GFN Radio

Top of the Drop

Gwangju News

By Daniel J. Springer

This is the latest installment of “Top of the Drop,” by Daniel Springer of the Gwangju Foreign Language Network (GFN). Each month, “Danno” picks his favorite newly released tunes that you may have missed, along with some upcoming albums and EPs that you might want to keep on your radar. — Ed.

Danielle Ponder – “The Only Way Out”

For those that are caught in the dead-eyed daily grind wondering if it is possible to escape the misery that dominates your daily existence, Danielle Ponder is a great role model. A former public defender in upstate New York prior to moving to NYC and making a go of music full-time, Ponder debuted the lead single to the upcoming Some of Us Are Brave LP on national TV courtesy of Late Night with Seth Meyers. The album is out in September, and Ponder is certainly counted amongst not only the brave, but one of the best on-the-rise artists out there right now.

Danger Mouse & Black Thought feat Russ, Dylan Cartlidge, & Joey Bada$$ – “Because”

The second single to the upcoming collab album from Danger Mouse and The Roots’ Black Thought is just dripping with vintage soul vibes and social protest. Interestingly, production contributor Joey Bada$$ states that The Roots filmed the video to “You Got Me” with Erykah Badu on his grandmother’s block when he was a kid, and it changed everything about how he viewed music at the time. Fast forward too many years for those of us of a certain vintage, and Joey is truly living the dream. Danger Mouse and Black Thought’s Cheat Codes drops August 12 via BMG.

Night Tapes – “Humans”

If this is the first time you are listening to this band, you are getting a pitch-perfect introduction to their dreamy late-night drive sound. The London-based trio have been putting out music since 2019, but this is the first music since their debut Download Spirit EP came out in 2020. If you indeed are new to this, we cannot recommend all of this swerve enough.

Scoobert Doobert – “Who Am I Really Fooling Anyway”

The mystery man out of San Diego in the Scooby-Doo mask is back for more with the latest single to his upcoming EP Kōan C, which is the prolific producer’s third of the calendar year thus far. The song is a bit of cheeky yet truly critical reflection of his own ongoing production credits with Japanese indie dance darlings CHAI, who just wrapped a North American tour with Mitski. Kōan C drops in full on July 1, and from where we are sitting, there is no need for critique from anyone.

Kokoroko – “Age of Ascent”

While Gilles Peterson’s Brownswood label has been doing amazing work for basically the entirety of its own existence, this Afro-centric octet out of London is definitely becoming a centerpiece in that solid roster. With “Age of Ascent,” the group have also announced their latest album set to drop August 5 called Could We Be More, and we will see what happens as far as the answer. It definitely feels as if Kokoroko is ready for their close-up.

Ruby Red – “Eat Me”

This duo is a pair of life-long friends born in Oakland and raised in LA that just released their debut album Saboteur on June 10. While it would be a stretch to call this album an instant classic, it is a very strong full-length with a soul-smacked twist on dream pop that stands out in that exceedingly crowded room and explains their already solid following on the platforms.

Jack White – “If I Die Tomorrow”

While the efforts from the former leading man of The White Stripes have been both coming forth fast and furious as surely as they have been underwhelming, this folksy acoustic number does have something to it. While on the main it sounds like something that belongs in a montage for a fantasy adventure flick, it has a couple of electronic punches that make it a good surprise by the end of the tune.

Horsegirl – “Dirtbag Transformation (Still Dirty)”

This is a trio out of Chicago that must have really taken courses on the deeper trends in rock over the years, because the variety of styles coursing through their debut album are all so well performed it almost beggars belief. While some of the less savvy might dismiss this as the umpteenth example of nostalgia run amok in our meaningless, oversaturated mediaverse, Versions of Modern Performance is contrarily an epic tour-de-force. The fact that this is the group’s debut album is mind-blowing.

Jacob Banks – “By Design (Evel Knievel)”

For those that kind of paused or maybe threw their heads back to the opening bits of this tune, you are surely not alone. This most recent from the London-based artist heralds the release of Lies About The War in August via his homegrown label Nobody Records. All this comes hot off the heels of the release of the For My Friends EP in March, so to say the artist is on the move does not quite do descriptive justice for what is really going on of late.   

BTS – “Born Singer”

The opener to Korean superband BTS’ latest album Proof is kind of a surprise. That is, rather than being an ear-splitting compressive nightmare like 99 percent of their songs inevitably are, “Born Singer” is an extra soft curtain raiser that breaks the usual mold and feels more like some of the indie and R&B projects select members of the group have done on the side over the years. Of course, the rest of the album is the usual hyper-polished spazz-out that the world will inevitably love to death, so never fear Army veterans!

Dry Cleaning – “Don’t Press Me”

Last year’s New Long Leg was not only one of the best rock albums of the year but also the most conceptually original and addictive. A combination of twangy post-punk and indie instrumentation and Florence Shaw’s deadpan spoken word vocals, Dry Cleaning feel less like rock than a pithy gossip session amongst the well-to-do ladies at a London dinner party sniping the absolute shit out of everyone in the room. This tune heralds the band’s sophomore album Stumpwork, which drops October 21. With this lead single, they have really made Shaw’s vocals an earworm that you cannot ignore, with vocals that are whispered straight into your soul from seemingly inside your own head. 


June Releases

  • Angel Olsen – Big Time (June 3)
  • Horsegirl – Versions Of Modern Performance (June 3)
  • Post Malone – Twelve Carat Toothache (June 3)
  • BTS – Proof (June 10)
  • Joyce Manor – 40 oz. to Fresno (June 10)
  • Vance Joy – In Our Own Sweet Time (June 10)
  • Foals – Life Is Yours (June 17)
  • Hercules & Love Affair – In Amber (June 17)
  • Perfume Genius – Ugly Season (June 17)
  • TV Priest – My Other People (June 17)
  • Alexisonfire – Otherness (June 24)
  • Goose – Dripfield (June 24)
  • Regina Spektor – Home, Before & After (June 24)
  • Soccer Mommy – Sometimes, Forever (June 24)
  • Conan Gray – Superache (June 24)

July Releases

  • Burna Boy – Love, Damani (July 1)
  • Moor Mother – Jazz Codes (July 1)
  • Viagra Boys – Caveworld (July 8)
  • Katy J. Pearson – Sound of the Morning (July 8)
  • Metric – Fomentera (July 8)
  • Beabadoobee – Beatopia (July 15)
  • Black Midi – Hellfire (July 15)
  • Lizzo – Special (July 15)
  • Jack White – Entering Heaven Alive (July 22)
  • Sports Team – Gulp! (July 22)
  • Ty Segall – Hello, Hi (July 22)
  • Maggie Rogers – Surrender (July 29)
  • Beyoncé – Renaissance (July 29)
  • Of Montreal – Freewave Lucifer fck (July 29)

The Author

Daniel J. Springer (aka “Danno”) is the creator, host, writer, editor, and producer of “The Drop with Danno,” broadcasting nightly on GFN 98.7 FM in Gwangju and 93.7 FM in Yeosu from 8–10 p.m. Prior to this, he was a contributor to several shows on TBS eFM in Seoul, along with being the creator and co-host of “Spacious” and “White Label Radio” on WNUR in Chicago. You can find “The Damyang Drop,” his monthly collaborative playlist with The Damyang House, on YouTube and Spotify.

Instagram, Twitter, Facebook: @gfnthedrop

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Feature photograph by Fringer Cat on Unsplash.