News

Nick Waterhouse x Play To Win

Nick Waterhouse releases new heartbreak soul single "Play To Win" off his forthcoming album The Fooler out April 1 on Innovative Leisure / PRES. The Fooler is an immaculate record that offers up new riches and fresh perspectives with every spin. The record is partly a farewell to and reclamation of a version of Waterhouse’s past existence framed by a city that is part dream, part reality and part potential - a tale of city haunted by song - a place filled with 45s produced by people like Bert Berns or released on Scepter, Wand, Atlantic and Verve and heard on the jukeboxes in iconic San Francisco institutions like Tosca, Specs and Trieste in North Beach.

The acclaimed singer-songwriter releases new album single and visualizer for "Play To Win,” which Waterhouse says is "a heartbreak type of tune with co-writer Doc playing the piano and producer Mark Neill both taking me to a place I have never been in my career before. This is about what it’s like in the din and chatter of city apartment parties, bars, sitting rooms, and loneliness from the seat one’s sitting in looking at the insouciant world around." Last month the artist shared album singles/videos for “Hide And Seek" and "The Fooler." "Hide And Seek" puts you in the city of dreams that The Fooler unfolds in - and the sound is the place. And title track "The Fooler" is about how your own heart and your memories can betray you in really nice ways. Waterhouse also created another way fans can tune in to the music. As depicted in the "Hide and Seek" music video, people can dial into his The Fooler radio show on KFLR and request the three new songs. Lines are open at (833)777-KFLR.

Tim Hill x Giant

Tim Hill releases his new album Giant on Innovative Leisure / Calico Discos, a collection of cowboy tunes and Americana ballads that feel forged out of the embers of a desert campfire and steeped in affection for artists like Randy Newman, Warren Zevon, and Neil Young.

On “Candlestick,” Tim takes his graceful chords and melody and applies them to a poem written by his friend, the artist Ry Welch who also directed the video.

Read more about the record on Lonesome Highway.

Jonah Yano x Blogoteque

Jonah Yano performs a Take Away Show for Blogoteque with 'song about the family house' from his latest album portrait of a dog.

The wooden stairs of a house, a friendly dog and an intimate song. Canadian artist Jonah Yano - famous for his jazz-inflected soul-pop - delivers a sweet rendition of 'song about the family house'. This track is a tribute to a place which he holds close to his heart. A house everyone in his immediate family has lived in at one point or another that's about to get torn down. "And how do I keep / The living room intact / Exactly as it was / If I have to commit it and rebuild it in my memory." Lonesome guitar lines and weary vocal melodies sublimate this affecting song we captured just for you.

Visit here to stream or purchase portrait of a dog

Read a recent interview with Jonah up on CLASH

Leland Whitty x Blogoteque

Accompanied by his bandmates from BADBADNOTGOOD, Leland Whitty performs "Glass Moon" live on Blogoteque.  "Glass Moon" is from his recently released debut solo album, Anyhow.  

Check a recent album review for Anyhow on Pitchfork.

Purchase or stream Anyhow from your retailer of choice.

Rarelyalways x URGENT

London's own multidisciplinary artist Rarelyalways shares "URGENT," the second single from his forthcoming debut solo album WORK due March 10th via Innovative Leisure. Laced with haunting, swirling synths and brass, "URGENT" arrives with surreal visuals directed and edited by MadeInEden. Self-described as a "shapeshifter," Rarelyalways continues to reveal new sides of his persona with "URGENT," which follows his playful lead single "LET'S" and the jazzy b-side "Voice note 0142," both of which arrived with videos directed by MadeInEden.

Speaking about "URGENT," Rarelyalways says, "I avoid gold plating simple tasks as it's a waste of precious time."

WORK will follow Rarelyalways' collaborative Manic EP with Hanni El Khatib, featuring the stand out single "Lamenting" as well as his 2020 EP Baby Buffalo. His debut EP was described by The FADER as, “a concise exhibition of his minimalist swagger," with Pitchfork adding, "though Rarelyalways comes out of the London jazz scene, his music has its own distinct flavor."

Rarelyalways learned from a young age that music had functions beyond entertainment. Born in London to a West African family, he was raised by his single father, a drummer who played mainly gospel tunes during hours-long services and would bring Rarely along for afternoons in practice spaces where the young musician learned the power of playing for playing's sake. Rarelyalways went on to attend The BRIT School and eventually entered the South London gig circuit where he would play trip hop and heavy rock in the orbit of artists like King Krule, Henry Wu and the Tomorrow's Warriors jazz collective. With his music often taking on a dark, mysterious tone, Rarely is able to roam freely outside the prescribed structures of hip hop, jazz or anything else, by creating a conversational abstract style that can mold according to a song's message.

Check out "URGENT" and pre-order/save WORK and stay tuned for more from Rarelyalways coming soon.