You can read more features in our Music + Culture section.

Pablo Vittar, Rina Sawayama – Follow Me

“If you want to set yourself free, Follow Me”…sing Pabllo Vittar and Rina Sawayama on their collaborative track, Follow Me. Both artists recently featured on Lady Gaga’s remix album and previously collaborated on a remix of Rina’s Comme des Garçons.

Follow Me is a high energy, sexy, genre-bending subversive LGBTQ+ anthem fusing Brazilian, Japanese, club and cyber culture. We love the guitar, immersive synths, dirty bass and of course, both Pabllo and Rina’s vocals fused together.

Lynks – Perfect Human Specimen

Meteorically rising art-punk provocateur Lynks today unleashes their new trilogy: “MEN”,  and shares its final entry “Perfect Human Specimen”.

Drenched in 80s sensibilities, “Perfect Human Specimen” is an electro-pop smash that harks back to the greats of Depeche Mode, Pet Shop Boys & Soft Cell; all pulsating synths and driving basslines that culminate in an explosive saxophone solo finale. Lynks once again uses their lyrical prowess this time describing (with a heavy dose of cynicism and firm tongue-in-cheek-manner) the ‘Perfect Man’.

Speaking on the track Lynks says:

“When I wrote ‘Perfect Human Specimen’ I was thinking a lot about the idea of a ‘Perfect Man’. Imagining what that actually means; how tall? How attractive? How funny? Because the instinct is to say that you’d want the hottest, funniest, smartest, most selfless, sweetest man in the world. But in reality that would be fucking stressful. Because, firstly, you wouldn’t be able to help comparing yourself to him and feeling kinda shit by comparison. But secondly, it might also start feeling a bit much after a while! A bit exhausting, all that perfection and attentiveness. Imperfections and vulnerabilities are kind of important when it comes to actually connecting to someone. So with Perfect Human Specimen I decided to try and write a song from the POV of this hypothetical ‘Completely 100% Perfect Man’, and hopefully in the process reveal that the ‘Perfect Man’ is actually not so perfect after all.”

Alex & The Alpaca – Adorable

22-year old Nicaraguan-Norwegian Alex & The Alpaca welcomes us to his universe with his new single, Adorable. We are immediately immersed with a layered and textured intro before Alex sings, “one time, two times, you let me down, I’m sick and tired of feeling down…”

Being the youngest brother in a family of musicians has given him the opportunity to pick up different musical skills, allowing him to form his own one-man band, and the results are phenomenal with intricate guitar details, subversive bass and eloquent and thought provoking vocals.

Speaking on the track, Alex says “The lyrics of Adorable are ironic, and the beat has a video-game-like characteristic. To me this gives the song a feeling of being on top of the world and a sense of carelessness, like on the day you finally get over someone”.

Bishi – Reflektions

Following the release of her album Let My Country Awake, Bishi has released Reflektions, an immersive composition that has the hairs on our arms standing on edge!

Reflektions, which almost has a Clint Mansell vibe, was composed for Bishi’s 3D video installation commissioned by Ludic Rooms for Coventry City of Culture 2021. The track features Anna Phoebe on violin, and Alexandra Hamilton-Ayres on piano, and was co-produced by Bishi and Richard Norris.

Una Jensen – CROOKED TOOTH, featuring Boy Jr.

Serving up a transdental hyperpop energy, Una Jensen has teamed up with Boy Jr. on her latest single, CROOKED TOOTH. The track fuses dirty bass, twinkling chimes and Una’s iconic rapping.

The track is vibrant and immediately recognisable, and Una says that she included the snare in the chorus “to sound like someone crunching into something, like a potato chip…”

The song is inspired by embracing your imperfections, and speaking on the themes of the track, Una says “I’m mostly excited about having a song out there that specifically talks about having “messed up” teeth, because I never had that!”

We definitely agree that this is likely a “world first” and we are here for it! Una has worked with Adrian Young who is the drummer from No Doubt, Goo Goo Dolls guitarist Jim McGorman and Todd Forman of Sublime!

The lyrics on the hook, “Look at that girl’s crooked tooooooth. Look at her, she makin’ mooooooves” lets us know that Una is here for individuality and her uniqueness shines through on this record.

The post New Music Spotlight appeared first on KIMU.