52
Top of The Drop By Daniel J. Springer
Gwangju News, April 2022
gwangjunewsgic.com
CULTURE & ARTS
Each month, Daniel Springer of the Gwangju Foreign Language Network (GFN) picks his favorite newly released tunes that you may not have heard yet, along with some upcoming albums and EPs that you might want to keep on your radar. — Ed.
FLORENCE + THE MACHINE – “KING” In a twist of gender on the lead singer to Florence Welch’s upcoming Dance Fever LP, the acclaimed shapeshifting singer-songwriter is once again contorting into new form and royalty, which admittedly is well deserved. Here Welch is grappling with the meaning of femininity itself in a tune that unquestionably portends a very strong album, which would be her fifth. Keep a keen eye out for this LP, which drops May 13 via Republic Records. JACOB BANKS – “JUST WHEN I THOUGHT IT” This single portends a new project for the highly lauded Nigerian-born, London-based singer-songwriter that still has yet to be officially announced. A mesmerizing bit of heavily electronicized R&B heft and darkness, the song finishes with a massive choral crescendo that shows why this independent artist is getting hundreds of millions of streams and huge kudos from hard-toplease outlets.
2022�04��.indd 52
ROBERT GLASPER – “WHY WE SPEAK” (FEAT. Q-TIP & ESPERANZA SPALDING) Black Radio III is finally out, and it’s certain to gain nominations for album of the year in several categories. For those unfamiliar, this album series is the Houstonbased maestro getting away from his first love in jazz and giving a showcase in his other love, hip-hop, with defiant messages of positive change. A huge project that as usual features collabs with the biggest luminaries of the game, this one’s an instant classic. CHARLI XCX – “BEG FOR YOU” (FEAT. RINA SAWAYAMA) For those of the more seriously taken monotheistic bent, this video might not be your favorite, as the artist and hard rock singersongwriter and model Rina Sawayama get together with a group of friends who are about to make a ritual sacrifice to Satan himself. The third single to the acclaimed pop star’s upcoming Crash LP, check out the full album which dropped March 10. REGINA SPEKTOR – “BECOMING ALL ALONE” This is the lead single to the artist’s first album since 2016’s Remember Us to Life. The New York native will drop her latest, Home, Before and After, on June 24 but interestingly will be doing a group of select live dates in the lead-up to the fulllength drop, kicking off with a show at Carnegie Hall. Interestingly, the artist will also be releasing a deluxe box set of her debut album 11:11 later this year as well, but this new LP feels big, so don’t sleep. DREAMER ISIOMA – “SUNSET DRIVE” The Chicago-based singersongwriter just released Goodnight Dreamer, which is the artist’s debut LP and an existential utopian journey centered around the album’s protagonist named Dreamer. Coming on the heels of two EPs released in 2020, this album to the artist is just a start, stating, “Music is just like the foundation right now. In time, I
2022-03-24 �� 9:37:38
