Blaze of glory…
Happy middle of the week friends! It’s definitely a weird time for those of us in Sydney right now, but man, all we can really do is keep pushing hey? And what better way to do so than by digging into our sick as hell local acts, all of whom bursting at the seams with talent and heart.
And this week is the perfect example. Dig in.
B Wise & Becca Hatch – ‘B The One’
South West Sydney is truly shining in B Wise and Becca Hatch’s new collab ‘Be The One,’ the hip hop titan and R&B flower coming together for a wavy sonic gem that’s both soul-stirring and healing.
The tune sees the pair trading melodies and bars atop a a shifting fluorescent beat, Becca’s honey-infused vocals on the hook blooming in lyrics like ‘could you be the one to hold me down.’ And of course B Wise totally goes ham on the verses as well, rapping with just the right amount of precision and spontaneity as he gets deep on relationships, bars like ‘Feels like our life was a party/ remember it wasn’t like that when we started/ We would do date nights, love was the budget/ Now we one hundred percent never cut it’ reaffirming his affinity for storytelling and crafting mental images that are impossible to escape (not that you would want to escape them).
The pair fit together as if they’ve been collaborating for years, oozing a sense of comfortability and trust with the other that’s almost startling in its execution. Fingers crossed this is the first of many collabs from them. Check it below.
Muki – ‘Tears In The Rain’
Hyper-pop phenom Muki fires on all of her shock-infused cylinders in ‘Tears In The Rain,’ the Sydney-based singer-songwriter getting your soul raging while soothing you with melancholic hypnotism. As usual the production of the tune is totally otherworldly and cosmic, flickery synths and drums pulsating like a raging sonic heartbreak, increasing in pulsation and resonance with every kick and 808.
Her vocals totally transcend on the hook as well, the measured autotune working together with the vivid layers to communicate the emotion that occurs when having your heart broken. It almost feels like you’re there in that session with her, standing on the other side of the glass as you’re watching her pour her damn heart out to that mic.
There are so many moving cogs, textures and feelings embedded throughout the track, but they balance each other out effortlessly, the tune listening like a stream of cyber essence finding perfect peace in the absolute chaos. Get familiar below.
Hotel – ‘Meraki’
Sydney artist Hotel (real name Andrew Tudehope) is a disco ball of rollerskate euphoria in his latest release ‘Meraki,’ his follow up to the widely successful ‘Loose Change’ drenched with suave and fearless acceptance of inevitability. The tune sees Hotel get retro in sonic execution, blazing disco synths and cylindrical vocal processing listening like a hypnotic sermon born on an 80s dance floor.
Singing about absorbing the joy and ecstasy of each moment as if it were your last, Hotel embodies the existential party animal within us all, the type not afraid to dance into the night and early hours of the next morning, regardless of all responsibility awaiting you beyond the sunrise. It’s all embodied in the delivery of the hook ‘nothing ever lasts forever,’ the raw vocal delivery dripping with danger as the stabby synths and clattery drums add vibrant oranges and yellows to the kaleidoscopic tune.
A track that’ll encourage you to feast upon forbidden fruits and give into your deepest desires, it’s a bit of invigoration that’ll set your soul alight. Check it below.
SAHXL – ‘C4’
18-year-old Western Sydney rapper Sahxl is putting his hand forward as the next big thing in ‘C4’, the young upstart’s cruisy mix of autotuned vocals and slick as hell bars hitting the sweet spot hit revelled in by global superstars like The Kid Laroi, Polo G and eternal goat Juice WRLD. The tune sees the young OG spitting over emotive piano loops and fast paced hats, finding a melodic haven in the trap-inspired sonic palette.
He also displays a flourishing singing voice, tempered with a strong sensitivity and emotional depth that really helps to push the overall message of the tune forward, a highlight being around 1:25 where he showcases a glimmer of the potential of his melodic prowess and rhythmic mastery.
It’s definitely the type of tune you’d be able to go wild to live, forcing punters to engage in everything from screaming atop their lungs to crooning their hearts out, striking a multi-dimensional balance between banger and ballad.
A track from a artist with a wealth of potential, the future is definitely bright for young SAHXL. Get familiar with SAHXL and ‘C4’ below.
Rest For The Wicked – ‘Bones’
Rest For The Wicked (AKA Melbourne artist Ben Townsend and Sydney producer Tasker) pull you into the crushing depths in ‘Bones,’ the debut single from the band a genre-defying creation equal parts unhinged and radical.
The tune is a melting pot of juxtaposition, intimate and heartfelt vocals perched upon haunting guitars and punchy drums, the tune keeping you guessing as to its overall sonic destination.The harmonies on the pre-chorus and hook add yet another layer of duality to its composition, listening like the devil and angel on your shoulder taking turns vocalising until they find a hybrid middle ground between the darkness and light. Singing about the anxieties associated with mortality and the decision to give into the unknown, the track taps into the archaic desire to conquer death, except, Rest For The Wicked manages to actually overcome his anxieties associated with oblivion, the duo embracing the fear on lyrics like ‘I had goose bumps, nail biting though the night/ So I closed it off, I abandoned that ship, Now it’s me and my shadow.’
Imagine a grunge band that had a secret pop-heartthrob alter-ego, one that only came out when engaging in existential thought. It’s a tune that’ll bounce around your mind long after listening to it, and hence, we’ve been bumping it on repeat. Check it below.
