I feel that for many artists, a breakup album is the time that they decide to strip back all their artsiness and embrace acoustic instruments. Picture Beck on “Sea Change”, he abandoned the weirdness and irony of “Odelay” or “Mellow Gold” for straightforward sincerity. It’s not an album I really like (I don’t know if I’ve ever made it the whole way through in one sitting). This is certainly not the case on Dirty Projectors‘ self-titled new album. No, Dirty Projectors‘ Dave Longstreth has been listening to Kanye – he even tells us as much on “Up In Hudson”. He has made a breakup album as unconventional as “808s and Heartbreak”. Dirty Projectors is certainly the same group, there are the heavy afro-pop influences and Longstreth‘s uncanny yelp on every track, but now the vocals are heavily manipulated and the instruments are mostly electronic. Projectors bears relation to “Bitte Orca” the way Yeezus does to “The College Dropout”. That is, it abandons any attempt to be organic or soulful and wallows in its own artificiality.

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Longstreth‘s breakup with Coffman is the subject matter of all of the lyrics here, really. In places it’s a bit much. The album literally starts with the sound of wedding bells that suddenly glitch and stop (it’s an audio metaphor!). This track, “Keep Your Name”, also has Longstreth announce “what I want from art is truth, what you want is fame” (the “you” here presumably being Coffman). This track also features some of the most interesting productions, with Longstreth‘s voice pitched-down over piano and electronic beats. My one issue with this track is in the bizarre pseudo-rapping that Longstreth embarks on in the second half of the song.

Dirty Projectors‘ new album demonstrates that Longstreth‘s ear for production and arrangements is simply flawless

“Up In Hudson” gives us an account of Longstreth and Coffman‘s meeting which can be slightly cringeworthy (and will probably be unlistenable for Coffman). Again, Longstreth‘s ear for production and arrangements is flawless. The song starts with an autotuned choir joined by a gorgeous brass section and eventually some African drumming. The album’s best, and most accessible, track is “Cool Your Heart”, a collaboration with the vastly underrated Dawn Richard (with lyrics written by Solange). The song probably sounds the closest to the band’s classic sound, even if it does add a fair amount of electronic glitches. Strangely, Richard here sounds a fair amount like Coffman did on “Get Free”, a song she sang for Major Lazer (perhaps it’s the slight Jamaican vibe).

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Ultimately, the production and arrangements manage to outshine the slightly gossipy intrigue of the lyrics. Longstreth‘s production and arranging skills have always been the band’s best asset, and his embrace of a wider electronic palette has only further aided this. On this album, you can hear that Longstreth loves Lil’ Wayne just as much as experimental orchestral music. A track like “Cool Your Heart” can be simultaneously hook-filled and avant-garde. Longstreth reminds us that in our modern world, these musics exist side-by-side. For many of us, having to choose between Beyoncé and jazz would be unthinkable. They are different musics for different situations. This album is really the sort of music that I wish more indie bands would make, but then I frequently care more about theory and postmodernism than songs and people.

Cale Hawkins comes from a small village of around 365 people in the middle of rural Western New York. He was surrounded with good music (Quincy Jones, Wyclef Jean, Nikki Yanofsky, Bilal amongst others) and this is probably why he has realized more and more that he was in love with songwriting and production. Cale Hawkins is an artist that has nurtured over the last few years and that draws inspiration from the storytelling of folk music that is enriched with the cinematic power of electronic music arrangements.

“Pine Overcoats” was written, produced, and performed by Cale Hawkins himself and recorded in the studio of his friend Ben Talmi in Brooklyn; a small room whose configuration turned to be perfect to capture the intimate vibes of the track. He played every instrument, except the violin/viola, that are the result of Anthony Bracewell‘s work, and the cello of Ansel Cohen. The approach of combining folk music with electronic sounds is not singular in the current scene. Nevertheless, Cale Hawkins does not succumb here to the easy game of gross mainstream renditions that we are too often exposed to. “Pine Overcoats” remains a subtle and beautiful track that is closer to Sufjan Stevens or Dirty Projectors‘ universes than to what you can hear on all the radios.

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About the track, the artist detailed:

[su_quote]I wrote the lyrics on a plane while I was touring in Europe. There was a blanket of clouds below me, and the sun was setting above me, so the initial inspiration came from considering that as a metaphor for life & death. A “pine overcoat” is an old English term for a coffin. For me, the song’s written from the perspective of someone who’s reflecting in a final moment, coming to terms with all the “what if” questions that were never answered.[/su_quote]

Cale Hawkins premieres today his new single “Pine Overcoats,” a beautiful electro-folk story that is enriched with a quirky and trippy video.

This single goes with a video that is crafted with elements from Robert Wiene‘s famous silent movie “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari” (1920). This horror movie looks like a trippy parody in 2017 as the production and special effects have evolved so much in 100 years. Nevertheless, this quirky atmosphere perfectly fits Cale Hawkins‘ track and it even strengthens its storytelling.

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“Pine Overcoats” is part of an A/B single release with the the track “Polyester Day.” The artist plans to release a double single every 2 months from now.

If you want to know more about Cale Hawkins, visit his official website and connect via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Soundcloud.

Do you feel it coming? The new movements and trends in music? Or you just like it all?

This week Deer Du Bois give you everything from sensuous, dreamy tracks to Palm Springs pop.

Get dancing with Equateur and their remix for “I Feel It Coming” by The Weeknd. 80s pop will make you feel posing and flirting at the same time on “Kill Me One More Time” by the sexy Zagata.

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Attract the less obvious with the more experimental but ever so catchy new track “Undertow” by Dutch singer Cut_ or get betwitched by the Dirty Projectors‘ new charm “Little Bubble (edit).”

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Both with Ella Vos, Soleima, we have a new power-women-on-top-pop pact in the making on their respective songs “Down in Flames” and “Cracks.”

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More intimate but with a dashing impact is newcomer Martin Baltser, who hails from Denmark and gives us his perfectly pitched voice on “Call Me Wild.” And with The Ghosts of Helags on “Under My Skin” and Cold Fashion‘s “Barbs,” hazy and electrically sizzling grand emotions pulse through your head with every listen.

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Call me wild for good music!

If you want to drink a bit more until you get tipsy, you should check him on Facebook and Soundcloud, and follow his regular posts on our site.

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This week, so good to see Deer Du Bois back with a brand new playlist full of fresh tunes! Get on an introspective search for your inner pop-soul

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This week we bring you new soul-searching tracks from all over the globe, starting with the newest Dirty Projectors song “Keep Your Name.” Smooth out the ripples in your mind with the soothing “Been Waitin” by upcoming UK singer Kileco. There is also the immersive experience of Moses Sumney that really “Worth It”! A track which is also featured on our daily-refreshed Spotify’s playlist “Daily Dose For Music Junkies“

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With “Fences” by Saults the tantric high will get you floating, just enough to get bouncy on Kero Kero Bonito‘s “Trampoline”. A well-deserved pop break!

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And thanks to the amazing Cascine label we got introduced to the pulsing new pop star NOIA and her amazing “Nostalgia Del Futuro.” She’s back with “Love Hack.” Tay Salem is threading his own way with his new stunning track.

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And to top it off, our dearest Mr. Little Jeans is back with a dark neon 80s track “Stitches”.

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New Wave New Age New Pop New Love.

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If you want to drink a bit more until you get tipsy, you should check him on Facebook and Soundcloud, and follow his regular posts on our site.

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