A syzygy occurs when three planetary or celestial bodies are in alignment — when the sun, earth, and moon are in a straight-line configuration. Qais Essar and Alam Khan’s latest single, “Syzygy,” brings their traditional rabbab and sarod instruments into a new kind of alignment. They wrote and recorded the song all in quarantine, from … Read More
The 9-track R&B collaboration Blue Hour, a joint venture from Atlanta producer Hazi and Houston recording artist Noel, wouldn’t be possible if a mutual friend didn’t introduce the two musicians to each other. An instant familiarity with one another and compatible approach to music allowed Hazi and Noel the gravity required to make emotionally self-aware … Read More
Kohinoorgasm’s newest single, “Exhausted,” dropped this month. The single is the artist’s latest exploration of themes common in her work, questioning how to navigate a world shaped by burnout-inducing capitalism. Using experimental production and her hypnotic vocals, she asks poignantly: “How can I free my mind / when I don’t own it?” The release is … Read More
Curtis Waters’s sophomore album Pity Party will get you just as in your feelings, as the title suggests. On the record, Waters flips between addressing his own emotional growing pains directly and taking on a persona of cold detachment. The result is a journey through palpable and familiar angst, a story of someone vaguely hoping … Read More
“I want to come to a place like this every day and stay in peace,” one band member says, water rushing by. Another responds, “Why not…why can’t you machan?” This is just a brief moment in The Soul’s 2019 film Where We’re From. The video showcases the Sri Lankan band exploring the nature of the … Read More
New York musician and producer Ashou released a new single and music video this month, titled “Hair.” The track comes after Ashou’s 2019 debut, including the songs “New Beginnings” and “Lucid Dream.” The video, which similarly to “New Beginnings” is shot and edited by Mastermind Richy, features Ashou alternating between rapping about excess and extravagance … Read More
Singer, harpist, and producer ELSZ dropped a new single this week, the Bandcamp proceeds of which will go to a bushfire relief fund for First Nations communities in Australia. The song features ELSZ’s simultaneously sweet and haunting vocals, singing about seeking and finding peace “in a body that aches.” In the context of raging fires … Read More
Blood Cultures, an experimental outfit that chooses to keep its individuals anonymous, dropped the video for their single “Broadcasting,”directed by Saleem Barbados, last week. The track, taken off their most recent album Oh Uncertainty! A Universe Despairs, tackles the question of dual identity – how does one work themselves into the in-between? While the whole … Read More
Kapil Seshasayee, a Scottish multi-instrumentalist and songwriter previously known for his work critiquing caste, released a video for his latest single “The Item Girl” this month. The song and video call into question the item girl trope in Bollywood movies in which young women are overly-sexualized and employed as props. Seshasayee described the item girl … Read More
Oslo-based girl band FLTY BRGR GRL debuted their first single “Be My Boy” last week. The song captures the feeling of crushing on someone a little too hard, playing with the line between sweet and creepy vibes. “I just really like that gray area between being really charming and having a cute crush on someone, … Read More
