The Next 12 Songs You Need To Hear
April 13th 2021 - Free Form Telephony
Free Form Telephony is your premiere destination for music discovery.
Today we go old school with the country stylings of Kären McCormick, reminisce about a lost love with Lord Huron, get schooled in cool by the Portuguese accordionist Celina da Piedade, and travel across the galaxy in search of self acceptance with Moonga K.
Be sure to check back on Friday for part 2 when we guide you through the next 12 songs you need in your life and release the full 24 song Mixtape.
Kären McCormick - "Retro"
Kären McCormick was born in Brazzaville, Congo, raised in Washington state, and moved to Nashville in 2018. She's given herself permission to glide past expectations of genre and drawn on her unique life experiences to create a sound all her own. Inspired by the work of Faith Hill and Carrie Underwood she blends together a wide range of influences creating a soulful mix of country and pop. "Retro" the title track off her debut EP is a callback to simpler times while using modern samples and her signature sultry vocals.
It’s hard to know where to draw inspiration from and I specifically was writing to discover what my sound would be for the next project. It’s more of a challenge to think outside of autobiographical topics when really I am an autobiographical writer, I’m going to tell a story but it might not be what happened to me personally. It’s a challenge.
Piers James - "MASS APPEAL"
It's no surprise a British producer, rapper, and storyteller who grew up listening to the likes of J Dilla, A Tribe Called Quest, and Andre 3000 developed an authentic 90's boom bap sound and injected it with new school vibes. In doing so, Piers James has created a unique sound dubbed, "new-wave nostalgia." In anticipation of his forthcoming EP A Dying Breed Part II James has released "Mass Appeal". It's both uplifting and celebratory, and shines a light on the importance of individuality and authenticity in the scene
When you hear my music, I want it to remind you of the good times, but also be there for you to get you through the bad ones too,” he says. “The music is nostalgic, but with new twists and beats
Mothica - "Buzzkill"
At the age of 15, struggling with recurring nightmares and major depression, McKenzie Ellis, AKA Mothica, attempted to take her own life by jumping into incoming traffic. Thankfully she survived, and is now able to turn her painful story into art allowing others who feel the same things she did the freedom of knowing they're not alone.
Remember from the darkest corners shine the brightest light.
Many have called her sound dark, but underlying the pain is hope and a strong message of female empowerment. "Buzzkill" is a gritty, honest, and catchy track that carries a huge punch of revenge. Written about her pedophile youth pastor and the sexual assault he inflicted on her at age 13, she makes it clear that she no longer stands in silence of what happened.
To be able to convey a strong emotion in a song — it's really difficult. I just want my songs to actually make someone feel the way I felt in that moment writing it. That's extremely difficult and people are going to interpret things. Some songs should be personal to you and how you interpret them, but for me it's always like I want someone to feel like they're in my shoes when listening to it.
Ólafur Arnalds - "Zero"
Arnalds is an Icelandic multi-instrumentalist and producer from Mosfellsbær whose grandmother introduced him to the melancholic sounds of Frédéric Chopin at an early age. He began his career playing drums in metal bands before embracing the more orchestral sound he's known for today. Exploring the tradition of musical storytelling, "Zero" is the lowest point on his release from last year, Some Kind Of Peace. Yet it also represents the moment when everything starts to turn around for the better.
I feel like Joshua’s video shows that beautifully, exploring the boundaries between two people as they search for a common ground - the contrasting struggle and hope we all find within ourselves and our relationships.
AUDREY NUNA - "Space"
Raised in New Jersey, Audrey was first discovered by Roc Nation producer Anwar Sawyer when she was 16. Now at the age of 20 she's put her education at New York University on hold to pursue a music career. She melds together catchy hip hop rhymes with trap and soul. Her latest single "Space" has the genre-bending supernova expressing her need for space within a relationship over a down beat track.
The sonics of the instrumental really inspired me. as soon as i heard it, it made me think of being underwater, away from people.
Lord Huron - "Mine Forever"
Founding member Ben Schneider began writing music in his hometown of Lansing, Michigan before studying visual arts at the University of Michigan and finishing his degree in France before settling in New York City. Lord Huron began as a solo project which has slowly absorbed members over the years. The band announced the release of their forthcoming album, Long Lost, by releasing this video. "Mine Forever" tells the story of a lost love that's never found again, and continues the bands penchant for 70s style westerns within their videos while adding a psychedelic twist.
When we were coming up in 2010, we saw a lot of bands who, for better or worse, just did karaoke. Because we’ve put so much time and effort into it, people are willing to watch us play live, and we’ve toured a lot. I still get goosebumps when I see that anyone in the audience knows any of the lyrics, it’s still a surreal experience for me.
Yoko Miwa Trio - "Think of One"
Yoko Miwa is a japanese born classically trained pianist. Miwa didn’t pursue an interest in jazz until she met and studied with Minoru Ozone, a popular television organist and nightclub owner. After an earthquake destroyed his nightclub and accompanying music school in 1995 she decided to apply to the Berklee College of Music on a whim and won a full scholarship. More than 20 years later she's still in Boston enriching the city’s musical life and serving as one of the most popular professors in the Berklee piano department. "Think of One'"off her latest release Song of Joy is a prime example of her trios virtuastic playfulness.
My sound evolved from listening to masters of jazz piano, studying their touch, feel, harmonic approach and all the things that went into giving them their own personal sound. My tastes and jazz piano are pretty eclectic so my sound represents that, it is a hybrid of many different jazz pianist that gets blended with my experience as a jazz musician and working pianist in today’s world.
Moonga K. ft. PHFAT - "Who's It Gonna Be"?
Moonga K was born in Zambia, raised in Botswana, and now creates music in Johannesburg. His mother, an ardent fan of gospel, and father, who pursued reggae part time, imparted their love of music to their son. Moonga began developing his songwriting skills after hearing Frank Ocean's "American Wedding." Over the years he's developed his own style of soul taking introspective dives into social justice, depression, anxiety, and love. "Who's It Gonna Be?" explores how the quest for self acceptance can be the cure for past heartbreak.
My dad always made me aware of my blackness and the beauty of that blackness. In a very western-influenced environment, I was always reminded of my place as a black man. Reading Baldwin made me feel like i could be a figure like that.
Vicetone ft. Sarah Solovay - "No Rest"
Vicetone, a dutch EDM duo, features the dazzling vocals of Sarah Solovay on their latest single "No Rest". Born in New York City she began writing songs on her guitar when she was 9 and released her debut EP Gone when she was 15. She continued to balance her musical passion with schoolwork until 2016, when Solovay graduated from Yale University, where she focused on on Visual, Audio, Literary and Performance Culture. Her hard work and dedication has her poised to be one of the next big pop stars.
I never stopped writing. I never stopped hearing new melodies or [thinking of] new ideas for songs. [As someone] who writes, you just keep coming up with this stuff. It feels wrong not to put it out into the world eventually, so it’s less that I felt like something drew me back, less of a moment where I made this decision to go back—it was like I never went away.
TETRARCH - You Never Listen
It's not every day you come across a metal band with a black female lead guitarist, but TETRARCH is just that kind of band. Founded in the summer of 2007 in Atlanta, Georgia by Diamond Rowe and Josh Fore the band quickly created a buzz by playing 100 shows by the end of their first year. They haven't hit the brakes since then. "You Never Listen" is the second single off their forthcoming album Unstable and deals with the agony of a broken relationship when a darker side of someone is revealed.
Honestly, I’m super proud of my tenacity with things that I really want. I have been that way my entire life – If theres something that I really want, I always go and get it. Now, there’s a negative effect to that as well – If it’s something I don’t care about, I DON’T CARE and nothing can make me do it. It’s a pretty interesting dynamic but I am proud of my record of being able to become the best at anything I set my mind to.
Celina da Piedade - Coradinha
Celina da Piedade is a Portuguese accordionist who started studying music at the Conservatório de Setúbal, Portugal when she was 5 and soon afterwards found herself performing in public. Throughout her career she's performed with a multitude of musicians the world over while working within several bands and as a soloist. She's shown the world the versatility of the accordion mixing traditional Portuguese music with a wide array of current sounds. "Coradinha" the first song off her latest album, Celina da Piedade live at Casinha, is a modern recreation of a very old song from southern Portugal, from the Cante Alentejano tradition.
Incubus - "Drive"
Incubus was formed in 1991 while it's members were still enrolled in Calabasas High School in California. Early on the members of Incubus bonded over Phish and Primus and used their grassroots approach as a model for their career. They recorded much of their first music in the hours when they weren't in school. After making a name for themselves without any radio or television exposure through constant touring the band took a two year hiatus to create something new. What they ended up with was Make Yourself, the album which catapulted them into the spotlight. "Drive" the fourth single from this album is a lush track about the importance of letting your heart lead the way.
The good news there is that as a band, I think that if we ever got good at anything, it was flying by the seat of our pants. We’re a pretty adaptable bunch of guys, and we’re pretty adaptable units. It is occurring to us that, you know, the main way that we have gotten music to people throughout out career is by showing up and inviting as many people as possible into confined spaces where everybody gets real sweaty and rubs up against each other, so it’s occurred to us that we’re going to have to continue to adapt to the current circumstance in order to continue to push forward.
Hurray! You've reached the end of Part 1!
Or, you simply scrolled down here...doesn't matter because here we are!
As always, remember to check back on Friday when we guide you through 12 more songs you need in your life and release this weeks 24 Song Mixtape.
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Namaste,
Charlie Le Fol
About the Creator
Charlie Le Fol
Bonjour! I'm Charlie Le Fol, a father of two wonderful daughters, and a lifelong enjoyer of music.
Isn't modern technology wonderful? I no longer have to push Play/Record on a Boombox to create mixtapes for you.
Profiter de la musique!
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