ALBUM REVIEW: PAWWS - Sugar EP (Best Fit Recordings)

Originally published at Middle Boop Mag: http://www.middleboopmag.com/music/albums/pawws-sugar-ep-best-fit-recordings

PAWWS, formally Lucy Taylor describes her music as, “upsetting disco”. Which to many probably sounds rather morose, but to fans of this sort of thing which there most certainly are (think Chvrches, or, in many respects Robyn) it does sound despondently appealing.

 

Who doesn’t love a new-wave vocal over a sugary, 80’s synth-pop background? This is what Lucy does so marvellously on new EP, Sugar. Signed to Best Fit Recordings and classically trained in both flute and piano, Lucy has been a session musician for both Bloc Party’s Kele Okereke and MGMT, which is pretty sweet exposure, giving her the platform and the hands on experience and drive to decide to create her own music.

 

Sugar is made up of four tracks – starting with the title track. ‘Sugar’ sounds almost like Kylie Minouge, a throwback to the 80’s for sure, with simple, glittering synth keys and her angelic, almost childlike voice.

 

‘Outside’  is again 80’s-centric, refined disco which is emotionally powerful.  “Will I ever get love, don’t know if I’ll ever have it in my heart, I feel like it has all run out”, she coos, Lucy has previously mentioned that she had found the writing process of the EP, “extremely cathartic on a personal level.”

 

‘Give Your Love’ is pop at its best, sleek and stylish all the while remaining poppy and fun. The EP ends with ‘Just Be Kind’, which was purposefully the last track, in line with the ending of a relationship.

 

What Lucy has come up with on this EP is just consistently great music. The strength of her first single alone, ‘Time To Say Goodbye/Slow Love’ from last year grabbed the attention of and got her signed with Three Six Zero, who are affiliated with Roc Nation, with this in tow, Sugar will hopefully create the same catastrophic waves. 

EP REVIEW: Best Coast - Fade Away

Originally published at Planet Notion: http://www.planetnotion.com/2013/10/18/ep-review-best-coast-fade-away/

It’s been a year since California’s favourite revivalist duo Best Coast released their second album, The Only Place.  Their new seven-track EP, Fade Away, featuring lead single ‘I Don’t Know’, shows Bethany Cosentino and multi-instrumentalist Bobb Bruno carrying on perfectly complimenting one another lyrically and sonically.

Opener ‘This Lonely Morning’ is a sunny grunge gem; Cosentino’s voice coming together with the track’s hazy guitars for a west coast gem. ‘I Wanna Know’, meanwhile, is a romantically yearning, girl-pop number, and in that classic Best Coast way, Cosentino’s self-deprecating charm is executed perfectly once again.

Title track ‘Fade Away’ ironically features the couplet, “I won’t change/I’ll stay the same.” And, that’s exactly what they’ve done. A couple of tracks into the EP, it becomes clear that Best Coast don’t plan on changing a single thing about their direction. ‘Baby I’m Crying’ leans towards more of a classic, sixties pop hue, with Bobb expertly matching Cosentino’s sentiment with each chord wrung from his guitar.

At times Fade Away is very self-indulgent, but it’s real and is a much needed, sun-drenched dose for fans to enjoy; sticking to much the same formula as their previous material. So, as you prepare to delve into the next chapter of Cosentino’s indie rock diary, get set for more heart-on-sleeve lyrics, unrequited love and hating on boys.

EP REVIEW: MMOTHS - Diaries

Originally published at Notion Magazine: http://www.planetnotion.com/2013/03/12/review-mmoths-diaries-ep/

Ireland’s MMOTHS, formally Jack Colleran, is an electronic musician who managed to bag a support slot on The xx’s most recent tour. This – without having anything but a single released – stands up as pretty good going for a virtually unknown, 19 year-old bedroom producer. His fans also include superstar DJ Annie Mac, who featured his track ‘Over You’ on her esteemed Annie Mac Presents compilation released late last year, and with a nod of approval from Flying Lotus too, his future is looking startlingly bright.

Diaries draws its title from a succession of photographs that Colleran (a keen photographer) took, one of which is the EP’s artwork. At six tracks long, it serves as a sumptuous spectrum of his multifaceted abilities, showcasing his alt-electronic dexterity flawlessly.

The EP’s debut single – and one of the two only vocally led tracks – ‘All These Things’ is rich in experimental technique and resonance, borrowing vocals from Brooklyn based singer-songwriter Holly Miranda; its clangs and echoed vocals resonate an acute sense of emotion. Meanwhile, opener ‘One’ sounds very much like the xx, constructing an entire atmosphere within a few seconds – and keys – of its introduction.

‘For Her’, which features Young & Sick, is a chillwave gem with a treated vocal; a technique employed again in the EP’s final track ‘Too Real’, which sounds like a throwback from the 80s, but maintains an incredibly fresh and crisp stance.

Colleran’s music finds itself in much the same vein as acts like Kodiak, Roosevelt and Aussie producer Flume: executing an infinite aptitude for creating multi-layered and interesting beats, but it’s art – and not just music – that resides in his mind’s eye.