My August playlist was filled with throwback electro club music, eclectic DNB, new wave UK trap, hyperpop, and many others, creating a luscious blend of genres. Let’s dive into this month’s curation and look into my favourite tracks !

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Record of the Month

The Table by Rex Orange County is an effortless pick. His next album cycle, “The Alexander Technique”, is currently underway, and he has released a handful of singles, including “The Table”.

Through this silky guitar ballad, Rex reminisces the previous life his wooden table had — a topic that, although it can seem mundane on first impression, is told in such great details it’s hard not to fall enamoured with Rex’s poesy. Was the tree the favourite place of some lovers to meet during the early days of spring ? Did said tree give them shade and bring them peace ?

The track goes on to feature multiple lush vocal harmonies, and tackles broader topics of social isolation; having so much in common with a stranger, though not enough to have anything to make small talk out of.

It’s a gorgeous piece of music that I’m certain will stick with you throughout gloomy days !

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New Releases

I LAY DOWN MY LIFE FOR YOU — JPEGMAFIA

JPEGMAFIA’s 10th and latest album, “I LAY DOWN MY LIFE FOR YOU”, feels like a breath of fresh air. Although I’ve had trouble getting hooked by SCARING THE HOES, Peggy’s previous and collaborative album with rapper Danny Brown, I've always appreciated his contribution to the rap scene — he’s an eccentric character, always bringing loud production and in your face delivery to the table.

And my first taste of this new album cycle, “SIN MIEDO”, was no exception — a record that defies all the awful expectations one could expect from the blend of hard rock and rap.

The rest of the album was everything I expected since listening to SIN MIEDO — an LP that feels cohesive, has its ups and downs while never feeling boring, and brings exceptional production.

Special mention to the melodic cut “either on or off the drugs” (one of my favourites), that samples an AI generated track called “Turn on the lights” by AI for the culture — a true reappropriation of the abomination that current-day generative AI can be.

SMILE! :D — Porter Robinson

Before the release of the lead single for this new album, “Cheerleader”, I had never heard of Porter Robinson before. And nothing could have prepared me for what I was about to hear when I pressed play. This EDM cut baffled me, for I found myself in awe at how many sounds coming out of my headphones could ever lead to a cohesive musical experience — but it somehow did.

Even though the blaring synths could be heard by a deaf person, the track kicks ass, the inspiration of 2000s emo and electronica are heavily felt, and the lyrics are quite heartfelt when paying attention.

I especially liked how Porter tackles this complex and ambiguous — often parasocial — relationship he entertains with his die hard fans; they don't know where to draw the line, but he still needs them to thrive and drive him to keep creating.

The rest of the album is very similar. It’s a concise 10-track project that, even though can come off as extremely loud and obnoxious, is rather introspective and personal upon closer inspection. I particularly enjoyed how he reflects on his appearance and sometimes unrealistic beauty standards he sets for himself on “Kitsune Maison Freestyle”, that have led to him getting veneers and feeling remorseful about it.

I like, I got my, like, teeth fixed, and I regret it so much, man, like the

I can't, I can't get the teeth that my mom gave me back in my mouth

Guess featuring Billie Eilish — Charli XCX

It’s no secret that Charli XCX has been on a run this summer — she seemed no more than just another “pop girlie” to me before releasing BRAT, and I had never paid much attention to her, even though I could see hardcore fans being head over heels for her previous record CRASH, and her preceding quarantine record “how i’m feeling now”.

However, I can now safely say that I get it now — I’ve got on board of the BRAT train for a while now, and I’ve expanded on my thoughts in my June recap. Charli has since come out with multiple remixes of tracks from the album, “Guess” from the deluxe edition being one of them, featuring none other than Billie Eilish.

Billie’s presence intensifies the already through the roof raunchy-energy, and even though I found her verse to be quite short, her vocal delivery and lyricism fit the record like a glove. The back and forth with “Guess” on the bridge with the pounding bass, the introduction by Charli — “Eat it up for lunch, yeah, it's so delicious” — as well as the chorus switch up by Billie — “Charli likes boys, but she knows I'd hit it” — all make for a hilariously tongue-and-cheek collaborative moment that I can’t help but admire.

The track was also produced by up-and-coming electronic artist “The Dare” that’s making quite some noise in the UK EDM scene recently — I wouldn’t be surprised if he made the cut for a monthly recap in the near future.

HIGHJACK — A$AP Rocky, Jessica Pratt

A$AP Rocky’s upcoming “DON’T BE DUMB” might be one of 2024’s most awaited projects by many. And even though I’ve tried listening on multiple occasions to his previous 2018 record “TESTING” and others, I’ve never felt hooked — it was just too out there and experimental for my liking, and I was never able to get over this first impression.

This isn’t to say that I completely dislike anything Rocky contributes to — I thoroughly enjoyed his collaboration with Frank Ocean on “Purity”, as well as other cuts such as “Arya” on Nigo’s 2022 mixtape “I Know NIGO!”, and more recently his latest single HIGHJACK. Granted, it took a couple of listens, but I found myself thoroughly enjoying his vocal delivery and lyricism, especially how he keeps the same rhyme pattern for 3/4 of the song.

The record has been rumoured to have been a jab back at Drake, as said verse mainly rhymes with “like that”, a track from Metro Boomin and Future’s mixtape “WE DON’T TRUST YOU”, known for featuring Kendrick Lamar and sparking 2024’s biggest rap feud.

There has always been animosity between Drake and A$AP, especially in recent times, when the former mentioned him on his diss-track “FAMILY MATTERS”, alleging that Rocky is better known for his outfits rather than for his musical talents :

Rakim talkin' shit again

[…]

Even when you do drop, they gon' say you should've modeled 'cause it's mid again

Taylor Swif — A$AP ROCKY

Still on the subject of A$AP, Taylor Swif is his latest release. This track will reportedly not appear on his upcoming album, as it was reportedly long-before leaked in 2022 alongside the music video.

Myself never having heard the song before, I think it makes for a pretty enjoyable trap cut. I still love his long rhyming schemes, and his vocal delivery and lyricism are the ones from him that we know and love.

What took my enjoyment of the track to another level was the music video. It’s a zany three-minute fourteen piece that feels like a never-ending fever dream; it constantly uses focal shiftingi techniques to give us a series of visual non sequiturs, all as handheld one takes and full of so-called “wandering shots” (a single shot camera movement that continuously finds new characters). Inh short, it’s fantastic.

Billion Streams Freestyle — Central Cee

This one is not exceptional — I can’t bear the same drum patterns and door-clanging kick sounds that Cash Cobain has made trendy this year, and Central Cee is often a hit-and-miss regarding releases.

However, he does have a good track record of bops, most formerly “Day in the Life”, and most recently I thoroughly enjoyed his collaborative EP with Dave “Split Decision” — I’d be lying if I said that “Sprinter” wasn’t the song of Summer 2023.

On Billion Streams Freestyle, I do appreciate Cench’s flow, even if it’s largely unchanged since his come up. I respect how down to earth the lyrics feel, and I could definitely relate to the catfish bar. Leave my hat alone !

My hair ain't done, if I take off my hat, this bitch might think I'm a catfish

I respect how he goes on the personal route of tackling the relationship he has with his father — or rather the lack thereof — as I’ve never thought of Central Cee as a rapper that would share much about his personal life in his music.

My dad was homeless with four children, he can't even afford them

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Honourable mentions

Some cuts that didn’t necessarily come out in August, but that I surely bumped all month long. Let’s quick fire through them !

Silence is Loud & Unfinished Business from Nia Archive’s Silence is Loud are still bangers and even after being one of my favourite album from June, this eclectic DNB project is on track to becoming my album of the year.

Mathématiques by BU$HI and La Fève marks their second collaboration on BU$HI’s “Interlude”, which was unbeknownst to me, and which turns out — pretty unsurprisingly — to be a banger. La Fève’s flows and placements are unmatched, and BU$HI’s vocal delivery and production choices are remarkable. The result is a compelling track with a catchy hook and a strong back-and-forth between two of the best of what the new generation of the French rap scene has to offer.

Yeah Yeah by Bodyrox and What You Need by Tiga are two great EDM cuts I discovered from The Dare’s set in Charli XCX’s recent Ibiza Boiler Room — I unfortunately am not equipped with speakers loud enough to appropriately blast these two absolute bangers.

Overthinking by Mikano is a smooth afro-beat rap cut which I love grooving to the start of, however I’m not a fan of the direction the vocal takes.

1 FLOW by Nemzzz is an unreleased UK-rap cut which samples famous Cortex track “Huit octobre 1971” — although my initial thought when first hearing Nemzzz was that he was just another UK rapper, he is proving day by day that he’s making waves in the scene, by dropping one banger after another. His vocal delivery is unique and on point, and his flows — while not unheard of — are great. Escape, his latest single, is another proof of the insane run that he’s been on all throughout 2024.

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Conclusion

Those are the tracks that I’ve chosen to include in this August recap ! To listen to the full thing, including tracks that I didn’t mention here, head on over to my monthly curated playlist. See you next month !