New month, new music.
Our June Playlist picks out our favourite recent releases, from bedroom pop and confessional indie to emotive euphoria.
In this feature we’re collating our favourite songs of the past month, every month.
June 2021
Featuring: Wynona, Bad Sauna, Cathy Jain, Mumble Tide, Sick Sad World, Rebekah Fitch, Josienne Clark, Pom Pom Squad, BXB LOVE, Olivia Morreale, Pongo, Wet Leg
Words: Amy Albinson & Molly Davies
Cover Art: @alexandraisart
Get Back To Myself | Wynona
A confessional indie anthem, bedroom-pop duo Wynona’s new single Get Back To Myself is a saunter through clattering drums and jangly guitar melodies. Based in Reading, the couple romanticise a period of loneliness and isolation as they reflect on time spent living in Osaka as the pandemic hit. Filled with catchy hooks, it’s a sweetly track.
Kaikki Kotona | Bad Sauna
Following the release of their debut album last year, Helsinki indie-rockers Bad Sauna return with new single Kaikki Kotona. Brimming with upbeat, melodic hooks, the track holds tight to a striking groove, darting vocals and soaring choral pop rushes.
Cool Kid | Cathy Jain
New YALA! Records signing Cathy Jain is difficult to pigeon hole. With an RnB edge brushing against aqueous synths, her minimalistic style adds a blissful gentleness to her melodies. Arriving like a hazy daydream, with a vocal delivery that at times echoes boredom, the cushioning lull in her voice leads down a path of school day reminiscing that feels as honest as it is enticing.
Breakfast | Mumble Tide
Bristol-based duo Mumble Tide’s latest release takes their bedroom-pop sound into slacker-pop territory. The perfect accoutrement for expansive landscapes when a flurry hits, Gina Leonard’s saccharine vocals glide through lo-fi wanderings, unexpected fuzzy guitars and a rising chorus that’s hard to shake.
An Introduction To Nobody | Sick, Sad World
In a fuzz-laden stream of echoing grunge drawl, arrives Sick, Sad World, the solo project of Ashwin Bhandari. Inspired by the likes of My Bloody Valentine, Wavves and uh, clearly Daria, the self-produced Garage Band record is taking a heavier approach, a testament to the versatility of lo-fi bedroom recordings. Take a listen to album opener An Introduction To Nobody.
Goodbye | Rebekah Fitch
There’s a riveting deepness to Rebekah Fitch’s brand of alt-pop. Coated in crystal clear, emotive vocals, new track Goodbye interlaces a humming bass backdrop that feels grounding and emotive. Written as a dedication to a lifetime of goodbyes that have never felt right, there’s a sharpness to the song, a touch of vulnerability taken wholly in her stride.
Sit Out | Josienne Clark
Chaotic and dissonant, Sit Out is a barrage of sound. There is anger in the lyrics and anger in the instrumentation, all honed in on an industry that consistently gas lights women and minimises their experience and work. Sit Out feels like a reclamation of the hours of work and dedication Josienne Clark has put into her career to date.
Crying | Pom Pom Squad
Tackling mental health is a daunting task, even more so when coping methods are brushed under the carpet in favour of writing songs and getting over it. In lead vocalist Berrin’s own words “no amount of songwriting is a substitute for medication and therapy”. The track expertly blends anxiety inducing dissonance and cinematic strings with heavier riffs and drums. Intimate yet cathartic, it is the perfect song if you feel a twinge of summertime sadness.
Losers | BXB LOVE
BXB Love is back with yet another stunning alt-pop track. An anthem in accepting your flaws, Losers celebrates loving yourself wholeheartedly and accepting the good with the bad as a means of combating feelings of low self worth and social anxiety. Genreless and euphoric, Losers is your next favourite summer track.
Another Moon | Olivia Morreale
June saw Olivia Morealle release galactic EP Space Dreams. Full of low-fi, indie pop soundscapes, Another Moon is a particularly chilled jazzy highlight, the perfect accompaniment to lazy, sunny afternoons as the weather heats up.
BRUXOS | Pongo
BRUXOS is a euphoric revolt against the restraints, whether self made or not, that prevent your own meteoric rise. Multiple rhythmic layers culminate in the track, all expertly played live in a studio by incredible instrumentalists who give the track a live energy while retaining that coveted feeling of a club banger.
Chaise Longue | Wet Leg
Well known music hot-spot, the Isle of Wight has produced yet another iconic duo in the form of Wet Leg. Signing to Domino and dropping their debut single, Chaise Longue, the pair seem destined to take over the indie scene. Both nonchalant and energetic with biting lyrics, Chaise Longue is an instant classic and a striking debut.
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