Image: Innellea/TAU
From retro-Bollywood funk house to campy, italo disco dominatrix pop, these are the releases that caught our attention this week. In no particular order:
Baalti – Kolkata ‘78
San Francisco based Baalti are changing the way we think about South Asian electronic music. The duo have an innate knack for keying in on the contemporary dance potential of vintage Indian music samples. They refurbish traditional vocal intonations of Gujarati folk sounds, ragas and bhajans into effortlessly cool, lo-fi funk house cuts with distinctly groovy energy and flavour. Kolkata ‘78 from their latest eponymous EP, zones in on their sepia toned style and penchant for textured, dynamic percussion, pairing a laidback and sun-soaked bass line with the ethereal romantic melodrama of a golden-era Bollywood melody. Listen below, and download Baalti here.
Charli XCX – Good Ones
In what seems to be her stake at ‘main pop girl’ mainstream status, Charli XCX’s new single is a firm departure from the metallic hyperpop experimentations that have defined her over the past few years. That said, Good Ones is a pretty good go at radio-friendly pop that still manages to capture XCX’s personality. With an instant ear-work hook and synth driven eurohouse leaning production, it’s a callback to pop’s recent electronic dance renaissance executed with a devious dose of XCX’s post-millennial irony. A lament on her doomed dating history, Good Ones comes with an Elvira inspired music video featuring some fierce choreography. You will absolutely live for that falsetto pre-chorus. Watch below.
Daddy Squad, Dita Von Teese – My Magic Number
Former Monarchy member Andrew Armstrong is making his solo debut as Daddy Squad, a project that finds its inspiration in the campy, neon pulse of italo disco and the rubber scuzzy of burlesque. Following their soft launch with a feature on the throbbing electroclash banger Whatever Violet Wants by Violet Chachki, Daddy Squad’s debut single continues the dominatrix theatricality with a strobe-lit cut that features a robotised Dita Von Teez as a commandeering fembot. It’s a fabulously flamboyant introduction into what is shaping up to be a scintillating glitter soaked discotheque that’s left us shivering with anticipation. Released on AAA Battery records, download it here.
Innellea – Hypolation
Munich techno and sound artist Innellea’s latest EP for TAU is a further testament towards his knack for emotion conjuring cinematic soundscapes and abstract melodic patterns. The title track is a dexterous piece of dnce music, layering buzzing synths and organic bass textures across peaks and valleys, building to a breathtakingly cathartic climax. It’s a journey of a track that emphasises Innellea’s masterful skill in synthesising impactful and immersive compositions of dance music, without sacrificing the propulsion. Listen below, and download the Hypolation EP here.
Maara – Potion Activated [EP]
The latest EP from elusive producer Maara-Louisa Dunbar on Isla follows the excellent debut Ultimate Reward with a collection of dark, throbbing techno formulated for basements and the dead of night. Oozing with seduction and burning with hedonism, the EP structures a descent into inferno starting with the hypnotic sinfulness of The Forbidden Plum and moving through increasingly more carnal concoctions. Dungeon Babez pulses with a dark libidinal menace, and Do You Feel Me ft. NAP slithers with bubbling alien sounds before erupting into tribal leaning percussion and witchy atmospherics. It’s entirely transportive and devilishly feral, pounding club sounds formulated for moments of lust and total excess. Download it here.
Follow our roundup playlist, ‘What We Have on Repeat’ on Spotify to hear and save our weekly selections:
