1. “For the first track of a summer playlist I just had to pick a Viceroy track. Viceroy is a San Francisco producer who has really tapped into the ‘summery’/feel good niche. This particular track is part of his ‘Jet Life’ series, a collection of mashups of classic hip hop vocals with tropical beats. What can I say? I’m a real sucker for steel drums.”

2. “My second is Zimmer’s disco-fication of Moscow based indie rock band Pompeya. Zimmer is another ‘tropical’ producer who constantly impresses. In ‘Power’ I particularly enjoy the big piano sections. Just too good!”

3. “The third is quite an old track (2009) that I only got recently thanks to unashamedly whipping out ‘Shazam’ during a recent Tommy Gun set at Untamed Youth. I really couldn’t help myself with this one. I think it really captures indie dance so well! Have to add that the original track is mighty impressive itself even before being digitally ‘energized’ by Database.”

4. “Next up is 2011 electro pop hit ‘Polish Girl’. I’m quite a fan of Neon Indian and ‘Polish Girl’ is definitely my fav song of theirs. It’s one of those tracks that gets you smiling every time. Don’t believe me? Listen for yourself.”

5. “‘Just Go’ by Shindu was remixed by a handful of nu disco producers and I love them all. Picking Jerry Bouthier’s above the rest was easy however as quite recently I got to meet the guy (I use the term ‘meet’ quite loosely here as I just said hi, shook his hand, and got a photo with him) when he came to South Africa. I was quite lucky in that I got to see two of his shows in one night (Thanks Thomas!).”

6. “As much as I like the original song I don’t think a playlist of mine would be very representative of my taste if it didn’t include anything from Gigamesh. In this case Gigamesh takes this great indie pop tune and makes it more romantic (is that a real thing?). Gigamesh is easily my favourite producer of 2012 – don’t think he is the best just that this guy definitely knows what I like!”

7. “So so good! I think this is my favourite song at the moment. Actually, I’m sure of it. Maybe seeing The Drums play live has something to do with it but this song makes me so God damn happy. Hits that feel good note so well!”

8. “Happiness made audible. Robotaki took an already feel good song and cranked it all the way up. This song is outrageously catchy but in the best way.”

9. “Nu disco beat/pop feel/fantastic synths. What more do you want? It even comes with a nice music video. Think M83/Miami Horror/Bag Raiders. Wooh!”

Strange Talk – Cast Away from Strange Talk on Vimeo.

10. “I couldn’t help but put two Viceroy tracks in. I think I can be forgiven however since it is a summer playlist and what is more ‘summery’ than a song called ‘Summer Life’ which is remixed by Viceroy?”

For other Mudblud-related news check out his Facebook page, here. 

“I’m listening to a lot of really interesting music right now, and sadly a lot of the tracks I want to share with people are unsigned or forthcoming, so there aren’t any clips available to post just yet, but I thought I’d get into the songs that are influencing me, and keeping me occupied in the time between working on new material for myself.”

1. “The Reef is a producer from Sweden I recently found out about and have been chatting with. He’s an Engineering student and makes music on the side. His ethos is throwing away the conventional structures and “necessities” of dance music, giving way to what he calls “weird dance music”. He’s underrated and really good at what he does. I play this music both at home and in my sets so it’s really all-around just good music.”

2. “I shouldn’t really have to introduce this guy. Dr Dre’s latest project. Absolutely top notch lyricist. Amazing production. This song is basically the “pop” song doing it for me right now.”

3. “A pretty phenomenal piece of dance music with listenability to it, released on Fake Blood’s Blood Music imprint. A little bit house, a little bit techno, a whole lot of nasty bassline genius. He’s been around a long time and he’s going to be for a while yet.”

4. “A beatmaker out of Russia, adding a fresh flair to his tracks. Released on A-Trak’s Fool’s Gold Records. It goes ‘ard.”

5. “This track was a bonus track on their 2009 album “Animal”. I could speak volumes about the high levels of production and so on, but that’s not why this track is important to me – it captures emotion. To me, it’s timeless. Appreciate it for the art and poetry, if anything.”

6. “Rell the Soundbender is an American producer that has been producing Hip Hop since 2004, having done records for Lloyd Banks, Far East Movement and, Flo-Rida amongst others. He re-directed his career towards producing club music in 2011, and really excels at bridging the gap between Hip Hop and “Dance” well. This track is a beast. It’s fucking aggressive but I like to mobb out to this from time to time.”

7. “Death. Zombies. Sirens. Rave. This isn’t for the light-hearted.”

8. “NoisseS sent me this a while back and it’s been getting played since, really. Mellow, fun and distinctly British.”

9. “I can’t really put this song into words. It’s subtle and it’s decadent and it’s human – that’s all I’ve got.”

10. “When Cardopusher sent me the split EP he did with Nehuen on their label “Classicworks”, I found this track – new age fun with a vintage feel.”

Tell us a little about the group’s dynamic and how this influences your music. 

M: “Well, Lewis comes from a very well nourished musical background, while my influence comes more from an international and soulful background.  Our styles allow us to incorporate a wide variety of genres and individual uniqueness and perspectives to the whole package”.

What can we expect from Sellah in 2013?

M: “In 2013 something very big is going to happen. We cannot say what, but soon the world will know and respect us. We definitely want to stay in Cape town a few more months to create as much buzz here and international exposure for us. Just picture it: ” New music group from America chooses Cape Town as their launching city for their career” We see this more as a Cinderella Story. So beautiful and so special and VERY realistic.”

To read the full interview you can head over The Assembly’s website here,  and if reading an interview isn’t a good enough way for you to get to know an artist better, how about listening to their 10 favourite songs at the moment?

Lewis’s Playlist:

How’d you come up with the name?

“It was thought of on the spot randomly. We just threw random words around until we came up with something, until Christian Tiger School was born.”

You opened for Little Dragon recently, which was pretty great. Who would you like to open for next? 

Seb: “It was an incredible experience, I’ve really enjoyed them for the past few years so yeah it was great. As far as dreaming goes, opening for Nicolas Jaar, Gold Panda, Teebs, Slow Magic or James Blake would be amazing.”

What’s in store for the future of CTS?

Luc: “We’re working on doing a smaller EP for the future that’ll hopefully at least have one singer and one MC, that’s the main goal I guess, to try and collaborate with some people we really enjoy.”

To read the rest of the interview you can head over to Assembly’s website, here, and if reading an interview isn’t a good enough way for you to get to know an artist better, how about listening to their 10 favourite songs at the moment?

Seb’s Playlist:

1. “A friend recently put me on to this. He said he was going to play it for his baby when its in the womb, a great analogy for all the music that Lemon Jelly did.”

2. “A lot more down tempo than LD’s usual stuff and melodically beautiful.”

3. “Too much great.”

4. “The master of solo jazz guitar off the incredible album ‘Virtuoso'”

5. “The Lo-fi beatsmith. Super forward thinking producer and bad speller. The guitar sample in this is crazy.”

Luc’s Playlist:

1. “Blu and Flylo what more could you want.”

2. “Goodest goody.”

3. “One of the best musicians ever.”

4. “Killer Duo, good beats good rhymes straight up NY music.”

5.

Oh, and in case you missed it, here’s CTS’s amazing debut album, Third Floor. 

Photo courtesy of Nigel Hosang (www.nigelhosangstudio.com). 

Dylan’s playlist:

1. “This has always been one my favourite songs. Being a guitarist the intro line just melts me, Its the tone and the parts that blow my mind. “

2. “I don’t know what it is about this song that I love so much. Something about the ridiculous lyric that the kid is talking about and the beautiful melody and chord progression that I can’t stop listening to.”

3. “Three albums in and theses guys keep producing gold. This song off their latest album was such a stand out.”

 4. “The opening track of the new Beach House album is so stunning. They are so good at writing melodies that get trapped in your head, in the best way possible. I found it hard to get past the first song on the album because this track is far too good.”

 5. “The first time I heard this song I was blown away. I have always been a fan of Santigold’s and when she brought out her new album I fell in love with this song and her all over again.”

Kobe’s Playlist:

1. “Old CWK stuff is some of my favourite music of all time. Their sound was perfect…I love how rough and raw it was in ‘Robbers & Cowards’.  I’m pretty big on this album, it challenges me with my own writing and convinces me to break the rules that can hold me back creatively.”

2. “I’m a huge fan of this song. It reminds me of being a teenager and having barely any responsibilities. This song puts me in a good space.”

3. “First I heard of The xx was at Lane Way festival in Sydney Australia 5 or so years ago. I watched their show and jumped on their stuff really quickly. They have such a distinct sound and I love how emotive they get. ‘Intro’ is an outstanding track.”

4. “This band has to be one of the most talented acts out. Their 2003 album ‘Zitilites’ has meant a lot to me since its release and this track is somehow still really fresh.”

5. “I recently discovered this artist and fell in love with the sound. This track in particular is addictive and the rhythm kills me every time I hear it.”

In addition to making a playlist for TRMB, I also got him to answer a few questions. When asked about the release of his LP, he said:

“I’m in the process of finishing it off right now, and should be done by the end of August. It’ll probably be released around the beginning of next year, with some singles leading up to it.”

My main concern however, was about when he was going to perform in South Africa, to which he responded:

“I really, really hope we’ll be able to soon. Obviously, it all depends on the demand for us over there, because it’s incredibly expensive for this band to tour so we can’t just do it because we feel like it, even though we’d like nothing more.”

This is a South African artist that I think everyone should know about and I’m making it my personal mission to educate everyone on just that! SO MUCH love for St. Lucia, and so much love for the playlist he created, which are his top 10 favourites for 2012 so far.  Enjoy!

1. “There are a bunch of songs that I love off of the new Chairlift album. It’s an incredibly emotionally deep group of songs that are beautifully put together production wise, and very thought and felt through in every way. This song, though, is the moment when they lighten their touch just a little, and it’s refreshing. Perhaps the most beautiful love song of the year.”

2. “I was, and still am, a huge fan of Twin Shadow’s debut album ‘Forget’. I’m not quite as enamored with his new album, but there are a few songs that still really hit home for me, and this is one of them. You can almost touch the conflict and heartbreak.”

3. “Grimes seems to have completely dominated the indie scene this year, and for good reason. She’s a really talented lady, and evokes a completely otherworldly atmosphere with her music, without sacrificing accessibility. This song is my favorite, among many.”

4. “Such an incredibly tight groove, and it just feels like sunshine. Franks voice is like syrup. Obviously, there is a lot more to this song, but the surface is so appealing that you can pretty much go on just that.”

5. “This cover of the Neil Young classic is so disarming as the first track on the new Chromatics album, I almost couldn’t make it past it. Heartbreak and longing bottled in just over 5 minutes.”

6. “Besides being very good friends of mine, Deidre and Paul of Savoir Adore make some of the most magical pop music I’ve heard in quite some time. This is a standout from their new album.”

7. “Another song that I almost couldn’t make it past when I heard it on the new Beach House record. I could list what is perfect about this song, but it would pay more to just listen to it if you haven’t heard it. Once again, similar feelings of conflict and melancholia, which somehow seem to destroy whenever done in the right way.”

8. “An awesome radio pop anthem from a lady with an incredible voice. It evokes images of flying over the world, kind of like at the beginning of the BBC series Planet Earth. Do I need to point out the Massive Attack influence? Probably not.”

9. “Another band that are friends of mine. I remember the first time I saw them at the SXSW festival in Austin this year, I was completely floored. Three unbelievably sexy ladies who can play their instruments and sing like the rock gods of old, AND they have songs!! Mark my words, HAIM are going to be one of the biggest bands next year.”

10. “One of the few songs in a long time that pretty much everyone I know finds irresistible. The perfect summer pop anthem. That string section was a genius move.”

Einstein Adonis is scheduled to play alongside Wildebeats and the Glow LDB crew at Kool Turkey TONIGHT at Zula Bar on Long Street. So if you want to hear even more great music from him you should definitely be there! For the event page, go here. 

Photo by Stewart Innes, courtesy of The Assembly

Crazy White Bitches was started by Fani, Naama and Isa.  According to them, it is a collaborative clothing sale that happens every few weeks in Cape Town, which provides cool, hard-to-find clothes, shoes and accessories at affordable prices. They also have a pretty amazing blog (go here) which provides hours of entertainment relating to their lives, their friends and obviously fashion.

So what do these girls listen to? I asked CWB what their top 10 favourite songs are at the moment and this is the playlist they came up with (in no particular order).

1. Drake – Over My Dead Body

2. Earl Sweatshirt – Drop

3. Justin Bieber – Pick Me

4. Nelly – E.I

5. Jay-Z and Kanye West Feat. Mr Hudson and Cassius – Why I Love You

6. Frank Ocean – Songs For Women

7. Best Coast – Goodbye

8. Anthony and the Johnsons – Fistful of Love

9. Outkast – So Fresh, So Clean

I’ve saved the best for last. CWB are totally obsessed with “Call Me Maybe” by Carly Rae Jepsen, so obsessed that one of the bitches (Isa, aka LOVE OF MY LIFE) actually recreated the video that made the song so popular. Enjoy!

For more information about CWB, check out their facebook page, here.