If It's Too Loud...

Photo by Yuichiro Noda Ichiko Aoba's latest single might be the single most beautiful song we've ever brought you. "SONAR" is a stripped down and lush track that merges classical guitar with pop music. Rarely is a song this minimalist while still sounding as full as Aoba has managed here. The true secret of "SONAR" is how painfully quiet it is. Most songs demand your attention with noise and volume. This one does it by how quiet it is. If you want to listen (and you truly do want to), you'll need to drop virtually everything to focus on this one. By giving "SONAR" your full attention, the listener is heartily rewarded with a stunning piece of art. You can watch the video for "SONAR" below. Luminescent Creatures is due out February 28 on hermine/Psychic Hotline, and is available for pre-order here . For more on Ichiko Aoba, check out the artist's website . Upcoming tour dates are below the video and include a May 12 date at Berklee...

Photo by Kodai Kobayashi Sometimes all you need is a guitar and voice. "FLAG," the latest single from Ichiko Aoba, is one of those songs. With just vocals and guitar, Ichiko Aoba has created an incredibly lush track that you'd assume would be folk but it much closer to dream pop. The entire track, which is about reflecting on life while looking at the ocean, is awash in a haze and is more ambient than Americana. The result is a breathtaking and gorgeous song that is much more layered and involved than you typically get with a completely solo track.  You can listen to "FLAG" below. Luminescent Creatures is out February 28 on hermine / Psychic Hotline, and is available for pre-order here . For more on Ichiko Aoba, check out the artist's website . Upcoming tour dates are below the song. Mon. Feb. 24 - Hong Kong, CN @ Xi Qu Centre, Grand Theatre [with Musicians from HK Phil] Wed. Feb. 26 - Seoul, KR @ Sky Arts Hall (SOLD OUT) Thu. Feb 27- Seoul, KR @ Sky Arts Ha...

Photo by Graham Tolbert It's been a few years since we've heard from Daughter of Swords, the solo project of Alex Sauser-Monnig of Mountain Man and The A's. While their 2019 album Dawnbreaker was stripped down alt-folk, their new single drops that sound for a more dance friendly version of indie rock. "Alone Together" is one of those indie rock songs that gets blended with dance music. There is enough fuzzy guitar to keep it in the rock category, but this is definitely a dance song. This is a near complete break from Daughter of Swords' original sound, and we're always for an artist reinventing themselves, especially when the results are this great. Alex Sauser-Monnig says of their new single: “ ‘Alone Together’ is a song about reckoning with the need to connect when the rest of your life is locked in and satisfying. The cracking of the veneer of self sufficiency. Its content was mirrored in its recording, in the way recording a song demands vulnerability ...

Photo by Kodai Kobayashi Japanese artist Ichiko Aoba was only nineteen when she released her debut album in 2010. Besides her albums, she's also scored TV shows, films, and video games. Her latest single, "Lullaby," is as delicate as the title would suggest. Ethereal only begins to describe the song, which touches on jazz, folk, and classical. Everything in the song is gently played, and Aoba's vocals add to the gentleness of the song. "Lullaby" sounds simple, but after a few listens you realize that the simplicity is the song's secret. As sparse as it is, the song is quite lush and sneakily complex. Ichiko Aoba says of her latest single: “I composed a lullaby so creatures of all sizes might find tranquility in their sleep." You can listen to "Lullaby" below. The single is out now via hermine and Psychic Hotline. For more on Ichiko Aoba, check out the artist's website . Upcoming tour dates are below the song. Mon. Aug. 26 - Brussels, B...

Photo by Devyn Galindo I'm not typically one for dance music, but there's just something about Reyna Tropical that wins me over. Led by singer, songwriter, guitarist, and producer Fabi Reyna, the artist's latest single is "Conexi ó n Ancestral." Reyna's music combines Congolese, Peruvian, and Columbian rhythms into modern dance music. It's the kind of sound that will appeal to anyone that had an electronica phase in the 90's (which is probably where I come in) without being a throwback. It's the kind of music that borrows from the past and adapts multiple sounds to create something new, yet oddly comforting. Just to show how unique Reyna Tropical is as an artist, she's playing the Newport Folk Festival this year, which may be a first for a dance artist. Reyna Tropical says of her latest single: "'Conexión Ancestral' is about starting the journey towards being in relationship with another part of my raíces. For me, that’s connecting...

Photo by Devyn Galindo Reyna Tropical doesn't sound quite like any artist we've covered before. Her latest single, "Conocerla," combines Congolese, Peruvian, and Columbian rhythms, but it doesn't sound like what is typically considered "World music." It's more of an alt-pop track flavored with the rhythms. Tropical has crafted this quiet and compelling track that is going to inspire you to move despite how chill and laid back it is. "Conocerla" will burrow itself into your subconscious, and you'll be better for it and thank Tropical for this level of earworm. It's the sort of song that is completely mainstream but also sounds like nothing else in the mainstream. This is the kind of pop music that no one will be able to stop listening to. Reyna Tropical says that her latest single is    “... a song dedicated to the multiplicity and multi-faceted experiences that I carry and act from as a queer, norteña woman—rebuking the lifelong nar...