Quality electronic pop music, classic nordic style.
Aurora – A Different Kind Of Human – Step 2
YONAKA – Don’t Wait ‘Til Tomorrow
Power pop. That kind of band that has a few great and powerful tracks, and then an album packed with the same stuff with minor differences, which feels repetitive. Probably this is the kind of pop music that’s better and just enough in single format. They should write and focus on pop hits and there’s no need to push out a bunch of fillers just to make it a long player’s length worth.
Elder Island – The Omnitone Collection
Electronic, pop, soul. It’s like the Bristol rework of German nu jazz. Great concept of cover series for the singles and the album.
Ibibio Sound Machine – Doko Mien
Very summer world-pop.
Blaqk Audio – Only Things We Love
Part retro pop, part future pop, part silly pop music. I dig the first two on this album and because of that I can like the third one, too. Infinite Skin is probably my overall favorite track this year.
Toro y Moi – Outer Peace
Most of this album is crap because I cannot stand auto-tune. But Ordinary Pleasure is a lovely pop track, I vouch for that one.
Alice Merton – Mint
I was thinking how are some of these tracks so familiar? Then I realized No Roots is a single from 2017, and a soundtrack on The Blacklist, and I also heard her perform live last year. And then I remembered that her concert was raw, under-produced and kind of amateur, which is a striking contrast to what I hear on this record. Her quality as a pop music performer and the stage presence of her band were so much out of sync, and this new debut album underlines this again, at least the part about her potential. I wonder if she will drop her skin and move on with a professional band at some point, or will choose a non-mainstream route and stick with the “high school sweethearts”.
Charlotte Adigéry – Zandoli
Talking about earbugs, Paténipat is another one recently.
KOLARS – KOLARS
Alternative pops, garage sounds, dreamy moods, party out rocks. It’s like when the Asteroids Galaxy Tour was new, or the music to listen to at a festival bench while drinking up the more-than-tenth beer and shot.
Paris – Yellow Eden
Heartbreak low-fi pop thing. Magical and fluffy and sorrow.