Fluxblog 446: lo-fi hip-hop instrumental beats you can do whatever to, I don't care, it's just really good music ok
Plus new music by Cat Power, Poppy, Arin Ray, and PinkPantheress
This week’s playlist is I LIKE MUSIC THAT MAKES ME CRY: INSTRUMENTAL HIP-HOP SELECTIONS, moody and mellow and perfect for late night ambiance. This one features music by The Alchemist, Madlib, J Dilla, Kaytranada, MF Doom, RZA, DJ Premier, DJ Shadow, Pete Rock, Tyler the Creator, Flying Lotus, Mndsgn, Knxwledge, and many other fellow travelers. I am particularly fond of this one and know I’ll be playing it on my own time very often. [Spotify | Apple | YouTube]
The Wild Blazing Nighttime
Cat Power “I Don’t Believe You (She Acts Like We Never Have Met)”
Cat Power covering the entirety of Bob Dylan’s famous 1966 concert at the Royal Albert Hall live at the Royal Albert Hall seems like a weird stunt at first but the recording makes it clear that this an ideal vehicle for Chan Marshall’s voice, so much so that it’s like she was born specifically to do this. Marshall is a fine songwriter but her greatest gift is her gorgeous, warm, and vividly human voice, and she’s always shined brightest as an interpreter of other artists’ material.
Many of Marshall’s best covers are so radically reinterpreted that they only half resemble the source material, but her approach to the Dylan songs is extremely faithful to the arrangements Dylan and The Band played in the original show. This isn’t some kind of elaborate karaoke though – she’s very aware that the appeal of this music is largely in its feel and ambiance, and her trick here is immersing herself totally in this aesthetic and inhabiting the atmosphere as well as the words. The sound is basically the same but her presence transforms the music, her voice bringing a specifically feminine earthiness and soulful vulnerability to songs Dylan played as aloof or with some degree of ironic distance. She comes across a lot more earnest but also twice as weary.
“I Don’t Believe You (She Acts Like A We Never Have Met)” in particular is a revelation with Marshall on vocals, with her bringing a sultry sensuality that emphasizes the sexiness in the song rather than its more petulant aspects. I don’t think it’s quite that the song is being sung from the perspective of the She in the lyrics, but I do think the likelihood that Marshall relates to both sides of this story adds a lot of depth to how she sings it.
Buy it from Amazon.
All The Perversions Of Someone Who Could Cut You Off, Surgical
Poppy “Flicker”
“Flicker” sounds more like Poppy’s earlier playfully mystifying version of pop after an excursion into playfully mystifying nu-metal, but with a more direct and aggressive lyrical approach. The melody and cadence remind me a lot of “My Style,” but whereas the confrontational qualities of that song were mixed in with extreme ironic distance – “Poppy is an object, Poppy is your best friend, Poppy will break your neck” – in this song she’s unambiguously tearing into a controlling ex that she’s cut out of her life. To some extent this song seems less about catharsis than sending a clear message to them and a warning to anyone else. And maybe there’s a warning to herself too in the chorus – “I flicker between fear and a vision of forever,” naming the two internal forces that kept her in this situation for too long.
Buy it from Amazon.
Make It Top Five
Arin Ray “Moonlight”
“Moonlight” is an example of a song with one somewhat counterintuitive songwriting/production choice that elevates it from very good to great. In this case, it’s the screwed vocal refrain that drops into the mix, especially when that part is contrasted with a few bright and ascending keyboard notes. Arin Ray’s vocal through the song conveys a paradoxical cocky vulnerability similar to that of The Weeknd, but that slowed down part feels like a moment of ego death where he lets go of his anxieties and lets instinct take over. And of course, that’s the part that sounds the most druggy, suggesting what he’s got to do to quiet his mind down and switch over to full sensuality.
Buy it from Amazon.
Every Song Is About You
PinkPantheress “True Romance”
I’ve had a hard time understanding people who’ve been dismissive about PinkPantheress because her songs are mostly very short, as if that actually means they’re all unfinished or rushed despite the obviously high level of songwriting craft. Like, I can’t imagine people today listening to, say, the first Ramones or Wire records and being like “yeah, ‘Three Girl Rhumba’ is nice, but it should be two minutes longer to count as a real song.” But yet…
“True Romance” is a collaboration with Greg Kurstin, a producer who’s just as ubiquitous as Jack Antonoff but nowhere near as famous, maybe because his resume is almost absurdly varied. It was a surprise to me that he was involved in this song given that it’s so firmly in PinkPantheress’ wheelhouse, but I can see the song’s fairly ambitious structure and tonal shifts coming out of his skill and influence. As with all of her best songs the appeal here is mainly in the low-key elegance of her melodic style, a highly dynamic arrangement, and a vocal that’s so crisp and clear that it borders on uncanny. There’s also an interesting lyrical conceit – she’s singing about being a pop fan in love with her favorite musician, and wondering what she could be to them besides a stranger. The clever thing is that when she sings “tell me, do you view me the same?” she’s still in character as a fan, but it also plays as a question to her own fans now that she’s attained stardom.
Buy it from Amazon.
