SHREM'S DOUBLE TROUBLE: "BAD BLOOD" - Nao /// "SUPEREGO" - Disclosure feat. Nao

One of the most promising newcomers of the past few months, the awe-inspiring NAO continues to impress with "Bad Blood" following her first 2 EP's: "So Good" (with this title gem produced by A.K. Paul) and "February 15" (with the fantastic "Inhale Exhale").  The "Prince-esque" "Bad Blood" is a superb choice for a first teaser introducing the release of NAO's anticipated debut album. Her vocal range is somehow even more accentuated in this audacious slice of modern funk where she hits both those low register and high pitch notes impeccably while mesmerising the listeners with layers of dreamy vocal harmonies. NAO also scores the most memorable moment on Disclosure's, otherwise dull and repetitive, second album "Caracal" where "Superego" promptly became a stand-out track. The future indeed looks bright for this talented young lady.

"Bad Blood" is out now via Little Tokyo Recordings.

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SHREM'S CLUB BIZARRE INTRODUCING: "PARTY GIRL" - Claptone feat. Jimi Tenor

I have first become acquainted with Jimi Tenor back in the mid-90's when I discovered his innovative and electrifyingly eclectic records "Intervision" and "Organism", both of which I cherish to this day. All through the years the Finnish wizard of electronica, as I like to sometimes call him, experimented with various musical genres and styles, focusing more and more on nu jazz and afro beat, however it was always his aural excursions into electronica that kept me the most absorbed. Following his latest house project with his wonderfully talented wife Nicole Willis - Cola & Jimmu, Tenor is now featuring on "Party Girl" which could be easily described as the greatest track on Claptone's debut album "Charmer". The Berlin based dj & producer caught my attention previously with his first-rate house records "The Music Got Me" and "She Loves You" and now the artist has also invited Jay Jay Johanson, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Young Galaxy, Peter Bjorn & John and Jaw to partake in making Claptone's first full album.







Here are Jimi Tenor and Claptone separately with my favourite tracks of theirs respectively:

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CHOON OF THE DAY: "VICTIM" - Dinamo Azari feat. Fritz Helder & Starving Yet Full

Dinamo Azari announces the release of his long-anticipated LP "Estranged" with a track that sounds like a perfect sonic bridge between the Toronto house ensemble Azari & III he was one of the founders of and his more tech-house oriented solo efforts. "Victim" features both of Azari & III's renowned and distinctive vocalists Fritz Helder & Starving Yet Full. The edited version of this fresh slice of pulsating deep house will leave you gasping for more. "Estranged" is released 16 February 2016 via The Vinyl Factory and you can now pre-order your copy of "Victim" on a 180-gram vinyl HERE. The sleekly shot and slightly disconcerting video was directed by Gigi Ben Artzi and Givon Snir.

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LA MURPHY SAGA CONTINUES: "UNPUTDOWNABLE" [Video] - Róisín Murphy

Róisín Murphy continues to inspire and amaze, this time self-directing the third consecutive music video in her wondrously bizarre saga promoting the newly Mercury Prize nominated album "Hairless Toys". The final album track, the charmingly old-fashioned, quasi-folk, "sweet love song" as she describes "Unputdownable" herself, gets a surreal video treatment including multiple costume changes, La Murphy's inescapable aura of absurdity, fascinatingly complex visual narration and apparently a whole bunch of her friends in various cameos.

"A ridiculous concoction,
a trailer for a dream
With special thanks to those dear friends who were foolish enough to be in it" - as she introduced the video earlier on her Facebook page.



Róisín Murphy is set to be gone soon rehearsing again for the autumn leg of her fabulously theatrical "Hairless Toys" tour which is quite possibly reaching a city near you in November. Check out all the dates HERE. And for a taster of current live shows here's a bunch of her recent TV performances:

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SHREM'S LATE MONDAY NIGHT SESSIONS: "ACCELERATE" - Susanne Sundfør

Pitchfork has just premiered a brand new video for Susanne Sundfør's powerful "Accelerate" from the Norwegian singer's 5th studio album "Ten Love Songs". With this black and white video directed by renowned Norwegian director Stian Anderson, the song electrifies similarly to the monumental "Delirious" which I have been singing praises to at the beginning of 2015. A synth-pop wall of sound of epic proportions from one of Norway's most talented artists. Fierce!

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CHOON OF THE DAY: "CLOSER" - Klyne

Escaping musical categorisations, incorporating elements from various genres, the Dutch duo Klyne successfully redefine sonic eclecticism. The follow-up single to their infectious electronic soul moment "Paralyzed" is a "Hot Chip-esque" mélange of modern funk, neo soul, electronica and synth pop, only that it's sung with much better vocals... Undoubtedly among the most promising newcomers in 2015. London label Aesop coupled "Closer" along with Klyne's debut "Paralyzed" in an exclusive 12" single which you can pre-order now HERE.

The band expand on the "Closer":

"Closer is about someone going to the extreme in order to reach their lifelong desire, and at the same time coping with the fear that their fate might already be decided. One of life's greater beauties is when a person breaks free of these psychological limitations. At first it looks like naive stubbornness, and the feelings of doubt never entirely go away. But then all of a sudden you're halfway there, and that’s when you realize it is possible to actually achieve things that are beyond your “fate". That’s the simple story we wanted to convey with this song - that and a ridiculous topline."



And if you missed out on the excellent b-side from "Paralyzed" - "Entropy" here it is for those who like myself are eager to hear more from Klyne:

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SHREM'S DOUBLE TROUBLE: "COLOURBLIND" - Salute feat. Abra /// "STRANGER" - Wrestlers feat. Jesse Boykins III

When electronic and r'n'b forces amalgamate. One of our favourite newcomers, the analog princess and the dark wave duchess all in one, Miss Abra has just joined efforts with Austrian producer Salute and their musical wonder child "Colour Blind" is a multi-layered trip to electronic soul that will move any open-minded musos out there. A delectable mixture of beats, goosebump-inducing vocal acrobatics, hand-claps and ever changing rhythms. Ambitious, yet very accessible. Salute's "Gold Rush" EP is out 6th November via 37 Adventures.

At the same time modern funk maverick Jesse Boykins III teams up with Wrestlers for a full blast house stomper "Stranger" which is an instant weekend essential with its seductive beats, overall party mode and that cowbell! This is a b-side to Wrestlers' "Perrenial" single which is out now.

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CHOON OF THE DAY: "WORRY BOUT US" - Rosie Lowe [+ Machinedrum Edit]

When I first came across Rosie Lowe's enthralling "Right Thing" back in 2013, it left me stunned, mesmerised and gasping for more. Shortly after I selected the London based Future R&B songstress as one of Top 10 Hottest Newcomers in 2013. Somehow, despite numerous singles and EP's released ever since, no other track from Lowe's repertoire blew me away and made such a strong impression until I heard "Worry Bout Us" this week, co-written and produced by Machinedrum. Electronic soul at its most refined, building up so fascinatingly, unraveling its multiple layers. Elegant and truly hypnotising "Worry Bout Us" is magical in both versions.

Here's the phenomenal "Right Thing" again:

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SHREM'S BIGGIES BUT GOODIES BASKET: "DADADAY" /// "WORKX2" - Annie

Repeating the same mighty trick as back in 2013, Norway's best POP export Annie teams up with one of the most reliable European producers Richard X for a collection of songs that is already shaping up to be the EP of the year. The aptly titled "Endless Vacation" EP drops 16th October and aside the delightful summer gem "Cara Mia" it also includes the 90s house fuelled "WorkX2" and the delectably euro-trashy "Dadaday" (co-produced by Jim Eliot and Stefan Storm) - 2015's most shamelessly catchy song. Richard X and Annie prove yet again to be the indisputable force in the synth pop department and if "Out Of Reach" - the 4th and final track to be revealed from "Endless Vacation", matches the excellence of the rest of the songs, Annie might have that EP of the year title in the bag. Pop Royalty.

Get your copy of "Endless Vacation" on a limited edition CD (one of only 475!) HERE.

The impossibly clever artwork by PAOLSZI. Photo of Annie by Hildegunn Wærnes.

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Crème de la crème: TOP 20 BEST OF SEPTEMBER 2015

20 (N) "In For The Kill" - Shamir (XL Recordings)

19 (N) "Way Back" - Shaun J. Wright & Alinka (Batty Bass)

18 (N) "Sharpness" - Jamie Woon (Polydor)

17 (N) "Get It Right" - Catz n Dogz feat. Tanika (Pets Recordings)

16 (N) "Tonight!" - Abra (self released)

15 (N) "I Am The War" - Midday Veil (Beyond Beyond Is Beyond)

14 (4) "Slumlord" - Neon Indian (Static Tongues/Transgressive Records)

13 (N) "Back For More" - Breakbot (Ed Banger Records)

12 (N) "Paranormal Activity" - Akiine (Color Station)

11 (1) "Do It Good" - Sísý Ey (mr.intl)

10 (N) "Yö" - Regina (self released)

9 (N) "Orange Blossom" - Destiny (self released)

8 (N) "How Do You Do It?" - Empress Of (Terrible Records)

7 (1) "Koi" - Le1f feat. Sophie (Terrible Records)

6 (N) "BURNITUP!" - Janet Jackson feat. Missy Elliott (Black Doll)

5 (N) "Rewind" - Kelela (Warp Records)

4 (N) "Window Shades" - U.S. Girls (4AD)

3 (N) "Body Talk" - Escort (Escort Records)

2 (N) "Ready Player One" - Jori Hulkkonen (My Favorite Robot )

1 (5) "House Of Glass" - Róisín Murphy (Play It Again Sam)

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SHREM'S CLUB BIZARRE INTRODUCING: "SHOW" - Lxury & LA Priest

I would file this curious collaboration between the garage producer Lxury and the enfant terrible of musical eclecticism LA Priest somewhere between The Miracles Club's underground house delicacies and Seven Davis Jr's gritty modern funk. Sounds pretty intriguing already? Listen to this latest addition to my "Club Bizarre" thread below, bearing in mind this hypnotising house gem does not go away that easily. "Show" is out now via Greco-Roman.





Here are the reminders of my previous favourite tracks by Lxury and LA Priest individually:

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SHREM'S LATE MONDAY NIGHT SESSIONS: "SHARPNESS" + "MESSAGE" - Jamie Woon

I'm sure you must have noticed by now that I fall for male vocals rather rarely but when I came across Jamie Woon and his velvet voice for the very first time, discovering "Night Air" and "Lady Luck" back in 2011, it was sort of a revelation. Serenading his electronic soul tales, Woon's impeccable productions lie somewhere between James Blake, SOHN and Jamie Lidell. "Sharpness" is a delectable slice of neo-soul setting the tone smoothly for the London singer's second album "Making Time" set to be released 6th November 2015 via Polydor. The understated "Message" works up an appetite for this evident musical feast even more. You wouldn't be exaggerating calling Jamie Woon a crooner of a modern era, with his impressive vocal capabilities and subtly oldfashioned melodies with a contemporary twist. This autumn season is shaping up to be truly elegant and memorable.

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CHOON OF THE DAY: "NUMBER ONE" - GL

Melbourne’s cosmic-funk revivalists from GL have just released their brand new single "Number One" which follows a similar 80s flavoured path as its excellent predecessors "Take Me Back" and "What Happened To Us?".  I'm on cloud nine seeing some of my most beloved 1980's sounds being revisited so accurately these days by the likes of GL, Sugarz, Jamie Lidell or The Galleria feat. Jessy Lanza. Here's what we read on Plastic World's soundcloud about "Number One":

"An infectious treat of glowing synths, stratospheric vocals and luxurious neon-lit pop, "Number One" will enchant first time listeners as well as satiate fans of their debut EP ‘Love Hexagon’ in need of a GL fix."

TUNE!

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