TOP INDIE SONGS – WEEK 24

UPDATE: Thoughts and prayers to Orlando...

Happy Monday! How was your weekend? Did you attend Bonnaroo? Or did you stay at home and watch the live stream in your underpants like me? No shame! Of course, that wasn't all that I got up to over the last couple of days, because I also had to curate the following edition of Top Indie Songs for your listening pleasure. Featuring The Avalanches, Shura, Tom Odell, Glass Animals, Bishop Briggs and more, I'm sure that you'll agree that this was definitely worth tearing myself away from the LCD Soundsystem headline set for...

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THE AVALANCHES – FRANKIE SINATRA

The Avalanches are back! “Frankie Sinatra,” which features Danny Brown and MF Doom and samples The Sound Of Music's “My Favorite Things” over a calypso-inflected beat, is the first single to be unveiled from Wildflower, the Australian plunderphonic icons' first album since 2000's Since I Left You. Accompanied a Fleur & Manu-directed video starring carnival attendees under the influence of a neon, hallucinogenic ice cream, it's safe to say that this was definitely worth the 16-year wait.

SHURA – WHAT'S IT GONNA BE?

London pop singer Aleksandra Lilah Yakunina-Denton aka Shura is due to release her debut album Nothing's Real in July, and today, she's shared the Chloe Wallace-directed, John Hughes-indebted video for the sparkling single “What's It Gonna Be?” “The song is about having a massive crush on someone, so it made sense to go back where to school, where it all began,” explains Shura. “But it was important for us to explore those archetypal characters – The Jock, The Nerd, The Dork, The Popular Kid – and then flip expectations.”

TOM ODELL – CONCRETE

British balladeer Tom Peter Odell is, for the most part, as bland as a vanilla ice cream cone, but the 25-year-old reveals a more seductive side in the video for the soul-infused “Concrete.” Reportedly inspired by The Rolling Stones' “Sympathy For The Devil” documentary, the George Belfield-directed clip sees Tom performing the suggestive Wrong Crowd number (“'Cause I'd sleep on a bed that's made of concrete/Just the two of us and no sheet/Just your feet rubbing up against mine”) in a mood-lit studio, hip thrusting and all.

GLASS ANIMALS – LIFE ITSELF

Glass Animals, the serpentine four-piece from Oxford, are preparing to release their second album How To Be A Human Being in August, and today, the band have shared the video for the groovy lead single “Life Itself.” Directed by Neil Krug, the clip follows a couple of detectives on a crime-solving case through the desert involving a mother, a child and a waitress, and includes a blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo from Glass Animals in a diner.

BISHOP BRIGGS – THE WAY I DO

Bishop Briggs is a London-born, Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter who creates bombastic trap anthems. Her previous singles “Wild Horses” and “River” have already clocked up millions (and millions) of plays on SoundCloud and Spotify, and this month, she returns with another smash hit in the making – “The Way I Do.” Bringing together emphatic percussion, triumphant brass and gospel-inspired melodies, everything about this is sure to command your attention from start to finish.

DENM – LIT (LIVE)

Last month, Santa Barbara native and purveyor of homeless man chic DENM unveiled his debut single “Lit,” a hedonistic summer banger that brought together deep house, R&B and pop influences, and today, he returns with an acoustic live rendition. Filmed amid what looks like the remains of a beach party, the lo-fi, guitar-driven version puts a more romantic spin on the song, and makes for perfect listening as the sun comes up after a big night out.

JUNIOR PROM – STAND!

Brooklyn duo Junior Prom are here to get the party started this summer with “Stand!” Fans of Foster The People are sure to approve of this upbeat, infectious slice of frat pop, which the band reveal is a tongue-in-cheek ode to fame whores: “It seemed we was always meeting people who wanted to be famous, but had no discernible talent They just wanted to be known worldwide for their shining personalities and fabulous lifestyles. It struck us as the oddest thing at the time, but obviously it's been a common thing for a while now.”

SAULT STE MARIE – BREEZY MONTANA

Once in a while, a song comes along that completely lifts your mood. For me, “Breezy Montana” was one of those songs. To call this artist “enigmatic” would be an understatement – sault ste marie has no social media presence or digital footprint. This really is a case of letting the music speak for itself, and believe me, “Breezy Montana” speaks volumes. A dynamic, room-filling dream folk number that combines both acoustic and electronic elements, this is most definitely the start of something special.

PHORIA – YOURSELF STILL

Brighton five-piece Phoria make visceral, evocative electronic music. At the beginning of the month, they unveiled their debut album Volition, and it's already proving to be one of my favorite releases of the year so far. Many of the songs have recently appeared on this blog, and today, I feature another – Volition closer “Yourself Still.” A propulsive ballad that builds to symphonic finale, I couldn't have asked for a more perfect end to a perfect album.

DOG ORCHESTRA – HOTEL

In May, Stockholm dream pop duo Dog Orchestra stole my heart with their debut single, the Lune-featuring “CLUB Fragil.” This month, Niklas Malmborg and Daniel DePierre return with “Hotel.” Combining pulsating synths and moody ruminations on the after-party lifestyle (“Try to keep your hands out of the mini-bar”), the song reveals a far darker side to the Dog Orchestra aesthetic, leaving me even more excited for their forthcoming debut EP.

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Thanks for listening! See you next Monday... x

“Photo” by Luke Pamer is licensed under CC0 1.0 (cropped and resized).

About Jess Grant

When Jess Grant isn't writing on music, she can be found playing it – on her guitar, on her ukulele, and on her recently acquired mandolin. Playing it hideously, she ought to add. Jess also studies. She studies the English language, to be precise. Jess is currently on her way to a degree in the subject, and enjoys starting and never finishing novels, screenplays, and poetry in her spare time. She also likes dogs. Lots of dogs.