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If you were looking for an album to soundtrack your summer of socially distanced tinnies in the park and virtual pub nights, then look no further than Hinds’ latest album, ‘The Prettiest Curse’.
On it they’ve ditched the raucous garage rock which they’d perfected on their first two albums, and instead embraced pop melodies, lush instrumentation and glossy production, on an album that’s the musical equivalent of the sun peaking out from behind the clouds after a thunderstorm. We’ve chosen ‘Boy’ for the NME Radio playlists this week, a euphoric cut that blends the bands growling riffs with shoegaze and enraptured dream-pop.
Also new on NME Radio this week: Gorillaz have teamed up with Octavian for the fourth episode of their Song Machine series, The Aces try out R&B beats for the latest taste of their upcoming album ‘Under My Influence’ and IAMDDB celebrates “embracing love” on the sultry ‘Quarantine’.
Here are all this week’s additions to the NME 1 & 2 playlists:
On the A List
Hinds
‘Boy’
On the A List this week we’ve got ‘Boy’, taken from Hinds’ stellar new album ‘The Prettiest Curse’. With its cantering rhythm section, twinkling guitar licks and exhilarating group vocals, it’s a dreamy summer anthem.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
On the B List
Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever
‘Cameo’
“This is a love song. It’s about reaching through time portals,” Rolling Blackouts’ Fran Keaney has explained of ‘Cameo’. Writing the lyrics over the course of a year, and gradually piecing them together, it’s a gloriously love-struck slice of the band’s post-punk tinted indie.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
Gorillaz
‘Friday 13th (feat. Octavian)’
For the latest instalment of Gorillaz’s Song Machine series (where the virtual band “spit out brand new episodes fresh from the studio, as and when they happen”) they’ve teamed up with Octavian. Combining woozy synths and clattering production with Octavian’s lilting vocals, the wistful song is a total treat.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
Fontaines D.C.
‘I Don’t Belong’
The latest glimpse we’ve had of Fontaines D.C. upcoming album ‘A Hero’s Death’ is a grumbling slab of the Irish band’s snarling post-punk.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
Michael Stipe & Big Red Machine
‘No Time For Love Like Now’
In March, Michael Stipe performed his collaboration with The National’s Aaron Dessner (under his Big Red Machine moniker), ‘No Time For Love Like Now’, live from lockdown. Finally, we’ve been gifted the studio version of the song. A sprawling, otherworldly amalgam of glam rock, jangling folk and ethereal guitar licks (courtesy of Big Red Machine’s other founder, Justin Vernon), it’s eerily beautiful.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
On the C List
The Aces
‘Kelly’
With its strutting bassline, bobbing hi-hat beats and dangerously catchy chorus, the new one from The Aces is a stone-cold smasher.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
IAMDDB
‘Quarantine (Prod.by Adrian)’
IAMDDB’s new one is about giving in to love. “For all the hearts filled with love. Fear only rules your heart if you allow it and right now is a time to embrace love instead of running from it,” she explains of it. Filled with squelchy trap beats and sultry vocals, it’s brilliant.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
Roosevelt
‘Sign’
German producer Roosevelt has returned with his first new single since second album ‘Young Romance’ in 2018, and it’s a belter. Combining buoyant house beats with throbbing synths and soaring vocals, it’s pure dance-floor joy. The only problem? We won’t be hearing it slipped into DJ sets at festivals this summer.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
Tricky
‘Fall Please (feat. Marta)’
“With most of my stuff there’s nothing else like it around; but with ‘Fall Please’ I’ve managed to do something I’ve never been able to before which is that everyone can feel it – even people who don’t know my music,” Tricky has explained of his new tune, ‘Fall. Please’. “It’s my version of pop music the closest I’ve got to making pop” he adds. Combining ominous melodies with elements of Go-go and electronica, Tricky’s version of pop music sounds pretty good to us.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
Lucia & The Best Boys
‘Let Go’
Lastly on the playlist this week we’ve got this slow-burning beauty from Lucia & The Best Boys. All sprawling piano lines and velvety vocals, it’s a poignant treat from the band.
Listen: Spotify | Apple Music
The post NME Radio Roundup 15 June: Hinds, Gorillaz and more appeared first on NME Music News, Reviews, Videos, Galleries, Tickets and Blogs | NME.COM.
