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Caribou – “Honey”
Happy Coachella! Whether you’re recovering from weekend one, prepping for weekend two, or enjoying the excellent live streams from home, celebrate the world’s premiere eclectic musical festival with this week’s picks: five tracks from artists and acts playing one of the festival’s seven desert stages — or the newest stage, Quasar, where DJ sets will top two hours. That’s where weekend one revelers found electronic composer Dan Snaith (playing under his Daphni monalongside Jamie XX and Floating Points. The line-up will refresh for weekend two (DJ’s TBA), but you can still get in the mood with Snaith’s latest track — a relentless electronic builder serving drum ‘n’ bass, dub, and classic dance elements along with a mesmeric AI art video. OK, honey!
L'Impératrice – “Danza Marilù (Feat. Fabiana Martone)”
A good ‘chella experience is all about the vibes — so set ’em up right with this track from French outfit L'Impératrice, whose signature sound is a delectable purée of disco and pop on a flaky funky bassline crust. On this fun ‘n’ flirty groove, the six-top delivers the technical goods with make-it-look-easy instrumental precision. Vocals from singer Flore Benguigui are mixed in as such, aligned neatly with the synths and guitars as one of many equally-serviced sonic layers. L'Impératrice just might be our favorite act in the nu-disco vertical… somehow, good-time tracks like this just hit different en français.
Chappell Roan – “Good Luck, Babe!”
Big waves are emanating from Chappell Roan, the midwestern singer-songwriter serving up a nice frothy blend of essential pop elements. The bright synths, plucky percussion, and blow-the-house-down belting are all presented in a campy drag-inspired package that’s like if Cindy Lauper had a bit part in a John Waters movie. Roan’s music is easy to love, but the cherry on top is her lyricism. Pay close attention to her clever take on life moments that are so tough you’ve just gotta laugh. Congrats are in order, this is Roan’s first time playing any festival — and it’s the big one. Well done, babe!
The Joy – “You Complete Me”
Coachella sets are known for their surprise features, a great way for artists in the big-font lineup to introduce or share their love for up-and-comers or lesser-known acts. That’s how the audience who flocked to see Doja Cat’s weekend one closing set on Sunday encountered The Joy, a harmonizing vocal group out of South Africa who sing in the Zulu language. Whether they return for weekend two is TBD, but don’t let that dissuade you from clicking play on this track, their first single: a love song for the ages with moving minor chords that’ll hit you right in the gut. Keep ‘em on your radar, The Joy will release their self-titled debut LP on June 21 via Transgressive Records.
Girl Ultra – “rimel”
Lately, Mexico City has been churning out pure excellence in style, food and (especially) music, as evidenced here by Girl Ultra. She’s been serving up edgy R&B under Mexican label Finesse since 2017. This casually sexy track — her latest single — celebrates the one tool every eye-batting girl treasures most…. mascara. Don’t let yours run too much in the desert heat this weekend if you’re one of the ~125,000 fans hitting the polo fields, and listen to KCRW this weekend after 12 noon for the final installment of ‘chella inspired sets from our DJs.