Song of the Day KEXP

ODESZA - "In the Rain," a 2023 single on Foreign Family Collective

Beloved Bellingham-based boys ODESZA share a new single, both as a stand-alone track and available on volume two of the Rave.wavs compilation series released via their own Foreign Family Collective label. 

The duo of Harrison Mills and Clayton Knight state simply, "'In the Rain' was written on the road while performing our The Last Goodbye Tour. We wanted to make something fun and high energy that would particularly work well in a live environment.” 

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Golden Features - "Flesh" from the 2023 album Sisyphus on Foreign Family Collective

With today's techno-tinged Song of the Day, Australian DJ/producer Golden Features (real name: Thomas Stell) celebrates a city he discovered on tour: Berlin. 

"'Flesh' was one of the earlier demos from the album's writing process," he shared in a press statement. "It was a direct response to my time in Berlin and a song that encapsulated everything I fell in love with on my journeys. I wrote it trying to express feelings of being under the weight of an eight-hour session in the rave. Overstimulated, anxious, and completely terrified of facing the real world outside. Finally gathering the courage to call it a night experiencing the surreal shift that is walking out of a windowless dungeon into a beautiful sunrise."

The track can be found on his second, and most recent, LP Sisyphus, which was released via ODESZA's Foreign Family Collective label.

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Barry Can't Swim - "Dance of the Crab" from the 2023 album When Will We Land? on Ninja Tune

Scottish DJ/producer Barry Can’t Swim found inspiration from '70s-era Brazilian group Trio Ternura for today's Song of the Day. The track can be found on his debut full-length, When Will We Land?, which features a joyous and ambitious blend of jazz, house, and Afrobeat. Today's featured track in particular, found inspiration in the funky poly-rhythms of Trio Ternura, as the artist (real name: Joshua Mannie) explained in a press release:

“The track started over a year ago, I had just started the album and was digging for samples when I found this amazing record ‘A Gira’ (1973) by a Brazilian group called Trio Ternura. Immediately I could hear the track I wanted to build around it: a summery, groovy, not taking too much away from the original but just giving it a bit more energy”.

“Then we had to clear the sample. After some searching, we eventually managed to get in touch with one of the original writers based in Brazil, who is now well into his 70s and doesn’t speak a word of English. Somehow we managed to contact him on FB messenger, and a friend of mine who speaks Portuguese was the middle man. It all came together quite quickly after that, and we’ve now met all the family of the original writers. Quite wholesome really. Thank you to Trio Ternura for letting me sample the record!”

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Middle Kids - "Dramamine" from the 2024 album Faith Crisis Pt 1 on Middle Kids/ AWAL

Sydney, Australia-based trio Middle Kids celebrate love on today's Song of the Day. The track was co-written by bandmates vocalist/guitarist Hannah Joy and bassist Tim Fitz, who also happen to be married. This revelation makes the chorus of: 

"You are the only reason I believe in anything/I hope you don't take this the wrong way"

even more poignant. 

The single gives a sneak peek at their forthcoming third full-length, Faith Crisis Pt 1. The album was co-produced by Fitz and Jonathan Gilmore (The 1975/Rina Sawayama), and will be released on February 16, 2024, via Lucky Number.

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M83 - "Mirror," a 2023 single on M83 Recording Inc/Mute

It's not déjà vu: if you feel like you've heard this M83 song before, you may have! Today's Song of the Day dates back to the 2011 album Hurry Up, We're Dreaming, and was released as a hidden track found as a secret download in the packaging of the CD. For those who don't own a CD player anymore, the song was then re-released as a Record Store Day exclusive 7-inch single in 2012. And now, the fan-favorite track has been re-re-released as a digital single.

"It’s a track that never came out digitally and we close our shows with that song," M83 mastermind Anthony Gonzalez told Billboard. "The response of the audience has been great so far, and it’s an unknown song that deserves to be properly released in my opinion.”

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Maya Marie & Night Wizards - "The Garden," a 2023 self-released single

Earlier this year, Seattle psych-pop band Night Wizards teamed up with soulful siren Maya Marie for the single "The Garden." Now they've reconvened for this sultry electro-pop jam. Here's hoping for a full-length from this collaboration in 2024. 

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