Turn of the decade 2

How are we, troops? As bored as ever I’m guessing. Well, fear no more cos I’ve got your next dose of 5 tunes to make your lockdown a bit more entertaining, upbeat, and inspiring (I hope). If you’ve not made a playlist of all these songs yet then I suggest doing so because my experience from listening to new music is; the more you play it, the more you get into it, so if there’s a song on here or from my previous post that you’re still not sure of, keep at it.

This is pretty much a carbon copy of the last piece, just with different songs, again, of all different styles so I’m hoping there’s something here for everyone.

1. Fontaines D.C - A Hero’s Death

They recently confirmed on the radio that they had an album ready for release but didn’t reveal when they were releasing it.

Their first album, Dogrel, was nothing short of perfect and a breath of fresh air as far as the punk/rock genre was concerned. It was fuelled with passion and meaning and for a debut album to sound like that was unreal. It also won BBC 6 Music’s album of the year after being championed constantly by Steve Lamacq who’s one of my lowkey idols, and I’m missing him being on the radio cos Craig Charles does my absolute head in.

This new song was released yesterday (5th May) and was the hottest record on Annie Mac’s Radio 1 show and it’s got the same sound, passion, and intensity as every other song they’ve ever written and it’s spot on terms of a follow up from that incredible first album.

The lyrics were written about the singer, Grian Chatten’s feelings when he was feeling anxious about the follow up to Dogrel, and he must’ve felt a lot of pressure considering how successful it was, but ultimately he said it’s about the battle between happiness, depression and the trust issues that can form tied to both of those feelings, and the lyrics reflect that a lot.

In summary, this tune’s an ace follow up to their debut album and if it’s anything to go by then the imminent second album will be an absolute flyer again, and I’ve preordered it. I’m also a huge fan of an artist that doesn’t change their accent when singing, so the strong Irish accent makes them an even more distinctive band than they already are.

2. Hanni El Khatib - ALIVE

Shoutout to 6 Music for this one because this is one of those artists that I’d never have got on to without them, so I’m grateful because it’s a belter.

The single is a reflection on a real-life, near-death experience where he was involved in a serious car crash, bit depressing I know but stick with me. The song involves a wavey, very relaxed type groove and it is consistent throughout the song. The lyrics have an uplifting and positive feel about them and make us all appreciate life that little bit more.

I think this song is a grower. It wasn’t love at first sight but I stuck with it, well the radio carried on playing it so I had no choice, to be honest, but eventually, I found it more and more catchy to the point that I’d put it on by choice, so you may have to do the same and give it a chance.

He’s just released an album as well so if you’re into this song or type of music then you may well be into his album. Again, there are some songs on the album that I can’t get into but I’ve only listened to once so I’d probably have to give it a few more listens.

Take nothing away from this song though, it’s dead catchy and great to listen to in any environment.

3. Becca Mancari - Hunter

Again, this is another record that I first heard on 6 Music so this whole blog post is essentially a promo for the eclectic radio station which is subsequently the best thing about the BBC.

This slinky type tune is her first music since 2017 and consists of a scintillating synthesiser backing accompaniment throughout, and gradually builds up with a scampering drum groove and a jagged electric guitar riff. Her voice is soft for the duration of the track but it goes well with the song.

I wouldn't say this is a song fuelled with positivity, nor does it make you want to take the world by storm and go for a 10-mile run, which I'm not encouraging cos we all need to stay at home, but it's a nice one to listen to when you've just woken up or when you're sat in the garden drinking beer and consuming food you're eating through sheer boredom.

Defo one to add to your playlist.

4. Alfie Templeman - Happiness in Liquid Form

This one's boss. An uplifting and positive feel throughout and proper Empire of the Sun vibes, which may or may not be a good thing. It opens with an electric guitar that resembles summer in a riff, and from then on you just know that you'll enjoy it. Interpret it how you will, but that title screams out that he wrote this whilst drinking silly amounts of alcohol because, as I'm sure we can all agree that alcohol is happiness in liquid form, isn't it?

Given the current times we're living in, this song is a welcome release because any type of positivity we can grasp at the moment, be it music or anything else is something we wouldn't turn our backs on. He's released it at the perfect time.

Also can't wrap my head around the fact that he's only 17 and he's writing songs as catchy as this. Also a bit rubbish that he's releasing songs and getting played on the radio and I'm writing about his new song to an audience that wouldn't fill a pub.

5. Disclosure, Eco Roosevelt - Tondo

This one's nuts and just make you wanna let loose. It samples the music from Eco Roosevelt who is a Cameroonian musician and they claimed that they wanted to make the vocals a huge part of the record, as they've recently been exploring the origins of African music.

Putting their spin on these lyrics and this kind of music sounds as if they were conducting some sort of scientific experiment but it's paid off.

It's fast, punchy and fun and you'd be mad if you told me that you didn't enjoy it. It begins with a fast beat and high pitched synthesiser sound and gradually builds up with deeper sounding synths.

Once it hits 50 seconds the song and baseline change and becomes more catchy and uplifting. It's hard to explain the sound of it so you'll just have to trust me that it's boss and listen to it.

The African vocals complete positive feel about the song. If you've got some energy to let off then plug your headphones in, put this song on, and run, because I guarantee you'll sprint for the 5 and a half minute duration.

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There's your next 5 recommendations of singles released this year to have mull over, add to your playlist and play until you hate them. Hopefully theres something here for you as I've tried to be as widespread as possible in terms of genre, gender, style and whether or not they're a band or a soloist.

Feel free to leave a comment on which one you did or didn't enjoy and, if you've got anyone you recommend, then I'd love to hear them.

Interaction is one of the focal points when discovering new music and sometimes even better than a radio station that plays the same 6 songs every hour, I'm looking at you, Radio X.

I'll be back with another 5 in the coming days so in the meantime, take it easy and keep on exploring.

Joe.