BEST CHILL MUSIC - WEEK 6

There's no doubt about it, we're living through hard times. It seems like every morning, we're waking up to a pile of bullshit, which is then dumped onto a pre-existing pile of bullshit. For that reason, as BitCandy undergoes its metamorphosis into We Are: The Guard, this weekly dose of Best Chill Music feels as vital as ever. That way, when the drama and the politics get all too much this Friday, you can simply put on your headphones and restore some positive vibes with the following songs from Andrew Luce, Kevin Garrett, Bipolar Sunshine, Bruno Major, vōx and more.

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SCHWARZ – HOME

German producer Schwarz touches a nerve on his debut offering “Home.” Released through Sprinnin' Records – a record label typically more associated with dance bangers than piano ballads – “Home” is a devastatingly beautiful piece of music that finds Schwarz bridging the gap between the electronic and the symphonic worlds in order to deliver a profound (not to mention timely) message about acceptance and belonging.

ANDREW LUCE – WHAT YOU NEED

Dim the lights, as Andrew Luce is setting the mood this Valentine's Day with the sultry “What You Need.” By taking the vocals from The Weeknd song of the same name and setting them against a throbbing electronic backdrop, listen as the 19-year-old producer succeeds in elevating the House of Balloons cut to even more bedroom-friendly heights. “I've always felt like my music works well with The Weeknd, so here's a little something I made in Tokyo,” Luce writes on SoundCloud. “Lots more new music coming soon.”

ON PLANETS – CURE

Embark on a celestial odyssey this Friday courtesy of On Planets. The Vancouver producer debuts a truly otherworldly sound on “Cure,” the first single to be taken from his forthcoming EP, Personal Space. Featuring his ethereal vocals skyrocketing atop a galaxy of starry-eyed synths, On Planets writes on SoundCloud that “Cure” is “about a lot of things, but mainly about feeling conflicted and polarized.”

HVOB & WINSTON MARSHALL – THE BLAME GAME

Ahead of the release of their much-anticipated third album SILK, Australian duo HVOB (Her Voice Over Boys) have shared “The Blame Game.” A collaboration with Mumford and Sons' Winston Marshall, it's a deeply brooding piece of music that opens with HVOB's Anna Müller and Paul Wallner trading haunting lamentations over Marshall's sparse, reverb-laden guitar lines, before unexpectedly transforming into a bass-driven banger.

KEVIN GARRETT – LITTLE BIT OF YOU

Kevin Garrett does it again. The Pittsburgh-born, Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter and purveyor of so-called “odd soul” hits close to home on “Little Bit of You,” an emotional mid-tempo ballad that hears Garrett's timeless, sincere vocals (“Catching my breath, pounding my chest/I'm loving you less, I need to confess”) paired with a production that mixes organic elements – such as guitar chords and finger snaps – with a driving electronic beat.

DAY WAVE – SOMETHING HERE

We may be on the brink of what feels like an American apocalypse, but at least we have Oakland act Day Wave (Jackson Phillips) to transport us back to more innocent times with “Something Here.” Featured on his forthcoming debut album The Days We Had, the song is a much-needed dose of wistful, nostalgic dream pop that, for at least a brief moment, helps you to forget about all of the terrifying shit going on outside of your front door.

BIPOLAR SUNSHINE – THE SCIENTIST

Having recently featured on DJ Snake's smash hit “Middle,” British singer-songwriter Bipolar Sunshine returns this 2017 with a cover of Coldplay's “The Scientist.” One of the finer songs in Chris Martin and company's discography, Bipolar Sunshine succeeds in reminding us exactly why the A Rush of Blood to the Head cut has stood the test of time (15 years, to be precise) with his faithful rendition, which hears his heartfelt croon paired with minimal piano chords and very little else.

BRUNO MAJOR – LIKE SOMEONE IN LOVE

Mr. Bruno Major takes time out from offering majestic originals to instead share a rendition of Jimmy Van Heusen's “Like Someone in Love” – a song previously covered by Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Chet Baker and more. Caressing our ears with his warm dulcet tones, the English crooner's lo-fi interpretation of the 1944 jazz standard is a truly luscious listen – not to mention an essential addition to any Valentine's Day playlist in the making.

ARIANA AND THE ROSE & RKCB – LOVE YOU LATELY

There's nothing quite as painful as the realization that you're falling out of love, and it's precisely that feeling that Ariana and the Rose aims to capture on her latest single “Love You Lately.” A collaboration with RKCB, it's feverish electronic R&B that finds Ariana and RKCB repeating the line “I guess I just don't love you lately” over a trap-infused beat. Ariana: “The song is about that moment when you find yourself deep in a relationship that no longer feels genuine, and there's a moment you let it take over the fear of letting go.”

VŌX – I WAS BORN

The Guard favorite vōx continues to refine her artful approach to pop music on her first single of 2017, “I Was Born.” Utilizing her voice as her only instrument, the artist delivers an experimental a cappella opus that completely envelops you with its profound narrative about spiritual rebirth (“I think I died this week/The earth slipped away”). “It's naked. It's vulnerable,” vōx tells Pigeons and Planes. “Leaving your past behind to serve a bigger purpose can be painful or lonely. But the most powerful thing you can do is change.”

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Until next Friday, stay chill. x

“Photo” by Carmen Marxuach is licensed under CC0 1.0 (cropped and resized).

About Jess Grant

When Jess Grant isn't writing on music, she can be found playing it – on her guitar, on her ukulele, and on her recently acquired mandolin. Playing it hideously, she ought to add. Jess also studies. She studies the English language, to be precise. Jess is currently on her way to a degree in the subject, and enjoys starting and never finishing novels, screenplays, and poetry in her spare time. She also likes dogs. Lots of dogs.