diSKOAver weekly: week of May 3, 2023

Heya cute lil disco babies ✨🪩

Given that we are in the middle of one hell of a Mercury Retrograde (😮‍💨) and also about to have a major lunar eclipse in Scorpio on Friday that’s all about releasing what doesn’t serve you, I thought it would be helpful to offer the collective some amulets of protection and strength to navigate any particularly prickly moments of reflection that you may experience over the next few days. 

I won’t front, it’s been pretty prickly the last few months. As I mentioned previously, I’ve felt stuck in this transitional phase that I’ve been in for awhile and decided to do some digging to see if there was anything that I was missing that was preventing my progress. What I finally allowed myself to see had been in front of me the whole time. If I may be so vulnerable to the void, I will bravely admit that I was toting around some really heartbreaking self limiting beliefs. I was allowing myself believe that: 

• I am a disposable person 😔

• Connection with me is something people can easily let go of 😞

• My full authenticity is *too much* and pointless to offer anyone because people will abruptly leave you no matter what anyway 🫥

• A relationship with me isn’t worth fighting for 🫠

I’ve been essentially wearing these self limiting beliefs as a pair of prescription lenses that are VERY MUCH NOT YOUR PRESCRIPTION ANYMORE. 👓 For people who have privileged eyesight and have never experienced what happens when the prescription is off on your corrective lenses, it fuckin SUCKS. 😩 You get headaches from the eye strain and all sorts of other micro annoyances until you can rectify the issue and go back to full clarity. 

Happy to report that those metaphorical contact lenses have been chucked into the fuckin bin, y’all. 🚮

As a result, I’ve been carefully setting some new boundaries to reflect my restored vision. This morning after meditation I drew the Nine of Wands, of which Jessica Dore’s reflections on that particular card in her book, Tarot For Change: Using The Cards For Self-Care, Acceptance, and Growth just so happen to be about boundaries. 😎

She writes that, 

“Ideally what we want is a boundary that’s firm, visible from a mile away but not unwelcoming. There’s a doorway through the wall, but the gatekeeper is discerning and has a zero-tolerance policy for nonsense.” 

I liken this line of thinking to that of all things, a bubble. 🫧

Think about it. Visible from a good distance and completely transparent but something that you know if you were to penetrate it you would literally wreck the whole vibe. Furthermore, bubbles are adaptive in more ways than just floating around making Ozzy Osbourne feel less like the Prince of Fucking Darkness. Bubbles can freeze and be rigid and seemingly impenetrable, which while looking kinda cool aren’t as fun as regular bubbles because they’re too heavy to be all floaty and cute. They can also bump into other bubbles and subsequently stick together and float around together in fun new shapes as a result. 🫧

To me, this last lil bitty bit here is ✨the goal✨. Right? I’ve had to learn the hard way that having good boundaries with yourself means only sticking to people who wouldn’t want to burst your bubble, and a good indictor of that is whether or not you actually see a bubble when you encounter anyone outside of your own. 🧐

On communicating boundaries, Dore offers the following (my flair added),

“I often think of communicating a boundary as a bit like getting informed consent from someone. 🫧It’s right to let others know the terms of engagement before they get involved. This keeps you safe, and it also keeps the other person safe from the possibility of your exploding in a fit of rage because you said yes too many times when you should’ve said no. 🫧 It’s scary to be close with people who give indiscriminately without a sense of their own limits.” 

Apparently I’ve been in the energy of this bubble metaphor for boundaries for awhile now, because I just remembered this little nugget of wisdom from my chat with Goo Goo Dolls bassist Robby Takac that I’ll leave you with (and obvi my flair again): 

"It is what you make it," he said, "It's your bubble man. You're in a bubble when you're out here [on tour] but it's your bubble. Like we say 'life's good in the bubble, man'. You know, for a lot you get to choose what's there and what's not, you know? So we just kind of keep it sane back there, […].”

So much love to all of you. Now go blow some beautiful bubbles already!

🫧💖✨

1. Fischerspooner - “Amuse Bouche” 

2. KAMAUU - “the vibe — A COLORS SHOW” 

3. Chris-n-Teeb - “First”

4. Lily Allen “Trigger Bang (feat. Giggs)”

5. Yves Tumor - “Purified By Fire” 

6. Joshwa - “Magalenha”

7. Pat Lok - “Set Me Free (feat. Kiinjo)” 

8. Mont Duamel - “Young” 

9. Moullinex - “Break Me In Pieces (feat. GPU Panic)” 

10. Qveen Herby - “NAH” 

11. Courtney Govan - “stay still” 

12. Posie Pocket - “Peace>Pleasure”

13. Aaron Taylor - “Patience (feat. Madison Ryann Ward)” 

14. NAMIRÉ - “Let Go” 

15. Bayonne - “Solo” 

16. Sego - “SURRENDER” 

diSKOAver weekly: Week of December 8, 2021

Hello gorgeous internet friends!🥰✨💖

Did you miss me? I sure missed you.

I think the hiatus is over? IDK. I feel like I keep saying that, but I’m pretty sure this is the real deal this time, haha.

In the past I have spent a lot of time overthinking what I share on this silly little site because I want it to be an equally fun and informative space that also happens to be aesthetically pleasing to My People. Plus there’s that pressure to figure out how to monetize the thing that makes you happy 🤑, which can easily become a thing that makes you really unhappy when you get caught comparing your internet offerings to someone else’s. Juggling all of those feels on top of a pandemic made trying to express myself even more stressful so I gave myself as much space from this as I needed until I missed it so much that I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

And some of you even reached out a few times to ask when the next update was coming. 🥺 You’ll never know how much that meant to feel like my contributions are actually meaningful to y’all even though most of the time I feel like I’m gushing into the void, lmao.

Anyway I hope you all are doing well and have been stuck at least twice by now. 💉

Enjoy!

---

1. Mickey Kojak - ”Club Is On Fire”

   Okay so for whatever stupid reason when I want to take myself seriously about loving on this Sydney sweetie I always tell myself his full name is actually Michelangelo Kojak. I might have dreamed that once? Either way, that’s not even remotely true. I know his real name is actually Michael Dable and yet here we are lol. At any rate, our fateful hero has been doing his part during the pandemic to regularly drop techno treats on Tuesdays of his choosing to keep the fire burning in our hearts for his adorkable ass while he continues to work on new music. Luckily we managed to get a remix and two originals from Mickey in 2021, “Lights Out” and “Club Is On Fire”, the latter being the more splendidly chaotic of the two.

2. Pat Lok x Party Pupils - “So Fine”

   Over the course of 2021 the Twitter homey Pat Lok has been doing the Lorde’s work by keeping us satiated with shit that slaps. His recent collaborations with Party Pupils have been especially hitting the spot as of late. “So Fine” is an obvious fave because it makes it easier for me to pretend like I’m getting the attention I know I deserve, but I also really love their latest, “I Want You”. Which is also more attention seeking from me I guess? lol ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

3. Lxury - “PAD MA”

   I was really glad London’s Lxury snuck in another EP after last year’s No Real Rush. This new one, Smart Digital Life is a lot more airy and brighter than NRR. There’s not a track I’d cut. In a parallel universe I would’ve included “Up High” but I was really feeling the high energy of "PAD MA” to compliment everything else in this weeks playlist.

4. Simon Hinter - “Wanna Make Love - Mixed”

   I love a good DJ Kicks mix, which is where I fell for German producer Simon Hinter. While I thoroughly enjoyed the entire mix that Disclosure put together, “Wanna Make Love” easily stands out as a moment to shut the fuck up and dance. Do not try to shift your focus otherwise you might get swept away on the dance floor.

5. Alfie Templeman - “Wait, I Lied”

   If these are the kinds of songs that Alfie Templeman is writing at 18, mannnn I’m like dying to know how his sound is gonna evolve in the next, like, 5 years. The progression from Don’t Go Wasting Time to Forever Isn’t Long Enough is somewhat subtle but you can tell that he’s feeling a lot more confident in his sound. Here’s hoping he continues on this trajectory he’s clearly on at the moment.

6. Jaded - “Welcome To The People”

   Lovely London lads Jaded have also been doing their part holding it down in 2021. I think “Welcome To The People” is a nice change of pace for the trio. The beat is super addictive. It keeps you stimulated as if you’re slightly over caffeinated and leaves you wanting like a 10 minute edit of this or some other absurd length.

7. Darius - “Feels Right (feat. Duñe)”

   Let the record reflect that the only show I went to in all of 2021 was to see Darius and Étienne de Crécy while I was in Paris for part of August and most of September. I just can’t bring myself to do shows in the US yet. I got hella trust issues with this country related to this pandem. Meanwhile, France’s vaccination efforts coupled with the countrywide implementation of the Pass Sanitaire put my mind at ease to dance the night away. And you better believe I barely moved the next day I went so hard at that show. While every track on Darius’ new EP, OASIS (Prelude), has its each little flavor to savor, “Feels Right” is my favorite mood enhancer of his and I had to make sure this one got to y’all. 🥰

8. Louis La Roche - “One Big Gay Disco”

   I very much like Louis La Roche’s new album, We’re Not That Different. There are so many good details about this record that make me keep coming back to it. My first taste of the record was, “One Big Gay Disco”, which is how I would succinctly describe what I hope heaven is like if it exists. I did ⚡️The Kibbe Thing⚡️ and hunted down the origin of this sample. I’m not going to publicize the hateful homophobic person’s name who said some horrible shit in an interview that Louis chose to transform into something positive and fuckin fabulous. I’m not mad it wasn’t easy to find the clip. Maybe just take my word for it that it’s awful and as someone who has people who lost people in the Pulse shooting that this song advances the slay agenda and is defiantly gay as hell.

9. KUNZITE - “SUPREME BEAM”

   I’m such a doofus. I went way too long not putting it together that KUNZITE was Ratatat adjacent. Never not embarrassing when something that later seems painfully obvious just flies over my head. I mean how long have I been at this shit, 12 years now? Anyway for the record KUNZITE is comprised of RATATAT's Mike Stroud and Agustin White from White Flight which is why it’s vibey af. I really love their latest album, VISUALS and I cannot recommend it enough.

10. Willow Kayne - “Opinion”

    When last we met this little sweetie was just stepping out with her debut single, “Two Seater”. Since then she’s released tracks “I Don’t Wanna Know” and more recently, “Opinion”. Have a peep at the brand spankin’ new music video for IDWK which Willow shot during her recent stay in Los Angeles. If you need any concrete evidence that the 90s are absolutely back in style, just sit back and let Willow’s ‘fits wash over you in all of their Delias-era glory. For some reason I really want Willow and BENEE to be besties. I feel like they would get into the best kind of trouble together, you know?

11. Noah Davis- “How Much Cash”

    I haven’t watched American Idol since season one so I hadn’t made the connection that Noah Davis has already had a little heat going for awhile. To me he was just some unassuming sweet thing that landed on my FYP and left me fucking SHOOK when “How Much Cash” hit my earholes. It not only makes me want to go to a gay bar full of hot lil go-go boys, but given that I’m in a space to call in the blessings I’ve been blocking, I always feel richer and mad sexy after playing this.

12. Magdalena Bay- “Secrets (Your Fire)”

    Only been trying to make this band happen since *checks notes AKA the DW archive* 2019. Glad everyone has joined the party! Like sincerely. I really am. Gotta say tho, they really fucking nailed it with this record. Mercurial World is just… *chef’s kiss*. Also this 90s nostalgia aesthetic just makes me feel like I’m on Geocities talking about this. If you don’t know what Geocities is please don’t tell me and just Google it. I can already feel the “kids these days don’t know how good they have it for making websites” spiel and I’m not in the mood to embarrass myself. Just let me casually obsess over their music video for this song and their website in peace.

13. Griff - “One Night”

    Fun true story: while working from my Airbnb in Paris I would leave MTV France on because I figured of all the TV shows that would teach me useful French vocabulary that Catfish would be perfect for someone as Very Online as yours truly. In France they were going HARD with plugging this song in the commercial breaks. Admittedly I haven’t given Griff a lot of attention in the past, but the clip from, “One Night” left me curious about the story behind the song. Apparently it’s about, “feeling like you’re always carrying this darkness or burden.” As Griff told NME, “I think in the daytime we can feel distracted because we’re around people and we’re busy, but that moment between going to bed and falling asleep, there’s just enough silence for those burdens to get louder. Essentially this song is trying to understand why I can’t shake it, and the chorus comes to this breaking point of desperately wanting at least ‘One Night’ alone.” Yeah girl, feel that. 😔

14. Carter Vail - “Trash Friends”

    Carter Vail makes it very easy to love him, which is why I’m not surprised at his ever growing following on TikTok. He’s a solid songwriter, has a great sense of humor (see also: “Trash Friends”), and also happens to have a face that you don’t mind looking at for long periods of time. It did not surprise me one bit to learn that he’s based in Nashville now and played at Rockwood Music Hall at the end of November. Hell I might DM his ass and ask him if he’s going to Belmont, because that’s the vibe he’s throwing. He’s throwing “homey I could’ve gone to college with who’s having a fun time getting better at writing songs”. That said, it seems his sound has already evolved quite a bit since he started releasing tracks in 2018 and I definitely like the direction he’s chosen for his 2021 cuts.

15. Nasty Party- “People On The Street”

    Are you ready to hit BINGO on your SKOA Bingo cards? This one is courtesy of the TikTok algorithm AND is an Australian baby band, bitches. LMAO. These guys have managed to capture the essence of 1980’s punk but made just enough tweaks to the sound that it could contend with today’s standards. In my ✨Kibbe Flies Aussie Bands To America And Makes Them All Famous Fantasy✨, these guys would be on a bill with Johnny Hunter and These New South Whales.

16. Jakuzi - “Açık Bir Yara”

    My little Turkish darklings Jakuzi have reappeared to seduce us with a quickie two-song EP for 2021, of which the title track,“Açık Bir Yara” is my favorite. Singer Kutay Soyocak has also started dabbling in a new black metal project called Vox In Rama which is a genre I’m not often in the mood for but is very cool to see this side of Kutay’s vocal abilities.

[PLAY THE PLAYLIST] Nothin But Fuckin Love Songs Vol. 2

People get so fuckin weird about Valentine’s Day.

It is such a wild thing to observe.

Personally….I love Valentine’s Day. I’ve always liked that there’s a day where we go out of our way to share our love with each other and allegedly it’s not weird to be as extra as you wanna be.

I say allegedly because like… well what the fuck is this Galentines/Palentines day bullshit? Are we serious? You’re really that worried someone is gonna misinterpret your intentions? Or is this a solidarity thing for people who aren’t yet legally bound to someone? What is that?

Either way, you’re fuckin with the vibe when you throw around this unnecessary bullshit. Grow the fuck up. It’s Valentine’s Day and there is more than enough love to go around today, okay?

Also, I’ve been partner-less for most of them, too, so don’t start coming at me with some bullshit like, “Well over here it’s been Single’s Awareness Day basically forever, Kibbe”.

And trust me fam, I get it. It’s so easy to forget that we were taught out of loving each other freely and fearlessly. Remember when your age was still in single digits? That night before your school observed Valentines Day you got that box of corny ass mass produced ✨meaningful messages✨ and you went one by one through all of them assigning little love notes to everyone in class. Friends got the fun ones, crushes got the ones that seemed a bit more direct, and anyone else got whatever was left. Next day in class everyone distributed their Valentines and there would be this fun chatter about the messages or which cartoon franchise you went with for your Valentines. We never thought fuckin twice about giving everyone a Valentine back then. At least that’s how I remember that shit, along with handing out Care Bear ones at some point.

ANYWAY

We know I’m a song hoarder and that I like being able to identify a song for every occasion if possible, especially because a lot of times songs articulate a feeling or thought I’ve been sitting with better than I had been able to land on. With love songs though, it’s so interesting. Like I said, not a ton of relationships over my way, yet when prompted I can always send at least 20 in your direction at all times. I wouldn’t necessarily say love songs feel as carelessly mass produced as my Care Bear Valentines from 1st grade, but there are definitely more love songs than there are people at this point.

Either way I can tell that I’ve grown a lot as person since the last time that I compiled love songs for Valentine’s Day because as I was putting together this round of songs that I thought about how silly it is that I am able do this so easily. I started asking myself questions like: Am I really just cataloging vibes so I can provide more thoughtful recommendations than The Algorithm™ ever could? Am I trying to study love so I ✨do it right✨ if it ever shows up? Even scarier, am I studying these to see if I’ve been doing something wrong? Do I want someone to send these songs to me? Do I think all of these songs encompass just one person?

I think that last question is really fascinating given how weird people are about Valentine’s Day. We often think that one single person is going to arrive in our lives and that will mean that everything is better or easier because we have found someone we enjoy being with so much that we’d draw up some paperwork so we can collectively own assets or make important medical decisions for each other. But in the real world that’s not how it works. Most people don’t get married and evaporate from their former lives, never speaking to their friends or family ever again. If anything the result is two communities, not just two people, become one. And when shit hits the fan, I mean yeah you have someone RIGHT THERE at your side immediately to look out for you, but the way that person shows up for you is the result of the way their community shaped them, for better or for worse (see what I did there?).

To be clear, finding ✨your person✨ is WONDERFUL. I’m not tryna discount that at all. But it’s not some cure all that a lot of people seem to think it is. I don’t think you’re “fixed” or something because you find your person, mostly because I don’t think anyone is “broken” to begin with. If anything this person is just someone you agree to get really fucking vulnerable with, which ideally you’re already practicing varying levels of vulnerability with select members of your community prior to identifying this person. A person who is so special that you throw a very fancy party to celebrate. Even that, weddings would be fuckin trash without your friends and family there, so why do we choose to spend this particular day treating love like it’s something incredibly exclusive? I will spare you a wall of text about the capitalism bit here and just say IT’S SO LAME THAT THIS EXISTS AND I HATE IT VERY MUCH.

This all to say…. Happy Valentine’s Day.

Not Single’s Awareness Day. Not Palentine’s Day. Not Galentine’s Day.

Fuckin Valentine’s Day.

I love you. 💖

diSKOAverweekly: Week of February 10, 2021

Hello again. 🥰
Been a little while since I felt like updating this. Did y’all miss me? Fuck I’ve missed y’all. And doing this. I won’t go into detail about everything that’s happened since last we met. Also I can’t really say for sure that we’re back online full throttle go go go with updates on this site in addition to this playlist. That said, when the feeling comes to connect with some fellow digital crate diggers I’m not gonna talk myself out of it anymore, even if sometimes I make myself crazy with how much detail I want to cram into these updates, lol. Anyway the sun is shining, I’m still covid-free, and I love you all so much that I just had to share these.

Until next time! Whenever that is…

💖✨

1. Arlo Parks- ”Porta 400”

   If you have not pressed play on Collapsed In Sunbeams yet I hate to spoil the ending for you right off the bat like this, but also like, shame on you for not rushing immediately to support this little slice of heaven on earth. I have made jokes in the past about how I love it when bands just “dump glitter on their problems”. The Arlo Parks take on this vibe is the opening lyric (and honestly kind of its own self-review of the album), when she opens the track with, “making rainbows out of something painful”. I love her so very much. The record is absolutely breathtaking. We are so blessed to have been afforded this moment to learn from her. And possibly heal with her, too?

2. Anees - “Maybe”

   So I am part of the statistic of millennials who mostly lurk on TikTok, fascinated to see what The Algorithm™ has chosen to reflect back as its interpretation of my True Self. No one is surprised that eventually it started trickling in really talented baby bands and they are all SUCH LOVELY PEOPLE oh my god. DC rapper Anees is a shining example of that. My goodness I just want to put this kid in my hoodie pocket and keep him safe forever. He’s only 3 tracks into his formal foray into music, but has been experimenting with rapping on Instagram since 2019. I came in on “Maybe”, which follows “Brown Kid”, a track where he shares his perspective of being a Palestinian/Lebanese kid in a very white America, and debut track, “Neverland Fly”, which details how the rapper chooses to rise above any of his negative thoughts and stay up in the clouds. “Maybe” is such a lovely little ditty to carry with you wherever you go to remind you to keep dreaming and to do your best to not let the bullshit weigh you down. PS if you want proof of his vocal abilities in real time, kid is live on TikTok fairly frequently just rapping in his car, experimenting with new lyrics.

3. Sycco - “Dribble”

   God damn Slum fam are always such a good barometer of quality in terms of cool new things to check out. Enter: Sycco (pronounced “psycho”) and her breakout jam, “Dribble”. The track was produced by Edward Quinn (the quiet producer half of slum fam), as well as her latest, “Germs”, which has also started to gain some traction. I’m not sure who was working with her on her earlier tracks, but I really like the way her sound has evolved with these two tracks. She definitely sounds more “at home” than she does with her earlier tunes. I hope she has plans for 2021 because I could see this casual crush I have on her voice intensifying with just the slightest of nudges.

4. Wake The Wild - “Rewind”

   Fun true story, this track initially dropped in Summer 2020 but then vanished. For 6 months in the playlist where I had excitedly tossed it to play it back on the regular it was faded pixels of its former self. I checked back on it more often than I’d like to admit. Then like its very own Christmas miracle it came back in early December. I think it’s the best track they’ve released to date. You should also check out the EP they dropped last year, too. It’s great, just not as trance-inducing as I’ve come to find “Rewind” to be.

5. Hablot Brown - “GO (Dam Swindle Remix)”

   This remix is EXCELLENT. Dam Swindle really took one look at Hablot Brown’s “GO” and said, “You know…you can dance with your darkness if you want.” The rework is really balanced in the way it elevates the song’s essence without distracting you too much with its bouncy popped out production. I wasn’t familiar with either artist until The Algorithm™ plunked this in my lap, but I’m really excited to spend more time digging through their respective catalogs because everything else I’ve sampled so far has been great.

6. JESSIA - “I’m Not Pretty”

   So remember that time deadmau5 was livestreaming himself working on an idea for a track and this dude Chris James randomly DMs him a vocal that he thought could be cool with what Joel was working on and that turned into “The Veldt”? So this is the like TikTok indie pop version of that story essentially. On January 1st, JESSIA posted a TikTok of herself singing the catchy ass chorus in her car. The sound got picked up really quickly. Like really quickly. So much so that The Algorithm™ did its magic and it landed on producer Elijah Woods’ For You Page feed and it was subsequently transformed into the rough sketch of the bop you hear today by the 3rd. The song was formally released *checks notes* 5 days later and is already sitting at 17 million plays on Spotify. It’s now starting to get a little radio play, too! What I really love about this track is that it speaks to the authenticity and vulnerability that people love about music. There’s no flexing or pretending like everything is fine. Also there’s just something really magical about how this is essentially a community-created track. Like *The People* basically decided that this idea was worthy of quality collaboration and said “do your thang, algorithm! make it happen!” AND IT DID. So there is your How To Sound Interesting At Parties (When Covid Is Over) With Kibbe for the week.

7. Jordana - “Fuck You”

   As a connoisseur of “Fuck You” songs I gotta say that this one can easily throw down among the likes of Lily Allen and Cee-Lo Green’s legendary hits imo. While those songs have these grandiose productions to really launch their lyrics into the stratosphere, Jordana’s more understated approach is way more effective in dismissing whatever dumb fuck is deserving of this energy. The “Fuck You”s of the past sometimes come off as trying to cover up a lot of hurt by making a big scene of how much one can go fuck themselves. With this newcomer, it’s as easygoing and upbeat like a Sheryl Crow “All I Wanna Do Is Have Some Fun” but then proceeds to casually acknowledge and shrug off someone’s bullshit. It’s really such a cool choice of execution given how different the rest of Something To Say To You sounds. I like that every time this comes on I just kinda smirk and I’m like, “yeah, fuck that dude”.

8. Joey Purp - “Elastic”

   Another fun track that them teens on TikTok decided wasn’t done with it yet even though QUARTERTHING is almost 3 years old now. I think one of the things I like about the ecosystem of TikTok so much is how songs like this are passed around and you find a really interesting subculture of sorts that materializes around a particular sound. Yes of course I know that this is how music typically works, but when I skim the TikToks around any particular sound it almost seems to me that where we used to dress a specific way to essentially reflect our music tastes, people on TikTok basically “wear songs” to find each other. IDK - bare with me, as you can see TikTok has really sparked something in my creativity. JUST LET ME HAVE THIS OKAY!?

9. Running Touch - “Equaliser (feat. I.H)”

   There is something about this song that I have such a hard time sitting still when it comes on. I’m really curious if this is ✨just a me thing✨or if other people can’t stop from shimmying either. I should also say that if this is your first taste of Running Touch that it’s somewhat of a deceptive entry point because while dude is certainly good at mood manipulation, he’s not exactly a household name for boisterous bouncy bangers like this one. Anyway I just glanced at man’s monthly listeners and y’all need to do better by him okay.

10. Genesis Owusu - “The Other Black Dog”

    I caught wind of Genesis Owusu via Touch Sensitive because they worked together on music for a good bit of last year (which I imagine that only stopped because sweet little Mariella arrived to the party). While I came in on, “Don’t Need You” and was hooked immediately to everything about Genesis, I really like the chaotic energy of “The Other Black Dog”. It’s almost overwhelming, which I think was its aim from the get-go. Anyway, his debut LP, Smiling With No Teeth, is coming out on March 5th and I might choose to be impatient and see if I can get my ears on this one sooner than release date.

11. Two People- “Dream Steppin’”

    I just realized this is also a recommendation brought to you by Slum fam, lol. I don’t think either of the guys have any involvement in the making of anything Two People related, but I do appreciate that them fellas know that Sharing Is Caring. ANYWAY y’all are welcome that I’m pulling reccos from all corners of the internet/world. I very much enjoyed spending time with their latest LP Second Body and I plan on doing more of that this year, too.

12. j. pastel- “strawberry lemonade - 3am version”

    So at present j. pastel fits that lo-fi ✨aesthetic✨ kinda vibe. You know, the one where it won’t surprise you to know that Majestic Casual is following these guys on Instagram and for some reason you’re a little surprised that they haven’t been tossed into a ‘lofi hip hop music - beats to study/relax to’ kind of playlist just yet. I hope that means they’re on a different trajectory than the playlists that people mostly put on to ignore. This “3am version” of the previously released “strawberry lemonade” to me indicates that they don’t just want to be atmospheric. I get the same feeling in their latest, “Holy War”. It’s almost as if they’re coming back to Earth in a way. As if floating in that bit where the atmosphere and outer space was fun but it’s easier to articulate yourself when there’s more oxygen available. Yes, being out in the middle of nowhere is making me sound like an even bigger weirdo. Hopefully this is as entertaining for you as it is for me.

13. SG Lewis - “One More (feat. Nile Rodgers)”

    I know SG Lewis needs to release things to maintain visibility so he can have a career post-pandem but why he gotta drop something that just makes me feel like we are gonna be in the middle of the dance floor any second now 😩. Also so fucking cool that he got Nile Rodgers to work with him on this track. Since I can’t say enough wonderful things about TikTok, you should follow that dude over there. The other day he shared the origin story of Diana Ross’ “I’m Coming Out” and I legit “STFU REALLY 🤯”’d right into my phone (and in the comments lol).

14. Kristy Harper - “My Body. My Future (feat. Samirah Raheem)”

    Another TikTok find! If you found LP Giobbi’s “Amber Rose” to be empowering or thought provoking, you will absolutely fucking love the way that Kristy Harper has memorialized Samirah Raheem’s “Slutwalk interview” in “My Body. My Future.” Everything about Kristy Harper is pretty FEMME HOUSE af come to think of it. Hold up, I just realized that these bad bitches don’t know each other. Think I need to fix that when I finish this post…. will report back if anything cool happens from that. Also when you’re done obsessing over “My Body. My Future”, you HAVE to listen to “The System Is Fucked”, especially if you’ve been up to your eyeballs in stonks lately.

15. Otzeki - “Max Wells-Demon”

    I’ve come to learn that the reason why I love Otzeki so much is because they make getting to know your shadows seem way less daunting of a task than we often think it is. I’m really glad that they’ve started trickling out new tracks over the past 6 months. I didn’t realize how much I’ve missed their presence until they were back. Not only are they back, but they’ve got a new record coming out on March 19th called Now Is A Long Time. And I know by other people’s standards I should be talking about “Unthunk” because that came out yesterday, but I am genuinely just obsessed with how quickly “Max Wells-Demon” was able to permeate every cell in my body. And ofc I’m being dramatic about this, but you know when you can’t shake the way a song immediately feels like an extension of yourself? Yeah. Also the music video for this is really cool.

16. Pat Lok - “Pardon My French”

    The Magician recently dropped a compilation called Magic Tape 001, which features tracks from a lot of really great people I already admire and some that I can’t wait to get to know better after being exposed to them through this release. I really like this contribution from Twitter fam Pat Lok, who I feel the need to go on record to say that this pandemic would not have been the same if I hadn’t been able to spend as much time as I wanted getting lost in his 2017 LP, Hold On Let Go. If you haven’t tuned in to at least one of his Fone A Friend chats on Twitch mannnnn you’re missing out. Essentially lurking on two musicians talking about music and going through demo tracks that people have submitted and giving them feedback…it’s just such a wonderful thing to see.

[PLAY THE PLAYLIST] BEST FUCKING MORNING ☕️

Recently I’ve trying to be more thoughtful with how I start my day. With all of this time in quarantine I’ve taken the opportunity to observe how impactful tiny thoughtful adaptations can be. Not just on a daily basis either, as I’ve found that sometimes the change can be so swift it’s often within an hour or even a matter of minutes, depending on the situation.

We all know music is a major mood shifter. Unfortunately, sometimes it feels like because we’ve gotten so accustomed to the habit of recklessly consuming things to make us feel better that we do this with music a lot more than any of us would like to admit. I know I’ve certainly been guilty of that myself. Additionally, when you’re already not giving too much thought of what you’re consuming, it’s hard for me to believe that it means that all that unused thoughtful energy is shifting to what you’re putting out into the world and any subsequent side effects, either positive or negative.

I intend to take more ownership of how this space factors into this consumption habit equation for everyone, so of course I felt the need to make a fucking playlist about it. 🤪

I took some time thinking about not just what makes me feel good, but exactly what makes me feel my ⚡️fucking best⚡️. IMO, there’s truly nothing better in this life than the opportunity to identify how your talents/strengths can help people, throwing all of your energy into that thing, and then witnessing the magic that comes from those efforts. To be clear, I’m not just talking about ways that earn you money from doing this either. It can also be little things like knowing you’re a good personal cheerleader and being able to notice when someone could need some pom-poms waved in their direction and seeing their reaction. It’s ✨ literally the fucking best✨ ESPECIALLY when all parties involved decide that shit is going both wayyysss.

Community.

Connection.

Intention.

These are the things that BEST FUCKING MORNING☕️ is made of to the best of my ability. Sometimes you’ll get ✨a feeling✨ from the music, but as often as I could, I wanted the words ringing through your ears to make you feel fucking great, too. Additionally, I wholeheartedly believe that it’s equally important that the people making the good vibes you ingest should absolutely coming from good fucking people and I can say with a great level of confidence that these are all really good fucking people. I took a lot of care to make sure that even if one were to treat this playlist like a LoFi Chill Beats To Study To kinda deal where it’s mostly going to be background noise, that the few times that your brain decides to focus in on what’s actually happening that hopefully in that moment you feel empowered to remember that you always have the opportunity to choose happiness in spite of whatever bullshit gets thrown at you.

Let me be very clear that this is not me tryna shove some toxic positivity on your ass. That shit is annoying as fuck and not welcomed in this house. You always are entitled to however you feel, absolutely.

BUT

When you wake up feeling meh and decide you deserve to feel at minimum a little bit better.

Or you wake up feeling fucking great and want to hold onto that feeling as much as you can, possibly even going next level with that shit.

I promise you this shit will take you there, wherever that may be.

Although this collection of vibes was arranged in a way to be uplifting incrementally, feel free to let The Algorithm™ move you and shuffle this shit if you are so inclined. That said, I def invite you to see if you can notice a different if you listen both ways. Additionally, I intend to honor the inspiration behind this playlist and occasionally implement tweaks every now and then, hopefully to further enhance this vibe. Mostly likely additions only, no removals or substitutions.

As long as this playlist is in your life may you never forget that you deserve the fucking best. 💖

#diSKOAverweekly: Week of April 23, 2020

this update is just like me: thiccc as fuuuuuuckkk

YAH BISH IS HEALTHY AND SAFE. Lorde help me if I had caught the COVID after that writeup about trying to go to shows when this wasn’t ABSOLUTELY WHACKY. Felt pretty crazy at the time publishing that, but I can’t help but wonder if folks had taken shit that seriously back then if we’d all be cutting our hair out of boredom in quarantine.

ANYWAY.

Your favorite deep cuts diva has finally climbed out of the pits of despair and double the fuck down on trying to give you things to cherish during all of whatever this is *gestures wildly*. That’s right, cute internet people! For as long as I can muster it, instead of 16 songs a week, you gonna get 32! Fuckin two more than you get randomly assigned from the goddamn Algorithm AND as always pleasantly arranged with one of these here liner note posts. I can’t wait for y’all to check this one out for sure because GOOD LORDE some of the stuff that found my ears will knock the wind right the fuck outta you it’s so damn good.

Here are the 32 ways I love you best this week:

1. Étienne de Crécy - “DAYDREAM”

   I literally rearranged this entire playlist to kick off this update with this song because we could all use some reassuring right now. Weird to think if I hadn’t gone to Paris in January and record shopped my ass off that this wouldn’t be in my life right now. One of my plans for this coming week is memorizing this man’s entire catalog so get ready for me to be even more annoying about him.

2. LEFTI - “4ever (feat. Hoodboi)”

   The next time I see my self proclaimed best friend imma hug him 4EVER for both this song and his recently launched cooking show on his Instagram called CHEFTI. I am gonna get up the nerve to try one of his recipes by the next time I have to go get groceries (and at the rate we’re going with this fucking pandemic it sounds like I will probably have time to go through all of them. 🙃PLEASE STAY THE FUCK HOME )

3. Tom Aspaul - “WM”

   This is my new favorite song to lip sync into Instagram when I’m intoxicated using weird filters (including Tom’s) and then not send it to anyone because I haven’t quite perfected it yet. More practice on that after this update! 🤪😂

4. REYNA - “Coachella”

   You know those songs that when you hear them you assume that the band has to be huge and you just missed the boat on them? This is one of those songs. This is such sugary poptastic perfection. Also I always love to hate on Coachella but my heart goes out to everyone enduring the effects of all these massive cancellations.

5. LoveLeo - “BOYFREN”

   There’s still a lot to learn about the eldest spawn of John C Reilly, who goes by LoveLeo. Apparently this catchy ass TikTok hit was recorded in his bedroom (which like, props bro). I love how delightfully weird he is. I feel like He would be the most fun to have in a group chat.

6. Harry Nathan - “Frontin’ Me”

   Is Dream House a genre yet? That’s how I would describe this. Anyway I would live a Harry Nathan dream house if I could feel as chill as I do when I listen to this.

7. MILCK - “Slow Fade”

   Um, so like, everything about MILCK is wonderful. Her heart is as beautiful as her voice. She deserves a hell of a lot more attention than she’s getting right now, so…..FIX IT. And check out her latest EP ‘Into Gold’.

8. BAYNK - “KISS ME (feat. Mood Talk)”

   I’m so hype that BAYNK is dropping another EP. I practically lived inside of ‘Someone’s EP II’. The next one, "‘A Study In Movement’ should be dropping sometime next month. In the meantime, he’ll be DJing this weekend via livestream so def check that out. And yes I have my homework assignment to investigate Mood Talk further don’t you worry.

9. Sly Fieri - “Akimi”

   We love a punny band name. I am going to be checking out his new mix called ‘Scars’ after I finish this so hopefully you do the same once I sell you on him with this.

10. JVLY - “monsoon”

    lmao I am way too good at Aussie finding baby bands. Also sorry for sending through sexy vibes if you’re quarantining alone.

11. Hamzaa - “Write It Down”

    This song knocks the wind out of me every fucking time I play it. I have to fight back tears. It’s such a beautiful tribute to songwriting and how it’s a combination of art and therapy.

12. Rone - “Ginko Biloba”

    You have to watch the music video for this song because it’s SO WILD. It had to be the most fun thing to shoot of all time. Also Rone’s fifth studio album ‘Room With A View’ comes out this week so GET HYPE.

13. Teischa - “not ok”

    When she sings, “lately I’ve just been wasting my days. I’m not broken but I’m not ok” good LORDE does that feel like a collective mood right now. When you love this you can go thank Slum fam for talking her up in their insta stories. Also please go listen to her new record, ‘momentary’, that dropped earlier this month, it is quite excellent.

14. Baby Rose - “Mortal”

    Girl sings the ever loving shit out of this song. WHEW. Her debut album ‘To Myself’ is out now. Love her. Now. Do it.

15. Rufus Wainwright - “Damsel In Distress”

    Some days Rufus is literally the only thing keeping me together during this fucking pandemic. If you don’t follow him on Instagram for his daily Quarantunes updates you are doing this whole thing wrong. While I’m upset that he pushed back releasing ‘Unfollow The Rules’ to July 10, the way he spoke about how important the physical aspect o the release was super important to him will make this worth the wait.

16. Monad - “Dissolution”

    I lost track of Monad but they are back on my radar and have dropped a delightful EP. This is the title track.

17. Johnny Hunter - “Try As You May”

    I’m pretty sure I can confidently say that no one in North America loves Johnny Hunter as much as I do. God damn, there is something so timeless about this band. These dudes need to crank out more jams IMMEDIATELY. I doubt I’d wear these out any time soon, but goddamn I just want to cocoon myself in blanket of their songs.

18. Car Seat Headrest - “Hollywood”

    Okay. I clearly need to get caught up on all things Car Seat Headrest because OH MY GOD THIS SINGLE BROKE MY BRAIN. This is throwing me hellllllaaaaa Beck vibes, circa…Odelay maybe? I definitely always think of “MTV Makes Me Wanna Smoke Crack” when the chorus kicks in on this one. Wow. Yeah. I got a lot to catch up on here. This one’s a big hell yes from me tho.

19. Tesla Boy - “Абьюзер”

    First, I’m gonna need you to take a moment to appreciate how much effort it took to find the tracklisting of this album in copy/pasteable form so I could accurately display the track title. At any rate, this cut from his latest album ‘Андропов’ (yes that was another copy +paste) is an earworm and a half, even if I have no idea what the fuck he’s saying. Fuck it, I’ve got time. Maybe I’ll learn some fuckin Russian so I can love this man harder.

20. Blondage - “I Love Music”

    In addition to this song being relatable as fuck, I would like to gift you the ability to hear “cause people suck and so do youuuuuu” ring through your head the next time you see someone rolling by without a mask on when you’re out (it has been a lovely coping mechanism for me, lmao).

21. Mason x DJ Glen - “Attention”

    I’ve caught a few of Mason’s DJ sets he’s been livestreaming on Facebook to pass the time. He’s got good energy in spite of this, in case you’re in need of extra doses of that right now.

22. Wassu - “Overcome”

    We got a new house hunny to loveeeeee. Y’all better give some love to this local or I will cut u. 🔪

23. Ryan Hemsworth - “New Life" (feat. Love Mansuy)”

    In addition to dropping this double A-side single, Ryan Hemsworth has an ongoing thread on Twitter dot com right now where he drops new music recommendations. If you weren’t temporarily satisfied from this update (rude) there’s a lot of cool stuff in there. Also he’s doing a set tonight at 9:20 EST for 420 on what is arguably the craziest livestreaming experience I have ever been part of (I peeped it earlier as the whole shebang was getting started). Also the timing of this song considering we’ve all got so much time to reflect what our new lives are gonna be like when we’re able to roam freely and safely again.

24. Classixx - “One More Song (feat. Roosevelt)”

    I have missed both Classixx and Roosevelt so this was a well timed update from them. I know when Classixx dropped “Love Me No More” there were hints of more to come in 2020. This better not be the only update, swear to god.

25. Pat Lok - “Salvation”

    Twitter fam’s new track is a total Vibey McViberson!!! Get itttt. Also this literal angel has been randomly started doing song breakdowns on Twitch and then uploading them to his [very robust] YouTube channel. His latest one was for Justice’s legendary track, “D.A.N.C.E.” and apparently lotsa other cool kids show up to talk about the songmaking process while he’s doing this. I will absolutely be watching this later so I can bask in all of the hard work that I take for granted.

26. Sunda Arc - “Daemon”

    I gave myself a headache trying to remember where the fuck I found these guys but it doesn’t matter just enjoy some dope ass beats from Norwich and stop being so ungrateful 😂Also they dropped a record in February called ‘Tides’ and you gonna like the way it sounds I guarantee it.

27. RAAVE TAPES - “Red Flag”

    This is probably weird to say, but I feel like these guys give off the same intensity level as HEALTH but are like….less loud and hella dancier about it? Does that even make sense? Listen it’s 420 and I am abstaining from celebrating until after I hit publish on this. Just go with it and enjoy the fuckin track. You’ll thank me later.

28. Kari Faux - “While God Was Sleepin’….”

    Husky hunny Danio produced this track which is how I came across this. I now worship at the temple of Kari Faux. Please join me in prayer.

29. seeyousoon - “Steamy”

    Wooo we love fresh hometown heroes! Orlando doesn’t have to be exclusively embarrassing! 🙏🏻They’ve only got two tracks out, which means you can claim “I knew them way back when” rights if you get on board now.

30. CMillano - “Winter”

    Whatever Bador fucks with, I fuck with…..and therefore you should probably fuck with.

31. Lucas Estrada - “Mind On Overdrive (feat. Wave Wave and Kyan Palmer)”

    This song sounds like the soundtrack to a party I desperately want to be at instead of sitting in my bed all day for an indefinite period of time. Kyan Palmer and that excellent album of his from last year, ‘it’s called branding sweetie’, is how I tumbled into this track. Will get to know Lucas Estrada and Wave Wave more intimately now. This why I follow as many bands on Spotify as I can. Everyone’s always collaborating and really cool stuff spills out unexpectedly everywhere you look.

32. L Devine - “Boring People”
    It’s funny how well this song translates to current day boredom even though it’s pre-pandem. I wonder how this song is sitting with her now that we’re all stuck like this? Might try and slide into her DMs. I mean, I got time…..

[SONG OF THE DAY] Pat Lok - "Fearless (feat. Luke Burr)"

photo credit: Nina Krupa

VIBE OCLOCK ON NEW MUSIC FRIDAYYYYYYYYYY!

On the heels of his Corazón EP dropping today, Vancouver born turned recent Los Angeles resident Pat Lok has preemptively shared a cut from the EP, “Fearless” featuring Essex soul singer Luke Burr. The song is a lovely little motivational moment both for us and Pat himself. “In my weaker moments, I often compare my life path to the friends and family I left behind in Canada, and wonder if I'm doing the right thing,” Pat shares speaking on the track, “so this is sort of me in the mirror saying get off your butt. It can be difficult for others to believe in you if you don't believe in yourself first and I hope this might reach anyone else out there who needs to hear it.”

Twitter fam so wise with the heartfelt advice! We loveee!

Go have a listen to the rest of Corazón, dude has delivered a deluge of bops yet again. Bravo, homey!

[SONG OF THE DAY] Pat Lok - "Don't Think (feat. Tom Aspaul)"

It would appear that Vancouver vibe maker Pat Lok is going through our mutual Twitter follows for all his current collaborations. After working with the dude Dances on “From The Back”, Pat has now teamed up with my roommate in a parallel universe, Tom Aspaul, for his latest track, “Don’t Think”.

Drawing inspiration from legendary diva Janet Jackson, Lok explained how her music was a source of inspiration for both him and Tom, “As a big Janet Jackson fan growing up (she's actually on the shirt I'm wearing right now) I loved how she walked the line between really dancey songs and more groovy numbers. I met Tom Aspaul in London who was also a fan and we ended up writing this little number inspired by the queen.”

I’m happy to report that Pat has taken time off from his grueling international tour schedule and is currently in the studio working on a new EP to bless us with this spring. 🙌🏻🙌🏻