This month's mixtape is curated by the one and only Waterstrider. Earlier this year, the Oakland based quintet released Nowhere Now, one of those rare albums in which pretty much every single song is an instant hit. Their distinctive sound, with unforgettable gliding vocals, intricate guitars and infectious grooves merges many genres in such a tight unit that we thought a mixtape would help unravel the wide array of their influences. Turns out, you can also boogie to it.
Bells Atlas‘s eponymous debut EP came out last month and the foursome shared two stunning singles off it previously. Now they are offering ‘Incessant Noise’ as the third single from the EP, a samba infused cut blending “sultry multilayered vocals, Brazilian bateria-swells, West-African Highlife guitar riffs, and a coiling yet anchored bass line”, as they describe. Listen to it below and straight after check out their brand new video for the previous single ‘Lovin You Down’.
Sandra Lawson-Ndu, Derek Barber, Geneva Harrison and Doug Stuart make up Oakland based outfit Bells Atlas. The quartet draws influences from varied musical genres including Highlife, Hip-Hop, Samba, R&B, Post Rock, and Indie Pop. Frontwoman Sandra grew up listening to Rex Lawson, a legendary musician from the Nigerian highlife scene of the 60’s. The band weaves these varied influences into a unique sound of their own.
Last week saw the band releasing their debut EP, an exhilarating, delicate and seductive effort which you can stream or download on their bandcamp.
Bells Atlas have also recently released a second single from the EP, ‘Loving You Down’. According to them, the song is “about a woman near the end of her life, revisiting some painful memories and deciding to re-craft the telling of her life story”. Listen to it now.
Bells Atlas’ debut full-length album will arrive this summer. We’ll be on the lookout for more details!