BEST CHILL SONGS - WEEK 23

Hello and welcome to the latest edition of We Are: The Guard's Best Chill Songs! As much as we love listening to and writing about it all year round, there's no doubt about it that music really comes alive during the summer months. It's as if all of our favorite bands, artists, and producers wake up from their winter hibernations with a whole bunch of good vibes for our ears to enjoy! As another warm weekend approaches, then, why not get into the summer spirit this Friday by checking out the following songs – each hand-selected from the blogosphere by yours truly – from Kanye West, Flight Facilities, Rhye, salute, Nicole Millar, and five other favorites?!

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KANYE WEST – GHOST TOWN

ye is, for the most part, a frustrating and deeply problematic listen, but there are flashes of real beauty on the latest album from Kanye West, the obvious one being penultimate cut “Ghost Town.” The song's brilliance has little to do with Kanye or even Kid Cudi, however, but with 070 Shake, the 20-year-old New Jersey rapper and G.O.O.D. Music signee, who we get to hear enjoying a proper “Nicki moment” in the track's transcendent second half.

FLIGHT FACILITIES (FEAT. DUSTIN TEBBUTT) – ALL YOUR LOVE

Flight Facilities embrace vulnerability on their latest single “All Your Love.” The collaboration with neo-folk troubadour Dustin Tebbutt locks into a far more downtempo groove than what we're used to from the Australian producer duo, with the soul-baring nature of the music complimenting the lyrics, which Dustin reveals are about that moment when you put your heart in someone else's hands: “It's a confession and celebration of the process and ultimately, that moment when you let the control go.”

RHYE – PHOENIX

He parted ways with his bandmate Robin Hannibal, went through a divorce, and even bought himself out of a major label deal with Polydor, but Rhye's Michael Milosh is rising from the ashes on “Phoenix.” The velvety funk groove, from Rhye's recent album Blood, is very much a tale of rebirth, with Michael further exploring this theme in the song's sumptuous official video: “The video for 'Phoenix' is a representation of the storms that are needed to instigate that change, renouncing the mundane. Change is a strong woman who comes into your life and shows you your true self. Hence, change is 'Phoenix.'”

CHINAH – YEAH RIGHT

Ahead of the release of their debut album later this year, CHINAH have shared “Yeah Right.” The song is without a doubt the Copenhagen trio's darkest offering to date, with beats and sub-bass forming beneath Fine Glindvad's vocals like electrical storm clouds. Zigzagging synths and a solo from guitarist Simon Kjær, meanwhile, both rain down like neon lightning, resulting in a kind of experimental pop tempest that we can't get enough of.

HUI. – PROBLEM CHILD

Meet Hui., an enigmatic producer and singer-songwriter hailing from Melbourne, Australia, who's bringing just the right mix of vibes and feels to his latest single “Problem Child.” Deeply introspective and outwardly soulful, “Problem Child” is nothing short of a downtempo electronic opus that's sure to appeal to fans of Flume, Nick Murphy, and other purveyors of that iconic Future Classic sound.

SALUTE (FEAT. THE DIAMONDS ARE BLACK) – SKIN

Breakups can be painful, but they can also be entirely transformative, marking a new chapter in someone's existence. And while memories may linger throughout “Skin,” the latest single to be unveiled from Austrian electronic producer salute's recent EP Condition I, the light is undeniably starting to pour through the cracks, with mysterious R&B outfit THE DIAMONDS ARE BLACK delivering a truly powerhouse vocal performance over salute's life-affirming production.

MALLRAT – GROCERIES

Love is kind of scary, especially when it comes along when you least expect it. It's this very anxiety that Mallrat taps into on her charming latest single. “This sucks, I'm lovesick, too important to rush this,” sings the Brisbane artist alongside a quaint guitar melody on “Groceries” – a delightful ode to a reluctant crush that features on Mallrat's recent EP In the Sky.

LOW CUT HIGH TOPS – CIGARETTES AND WINE

Low Cut High Tops is the last person that we expected to feature in our Chill column, but then again, we can never really tell with David Burns. The Seattle axeman is entirely unpredictable, constantly surprising us with new sounds (hence why we signed him), with the art school dropout taking another dramatic left turn with his latest single “Cigarettes and Wine” – a gently swaying slacker rock lullaby that Low Cut High Tops tells us he wrote on an old toy piano that he found on the side of the street.

PERFUME GENIUS – RUN ME THROUGH (KING PRINCESS REMIX)

There's nothing that we love more here at We Are: The Guard than seeing queer creatives supporting other queer creatives, especially when it results in beguiling pieces of art like this remix of Perfume Genius' “Run Me Through” by King Princess. Listen as the Brooklyn protégé puts a transfixing trip hop twist on the No Shape cut, with ghostly backing vocals and shivering beats beckoning the already darkened cabaret even deeper into the abyss.

NICOLE MILLAR (FEAT. MUKI) – PINK SUNDAE

Nicole Millar and Muki?! NAME A MORE ICONIC DUO! No, really – featuring the Sydney songstresses oozing with attitude, not to mention a whole ton of girl power, over a dancehall beat produced by Dan Farber, this tropical-flavored “Pink Sundae” from Nicole's recent debut album Excuse Me is every bit as zesty and delicious as we hoped it'd be.

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Thanks for listening! Oh, and why not follow We Are: The Guard's Best Chill Daily! on Spotify for more?! x

Photo by Ethan Hoover 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.