Top of the Drop

By Daniel J. Springer

This is our monthly installment of soon-to-drop and recently dropped releases from the music world. The best of the best that may not yet be on your radar, sly favorites and audio gems selected by Danno,” longtime host of GFN’s The Drop with Danno.  — Ed.

Brijean – “Euphoric Avenue”

This Oakland-based duo has gained quite the profile since their debut with a mostly dance-based house repertoire. However, this latest single channels the likes of Björk and Zero 7 more than anything else, with whimsical pitch-perfect vocals from the band’s namesake and lead singer.  The accompaniment is equally superb, an eventually triumphant piece of string bliss that fits Brijean’s voice to a tee. Not merely striking out on a different path, this one shows the depth of this duo’s deep quality. The band’s latest album, Macro, drops July 5.

Lunar Isles – “Fade Out”

This was the final single to drop in the run-up to the release of David Skimming’s fifth studio album in just under four years’ time. The now Seoul-based artist has not only put together a prolific run in this time, but his self-produced albums are remarkably high quality listens and the craft therein just gets better and better. Parasol dropped in full on June 21, and if you’re in for a summer drive or two as the season kicks into high gear, this is one to have bumping with you on the ride down the coast.

Yannis & The Yaw – “Walk Through Fire”

When Afrobeat father Tony Allen’s posthumous album There Is No End dropped, we had no idea that the man was being (almost… we suppose?) literal.  The amount of one-off jam sessions turned into albums since Allen’s unfortunate demise have been nothing short of incredible, and Lagos Paris London, a collaborative but abortive EP done in collaboration with Yannis Philippakis of Foals, is the latest star to form in a seemingly metastasizing galaxy that Allen left in his wake.

Fightmaster – “Emmett”

One interesting thing to note about this multi-talented singer-songwriter, actor, and producer is that ER Fightmaster is, in fact, the name on their birth certificate. Recording under the Fightmaster moniker, this artist has put together some of most unusual and raw psychedelic Americana out there, and their latest EP, Bloodshed Baby, is not to be missed.

High Pulp – “Slaw” (L’éclair Remix)

For those unfamiliar, L’éclair is a Swiss duo that have been making some of the best chill beats out there, and this latest collab with LA-based experimental jazz collective High Pulp just screams out for a voice on the beach this summer after the sun has set. Just enough chop and energy in the freeze will keep the bumpy ones happy too, and it has a twisty edge of darkness to it that adds a cloud to the sunshine.