-Vladivostok, Russia
-Wuhan, China
-Mbabane, Swaziland
Prom Sawyer has yet to start a consistent playlist feature. We've had some fantastic submissions lately, and I want the chance to share my favorites en masse, and play my role in that vast performance that is the sharing of music.
First up, I've been hoping to hear a rework of James Blake's "Retrograde" that darkens its darker aspects. I like what Rally has done here with those ghostly techno synths just fluttering in the background. The chorus has some phenomenal reimagining and drops with quite the bang. James Blake just entered the Matrix.
Next there's California-based Primul's latest set - I've included "Crystalline" below, but there's a trove of material here. Primul has a vivid imagination - he doesn't hear synths, but ancient civilizations, not snares, but stone castles. As the name might suggets, he sticks to his intuition, making soundscapes on the fly. There's something noble in that pursuit - like the blindfolded kung-fu master - and I believe the almost mystic simplicity of the music reflects it. Give this a listen!
Inspired & The Sleep hails from San Diego. There's some California sunshine in the flutes that form the rhythm section for the budding psych-pop project's "Sink." I usually avoid analogy, but think if Vampire Weekend and Foster the People delved more into polyrhythms.
Here's another California band who approximates their sound as a "mash-up of the last three decades." It's true, it's hard to nail down - "Arctic" doesn't let you predict what chord, or what instrument, or even what theme will emerge next. LCL CHNNL just sounds good, and full of potential.
Enjoy those six-packs, everybody. I'm glad to be back and writing again. Thanks to all for the submissions!
