2 minute read
Summer Preview
ARTISTS TO WATCH
Tanukichan—the solo project of Hannah van Loon—specializes in shoegaze that manages to hit the delicate sweet spot between melancholic heaviness and ghostly weightlessness. On her 2018 debut Sundays, she explores the odd mix of anxieties and hopes that the end of the week brings with it, perfectly capturing the dreamy and hazy ennui of a lost weekend. The Bay Area musician has already toured with the likes of The Drums, Kero Kero Bonito, and Toro y Moi (who produced Sundays and her 2016 EP “Radiolove.”) Given how excellent Sundays was, we can’t wait to hear a follow-up effort.
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Hailing from New Zealand, the Beths play a refined, clever version of pop punk, which is usually anything but mature. Their 2018 debut LP Future Me Hates Me features punchy melodies, driving guitars, and radiant harmonies from all four members of the band on songs like “Whatever” and “Happy Unhappy.” The forthcoming Jump Rope Gazers, set to be released July 10, was preceded by the exuberant single “Dying to Believe,” which highlights singer Elizabeth Stokes’ witty lyrics over propulsive power pop. The new record will be sure to lift fans’ spirits during what promises to be a weird summer 2020 and will hopefully introduce this great group to many new ears.
Singer/rapper/composer HAWA’s debut EP “the ONE” was released in March. “The ONE” effortlessly blends a wide range of influences stemming from the 19-year-old’s European upbringing, West African roots, and experiences composing for the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. HAWA disrupts binaries while maintaining a cohesive sound—her lyrics about navigating her queer romantic relationships are both arrogant and tender, and the production easily melds genres like dreampop, trap, and dancehall. We can’t wait to see what HAWA does next as she continues to mature and expand her musical horizons.
ALBUM DROP RADAR
May 15 | Charli XCX | How I’m Feeling Now May 15 | Moses Sumney | grae: Part 2 May 15 | Perfume Genius | Set My Heart on Fire Immediately May 22 | The 1975 | Notes On A Conditional Form May 22 | Alanis Morissette | Such Pretty Forks In The Road May 29 | Baths | Pop Music/False B-Sides II May 29 | Christian Lee Hutson | Beginners May 29 | Lady Gaga | Chromatica June 5 | Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever | Sideways to New Italy June 5 | Run the Jewels | RTJ4 June 12 | Larkin Poe | Self Made Man June 19 | Phoebe Bridgers | Punisher June 26 | HAIM | Women in Music Pt. III June 26 | Khruangbin | Mordechai July 10 | Glass Animals | Dreamland July 10 | The Beths | Jump Rope Gazers
