Jamie-Rose - Casual

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Australian artist Jamie-Rose recently released Casual back on Friday, with the beat produced by EDY. A catchy piece based on the conversation that anyone single and under 30 probably knows well by now. She had reached out to talk about some of the music she has just waiting for release, and there will be some more pretty dope content coming from her soon - trust me. In the meantime, definitely check out Casual and keep an eye on this space for more.

If you’re looking for the Spotify link to add to your playlists, it’s right here. If you prefer Apple music instead, we’ve got you covered too.

Still working on getting posts up here more regularly, have a lot of projects on the go currently (but everything posted is of course top-quality).

-KJ

fromthedeepends - 1994 and Anitta

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I’ve been coming across a lot of really dope fresh and independent hip hop and trap lately. fromthedeepends is definitely one of the standouts to me. 1994 was my first introduction to their work, with a really mellow and laid back groove, but a seriously thoughtful and technical flow throughout.

Anitta comes with a very different style, vibe and lyrical content. This one is much more focused on the flex and the complimentary pursuit of who I can only assume is Anitta. The Titanic reference tossed in was pretty great, and the whole track is dope from start to finish.

Also, both of these are up for free download, so grab them and put them in rotation, there’s nothing stopping you.

-KJ

This Ain't Bristol - Amsterdam Selections

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One of the first blog posts on freshdrops was the original TAB Selections back in 2015. Now they’re back with another massive compilation of driving tech-house in preparation/commemoration of the Amsterdam Dance Event (ADE) coming up at the end of October. 14 tracks from artists like This Ain’t Bristol regulars like Maximono and Nick Olivetti, along with some new faces. The sound throughout is signature TAB though - grimy, deep, dark and pounding tech-house.

My two standout picks from this compilation are definitely BYOR - Call Me Up, and MKJAY & Lowdown’s Afterhours.

The official release isn’t until October 12th, but check out the sampling of the entire compilation below.

-KJ

Ekali & mossy. - Stay Hollow

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Producers Ekali and mossy. team up to bring this brooding trap banger. The whole thing has a great mix of chill and evolving soundscapes, vocal chops, piano breakdowns. When the beat drops in, the whole thing has a slow jam groove to it that sells me on the whole thing. Check this out, and watch for mossy. dropping some new material soon.

Also, get this on your preferred platform through this link.

-KJ

FromThx L - Thx L Vol.1 EP

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FromThx L reached out to me and put himself on my radar a little while back when he was putting out Who Am I?, which impressed me. Since then he’s come back with quality content with FWY and now with the Vol.1 EP. All 3 tracks have distinct flows and sounds, and feature different producers behind each beat ( RK, Black Mayo, TraxxHitmaker). The bars here are also tight, catchy, and reflective. Don’t sleep on this EP, and keep an eye on future work on Apple Music, Spotify, or Soundcloud.

-KJ

Johnny Utah - Skytop Garden

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Sometimes a slightly drunken phone message makes the perfect intro to a fun and funky jam. Johnny Utah proves this in spades on Skytop Garden, released through Nice Guys Records. This is a jam, trust me. Have a listen below and I doubt you’ll disagree.

If you want purchasing or other platform streaming options, click here.

-KJ

Soft Eyez - Cup Noodles

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Perfect for some Sunday relaxation, Effortless featured a beauty piece from Soft Eyez who brings a jazzy piano vibe and tosses a laid back beat down to round it all out. The warbles and echoes in the piano track keep you guessing a little as to what’s coming next. This is a short little jam that will make you want to repeat a few times through. You can also grab a free mp3 so you can loop it to your heart’s content.

-KJ

rgry - 9302018

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I’m jumping back in here with a few posts, and what better way to start than with the freshest piece of trap from a producer I’ve been following for a long time. rgry just dropped 9302018, which is a short but intense burst of experimental bass. Check this out soon though, rgry tends to upload and delete from their soundcloud page often.

-KJ

Anfa Rose - Come Clean

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I came across Anfa Rose back in December, with his track I'm Good, which is also a heater if you haven't heard it yet. Following up his last single In and Out and his last longer release She Been Waiting II is Come Clean. I would say clean beats and heartfelt bars characterize most of Anfa Rose's body of work, and this is no exception. 

Shoutout to Palétte music's Youtube channel for uploading this:

-KJ

Harrison Brome - 9 to 5

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To be fair, I have to give it to Spotify's discover feature, it manages to dig up cool stuff that I've missed on a pretty consistent basis. This beauty from Harrison Brome is one such suggested track. 9 to 5 starts with a really mellow lead up with amazing vocal chops on display, and even without any drums, the vocals give you a feel good vibe. Then the beat drops in to spice up the groove.

Really nice chill afternoon summer jam, stream below!

-KJ

It's been a while!

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So the most recent hiatus from posting has been again due to focusing on my masters program. However, in an attempt to force myself to write more both for my thesis and for this, I'm hoping to start posting regularly again. On a related note, I've also started helping a little bit with artist recruitment for Choon.co, which is a new streaming and music distribution service that is trying to solve some issues with the traditional music industry using smart contracts. This is quite an interesting area for me because it combines my academic work in tech and society, and blockchain specifically, with my passion of music. I think it's a pretty cool project, but don't take my word for it - check the link above, or watch the explanation video below.

One other cool thing that Choon is planning to implement are monetized playlists - this could be a really great way to promote and be able to support the costs of blogging or to provide some recognition of listeners that share music. All around pretty cool stuff!

You can also check out updates from Choon on Medium to keep up on platform development!

That's it for an update for now, will be back more soon though :)

-KJ

What So Not - Divide & Conquer (Noisia Remix)

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The remix pack that this track is a part of showed up in my inbox earlier last week courtesy of Sweat It Out, and I am super pumped to include it on the blog.  Having gone through the remix pack in its entirety, and given the heavy tracks I've been posting this week, the Noisia remix of What So Not's Divide & Conquer fit in perfectly.

This remix is so heavy I should be including a disclaimer in the post. In fact, there's your disclaimer right there.  Noisia goes in hard on this remix, and have come out with an intense genre-bending piece of work that I'm honestly stumped as to how to classify it.  It has drum and bass elements, drumstep elements, trap elements, and some stuff beyond all of these. The buildups are put together in a way that brings the pressure straight to your chest before dropkicking you in the same region with the huge distorted basslines that take the focus as soon as you hear them.

I don't even know what more to say on this one, other than you need to listen to it now, and put it on repeat if you like anything heavy in your musical diet at all.  Hit this link to grab this remix and the rest of the package on the major music retailers/streaming platforms.

-KJ

Freedom Fry - Junkie (Penguin Prison Remix)

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After all the heavy posts this week, I thought it would be good to include something a little softer and sweeter, but no less awesome.  Penguin Prison's remix of Junkie by Freedom Fry hits the spot nicely.  

Penguin Prison takes the very indie rock sounding original and makes it very danceable by putting a bit of a nu disco twist in while still keeping a bit of the indie rock feel. The entirety of the vocals stay in the remix for those of you looking for something to sing along with, and this is a perfect song to sandwich into your summer road trip playlists or for your beach lounge sessions. 

If this is the style you're looking for this weekend, add this and the rest of Freedom Fry's Remixes EP on Apple Music or Spotify.

-KJ

Haiko - Villain Anthem

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It's not often I go back to dubstep these days, but once in a while a track comes up that I can't help but support.  Haiko's Villain Anthem is one of those tracks.  It brings me back to when I was listening to dubstep much more regularly, which is probably because Villain Anthem sounds like the 16Bit discography (RIP) and Lost - Escape from the Womb had an illegitimate love-child that is giving a PSA on a state of emergency. This is not music for the faint of heart, but if you're into some heavy bass music with horror style vocal drops, get on it. Also up as a free download, so grab it for your music collection for nothing at all. 

-KJ

Rampa ft. Meggy - Everything (c.Rius Remix)

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This one is a slow burning but hard hitting deep house track for your Monday night.  Reworking the 2012 track Everything from Rampa and Meggy, Berlin producer c.Rius brings a little grimier club feel by amping up some classic house percussion while still keeping the understated sexual lyrics from the original. If you're somehow still rocking that afterparty vibe from your weekend or looking for something to get your evening activities started, this is the vibe for you.  Nothing too fancy or overly complex, just a solid rework of a great release from Keinemusik - and this one is available to you as a free download.

-KJ

Golf Clap & Sebb Junior - You Can't Hide

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No strangers to this blog, eternal tastemakers Eton Messy have just released another solid free download from American Country Club Disco directors Golf Clap and tech house producer Sebb Junior. 

This is a chill tech house summer jam with really nice loungey pads and a really pleasant progression of accent keys.  All of this comes with the vocal "girl don't you know that you can't hide..." that filters in and out of the track wrapping it all together nicely. There is even a nice bassline that enters early, but remains understated throughout. Definitely going to be banging this one out in my summer sets and road trips, and why not?  It's free fiery goodness!

Really happy to have come across this today, as somehow I had missed Sebb Junior until today. No longer, make sure you check out his Soundcloud as there are a ton of recent heaters there and ready to go.

-KJ

Loote - High Without Your Love (NAKID Remix)

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Fresh New York duo Loote has come out with what I can only imagine will be a 2017 summer anthem. The original is fairly stripped back and reminds me very much of the Chainsmokers hit that seems to keep holding popularity, Closer. If the radio can get over the mild references to drug use, High Without Your Love is bound to follow in the same footsteps. At the same time, this is a call to love as opposed to a drug fuelled anthem, and the musical production follows in the same feel good path laid out by the lyrics.

The remix we're supporting comes from Swedish producer NAKID that turns up the energy slightly with additional percussion while still keeping the emotional feel of the original. The result is a danceable romantic ode to a significant other.  Give it a listen and make sure to add it to your Spotify summer playlists.

-KJ