Tuned up Thursday: Music of the Moment (May 2014)

Last Thursday of the month and that means it’s time for me to share with you some of the new tunes I’ve been discovering in the past few weeks. Luckily for you, I worked my way through a bunch of indie playlists again at the beginning of the month, so I had plenty to wade through and pick some gems for sharing. So these songs are all brand new(-ish) as they were all released between February/ March and the end of April of this year. Enjoy!

Architecture In Helsinki – I Might Survive

Let’s start of this post with a super happy song. I’ve known Architecture in Helsinki for a bit. Their earlier song Escapee is a staple in my playlist. So when I found this super happy and cheerful song earlier this month I knew it would be good. Add a super colorful video and this song = instant happiness.

Baths – Ocean Death

And Baths is making new stuff again as well. This is definitely a dark song with low droning beats and minimal vocals. But that’s exactly what I love about this song. It’s a bit repetitive, like a throw back to an old house song, which gives the song the right sort of dreamy atmosphere that I love in my chillwave/ indieelectro type music. Must listen if you’re looking for a song to play to unwind after a long day.

Blaue Blume – Lost Sons Of Boys

What makes this song are the vocals. These are some of the most moving vocals I’ve heard in a long time. The song itself is very contained for most of it, until around the 2 minute mark the song erupts without becoming boombastic. It’s the mixture of a feeling as if the song is holding something back, as if the band is letting you in on a secret that they can’t tell anyone else.

Damon Albarn – You and Me

In case you didn’t know: Damon Albarn (lead singer of 90s Britpop band Blur) finally released a solo album. It was one of the albums I’ve been looking forward to ever since it was announced and OMG! I love it. My favorite song is You and Me. It’s a slow and small song at first, but very subtly more and more rhythms and sounds are added to fill up the spaces and it turns into something magical. Goosebumps guaranteed.

Franz Ferdinand – Erdbeer Mund

The weirdest song in today’s list? Quite possibly! Franz Ferdinand in German! For the b-side of their last single Fresh Strawberries, they decided to do something fun and record a song in German. And then they had their guitarist play dress up for the video. Most hilarious songs I’ve come across in a long time. If you like Franz Ferdinand’s general style of music you’ll like this too.

Karen O – The Moon Song (Ft. Ezra Koenig)

This collaboration between the lead singers of Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Vampire Weekend was recorded for the Her soundtrack and I really really like it. It’s a very sweet, simple song. And sometimes that’s all you need.

KIll J – Bullet

Let’s pick things up again shall we? Get ready for some reverberating drums and repetitive noises, but don’t be fooled! The verses of this are very contained and almost sweet, making for a sharp contrast. This reminds me a bit of something Robyn would do, mixed in with a little bit of Kerli and a wink of Fever Ray.

Satellites – Madison Park Bell

No youtube available for this one unfortunately, but hey soundcloud works fine as well. This is a great guitar driving indiepop track. I don’t know why, but some reason I see this song being used in a commercial of some kind very soon. It just has a vibe about it that will be universally liked by many.

The New Division – Stockholm

The only song that is not so new. If you like some electro mixed in with a bit of pop, mixed in with a bit of rock you might like this. For those of you who like bands like Bastille or a more electronic version of Snow Patrol.

Zella Day – Sweet Ophelia

Liked Lorde? Zella Day may very well be the best next thing. This girl has an amazing voice, the song is catchy and has a chorus that is easy to sing along to. Instant hit material if you ask me.

What new music have you been listening to?