News This Week In New Music (5th July 2013)

What’s in a name. First off, new artists encounter the tricky dilemma of naming themselves something that’s a) not stupid and b) not already snapped up. The three acts who stood out for Neu this week tackled this situation in different ways.

One chose a perfectly normal word, ‘Ocean’. He added some fancy accents and voila, he’s got himself a name. Another came up with a fairly grand name, one that’d be slightly cheesy if it weren’t from the fact that the guy’s from Stockholm and he makes baroque, intelligent songs. The last one took the piss, basically. They knew what they were doing. You’re always going to be intrigued by a band with the cheek to call themselves, Twin Peaks. Turns out they’re good enough to pull off such a cocksure stunt. Here’s the best of what happened in new music, this past 7 days.

TRACK OF THE WEEK
Twin Peaks - Irene


The clever sods. The cheeky sons of a…Twin Peaks sound bugger all like a David Lynch head-spinner. There’s very little that’s cinematic about their work. So loyal Lynchians have every right to be tiffed off that some Chicago youngsters took such a daring name for themselves. Thing is, though: They’re the finest floaty vibe-catchers the city’s seen in goodness knows how long. Smith Westerns are peers, but Twin Peaks could go one better. Seriously. ‘Irene’ is a gently lifting piece, guitar tones threading into one clever-as-hell endpoint.

VIDEO OF THE WEEK
Sailor & I - Tough Love


You’d be pushed to find a more fitting visual companion to Sailor & I’s debut single. First it’s an old bloke diving into the sea, then it’s a lone stranger wandering into the forest surrounded by pretty flying colours. It’s abstract, but in a way you can link to the harsh, misery-sodden emotions that place themselves at the forefront of this track. Sailor & I is darling of the defeatists, like Bon Iver wiping his tears on your shoulder.

DISCOVERY OF THE WEEK
Oceaán


You’d attach this name to a chillwave artist if you didn’t know any better. The Manchester producer tags his songs that way, the silly fool. But Oceaán, who’s been on the radar for the past few months following debut ‘Haze’, is pretty much a popstar shrouding himself in as many clever atmospherics as are openly available. ‘Need U’ lines falsetto-ed vocals with an R&B pulse, producing one of the year’s standout tracks, with not even a second glance.