Electric Feels: Your Weekly Electronic Music Recap

EP / ALBUM OF THE WEEK

Billie Eilish - Don't Smile At Me

When we first discovered the young Billie Eilish two years ago, the then-13-year-old musician was one of indie-electronic's most promising, teasing at a vocal maturity beyond her years with Ocean Eyes. While the comparisons to Lana Del Rey in particular still stand, on her debut EP Don't Smile At Me Eilish is confident and strong, shattering her 'fragile' early persona and replacing it with one far more complex. Featuring fan-favourites such as her ground-breaking debut Ocean Eyes and recent singles like Bellyache and Watch, Don't Smile At Me is the perfect starting point for those yet to familiarise themselves with the young pop powerhouse, a increasingly-impressive powerhouse who's set to come down under later on the year for a quick set of shows in Sydney and Melbourne (they're presented by Laneway Festival, so hopefully she'll be back early next year too).

SINGLES / REMIXES OF THE WEEK

Moses Sumney - Quarrel

Moses Sumney has always been one of those artists who are just that little too left-field for me to get into, but Quarrel breaks this boundary for me. The US-based alt-R&B name shines on Quarrel - a new cut from his forthcoming new album Aromanticism - stripping things back for a romantic ballad which oozes with this elegant neo-soul sound, semi-reminiscent of some of Solange's recent stuff. The single is hauntingly sombre until around mid-way through, where the jazzy shading behind much of the song exposes itself and lunges forward, playfully dancing with Thundercat's addictive basslines and all.

Anatole - Like Deep Water feat. Ólafur Arnalds

Much like Billie Eilish before him, Anatole has been another one of our favourite long-term names, but he's been quiet recently. For over a year now he's been heads-down busy writing his debut album - set for release early next year on Mercury KX - only to have now returned this week with Like Deep Water. Featuring Ólafur Arnalds' soft piano, Like Deep Water further solidifies Anatole's early comparisons to Bonobo in his Northern Borders era, diving into a mellow, yet quite paced percussion-saturated sound. Like Deep Water is one of those tracks that continue to grow denser as it progresses, adding on chiming samples and soft melodies across its four-minute length. Consider his forthcoming debut album one of our most looked forward to.

King Henry - Moment feat. Rhye

After last month's dazzling RY X collaboration Destiny, Beyoncé/Major Lazer collaborator King Henry has returned with another delicate cut, this time teaming up with Rhye for Moment. Much like on their recent collaboration with Bonobo, Rhye's soulful, R&B-tinged vocals shine on Moment, which when contrasted with King Henry's plucking and joyous string-infused production creates a song worth listening to (and writing about). I'm not 100% sure what King Henry is up to with his recent releases (i.e. if they're apart of a bigger package or if there are more to come), but either way I'm exciting to find out - his recent releases has us reminded by Beyoncé counts him as one of her favourites.

TOKiMONSTA - We Love feat. MNDR

Continuing our overseas run of acts, TOKiMONSTA is another of our long-time favourite names. In anticipation of the release of her new album Lune Rouge in early October, the LA-based producer has teamed up with past collaborators MNDR for a funky new single We Love. We Love boasts TOKiMONSTA's characteristically playful and happy charm, combining MNDR's uplifting vocals with a charging, synth-driven production which further cements TOKiMONSTA's status as one of electronic's best producers. Here's hoping the rest of the album is just as good as the singles we have heard thus far.

Human Movement - I Need

Human Movement have been one of our most reliable recent sources for big ol' tech-house bangers, something which is sure to continue in future years. I Need, the title track and lead single from their new two-track EP, is their first release on the Of Leisure label and while it's not exactly the dark and gritty tech sound that we're used to from the pairing, it still does the job perfectly. Stretched out to over six minutes in length, I Need is a sweaty, vocal-infused house romper which brings together everything we've loved from Human Movement's productions over the years and channels them into much more uplifting and accessible direction which we're excited about.

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