Taylor Swift sings on a street and 12 other songs you may have missed

The "Songs You May Have Missed" post is often my favourite thing to write all week. It's simply a collection of songs I've stumbled across and filed away - some I'm still evaluating, others are too insubstantial for a standalone article, but they've all made my pop radar go ping. Some of the artists may disappear forever, but it's a good way to summarise my listening and the perennial quest to find new and exciting things.

Anyway, here's this week's collection. As always, I'd be interested to hear what you think in the comments field or over on twitter.

1) Taylor Swift - Out Of The Woods / Shake It Off (live)
In the same week that Taylor Swift topped Canada's iTunes chart with eight seconds of white noise (yes, really) she appeared on Jimmy Kimmel's chat show to promote her new album 1989. And she promoted the heck out of it.

This performance, which shut down Hollywood Boulevard, is a proper pop moment.






2) Kiesza - No Enemiesz
At the outer reaches of her vocal register Kiesza sounds like a cross between Kermit and Miss Piggy, but you can't fault her for sheer effervescence.

The dancing in this video is carefree and joyous - which makes the soft-core pay-off all the more unnecessary.




3) Tulisa - Living Without You
I was pretty dismissive of Fergie and Gwen Stefani's underwhelming comeback singles last week, so it's refreshing to hear someone else claw their way out of the dumper after a protracted (and traumatic) period out of the limelight with something that sounds like a hit.

Of course Tulisa benefits from the gift of low expectations - but she sounds confident, hungry and (unlike the other two) current on this track, which utilises her husky vocals to great effect. Fans of Kiesza may notice a few similarities, though... See above if you doubt me.




4) Leon Bridges - Better Man / Coming Home
Leon Bridges hails from Fort Worth, Texas, where NASA has one of its big research centres, so it's not inconceivable that was beamed from the 1950s to the 21st Century in some sort of freak gamma ray accident.

Otherwise, how do you explain these recordings, which sound exactly as if they were ripped out of Sam Cooke's hands and smuggled into the future? Gorgeous music, and free to download via Soundcloud.







5) Bauuer ft AlunaGeorge - One Touch
Whisper it, but this collaboration is better than AlunaGeorge's own comeback record. Chopped-up, wonky pop with a weirdly infectious hook.

Unusually, the song came from a list of unreleased tracks that Baauer posted on his Facebook page last week, telling fans he'd release the one they liked best. You can't fault their judgment.





6) The Veronicas - Line Of Fire
A filthy, low-slung groove marks The Veronica's return to electropop after the devastating balladry of You Ruin Me.




7) The Veronicas - You Ruin Me (live)
Speaking of which, this X Factor Australia performance is a keeper.




8) r.e.l - Plateau
"Time's slipping away from me," sings Arielle Sitrick with earnest urgency on this lush, hushed indie-pop gem. Maybe it's a strange thing for a 19-year-old to come out with, but when you read the lyrics - about a stalled relationship - you begin to understand her desire to get on with life.

The track is taken from her soon-to-be-released debut EP, which was funded by a Kickstarter campaign to the tune of $8,000. Not bad, eh?





9) One Bit - Not About You
Clearly inspired by Disclosure, this Hertfordshire duo were plucked from BBC Radio 1's Introducing Strand and given a few plays on the daytime schedule last week. It's not difficult to see why - this economic dance track is smart, slick and soulful.




10) One Direction - Steal My Girl
One Direction have done the "video directors are morons" plotline before but, in true boyband tradition, why ditch a successful formula? This time, the video comes with added Danny DeVito and, to be fair, the parody of music video tropes is completely on the money. I laughed twice.




11) Seinabo Sey - Pistols at Dawn
Haunting song, chilling video.





12) Rita Ora - Grateful
Rita Ora's break-up with Calvin Harris seems to have delayed her second album, what with his decision to pull all of his songs from her album in the aftermath.

Still, this soundtrack ballad from the pen of Diane "Don't Want To Miss A Thing" Warren should help shift a few copies when it finally comes out. Diane certainly has confidence in the track: "Rita Ora did an amazing vocal," she told Billboard. "I think it can be a career song for her. It shows a whole different side to her and I'm hoping we get to... see her sing it on the Oscars next year!"

To be fair, it's pretty good.

If you made it this far, thanks for sticking around. Hope you found one or two new favourites. If not, send me suggestions for next week's roundup!

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10 songs you may have missed by artists staring moodily out of frame

A semi-regular round-up of songs I haven't quite managed to blog about over the last seven days. There are some exceptional tracks in this week's list, so if you're pushed for time concentrate on the first four and number 10.

1) One Direction - Fireproof
Oh my God, they've all gone Barlow.

Trailing their fourth album (it's called Four, giving you a rare glimpse of their shit hot creative process), Fireproof is a MOR guitar-led ballad that's guaranteed to make the Radio 2 mums swoon. Better than it sounds.



2) Damien Rice - My Favourite Faded Fantasy
"Sometimes you have to step away from what you love in order to learn how to love it again," says Damien Rice, announcing his return after an eight-year hiatus.

Not much has changed in the interim - this Rick Rubin-produced track is acoustic rock with an undercurrent of menace - but that stunning voice is always welcome back onto the Discopop Towers' ghettoblaster.

Damien Rice - My Favourite Faded Fantasy



3) Sinkane - How We Be
Coming soon from DFA Records, this has been on heavy rotation in the 6 Music playlist for a couple of weeks, but the official stream only popped up in the last few days.

Sinkane is a London-born, Sudanese-descended, New York-based musician, who's appeared on the liner notes for indie bands like Of Montreal and Yeasayer. But his solo material is altogether more funky - especially this track, which combines the languid grooves of Curtis Mayfield's Superfly soundtrack and a chiming Casio keyboard riff. Addictive.




4) Sam Smith ft A$AP Rocky - I'm Not The Only One
A simple remix, but an incredibly effective one.






5) Nick Gardner - Lose You
Right, so Nick Gardner is a new solo artist from Manchester who was snapped up by US record label Interscope (Gaga, Dr Dre, Lana Del Rey) on the strength of his YouTube covers.

That's hardly exceptional these days. But Nick seems to have pretty diverse tastes - having covered both The Smiths and Kelly Clarkson alongside the obligatory (inferior) version of Adele's Someone Like You.

Some of that filters into his songwriting, although this "buzz track" sounds a lot like his critic-proof labelmates Maroon 5 - who he just happens to be supporting on the UK leg of their tour. One to watch, if only for the intriguing echoes of Phil Collins in the intro.







6) SBTRKT ft Raury - Higher
The third track to appear from SBTRKT's forthcoming album Wonder When We Land isn't a patch on the epic Ezra Koenig collaboration New Dorp, New York - but the woozy, four in the morning paranoia of Higher is still an solid 7/10.

It features Raury, a young MC from Atlanta who only released his first mixtape a month ago. The music industry moves fast these days, huh?

7) La Roux - Kiss and Not Tell
Fun fact: If you call the Welsh phone number in La Roux's new video (see above), you can listen to her new single on your phone, just like we used to in the 1980s when British Telecom had a number you could dial to hear the Top 10 and subsequently be grounded because it cost £1 a minute, which was more than the cost of a 7" single making the whole endeavour redundant in the first place.

NB: The La Roux song isn't much cop.





8) Kleerup ft Susanne Sundfør - Let Me In
If you always felt Abba's Visitors album deserved a sequel, this song should help. Kleerup you should know from their frequent collaborations with Robyn; while Susanne Sundfør is "known" for her guest vocals on songs by M83 and Royksopp.






9) Kiesza - Giant In My Heart (live lounge)
Honestly, this is just worth it to see the keyboard player trying his hardest to recreate the "waow-doop-do-do-do-do-daow" hook. Bless his heart.





10) Seinabo Sey - Pistols At Dawn
Born in Gambia but living in Sweden, Seinabo Sey is one of my favourite new artists of the year. While every other soul singer thinks "dark" means "a bit upset", she goes in for the full-throated Nina Simone melodrama.

Her new single, Pistols at Dawn, is more restrained than the hard-hitting Hard Times, but there's a hint of menace bubbling just under the surface.

"Stand down or showdown, baby. Let’s get this done," she commands her lover, who has no doubt just wet his pants.

And that's your lot... Til next time, then!

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Video - Seinabo Sey: Hard Times

I mentioned Swedish/Gambian singer Seinabo Sey's stunning single Hard Times in last week's "songs you may have missed" splurge.

But in case you missed the songs you may have missed, here is one of the songs you may have missed. Again.

And this time it has a video.

Seinabo Sey - Hard Times


According to the press release, Hard Times "combines the ultra-modern feel of downtempo R&B and glacial Swedish electronica with the melodrama of Lauryn Hill and classic cult American blues singer Vera Hall."

Vera Hall, of course, is the woman who sang Trouble So Hard in 1937. The anti-slavery protest song was later sampled by Moby on Natural Blues in 2000. You can certainly hear the inspiration.

Vera Hall - Trouble So Hard

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Jurassic 5 return and nine other songs you may have missed

A semi-regular round-up of notable new music, presented in a handy list format that will crash your browser due to the sheer volume of YouTube widgets. Yes, it's time for another edition of "songs you may have missed".

1) Jurassic 5 - The Way We Do It
Jurassic 5 are truly the Kate Bushes of hip-hop. It's been eight years since their last album, Feedback, and their "comeback" single is so old it was produced by Heavy D - who died in 2011.

Still - what a single. Sampling The White Stripes My Doorbell, it's jellybean waterfall of witty old-school rhymes.




2) La Roux - Let Me Down Gently
I wrote about this brooding, sax-o-phonic pop behemoth last week, and now it has a video accompaniment.

Watch! Ellie sitting upon a chair.
Marvel! As she runs across a misty moor.
Gasp! As next to nothing occurs.




3) Sam Smith - Leave Your Lover
When I interviewed Sam Smith earlier this year, he told me he wanted "to write an album about unrequited love" for people who were lonely. He'd even recorded a song "about being in love with someone who is married. I want people in those positions to have something to listen to - because I've been in that position too."

I'm going to guess this was that song.




4) Tove Styrke - Even If I'm Loud It Doesn't Mean I'm Talking To You
A coiled spring of energy, this bouncy, ballsy track from Stockholm's Tove Styrke could be a whole new genre: Thrash Pop.

For fans of Robyn's Konichiwa Bitches; Icona Pop's I Love It and the Dixie Cups Iko-Iko.





5) Kelis - Friday Fish Fry (Live on Later)
There's a pleasing unpredictability to the songs on Kelis's new album, Food. Sure, they all start out as tributes to the classic soul of Otis and Aretha, but Dave Sitek's production teases out the weird and the off-kilter to put a new spin on old sounds.

Case in point: The "Ice Cold Water" chant in the middle of Friday Fish Fry, which seems to have been beamed in from Blue Swede's Hooked On A Feeling. It shouldn't work, but it works.




6) Seinabo Sey - Hard Times
Recently signed to Universal Music, Sweden's Seinabo Sey showcases her stunning voice in this staccato soul single.

The melody is as simple and repetitive as a playground chant, but the tribal backing vocals and volcanic percussion will stop you in your tracks.






7) Jungle - Time
Hot damn, this is funky.




8) Sinead Harnett - No Other Way (ft Snakehips)
You may know Sinead Harnett from her collaborations with Rudimental - and if you've seen them on tour, you've almost certainly marvelled at her vocals. But now she's cast off from their safe harbours and set sail in search of her own musical treasure [sorry - tortured metaphor ed].

You might be surprised at the results: Sinead's debut EP is more akin to the smooth soul of Jessie Ware than Rudimental's helter skelter dance vibes.




9) Alistair Griffin featuring Kimberley Walsh - The Road
This is the official song of Yorkshire's Grand Depart - aka the first stage of this year's of the Tour De France. Apparently individual legs of cycling events need their own "anthem" now, after somebody incorrectly decided that Queen's Bicycle Race wasn't good enough.

Still, it's nice to hear Kimberly get a chance to stretch her vocal cords, and this uplifting, empowering power ballad could have been a lot worse.



10) Jetta - Crescendo
My idle observation that Pharrell Williams has a "magic formula" for writing intros seems to have gone viral this week, after being picked upon Gawker and a couple of other US sites.

Right on cue, then, here's Paloma Faith's former backing singer Jetta with a spritely, chart-bound, Pharrell-produced new single.

Guess how it starts?

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