internet success story eh?

Anyway, this song marks his first official single, out on PMR Records - which has such tasty-sounding artists on its books as Dornik (whom I wrote about the other day) and Disclosure - and features singer Shy Girls on vocals.

To be honest, although it sounds different - more busy and bustling with different sounds and elements, plus original vocals - to his earlier things, like his now infamous remix of Destiny's Child tune 'Say My Name', the same heart is embedded in the core of the song. He plays with an almost majestic sense of nostalgia, giving an epic dreamlike quality to the sounds of our generation's younger years - 90s pop and R&B becomes near spiritual in the hands of Cyril Hahn.

The song is constructed slowly, built up with soft, mellow synth to an understated house beat, adding in occasional bass bounces as the beat itself fleshes out with a conservative clap and hi-hats. The dynamic of the song, and in all of his songs in fact, lies in dropping the sound ever further into deep rumbling ambience in sections over the song's duration. He allows the vocals from Shy Girls to breathe - itself beautifully smooth-toned - and allows it to make its own impact before coupling it with tidal synth, washes of thick layered chords that is almost like a spillage of gorgeously vivid paint.

Before you know it, there are shuddering synth arpeggios, ambient breezes and a ground-shaking bass all whipped up together in Cyril Hahn's masterful mixing bowl of sound - it's that kind of cookery where you kind of don't even need to taste the cake at the end, just eating the batter is enough: it's simply that tasty. Ermm... cooking analogy aside, it's a great song. Poppy as you like but with a really sophisticated edge that Cyril Hahn has been honing for a while now with his various remixes (Jessie Ware, Solange, Haim, etc.) - the vocals are awesome too, real smooth, could've been lifted right outta the past. But they're original, and you'll have that haunting "Perfect form" lyric chanting in your head for days.

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SAINT PEPSI I TRIED

As you can instantly see from the image for this post, the artist who is using this as an album cover has a pretty retro sound. The cover is great. It has a Saved By The Bell aesthetic, albeit with more muted tones.

So yeah, with that as an image, what on earth is the music going to be like? Well, retro, like I said. It harks back to the tack and sparkle of late-80s/early-90s and uses a few vocal samples that are absolutely soaked in soul. The song in any case is called 'I Tried' and comes from SAINT PEPSI, which is a bloody brilliant name if I may say so myself, who is actually called Ryan DeRobertis. He has been quite busy already in 2013, what with the multiplicity of songs on his SoundCloud and getting involved in the creation of an artist collective called New Generation: I read this somewhere, so I might be totally wrong. He is already being a part of (or signed to) Keats Collective - also KEATS//COLLECTIVE - alongside a number of likeminded artists including Spazzkid, whom I wrote about a few days ago. Is it a netlabel? A collective? I dunno.

There's not much else I could learn, even about where the guy is from, but what I've got is interesting enough. It seems that if "future funk" actually exists, then SAINT PEPSI is certainly one of the forerunners of this loveable and totally listenable genre of music. Lissun up yooo.

Smooooooth sailing, don't you think? It starts wonderfully soulful, a static-filled sample taken from 1970s R&B group Enchantment's hit song 'It's You That I Need', the lustrous vocal decoration that splashes the already-glistening surfaces of SAINT PEPSI's wonderfully crafted sound. Instead of a hip-hop vibe, which this R&B foundation could have decked up quite nicely, it's turned into a great bit of burning pavement chill, smooth-funky grooves and slow-dance sensitivities with all the epic glitter of 70s R&B which inspired this number. It's the kind of thing that I could leave on repeat all day. The tinkling bells, the percussion, the slow weave of the bass...

A very interesting sound though. It's like a modern reinvention of the past. Rather than being outright a copy of this or that era, it seems to have taken inspiration from a few different eras - a musical collage.

'I Tried' comes from Mr Ryan DeRobertis' new album Hit Vibes, available to download FOR FREE on bandcamp - I would certainly download it if I were you. What a damn good treat! Cause it's good, it's damn damn good yeah. Get it get it get it get it get it.

P.S. Ryan DeRobertis is also the mastermind behind The Cold Napoleons - listen to his multitalent on album Adversaries.

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THE STRYPES BLUE COLLAR JANE

I was very surprised when I heard this last week. Yeah, I was watching Later... with Jools Holland last week and The Strypes came on. Now, I'd heard of them previously as a new band, mainly for the fact that they were very young and very good. For some reason or another though I never checked them out. It took their performance on Jools Holland's show to shake me out of my intertia and get writing about them; so here I am.

First of all, I can see why people were talking about them to begin with, why they were getting sessions on BBC Radio 6 Music and all that - they're well good. That's as simple as that. Talented fo sho. And that's no mean feat especially when you're aged between 15 and 17 years old (as all members of this Irish fourpiece are). Yes indeed, as Elton John - under whose wing, in the form of Rocket Music Management, the band is tucked under - said: "They have a knowledge of R&B and blues at 16 years of age that I have only amassed in my 65 years. They're just like a breath of fresh air."

Bit of a cliché, Elton, but yeah: a breath of fresh air is what they are. It's not often you get this kind of music done this well by a band so young. And shit me, they even LOOK like they're from the era of the music they so obviously love.

And so here is 'Blue Collar Jane'.

This is a rollocking track, a clashingly distorted guitar, a blues bassline and wild-yet-tamed drums thrash around a voice at once slightly slurring in its sound and filled with rockstar potential. Every ounce of this song gallops along at near breakneck speed, gets your heart dancing like it's been transplanted back to some sweaty basement club in the late '60s and surprises in how of-the-time it can sound in a so long-way-from-that-time era. A total revival, just like what The Jam did for that kinda stuff.

Could they be as big? Well they're helped a little by Elton, but the main thing is their music and that has to come only from their brains. Sure they can do covers just like The Rolling Stones did but the fact is that they aren't doing covers at the moment - it's original stuff. The only thing I would say is that old spiel of "it's been done before" yadda yadda what-the-eff-ever, who cares. It sounds good and it's a NEW band with NEW songs playing in an OLD style that people love anyway. What's not to like?

Clearly a lot say YouTube haters. "so boring and uninventive. the mod haircuts, the indoors sunglasses, the forced singing voice, the whole image... it's horrible, so horrible. and because they're kids, they're allowed to get away with it..." said one person. "slightly depressing seeing a covers mod band, making it big." said another. Yes they're young, and perhaps that is a part of it (maybe if the word 'impressionable' or 'malleable' comes into it; who's to judge), but for the moment: it sounds good. I like it.

How can people say that when tripe like One Direction captivates the world? Even themselves think old 1D is "manufactured candy floss pop." So there.

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AUTRE NE VEUT COUNTING

This is what I like to hear: a complete disregard for the perceived stigma surrounding certain genres of music - in this case, R&B. Brooklyn-based Autre Ne Veut (aka Arthur Ashin) is one of those artists creating the music that he wants to create, no matter of what genre it will be doubtless shoved into. Indeed, in an interview with Dummy Mag, he said as much, revealing that "Sexy music and soulful singing, regardless of genre, has always been a preference." With that said, it's safe to say that this first taster of upcoming album, Anxiety and gives an inkling to how formidable a follow-up this will be to his 2010 self-titled debut. It's going to big - really big - so hold on to your hats, jump into the music, and await the album, scheduled for release 11th February 2013, with eager, hungry ears.

With Ashin's professed influences ranging from Annie Lennox to Katy Perry - all purveyors of radio-friendly pop hits - it's clear to see that there is a definite passion here for weighty sing-alongs, big choruses that drain the lungs of sound and feeling and words that people on a general level can get on board with. So, of course, sensual vocals play a big part in the slow-jams, R&B aesthetic of teaser single 'Counting', it starting with a wordless, choral refrain that isn't difficult to fall in love with straight away. Listen up:

The chorus of this hi-hat-riddled, ten-storeys-tall song is an instant classic from the moment it erupts in a multi-layered "I'm counting on you..." - a few listens to this song and you'll be guaranteed to summon the karaoke-lover in you and belt it out as the song grinds forward (grind like the dance, not like a literal grind). It's honestly that catchy. And with that slow, hip-hop pop rhythm, those softened pan-pipes, that breathy synth, those kaleidoscope arpeggios, 'Counting' has all the right elements that are mixed perfectly genuinely heartfelt pop song.

Yep. It feels like pop, it sounds like pop, smells and even looks and tastes like pop, but something about its not-so-highly-polished veneer and its masterful use of the space or the silence between the sounds (in the verse at least) to create a powerful atmosphere of the feelings that go with putting oneself 100% in the care of another, i.e. counting on them, suggests that it is so much more than just another pop tune.

Again, this has been the joyous Autre Ne Veut - 'Counting'. The album Anxiety is out 11th February 2013. Tell all your friends.

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VISITOR RNB

Wow. The epicality of this radical track by Visitor is just too much to bear. It's certainly pretty cool, and definitely something that I will look forward to hearing more of. Before you even listen to the music, the artwork to the right of this silly bit of writing will tell you that: yes, this will be a good track. It will be. Just look at it. Of course it will be. Why would anybody spend time creating a cool little graphic like that for music that is no good?

So this is 'RNB' by Visitor. They got a bit of traction recently when Jacques Lu Cont who included them in a mini-mix for Annie Mac - perfect when their EP, Coming Home // RNB, is due for launch on 10th September. This will come ahead of a full album launch - details of which I'm sure will come our way soon.

Onto the song itself. It seems to be aligned with the style of retro 80s-ness that is permeating a lot of electronic music at the moment - especially any of the songs associated with the wonderful film Drive. All the right elements are there: we have that rigid bass synth fuzzing in the background, a bit of standing-on-a-cliff guitar solo stuff, the couldn't-be-anything-but-80s drums, some hollow flute synth hopping around over the top, and most importantly - glittering, mood-making bells.



Second-half of the song seems to, using the same sounds, become more of a majestically huge, electronic pop-rock ballad. The vocals are powerfully catchy and exude a sense of the dreaded sing-a-long - not dreaded really, but I just liked the way that sounded. All in all a track to enjoy and headbang to whilst playing some games on the Sega Megadrive or reminiscing about The NeverEnding Story. Or just rocking out in your own private dreamworld. Love this. What an atmosphere it makes!

Like it? Then remember: Visitor Coming Home // RNB EP out 10th September.

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• More Visitor sounds on SoundCloud
• Here is their official site
• This is Visitor's Facebook page
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ALEKESAM SUMMER JAMS

It's handy when you have a surname like Masekela. You can reverse it to spell something quite similar to that universal magic word, alakazam. Very handy.

This is the convenient nomenclature that has fallen into the lap of Selema Masekela, aka Alekesam.

He is releasing an LP tomorrow, 15th May, called The Sound of Alekesam and if it's anything like the teaser song 'Summer Jams', it will be well worth a listen - if not a purchase. Take a listen for yourself below to discover the summer goodness of this song:

LISTEN TO SUMMER JAMS HERE. TASTY STUFF

As you can hear, it's a great, dance-friendly, blare-it-out-your-car-window, play-it-to-your-friends-at-a-balmy-night's-social-gathering, groove-laden, refreshing track about summer in a summery place. There's this pulsing bassline that goes steady throughout, becoming rather addictive by the end of it, overlaid with glistening synth sprinkled like tiny beads of the sea.

Sal (as he is known - he is something of a personality, having presented the X Games on ESPN quite a few times) provides some ultra-smooth vocals over the top, cruising words that dip in and out of the water, that roll in the sand, cascade like sunshine itself through cool windows and weave in and out of the bare legs that promenade wonderfully in the hot, breezy air of summer. It's poetry. And matched against the silken virtues of the delectable drum and bass rhythm, it's much more than that. It's R&B for people who don't like R&B, basically: cool, tropical, atmospheric. Forget all those summer staples, which would no doubt along the way include something by Will Smith; all you need is Alekesam.

To help illustrate, here's a helpful caption on his Twitter bio:

A black cowboy riding a dolphin, shoveling sunshine!

Sounds like that.

Don't forget: The album The Sound of Alekesam is out tomorrow, 15th May

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• Here is Alekesam on SoundCloud - listen
• Follow him on Twitter if you like
• The official site of Alekesam
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