Seven Fresh Songs #90

Listen to all our daily song picks on our playlists on Spotify and Apple Music.

Aerhart — Hold Me Closer Give Me Space

Aerhart is the project of Brooklyn-based singer and producer Amelia Wellers. On October 22, she will release her debut album “Wallflower,” a beautiful piece of experimental electronic music grounded by her ethereal vocals. The first single, “Hold Me Closer Give Me Space,” is driven by an intricate rhythm juxtaposed with choral harmonies and a wild bass line.

Amelia says about the story behind the song:

“I barely considered myself a musician when I wrote this song in 2017 — HMCGMS was more of a note-to-self about whether I wanted to return to a relationship. My life changed a lot after that, and the people and places that I considered going back to changed too. Throughout it all, this song managed to stay largely the same and increasingly relevant. I now consider HMCGMS to be a reminder to continue developing and following my intuition. However, I think it can, and should, mean different things to different people based on their own lives.”

She adds:

“One day during a studio session in May 2021 while we were making WALLFLOWER, Kyle encouraged me to ‘just put harmonies everywhere’, something I’d been slowly discovering to be a strength. After he left for the night, I stayed back and told myself to let intuition lead the way. A chorus of what we now call the ‘evil angels’ emerged in just a few hours. I’m not a religious person, but I do think music and spirituality have always coexisted. I love that this song had room for this type of vocal arrangement, delivering a more supernatural incentive to be honest with yourself when asked ‘do you want to go back?’.

Listen to our Song Pick of the Day here:

Connect with Aerhart on Facebook or Instagram.

Frances Baker — Bringing Me Down

Is it a sheer coincidence that I feature back-to-back two female singer/songwriters, who produce their music themselves and call Nashville, TN their home? Maybe they will collaborate on something one day? For now, get to know Frances Baker, who embarked on an exciting journey to support Arlo Parks on her U.K. tour. Alone that tidbit makes you listen up, doesn’t it? Baker has a self-titled EP coming up with five soulful tracks, with the sparkling “Bringing Me Down” as the lead single. Starting a song with the chorus is always a welcomed surprise, and Baker does it expertly so, making us immediately chime in. Asked about her new single, Baker says:

“Bringing Me Down” is the first song I recorded. Self-produced, I started it on Finale Score sequencing software, moved to GarageBand, and finished it in Ableton. This is when Sean (my friend and collaborator) started teaching me about producing, sampling and recording. This song is about leaving a toxic situation, doing what’s best for you. Dancing in mistakes.

Listen to “Bringing Me Down,” our Song Pick of the Day:

Connect with Frances Baker on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

She Drew The Gun — Behave Myself

Louisa Roach is not one for subtleties. This starts with her stage name She Drew the Gun and does not end with the clear message of her songs. “Behave Myself” is a fist-pumping anthem for everyone who doesn’t want to play by rules that only serve those in power. With its high energy level, the song fits perfectly into a playlist with Ela Minus’ “megapunk.”

Louisa says about the song:

“Punk flavoured pop for people who don’t want to behave themselves. It’s about the unstoppable forces that are made out of centuries of oppression. I see the cage and I will not accept anything less than freedom.”

Watch the video here:

Listen to the song on your favorite streaming service. Connect with She Drew The Gun on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

Jane. — Ingenue

Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter Jane. released “Ingenue,” his emotive and enchanting debut single. Jane. is the new project of Raj Jain for whom ethnicity plays an even bigger role than for most of us since he grew up half Indian, a quarter black, and a quarter white in both America and India.

Jane.’s bio on Spotify starts with “An audience usually prioritizes ethnicity before considering music.” While provocative, this is also welcomed food for thought. I’m usually ready to argue that my preferred musical genres also define for the most part who’s making that music. However, listening (not watching!) to a long playlist of “new releases” for example, I wouldn’t know the ethnicity of the musicians, and I also prefer it that way because I want the vocals, the music itself, and its vibe to connect with me. The person who created the music comes only secondary for me yet I’m excited to feature an artist who doesn’t fit the maybe stereotypical dreamy indie-rock mold. I totally dig “Ingenue.” Asked about the lead single to his upcoming EP What a Time to Be Barely Alive, Jain says:

It’s a song of loneliness but there’s a joy in the loneliness. It’s kind of about wanting to be wanted. There’s an understanding on why the antagonist’s interest is elsewhere, but I’m still craving her attention.

Listen to “Ingenue,” our Song Pick of the Day:

Connect with Jane. on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Helven — u my homie

The title “u my homie” suggests a squeaky bubble gum pop track about the intricacies of high school life, but that is not what Jenny Bakke, aka Helven, has in mind. Her song is a reflective piece about deep friendship that comes with a relaxed, retrained production. As for the title, Jenny gives us an explanation:

“It’s about the journey we had together, what it is like to help a friend, the ups and downs, and the strength of the friendship in adversity. I used texts from that period to write the lyrics. It’s all the things we used to say to each other during the toughest times, without anyone else understanding what they meant. Instead of saying ‘I love you, you’ll get through this’, we said ‘I know you, u my homie’”.

Listen to “u my homie” on your favorite streaming service or below on SoundCloud:

Connect with Helven on Facebook or Instagram.

Fuzzy Sun — Morning Light

“Morning Light” by Fuzzy Sun is an irresistibly gorgeous song and the embodiment of U.K. indie-rock at its best. When I close my eyes, I can picture myself sitting on the balcony early in the morning, thanks to the song’s bright notes and its carefree and upbeat vibe. Yet there are also darker undertones and without “Morning Light” wouldn’t be as beautifully intriguing as it is. Asked about their upcoming EP Since The Dog Died (due in November) and its lead single, frontman Kyle Ross says:

It was the first tune we wrote out of this new bank of material, I suppose it’s about feeling lost and at the same time losing a part of yourself whilst trying to figure a way out of your own mental labyrinth. I felt like I’d been trapped in a David Lynch scene and that’s what inspired the tune in the first place.

Listen to “Morning Light,” our Song Pick of the Day:

Connect with Fuzzy Sun on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

River Hooks x Haunted Continents — Can’t Stay Sober

River Hooks is one of our favorite singers/producers in New York and she teamed up with James Downes aka Haunted Continents. James, also known for his work in the East Coast folk-rock band TEOA. He and River take different approaches to music, but for “Can’t Stay Sober,” they mix their styles and vocals perfectly. The song’s subject is as unusual as its production: not a confession of a substance addict; it is rather about the yearning for special moments induced by chemicals or otherwise. River & James explain:

“‘CAN’T STAY SOBER’ is that late night feeling of being alone and wanting to escape through the motions of being inebriated. Whether you are sedated or not, it’s wanting an uncontrollable itch to be scratched, but the feeling is constant. The “high” is for the listener’s interpretation, as it could embody a person or any vice one might be dealing with. To achieve that high you’d do almost anything to feel something humanly possible and when you do feel it, that moment of embracement is euphoric.”

Listen to our Song Pick of the Day, “Can’t Stay Sober,” on your favorite streaming service or on Bandcamp below:

Connect with River Hooks on Facebook or Instagram. Connect with Haunted Continents on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.