News Tracks: Daughter, Spectrals, Braids, And More

May is here, and it seems to have coaxed the sun out of hiding. Sunglasses are on, ice-cold drinks are at hand, and happiness levels have increased tenfold as a result.

Because we’re a generous lot here at DIY, we’ve painstakingly trawled the internet so you, our beloved reader, can spend more time enjoying the rays of sun. With a cover of that kind of popular new Daft Punk song from Daughter, some delicious electronic offerings, and heaps of other things that your lovely ears deserve, we think this week’s edition is a blinder. Enjoy the following with a BBQ under blue skies and thank us later.

Spectrals - A Heartbeat Behind

After a rather quiet period (apart from the odd comment about Barcelona’s football team on Twitter) Spectrals, aka Louis Jones, has rocked up his sound without generating a single drop of sweat. The new addition to the team, producer (and mate) Chet JR White ex-half of San Francisco band Girls, is partially responsible for this reinvention, but there’s also a vibrant sense of urgency in this new single that wasn’t as palpable on the debut album ‘Bad Penny’. The vocals of ‘A Heartbeat Behind’ hit you right form the beginning and following a pop structure they fall into a palm tree chorus, but then the rock-around-the-clock riffs move recursively from the diner to the beach giving room to an unexpected bridge filled with an even bigger desire to dance. The lyrics are still about love, and it still sounds very much like Spectrals, only he’s got the girl now. (Carolina Faruolo)

Braids - Amends

Earlier this year, Braids frontwoman Raphaelle Standell-Preston and producer Alex Cowan released an album under the moniker of Blue Hawaii. When listening to Braids’ new track, you can hear the influence this more electronic direction has had on Raphaelle. With Braids, her vocals are elaborate, powerful and show impressive range but with Blue Hawaii, they are turned into another instrument – stuttering, pitch-shifting and creating intertwining harmonies with herself. Gone are the sparse, dreamy soundscapes of ‘Native Speaker’ - ‘Amends’ is haunting, Raphaelle’s vocals leave ghostly echo trails and the mechanistic drum machine beats ricochet, creating a call and answer effect. As with Blue Hawaii, without realising it, the vocals are the main bulk of the track, taking on different forms - with minimal production surrounding it. Parts of the track bring to mind fellow Canadians Crystal Castles, who bring a similar celestial but haunting atmosphere to their music. The perfect blend of Braids’ distinctive style and the influence of Blue Hawaii, ‘Amends’ shows the evolution of Braids – let’s just hope that the rest of their album is this good. (Aurora Mitchell)

William Arcane - Want Somebody

William Arcane is a young producer from South East London who is quietly making a name for himself by releasing spellbinding electronic music. Recently signed to Pictures Music, he’s in the good company of Lapalux and Koreless, and his own musical wares are equally as exciting. This latest cut from his forthcoming EP, ‘Permanence’ – due 10th June – debuted yesterday. ‘Want Somebody’s beat fidgets and skitters alongside skillful pitch shifting that would impress even The Clangers, but it’s the vocals that really mesh the whole thing together. The internet hasn’t tracked down Mr Arcane yet – and it’s still busy debating whether he really is named after that obscure Swamp Thing comic character - but isn’t that all part of the mysterious fun? You can catch a glimpse of the elusive man himself at Dalston’s Birthdays on 9th May supporting Face + Heel – and seriously, you’d be a mug to miss out. Rest assured, this William Arcane won’t be becoming a servant of The Rot any time soon. (El Hunt)

Daughter - Get Lucky (Daft Punk Cover)

“What goes up must come down” – he’s a smart guy, that Isaac Newton. However he wasn’t just talking about gravity. As the post-funk dust settles and the night winds to a close, the tempo must subside in order for equilibrium to be restored. Daughter managed to achieve exactly that this week; barely days after the brand new Daft Punk track hit our ear drums. Recorded at Maida Vale as part of a BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge Session for Huw Stevens, Daughter have imprinted their instantly recognisable sound into the song, and have spun a stunningly spacious and dark web around its upbeat predecessor. Playing the two back to back suggests that it could be known as part B of the original – as it feels less like a cover and more like a continuation. It’s leading us to wonder how great a collaboration between the two would sound… (Joe Dickinson - @DickinsonSound)

Wampire - Trains

Despite the silly shopping-mall-portrait-studio-gone-psychedelic artwork and the laid back garage rock meter, Wampire actually grapples with some pretty heavy stuff on ‘Trains’. Sure its most basic form is a breakup tune, but think of it as a breakup story happening in real time. In the verse the narrator falls into a moment of meditation while on a train station platform. By the time the first chorus hits, he’s deep in the ‘pain’ stage of relationship grief, and as the outro slowly falls apart, it sounds like he’s started on ‘acceptance.’ (Matthew Putrino)

SOHN - Bloodflows

The Weeknd and James Blake have done wonders for sensitively tinged melody with a sexy R&B leaning, and SOHN’s latest release clearly places itself in the growing succession of heartbreaking electronic slow jams. ‘Bloodflows’ is drawn-out and mellow, but vocal judders and a buzzy wash of synth-organ envelope SOHN’s sorrowful soul croon, and it slowly builds into something wonderfully, ahem, climactic. If the Vienna-based producer’s back catalogue of sporadic releases is anything to go by, SOHN is steadily carving himself a niche in melancholic electronica. In his music, he captures a desperate isolated loneliness, propelled with an infectious rhythmic current. 4AD have sat up and listened, and it won’t be long before everyone else thinks the SOHN shines out of this man’s… music too. (El Hunt)

Sarah Neufeld - Hero Brother

Sarah Neufeld -best known as violinist for Arcade Fire - has streamed the first track from her debut solo EP this week. With each listen of ‘Hero Brother’, a slightly different intricacy is highlighted and brought out. The overall tone of the song is very dark; however there are elements of hope introduced by an almost country inspired lead line, it is a truly unique composition. The opening riff begins to feel almost percussive which allows each subtle phrase to fold in and out of itself. Sarah is really challenging the violin as an instrument, and this feels like a great introduction to what this forthcoming EP has to offer! (Joe Dickinson - @DickinsonSound)