Freshly Squeezed, Vol. 74: NIKO, Prince Fox, Bellhouse & more

Welcome to Freshly Squeezed, a weekly new music playlist: spanning country, pop, EDM and urban, mainstream and other.

Come on, dear reader, let NIKO let your damn fire. The pop smooth-talker reimagines Jose Feliciano’s rendition of The Doors’ 1967 hit single “Light My Fire,” from the legendary band’s self-titled record. But under the cloak of coolly simmering R&B, NIKO, who has impressed B-Sides & Badlands on many occasions this past year with a sequence of one-off singles, pours the romance on thick and sweet. “You know that it would be untrue / You know that I would be a liar / If I was to say to you / We couldn’t get much higher,” he coos through waxy candle flickers. He doesn’t hesitate on his intentions; instead, he wriggles in them and entices the listener to come forward.

2018 new discovery Cam Monroe whips out his acoustic guitar (once again) for a folksie pop jam. “Control,” also propelled with some light percussion and star-crossed piano, crashes against each of the senses. “I can’t make the sun rise / I can’t tell you why I would even try,” he sings, accepting his liability as only an observer, fated by forces far beyond his grasp. “I can’t speed up or slow down the time / I can’t tell the sky to rain or the stars to shine.” Monroe comes to fully appreciate and accept the sun’s rapid pace, swirling from dawn to dusk, and even when it seems like he has a handle on the small things, he knows he doesn’t, really.

Folksmith Emily James exerts balls of energy on an acoustic reworking of her song “Foreign Land.” She generously slides across the melody like a bird in easy flight above the clouds. Her vocal is lustrous and tender, but raw and unnerving. She breaks off her tears, and they flow in time like ghosts in haunt with the guitar. “This is all foreign land for me / So, baby, tread carefully,” she lingers on the notes just long enough to induce goosebumps. Alternative darling IDA KUDO spews “Gold,” a rhythmically frenetic timepiece that worms its way between genres. Her warble is as spellbinding as the bang of percussion in the background and of coins hitting concrete with a ting and lighting up a thousand eyeballs. Then, SnugHouse alight on the back of a steinway piano with “Glass,” and its fragility is mimicked in the echoing, soul-searching harmony and the near flawless ivory glow. It’s a stunningly plainspoken performance but one which sticks forevermore.

The new playlist also includes cuts from Jaida Dreyer, Petrie, Alanis Corvette, Brian Dunne, Avril Lavigne, Grand Commander, New Hope Club, Bellhouse, Zayn, Allie X, Gerard Way, Sundara Karma, Grace Carter and countless others.

In all, we’ve got 30 new songs spin and spin and spin some more.

Each playlist will be refreshed every Friday morning/afternoon. We reserve the right to update anytime during the week, so make sure you bookmark this page.

Take a spin:

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