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Play The Playlist, For The Love Of Music kibbe Play The Playlist, For The Love Of Music kibbe

[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. 💖

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Baby Bands, diskoaver weekly, upcoming releases kibbe Baby Bands, diskoaver weekly, upcoming releases kibbe

#diSKOAverweekly: Week of September 25, 2019

  1. Beck - “E-Pro (CapeLion V2 Remix)

    I’m not sure why this remix was being hoarded for so long only to be leveraged in this Destiny 2 trailer, but goddamn if this isn’t the 2 minute burst of energy I needed in my LIFE!!! Also, checked out some of Cape Lion’s stuff. SUPER DOPE.

  2. Ssion - “Heaven Is My Thing Again”

    Ugh it’s so hard to keep tabs on all of the NY bbs but imma try harder to make sure that

  3. O Mer - “Repack The Junk”

    Brooklyn (by way of Tel Aviv) bb is getting ready to drop an EP titled the same as this track. Should be dropping fairly soon, given I’m just catching up on the handful of tracks he’s dropped this year.

  4. Wrabel - “magic”

    My beloved lil bae-bel dropped an EP one of those happy people and I can’t get over how wild of a ride it’s been with this sweetheart since his Sideways days.

  5. All Tvvins - “Divine”

    Fresh off tour these dudes hit the studio and started crankin out some hits and this is the first of many to come (per the band)

  6. Wet - “Old Bone (Jim-E Stack Remix)”

    Okay so like this is one of those instances where I am just like really taken by how transformative this remix is. Jim-E Stack brought a completely different energy with his take on Wet’s latest single, “Old Bone”. You ABSOLUTELY MUST LISTEN TO BOTH. I’M NOT FUCKING AROUND HERE ABOUT THIS.

  7. Jamo - “Connection (feat. YOUNGSOUL)”

    I know you are surprised that I stumbled into a new Australian artist that I am relatively smitten by. It’s cool, you’ll get used to it eventually. Actually I suppose this one’s a 2 for 1 special because although Jamo lures you in with the vibe, singer YOUNGSOUL gets all up in your ear and coats your eardrums with his silky smooth voice and THAT’S WHEN THE REAL SWOONING STARTS.

  8. Dansu - “State of Mind”

    I keep waiting for Dansu to take off big time. They’re so fucking perfectly electro-poptastic.

  9. Squid - “The Cleaner”

    Feeling v hashtag blessed to have finally checked out Squid this week. Their new EP Town Centre is quite delightful, but “The Cleaner” is by far my fave. It’s super fun, dare I say sassy post-punk. Will probably be grabbing this on vinyl when it’s available on November 15th.

  10. PLANET - “Never New”

    Sydney four-piece PLANET make shimmery indie-pop and I would very much like to get on a plane to Australia and just swoon and twirl at all of their shows…maybe forever?

  11. Georgia - “Never Let You Go”

    London electro-pop powerhouse Georgia shared the first taste of her forthcoming album Seeking Thrills, which is slated to drop in January 2020. I hope I don’t have to wait that long to hear more of this because this is ✨very much my shit✨.

  12. Keelan Mak - “Sleep Talker”

    I think Brisbane’s self proclaimed “22 year old bedroom producer dude” Keelan Mak is tryna seduce us into said bedroom with his latest single. It….might be working. His voice is very swoon-worthy.

  13. Justin Jay - “i know ur out there”

    LA house hunny Justin Jay dropped his latest record everything will come together, pt. 1 a few months back. This is the opening track of what ended up being quite a fun run for my earholes, so def don’t sleep on checking out the rest of the record when you find yourself loving this!

  14. Sofi Tukker - “Swing (Crush Club Remix)”

    So v v v v v v v v proud to be the president of the Crush Club 💖⚡️Crush Club. This remix is 🔥🔥🔥🔥.

  15. Man Without Country - “Forever Endeavour”

    The homey recently launched a Patreon and this was the first single since that all started up. Lucky fans got to hear it before it hit DSPs elsewhere. Very happy he’s sticking it out. I luhhh him.

  16. b.i.g.s.h.r.i.m.p. - “Wyoming (feat. Bunny)”

    Another tasty treat from Post Animal guitarist Jake Hirshland’s side project. I wonder how many of these he’s sitting on? I should probs DM him.

Okay fine I’ll post the embed for the archive here too so it’s all in once nice and neat place for you in case you missed last week’s tracks.

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Baby Bands, SONG OF THE DAY kibbe Baby Bands, SONG OF THE DAY kibbe

[SONG OF THE DAY] Wrabel - "love to love u"

photo credit: Yazz Alali

Holy wow wow wow wow wow y’all bae-bel made a BOP!

The evolution of Wrabel since stumbling into his Sideways EP in 2014 has been one of my absolute favorite things to witness to date. These days though it feels like the more he’s taken ownership of who he is as both a human person and an artist that he’s able to fully realize and harness his musical superpowers. As he told the folks at Idolator in a recent interview, “I’m just taking really deep breaths, and doing whatever I want.” As it turns out, since last we checked in on the lil cutie crooner he parted ways with Epic, started his own label, Big Gay Records (!!! yes bb!! 😍), and just released his first track on his own, a bop that absolutely won’t stop, “love to love u”.

Favorite quote from the interview where he talks about the song:

“[…]I think I started opening my mind to the thought that, ‘Ok, maybe you don’t have to sit at the piano and write a sad song.’”

Bruh 😂😂😂

Growth looks so good on my dude. I’m so happy he’s happy.

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Baby Bands, SONG OF THE DAY kibbe Baby Bands, SONG OF THE DAY kibbe

[SONG OF THE DAY] Wrabel - "First Winter"

photo courtesy of Yazz Alali via Billboard

Oh my beloved bae-bel it is so good to see you finally releasing some of your own material this year. That’s not to say the beloved Wrabel hasn’t been cranking out any hits, Kesha stans know that the homey co-wrote her inspirational anthem for equality, “Here Comes The Change”. In addition to co-writes, the sweetest soul in the music industry also launched a collection of sketches for purchase through UK collective Landmark Street Art (spoiler alert: I want all of them).

At any rate, his new song, “First Winter” is a subtle but super sweet winter-themed love song that dropped last week. Yesterday, Billboard unveiled the accompanying video featuring a winter holiday-themed scavenger hunt so his partner can find him. Apparently this song is very personal for Wrabel because it will be the first time 11 years of living in LA that he’s going to spend the holidays with someone that he’s in love with and now my heart is so very very very full. 💖🎄

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Baby Bands, Reviews kibbe Baby Bands, Reviews kibbe

[Watch] Wrabel - "11 Blocks" (Lyric Video)

stolen from Wrabel's Instagram, taken by the also incredibly talented Mr. Hudson

I was honestly getting worried for a moment there that we'd never hear from Wrabel again after his debut EP. Turns out fam just needed a moment to find himself.

As you recall from my live encounter with him almost 2 years ago, the kid's pipes and overall presence stuck with me more so than the EP I stumbled across on Rdio (RIP) on a random New Music Tuesday. That said, it's important to remember that just because you have excellent songwriting skills and a powerful voice doesn't mean you're a qualified producer, arranger, etc. Kid had to find the sound that was the most himself.

"I Want You" clearly taught him that he doesn't want his fans to sit still, but our friend with his small tuff of curly goldie locks knew that it wasn't *just right* yet. 

Enter: "11 Blocks", which just dropped today. Not an EDM anthem, but not solely a piano pounder either. It's just right because it's finally him, all the way down to the hand written lyric video complete with his signature doodles one could find on his Instagram (or his body for that matter) at any given moment.

No more auto tune or chest rattling bass, just an authentic representation of his talents carefully crafted together with the help of some people who took the time to invest in his talents the way that we should be doing with every single artist we choose to get behind.  

Every artist should be able to say, "it's me. it feels like me." with every single thing they put out. I'm very excited that you all are able to finally see what I was able to see for myself on September 10th, 2014 at Rockwood Music Hall Stage 2. 

💖YAY WRABEL!💖 

Now that you've fallen in love DON'T FORGET TO, YOU KNOW...

GO BUY IT. 

(Also, you should follow him on Snapchat because his #content is 🔥🔥🔥🔥 I am just saying.) 

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SKOA Radio, interview kibbe SKOA Radio, interview kibbe

#skoaradio 10/24/2015 liner notes

artist rendition of my convo with Alex from Kingswood after I shut the mic off post-interview.lol

Hey fam!

Things refuse to slow down in SKOA HQ, but I'm not complaining! I wrapped up CMJ with a day in Aussie Heaven where we interviewed KINGSWOOD prior to watching them totally kill it. I can't believe how much fun I had. Kinda wish it had never ended tbh. Oh well. Time to prep for Brooklyn Electronic Music Festival, which is coming up super fast. I've got a couple of new tracks on this week's show. As always would love to hear your thoughts so @ me bb if you liked what you heard!

See you next week!

<3

kibbe!

THINGS I TALKED ABOUT ON THE SHOW THIS WEEK INCLUDE:

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Night Out, opinion, Reviews, Tour kibbe Night Out, opinion, Reviews, Tour kibbe

[Night Out] Wrabel @ Rockwood Music Hall (Stage 2) 9/10/2014

Personal update: I'm trying to get back into the groove of going to at least two shows a week. I'm also I really exhausted from all the emails we get about bands I've never heard of and will most likely will never hear of because they're just "okay". To combat this, I've mostly been ignoring the majority of the emails that I get and just digging around the internet to find things on my own. Back in the day, I used to wander around record stores looking at album artwork and taking chances on art that I felt the most connected to and either give them a listen if they were at the listening bar or just straight up buy the album and take a chance. I found a lot of great music this way (VHS or Beta, Josh Rouse, Junior Jack, etc.). 

I started doing this again fairly recently on Rdio and Spotify for every New Music Tuesday. I just scroll around and look for things that are interesting and give them a try. It's less sexy than the thrill of buying an album and being like, "God I hope this is good," but whatever. This is how I stumbled across Wrabel (pronounnced RAY-bell, at first I thought it was rabble, lol) about a month ago. Purely judging a book by its cover, his EP, Sideways, felt familiar. I think it's because he looks like an American version of Mr. Hudson to me. Familiarity has continued to be an ongoing theme for me with Wrabel. His voice, subject matter, etc. all sounds and feels very familiar. Kind of like I've always known him. Obviously since you are reading this post he clearly was able to tick all the boxes I require to decide to keep tabs on him. 

After adding him to my extensive Twitter list to keep an eye on him, I noticed he was playing a show at Rockwood Music Hall Stage 2. We should get one thing clear: I love Bowery Ballroom more than anything in this world, but there's something about Rockwood Music Hall (both original and stage 2) that holds a special place in my heart. A chance to experience any artist at Rockwood is a thing you should always do, so I decided to venture solo to see how an intimate performance from this newcomer would pan out. 

Personal update: I'm trying to get back into the groove of going to at least two shows a week. I'm also I really exhausted from all the emails we get about bands I've never heard of and will most likely will never hear of because they're just "okay". To combat this, I've mostly been ignoring the majority of the emails that I get and just digging around the internet to find things on my own. Back in the day, I used to wander around record stores looking at album artwork and taking chances on art that I felt the most connected to and either give them a listen if they were at the listening bar or just straight up buy the album and take a chance. I found a lot of great music this way (VHS or Beta, Josh Rouse, Junior Jack, etc.). 

I started doing this again fairly recently on Rdio and Spotify for every New Music Tuesday. I just scroll around and look for things that are interesting and give them a try. It's less sexy than the thrill of buying an album and being like, "God I hope this is good," but whatever. This is how I stumbled across Wrabel (pronounnced RAY-bell, at first I thought it was rabble, lol) about a month ago. Purely judging a book by its cover, his EP, Sideways, felt familiar. I think it's because he looks like an American version of Mr. Hudson to me. Familiarity has continued to be an ongoing theme for me with Wrabel. His voice, subject matter, etc. all sounds and feels very familiar. Kind of like I've always known him. Obviously since you are reading this post he clearly was able to tick all the boxes I require to decide to keep tabs on him. 

After adding him to my extensive Twitter list to keep an eye on him, I noticed he was playing a show at Rockwood Music Hall Stage 2. We should get one thing clear: I love Bowery Ballroom more than anything in this world, but there's something about Rockwood Music Hall (both original and stage 2) that holds a special place in my heart. A chance to experience any artist at Rockwood is a thing you should always do, so I decided to venture solo to see how an intimate performance from this newcomer would pan out. 

First things first, this guy's voice is nothing short of solid. Dude has a very strong set of pipes that probably need little to no pitch correction in the studio or anything like that, so much respect in that sense. I soaked in every last second of him pounding away on the piano and serenading a disappointly semi-empty room sipping some white wine, a true "This Is Why I Love Rockwood" kind of moment. It must have been a weird juxtaposition for him though considering he casually mentioned at one point between songs that the night prior he performed "10 Feet Tall" alongside Afrojack at Fashion Rocks over at the Barclays Center, but he never made it feel that way in terms of his performance. Between songs he was very friendly and laid back. At one point he even joked, "My mom keeps telling me to write happy songs and I was like, 'I wrote one!'" It's refreshing for me to know that although he was fairly recently signed to Island that it hasn't gone to his head. It's a shame that that's an exception and not the standard. 

Wrabel performing at Fashion Rocks at Barclays Center, September 8, 2014. Source: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images North America 

As I headed home last night, I put on Sideways to refresh myself on the recorded version of what I had just heard. I started feeling the parallel with him and Mr. Hudson again like the day that I first stumbled across him. Remember before his Kayne moment with Straight No Chaser when he was Mr. Hudson and The Library and had a sound of his own that he could really dig into (a la A Tale Of Two Cities)? I worry that the direction in terms of sound that they're nudging him into is going to get him lost into the Flavor of the Week pile. It's both a blessing and a curse that his voice has moments of Chris Martin, Sam Smith, and Landon Pigg, with hints of Mat Kearney peppered throughout. It's my hope for him that Island didn't just go, "Oh crap, we need a Sam Smith! Ooo! This guy seems nice. *SIGNS*" I don't mind the synthy bits in "Sideways". I get that bassy EDM + pretty vocals on top = Ca$h Money Hoe$ right now. I guess my hope is that as he assumingly starts working on his debut full length that he doesn't allow himself to get overwhelmed by people trying to tell him to be trendy for the sake of moving units this moment. Or that if he does that he knows exactly what he's doing and plans to be in the spotlight for 4 seconds and then when he has a pile of money he just runs off and does whatever the heck he wants. 

Fact of the matter is, Wrabel is a voice your ears need to hear and I think if he plays his cards right that he will be staying around with us for awhile. 

Wrabel is on the internet in various places like Facebook, Twitter, and Soundcloud. Follow/like/add as you will. His debut EPSideways is available for purchase on iTunes if you're into that as well. 

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