H O W L

Can't believe that somehow nearly two months have managed to go by since I wrote my last post. But so many exciting things have been happening in music - which shamefully I have neglected to write about.  So I'm going to attempt to get back into the routine of my weekly track posts. This week's choice comes from British singer-songwriter Izzy Bizu's debut album, 'A Moment of Madness', which was released a couple of weeks ago.  I've really enjoyed all of the stuff that Izzy released prior to the LP - she's collaborated with one of my favourite bands, HONNE, and was also the voice of the BBC Euro 2016 theme tune. She has a really beautiful and smooth voice, a cross between the likes of Amy Winehouse and Corinne Bailey Rae. The album as a whole is full of super catchy and jazz-like tracks (such as "Naive Soul") mixed with more soulful, slower songs (like "What Makes You Happy"), but 'Skinny' is definitely the stand-out o...

This week's track is what I think is one of the best releases in a while from one of my favourite artists ever - the brand new single from Banks.  With her second album set to be out on 30th September this year, she announced the release of 'Fuck With Myself' last week with a slightly terrifying music video involving a waxwork version of her own head being set alight and a group of contortionists wearing masks of her face - worth a watch if you're a fan of American Horror Story or similarly creepy films and TV shows. 'Fuck With Myself' is the second single taken from the new LP, following the release of 'Better' at the end of last year.  It immediately reminded me of FKA Twigs; slightly awkward and clanging piano notes being used in the introduction of the track and also the unique way that she claims to "fuck with [herself] more than anybody else" at the end of each verse (you really need to hear it to understand what I mean). Upon fi...

Ahead of the release of their debut album 'Warm on a Cold Night' next Friday, electronic duo HONNE have just shared a brand new track called 'Good Together'. I am a massive fan of HONNE, so choosing them as this week's choice was obvious.  Lyrically speaking, 'Good Together' is another example of the wonderfully persuasive love songs that Andy and James are so great at penning.  With Andy's smooth and rich-toned vocals backed by what sounds almost like a gospel choir in the chorus, this musical attempt to convince the girl in question that the pair are "good together" and that she always "get him feeling better" is certainly convincing in my opinion. In terms of the instrumentals of the song, it features heavy percussion (which I'm sure is ideal for encouraging audiences to clap along at gigs) and also the use of a lot of guitars, keyboards and synths. Having witnessed their exceptional live performances, "Good...

This week's track is semi Glastonbury related - trying to choose only one song from an act that I saw over the weekend was not an easy decision. However this is brand new from Disclosure, who are one of my favourite bands and rarely disappoint me. 'Boss' is taken from the 'Moog for Love' EP that they released a couple of weeks ago, which features three new songs, including a collaboration with British producer and DJ, Eats Everything and also a track with Al Green. The EP as a whole flows really well together and has a very summery vibe, but I instantly loved 'Boss' when I heard it live during their headline set on the Other stage at Glasto.  The vocals featured could be mistaken for being sampled from another song, but it is in fact one half of the duo, Howard, that is singing - his voice has been significantly pitched down. The track features a club appropriate drum beat and the brothers' signature layered synths. Although the vocals us...

I discovered Zak Abel last year when I first heard his incredibly catchy and jazzy track, 'These Are The Days', which reminded me quite a lot of Justin Timberlake's 'Senorita', in all the right ways.  Following this I immediately downloaded all of the material that he had to offer, my personal favourites being 'Say Sumthin', produced by KAYTRANADA, and also 'Soul Child', taken from his 'One Hand on the Future' EP. I went to one of Zak's shows last November where he played a small gig at the Notting Hill Arts Club.  He has one of the most flawless live voices that I've ever heard - it honestly sounds like you could be listening to a studio recording him on your iPod.  So I was very keen to try and see him the next time he played in London. The show sold out in a couple of days which certainly demonstrates his rapidly growing popularity in the UK music scene.  The venue was the ideal size for him and his band; big enough to ...

This week's track comes from the soundtrack of the film adaptation of Jojo Moyes' bestselling novel, 'Me Before You' (this obviously isn't a book blog but I would highly recommend reading it before seeing the film - a proper tearjerker but a great holiday read).  I'm looking forward to seeing  the movie anyway, but when I found out that one of my favourite artists, Jessie Ware, had a song on the score, it made me even more excited. 'Till The End' is exactly what you'd expect from Jessie Ware - slow, romantic and expertly showcases her husky and sultry voice.  The keys and echoing backing vocals used provide the track with a nineties R&B vibe which I really like, but it still manages to remain true to Ware's unique sound.  I think that sometimes artists can lose a sense of their own genre when featuring on film soundtracks, but 'Till The End' certainly doesn't have that effect. If this particular track is anything to g...

This week's track comes from British electronic artist Bibio and is taken from his seventh studio album, 'A Mineral Love', released earlier this month.  If you haven't heard of him before, then you'd probably recognise Bibio's 2009 track 'Lover's Carvings', which has been featured in the background of several adverts. The chosen track 'Town & Country' is wonderfully uplifting and has an almost jazz-like feel to it with the instruments that he uses.  It discusses the idea of working hard in the city for your money and how rapidly (and somewhat annoyingly) that you manage to spend it all.  Think most of us can relate to that problem. Despite talking about a somewhat disheartening topic, the promise of the countryside is what allows this song to retain its positive and summer appropriate vibe.  The contrast between the hustle and bustle of big cities and towns with the dream-like country makes this track ideal to listen to at th...

With the full Glastonbury 2016 line-up having been announced a few days ago, I thought this week's track should be somebody that will be playing the festival. I discovered London singer-songwriter NAO in the summer of last year when I heard her track 'Inhale Exhale' from her EP 'February 15'.  Since then she came third on the BBC Sound of 2016 long-list and also collaborated with Disclosure on their most recent album. Currently, she hasn't announced any set date for a debut LP release, but if this single is anything to go by, it'll be something to look forward to. 'Bad Blood' is probably my favourite of the tracks that NAO has released so far.  It has a lovely summer vibe to it, despite being released in the latter part of 2015, with a lot of references to holidays and tropical destinations.  She has such a wonderfully rich tone to her voice that compliments the synths and layered vocal harmonies that feature throughout the song.  She ...

Sorry for not posting for a few weeks, I have had so many deadlines and not much time to write any posts! I've been a huge fan of Matt Corby ever since I saw a YouTube video of him performing his track 'Untitled' acoustically by a fountain.  He has one of the most effortlessly beautiful and haunting voices that I've ever heard and I instantly fell in love with his music. Although he actually achieved his major breakthrough back in 2011 with his fourth EP, 'Into the Flame', he had been yet to release a full album of his material - that was until he released the first single, titled 'Monday', from his debut LP 'Telluric' back in October 2015.   The full album was released on Friday and I have had it constantly on repeat and have even turned my Dad into a fan; it is truly a work of art.  Each track stands out in its own right, but together it creates a wonderfully mellow soundtrack to have playing in the background, whilst you're ...

You may know singer Raleigh Ritchie from his 2014 track 'Stronger than Ever' (or potentially from his various acting roles in Game of Thrones and Adulthood), which was featured in several adverts and was also covered by Lily Allen in the Radio 1 Live Lounge.  He's released several EPs prior to the release of his debut album 'You're a Man Now, Boy' last Friday, which is where this week's chosen track, 'Never Say Die', is taken from. I think what makes Raleigh Ritchie's sound so distinctive is his ability to sing and rap equally well, something that often sees two different artists on a track.  'Never Say Die' is no exception, with Ritchie showcasing both of these talents, which highlights the hip-hop influences that have helped him to create his own music.  His songs can be argued to be particularly relatable to the current generation, with numerous references to drugs and nightclubs, and potentially how too much of this is not alw...

This week's track is definitely not a new release, but I have recently re-discovered it in my music library and couldn't resist. 'Millionaire', a collaboration between R&B stars Kelis and Andre 3000 is arguably one of the most popular, and in my opinion, best releases of the noughties.  I can't quite put my finger on what exactly it is that makes this song so good. Firstly I think it is undeniably catchy, which is what has led me to listen to it so much lately - it's been endlessly stuck in my head.  Also being at uni means that it's frequently played in clubs on nights of 'throwback jams', therefore automatically makes you feel nostalgic for when you were a pre-teen and used to watch the music channels for hours on end. The lyrics also have such great meaning; that being rich isn't all it cracked up to be, and having so much money can sometimes give you more problems and make you unhappier.  And as Kelis states in her verse: ...

So this week I've chosen a song called 'Make You Feel' by Alina Baraz and Galimatias.  Taken from the 'Urban Flora' EP released back in May of this year, I found this track as a remixed version by Hotel Garuda was featured in the background of a YouTube video (the remix is also worth listening to).   The song begins with simple keyboard backing and dreamy vocals from Alina Baraz, but then transcends into a more electronic track. Featuring a lot of warping effects and layering of the vocals, 'Make You Feel' is a super chilled out song which makes you reminisce about the warmer days of the summer months.   The rest of the 'Urban Flora' EP has a very similar vibe to it, with Baraz's smooth vocals working their magic on every track. Listen to 'Make You Feel' here The remix by Hotel Garuda is here The 'Urban Flora' EP is available to download on iTunes here

I've lost track of the number of years that I have been a fan of the antics of Oxford singer-songwriter Lewis Watson - he's been one of my favourite artists for so long and still is to this day.  Lewis released his debut album 'The Morning' back in the summer of 2014 and it was wonderful - with many of the tracks from his previously released EPs featuring, along with several new songs, it was a treat for those people who had been following him since the beginning. So when he premiered a brand new track from album number two last Friday, to say that I was excited was a huge understatement. 'Maybe We're Home' has come after much anticipation and teasing from Lewis about new music being on the way and it certainly doesn't disappoint.  I must admit that I was pleasantly surprised by the first few bars of the song, when the sound of an electric guitar featured so prominently, a refreshing change from the acoustic guitars which were mainly used on...