One of the biggest names of 2014, and now probably 2015 as well, FKA twigs continues to kill it with her stunning videos and angelic voice/grimy beats combinations. Her latest track, Glass & Patron is one of her best, joining at least three what sounds like separate tracks into an unpredictable but highly enjoyable monster of controlled chaos.

The accompanying video is unsurprisingly equally awesome, with twigs stepping up for directing duties once again (as seen in her previous clip for Pendulum). Created for the YouTube Music Awards, twigs is seen giving birth to her own back up dancers, suddenly appearing on a runway with them and engaging in “the most epic vogue battle of all time”. The dancing is second to none, with twigs hardly sparing any extra extravagance.

Glass & Patron is actually the track previewed in the Google Glass ad twigs appeared in last year, and is taken from her forthcoming third EP out this year!

Friday means one thing and one thing only here at Howl & Echoes – playlist day! We have spent all week compiling this week’s best releases and narrowing it down to just 10 songs we think you need to hear. This week, there’s a lot going on. We’ve got Canberra’s Safia, the tragically beautiful track from Szymon, and a Cyril Hahn take on a Caribou classic, as well as a bit of hip hop from JayCee, MIA, Bon Voyage, and another Notorious BIG mashup. In between all that you can be taken away to a dreamier place with Genghar or Sofi de la Torre, and get down to an amazing cover by Winter Islands. Enjoy!

1. Safia – Counting Sheep

This track is a bit strange, as is to be expected with Safia. Dramatic, dynamic and infectious, these three guys know how to make a good dance track, and Counting Sheep is no exception! Following along similar lines from their eerie Paranoia, Ghosts & Other Sounds, this track is a little spooky but so groovy and fun it doesn’t matter!

2. Szymon – Golden

This is a special track. Szymon wrote a series of tracks in his bedroom in 2008, but it wasn’t until his tragic loss in his battle with depression that they were to see the light of day. Eloper Music and his family joined forces to release his beautiful songs, and so they should. Golden is lovely, smooth and definitely deserves your time.

3. JayCee – Vibe

This is one of the smoothest hip hop tracks I’ve heard in a while.The sparse, relaxed production allows the lyrics to take centrestage, with the beautiful vocals of Naomi Lee paired with the chilled out rhymes of JayCee. This has sunny afternoons written all over it.

4. Gengahr – Haunter

Gengahr have just supported Alt-J and Wolf Alice, so already you know they must be good. Haunter is a beautifully delicate track; hazy and emotive with fragile vocals and acoustic guitars. Keep an eye out for these guys, as they continue to capture hearts at SXSW, then support Circa Waves and The Strokes – definitely ones to watch!

5. Sofi de la Torre – That Isn’t You

Alternative R&B is quickly becoming one of the most popular genres in music at the moment, meaning it takes something extra special to standout. Spanish singer-songwriter Sofi de la Torre is exactly this. That Isn’t You is lifted from her forthcoming EP out next month, and I cannot wait for that to drop. This sultry, emotional track features powerful production full of skittering percussion, swirling lasers, whistles and swelling synths. Sublime.

6. Winter Islands – Don’t Let Go (En Vogue Rework)

This En Vogue track is definitely a guilty pleasure/go to karaoke tune for me, so to hear it reworked by Winter Islands in such a way makes me very happy indeed! They’ve made it explosive, with booming drums and soaring guitars, as well as vocals delivered with almost as much passion as me during my karaoke performance.

7. Caribou – Second Chance (Cyril Hahn Edit)

Caribou had one of the most critically acclaimed releases of 2014, with each track on his Our Love album an example of bar raising electronica. It takes a brave soul to step up to the plate to remix this legend, but Cyril Hahn took it upon himself, and spun Second Chance into a slowed down and more soulful, sweeping number. He’s definitely done it justice.

8. Bon Voyage – Booshie

This track is so much fun. Lots of bass, cheeky lyrics and light synths make for a seriously contagious track from this fresh new three piece. “Booshie” is to consider oneself to be above everyone else, and if Bon Voyage are making tracks like this I would say that belief is justified. I’ve had “She way too good for that” stuck in my head for two days now.

9. MIA – CanSeeCanDo

I fucking love MIA, and I’m so glad she is back to her good old angry as hell self. CanSeeCanDo marks the return of her politically charged dance tracks, where her messages of global politics are thinly veiled by immediately likeable and accessible dance music. There was a brief stage where, with the release of her 2013 release Matangi, she was told her music was too dark. This surprise track was accompanied by the SoundCloud description, “DEMOCRACY CONVERSATIONS ! TAMILS ARE STILL WAITING! AND NO MY BEATS ARE NOT BETTER WITHOUT MY POLITICX” so it’s safe to say she’s back, and ready to tear the world a new one!

10. Terry Urban – Who Shot Papi (Prod. Chi Duly) Notorious B.I.G x FKA twigs mashup

We’ve covered the first release of this mashup series, as well as the whole damn album Terry Urban dropped this week, so this track is included merely as an indicator of what has been on repeat for me for the past 5 days. Who would have thought Papi Pacify would be so well suited to Who Shot Ya? The whole album is a dream I didn’t know I’d had come true, and this little number is a definite stand out.

 

It’s only been three short months and we’ve already seen some phenomenal new music this year. This post is not dedicated to the tunes however, but to the video clips that go with them. Some of them have been chosen for their content, others because they are technically stunning, and some because they are simply hilarious.

1. Childish Gambino: Sober

At the end of last year Donald Glover (Childish Gambino) wiped all of his social media accounts. He made no explanation. On January 7 he broke his online silence with a link to a website that contained a countdown clock. When the clock struck zero, the timer revealed the new music video for Sober.

Speculation has led to a lot of different theories for the meaning of the clip, which portrays a zombie-like, Michael Jackson-esque Gambino attempting to woo a lady in a diner with dance moves and magic tricks. Perhaps the film is a comment on online racism, and the white privilege that Gambino still sees as prevalent on social media platforms. Or perhaps he is mocking the public perception that he had gone slightly mad, because of his online behaviour, by presenting himself as high in the film clip. Whatever your take on it, there is an undeniable darkness to the video that makes it truly engaging to watch.

2. FKA Twigs: Pendulum

FKA Twigs had already released some epic music videos in 2014, but this is one of her most exciting films so far. The clip starts with an extreme closeup of Twig’s lips and gradually moves backwards, twisting slightly to reveal that the singer is in fact being suspended by her hair.

The film is incredibly engaging to watch, and gives the song, which on its own is a little bit of a yawn, a sense of purpose and anticipation. The only criticism I have for it is the slight bondage theme that it carries. FKA Twigs is a beautiful, powerful female icon. She doesn’t need to rely on her sexuality to engage her fans. Here the shots with her wrapped up tightly in black ropes, with her breasts pushed up towards the camera seemed more like a bizarre distraction than a necessary part of the film.

3. Grimes: RealiTi

Grimes’ new video clip for RealiTi, which she directed and edited herself stands in complete contrast with Twigs. The film uses a gorgeous colour scheme of oranges, pinks and blues, and has an amateur, almost childish nostalgia to it.

Also in contrast to Twigs, Grimes in no way sexualises or objectifies herself. She dances with a mesmerising youthfulness, giving the sense that she would dance in exactly the same way if the camera was not there. Female artists that are brave enough to make music videos that don’t draw attention to their sexuality are so important, as they give the young girls who watch them permission to act the same. Grimes and artists like her should be celebrated.

4. Rihanna, Kanye West, Paul McCartney: FourFiveSeconds

Rihanna’s FourFiveSeconds may be one of the more random songs that she’s produced in her career, but that hasn’t stopped her from releasing a hilariously awesome music video to go with it.

The director of FourFiveSeconds, Vinoodh Matadin, made the intelligent decision to keep the clip stripped back and simple. Opening with a black and white closeup of a glistening, tormented RiRi, the film hooks you in an instant. We’re thinking why does RiRi look like she has a drug addiction? Moreover, why is she decked out head-to-toe in denim?

The film is a surprisingly appealing hot mess, somewhat like the song. You may think it’s tacky, but try to get through the entire song without singing along to the chorus. It’s not easy.

5. Sia: Elastic Heart

If you haven’t already seen Sia’s film clip for Elastic Heart, you’ve been living under a rock. The music video sparked an enormous amount of controversy over whether it should be considered paedophilia, which you can read about here. We need not get into that discussion again, so lets just suffice to say that it should not.

It’s a shame though that such a futile argument took the attention away from what is a truly interesting film clip. The film features retired actor Shia Labouef, and the 12 year-old female dancer from Sia’s previous clip, Chandelier, Maddie Ziegler.

The two characters challenge traditional gender roles and the sense of imprisonment that people feel when they aren’t able to express themselves. That’s what we should have been talking about. Not whether Shia Laboeuf is a bloody paedophile.

I’m not usually one for mashups, but when they’re good – they’re really fucking good. And Terry Urban is undoubtedly one of the best mashup artists out there.

A few weeks ago, he put out a sneek preview of a new mashup – Video Girl Dreams, sending us into a flurry of excitement because it was so damn awesome – particularly because it came with the news that a full album was to follow. And today, on the anniversary of Christopher Wallace, aka Notorious B.I.G‘s death, Urban has uploaded a complete eight-track album mashing up Biggie with girl-of-the-moment, FKA Twigs. 

Combining Biggie’s brash flow and sordid rhymes with Twigs’ deep, sensual beats and her falsetto melodies as backing loops, it’s actually crazy how well these sounds work together.

Available as a free download, listen to the entire thing right here, right now:

Words by Cozzie Wood & Lauren Ziegler

Following the news that FKA Twigs, previously Twigs, might be getting forced to change her name once again, we take a little look at five other artists who have had to change their names for legal reasons:

BLINK 182

American rockers Blink 182 had to add those three magical digits to their name after clashing with Irish pop/rock band Blink. Fans still debate over the meaning of the supposedly arbitrary number to this day. Official records claim it was a random number, but many have delved into conspiracy research, trying to find a deeper meaning.

Highlights of real fan explanations include:
– “The 182 is the number of time Al Pacino says the work “fuck” in the movie Scarface.”
– “Its actually because their name means f**k RB. rancho bernardo highschool. R is the 18th letter of the alphabet and B is the 2nd. they went to poway and one of them went to RB high. and i go there so i know this”
– “If you have to ask this now, you ain’t a real fan.”

Blink 182 are currently in the news for announcing, finally, what an astonishing dickhead guitarist/vocalist Tom DeLonge actually is and that he’s left the band. Their upcoming tour will feature Alkaline Trio‘s Matt Skiba. Apparently DeLonge has said that he never quit, and then wrote a long letter about it that I haven’t read because I don’t care.

blink-182-no-inicio-37a2a

THE CHEMICAL BROTHERS

Grammy-winning duo The Chemical brothers first Djed under the alias The 237 Turbo Nutters. Luckily, they quickly changed this to The Dust Brothers, in honour of the US production duo of the same name, responsible for works including The Beastie Boys‘ Paul’s Boutique, Beck‘s Odelay, and most importantly, Hanson‘s smash hit single MMMBOP.

Yes, The Chemical Brothers named themselves after the guys who produced this song. 

The British big beat pioneers didn’t encounter any problems until embarking on their first international tour in 1995. Turns out that naming yourself directly after another artist doesn’t go down too well for the other artist – especially when you’re about to become one of the biggest electronic acts in history. Retrospectively, it was a pretty dumb decision. Threatened with legal action, they became The Chemical Brothers that we know and love.

THE RACONTEURS

One of Jack White’s many musical spawn, The Raconteurs are responsible for his biggest non-White Stripes hits including Steady As She Goes, Salute Your Solution and Many Shades of Black. Around the world, they are known as The Raconteurs. Except for here, in good old ‘straya. Some band from Queensland were already called Raconteurs. They were offered money for the name, but stupidly refused and asked for even more money. The record company said no. The band have 69 likes on Facebook and are probably feeling pretty sorry for themselves right now.
Anyway, White and co went on to release music in Australia under the name The Saboteurs. They’re currently on an indefinite hiatus, but that’s okay, because Jack White’s solo releases are sickkkk.

RÜFÜS

Speaking of Australia, Sydney electronic duo RÜFÜS had to revise their name in 2014: Introducing the all new (but exactly the same) RÜFÜS DU SOL. Don’t worry, incase you were wondering why you hadn’t noticed this sparkly new addition, its only for North America. The incident occurred due to an existing US trademark on the term ‘Rufus.’ Following months of “colourful internal debate” and “months of strongly worded letters,” they renamed themselves for their US audiences, “because trademark is a serious bitch.”

We don’t really know who specifically trademarked the name, but the Sydney Morning Herald reckons it’s Chaka Khan’s “1970s Chicago funk band Rufus, who topped the charts with Tell Me Something Good and Ain’t Nobody.” In any case, it seems that they’ve adapted to their new name quite well, considering one of the members has since been DJing under the similar name JÜAN DU SOL.

DAVID BOWIE

That’s right, even bloody Bowie changed his name. Formerly, Davy Jones, our favourite glittery starman was often confused with The Monkee’s lead singer of the same name. He was also generally unhappy with how boring ‘Davy Jones’ sounded, so he went and renamed himself after the 19thcentury American frontiersman Jim Bowie, who is also known for popularising famous hunting blade The Bowie Knife. He of course then went on to provide himself with a fantastic androgynous glamrock alter ego, Ziggy Stardust.

I don’t know about you but I can’t exactly imagine a world where Bowie was actually called Davy Jones.

Name changing seems to be a thing in his family. Bowie had a son in 1971 currently named Duncan Zowie Haywood Jones. For a long time, he was simply known as Zowie – or Zowie Bowie. He grew up and is now known, thankfully, as Duncan Jones.

A few more fun facts:
The Preatures used to be The Preachers
Eves The Behavior was Eves
Hinds were Deers
The Temper Trap used to be called Temper Temper
Panic! At The Disco were plain old Panic At The Disco 
Similarly, Godspeed You! Black Emperor used to be Godspeed You Black Emperor!
Prince famously changed his name to a symbol, and for a time, becoming The Artist Formerly Known As Prince

FKA Twigs, real name Tahlia Barnett, already has a tumultuous history regarding her name, and it seems as though her battle to retain her musical identity is once again under fire. Laura and Linda Good, known to the music world back in the 90s as ‘The Twigs’ slapped British trip-hop starlet FKA Twigs with a big old lawsuit back in 2013 over her name, formerly Twigs. And now yet again the duo is seeking a temporary restraining order against her.

Unfortunately for Barnett, the Goods hold a registered trademark for their name, and despite being offered $15000 from her reps Beggars Group back in June 2013, the sisters forced her to cease retaining the moniker Twigs. Adding FKA (formerly known as) to her name, Barnett set out, unfazed, to conquer the R&B scene.

Since this debacle FKA Twigs has clambered her way to R&B fame, releasing her highly acclaimed album LP1; already nominated for the Mercury Prize and a Grammy. Billboard named her in their 14 Artists to watch in 2014, and it seems as though the music world really did have their eye transfixed on this mysterious creature. Her tenderly smooth, ethereal sound caught the attention of big-name producers Paul Epworth (Adele, Florence & the Machine) and Emile Haynie (Kanye West) and within a year she had established herself as “one of the most compelling and complex acts in R&B” (Time). Barnett has even flown half way across the world to spread her atmospheric beats to us lucky Aussies at Laneway Festival. Gracing us with an unforgettable performance of sensual, moody vocals and captivating dance moves, her set was definitely one of the highlights of the line-up.

Barnett has certainly come a long way since her days as a backing dancer for the likes of Kylie Minogue and Jessie J, and has openly admitted to Pitchfork magazine that she disassociates herself from this former character, but it seems as though the Good sisters are determined to make her once again reform her identity. The motion was brought to court just hours before Barnett was due to perform, and resultantly the judge denied the restraining order. The case was “withdrawn without prejudice” meaning the Good sisters still have the right sue in the future.

It’s hard enough to make a name for yourself in the formidable hierarchy of R&B, let alone when it is the name itself that is holding you back. Lets hope the Good sisters retreat back into musical oblivion and leave Barnett to reign supreme. Headstrong and optimistic, FKA Twigs still seems to find light of the situation, “I’m not angry, but I do feel sad about it. It’ll be fine. I might call myself FKA tree trunk. Or FKA baby branches. Or Irl twigs” (DAZED). Performing in corsetry and dangling from a harness of hair don’t seem very characteristic of the moniker ‘baby branches’, but then again names don’t always infer character, right Madonna?

FKA Twigs isn’t the only artist to change her name. Read our list to check out loads more!

It’s been twenty five minutes since r&b songstress FKA twigs was scheduled to take to her first ever stage here in Melbourne and the crowd is getting restless. Having had a packed 2014, including the release of her critically acclaimed debut album LP1, there is little surprise that she is playing to a sold out room tonight. What was anticipation has bubbled over into impatience and anxiety for some of the audience. However, it seems to recycle itself at around the half hour mark. This is just as well, as this is exactly when things finally kick off. The three piece band take places before a lithe, ethereal figure follows, making the centre of the stage home.

With trance-like echoes of “I hate myself” and some very near terrifying screeching, Preface envelops the room as FKA twigs (real name: Tahliah Barnett) sets the tone for the hour-long show. Her arms snaking and hips rolling to the music; the loose white shift she wears slips from her shoulders to reveal a sequined bustier more than once before the two minute intro is over. Ache follows and makes a display of the strobe lights and twigs’ prowess as a dancer.

Lights On  proves a bit of a battle as the music nearly drowns the vocals, forcing twigs to fight to be heard over the music while still maintaining the whisper-like qualities of the song. However, this struggle doesn’t last long and by the time she launches into Give Up, Barnett is in full control, providing an early-set highlight.  Making use of lighting and a smoke machine, twigs doesn’t need fancy backdrops, props or projections to command the attention of the room. Her vocals –when she gets past the few minor issues with volume– and dancing both throughout and between songs is more than enough.

Between songs, twigs saunters to the very front of the stage, crouches down and wraps her arms around the security guard who has been blocking her view of the crowd. She playfully plucks his cap from his head and uses it like bait to usher him to the side of the stage so that she can better interact with her audience. Pendulum starts up with an extended introduction of creaking, popping beats before showcasing her honeyed vocals, so on point you could listen to her repeating “to be yours” for hours (pun only kind of intended.)

Video Girl is quite possibly the song that best displays everything that twigs does well. Her vocals don’t merely match those on record, but rival them. Dancing throughout in the strobe lights to full, startling effect, she pulls her bass player to centre of the stage. Watching her attack him for being a “filthy liar” was a little frightening, as the song finishes with her, on her knees, kneeling before him.

Following the carnal whispers of Kicks, we finally hear her speaking voice, almost shocking in its innocence. The transition from spitting explicit lyrics and gyrating on the floor to bashfully thanking the sold out room for turning up tonight sees the intimidating, electrifying sensuality give way to a sweet, humble and shy human being. It’s this contrast that, once she slips back into performance mode, adds to the charm of twigs’ live show.

The earlier difficulties with volume arise again briefly during Papi Pacify, but they’re much more quickly managed and by the time Two Weeks bursts forth from the stage, are a non-issue. The track which threw FKA twigs into the spotlight last year is followed by final track How’s That off 2013’s EP2.

FKA Twigs is every bit as captivating live as expected, perhaps even more so. Her outfit, her full occupation of the stage and her playfulness all illustrate that FKA twigs is performer in the truest sense of the word.

She is sincerely humble as she thanks the audience again for spending time with her, before slipping from view. There is no encore, but rather than this being a disappointment, it allows 170 Russell to spill out onto the street buzzing with excitement and giddy praise of a night well spent in the company of an artist who only looks set to enthrall and entertain for quite some time to come.

 

FKA twigs‘s album LP1 soared to critical acclaim last year, topping many a end of year list (including ours). One of my personal favourite tracks off the record was Pendulum, the brooding, pensive and sensual number. twigs is known for her artistry, and her past clips have been just as amazing as she is. Her latest efforts for Pendulum are no different, and sees the singer actually direct the clip as well.

Things get really strange with this one. Starting off with twigs suspended by her own hair in a bondage inspired harness, the clip is just as extravagant, fantastical and entertaining as her past efforts. You can see the clip here and catch FKA twigs live in action on the Laneway tour kicking off NEXT WEEK!