And A Child Shall Lead Us

Sometimes inspiration strikes from the unlikeliest of places. Who would have thought the first single by Madonna's daughter Lourdes “Lola” Leon, aka Lolahol, would lead to a journey of discovery?

Certainly not me, when I read the NME's admirably po-faced news squib announcing the release of Lock&Key with choice quotes such as "“I don’t have a specific goal. I probably should" and "As for music, I can sing. I just don’t care about it."

Are you having 90s flashbacks? I am.

The only reason I clicked the link was this: "hyperpop-oriented". Just that phrase. Of all the many, multifarious musical movements of the last few years, the one I feel most drawn to is hyperpop. The glitchy, transcendent jitter, drenched in hypersaturated aural color, denaturized, animated, irreal. It scratches behind my eyes like the smell of burning tinsel.

Lolahol - Lock&key

I wasn't expecting a lot but it's a sleek, shifting, silky groove. Reminds me of those mid-90s jams I liked, trance-tinged trip-hop fellow travellers like Sneaker Pimps or Snowpony. The skittering drum and bass backbeat, the skyline trumpet, the alienated, affectless delivery. I love it.

Not to be obvious but I was curious as to the provenance. Lola is right. She can sing. If she doesn't care about music, though, where did the rest come from? 

New York, of course. Specifically, New York experimental pop artist Alexandra Drewchin, aka Eartheater, credited with not just co-writing and co-producing the song but also the video. 

Naturally, I checked Eartheater's own work next.

Eartheater - How To Fight

Disturbing. Definitely NSFW. 

Eartheater- Mitosis

Nor is that. The word headfuck comes to mind.

The first reminds of me Lana, when she's singing with her head voice. I really love Lana when she sings with her head voice. Then again I love her when she sings with any voice, so that's not really helping, is it? 

The second also reminds me of someone but I can't quite place who. I like it, anyway.

When I'd sated myself on Eartheater solo I started rummaging around in the recommendations and I spotted a familiar title. 

Sega Bodega and Eartheater - Fade Into You

I assume everyone's familiar with the original. I've linked it before, maybe more than once. I'll do it again. One of the greats. Deserves every link it gets.

Here's the thing about covers: if you don't know the original, they're just songs. I love covers but for all the effort I make, as time expands I recognize fewer of the originals. When I find a streak I chase it.

Sega Bodega, a name new to me, spent some lockdown capital on a series of collaborative covers with a bunch of other people I never heard of either. The project was compiled into a charitable collection called Reestablishing Connection to raise money for the AIM COVID-19 Crisis Fund, helping independent musicians and associated workers "suffering serious hardship as a result of cancelled artist projects". You can still buy it on Bandcamp, although what happens to the money now lockdown is over I couldn't tell you.

The album features five covers and bar one, they're all songs I know. And like. And they're great covers (Although I'm not sold on the videos.) Better than the originals, even. Some.

Sega Bodega and Trustfall - White Flag

I couldn't with any honesty say I like Dido. I mean, I don't not like her... She's one of those artists like Sade or David Grey who was just somehow always there, y'know? At dinner parties in the 90s, mostly.

That is a stunning cover of an original I wouldn't even have been able to tell you I knew. The vocoder makes it reminiscent of Laurie Anderson. An ageless, dated sound.

Sega Bodega and Isamaya Ffrench - Feel

Ah, Robbie. You can't but love him, can you? Well, maybe. I wouldn't switch him off if he came on the radio, let's go with that. It's a compliment. I'd turn the cover up, though. And its another original I forgot I knew.

This next one everyone knows.

Sega Bodega and Dorian Electra - Teenage Dirtbag

That's another great cover, although it's not the first time I've heard the song all loved up, slowed down, ironicized and de-ironicized. Phoebe Bridgers does a great acoustic version, too. It's one of those songs. Everyone want  a crack at it.

Sega Bodega and Teddy Geiger - Sometimes

We're all team Brittney now, right? I know I am. Wasn't always, sadly. We learn. We learn. I know the original but I couldn't tell you how.

And finally...

Sega Bodega and Lafawndah - Teardrop

Saved the best 'til last, I think. It could be a new genre - trip-prog. How I'd imagine a Geoff Barrow remix of Gentle Giant might sound. A scary prospect, for sure.

Of course, once I'd worked my way through that lot I had to go follow links to all the collaborators but that's a post for another day. And it would be plain rude not to end with one of Sega Bodega's own numbers. 

That's good. I'd listen to that on repeat for an hour or two. The video's - um - interesting, too.

That's all I have for now. Thanks again to Lourdes "Lola" Leon aka Lolahol - for introducing me to a whole new scene I might never have found. Say "Hi" to your mom for me, if you ever read this. Tell her I like her stuff too. 

Who doesn't?