The 16 best songs I’ve heard in the last couple of weeks, some may be new to you, some not, but I hope you’ll find them all of the highest quality. This latest Cloudcast features a lot of rock and soul plus some electronica, glitch, glam, pop, post-dubstep, indie rock, space disco, indie pop and ambient gospel. You’ll find tunes that sound a bit like Queens of the Stone Age, Dinosaur Jr playing the Buzzcocks, Lana Del Rey on helium and chilled out club tracks. A lot of these tracks can be legally downloaded for free, so please follow the links if you like them and support the artists.
Kingswood – ‘Yeah Go Die’
Grunge-y stoner rock from Melbourne. This has blown up over the last couple of weeks, if they have other songs as good as this they’ll be huge. You can download it for free here:
[Kingswood]
Dangermouse produced indie soul from Los Angeles.
[Electric Guest] King Tuff ‘Bad Thing’
Glam power pop from King Tuff, the alter ego of Kyle Thomas, lead vocalist of the J Mascis side project Witch and freak folkers Feathers. Download it for free over at Sub Pop:
[King Tuff] Retribution Gospel Choir ‘Maharisha’
One of many side projects for Low’s Alan Sparhawk, this is quite different to the dirty indie rock and roll of the first two RGC albums. A big bright stadium rocker from The Revolution EP. You can download the whole EP for free here:
[Retribution Gospel Choir] Bobby Womack ‘Please Forgive My Heart’
Last heard on Gorillas’ ‘Plastic Beach’ the soul legend has again teamed up with Damon Albarn to record his first secular album in nearly 20 years, The Bravest Man In The World (due out in June). This first track has a great vocal from Womack that could have come from one of his classic early 70s albums, while musically it’s as modern as you’d expect from a project featuring Albarn and man-behind-Adele / XL head honcho Richard Russell.
[Bobby Womack] The Men ‘Open Your Heart’
Not sure how this Brooklyn band’s 2011 album ‘Leave Home’ passed me by as these guys are right up my street. This is the title track from their new album and sounds like Dinosaur Jr circa Bug playing The Buzzcock’s ‘Ever Fallen in Love…’. DZ Deathrays ‘No Sleep’
Caught this Brisbane thrashy blues duo at Laneway at the beginning of February and this was one of the standouts of their set. The video pays homage to Paul Simon’s ‘You Can Call Me Al’ promo, with Arj Barker playing the Chevy Chase role.
[DZ Deathrays] Jack White ’16 Saltines’
Jack’s voice spitting out the lyrics in it’s most hysterical falsetto pitch. Big crunching riff and a tasty guitar solo. Can’t wait for the album.
[Jack White] Nick Waterhouse ‘Some Place’
25-year-old San Franciscan plays modern R n’ B in a classic style. Think Daptone / Mark Ronson.
[Nick Waterhouse]
Gossling ‘Wild Love’
From rural Victoria, Helen Croome makes a record that is what I imagine Lana Del Rey might sound like if she stopped pouting, lightened up and sucked on some helium.
[Gossling] Lotus Plaza ‘Strangers’
Deerhunter guitarist Lockett Pundt prepares to release his second album under the Lotus Plaza name. ‘Strangers’ has sonic similarities to his work with Deerhunter, but with a more lo-fi, dreamy, jangly 80s indie vibe going on.
[Lotus Plaza] Siamese Twins ‘We Fall Apart (demo)’
More 80s influenced indie-pop, this time from Chicago. The sound quality isn’t great, but I think that just adds to the lo-fi charm. There’s a link on their Facebook page to download the whole six track demo:
[Siamese Twins] F3 ‘Lonely Land (John Talabot Midnight Club Revision)’
F3 are three brothers from Tel Aviv making space disco. I haven’t heard the original but this remix from so-hot-right-now Spanish dude John Talabot is late night chill-tastic. I keep switching between thinking this is brilliant to feeling physically sick at the thought of being in a club at 2 in the morning.
[F3] SBTRKT ‘Surely’
Like John Talabot, Aaron Jerome aka SBTRKT can’t seem to do any wrong at the moment. His post-dusbtep music manages to appeal to hipster youth and people like myself who wouldn’t be caught dead in a club playing this sort of music.
[SBTRKT] Chrome Sparks feat Steffaloo ‘All There Is’
Glitchy electronica from Jeremy Malvin aka Chrome Sparks
jeremy malvin grew up in pittsburgh then moved to ann arbor to study percussion. now he just chills and makes beats in ann arbor when he isn’t playing drums for stepdad.
[Chrome Sparks] Mister Lies ‘False Astronomy’
Chicago producer Mister Lies deals in what he calls ambient gospel, a good description of this chilled out track from his Hidden Neighbors EP
[Mister Lies]
In The Pharmacy 