Jonas Lundvall – Make the most
Genre: Pop-rock, Chamber Pop
Similar artists: John Lennon, Elliott Smith, Sufjan Stevens, George Harrison
In many ways, the history of pop music can be split between two periods. There are those in which The Beatles are really respected and imitated. And, there are those when everybody denies liking The Beatles even though they still borrow from them.
The Beatles themselves anticipated as much. Consequently, the first solo-Beatle records didn’t really resemble the albums by the Fab Four. John Lennon embraced an abrasive, confrontational sound. George Harrison made room for folk-rock meditations. Other generations were more generous in acknowledging the influence of the Liverpool quartet. 90s artists such as Elliott Smith made good use of the warmth, and beauty of Beatlesque melodies.
Jonas Lundvall’s Make the most pays tribute to Elliott Smith by way of The Beatles. It’s a song where the softness and gentleness of the vocal melodies are treated with the greatest amount of attention. Lundvall’s beautiful singing dresses up the song, itself a meditation on the power of love. It’s all bittersweetness pouring out of the Sweden singer’s single, and perhaps a new era of appreciation for The Mop Tops.
The Secret Beach – The Secret Beach
Genre: Folk rock, Lo-fi Rock, Indie Rock
Similar artists: Chad Van Gaalen, Wilco, Dr. Dog, Granddaddy, Flaming Lips, The Beatles
It’s hard to shock with exotic-sounding music nowadays. It wasn’t always like that. The Beatles, or The Rolling Stones could just visit India, or Morocco, swipe a couple of musical ideas and pop music would be changed on its head for the next few years.
Now, anyone can earn the internet equivalent of a PhD in a Togolese reggae with a few simple clicks on a phone, or computer. One of the only truly exotic things nowadays is to play music that sounds like it’s made by someone untroubled with the world’s problems. People who make art and have few obvious anxieties are a rare, and very interesting breed.
The Secret Beach’s self-titled song sounds as if it was made while on a brisk trip to Brazil, or at least to the section of the internet that contains a great Tropicalia archive. There’s a great, simple groove at the heart of it, and a voice that you wouldn’t believe would dare lie to you. It doesn’t stray very far from the original idea throughout its running time, but, then again neither does the blues or early rock n’ roll. The Secret Beach has found a special little place inside the mind and is documenting every inch of it.
