The best new tracks, picked by our staff
Rated by THE FACE: a playlist featuring Ice Spice, Charli XCX, Two Shell and Beabadoobee.
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Ice Spice – Gimme a Light
Ice Spice is a very modern music star and therefore any single she drops needs to be primed for virality. With Gimme a Light, she’s banking on nostalgia and familiarity by rapping over a sample of Sean Paul’s scorching 2001 hit of the same name. The good news is that the sample fits snugly inside the drill drums. Ice, who broke through with nonchalant delivery, also raps with a little more aggression than we’re used to.
Charli XCX – 360
Looks like our cover star Charli XCX is having loads of fun on her Brat album campaign. She’s launched her PARTYGIRL club night with a sweat-soaked Boiler Room, caused a roadblock in Brooklyn and now she’s crammed pretty much every It Girl of the moment in the video for the album’s opening track 360. The tongue-in-cheek clip features the likes of Julia Fox, Chloë Sevigny, Gabbriette, Rachel Sennott, Emma Chamberlain, Hari Nef, Sakura Bready, Chloe Cherry and A.G. Cook, who produced the bouncy beat and gets a nice little shout out in the lyrics.
Two Shell – gimmi it
Although they’re committed to trolling the music industry and playing dingy club nights at South East London’s Venue MOT, Two Shell couldn’t resist the glamour of the Coachella Valley. Apparently celebs such as Jaden Smith, David Guetta and rage rap star Yeat watched their Coachella set. Gimmi it, which follows the duo‘s recent FKA twigs collab Talk To Me, is an intense big beat track that’s splattered with warped voices and twisted breaks. It’s probably weird enough to scare off some of the new fans they gained at Coachella. They should do a song with Yeat next.
Beabadoobee – Take A Bite
Bea’s just announced her third album This Is How Tomorrow Moves, which was recorded with the barefooted producer Rick Rubin at his Shangri-La studio in Malibu. Impressive. Lead single Take A Bite is a moody alt-rock anthem which sees Bea relish life’s dramas. The songs is about “finding comfort in chaos, because that’s what I know,” Bea says. “And it’s just tapping into this part of my brain where I just jump straight to the most negative, most chaotic thought ever known to man and make that into my reality.”
Coined – Your House
Earlier this year, Astrid Sonne and ML Buch sold out two gigs at London’s ICA venue, indicating a lowkey buzz around leftfeild musicians from Denmark. If this sort of thing is your bag, you’ll enjoy Coined, a new project formed by Sonne and Copenhagen-based folk artist Fine Glindvad. Your House is a subtle and pretty track built with minimal drums and glassy guitars. It will open the Scenic Route imprint’s forthcoming compilation, which also includes label alumni Nourished by Time and the experimental band Kukukuk.
