I’d like to consider myself worldly and traveled. I speak a bit of German, can order basic items in French, and can even understand a Spanish cuss word when uttered my way. Some of these artists sing in English, others don’t, but they warrant our attention. Here are some of the best non-English artist releases of June 2020.
Billow – Badlands
Cracking under electro rhythms, and with guitar lines lifted straight out of Chris Isaak’s salutations to Roy Orbison, is Billow’s Badlands. Technically they do sing in English, but I doubt that speaking the Queen’s own is the priority here. Rather it is the lush atmosphere being carefully evoked.
The gentle music here echoes feelings of loss and perfectly soundtracks the mysterious soundscapes of the beautiful Czech Republic, Billow’s home country.
Ages of Blood – Pagan Medieval Aristocracy
Ages of Blood hail from Argentina, and they play classic black-metal. I don’t even know whether they sing in English, and I doubt it matters. It’s meant to sound evil and echo the spooky, agitated days of the Middle Ages. Spook you, they do!
It’s played well, constructed smartly and even the most cvlt Norwegian black-metallist is bound to shake some cynicism off and give this a listen.
Kacimi feat. Biche – Il venait d’avoir 20 ans
Kacimi creates beautiful dream-pop informed by some of France’s great songwriters, Serge Gainsbourg or Nino Ferrer. The song is complemented by a video that looks to have been created during that same well-refined epoch. It’s trippy, yet classy, like a French Haight Ashbury circa 1967.
Andrew Marica – I just Wanna Go
A song that shows the songwriting and voice control of a Romanian artist that seems to have gathered his ideas from endless playing in smoke-filled coffee houses.