We are now mid-way through November, which we feel is a good time to look back on all of the amazing music that has kept us moving through this unusual year. However, the consistent offering of brand new tunes is still showing no signs of slowing down yet, as we were once again blessed with countless new, enjoyable, and most importantly independently made tunes.
In this week’s New Music Sunday, we will be going over 11 of our top picks, with quite a few of them being debut singles, sophomore tracks, or songs that follow up a body of work. We are very excited to get into these, so let’s not waste any more time, and get straight into it.
Track of the Week
Paperwing » Dedicated
‘Dedicated’ s a fantastic representation of Paperwing’s pool of talent, and does Nea’s original version a great justice.
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Throughout 2020, we have loved how much Swedish artist Paperwing has evolved her uncompromising, serene, and incredibly atmospheric sound. In the lead-up to her newest album Equilibrium, Paperwing had released some truly stellar tunes. But even with her album already released, she is far from calling it a year in 2020, as shown by her brand new cover of Nea’s ‘Dedicated’. Soft and stripped-back in tone, this cover effortlessly pulls the listener in, and allows them to truly feel every part of the song. The progressive inclusion of strings only elevates the sense of emotional gravitas that ‘Dedicated’ carries. In conclusion, this track is a fantastic representation of Paperwing’s bottomless pool of talent, and definitely does the original justice.
Heren Wolf » Far
Serving as a continuation of Heren Wolf’s goal to empower and connect listeners with the artist’s sound, we most certainly felt that sense through ‘Far’.
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‘Far’ is the second 2020 single release from Italian chamber pop artist Heren Wolf, following the amazing single ‘Empire’. Serving as a continuation of Heren Wolf’s goal to empower and establish a deep connection with his listeners, and we definitely felt that clearly with this track in particular. The soft brightness that ‘Far’ carries in its sound made us feel like we had been whisked away to some heavenly soundscape, which soaked our souls completely. The gorgeously minimal nature of this tracks earlier half, made way for Heren Wolf’s beautiful vocals to take centre stage, before the production blossomed into a bursting symphony that shone brilliantly with its beauty. We are thoroughly impressed with this artist’s ability to make his music so divine.
Jonny Morgan » Hold On To You
The final piece of Jonny Morgan’s debut EP, ‘Hold On To You’ is arguably one of the most sleek and refined sounding tunes he has released to date.
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‘Hold On To You’ is the final release this year from Bath-based indie folk artist Jonny Morgan, and also makes up the final piece of his debut EP, titled A Brief Introduction. While we have thoroughly enjoyed what Jonny morgan has released earlier this year, especially thanks to it’s dreamily vast nature, ‘Hold On To You’ keeps things refreshingly straight-forward in terms of instrumentation. And in turn, we feel that this quality allows ‘Hold On To You’ to be arguably the most sleek and refined sounding tunes that Jonny Morgan has released to date, and feels right at home in comparison to indie folk tracks with more mainstream success. It is clear to us that Morgan grabbed this year by the horns, with an amazing first batch of tunes.
Lexi Lemonade » How Could I
The plethora of different sound that are found on Lexi Lemonade’s sophomore single flow perfectly with one another to create an amazing soundscape.
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‘How Could I’ is the sophomore single from New Jersey-based musical experimenter Lexi Lemonade, following her debut track ‘Drip’, which was released earlier this year. We could instantly tell that ‘How Could I’ leans towards being for a far more subtle, ambient, and raw approach than the more dynamic debut single. The sense of anticipation that this track’s ambience builds really had us on the edge of our seats. But while doing so, the plethora of different sounds just flow so perfectly with one-another, gently guiding us through this tune’s immaculate progression. This track is the second teaser for Lexi Lemonade’s upcoming EP, and really has our hopes set high for what musical experiences will arrive next.
Matthew Barton » A Peaceful Killing
Focusing on duality between the beautiful and the brutal aspects of life, ‘A Peaceful Killing’ is a very powerful addition to the ‘I Am Norman’ soundtrack.
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Following the recent release of his Queen of England EP, indie folk / folk pop artist Matthew Barton collaborates with filmmakers Darius Shu and Aaron Blake, creating a track for the original motion picture soundtrack of the filmmakers motion picture ‘I Am Norman’. Based on a poem written by Shu, ‘A Peaceful Killing’ is a track that focuses on the duality “between the beautiful and the brutal”. And this is definitely something that we could recognise in the lyrics and the sound behind the track. More importantly, this duality that ‘A Peaceful Killing’ focuses on is one that can be applied to life in general, which means that we believe this track will resonate with many of its listeners.
Moscato » Ljomi
A completely different kind of mood is created by ‘Ljomi’ in comparison to Moscato’s debut track, but it still retains that immaculate sense of depth.
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‘Ljomi’ is the second single release from musician and composer Simon Moscato’s latest musical project, following the amazing ‘Thamel’, which arrived earlier this year. As shown by that debut track, it was very clear that this newfound musical approach was designed to explore a deep sense of atmosphere, and reflect Simon Moscato’s decades-worth of experience. And while we adored the sheer sense of serenity that ‘Thamel’ carried, ‘Ljomi’ sounds refreshingly unique in comparison. A completely different kind of mood is created by this new track, which feels far more raw and cold in its tone, and it definitely spells a very promising new discography under construction.
NKOS » Can’t Wait
‘Can’t Wait’ takes a more atmospheric and sleek brand of the edgy and dynamic aesthetic that NKOS are known and loved for.
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The fourth single release from edgy electronica outfit NKOS, and the first to follow their awesome previous single ‘Lonely Ghost-Self’, ‘Can’t Wait’ is the next exciting step in the group’s dynamic and experimental musical journey. However, this brand new track takes a slight departure from the explosive sound that ‘Lonely Ghost-Self’ carried, and instead brings us a much more atmospheric brand of their edgy style. ‘Can’t Wait’ gives us layers upon layers of deep, moody sound, which really gives this track this amazing sense of magnitude throughout. This indeed has to be the most atmospherically powerful tunes that NKOS has blessed us with so far.
Nuage & Omfeel » Soul’s Matter
Nuage & Omfeel have proved once again that they work perfectly together, in this nostalgic and somber 90’s inspired tune.
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Both hailing from Russia, electronic artists Nuage & Omfeel collaborate on their newest joint track ‘Soul’s Matter’. This brand new tune is also the newest to tease the duo’s upcoming joint album, titled Our Language. When paired together, these two artists have shown to have executed different electronic moods and energies incredibly well, and indeed have done so once more with ‘Soul’s Matter’. In the case of this new track, it perfectly captures a kind of 90’s garage/house vibe which feels nostalgic, somber, and soothing all at once. With a tiny essence of jazzy atmosphere thrown in for good measure too, this new tune definitely stands as one that we were totally immersed in.
Porcelain » Hollow
Despite their debut EP being only recently released, ‘Hollow’ develops upon their dark and moody sound with a more smoothly-flowing pace.
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After kicking their discography off with their debut EP Part One earlier this year, the anonymous experimental electro-soul collective Porcelain followed through with a brand new standalone single, titled ‘Hollow’. And despite the EP being as recently released as it was, we still got a good sense of evolution in Porcelain’s sound within this new track. ‘Hollow’ flows a lot more smoothly, and this allows the song’s sense of ambience to really shine through. For those who enjoyed the dark and moody sound that could be found in the EP, that not only remains with ‘Hollow’, but it is also developed upon. The use of strings is the finishing touch that makes ‘Hollow’ such a beautifully ominous tune.
Tom Atkin » Lil F**ker
With Tom Atkins’ experience playing with The Paddingtons, ‘Lil F**ker’ is an effortlessly anthemic and moody tune.
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A full decade after Tom Atkin gave us his last musical release as part of nu punk band The Paddingtons, Tom Atkin released his debut solo single release. Titled ‘Lil F**ker’, Tom’s new tune borrows from the raw and punk-like aesthetic of The Paddingtons, while also adding in a far more current and accessible feel. The resulting piece is a marvellously anthemic track whose moodiness really had us engaged. It was also easy to tell that thanks to Tom’s experience in playing with The Paddingtons, making music now seems like second nature to this artist. This is a brilliant debut single indeed, and we are very excited to see where Tom will take his signature aesthetic next.
Zelha » Player 1
With a very solid concept and beautifully luminous and ambient sound, ‘Player 1’ is a brilliant debut which spells tonnes of promise for Zelha.
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Another debut track, ‘Player 1’ comes to us from singer, songwriter and pop artist Zelha. The narrative behind this song describes somebody who has a habit of playing with other people’s feelings, comparing it to playing a video game, as the title suggests. This solid narrative that this track has pairs brilliantly with the grand sense of heavenly soft ambience and luminosity that is carried through in the track’s sound. Said sound also has so much depth within it, that we found ourselves sinking deeply into its soundscape. Being as layered as it is, ‘Player 1’ absolutely spells tonnes of promise from this incredibly talented and creative individual.
Below you can find al of the 39 awesome songs that were released this week. Don’t be shy to give us a cheeky follow and spread the indie music vibe with others!
