Monday Mixtape, Vol. 89

All sorts of random tracks on this week's playlist. The Preatures are back in the mix with my favorite track from a pretty lackluster sophomore album. Tame Impala released three B-sides from the Currents album, one of which is the instrumental "Powerlines." If you want to see how the brilliant Kevin Parker makes a track, check out the video on his website: https://www.tameimpala.com

WHY ARE THERE SO MANY BANDS WITH NAMES IN ALL CAPS NOW???

Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy the remainder of tunes which give you a bit of a jumpstart to your week! Cheers.

Monday Mixtape, Vol. 80

A bunch of new bands to digest this week, including Cende, The Jungle Giants, Palace, and Japanese Breakfast. 

Conde's debut album is really enjoyable yet I can't place exactly who or what they sound like. It's a little upbeat, a little punk-y, but no song from 2017 album is better than "What I Want," which actually reminds me a bit of Deerhunter with their amazing transition at 2:50 from the sweet vocals into an ass kicking of rock. Cool song!

"Quiet Ferocity" is a contender for one of my favorite songs of the year. It's certainly got some LCD Soundsystem in it (and the rest of the album sounds a bit Glass Animals a bit Foster the People - who by the way, just released their third album which I need to give more time and listens and will report back!), a bit of The Maccabees, but I love the rhythms, electronics, and this dude's falsetto. 

Vince Staples continues to carry rap in cool and unique directions with his new, critically acclaimed album. "Big Fish" is certainly the catchiest song (or maybe "BagBak") so that had to be included, but this is an album to really dissect, which "745" is a testament to with its trance-like bass line and starstruck piano. 

Pretty damn disappointed in Cousin Stizz's new album, but "Doubted Me" caught me on my first listen. 

I definitely need to listen to Palace more - this is the only song I've heard by them - because they have a really cool chill rhythmic sound, and I LOVE the lead singer's voice.

I wasn't big on Japanese Breakfast's first album despite the love she got on the interwebs, but her second album is a great album front to back. If you like these tracks, give it a try!

Onwards and upwards.