2023 Mix 18: BABY I AM A MACHINE

Lots of A.I. talk but only one song with A.I. in it.

Next mix (number 17), with some familiar faves (Kate NV, Cornelius, Altin Gün, Chemical Brothers) but mostly new to me. I jump aboard a modest hype train for Sweeping Promises, extol the virtues of outcast nerd girls in rap (Bbyafricka), and think about Cameroonian music and where its foundational sense of 6 comes from. Oh, and there’s a completely bonkers synth solo at the end.

New newsletter! Little Dragon, Flume, and Oscar Isaac(!), along with some disco and funk (non-baile) and jazz. And did you know that Fred again.. used to be Brian Eno’s neighbor? (They put out a good album.)

Listen here:

New newsletter! Kesha talks to God just like I did when I got COVID; the 90s alt saturation point sounds pretty good; lots of cool stuff from North Africa; Miguel seeks fertility.

PLAYLIST!

New newsletter – seems like the Ice Spice rumor mill was a little overeager, but my joke from five days ago, that it was a Little Mermaid/Ursula situation, stands. Elsewhere: blink-and-you-missed-it My Bloody Valentine vibe in an amapiano song, a very damp brass band, and more.

Here’s the playlist:

Barbie convertible pop – which is to say all good music ever! Listen for some summery vibes ET CETERA.

Or listen to the playlist here

New mix – Coi Leray, Big Freedia, ABRA, Miranda!, 70s Indonesian pop, more MC Pipokinha, Bebe Rexha’s second good song ever, the returns of VV Brown and Be Your Own Pet, and a bunch of other stuff!

Here’s everything I’ve written about amapiano this year, with lots of embeds of songs I’ve liked so far (the first few songs are from 2022). Come for the tunes, stay for the hilarious anecdote Robert Altman shares about a conversation with Stanley Kubrick.

Keep reading

This week: Spotify slogging, Eurovision, why amapiano is like Robert Altman, and pharmaceutical ad pop that sounds like Danity Kane. (Also: Björk.)

I’ve been writing a weekly (ish) newsletter where I go through tons of Spotify New Music Friday lists and pull out enough songs to make a CD-length mix.

If you want to learn more you can read this week’s newsletter and subscribe here: