Kimbra – “Two Way Street”, 2012
Month: June 2019
Cathy Dennis’ “Toxic” demo
It might be a surprise for fans of Britney’s “Toxic” to know the song was written by former 90s pop star Cathy Dennis, the songwriter/co-producer of “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” (among others on Kylie’s Fever). Cathy offered “Toxic” to Kylie’s album Body Language first, but it was rejected.
In fact, Cathy’s Youtube-surfaced demo sounds near-identical to Britney’s version aside from the vocals, including the signature “Tere Mere Beech Mein” Bollywood sample.
Karen O & Danger Mouse – “Nox Lumina” (Lux Prima, 2019)
The new Karen O/Danger Mouse collaboration takes plenty of interesting directions in it’s duration, but hearing KO on something like “Nox Lumina” is most thrilling of all. It forms a rich bookend for the album with the ambitious opening single “Lux Prima”, it’s counterpart.
Over an eccentric guitar+synth+string blend, she repeats these cryptic lines over and over:
Somewhere in my room
Sometimes I don’t lock the door
Every time I close my eyes
Someone else’s paradise
Turns me into someone new
She sounds calm but unsteady or even possessed as the melody suggests a lurking danger. Suddenly her voice distorts and slows down along the lines of her wordless wailing in “Lux Prima”. As if it wasn’t fit for a surrealist short film already, “Nox Lumina” ends the album with a reprise of “Prima”’s orchestral flourish like the credits are rolling.
Abaco Music Library artwork, 1990s
New music video: “Spires” created by Marilyn Roxie
And in case you missed Marilyn’s video for “Moonbow”, watch that one below:
Reni Jusis – “Niemy Krzyk” (Magnes, 2006)
Having major creative control meant Reni Jusis experimented whenever she wanted. This resulted in several exciting twists to her already distinctive take on electro-pop (the existential “Ostatni Raz” to name one), but no Reni song surprised me as much as “Niemy Krzyk”, her most dark-sided to date.
Sometimes on the bottom of my heart I feel that
My life is beyond me again
I cannot carry [on] anymore
I went too far again
Why is it that I live faster
If I don’t enjoy the things I have
I want to run away again
Where nobody will find me
With fragile trance melodies rippling along, the lyrics reveal inner fears behind the dance-DJ glamor she adopted on the Magnes album. The impressive soar in her vocal hammers in the effect.
Thanks to Jan for the English translation. Full text here. Listen to my Reni Jusis playlist here.
Moons And Melodies 