kites can’t jive

kites can’t jive: the playlist is the soundtrack to kites can’t fly. Regular recommendations, monthly write-ups. All album links head to Apple Music.

The backlog

September 2020

Haiku hands by Haiku Hands. “You can be my man bitch / (I will be your man bitch)” is the anthem the world needs right now.

Afraid of heights by Billy Talent. I haven’t listen to Billy Talent for a decade but Afraid of heights is the most energising, infectious album I’ve heard in months.

Freak show by Silverchair. I was about due for a grunge relapse and Silverchair may as well be the band that pushes me over the edge.

August 2020

Jump rope gazers by The Beths. I adore The Beths. Their second albums expands on their fantastic debut without losing all the charm and personality that made it such a rush. Frontwoman Elizabeth Stokes has a real gift for humour and deft phrasing; there’s something new to fall in love with on every listen.

Super natural by Jonnie. A solo EP from one of the members of HTRK. Can’t go wrong.

ENERGY by Disclosure. Want some bangers? Have some bangers.

1000 gecs and The Tree of Clues by 100 gecs. More bangers but now they’re angry.

Always was by Briggs. A deadly EP from Senator Briggs.

July 2020

Expect the unexpected by 79rs Gang. Impossibly cool. The album looks to bring “New Orleans Mardi Gras Indian culture… to dance floors and block parties around the world” and it does. Just give it a spin.

The light pack by Joey Badass. Joey cannot be stopped.

Staying power by Emma Ruth Rundle. I love everything Rundle’s released and this is no different.

Drop 6 by Little Simz. Simz is on fire. One of my favourite rappers in the game right now.

Palimpsest by Protest the Hero. Protest the Hero are back with their fifth album (and their first in four years). It might be their best.

Joy as an act of resistance by IDLES. Rock music (don’t call it punk) at it’s most vibrant and vital.

June 2020

Black thoughts by Ziggy Ramo. A stunning debut album that explores Australia’s history of racism, colonialism, and trauma.

Nyaaringu by Miiesha. A collection of powerful songs about the lives of Indigenous Australians from a young woman with an amazing voice, punctuated with spoken-word interludes from Mieesha’s late grandmother.

Rosetta - EP by Dua Salah. Soulful, hypnotic hip-hop about everything from race, to gender, to identity, and more.

ALL-AMERIKKKAN BADASS by Joey Badass. Badass takes his golden-age-of-hip-hop sound, pushes it forward, and uses it tell listeners what it’s like to live in the US as a young black man.

The return by Sampa The Great. Fantastic storytelling, tight flows, and a real statement of intent in Sampa The Great’s fantastic debut album.

RTJ4 by Run The Jewels. If there was ever a time for RTJ to come out swinging, it’s now.

Abandoned language by dälek. “Turn that page muthafucka cause our story’s all scripted. 600 years, ain’t a fuckin’ thing different. Don’t speak to us about strength and upliftment. The closest thing to paradise is mad distant.”

May 2020

Yoch! Bangers, vol. 1 by dave the band. Catchy indie rock with an Aussie pub rock twist.

Temper – EP by Suss Cunts. “Vaxxer” is an anthem for the misinformation age.

Mess – EP by Molly Payton. Molly Payton is going to be a big deal.

Stranger fruit by Zeal & Ardor. Combine old school blues and black metal but make it work.

I laughed, u cried, we swapped. by cbakl. Stylish instrumental hip-hop for when you want people to think you’re cooler than you really are.

April 2020

GREY area by Little Sims. A talented rapper puts it all together.

To Iceland! To Iceland! by Antelodic. Three-piece jazz to drink coffee to.

The impossible kid by Aesop Rock. The king of underground hip-hop’s most approachable work to date.

March 2020

Aloha by Son Little. One of the best voices going.

Boiler room on Beats1, episode 13 – Bicep live in London. An absolute banger of a DJ set.

Simulcast by Tycho. Tycho can do no wrong, as far as I’m concerned, and this companion album to Weather is just further proof of that.

Homework by Daft Punk. One of the best dance albums ever released.

February 2020

Sisters by Spinifex Gum. Soulful, joyous pop music, with vocals provided by the talented Marliya Choir.

On dark horses by Emma Ruth Rundle. Perfect for driving too fast down a highway in the middle of the night.

Birth of violence by Chelsea Wolfe. Perfect for walking too slowly in a forest in the middle of the night.

Electric Lady sessions by LCD Soundsystem. Some great tracks get even better.

January 2020

Patchouli blue by Bohren & der Club of Gore. They call it “doom jazz” for a reason.

A crow looked at me by Mount Eerie. A perfect album about loss and grief.

Life on other planets by Moon Hooch. May the horns move you.

Sweet princess EP and Boundary Road snacks and drinks EP by Dry Cleaning. Post-punk for the 21st century.

Buck by Brainstory. No debut should be this smooth.