BEST INDIE SONGS - WEEK 15

HAPPY COACHELLA WEEK, BABY!

That's right – it's that time of the year when basics the world over descend upon the California desert for three days of music, sun, and casual cultural appropriation.

In all seriousness, it's a killer lineup this 2019 (check out all of the artists that you need to see here, here, and here) and I, for one, can't wait to...erm...live stream the whole thing from the comfort of my couch.

Before all of that, however, We Are: The Guard is back this Monday morning with yet another edition of Best Indie Songs.

Featuring Hot Chip, Vampire Weekend, James Blake, and more, this playlist – kind of like the Coachella lineup – has a little something for everyone!

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HOT CHIP – HUNGRY CHILD

London house band Hot Chip are back, not only with a brand new song, but with a brand new episode of Black Mirror, too!

Okay, okay – so Charlie Brooker didn't ACTUALLY have anything to do with this video for the sprawling “Hungry Child,” but something tells me that he'd nonetheless approve of this eight-minute short film directed by Saman Kesh and starring Milana Vayntrub and Martin Starr!

“It IS coming from you millennials!”

 

VAMPIRE WEEKEND – THIS LIFE

The rollout to Father of the Bride – due out on May 3rd – CONTINUES!

Following on from the release of “Sunflower,” Vampire Weekend return today with “This Life.”

It's an ebullient piece of music that finds Ezra Koenig sharing vocal duties with Danielle Haim, with both artists singing about life's woes over a sanguine guitar line that alludes to Van Morrison's “Brown Eyed Girl.”

 

SILVER SPHERE – BOYS IN BANDS

Every once in a while, a song comes along that feels like it was written exactly for me.

“boys in bands” is one of those songs.

As someone who's had her heart broken by more Conor Oberst wannabes than she cares to mention, this quirky synth-pop bop – which includes hilarious lyrics like “You're tryna play me like/A f*cking Bright Eyes song” – is hitting WAY too close to home!

 

MINI MANSIONS (FEAT. ALISON MOSSHART) – HEY LOVER

Mini Mansions and Alison Mosshart?

Hell to the YEAH!

These artists could whisper sweet nothings down the phone to me ANY day!

From Mini Mansions' forthcoming album Guy Walks Into a Bar... – due out on July 26th – “Hey Lover” is a sweepingly synthy ache of a song that's taking me back to those school nights spent on the line to my teenage crush.

 

THE NATIONAL – LIGHT YEARS

Following on from the release of “You Had Your Soul With You,” The National return today with “Light Years,” and let me tell you – it's a tearjerker!

That's right – tissues at the ready as you're going to struggle to hold back your emotions while listening to this devastating piano ballad, which might be one of Matt Berninger's most poetic odes to love and loss to date: “Oh, the glory of it all was lost on me/'Til I saw how hard it'd be to reach you/And I would always be light years, light years away from you.”

 

JAMES BLAKE (FEAT. ROSALÍA) – BAREFOOT IN THE PARK

What did we do to deserve James Blake and Rosalía?

Having teamed up for “Barefoot in the Park” earlier this year, both artists return today with the video for the stunning Assume Form cut.

Directed by Diana Kunst and Mau Morgo, the clip sees James and Rosalía walking alongside what seem to be younger versions of themselves, with the visual coming bookended by a shot of a fiery car crash that appears to represent both the beginning and the end of the two's relationship.

 

MAC DEMARCO – ALL OF OUR YESTERDAYS

According to Mac DeMarco, “All of Our Yesterdays” is his attempt at writing “a gigantic rock-and-roll hit” in the style of Oasis.

I'll leave it up to you to decide whether or not he's successful on that front (hint: he isn't), but one thing is for certain – this stunning ode to the shifting sands of time has got me all the more excited for Be the Cowboy, due out on May 10th.

 

AWAZE – BREAK A BONE

If you think that guitar music is dead, well, THINK AGAIN!

Stockholm trio AWAZE are unapologetically cranking it up to 11 on the latest single to be unveiled from their recent EP WE WON THE WAR.

With its blend of rock-and-roll riffs and shouty-style vocals, “Break a Bone” is basically what Beastie Boys would sound like if they hired Led Zeppelin as their backing band.

 

LOOTE (FEAT. GNASH) – 85%

Do you miss the dramatically earnest rock-pop of Evanescence and company?

Then you need to get a load of Loote.

Comprising of Emma Lov Block and Jackson Foote, the New York duo are cranking up the vocal pyrotechnics and then some on “85%” – a legitimately epic anthem about unrequited love that features a verse from We Are: The Guard favorite gnash.

 

BROOKS & DUNN (FEAT. KACEY MUSGRAVES) – NEON MOON

If “Old Town Road” by Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus has got you searching for more country collaborations, then look no further than this brand new version of Brooks & Dunn's “Neon Moon” featuring the resplendent Kacey Musgraves.

Listen as Kacey brings her GRAMMY Award-winning golden touch to the refreshed take on the 1992 hit single, which was also recently covered by We Are: The Guard favorites Cigarettes After Sex.

Yee-haw!

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Photo by Timothy Paul Smith on Unsplash

Jess Grant is a frustrated writer hailing from London, England. When she isn't tasked with disentangling her thoughts from her brain and putting them on paper, Jess can generally be found listening to The Beatles, or cooking vegetarian food.