Sound Selects: October/November
By April Izzard (@april.izzxrd)
Another month, another selection from London’s April Izzard. Her top three tracks of the past month in no particular order. You can listen to all the tracks mentioned via the Sound Selects playlist.
1. emil - Ambrosia
Release date: 9th October 2020
The definition of ambrosia is ‘food of the gods’ and emil, a producer and musician hailing from South-East London, really encapsulates a sense of divine sense of heavenly peace throughout this EP. The opening title track is a jazzy instrumental piece that swirls in a building crescendo of symbols, gentle guitar strums and soft vocals. The track closes with a male voice echoing ‘this is love’, which sets the tone for a project that manoeuvres from self-reflective/journalistic rap songs and beautifully peaceful instrumental songs.
A2 features on the second track, Own Pace, describing his musical journey. He raps in a contemplative manner over a gentle beat. The song is an observation on how other people in the industry act and build success, rapping that he consciously ignores the voices of others to do his own thing.
Knucks features twice on the project. Firstly on Bakerloo, another meditative rap piece enveloped by a jazzy bass guitar, distant electric guitar riff and peaceful piano melodies. Then again on BTD (aka Beg To Differ), which opens with a scaling piano chord and breaks into a rumbling low bass and electro-drum beat. Knucks raps about struggles and betrayals in an unbothered tone by the way people in his life have tried to do him wrong and how he rises above it regardless.
Ayeisha Raquel, a singer from East London, sings soulfully and touchingly about a lover on the penultimate track, keeping my full attention. Then rapper King Kay and saxophonist Venna close the project with Perfect Peace. A choir of voices sing the word "perfectly" as King Kay ruminates over his life - his highs and lows - in a way that is relatable and emotionally intelligent. Venna's saxophone moment married together with the choir in harmony and closed the project perfectly.
For me, Ambrosia represents music that is wholesome and true artistic expression. I got a real sense of who emil is through this project and it is a perfect project to listen to during the somber winter months.
2. Scribz Riley - Wish Me Luck
Release date: 20th November 2020
I reviewed Scribz Riley recently for his single Mandy and now we can indulge in his full solo project Wish Me Luck, which features the uber popular singles Impress Me and Mandy (video below). Scribz has received a lot of attention and hype this year since he released his first single East Side. He is mostly known for his association with rap and R&B stars, Cardi B, H.E.R. and J Hus but name affiliation can only get you so far. The transition from producer to solo artist comes with a lot of pressure but Scribz proved he can stand strong with Wish Me Luck.
Despite his own doubts, it is clear he knows exactly how to cultivate songs that are commercially viable with catchy hooks and popular beat styles. The whole project is extremely polished with slick Americanised trap beats on songs like Outta Your Way and Introduce Myself. The latter feels like it could easily be his next single with features from KWN and JADA.
Dim My Light featuring R&B prince, 6LACK, is based around a low-fi beat and samples from Snoh Aalegra’s Woah. The song is very moody, which is a classic trait for 6LACK, and something about Scribz and 6LACK’s drawling voices that feels like two men airing their late-night thoughts.
For me, the star of the album and Scribz’s personal masterpiece is Mandy. The afrobeats style bop makes me want to dance every time I hear it and the simplicity of the chorus and post-chorus repeats in my head for hours after I listen to it. It is the perfect amalgamation of feel-good vibes and catchy lyrics.
Wish Me Luck is definitely Scribz’s way of figuring his own sound out, as it varies quite a lot throughout the album. In many ways, it means that there is something for pretty much everyone but it will be interesting to know whether he will hone in to one particular sub-genre or maintain this jack-of-all-trades approach.
3. JJ Adrian - As Soon As I Can
Release Date: 4th November 2020
JJ Adrian is a singer-songwriter from Vancouver, Canada, and is very new on the scene. His debut EP While We Wait was released earlier this year and As Soon As I Can (listen below) is now his latest single. It popped up on a curated playlist and I was drawn into the gentle acoustics and soft vocals, which are somewhat similar to Daniel Caesar on Freudian.
JJ Adrian sings about a relationship and just how much he wants to make it work. JJ captures the complexities of long-distance relationships beautifully in a way that feels authentic and true-to-life. Everything about this song feels ethereal and dreamlike; the lyrics have a kind of melancholic feel to them. To be honest, although I don’t know much about this singer, I am definitely invested enough and am intrigued to hear more.