There are just four weekly Top 30 charts to go for 2015 as we wind down another great year in independently made and released music (that’s what “indie” actually means incidentally).
Beating out more well known artists to lead the five new entries is Port St. Willow, the project of Nick Principe whose new album, Syncope is out in two weeks. The album’s single,’Ordinary Pleasure’ is far from what the first half of its title suggests as it beguilingly envelops, resting on its four beautiful guitar chords and Principe’s amazing falsetto voice. It’s at 18.
Canadian pop experimentalist Claire Boucher, aka Grimes, releases her fourth album Art Angels tomorrow and the first cut from it, the urgent pop of ‘Flesh Without Blood’ is one spot behind at 19.
Don’t let your first listens fool you – Savages new track is fucking awesome! The hard hitting smackdown on emotional narcissism ‘The Answer’ off the London foursome’s forthcoming album Adore Life, sits at 23.
The most poignant and relevant of the new entries is from Blood Orange. Devonte Hynes has been putting front and centre how he feels about the rampant injustice that exists in the United States (and other western nations) when it comes to all aspects of the lives of African Americans or people of so called ‘colour’. Witness his amazing ten minute opus ‘Do You See My Skin Through The Flames’. The life, brutal arrest and suspicious death in police custody of Sandra Bland in Hempstead, Texas (where the fuck is the investigation into that at and we’ve all seen the brutality?) is the subject of his new single, ‘Sandra’s Smile’. Just an aside, an African American local councillor from that same town was brutally tasered and arrested in his own front yard three weeks ago. ‘Sandra’s Smile is at 26.
The final new entry is from Swedish quintet Francis, who we featured last week. ‘Follow Me Home’ is at 28.
Hazel English remains at 1 with ‘Fix’ while the Junior Boys hit the top 10 with ‘Big Black Coat’. Everything HERE and the sounds up there!
18. Ordinary Pleasure
Port St. Willow (USA)
From the forthcoming album, ‘Syncope’, People Teeth. Out Nov 20.
NEW
Port St. Willow Official
Audio Stream
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19. Flesh Without Blood
Grimes (CAN)
From the forthcoming album, ‘Art Angels’, 4AD. Out Nov 6.
NEW
Grimes Official
Official Video
23. The Answer
Savages (ENG)
From the forthcoming album, ‘Adore Life’, Matador. Out Jan 22, 2016.
NEW
Savages Official
Official Video
26. Sandra’s Smile
Blood Orange (USA)
From the single, ‘Sandra’s Smile’, Domino.
NEW
Blood Orange Official
Official Video