new sound: kwes

Do you have a good pair of headphones?  You need to go get them.  Because you absolutely cannot listen to this song through your tiny computer speakers.  Got them?  Okay, good.  Here we go:

The new artist I am currently obsessing over is Kwes, a British producer and musician who creates beautiful pop songs that are simultaneously simple (lyrically) and complex (musically).  He’ll be releasing his second EP, Meantime, on April 30th via Warp, but you can hear two of the tracks now, streaming via Youtube.

The track that first caught my ear was “lgoyh,” the fourth and final track on that EP.  And here’s why you need your headphones.  The first time I listened to this, I was at working, hearing it over my tiny computer speakers.  I could hear the lyrics – a sweetly simple love song – and I knew there was a good hook, but the more complex sounds were totally fuzzed out.  It wasn’t until I got home and listened to the song with headphones that I could really appreciate its beauty.  Now, all I want to do is listen to it on repeat, while staring at my computer screen with a smile on my face.

 

Listen for: the way he layers sounds on top of each other in the first minute of the song, building up to the joyful chorus

What’s up with that title?:  It stands for “let go of your hurt,” a paraphrase of a section of the chorus.

The other track that you can listen to from his upcoming EP is the second track, “bashful.”

 
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If you need more Kwes in your life before the album comes out, you can grab an mp3 of the song “Get Up” – from his first EP No Need to Run – in exchange for your e-mail here, or stream it below.

 

Fact to Impress Your Friends: Kwes has color synaesthesia, meaning he sees particular colors based on the music he is hearing.  He’s translated this into the artwork for several of his releases.