Showing 1 - 10 of 31
Kurdish artist tops World Music Chart
Life, John Clewley, Published on 07/05/2024
» The top spot on the Transglobal World Music Chart for May 2024 is held by Turkish-born Kurdish singer, composer and instrumentalist Aynur Dogan. She infuses Kurdish folk music with mainly Western music, and has collaborated Yo-Yo Ma and The Silk Road Ensemble among others.
Go further west
B Magazine, Chanun Poomsawai, Published on 23/02/2020
» Throughout their decades-spanning career in the music biz, Pet Shop Boys have always operated within the realm of sophisticated synth-pop that advocates varying degrees of dancefloor abandon. For lyricist Neil Tennant and composer Chris Lowe, however, it's not just about the allure of club culture or pure hedonism. From day one, social consciousness gets woven into the sonic fabric of their music. "In a West End town, a dead-end world/ The East End boys and West End girls," Tennant sings about the class and wealth gap on their 1984 debut single West End Girls.
The age of angst
B Magazine, Chanun Poomsawai, Published on 01/12/2019
» Maybe it's a sign of the times, but taking a look at the young, emerging artists of today, you might notice that a great many of them tend to speak openly about their anxieties and insecurities. Much like her contemporaries Mitski, Hana Vu and Beabadoobee, 18-year-old singer Griff channels all of these feelings through unfiltered lyrics that read like a page out of her diary.
This woman's work
B Magazine, Chanun Poomsawai, Published on 24/11/2019
» "A woman's work/ A woman's prerogative/ A woman's time to embrace/ She must put herself first," the opening verse of Mary Magdalene from FKA twigs' latest full-length album is sung from the perspective of a fallen woman whose fate runs parallel to that of the titular figure. Following her much publicised break-up with actor Robert Pattinson as well as some serious health issues, the English artist finds common ground with the Biblical character.
Portrait Of An Artist
B Magazine, Chanun Poomsawai, Published on 06/10/2019
» "I just don't wanna be back in this place again/ I mean, I done cried a little/ Tried a little, failed a little/ I don't wanna do it again," Brittany Howard confesses on History Repeats, a funky opener to her solo debut Jaime. Built on acid jazz and neo-soul groove, the song bustles with the genre-blurring spirit of her former band Alabama Shakes and her own irreverent energy. Singing those words, Howard sounds empowered and energised like a weight has been lifted. "History repeats and we defeat ourselves/ Come on everybody, one more time again," before you know it, the song turns into an infectious anthem, leaving in its wake a glimpse into her self-discovery that would go on to define the rest of the album.
Cut above the rest
B Magazine, Chanun Poomsawai, Published on 12/05/2019
» We first heard the name Cut The Crab back in 2014 when their single Mai Mee Kam Tob (Without Doubt) was featured in the Future Sound Of Bangkok's envelope-pushing debut compilation. Besides being one of the most forward-thinking records of that year, the compilation also gave us a sample of what local talents were capable of. Along with eclectic artists ranging from DCNXTR and Gramaphone Children (Jaree Thanapura) to Nolens.Volens. and Plastic Section, Cut The Crab stood out among the gifted bunch as a highly promising newcomer with a keen ear for electro-pop brilliance. Even though the band hasn't been exactly prolific over the past few years, the trio-turned-duo are now back at it with the release of their self-titled debut EP, a six-track collection that's been nearly half a decade in the making.
Returning to form
B Magazine, Chanun Poomsawai, Published on 31/03/2019
» It's hard to believe it's been nearly two decades since Ladytron unleashed its own version of electropop to the world. Hailing from Liverpool, the quartet of Helen Marnie, Mira Aroyo, Daniel Hunt and Reuben Wu first introduced themselves with their 2001 debut 604, a solid 16-track collection heavily influenced by the likes of Kraftwerk, New Order and Depeche Mode. In a period when the UK charts sounded a little uninspired (the No.1 singles ranged from JLo's Love Don't Cost A Thing to Limp Bizkit's Rollin' to Afroman's Because I Got High -- you get the idea), Ladytron's simmering cauldron of synth-pop and electro-industrial almost felt like an act of rebellion.
Call it therapy
B Magazine, Chanun Poomsawai, Published on 03/03/2019
» While most people may not be familiar with Julia Michaels, chances are they have more than one occasion heard (and even sung along to) the songs she wrote. The 25-year-old American songwriter, if you must know, is the force behind some of the biggest pop hits from over the past few years including Justin Bieber's Sorry, Selena Gomez's Bad Liar and Hands To Myself, and Gwen Stefani's Used To Love You. But after realising that some of the songs she penned spoke to her more than it would any of the industry's A-listers, she decided to carve her path as a solo artist -- the move marked by the release of her 2017's debut single, Issues, followed by the seven-track EP, Nervous System.
Tirzah's Kind of Love
B Magazine, Chanun Poomsawai, Published on 02/09/2018
» 'I'm not dancing, I'm fighting/ I'm not shining, I'm burning," Tirzah Mastin sings over the sparse rigidity of four-to-the-floor beats on the title track off her 2013's debut I'm Not Dancing EP. This was her way of rebelling against the EDM trends in pop music -- an admirably bold statement coming from someone who was just starting out. Hailing from Essex, Mastin operates mononymously as Tirzah. Under that moniker she explores her penchant for all things leftfield, fusing post-grime and futuristic R&B with experimental pop -- all courtesy of her school pal producer Mica Levi.
Mitski, demystified
B Magazine, Published on 26/08/2018
» Born to an American father and a Japanese mother, Mitski Miyawaki spent her childhood essentially being a nomad and a stranger in foreign lands. After stints in countries like Congo and Turkey, she relocated to New York, where she pursued her artistic passions, dabbling in film study before eventually focusing on music. This gave her a bit of a head start in the industry because, by the time she graduated, she'd already self-released two records, Lush and Retired From Sad, New Career In Business, as part of her school projects.