Dream Koala

I've only just gotten the chance to listen Julia Losfelt's debut EP which came out Sunday and obviously it's everything I wanted it to be, plus a little bit more with the addition of this Dream Koala remix of Up Today. Give it a listen below, and more importantly; buy the record.

Bad Bandit

During my temporary absence from the internet, St. Louis' Bad Bandit released the Conifer EP, easily one of the most astounding EPs of the year and so far it remains relatively unsung. You have to ask why. Listen to Unsure and Covers below and go tell all your friends:

X¥Z

North Londoner X¥Z recently dropped his Solace EP, 20 minutes of atmospheric, blissed out electronic music inspired by the likes of J Dilla & Four Tet which is consistently good from start to finish. I think this is the first time in a long time where I've struggled picking my favourite cuts to feature, so I thouroughly recommend heading over to Bandcamp and stream this thing from back to front.

Weval

Dutch duo Weval just released their debut Half Age EP on Atomnation today. This is a pretty brilliant record that would probably shut up even the most knowledgeable walking-genre-dictionary for at least 5 minutes, hopefully even permanently. Stream a few of the tracks below:

Tropics

Tropics is most definitely one of my favourite artists to emerge over the last few years, and so waking up to the news that a new EP is to be released in April has made me incredibly happy. Home & Consonance is the title track from the EP and provides the most perfect transition from Popup Cinema. Take a listen below:

Preludes

I've just found the perfect music to mark the end of the laziest Sunday I've had in a very long time. It comes from Preludes and is taken from the recently released Berlin EP, a very beautiful blend of dreampop and folk. You can listen to the rest of the EP by clicking here, it's also available to download on a name-your-price basis from Bandcamp too, so go take a listen.

fthrsn

Fthrsn has an absolutely brilliant record out today (with an equally brilliant name). I think I'm currently on my 3rd or 4th go of Middle School Swag and there's nothing I dislike about it. You can stream a couple of my favourite picks below, also the EP is available to download on a name-your-price basis over at Bandcamp, enjoy:

Terracotta Blue

The longer I spend trawling through the instrumental EPs and mixtapes I receive, the more I realise that so SO many producers sound the same. But, every now and again you find a sweet little surprise like Terracotta Blue, who sounds just that little bit more special. The below tracks are taken from the ravencrest EP which was released just yesterday (30/10), it's also available on a name your price basis over on Bandcamp, enjoy:

Kyson

There's no denying this is pretty beautiful. The track is from Kyson - you may remember he got pretty hyped over his remix of Holocene for the Bon Iver  contest not too long ago - well this is a cut from the Berliners forthcoming Blackstone EP out October 29th via Moodgadget Records. Stream below:

Sunglasses

I love Sunglasses because of this:



Now after being off the map for two years they're back with a new EP called Swim and the below track 'Namesake' is gonna be the second cut. Even though the two are pretty different, the new material still reminds me why I fell in love with Sunglasses the first time round, their music is basically some kind of hybrid creation that'll never be boring. So yeah, stream below and enjoy:

Stubborn Heart

I have a feeling that Stubborn Heart are easily going to become one of my favourite acts of the year. I posted about them just last week, but something else spectacular has popped up on their Soundcloud page and I can't resist sharing it. The below track is called Need Someone, it's actually been around since last year but has finally found a home in being the lead single on the forthcoming Need Someone EP set for release June 25th of which I'll definitely be purchasing. Enjoy:

Cuushe

This just came up on shuffler.fm (God bless shuffler). It's part of a new EP from the dreamy Japanese songstress titled Girl you know that I am here but the dream, her first release since her debut album Red Rocket Telepathy 3 years ago.
What's so beautiful about Cuushe's sound is the use of her voice not just as an accompaniment to her music but as an instrument itself, all in all it's pretty breathtaking stuff. Also, Julia Holter, Teen Daze and Blackbird Blackbird have all contributed remixes to the EP so it's probably going to be pretty difficult to ignore.

'Girl You Know that I am Here' is released via the great Japanese label Flau, it's available to order here.

AbdeCaf

The Miami-based, Ukrainian born producer AbdeCaf dropped this in my inbox this morning. It's the first cut from the Rebuild EP which will be coming out around the end of July and it samples Drake & The Weeknd. It begins pretty sparsely but it's so infectious, like I can imagine it becoming one of those songs getting played to death in clubs where everyone's so caught up in the moment they all think that it's the single best moment in their life and they all start hugging each other and stuff.

Basically it's very good, so grab a free download below & enjoy:

Jay Babin

This just turned up in my inbox, I can't tell you much about Jay Babin except that this is the first EP and it's actually really good. All the tracks have this distinctly folky edge but it's infused with lo-fi glitches and elements of funk that actually make a really interesting sound. There's a tag on the Bandcamp page that actually refers to it as being 'urban folk', I have to say I kind of agree with it. I'm really glad I found this. Anyway the track below is my favourite pick from the EP, you can listen to the rest here which is available on a name your price basis

Is and of The

I'm ashamed to say I'd never heard of Is and of The until I woke up to a track of theirs in my mail box this morning. The track I'm referring to is called The Past Inside the Present and it belongs to the Handpainted Glow EP which was released just over a month ago via Mush Records.

I don't think the track could have been paired with a more suitable name, because the music I'm hearing is completely mind-bending. You can't really stick a label on this but if you were to call it anything it'd be highly experimental. Everything is textured and layered so beautifully, there's vocals on this but the way they're used is to an instrumental effect which I absolutely love; they ripple over the guitar and synth to create something pretty wonderful. And I can't stop listening.

The rest of the EP is just as brilliant, and it's safe to say that this is easily one of the most intelligent pieces of music I've heard in a while; music that cannot be ignored for sure. Watch the video for The Past Inside the Present below, then go and get the EP here.

Is and of The Soundcloud

Membrain

Claire Boucher (Grimes)is collaborating with fellow Canadian Tim Lafontaine (Cop Car Bonfire); a pretty well-known busker on the streets on Montreal, they've got a project called Membrain which the pair are due to release their first EP 'Sit Back, Rewind' under later this year. Listening to their preview tracks it's pretty obvious we're going to be in for a treat; further demonstrating Claire's ability to make and produce amazing instrumental music whilst making me wish Cop Car Bonfire would come and busk around the UK for a bit. You can preview and download several of their tracks via Soundcloud:

Day Joy

A couple of months ago I got wind of Day Joy when we premiered their New Ordinary 7", and it really struck a chord with me - their sound was completely fascinating and those two tracks have now become staple in my music library. Today they were kind enough to drop me the details of their newest release titled the Animal Noise EP. This is beautiful experimental folk with such emotional appeal I feel nostalgic for something I'm not too aware of each time I listen. I've only had my hands on it for an hour or so and I can't stop hitting repeat. Grab the new EP as a free download here:

Knox

Just discovered these two through IGIF, whilst I'm big on ambiance in music already, listening to the duo's To Rush, Roar & Murmur EP i'm hooked on some kind of captivating aura that somehow feels different, it breaks the mould of the patterns that ambient music is starting to form into (or whale music as my housemates have now dubbed it). These two are pretty special, according to their Tumblr there's some new material on the way so keep your ears peeled. Name your own price to get the EP below:

RxGibbs

RxGibbs upcoming Futures EP is set to be released on Cascine later this month and ILNL is lucky enough to premiere it. When I see a press release that describes somebody's music as 'brushing listeners imaginations with sun-glinted electronic reflections from city grids and red-sand deserts'; I just know I have to listen to it. Whoever wrote that press info wasn't lying either. The songs inhabit a kind of half-awake, half-asleep driftspace which provides the perfect antidote to these dark wintery days. This is simple but beautiful and surprisingly catchy - it'll have you hooked for days. Be sure to grab the free DL of the title track below, if you're sensible you'll be sure to pick up the EP when it drops on the 21st February: