With new music flying like warp-speed through the various channels of the Internet, it can be hard to keep up. But worry not! Each week The Fresh Toast will deliver the most-discussed and exciting songs that have recently dropped. Landed. Crashed. And also: soared. Enjoy.
Kim Gordon—“Murdered Out”
A grandma made this? This was my thought following a first listen of Kim Gordon’s return. And to be clear: this was my only thought after pressing play on the 3:35-long track. Living inside the vibrations of “Murdered Out” is like finding oneself trapped during an acid hailstorm while an earthquake rumbles and the foulest scoundrels Gordon’s hometown Los Angeles has to offer rioting and looting the streets.
I’m still unsure what to label this but let’s go with goth-industrial banger. Gordon was apparently inspired to write this song after returning to L.A. and noticing a new trend of black matte paint jobs, a new mainstream trend taken from lowrider car culture. Here’s Gordon on it: “Black-on-black matte is the ultimate expression in digging out, getting rid of, purging the soul. Like a black hole, the supreme inward look, a culture collapsing in on itself, the outsider as an unwilling participant as the ‘It’ look.”
Kim Gordon is the most badass grandma around. Actually screw that. She doesn’t need the epithet of grandma. Gordon’s just a badass. Black matte spray.
Calvin Harris—“My Way”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGaEf0CZfbQ
Here’s what Calvin Harris’ latest is not: It’s not a Frank Sinatra cover and it’s super seriously definitely not about ex-girlfriend (and newly single!) Taylor Swift. With that shade-oozing hook of “You were the one thing in my way,” Harris repeats over and over again, opting to use his own vocals on the track. And check these lyrics that no-way-in-hell reference Swift: “I made my move and it was all about you / Now I feel so far removed.”
That being said: Good job, Calvin. You beat her at her own game.
GTA ft. Vince Staples—“Little Bit of This”
Vince Staples stays winning. His recent output demonstrates that Vince isn’t worried about blowing past the edges of classic and contemporary hip hop sounds. Comfortable in various lanes outside his own, “Little Bit of This” continues that trend. Miami DJ duo GTA manifest sublime chaos with those snapping rhythms and wailing synths, a monster of a beat very few rappers would be comfortable touching. Vince drives through all that noise with nonchalant bars like “Feelin’ like Snoop at the Source awards” and “Marriages to white women, Mike Jackson shit.”
Bon Iver—“8 (Circle)
Whatever Bon Iver is about to unleash with its third studio album, 22 A Million, I feel fairly confident saying we’ve never heard anything like it before. The band performed their latest single on Fallon and it’s worth checking out just to see the setup: Justin Vernon standing in the middle of three synth stations, not an acoustic guitar in sight. It’s ethereal, otherworldly, a missive from an alien man. Whatever you want to call it, we’re in.
D.R.A.M.—“Cash Machine”
https://soundcloud.com/bigbabydram/cash-machine
D.R.A.M. makes music that sounds like the art of flight: it’s weightless, high in melodic register, and giggles with joy. His singing almost seems like it passes through a smile. D.R.A.M. has a reason to be happy too: His “Broccoli” collaboration with Lil’ Yachty just hit No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot Raps chart. He beat out Drake’s Rihanna-assisted “Too Good,” which is poetic for the kind of person who recognizes the liberal similarities to D.R.A.M.’s “Cha Cha” and Drake’s “Hotline Bling.” (Hint: That should be everyone.)
But D.R.A.M. doesn’t seem to be that petty. He’s too busy flying.
Jenny Hval—“Period Piece”
This space transmission is about a relatively normal event for half the population: an OB/GYN visit. But the textures of the track, with its diffusion of backup vocals, electronic pop beat, frenetic drum machine, tell a different story, that of celestial femininity. The short record leaves you desperately wanting more, but Jenny Hval leaves you with your tongue-in-cheek, muttering, “It’s only blood.”
