In a month in which the UK was put into lockdown AGAIN, the lyric I resonate with this month has to be from the gorgeous Dermot Kennedy. This month he released a deluxe edition of his 2019 LP Without Fear, featuring new track The Killer Was A Coward. In these continual ‘unprecedented times’ we find ourselves living in, it’s imperative we look for the positive. ‘All the love that we shared in a very dark time’ is the message that sums up this month for me – even on the bleakest of days, there’s hope.
Keep scrolling to find out what else I’ve been listening to this month!
Taylor Swift ft. Bon Iver – exile
After dropping her surprise album folklore back in July, Taylor Swift’s eighth LP was a slow burner for me. Swift transitions from the somewhat generic pop we saw in Lover into a more mature sound, driven by guitar and piano, with heartfelt lyrics that elevate Swift into a new realm of song-writing. While the album to some can seem a bit ‘samey’, she’s stormed the charts and broken pretty much every record ever with this effort. My highlight has to be exile, featuring one of my favourite acts Bon Iver. Lead singer Justin Vernon’s voice compliments Swift beautifully here, and the song crescendos to a harmony-filled, string-driven hit.
Alessia Cara – Rooting For You
The next track comes from Canadian artist Alessia Cara’s 2019 EP This Summer, with the track Rooting For You. Last month I watched fellow Canadian and my idol Avril Lavigne’s livestream concert in association with Global Lyme Alliance, which featured Cara as a special guest. She performed Rooting For You live and acoustic, as well as mashing it up with Lavigne’s Complicated, so it was no surprise I had to stream it a lot this November.
Valley – Push For Yellow (Shelter)
I first reviewed Valley back in my January playlist, with a track from their 2019 album MAYBE. This month I’m loving another song from the same LP, entitled Push For Yellow (Shelter). The song is about escaping a situation and finding that shelter with someone, with an element of danger and abandon, wrapped up in their fresh indie rock sound. If you like what you hear, great news! The group released their new EP sucks to see you doing better last month so plenty of Valley content to get you through Lockdown 2.0!
Sam Smith – So Serious
Sam Smith has been dominating my playlists this year, and November is no exception, as it features new track So Serious. At the end of last month, they finally dropped their delayed third studio album Love Goes, which just missed out on a No.1 spot in the UK Albums chart to Ariana Grande. No matter though, as the record is still a hit, and So Serious is thus far my favourite new track from the album, featuring lots of dreamy cadences and riffs amongst the melancholy lyrics, truly showcasing what Sam Smith does best.
Pale Waves – Change
I was thrilled to find Manchester indie band Pale Waves dropped a new track this month, taken from their upcoming second album Who Am I?. The song is called Change, and departs slightly from their dark first album vibe, giving this one an almost-Taylor-Swift-pre-folklore-esque feel. One thing hasn’t changed, and that’s the fact Pale Waves songs are always super catchy and expertly sung by lead singer Heather Baron-Gracie. With the emblem of a butterfly on the single’s artwork, this feels like a new, advanced, no-holds-barred Pale Waves, and I for one am excited to see what else they have in store. (photo Jenn Five)
*Special Mention – Kylie Minogue*
Also releasing a new album this month, I HAVE to shine a spotlight on the infamous Kylie Minogue. Her fifteenth (!!!) LP DISCO went straight to No.1 in the UK this month (her eighth album to do so), making her the first female artist to earn a No.1 in five consecutive decades, from 1988 all the way to 2020. This truly marks her as one of the world’s greatest and cements her in chart history forever. Celebrate You, from the album, is featured in this month’s playlist and is the icing on the cake for what is a great record – current and on-trend with today’s listeners, but still with that signature Kylie stamp: she’s still got it, folks!
Don’t forget to listen and follow the playlist on Spotify by clicking the list at the top of the page! See you next month!
