On October 3, he asked me what day it was.
"It's October 3."
That fateful day also happens to be when a new edition of Exclaim!'s Staff Picks is dropping, and perhaps Cady Heron would have had better luck with Aaron Samuels if she'd led with that. From autumnal sounds to spooky remixes, and grand returns to at long-last debuts, we've got four (plus two) staff-approved new releases for you, Glenn Coco.
For more thoughts on new music from the coolest people you'll ever meet, check out our album reviews section.
Burs
Holding Patterns
(Independent)
The debut full-length from Toronto's Burs evokes quiet early mornings. The psych-folkers use the softer moments of Holding Patterns to build up to something bigger, with its dispersed climaxes tying their vision together. While fall may be a continuing theme in my recent Staff Picks, this is a record that fits perfectly into that all-encompassing feeling, and is a must-listen for anyone looking to add local talent to their autumnal rotation.
Sydney Brasil
clipping.
REMXNG 2.2
(Sub Pop)
If you couldn't get enough of 2020's Visions of Bodies Being Burned and 2019's There Existed an Addiction to Blood, clipping. have more horrorcore in store for you. Seven tracks plucked from two records having been reworked by collaborators hand-selected by the band — including Rian Treanor, David Rothbaum, James Acaster and Deerhoof's John Diederich, among others — sees REMXNG 2.2 take clipping.'s freakiest moments to glitchy new heights. Baseck's choppy synth remix of "Run for Your Life," is especially danceable, while ZULI gives "Make Them Dead" the drum and bass treatment.
Allie Gregory
Diamondtown
Hey
(Independent)
With members of the likes of Eric's Trip, Dog Day, and Husband and Knife, multiple pressure points of the Nova Scotia underground forged Dartmouth's Diamondtown. On their new EP, nonchalantly titled Hey, they likewise aren't showy about drawing attention to their status as stalwarts of the Maritime rock scene; their stonewashed blend of chipper jangle pop guitar tones, psychedelic phasing and reverb-drenched shoegaze and goth rock influences speaks for itself — unpretentiously beckoning you to listen.
Megan LaPierre
Kelela
"Washed Away"
(Warp)
After five long years since her debut full-length Take Me Apart, Kelela Mizanekristos returned not with a bang(er), but with an incantation. On "Washed Away," Kelela wants to know, "How's your heart?" The song is pure feeling; a gentle, salty pool of synth that laps against Kelela's voice, swirling and sighing as she sings in impressionistic visions. "Far away / Washed away," she intones, her words dissolving in producer Yo Van Lenz's opalescent haze. "Washed Away" might not be the year's biggest or loudest return, but it was well worth the wait.
Kaelen Bell
LOKRE
ELIZABETH
(Ecclectic Electrix)
I stumbled upon Toronto's Liz Loughrey, a.k.a. LOKRE, very incidentally in 2010. The decision to continue following her career likewise didn't seem like a conscious effort, but it has come full circle as something fated with the long-awaited release of her soulful, mantra-filled debut album ELIZABETH — which entered the world soon after my grandmother left it. "I won't be escaping from my history," LOKRE sings in her butterscotch-dipped lilt on the grounding first song proper, "Generations." Every moment to follow is likewise intentional and informed by deep intergenerational healing, from the soothing golden hour glow of "Self Talk" to the bassy warble of "Something from Nothing."
Megan LaPierre
Tamino
Sahar
(Arts & Crafts)
Belgian-born songwriter Tamino's sophomore album combines the bohemian drama of Leonard Cohen, the theatrical croon of Rufus Wainwright, and the melodic influences of Arabic folk (he's the grandson of famed Egyptian singer/actor Muharram Fouad). Some of Sahar's best moments come when he branches out with pop-friendly, percussive moments, as on the sweeping rock of "Fascination" (is it weird that I think of the Wallflowers?) or the spicy lounge swagger of "Cinnamon."
Alex Hudson
"It's October 3."
That fateful day also happens to be when a new edition of Exclaim!'s Staff Picks is dropping, and perhaps Cady Heron would have had better luck with Aaron Samuels if she'd led with that. From autumnal sounds to spooky remixes, and grand returns to at long-last debuts, we've got four (plus two) staff-approved new releases for you, Glenn Coco.
For more thoughts on new music from the coolest people you'll ever meet, check out our album reviews section.
Burs
Holding Patterns
(Independent)
The debut full-length from Toronto's Burs evokes quiet early mornings. The psych-folkers use the softer moments of Holding Patterns to build up to something bigger, with its dispersed climaxes tying their vision together. While fall may be a continuing theme in my recent Staff Picks, this is a record that fits perfectly into that all-encompassing feeling, and is a must-listen for anyone looking to add local talent to their autumnal rotation.
Sydney Brasil
clipping.
REMXNG 2.2
(Sub Pop)
If you couldn't get enough of 2020's Visions of Bodies Being Burned and 2019's There Existed an Addiction to Blood, clipping. have more horrorcore in store for you. Seven tracks plucked from two records having been reworked by collaborators hand-selected by the band — including Rian Treanor, David Rothbaum, James Acaster and Deerhoof's John Diederich, among others — sees REMXNG 2.2 take clipping.'s freakiest moments to glitchy new heights. Baseck's choppy synth remix of "Run for Your Life," is especially danceable, while ZULI gives "Make Them Dead" the drum and bass treatment.
Allie Gregory
Diamondtown
Hey
(Independent)
With members of the likes of Eric's Trip, Dog Day, and Husband and Knife, multiple pressure points of the Nova Scotia underground forged Dartmouth's Diamondtown. On their new EP, nonchalantly titled Hey, they likewise aren't showy about drawing attention to their status as stalwarts of the Maritime rock scene; their stonewashed blend of chipper jangle pop guitar tones, psychedelic phasing and reverb-drenched shoegaze and goth rock influences speaks for itself — unpretentiously beckoning you to listen.
Megan LaPierre
Kelela
"Washed Away"
(Warp)
After five long years since her debut full-length Take Me Apart, Kelela Mizanekristos returned not with a bang(er), but with an incantation. On "Washed Away," Kelela wants to know, "How's your heart?" The song is pure feeling; a gentle, salty pool of synth that laps against Kelela's voice, swirling and sighing as she sings in impressionistic visions. "Far away / Washed away," she intones, her words dissolving in producer Yo Van Lenz's opalescent haze. "Washed Away" might not be the year's biggest or loudest return, but it was well worth the wait.
Kaelen Bell
LOKRE
ELIZABETH
(Ecclectic Electrix)
I stumbled upon Toronto's Liz Loughrey, a.k.a. LOKRE, very incidentally in 2010. The decision to continue following her career likewise didn't seem like a conscious effort, but it has come full circle as something fated with the long-awaited release of her soulful, mantra-filled debut album ELIZABETH — which entered the world soon after my grandmother left it. "I won't be escaping from my history," LOKRE sings in her butterscotch-dipped lilt on the grounding first song proper, "Generations." Every moment to follow is likewise intentional and informed by deep intergenerational healing, from the soothing golden hour glow of "Self Talk" to the bassy warble of "Something from Nothing."
Megan LaPierre
Tamino
Sahar
(Arts & Crafts)
Belgian-born songwriter Tamino's sophomore album combines the bohemian drama of Leonard Cohen, the theatrical croon of Rufus Wainwright, and the melodic influences of Arabic folk (he's the grandson of famed Egyptian singer/actor Muharram Fouad). Some of Sahar's best moments come when he branches out with pop-friendly, percussive moments, as on the sweeping rock of "Fascination" (is it weird that I think of the Wallflowers?) or the spicy lounge swagger of "Cinnamon."
Alex Hudson