Happy Hump Day my friends! I’ve got a special treat for you courtesy of the awesome peeps over at Queer Control Records. You can download an incredible sampler of their catalogue for free! I was listening to the mix yesterday and the entire playlist is stellar. Seriously, there isn’t a bad one in the bunch.
As you can see from my bonus sections below, I’m using a lot of the suggestions you all are sending to me. I don’t want you to think I’ve forgotten about you or that I’ll only recommend music from my collection, so feel free to send me more. I’ve got a long list to get through so it might take a while, but I read every single email and try to respond as quickly as I can.
OK, enough. On with the show:
File Under: Light, airy folk-rock, singer/songwriter with kitsch
From: NYC
For Fans of: Paula Cole, Shawn Colvin, Ingrid Michaelson, Hailey Wojcik, picking flowers to later put on your kitchen counter, sundresses, small liberal arts colleges, the cup being half full, hand holding.
Bonus: AE reader (and fellow teeny weeny Chi-town lesbian) Grace sent me this recommendation and also alerted me to the fact that Bess ran into a spot of bad luck and got her gear stolen! Sadness! In some happier news, Bess’ Kickstarter campaign was apparently a big success and because it was labeled as such, I’m going to assume she is able to put out her new album. Either way, go to her YouTube page and listen to her song “How A Record is Made,” because it is hilarious.
File Under: Blues written for the gay girl’s soul
From: Virginia
For Fans of: B.B. King (without his guitar), Saffire, The Uppity Blues Women (she’s the frontwoman for this group), being a shoulder to cry on, finding humor in life’s misdeeds, Birkenstocks, Honey Nut Cheerios, reruns of Kate & Allie, Bitch & Animal.
Bonus: Thank you Verene for the breath of fresh and humorous air! As a part of the queer community, I love that Adegbalola uses proper pronouns in her songs. As far as I know, in the Blues community, she’s the only one who does that.
File Under: Moody alternative rock with heavy bass lines
From: France
For Fans of: Metric, Controller.Controller, Hunter Valentine, Deluka, leather jackets, smoking cigarettes (I know, I can’t just assume everything French will make you want to smoke, but I did just pop a new piece of Nicorette in while listening to their MySpace page), dark alleys, grommets.
Bonus: Thank you AE reader Mimielyne for the rec! Now, I can’t speak French and (for the most part) think everybody is gay, so this may not be all that useful, but my dar goes ping with these ladies and I’m not upset about it.
SUBWAY – Can’t Touch This by Subway-officialpage
File Under: Classic yet timeless, big band, lounge (like, old school lounge)
From: Peru
For Fans of: Sarah Vaughan, Eartha Kitt, Cassablanca, The Rat Pack, Goodfellas, big jewelry, grandma’s recipes for a spicy meat-a-ball-a (or pasole, or matzo ball or tendori chicken, basically insert delicious ethnic dish your grandma might make), Sean Connery playing James Bond
Bonus: Hat tip to K. Fo for the great suggestion! Apparently, Ms. Sumac is just as fly, if not more fly, than Mariah Carey, had a voice that could span five octaves and she had no formal training.
File Under: Cabaret, electronic art house, glam rock
From: UK
For Fans of: Lily Allen, Amanda Palmer, Dana Jade, Blondie, tapas or buffets (so you can taste a bit of everything), Chicks on Speed (but more melodic), piercing in non-traditional places (you know who you are), the ’80s (unironically)
Bonus: Stream and download this banger of a remix for Bishi’s “Never Seen Your Face”
