Leading the charge in today’s Pick Your Poison is a new track from Au Revoir Simone’s Erika Spring. There are also two great songs from pronoun and Spirit of the Beehive to enrich your listening experience. Keep going beyond the jump and you’ll discover more music from Bruce, Dillon Francis (ft. Lao Ra), G-Eazy, Moaning Lisa, Nick Klein, PINES, Stove, TSVI, and Wildhoney.
Erika Spring – Scars
pronoun – wrong
Spirit of the Beehive – Hypnic Jerks
An extended edition of Pick Your Poison has plenty to offer on this Monday, including critical downloads from Big Fresh, The J.O.B., Smoota, and The Wheel Workers. In the Soundcloud section after the jump, you’ll find audio streams from Bad Sports, BRKLYN & Zack Martino, Clark, HOLYCHILD, Kanye West & Lil Pump, Lala Lala, Noah & Shagabond, The O’My’s (ft. Chance the Rapper), Sandro Perri (ft. Dan Bejar), Strange Planes, Supersilent, and more.
Bored Housewives Club – Zooey Deschanel
There’s something different about Will Toledo these days. It’s not so much a look as it is a feeling. He seems freer, happier, and more energized on stage than he ever has before – or at least compared to the couple of other times I’ve seen Car Seat Headrest perform. And while there are any number of reasons why this might be the case, my sneaking suspicion has to do with Naked Giants. Specifically, their presence as openers and additional members of Car Seat Headrest has shifted dynamics in a very exciting direction.
It’s felt like a shorter week than usual thanks to Labor Day, and having a whole bunch of great new songs to listen to doesn’t hurt either. Today’s Pick Your Poison highlights come from Gabriel Garzon-Montano, Jessie Reyez, and Ryan Hemsworth (ft. SK & Tomggg). Maneuver your way past the jump and you’ll find even more music from BRUX, duendita, FINNEAS, Golda, Llovers, Logic, No/Me, Sure Sure, and Yung Pinch.
Gabriel Garzón-Montano – Golden Wings (Chamber Arrangement)
Jessie Reyez – F*** Being Friends
Ryan Hemsworth – Special Girl (ft. SK & Tomggg)
Today’s Pick Your Poison is jam packed with goodness, so join me in listening, won’t you? The highlights today include fresh tracks from Cursive, Marissa Nadler (ft. Sharon Van Etten), and Roosevelt. Portal through the jump and you’ll find even more songs from Anna St. Louis, Cafe Disko (ft. Aeswaves), Donnie Raven (ft. Elzhi), Future Generations, The Marias, RUFUS DU SOL, slenderbodies (covering Britney Spears), Stephen Steinbrink, and Xie.
Cursive – Under the Rainbow
Marissa Nadler – I Can’t Listen to Gene Clark Anymore (ft. Sharon Van Etten)
Roosevelt – Getaway
One of my absolute favorite new bands of 2018 is Barrie, who have been on a roll with two white hot synth-pop gems so far this year. Today we get the third, which you can check out below. Other highlights in this set come from NONONO and the retro-soul throwback of Skylar Spence. Swerve past the jump for even more music from The Band of Heathens (covering a John Denver classic), David Allred, Future Jr., Jayceeoh & GRVYRDS, Krafty Kuts & Dynamite MC, Mike Edel, MNEK, Pastel Ghost, and Yung Pinch.
Barrie – Michigan
NONONO – Dancing (Mumbai Wedding)
Skylar Spence – Cry Wolf
It’s always a good day when you can share a new track from Chicago’s own Kweku Collins, and as a bonus you can also find music from Quinn XCII and RYAN Playground (ft. Lontalius) among today’s highlights. Even more songs await following the jump, including fresh cuts from Bear Grillz, Bliss Signal, Clew Rock and Custom Made, deM atlaS, Human People, Mike Simonetti, NAVVI, Sarah Chernoff, and Thomas Fehlmann.
Kweku Collins – ET
Quinn XCII – Panama
RYAN Playground – Empty Pool (ft. Lontalius)
Get your ears on some hot new tracks from Desiigner, Gabby’s World (fka Eskimeaux), and Logic. You can stream even more if you’re willing to journey past the jump, where songs await from Anemone, Daniel T. (ft. Ohara Hale), Den-Mate, Diggy, Evalyn, Inspired & The Sleep, Luke Reed, MUNYA, and Young Gully (ft. OMB Peezy).
Desiigner – SHOOT
Gabby’s World – Rear View
Logic – The Return
Plenty of greatness as part of today’s extended edition of Pick Your Poison, including downloads from Andrew Rinehart, Blake Banks, Oberon Rose, and Sunflower Child. The Soundcloud section after the jump also contains multitudes, including songs from Abhi the Nomad, Gramatik & Kotek, Hater, Helena Deland, Jaguar Dreams, Keys N Krates, Kim Petras, Mr Twin Sister, rx Soul, Super8 & Tab, Tiesto, and more!
A Tribe Called Quest – 1nce Again (Rhythm Scholar AtariFunk 8-Bit Remix)
Andrew Rinehart – Off On A Roll With A Soul
Mitch Bradford – Everybody Got Somebody to Love (‘Cept You and Me)
Oberon Rose – Tell Me All About It
Let’s get right into today’s Pick Your Poison, which has some delightful tracks from Cautious Clay, Christian Rich (ft. Little Dragon & Vic Mensa), as well as something new from Empress Of. Slip past the jump if you’re looking for more great stuff from blackbear, Calvin Valentine (ft. Illa J), Oliver Ignatius & Ezra Miller, Perry Serpa (ft. Scott McCaughey), RALPH, Sir Babygirl, Tunde Olaniran, Yoe Mase, and Yoko Ono.
Cautious Clay – Crowned
Christian Rich – Dripping Summers (ft. Little Dragon & Vic Mensa)
Empress Of – When I’m With Him
Really excited to share today’s Pick Your Poison with you, because it’s packed with amazing songs I hope you’ll get the chance to check out. That includes highlights from Molly Burch, Skylar Spence, and Chicago’s own Tasha. Sail past the jump for even more tracks from CoastDream, Darius, The Entrepreneurs, Marks, mmph, Public Practice, Thomas/Mayer, Yamaneko, and more.
Molly Burch – To the Boys
Skylar Spence – Carousel
Tasha – Kind of Love
Start your week on the right foot with this bouncy and fun edition of Pick Your Poison that includes highlights from Gramatik, a Baths remix of a great track from Let’s Eat Grandma, plus a team-up between SG Lewis and AlunaGeorge. Skate past the jump for more music from Ananda Tenfjord, Alan Fitzpatrick x SCB, Amir Obe, Carter Cruise, h2the (ft. Melinda Ortner), Les Big Byrd, Mercy Union, Pvrx, and Russ.
Gramatik – Let Me Know The Way
Let’s Eat Grandma – I Will Be Waiting (Baths Remix)
SG Lewis – Hurting (ft. AlunaGeorge)
Something new from ladytron is among the highlights in today’s Pick Your Poison, along with tracks from Conner Youngblood and Her’s. Of course there’s plenty more after the jump, including songs from Andrew Bayer (ft. Alison May), Kenzie, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, Saya, Sea Moya, Stasney Mav, YK Osiris, and a couple of killer remixes as well.
Conner Youngblood – Pizza Body
Her’s – Under Wraps
Ladytron – The Island
What’s most fascinating to me about Damon McMahon’s work as Amen Dunes is how it’s evolved over time. His 2009 record DIA provided an introduction to the project that was a little similar to Bon Iver’s origin story in that he recorded the songs on his own while locked away in a cabin. But the music of Amen Dunes was much more obtuse and experimental in comparison to Bon Iver’s, with a psychedelic and occasionally aggressive edge that pushed it into the territory of bands like Spacemen 3, Robyn Hitchcock, and The Velvet Underground. A couple of years later, he’d pull together an actual band to help fill out and sharpen his sound while further evoking classic influences.
Each new Amen Dunes release has also gotten bigger and more accessible than the one before, and with the expanding palette has come contributions from members of Iceage, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and Godspeed You! Black Emperor to help add new wrinkles while also cutting into the beating heart of the intimate and familiar. Even the simplest of melodies somehow manage to come across as a dynamic undertaking, and that sense of large-scale drama is at least partly owed to McMahon’s dynamic voice, which stretches and contracts according to the needs of the track. It’s the biggest reason why 2014’s Love was such a critical darling, and plays an essential role in helping to make Freedom one of this year’s best records. His voice is clearer than ever on the new record, and feels oddly familiar yet entirely unique, like a combination of Kurt Vile, Adam Granduciel (The War on Drugs), Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy, J Spaceman, and Mick Jagger. You can’t always understand every single word he’s singing, but somehow it all makes sense, particularly in an emotional context.
Part of what makes any Amen Dunes record a compelling listening experience is that every song feels like a self-contained journey in service of a larger whole. You can drop in just about anywhere and find fulfillment, despite a minimal number of hooks or an overarching theme. Freedom does this best by crafting a seductive atmosphere of songs that shimmer like sunlight catching a piece of tin foil. The songs are slightly hazy, remarkably smooth, and politely insistent. You can dance to some of them, though they mainly hang out in a sort of mid-tempo range that at the very least leave your toe tapping. There are stories in these songs, packed with minor details to make them feel lived-in and real, but simultaneously withholding enough other bits of information to prevent it from coming across as too autobiographical. These things may have happened to somebody, just likely not McMahon himself. Many of the themes, including grief and family, stem from the struggle and emotional wreckage that resulted from his mother’s terminal cancer diagnosis a couple years ago. Instead of wallowing in sadness however, the record is more propelled by the emotional tension and relief that can be wrung from the instrumentals rather than the words themselves.
Seeing as how we’ve reached a point where Amen Dunes has never sounded better or more confident, now feels like the perfect time to see these songs performed in a live setting. It just so happens that McMahon and his band will be playing a show at Lincoln Hall next Tuesday, August 21st. It will mark his first time in Chicago since Freedom was released back in March, and promises to be a special night. Tickets are still available, so check out the details and come on out for what promises to be a great night of music!
Amen Dunes / Okay Kaya
Buy Tickets
Tuesday, August 21st
8PM / $15 (advance) / 18+
Keep the summer vibes going strong with today’s Pick Your Poison. Highlights in this set come from Spirit of the Beehive, Tomberlin, and Yoko Ono. Okay, so none of those songs are bright and fun exactly, but some of the stuff after the jump is much more upbeat, including tracks from Baby FuzZ, Black Belt Eagle Scout, Kasper Bjorke Quartet, Lando Chill (ft. Quelle Chris & REY), Minke, Peel Dream Magazine, Robag Wruhme, Sextile, and Tanners.
Spirit of the Beehive – d.o.u.b.l.e.u.r.o.n.g.
Tomberlin – Any Other Way
Yoko Ono – Where Do We Go From Here
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