Janosch Troehler

I somehow knew that it was going to end when I read that Charlie Watts, the Rolling Stones' drummer for almost 60 years, had to undergo emergency surgery.

On Tuesday, Charlie Watts died at 80 years old.

It was already clear that Watts wouldn't be part of the upcoming world tour. The band replaced him with Steve Jordan, the former drummer for the Blues Brothers.

It took me some time to get into the Stones' sound. I instead listened to The Who, Led Zeppelin, Bob Dylan, and The Beatles. Not bad either, but once the Rolling Stones universe opened up for me, it swallowed me whole.

It was Sticky Fingers that did the job. I bought it in a store in Zurich. The cover features the original zipper. And I started listening and was blown away. There were the faster hits like Brown Suger or Bitch. And there were slow ballads like Sway and Moonlight Mile. You can hear blues, country, and Americana influences in Wild Horses, You Gotta Move, and I Got The Blues.

But nothing was quite like You Can't Hear Me Knocking. Lord, this track is just insane. 7 minutes long, it starts with a rather relaxed groove. Then, the instruments start building upon each other; the song gets more complex by the second.

Suddenly, with still 4 minutes on the clock, the song breaks down and transitions into a devilish instrumental that lasts for the rest of the song. It's epic beyond belief!

Sticky Finger was released in 1971. For anyone who has Apple TV+, I can recommend the original series 1971. It's a fantastic documentary about the "year that music changed everything" – covering rock, soul, funk, and singer-songwriters, connecting the dots between shifts in society, sound and culture.

Alright, you're not here to hear me rambling about the old days (that I haven't experienced myself, unfortunately). You're here to get a new fix of new music.

And today's selection features frenetic indie rock, heavy fuzz, obscure synth-pop, jazzy hip-hop, and a song that made me cry.

I was surprised. It only took a few notes, and I was back in tune with the feeling. It was like nothing ever happened in the past one and a half years.

Admittingly, I felt slight anxiety attending the first concert, the first festival, without any pandemic-related measures. (Well, you had to be either vaccinated, tested, or recovered.)

But, yes, this regained freedom can be overwhelming, especially after months of seclusion.

I never enjoyed the packed crowds very much. However, I found myself in the very first rows amid the moshpits. Jumping, suffering, laughing, dancing, and shouting. Music, not exclusively but especially when performed live on stage, is a cathartic, collective experience.

And even the obscure, heavy sounds of Molchat Doma, Thymian, and Brutus sparked happiness deep within me.

But now, enough of my drooling. It's time for your weekly dose of new sounds. I've found some gems; vocal diamonds and instrumental gold. Let's dive into today's tracks.

Imany – Like A Prayer

The French singer Imany is most known for Don't Be So Shy, remixed by Filatov & Karas. The track became the summer hit back in 2015. However, the soul artist range is way broader than catchy but simple pop tunes.

Voodoo Cello, Imany's upcoming album, features history's greatest pop songs (from Ed Sheeran to Elton John) – reimagined with eight cellos.

Imany's interpretation of Madonna's controversial 1989 hit Like A Prayer demonstrates the complexity of these songs. It's not easy listening as the original. Imany demands full attention. The cellos only provide a minimal layer of sound while her deep, smokey voice's humming sonorously through the lyrics like a preacher. It's actually like a prayer.

Summer hits. They are despised – at least amongst so-called music aficionados. Summer hits are shallow; they are as catchy as they are quickly forgotten after the hot season has passed. Who still listens to Luis Fonsi's Despacito or Master KG's Jerusalema?

The issue with summer hits (let's say: hit songs in general) is that they are played endlessly in a short amount of time. It's the death sentence that killed many iconic songs. Example? Just think about Adele's Hello.

I try to avoid the mainstream's summer hit and find my own. And I think I've found what I was looking for in today's Weekly5: Last Chance by Casper Caan, remixed by no other than Hot Chip.

Contrasting this sunny vibe, this week's edition also features a variety of darker, sinister sounds for post-punk and rock music fans.

Casper Caan – Last Chance (Hot Chip Remix)

In May 2021, New York City-based producer Casper Caan put out the track Last Chance. The original release itself is worth a spot in playlists worldwide, an electronic piece of art with an unusual indie-rocky feel.

However, there's now a remix of Last Chance by no other than London's indie legends Hot Chip. They removed the scratchy, jumpy nature of the original and added a thick bassline, ironing out the edges and transforming the track into something that only can be described as a veritable summer hymn.

Hot Chip's remix spreads hope and evokes an aching yearning for freedom. Let's get out there!

Drangsal – Exit Strategy

28-year-old Max Gruber, aka Drangsal, is one of the wild, young, up-and-coming German musicians. In his first album, Harieschaim (2016), post-punk and new wave influences were already shining through his songs heavily. The record's opener, Allan Align, is a perfect example of the vintage sound.

Drangsal's latest single certainly has this post-punk vibe, but it has been pushed to the brink of existence. Exit Strategy is a fast-driving track, the synthesizer crying like a chainsaw. However, Drangsal's voice, grandiosely reciting the German lyrics, counterpoints the exploding sound.

But the most astonishing thing about Exit Strategy is the uncanny similarity to the modern pop-punk sound of die ärzte. Drangsal even sounds like their frontman Farin Urlaub. But in the end, this doesn't take anything away from Drangsal.

Two months are enough. My fingers are tingling; my soul craves new music, the heart wants to skip a beat, and the legs need to feel the rhythm again. So, yes, the Weekly5 are back, finally.

The break was necessary to relax. In the end, this small newsletter should remain leisure, a pleasure. Now, I'm hungry again, striving to seek fresh tunes to enjoy and to share. I hope you're as thrilled as I am.

Without any further ado, let's dive into today's selection. And remember: You can always find the tracks in the playlists on Spotify and Apple Music.

ÄTNA x Meute – Weirdo

Thick beats, bizarre sounds, and raw lyrics – it's the result of an exciting German collaboration. ÄTNA, the celebrated electronica duo, and Meute, a full-blown big band famous for its techno-styled sounds. Put them together, and the outcome has to be earth-shattering.

Weirdo sounds definitely weird. It's dark, obscure, and edgy, but also aggressively addictive. The single is the summer hymn for the outsiders, the zero-fucks-givers. Come along!

The KVB – World On Fire

For a knowledgeable audience, The KVB don't need any introduction. The London-based duo jumps the borders between post-punk, shoegaze, and psychedelic sound since its foundation back in 2010.

World On Fire is quite a perfect introduction to The KVB's soundscape. Driven by synthesizers, the fast-paced track feels as vintage as contemporary—nostalgia clashes with modern breathlessness. Yet, a pompous layer of psychedelic rock covers the whole single.

benzii – Butterflies

The young German electronica artist benzii is already a familiar name to long-time subscribers. Back in January, she was featured with her single Commodity.

The latest release, Butterflies, sounds somehow similar: An obscure mixture of art-pop, electronica, and fast techno beats. Yet, once again, benzii proves to be a musician on the rise.

This is it: The last issue of Weekly5 before the summer break. Counting today’s curation, the playlist features exactly 100 songs (click here for Spotify or Apple Music).

If we would be so bold and count the “Killed Darlings” issue, the counter jumps to a very unsexy 105 tracks.

Anyway, it feels like the perfect time to take a break. Although I love to discover new music and share it with you every week, it still is quite laborious. Scanning the releases and choosing the tracks usually fills my Friday evenings and Saturday mornings. Especially now that Weekly5 is also available in German.

Therefore, I’d instead take a break not to lose motivation and get annoyed by the task. However, at the end of this newsletter, I reveal what I’ve planned in the upcoming weeks.

But now, let’s jump into today’s selection; a potpourri of musical greatness spanning from urging indie rock to arty hip-hop tunes.

Sam Himself – Nothing Like The Night

The first time I noticed Sam Himself was the release of his otherworldly Springsteen cover Dancing In The Dark. I also introduced the signature baritone from Basel, Switzerland, a couple of weeks ago when Weekly5 featured his contribution to NOTI’s letters from nowhere.

Now, Sam Himself released another single, Nothing Like The Night. Written during the pandemic, unable to return to his New York home, the song reflects on the claustrophobia and uncertainty of these times. The artist explains:

Nothing Like the Night is about self-effacement and loss of control when you suddenly have a perfect alibi for letting yourself go: the end of your own world as you know it.

As Sam Himself felt lost and uprooted, he still managed to be creative; maybe even had to be in order to survive. He recorded ten songs for his debut album. In Nothing Like The Night, his deep voice isn’t as present as one may assume, but there’s a pleading, despairing voice – accompanied by an urging and driven sound. The single perfectly captures the height of the pandemic: The detached feeling, the time and lives just rushing by while you lose control.