Hey! Did you know that there’s an entire aspect of KCRW music discovery that you might be missing out on? Fear not, because our 5 Songs to Hear This Week newsletter is now a weekly feature on our website. Watch this space for rundowns of the five songs that you need in your life immediately, curated by KCRW Music staff. Don’t want to wait for your latest taste of fresh tunes? Sign up for the Friday newsletter here, and always be the first to know.
Erick the Architect – "Ambrosia (Feat. Channel Tres)”
Brooklyn rapper Erick the Architect — who you might recognize from his rapid fire bars on Jungle’s “Candle Flame” — taps Compton’s own Channel Tres for a laidback new house-hop cut that’s destined to join the ranks of DJ-secret-weapons to get the crowd up and moving early in the night. Trust us, you’re gonna catch the vibe.
More: Channel Tres: KCRW Guest DJ Set
Britti – “Nothing Compares to You”
Hypnotic, sultry, spare, and perfectly punctuated by the horn section — “Nothing Compares to You” is quite the introduction to New Orleans-native R&B artist Britti. Watch for her Dan Auerbach produced debut LP, Hello, I’m Britti to drop in 2024. With this track as a teaser, we’re expecting a barn-burner.
Aili – “Fashion”
In 2021, an intriguing new left-field dance music project began appearing on KCRW playlists. That project, Aili & Transistorcake, produced the stellar EP Dansu which paired Transistorcake’s wildly inventive multi-instrumentalism and production chops with Belgian-Japanese singer Aili’s instincts for infusing her familial roots into her current sound. New single “Fashion” is credited solely to Aili, though you’ll catch Transistorcake posing and mouthing along in the artful video for the slinky synthpop number.
Emily Afton – “Make”
“Why don’t you make something beautiful for the world, without a motive?” Folktronic singer-songwriter Emily Afton sings this line repeatedly in her song “Make,” euphorically twisting it into a plea to the Gods of creativity as though simply voicing the words will make it so. Then again, there is now a beautiful song in the world and it contains this provocative line. Is this a matter of coincidence, or meta songwriting at its finest? Give “Make” a spin and let us know what you think.
Daniel Noah Miller – “Typical (Live from Pre-production)”
There’s something undeniably satisfying about witnessing a musician in their element, trusting the process, and making magic happen. This is on full display in alt-R&B artist Daniel Noah Miller’s sprawling and carefully crafted Live from Pre-production performance of “Typical.” It’s a sharp contrast to the blood pumping pace of the single version of the track that you’ll find on Spotify, so check it out on our 5 Songs To Hear playlist and compare notes.