Jonny Drop - "All This Trouble"

I have raved about the Gene Dudley Group in the past.  I've long been a fan of Andrew Ashong. And while I haven't posted about them, I dig the music The Expansions make.

Standing at the centre of this three-pointed star is drummer and DJ Jonny Drop. He is about to release The Only Sound on June 22nd and the first cut from the LP is streaming (below). "All This Trouble" has a funky soundtrack-vibe and a sweet vocal sample hook. Slide into the weekend on the back of this one.

Oscar Key Sung - "Simple Luv"

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

With the release of a new track today, Melbourne neo-soul vocalist Oscar Key Sung announced the forthcoming release of a new EP, No Disguise, coming next month on Good Manners Records. If it's as hot as this first cut, I'm going to have to wear protective gear on May 25th for the fire.

Paul White - "See Through (ft. Denai Moore)"

Really like the drum pattern White establishes off the hop on "See Through" - a nice rolling, forward momentum to it. The other thing established on this track is my affection for Denai Moore's vocals. Sort of an Alice Smith vibe to it with a seemingly effortless range and a relaxed delivery. She appears on one other track on Rejuvenate (and Sarah Williams White [!!] makes two appearances as well) and I look forward to hearing more from Moore.

Yazmin Lacey - "Something My Heart Trusts"

It's only one song, but velvet-voiced Yazmin Lacey is back with her second release via First Word Records. Following up March's "90 Degrees" is this slow-burner with a groove that Lacey luxuriates in.

Officially out tomorrow, you can stream it now, below.




I can't fault First Word for the baby-step approach to Lacey's releases but I WANT MORE GOODNESS!!

Haley Blais - "Let Yourself Go"

Vancouver artist Haley Blais just released the EP Let Yourself Go last week. "Small Foreign Faction" is apparently the cut that's taking off, but for me the title-track is just an irrepressible slice of pop sunshine. Blais is hitting the road in support of the EP and will play Forth on May 1st at a show that is somehow by donation but also indicates there can be advance ticket-holders. I may be puzzled over that, but I'm certain Blais is one to check out.

alae - "Stone Cold"

I've been listening to the new Josh Rouse record a lot this week (he's one of my all-timers) so it likely put me in the perfect place for this new single from New Zealand trio alae to show up in my inbox this morning, but I'd have probably loved it without having the pump primed by Love in the Modern Age already.

Ringing guitars are one of my weaknesses and "Stone Cold" has a doozy that has echoes of The Sea & Cake (another all-timer) and then Alex Farrell-Davey's vocals come in and have the same timbre as Rouse. Both possess gentle voices that still have weight behind them and are perfect for pop love songs ("Stone Cold" is about love as an addiction).

The architecture of this song is great too in the way that the guitar line and a very subtle drum track get a full 20 seconds to establish the song before the vocals come in and then a tom and snare beat accompanies Farrell-Davey's first words. The bass line drops in around the 45 second mark and then all of this drops away for a moment around 1:06 at which point we reach the chorus AND THEN OHMYGOD THERE ARE HORNS. 1:19 is when my crush on this song becomes full-blown swooning. The trumpet line brings with it a more bouncing beat and the irrepressible sunshine at the heart of this song bursts out.

This is the best Josh Rouse song Josh Rouse hasn't written and it leaves me eager to hear more from Auckland's alae.

Charo - "The Hurt"

No. Not that Charo.This one's a future soul singer from London who just dropped a new EP called Love Three Ways. "The Hurt" is the lead single and it was the right choice. The whole EP is solid (I especially like the subtle bells on "Hope For A Heart") but that loping, insistent beat will have you snapping your head and it provides a solid underpinning to is Rakei-like smooth vocals.

Cookin' On 3 Burners - "Lone Wolfe"

As keen as I was to hear Melbourne organ trio Cookin' on 3 Burners collaboration with vocalist Kylie Auldist on "More Than A Mouthful," this is another one of those instances where I'm feeling the b-side more.

Certainly curious about the "e" in Wolfe and who the titular "Lone Wolfe" might be a hat-tip to. Regardless of whether it has a Canadian connection, this Australian slice of funk is up my alley.