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Music Wrap: The must-listen to tracks from February

PHOTOGRAPHY BY PAIGGE WARTON
WORDS BY ELIZA SHOLLY

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When I sat down to write this column, it took me a hot minute to even decipher what month I was reflecting on. Is it just me, or is life feeling like a floating abyss of nothingness right now?

We’ve just survived a pandemic, and are now staring down the very real prospect of a large-scale invasion. It feels remiss to think about much else right now, particularly as someone who is spectating from the sidelines, enjoying the privileges that living in Australia affords. Some people aren’t so lucky.


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If I think about it too much, I’ll be sent into a spiral that my mental health may not be able to tolerate. I recognise how lucky I am to be able to tap out in these circumstances, but if you’re also just doing you right now, keep reading for some musical escapism.

This Koffee interview by The Face

I really enjoyed this interview with Koffee on The Face magazine, written by Jessica Morgan. Koffee is one of the most interesting and dynamic artists in the game right now, and she hasn’t even released her debut album. Ahead of the project, titled Gifted, she chats about fronting the next generation of reggae music, and how she plans to follow up her massive first slew of tracks.

‘Gay 4 Me’ – G Flip ft. Lauren Sanderson

Olivia Rodrigo, Willow Smith, Doja Cat – it seems everyone is entering their pop-punk era at the moment. So too is the case with G-Flip, who released this queer power ballad late last week. The song, featuring LA-based Lauren Sanderson, sees G wax lyrical about an experience that is super common for people in the queer community.

Speaking to Triple J, they affirmed that they “personally think you can’t help who you end up attracted to. No matter what gender or sexuality. I’ve been on the other end of this situation, where girls have told me they aren’t gay, but they’re gay for me. The words really fell out of my mouth when writing this one”. There is also an accompanying music video to check out if you fancy.

Black Radio III – Robert Glasper

Ten years ago, Robert Glasper released Black Radio, a ground-breaking fusion of jazz, rap, hip-hop and R&B featuring technical innovation that hadn’t been seen since the likes of Jay Electronica or Sun-Ra. The extraordinary vision was then reimagined on 2013’s Black Radio II, and now on Black Radio III, released on February 25 via Loma Vista.

A celebration of black music, black love and black resilience, the project features appearances from Q-Tip, H.E.R, BJ The Chicago Kid, Esperanza Spalding, Lalah Hathaway, Common, Musiq Soulchild, De La Soul’s Posdnous, India Arie and Ty Dolla $ign. If you’re looking for an introduction to contemporary jazz at its best, begin your education with the Black Radio trilogy.

Angel in Realtime – Gang of Youths

Sydney-formed and now London-based, this five-piece rock band pretty much broke Australian radio with ‘Let Me Down Easy’ and ‘Magnolia’, alongside some too-hot-to-be-legal hip movement by frontman Dave Le’aupep in this Splendour performance. I have had to ban myself from watching it. I want to be his belt so bad.

Horniness aside, their new (and third) album Angel in Realtime is tender and introspective. It tracks between grief and understanding as Le’aupep reconciles with the death of his late father. Standout tracks include ‘Hand of God’, with an outro by the Auckland Gospel Choir, and ‘The Angel of 8th Ave’.

‘What Should I Do’ – Budjerah

I’m embarrassingly late to the magic of Budjerah. Hailing from Fingal Head on the QLD/NSW border, he is a Coodjinburra man from the Bundjalung nation. Three songs – ‘What Should I Do’, ‘Wash My Sorrows Away’ and ‘Talk’ ft. May-A – have been dropped ahead of his upcoming second EP, Conversations. Each has its own distinct R&B/soul flavour, with Budjerah’s Miguel-esque vocals serving as the main focal point of each. Check them out before the EP drops.

CFK’s Record Bag

I love this playlist from Melbourne DJ and music-maker Cassettes For Kids. Ever since I attended and wrote about his boiler room set last year, I have been lusting over his music taste and A+ talent for selecting. I follow a few Record-Bag/Track ID playlists from DJs all around the world.

Disclosure (guilty pleasure) have a good one that has introduced me to some semi-obvious heavy hitters that I often hear on dancefloors. But what I like about Cassette’s For Kids’ selection is that there’s hardly anything typical in there. There is an equal distribution of local music, intertwined with experimental randomness of jungle, drum and bass, liquid house and plenty more. Follow it here and enjoy.

Other notable mentions

Beach Boy – Benee

Love It When You Hate Me – Avril Lavigne ft. Blackbear

Wait – Troye Sivan ft. Gordi

Nail Salon – Jack Harlow

Celebrity Skin – Doja Cat

Nothing Yet – Eliza & The Delusionals

Mulan – Michael Sneed

Emo Girl – Machine Gun Kelly and Willow

Want It Bad – Kid Cudi ft. Nigo

Chicken Teriyaki – Rosalia

The Crowd (Live From Melbourne) – The Cat Empire

You can follow Eliza here.

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