Caught in the Net: Swift, ambient sounds from Hebden
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Your support makes all the difference.On 19 September, Kieran Hebden, operating under his usual moniker Four Tet, will release a Fabriclive mix record (the 59th in the series).
Among the 27-track mix are tunes by the likes of Burial and Manitoba, alongside remixes by Four Tet himself. Also included are three tracks by Four Tet (below) in his own right: the final track on the record, called "Locked", is also his new single. It will be released as a 12" on Hebden's Text label, but the minimal techno track is streaming on Soundcloud at ind.pn/mXCJ0s. It doesn't stray far from his comfort zone, but it's quietly hypnotising with low-key beats and clicks, and swift, ambient sounds.
Hess is definitely more
I can't say I was terribly impressed by the name Hess is More – the nom de guerre of the Danish musician Mikkel Hess – when his forthcoming album landed on my desk. More importantly, however, I was quite taken with said album, Creation Keeps the Devil Away; a nicely expansive record of artful electro pop. It's not released until 11 October, but, in the meantime, the record's second single, "Burn", has just been premiered on Urb.com at ind.pn/nL2EBa. With its gently trotting electro sound and vocals curiously high pitched yet flat, it calls to mind The Whitest Boy Alive, and bears the influence of electro pioneer Arthur Russell.
Novacane for the soul
After the success of the grimy single "Novacane", Frank Ocean, the singer for R&B sensations Odd Future, has self released another new track called "Thinking about You". It doesn't quite hit the dark highs of "Novacane", but it's a decent effort nonetheless, pairing a faltering falsetto with a sleek R&B pop sheen. Youcan find it on Ocean's Tumblr at ind.pn/pvpYQh.
Super video cast
The star-studded video of the week came from the unlikely hands of Drew Barrymore. The actress directed a promo for the Best Coast song "Our Deal", with cameos from up-and-coming actors Chloë Moretz, Alia Shawkat and Donald Glover. The video is a violent yet sentimental modern take on West Side Story – chiming with Best Coast's meshing of garage rock and 1950s/1960s infused surf pop. It's the latest in MTV's Supervideo series, which has previously utilised the actresses Anna Kendrick and Emma Roberts in LCD Soundsystem and Cults videos, respectively. Meanwhile, the standout music clip of the week came in the shape of Tuneyard's stunning US TV debut on the comedian Jimmy Fallon's US chatshow, with leading lady Merrill Garbus performing a storming rendition of her track "Gangsta", with the help of the show's house band, The Roots – ind.pn/pjZDVA.
l.ryan@independent.co.uk
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