11 Songs for Your Week Ahead: The Best Stuff I Heard This Week 1/22/21

It’s hard to believe we’re almost all the way through January. Along with a new President, this week brought us some great new music. Our playlist this week serves as a round-up of our favorite songs from the last seven days. There’s plenty of music from Connecticut this week, but we also have a couple of featured picks form L.A., Boston, Canada, Germany, and Seattle. Head to the bottom for the complete 22 song playlist.

“Sunshine and Grey” - Cassie’s Crutch

Cassie’s Crutch has a new single, titled “Sunshine and Grey.” It plays with tone, pace, and even features the bells and a violin. Most of the track feels melancholy, but then the sunshine breaks through and we’re gifted with moments of driving guitars and drums that give life before slipping back into the gray.

“Colures” - Amanda Bellitto

Connecticut singer-songwriter Amanda Bellitto is back at it again with her new single “Colures,” giving us both a lesson in language and great music in one fell swoop.

With intricate guitar and rich vocals, “Colures” has all of Bellitto’s hallmarks. The song moves along gently, until the surprising addition of an electric guitar.

“Too Hungry to Eat” -Addy Edward

“Too Hungry to Eat” is full of subtle touches that fill in the voids and expand its scope. If you’re listening on your phone or laptop speakers, you’re not going to appreciate all Edward has done here. The backing vocals are sunlight breaking through the forest canopy, there’s gentle pitter patter, and a bassline that holds it all together. There is a wonderful battle going on in a normally harmonious rhythm section: the bass line is soothing and acts as a foil against the percussion that can make you feel off balance. As you dive deeper into the song and realize that Edward has created an otherwise smooth and flowing track, you wonder if he wanted to add something jarring.

“Mojo” - Telquist

As you listen to Telquist’s catalogue, you quickly realize that Sebastian Eggerbauer and his band have a talent for creating heavy basslines with fat drums. “Mojo” showcases a chorus full of fun sounds before it resigns itself to a simple bass and drum verse. A very casual guitar comes in during the build up for the chorus, creating a cool dichotomy of chaos and calm. Eggerbauer’s voice is one that American listeners will find unique.

“Out of Reach” - Autopoet

The production on “Out of Reach” seems pretty straight forward and simple: a blend of guitar, bass, drums, vocals and a dash of keyboards; the recipe produces strong results. The track stirs up a mix of emotion: sorrow, joy, hope, among others. Each instrument takes its turn filling space and falling away, and it’s this rhythm, the negative spaces, and in turn, the expanded moments, that gives the record its richness.

“MAZZA” - slowthai feat. A$AP Rocky

Mazza adjective 1. Madness. 2. Crazy situation. See also Mazzaleen.

“Mazza” is exactly that, madness. Produced in part by himself and frequent collaborator SAMO, “Mazza” combines a woozy, buzzy synth with a deep driving bass, mashing the two juxtaposing sounds together, which somehow find a way to fit in this sonic universe. Enlisting A$AP Rocky on the track, the two trade jabs like a couple of wiry welterweights in a title fight.

- Carmine Colangelo

“Two Headed Boy” - Pond View

If you isolated the sounds of The Black Keys, Dr. Dog, and Cage the Elephant, then triangulated the musical coordinates, you’d end up on Pond View’s doorstep. “Two Headed Boy” is a strong rock-n-roll play that marches along without regard for anything in its path. The drums feel like a dinosaur stomping along the Earth, the bass is fat, and singer Luke Kraszewski’s passionately wails the chorus. At the end of the track, someone says “That banged.” It sure does.

“Stay Home” - Ale the Man

Ale the Man, the architect of 2017 CT banger “Dummy,” put out a series of singles across 2020 while we were all in lockdown. This week, I came across “Stay Home,” a nonstop track that clocks in at just under two minutes. The record features some interesting production elements while Ale rocks steady right on through. Fingers crossed for more from the Connecticut MC this year.

“Crazy” - riley

It’s funny. You miss a lot when you don’t pay attention to something for 8+ months. mvsicthovght went on hiatus last spring while the bicoastal Connecticut native riley released a string of music across 2020, including July’s “Crazy.” It’s another pop banger for the artist with big potential and the aspirations to match.

RELATED: “Alone” by riley

“The Comeback” - Austin Archer

Austin Archer has used his music to become a TikTok sensation, posting videos with hilarious original music. His posts include observant lyrics that provide commentary on modern society and are matched by great instrumentation. While he’s something of a comedian on social media, his official releases are to be taken seriously as great music. “The Comeback” has some rad guitars and high energy vocals which brings us to this fun fact: Archer performs all the music on each of his songs. He’s a talented musician who’s making some quality art.

AUSTIN ARCHER ON TIKTOK: “Turtleneck and Blazer”

“Rosie” - Figmore

I’ve been anticipating this release by Figmore since it was featured on Not 97 a couple weeks ago, and I’m excited that I can finally include it here. Figmore’s soft-spoken lyrics on “Rosie,” along with the funky melody make this a great jam for when you’re feeling happy-go-lucky and walking on sunshine.

The Best Stuff I Heard This Week 1/22/21: The Complete Playlist

We’re already got some good additions for next week’s playlist so stay tuned. We’ll also have our “Best of January” round-up so keep your eyes peeled for that as well. As always, head to mvsicthovght.com for music worth listening to and stay tuned for more great music this week.