I'm Not Making A Lemon Pun
The king of the lemons has returned. Following on from the release of his cover of The Go-Between's 'Streets Of Your Town' (which we featured on our March Spotify playlist update), DOPE LEMON (Angus Stone) is back with a brand new single for us all to enjoy, and it is fantastic.
Joining up with fellow Aussie music makers Winston Surfshirt, the influence of Mr. Lemon's new collaborators is immediately felt with a lo-fi hip-hop beat setting 'Every Day Is A Holiday' into motion, while Stone's trademark softness floats above. The combination of DOPE LEMON and Winston Surfshirt's chilled out instrumental reverberations proves incredibly successful in just unravelling the concerns and stresses of whoever sticks this tune on, and provides 2020 with one of the most satisfyingly calming tunes of the year so far.
As frontman Winston takes the mic, the track transports itself to a space somehow perfectly split between 1990's East Coast hip-hop grooves and the wizardry of Al Green, and in this haze of summery neo-soul it becomes impossible not to enjoy yourself. After 2019's Apple Crumble, it's become incredibly clear that there is a bountiful treasure of music to be explored through the group's sensational brand of songwriting, and this song is certainly no exception. This is no small "feat.", this is a collaboration of excellent execution, with the group's influence pushing Angus Stone in a particularly fascinating direction.
This is DOPE LEMON in a new light, partially because he allows himself to fade in and out of focus throughout, but largely because of just how easily he has slipped into a brand new style. Removed from the paradises of soft rock presented by 2019's Smooth Big Cat and 2016's Honey Bones, the ease to which DOPE LEMON has filled the shoes of lo-fi hip-hop is incredibly impressive in just how comfortably the transition has been made.
The song sounds tight as hell. The drums, the keys, the splatter of horns piercing through at the perfect moment. All of it fuses into this sun-drenched atmosphere of relentless disarmament. I don't own a hammock, but songs like this were designed for one. I always feel the need to lie down and drink something expensive when I listen to songs by DOPE LEMON, but this song (quite frankly) takes the piss. It's been on repeat for weeks, and even as the UK's intermittent thunderstorms continue on their warpath, I'm going to keep rinsing 'Every Day Is A Holiday' and seeing just how relaxed it can make me.
- great -
Angus & Julia Stone's By The Way appeared at #100 on our list of the
100 Greatest Albums of the 2010's last week. Check it out now!
Thanks for reading! Slow Motion Panic Masters is a music, arts and culture blog created and edited by Ben Wheadon, a literature student and musician based at the University of Oxford. He is also a Fleet Foxes shill.
Commentaires