Music

9 songs that ruled our playlists this week

by Chris Budd

Check out our “Trending” Playlist for this week. Put on the player and read a bit about each song below.

1. “Greek Tragedy” by The Wombats

For a band that I’ve followed for years, I’ve always thought that the Wombats deserve a lot more attention then they get. They are an internationally known band who’ve had some good levels of success in the past, but to me, they fall in that “they should be way bigger!” category. “Greek Tragedy” is a foray into what’s coming on their next album Glitterbug in April. I’m sold, with the help of those drums in the chorus.

2. “Pain Goes Away” by Refs

If you stare at over 200 music blogs on a daily basis, you can notice trends, or identify those killer tunes which bubble their way to the top. Over the past few days, I’ve been seeing postings on NYC band Refs, from all the right sources too. R&B tinged electronic is still hot right now (I can take maybe a few more months of it). The duo are vocalist Richard Saunders with producer Zachary Andrew. What a great way to start out.

3. “Begin Again” by Purity Ring

What do you think of the latest track from Canadian electronic duo Purity Ring? If there were ever a textbook definition of “dark pop,” I’d have this song listed first. The band are looking to repeat the success of their widely successful 2012 breakthrough album Shrines, this time taking a different approach and recording songs together in the same room.

4. “20 Years Tall” by Sego

Most of these songs generally fall somewhere on the top 50 on The Hype Machine, but occasionally I’ll bend the rule. Today, I caught Sego‘s “Wicket Youth” (an amazing tune we’ve featured previously) in there, which reminded me of another strong song from this LA band. “20 Years Tall” will turn your head for its catchy hooks, chugging beat and clever use of the lyrics “blah, blah, blah…”

5. “Greek Tragedy” by The Wombats

Press play on this track, close your eyes and listen to that hook at the end of the chorus. Does it make you think of Nena‘s “99 Luftballons”? Maybe it’s just me. LA duo Golden Coast are actually trending right now on a different track (“Futurist”). Potential for a future playlist? Sure.

6. “I Don’t Mind” by Fort Lean

You can always count on Brooklyn band Fort Lean for an interesting song. I actually don’t mind “I Don’t Mind” at all; it’s got the perfect amount of fuzzy bass rumbles and shrieking guitar lines for my liking.

7. “Brooklyn Baby” by Lana Del Rey (Yuksek Remix)

Speaking of Brooklyn, Lana Del Rey sings of her “Brooklyn Baby” with the help of French producer Yuksek, via his dancy remix of her song. It’s a bit of a grower but proves this pairing is a good fit.

8. “Waterfalls” by José González (TLC Cover)

I’m not going to say I’m a fan of this cover, but I just had to post it here.  Recently, José González appeared on a Swedish game show “På spåret” and performed a couple of covers, including TLC‘s classic “Waterfalls.” There’s something just untouchable about the original, I’m not sure if smoothing it down is the best way to go.

9. “Cry For Me” by Hunny

For Franz Ferdinand fans out there, try out this song from Southern California band Hunny. I’m instantly whisked away from this freezing month we call January in Toronto, to upcoming summertime hangs with friends and great songs going on in the background.