Tag: new EP
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RELEASE RECAP: Best New Music of February, 2024
February was an incredible month for new music—here are some new releases that Vinyl Mag LOVED last month!
SZA, “Saturn“
SZA teased us at the Grammys with this single, as she performed “Saturn” live, leaving us shocked at how mesmerizing she sounded. Then, she released it the next week, and it took us by storm. Some were a bit upset at SZA for tweaking the original Grammy performance recording, to which SZA responded with “No clue what’s wrong with the mixes on Saturn but all will be corrected shortly. Thank you” on X. This single will supposedly be the cover song for SZAs new album Lana, which is expected to release somewhat soon. – Alex Carrillo
Beyonce, “16 Carriages” & “Texas Hold Em“
Beyonce broke the internet during the Superbowl when she partnered with Verizon for a commercial and exclaimed “Drop the music” at the end of it. Immediately after, Beyonce released two singles, “16 Carriages”, and “Texas Hold Em”. These two singles mark the start of the singer’s country music era, and the beginning of act two of her three-part project, with Renaissance being act i. She sent a powerful message by highlighting the contributions of Black musicians to country music, becoming the first Black woman to top Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart in the process. Beyonce’s Act ii COWBOY CARTER is set to release on March 29, 2024. – AC
Charlie XCX, “Von Dutch”
“Von Dutch” is Charli XCX’s first solo single since “Speed Drive” was released last year. She has teased her next album, Brat, dropping in Summer of 2024. “Von Dutch” has the same electric upbeat feel that we are used to hearing from her, keeping the energy flowing until the end of the song. In honor of her upcoming record, Charli XCX performed a boiler room set in Brooklyn, New York called “PARTYGIRL.” – AC
Kacey Musgraves, “Deeper Well”
Teasing her upcoming album Deeper Well, Kacey Musgraves dropped the titletrack in early February. The single and its follow-up, “Too Good to be True”, signal a return to her roots for Musgraves, who embraced a poppier sound on 2021’s star-crossed. In “Deeper Well”, Musgraves weaves her past and present, looking ahead to a brighter future. The soft plucked guitars and the cottagecore visuals are good signs for fans of her previously most-celebrated album, Golden Hour, which snagged an Album of Year Grammy in 2019. Her latest project is set to release on March 15, 2024. – Buket Urgen
Little Simz, Drop 7
UK-based rapper, Little Simz, dropped an EP titled Drop 7, which is a continuation of her drop series that began in 2014. This album blends a mix of Portuguese rap, jazz, and R&B, which ultimately showcases the artist’s talent and versatility. With this blend, the rapper’s lyricism shines, as she addresses her personal struggles, along with societal issues. – AC
The Last Dinner Party, Prelude to Ecstasy
UK-based The Last Dinner Party released their much-awaited debut album to great acclaim on Feburary 2, 2024. The all-female quintet delivered stunning tracks, with scorching lyrics, exploring themes like feminity and the packaging of pain and grief as a commodity. Their appetite for originality in musical arrangments is evident, making for a fun and fascinating listen. They deliver a product that meets the epic hype generated by their earlier live performances and singles. This is a band to watch in coming years. – BU
Brittany Howard, What Now
Brittany Howard absolutely dazzles with her wide-ranging and etheral album What Now. It’s got a little bit of everything for everyone. Howard’s refreshing honesty, dreamy arrangements, and captivating vocals make this a must-listen. – BU
Penny Lame: ‘Penny Lame’
Girl-pop is getting a makeover. Athens singer and songwriter Jianna Justice is cultivating a sound that stands entirely on its own, starting with her act Penny Lame. With only two EPs and eleven songs total, Justice hits all the right notes with a sweet voice, minimalistic and upbeat. Penny Lame, released on Nov. 4, 2015, is already a must-listen for those of any age. The tropes of teenage troubles combined with elements of sarcasm and deprecation reflect a very honest image of millennials growing up in a college town surrounded by people that may or may not be growing up with them.
Starting off with the light “Party Song”, Justice says all the things that everyone has been thinking but not saying out loud. The combination of simple pop guitar riffs and lyrics like “I’m the saddest girl at this party” set the tone for the rest of the album: sad acceptance for how things are, with resilient optimism for better things to come.
“Boys & Girls” shows playful comparisons between girls and boys, that create interesting back and forth dialogue between expectations and cold realities of young romance (or lack thereof), while being put down by the even harder reality: “that’s just how it is, cause boys and girls are just kids”.
Sounding like a stripped down Radiator Hospital, Justice is a venus of the avenue with “Penny Lame”, a personal favorite from the EP. With soft backing vocals accompanying the initial lyrics, “Penny Lame” stands out for the growing genre of girl-pop.
“Night Swimming” brings a slower and darker angle towards the pop, then “Slushies In a Target Parking Lot” picks up the pace and offers flutters of the ‘what if’s. To end the EP, “Scumbag City” is refreshing and honest. Billy and Joey do sound like scumbags, and are pretty much relatable to most of the ex-partners we’ve all had.
Without gushing on too much about how great this release is, a quick summary: Penny Lame shows the best and worst of being a teenager or young adult, while navigating that line between growing up and staying young. Penny Lame strikes a chord not just because it’s catchy as hell, but because it’s chronicling a place we’ve all been.
Penny Lame can be found on Bandcamp here: http://pennylame.bandcamp.com/releases
Kitten: Like A Stranger
Unless you’re Lady Gaga, it’s damn near impossible to harken back to early Madonna and 80s glam rock in a totally modern way. Enter Kitten, the youthful, L.A.-based electronic group fronted by 18-year-old Chloe Chaidez. Having already toured with the likes of Paramore and The Joy Formidable, it’s no surprise that Kitten’s new EP, Like A Stranger, is as mature as it is totally addicting to dance to.
The EP’s title track, with an unabashedly Madonna-esque title and “Vogue” kind of vocal interlude, is also reminiscent of modern acts like the Eurythmics and Metric. Booming over old-school electronic beats, Chaidez’s voice shakes you to the core with its indescribable mixture of power and warble. “Yesterday” works in a similar way, but there’s an undeniable hip-hop flair to the glam instrumentals of the track. Clashing with the chorus’s moody, 80s goth air, Kitten successfully incorporates two distinct genres to create one of their very own.
The album slows down a little with “I’ll Be Your Girl”, in which Chaidez exhibits her voice’s adaptability. Truth be told, the instrumentals of the track would be a little cheesy without Chaidez’s bellows and whimpers, something the group is undoubtedly tuned in to – again, this fivesome has mastered the art of toeing genre lines. Next up, “Doubt” has a totally primal, animalistic feel. For the first time on the album, one of the male members of the group takes the mic alongside Chaidez, a fact that doesn’t go unnoticed; right as we were beginning to think the songs on the album were all a bit too similar, that extra voice kicked the EP into a third dimension.
“Graffiti Soul” is one of our favorites, perhaps because it seems like something Marina & The Diamonds would write. It’s catchy and entertaining, and the perfect song to lead into the EP’s more serious, ballad-like final track, “King of Kings”. Kitten cap off the album with each member showing off each of their respective instruments – the track is awash with guitar solos, drum interludes, and Chaidez belting at the top of her lungs. Is it too much? Of course. But does Kitten pull it off? Absolutely.
Check out Kitten’s new album Like A Stranger out today! And be sure to hit her up on her current tour with Charli XCX (dates below)!
KITTEN on TOUR
*8/2 headline dates
8/30-9/29 supporting Charli XCX
8/2 – Los Angeles, CA @ Troubadour*
8/30 – Vancouver, BC @ Venue Nightclub
8/31 – Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
9/3 – San Francisco, CA @ Slim’s
9/6 – San Diego, CA @ House of Blues
9/7 – Las Vegas, NV @ Vinyl – Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
9/9 – Salt Lake City, UT @ In The Venue
9/12 – Minneapolis, MN @ Triple Rock Social Club
9/16 – Toronto, ON @ The Hoxton
9/17 – Montreal, QC @ La Sala Rossa
9/18 – Cambridge, MA @ The Sinclair
9/20 – Asbury Park, NJ – Wonder Bar
9/21 – New York, NY – Gramercy Theater
9/23 – Columbus, OH @ The A&R Music Bar
9/24 – Nashville, TN @ Mercy Lounge
9/25 – Atlanta, GA @ Vinyl
9/28 – Austin, TX @ The Parish
9/29 – Dallas, TX @ Club Dada
REVIEW: Carpet of Horses’ It’s Only Light EP
An EP recorded in three different countries inevitably sets up some pretty massive expectations for a worldly and sophisticated sound, right? Get this: Carpet of Horses, a project fronted by Tobin Stewart, just released It’s Only Light – and though the EP was created in the earthly cities of Toronto, Berlin, and Tel Aviv, the six tracks and the mood they evoke are almost otherworldly.
You wouldn’t think it possible, considering Stewart’s project has only 78 “likes” on Facebook. Trust us, though, when we say that that number is going to be increasing – by A LOT – sooner than you can say “Oblomov” (this is one of the most impressive tracks on It’s Only Light). While listening to the EP, it’s easy to compare the sound to that of some of indie music’s greats: we hear Elliott Smith, Death Cab for Cutie, Iron & Wine, Bright Eyes, Frightened Rabbit… are you excited to listen to these six tracks yet?
Though the first track, “Algamest”, is simply a 49-second light instrumental intro, it conveys perfectly what is to come on the rest of the EP: a whimsical, sometimes folksy, often even eerie, set of fantastic songs. The title track introduces Stewart’s airy, soothing, slightly chill-inducing voice. By “Oblomov”, we’re in indie music heaven. Stick clicks and a violin open up the tune, catapulting us into the perfection of the vocals as Stewart sighs, “Laaaaaazy bones….” The dark-yet-vibrant mood continues, until Stewart’s voice crashes into the beautiful sound of a piano and some incredibly ghostly whistling, which ushers us onward into the next track, “Stars on Montsou”, which features absolutely ideal instrumentals.
By “The Rider”, the EP’s final track, we’re almost exhausted from such ethereal and busy listening. But this song – possibly the best of all – gets us excited all over again. The soothing mixture of the simple instrumentals – featuring a piano and a trumpet – and uplifting vocals make for an entirely calming end to a perfect album, one that both keeps you on steady feet and shoots you, unapologetically, into another universe.