Wakey wakey, rise and shine, it’s time for you to get acquainted with everything you should be listening to this Friday morning. In the week that Theresa May attempted to undergo a rebrand, Kesha showed her how it was done with the continuation of her own resurgence in new track ‘Woman’. We’ve seen new stuff from our favourite duos Oh Wonder and Chase & Status as well as from pop queens Demi Lovato and Selena Gomez. Also, the long anticipated star-studded album from Mura Masa has finally dropped, and what would This Week In Records be without mentioning Arcade Fire? Enough of the overview, let’s get into what’s happened in the world of music this week.
Mura Masa – Mura Masa
The Guernsey-born producer/DJ/songwriter has been releasing consistently fire tracks in the run up to his latest album, with the end result being a plethora of summer records from a multitude of superstar artists. ‘Love$ick‘ was released back in September last year, yet continues to remain a reliable track which you can pick if you’re stuck on what to request at a house party, and more recent singles like ‘Nuggets’ and ‘Second 2 None’ – featuring Bonzai and Christine And The Queens respectively – offer the same: one-off brilliant records with a style constantly shifting in relation to collaborators’ ideas. If you’re a lover of dance music and want an album where you’re are guaranteed to like every track, don’t miss out on Mura Masa’s self-titled new one.
Lana Del Rey feat. A$AP Rocky – ‘Groupie Love’
Lana Del Rey feat. A$AP Rocky & Playboi Carti – ‘Summer Bummer’
Melancholic queen Lana Del Rey has given us two tracks to lend our ears to this week. Both featuring her friend and regular collaborator A$AP Rocky, the singles arrive in anticipation of Lust For Life, Del Rey’s fifth studio album, which is set for release next week. ‘Groupie Love’ sees the return of the singer’s sonorous and often seductive vocals which work by ushering you into a trance-like state, propped up, rather than hindered, by Rocky’s verse.
Sister track ‘Summer Bummer’ gives off a hip-hop vibe supplemented by parts from Playboi Carti and again A$AP Rocky, who features a lot this week. Built out of a continuous loop, Del Rey’s velvety voice drives the track (“Hip-hop in the summer / Don’t be a bummer, babe”) which culminates in an extended verse from the rappers, with the end result being a track halfway between trap and her signature sound. Always boasting a ’40s/’50s aesthetic, in these two new tracks she shows that she’s not confined to just this, being unafraid to flirt with different genres. Bringing back everything loved about previous albums, but with a new found place for hip-hop, the records seem to anticipate a venture which will hopefully reverberate throughout the remainder of Lust For Life.
Oh Wonder – Ultralife
Following the success of their experimental debut album, borne out of a challenge to create a new song every month for a year, Oh Wonder is back to serve a second helping of everything that you loved from it. Ultralife features their hit title track as well as some other splendid ones like ‘High On Humans’ and ‘Lifetimes’, with the whole record seeming an affirmation of everything which went well with their debut. Although this somewhat hinders the album – it can become quite samey – it does fully affirm the pop synth sound which has garnered over half a billion streams, Check out our review of the album here.
Chase & Status feat. Emeli Sandé – ‘Love Me More’
My love for Chase & Status began when I first heard ‘Time’ and then subsequently fell in love with No More Idols. ‘Blk & Blu’ reminds me of my first year of Sixth Form and Brand New Machine gave me tons of new tracks which I tried to get my unwilling friends to listen to. That’s why I’m so disappointed with ‘Love Me More’. Monopolising the sound which made them successful, the track just feels like a blending together of all the things the duo think work, along with safe vocals from Emeli Sandé. Bit of a let down.
BLOXX – ‘Curtains’
Because there’s not enough rock in here.
Selected Other Releases
Albums
Billie Eilish – dont smile at me EP
Bugzy Malone – King Of The North
Coldplay – Kaleidoscope EP
Daley – The Spectrum
Francobollo – Long Live Life
French Montana – Jungle Rules
Japanese Breakfast – Soft Sounds From Another Planet
Kinobe – Thought It Was You
MAMMÚT – Kinder Versions
Mr Jukes – God First
Offa Rex – The Queen Of Hearts
Pompeya – Domino EP
RAC – EGO
The Kite String Tangle – The Kite String Tangle
The Last Dinosaur – The Nothing
The Vamps – Night & Day
WizKid – Sounds From The Other Side
Zach Gill – Life In The Multiverse
21 Savage – Issa Album
67 – Glorious Twelfth
Singles
Aloe Blacc – ‘King Is Born’
Anfa Rose – ‘Myself’
Arcade Fire – ‘Electric Blue’
Bonzai – ‘I Feel Alright’
Callum Beattie – ‘Man Behind The Sun’
Childhood – ‘Nothing Ever Seems Right’
Cosmo’s Midnight ft. Kudu Blue – ‘Mind Off’
Dave – ‘Tequila’
Demi Lovato – ‘Sorry Not Sorry’
Drones Club – ‘International’
Empress Of – ‘Go To Hell’
FAIRCHILD – ‘High as a Kite’
Foster The People – ‘Sit Next To Me’
Friction feat. Doctor – ‘Mad in the Jungle’
Galantis – ‘True Feeling’
George Glew – ‘Bury Me’
Jack Johnson – ‘My Mind Is For Sale’
Jerry Williams – ‘Babe’
Joel Baker feat. Abra Cadabra – ‘Story’
KAMBO feat. Ayla – ‘Stand Up In The Light’
Kesha feat. The Dap-Kings Horns – ‘Woman’
Kllo – ‘Virtue’
Luke Rathborne – ‘Don’t Call Me Baby’
Manchester Orchestra – ‘The Moth’
MNEK – ‘Paradise’
Mount Kimbie feat. King Krule – ‘Blue Train Lines’
Mystery Skulls – ‘One Of Us’
Nadine Shah – ‘Holiday Destination’
Nina Nesbitt feat. Goody Grace – ‘The Moments I’m Missing’
ODESZA feat. Naomi Wild – ‘Higher Ground’
One Republic & Seeb – ‘Rich Love’
Poppy Ackroyd – ‘Time’
Ruel – ‘Don’t Tell Me’
Selena Gomez feat. Gucci Mane – ‘Fetish’
Suzi Wu – ‘Teenage Witch’
The Academic – ‘Bear Claws’
The Script – ‘Rain’
The Sherlocks – ‘Live For The Moment’
Tom Grennan – ‘Found What I’ve Been Looking For’
Tyler, The Creator – ‘Boredom’
Vance Joy – ‘Lay It On Me’
This Week In Records: Playlist Edition
Follow our shiny Spotify playlist and all this musical newness will be right there in time for breakfast every Friday morning.
