Turn of the decade 3

Two months into lockdown and I'm slowly acclimatising to life without footy, the pub, gigs, festivals, eating out, and so on. I'd obviously much rather have the option of these amenities but you begin to appreciate what you already have, and you learn to make do with it.

As the world tries its hardest to get back to normal and open up a small number of non-essential places, it's proving more difficult than first thought. Not to mention the ridiculous excuses the government has come up with this week to try and force schools to open at the beginning of next month whilst people are still dying. Huge mention goes out to the people who went down to Southend beach on Wednesday, too. Looking forward to having to live in lockdown over Christmas as a second wave looms large.

All the negativity on the TV at the moment is all the more reason to listen to music and be positive about it. New music is essential for us all and, despite these tough times for artists, they're still providing us with some of our favourite new records. I'll write about something different next time but there're still loads of tracks that I feel need to be noticed and added to the growing playlist that I've (hopefully) curated for you.

1. Maribou State - Mother

You know this is gonna be good if Maribou State is involved. This was put out as the second single to the recently released album titled, 'Fabric presents Maribou State'. It's an album made up of mixes and compilations and is run by the record label, Fabric, based in London.

Fabric invites DJs of different kinds and points in their career to create a new compilation which reflects the values of what Fabric Club meant to them when they were starting out as a band, and, their main priority is music. There are no adverts or interviews, which is why I had no idea this album was out until I saw on social media.

The album itself is vibrant and thoughtful, and their reworks and collaborations with varied artists make every song different from the next.

Mother was the hottest record on Annie Mac's Radio 1 show a few weeks back and was included on 6 Music's weekly playlist so was played enough to become a firm favourite and one that needs to be in our ever-growing playlist. The powerful vocals and the melodic bass notes throughout the track mean it's enthralling from start to finish.

2. bdrmm - Happy

(Pronounced 'bedroom' according to the radio presenter)

I first heard this on the way home from work on Radio X, or Radio Oasis Courteeners Cinnamon as you may know it. It was a pleasing change from the mainstream stuff they're constantly playing and this tune drew my attention straight away.

The subdued bass line is accompanied by a pacey drum fill and a dreamy and energetic guitar riff. The vocals are moody but it suits the nature of the song, just not the name of it. The echo of the vocals and the guitar give this track a gothic feel to it and I feel as if it can only be listened to when you're in a certain type of mood, but this lockdown is putting me in a constant mood so I've been playing to death.

I've not heard this on the radio since but my point of listening late at night or an obscure station still sticks. You can discover some absolute gems when most people aren't listening.

3. Bicep - Atlas

Bit of a different one, this, and you might not be into this type of music, which is fine, but give this a chance cos it's been produced brilliantly.

The duo wrote this, to sum up, a memorable moment that occurred on tour a few years back so they've clearly put a lot of time and effort into it.

It's captivating and includes a vocal sample being soaked into foggy, echoey, swooning synths that build to a euphoric high before dying out again and you've been taken on some crazy journey in the space of 6 minutes before being allowed to breathe again.

It's their first release since 2017 and it's been widely played on Radio 1 and 6 Music so it's clearly got a wide target audience, whereas a few years back it would have been directed at one type of audience. Music's changing.

4. The Districts - Cheap Regrets

This was the second single from the now-released album, "You Know I'm Not Going Anywhere" and it was all over the radio when they first brought it out, and for good reason.

It, like a few of the other songs I've written about, provides a form of complete atmospheric escapism as it's fuelled with palpable energy, intensity, and passion.

The guitar riffs, groovy bass lines and, drum fills all accompanied by the somewhat distorted vocals make this a perfect mixture of disco influence and noisy rock, as the aforementioned rough-edged vocals signify.

This one's a flyer, and defo needs to be added to your playlist, and played until you're sick to the back teeth of it.

5. Thundercat - Dragonball Durag

If you asked me to choose a song that was the polar opposite of the previous one, and one before that, then this one wins.

When reading up on how he wrote, produced, and released it, I came across the video of the record and, it's one of the best I've seen. No special effects, no editing, just Thundercat trying to shoot his shot on a number of women (notice the HAIM sisters in the video). It's a musician using his humour and laughter and a creative spark. If you watch the video, you'll also realise why he's well known for his eclectic fashion sense.

The song itself boasts a constant huge bass line and flourishes various saxophone solos along with basic electric drum accompaniment. The lyrics are basically the artist trying it on with any woman he comes across, asking them all sorts of questions. The video is a very good summary of the point of this song so I reckon you should watch that once you get round to listening to it.

There are your next 5 to explore and I'll be back with something different in the next few days.

Keep on exploring new music and keep supporting upcoming artists who may be struggling in these awful times.

Take it easy.