The Playlist: August 2019

Music is a little like food and clothes. These are areas where it’s probably worthwhile for one to explore & expand their tastes. The Playlist is assembled each month by Dappered’s very own music correspondent, Tim Johnstone. Tim is a former Virgin Records Label Rep & current award winning Program Director at KRVB, which was awarded the FMQB AAA station of the year markets 50+. You can also catch his work on Fridays when he assembles the Weekend Reset. Got a Spotify account? You’ll find a link to this month’s playlist at the end of the post.

 

Brittany Howard – “Stay High”

Brittany Howard has stepped aside from the guys in Alabama Shakes. For now. She has been spending time with various side projects and now she has focused on music for her debut solo record. This is a glorious bit of soul from a woman who continues to impress with every project. This is simply fantastic.

 

Elbow – “Dexter & Sinister”

Welcome back lads. Following up on their 2017 album Little Fictions, British art-rockers return with a deep, dark and brooding track which rumbles and growls and swoops and shines over the course of 7 minutes and change. Joining the band is American folk singer/songwriter Jesca Hoop. Elbow doesn’t do anything subtly. They connect with every song and this one carries a particular punch.

 

Tool – “Fear Inoculum”

Thirteen years is a long time to wait for new music from any artist. For those fans of Tool, it seemed exceedingly painful. That wait is over, as the band has released their first single from the upcoming album. “Fear Inoculum” has been very well received by fans and critics alike and has already notched one chart statistic of note. This is absolutely terrific prog-metal and bodes well for the new album.

 

DJ Shadow – “Rocket Fuel” featuring De La Soul

Oh hell yeah! I’m gonna find some fanny packs and hyper-color t-shirts and rock the beats like it’s 1993, because this is the jam. It’s ok to dance like nobody is watching but it’s better if nobody is actually watching.

 

Clairo – “Bags”

Lovely lo-fi bedroom pop. Don’t underestimate just how infectious this can be. Clairo’s sound may be low-key but she spent time on the road opening for Khalid’s arena tour. She has a good chance of being the latest female pop star you hadn’t heard of, except now you do.

 

White Reaper – “Might Be Right”

Fuck yeah. Rock and Roll that has swagger and has fun in the process. More of this please!

 

Chance The Rapper – “All Day Long”

I’ve already shared my appreciation for the new full-length album from Chance The Rapper. I’ve chosen a couple tracks this month which stand out, including this track featuring John Legend.

 

Wilco – “Love Is Everywhere (Beware)”

I admit it. I have a soft spot for Uncle Tupelo. They were the first Americana artist I took to. Back then they called it alt-country, but that tag never really felt right to me. Their first few albums still resonate today. Jeff Tweedy has charted an impressive collection of solo records alongside those of Wilco, the band he founded upon Uncle Tupelo’s disintegration. “Love is Everywhere (Beware)” is one of the loveliest Tweedy songs to come along in some time, an easy-going folk song which harbors some uncomfortable questions about what is going on around us.

 

Taylor Swift – “The Archer”

Um, this is unexpected. I’m pretty sure this is the first time Taylor Swift has appeared on a playlist. If it wasn’t for the work of Jack Antonof, I’m not sure I would be so interested. And that would have been a mistake. There is much to like here and I’m going to go back and listen again right now and reflect on my own a-holeness.

 

DIIV – “Skin Game”

I’m a sucker for this stuff. Indie-Rock via a shoegazer prism, a song which builds in layers and intensity as it plays out. Bliss-pop vocals buried beneath the surface. Guitars pushed to the front. And a fuzz that sucks you in and sits you down amidst it all. Glorious.

 

The Sound Of Arrows – “Into The Clouds”

While reading up on the new Taylor Swift release “The Archer” I came across a reference for this song and was flab-ber-fucking-gasted that I had never heard this before. Because this was something that checked all of my 19 year old boxes. Unadulterated synth-pop. A flashback that wasn’t a flashback. I love this for so many reasons. It is guiltlessly earnest. The song evolves and builds and just when you think they’ve hit their stride they add another vocal melody and it’s on again.

 

The Highwomen – “The Chain”

Brandi Carlile, Amanda Shires, Maren Morris, and Natalie Hemby have all made names for themselves in the world of Americana and Country music. They recently announced their new project with an appearance at the Newport Folk Festival and late-night television. They’ve already released a couple songs from their upcoming album (here and here) but the song which will introduce them to the masses is this faithful yet goose-pimple producing cover of the classic Lindsey Buckingham written song for Fleetwood Mac. No matter if the song is something you remember and appreciate, or whether you’re discovering it for the first time, it’s just a great song and these women harmonize the ever-loving shit out of it.

 

Chance The Rapper- “Do You Remember”

Another gem from Chance The Rapper’s new album The Big Day. This one features Benjamin Gibbard from Death Cab For Cutie. This just makes me smile.

 

HAIM – “Summer Girl”

The Sisters HAIM return just in time to remind us what a carefree Summer sing-along sounds like.

 

snarls – “Walk In The Woods”

There are so many adjectives I have for what this band from Columbus, OH. While they all bear some similarity to “charming” and “winsome.” For what it’s worth, the band brand themselves as “glitter emo alt rock.” I’m ok with that.

 

THE CLASSIC:  David Bowie – “I’m Afraid Of Americans”

Because, reasons.

For previous editions of The Playlist, see the growing archive here.

See the Spotify playlist here.