Andras & Oscar – Looking Back (Tornado Wallace Dub)
A winning duo in Melbourne’s underground/electronic scene welcomes a triumvirate for a rework of the charming Looking Back, with Tornado Wallace taking Andras & Oscar’s mellow Café Romantica cut from last year into heavier club territory. He gives it a banging house pulse while meditating on the original’s chiming refrain, injecting a tasty bassline that’s greasier than an early-AM pizza.
Nicholas Allbrook – Blanket 3072
Giving Preston its second major musical titular shout-out in 2015, Pond frontman Allbrook basks in a whispery wash on the spacious Blanket 3072. Melodic awareness holds together the watercolour tones, mixing up in a diluted, shimmering pool. There’s not much to grasp, but Blanket 3072 does possess incredibly calming properties. Good for your headspace.
Tame Impala – Let It Happen (Soulwax Remix)
Soulwax don’t mess with the original formula of Let It Happen too much, highlighting the drums at the fore, taking the track into a more rhythmic groove. If anything, the dance aspects of the original have become muted. Not overly different, not overly interesting, but still a nice twist of seasoning for those craving another serving of Currents.
Philadelphia Grand Jury – Crashing & Burning Pt II
When it came to unexciting jjj-oriented indie-fucken-rock, Philadelphia Grand Jury were one of the most exciting, eventually fizzing out into a breakup three years ago. Now they’re back, sounding exactly the same as they left off. There’s no nostalgic demand for the era of their peak – hopefully there never will be – so it’s difficult to see the point here. Throughout Crashing & Burning Pt II, there’s every chance to blow out into Liam Finn-style weirdness, but instead we’re left with something that leans towards insipid, if competent. They’re a capable band, and you could go worse in terms of mid-tier summer festival scheduling, but you can’t help but sense diminishing returns for winning over a new crowd.
Single Of The Week
Carly Rae Jepsen – Warm Blood
Make no mistake, there is not a single dud (even accounting for the expanded deluxe edition tracklist) on Carly Rae Jepsen’s E•MO•TION. The hardest part is picking a favourite. Warm Blood is my favourite. Produced by Vampire Weekend’s Rostam Batmanglij, the density of ideas is insane, without overcooking any of them. The pitched down vocal is the only instance the effect has sounded fresh in recent years, and it only makes a cameo for one line. Jepsen’s main vocal feels immediate and real, sitting in the mix well above a driving beat that is somewhere, or nowhere, between organic and EDM. Masterful pop, a sheer joy. A highlight from one of the year’s best albums so far.
