Happy Labor Day. Many of you labored on Labor Day. I hope this wasn’t the case, but if it was, I hope you had a good soundtrack.
It’s not quite the end of summer, but it might as well be. Hence a playlist that transitions from hyperpop to neo soul. Sure, it ends with some forgotten funk, but something reclaimed from the dustbins of the early 80s is bound to contain some wistfulness that’s settled into the sound.
We start with a six song block of Kero Kero Bonito, spanning the entirety of their output. The first tracks are as poppy as possible and the final two tracks give us a glitched social media freakout (“Only Acting”) and visions of wildfires fueled by human carelessness (“When the Fires Come”). That’s certainly a summer to fall arc. KKB hasn’t released a major project since 2021, so hopefully they’re in their winter stage and not permanently closed.
Lemuria’s “Christine Perfect” feels like the perfect fall throwback sound. Something Letters to Cleo never released. Let’s throw “Here and Now” in for good measure.
Magdalena Bay’s “Woww” switches us back to poppy electronics dripping with cutesy sarcasm. This played on the overhead yesterday when I visited the Princeton Record Exchange.
On to a neo-soul block, starting with (appropriately) “Work” by (also appropriately) The Septembers, Saux. Things are moody and soft, with a bit of brightness courtesy Na Bonsai and Lady Wray.
“Come and Get It” leaves us with a unique sound you’ve likely never heard. This is a reclaimed 45 from Z Records’ tenth volume of the Under The Influence series, which is something I’m sad not to have discovered sooner.
Here’s to a fall full of of crate digging.
1. “Cat vs. Dog (English Version)” – Kero Kero Bonito from Intro Bonito (2013)
2. “Kero Kero Bonito” - Kero Kero Bonito from Intro Bonito (2013)
3. “Break” – Kero Kero Bonito from Bonito Generation (2016)
4. “Trampoline” – Kero Kero Bonito from Bonito Generation (2016)
5. “Only Acting” – Kero Kero Bonito from Time ‘n’ Place (2018)
6. “When the Fires Come” – Kero Kero Bonito from Civilization I (2019)
7. “Christine Perfect” – Lemuria from Turnstyle Comix #3 (2014)
8. “Here and Now” – Letters to Cleo from Aurora Gory Alice (1994)
9. “Woww” – Magdalena Bay from mini mix vol. 2 (2020)
10. “WORK” – Saux, The Septembers (2015 Single)
11. “MonkeyGrip” – Beaten Bodies from The Royal Road (2014)
12. “Eat Me Alive” – Avangelia (2024 Single)
13. “Invisible Fist (Radio Edit)” – Na Bonsai (2025 Single)
14. “Best for Us” – Lady Wray (2025 Single)
15. “Come and Get It” – Santrax from Under The Influence Vol. 10 complied by Rahaan (2022)
It’s not quite the end of summer, but it might as well be. Hence a playlist that transitions from hyperpop to neo soul. Sure, it ends with some forgotten funk, but something reclaimed from the dustbins of the early 80s is bound to contain some wistfulness that’s settled into the sound.
We start with a six song block of Kero Kero Bonito, spanning the entirety of their output. The first tracks are as poppy as possible and the final two tracks give us a glitched social media freakout (“Only Acting”) and visions of wildfires fueled by human carelessness (“When the Fires Come”). That’s certainly a summer to fall arc. KKB hasn’t released a major project since 2021, so hopefully they’re in their winter stage and not permanently closed.
Lemuria’s “Christine Perfect” feels like the perfect fall throwback sound. Something Letters to Cleo never released. Let’s throw “Here and Now” in for good measure.
Magdalena Bay’s “Woww” switches us back to poppy electronics dripping with cutesy sarcasm. This played on the overhead yesterday when I visited the Princeton Record Exchange.
On to a neo-soul block, starting with (appropriately) “Work” by (also appropriately) The Septembers, Saux. Things are moody and soft, with a bit of brightness courtesy Na Bonsai and Lady Wray.
“Come and Get It” leaves us with a unique sound you’ve likely never heard. This is a reclaimed 45 from Z Records’ tenth volume of the Under The Influence series, which is something I’m sad not to have discovered sooner.
Here’s to a fall full of of crate digging.
1. “Cat vs. Dog (English Version)” – Kero Kero Bonito from Intro Bonito (2013)
2. “Kero Kero Bonito” - Kero Kero Bonito from Intro Bonito (2013)
3. “Break” – Kero Kero Bonito from Bonito Generation (2016)
4. “Trampoline” – Kero Kero Bonito from Bonito Generation (2016)
5. “Only Acting” – Kero Kero Bonito from Time ‘n’ Place (2018)
6. “When the Fires Come” – Kero Kero Bonito from Civilization I (2019)
7. “Christine Perfect” – Lemuria from Turnstyle Comix #3 (2014)
8. “Here and Now” – Letters to Cleo from Aurora Gory Alice (1994)
9. “Woww” – Magdalena Bay from mini mix vol. 2 (2020)
10. “WORK” – Saux, The Septembers (2015 Single)
11. “MonkeyGrip” – Beaten Bodies from The Royal Road (2014)
12. “Eat Me Alive” – Avangelia (2024 Single)
13. “Invisible Fist (Radio Edit)” – Na Bonsai (2025 Single)
14. “Best for Us” – Lady Wray (2025 Single)
15. “Come and Get It” – Santrax from Under The Influence Vol. 10 complied by Rahaan (2022)
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