Just In Time

The Debut, Part Two. To specify the content of this Experimental Editorial Project®, I set out by saying it 'shuffles through the major, minor, and wild in global pop music,' a quixotic-ish combination of words that I'm trusting captures the randomness of my interests in a way that feels purposeful.

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All Aces, The Playlist

Updated every new issue. Listen on Spotify.

Just In Time

Will Heard, 'Hotter Than Sex' (UnderHeard Records)

The state of my listening habits in the mid-2010s was a mix of American rappers and British pop/indie/electronic acts. Both categories lost a dramatic amount of territory on my Spotify as the decade ended, but the memories are forever, I'm sure. The switch from some artists in the former group was intentional, a topic for another time, while the move away from The Brits happened subtly, like I barely realised it until putting it into words just now — but for what it's worth, Jorja Smith never left and Pink Pantheress is on a quest, taking space back since 2021.

That said, back in 2015, I was bound to find Will Heard. Anne-Marie was on the pop-rise with her solo debut EP, and Rudimental, gearing up for the follow-up of their acclaimed first album from 2013, featured her on the single 'Rumor Mill.' The release naturally made its way to me, and as I became obsessed with it, I remember being annoyed by the fact that the third name credited on the song, Will, had nothing else out on his own yet. His official debut would only come two years later, with a 4-track EP called 'Trust.' Perhaps, the most soulful 14 minutes I got in 2017. But then, it was silent. For six long years, every time my brain started randomly humming 'I Better Love You,' I'd check up on him, watch a couple of old live performances, look outside my window and wonder if that was really all I'd hear from him forever.

It's 2023, mid-November. I spot a thumbnail on my YouTube recommendations page showing a man mid-singing. I don't immediately recognize the guy — I remember Will having longer hair — but it's definitely his channel, so I click. A few seconds in, and I'm already typing 'Honey Child' into Spotify's search bar, thinking to myself, "Yes sir; missed that voice, straight to my playlist." Next, I gasp. Actually, a newly-released full album by Will Heard is out. Fifteen tracks, forty-two minutes, it's called 'Wild.' Good choice of word. It's indeed wild the way this English man, with the sultriest voice and only a handful of songs, got me hooked for 8 years, only to come out of nowhere, deliver the warmest meal in the form of an album and make it worth the wait.

For the playlist, I picked out 'Hotter Than Sex' because of how perfectly it transitions from Red Velvet's 'Underwater', but 'Honey Child', 'What Do You Do,' and 'This is Love' could be there as well.

What else you'll find in the latest update of the ALL ACES playlist.

Baiuca, 'Vai Tu' (Raso Estudio, 2023)

I remember the euphoria of listening to Baiuca's 'Veleno' for the first time, but I have no recall of how it got to me; it might have been an angel descending from the skies and placing the headphones on my ears. Or maybe, more fittingly, it was the spirit of a very wise Galician witch. Baiuca is the electronic music project of Alejandro Guilán, a producer from northwest Spain dedicated to infusing his culture's ancient tales with contemporary energy.

After the otherworldly event mentioned earlier, I started following him closely, until the release of the enchanting 'Vai Tu' last year. This track is a reinterpretation of a song called 'Verde-Gaio', popularized by the group Leilía in the mid-90s and based on the traditional Portuguese dance of the same name. Consisting of six women, this traditional group from Galicia has been actively performing since the 80s and only disbanded in 2023. They were particularly focused on vocal harmonies, and I'd strongly recommend that you also listen to the original version to get the full, potentially mystical, experience.

Sen Senra, 'Blue Jeans Y Un Crop Top' (Sonido Muchacho/Universal Music Spain, 2023)

Just an hour's drive from Catoira, Baiuca's hometown, lies the small village of San Miguel de Presqueiras, where Sen Senra was born. What does that mean? ALL ACES is on the right path to becoming a Galician-music-specialized publication, even if by accident. From Senra's fifth album released last June, 'PO2054AZ (Vol. I),' I chose the sinisterly romantic 'Blue Jeans Y Un Crop Top' with the intent to perfectly close out the dark-and-sexually-charged section of the playlist.

However, if you've never heard of the Spanish artist, the opening track of said album, 'No Quiero Ser Un Cantante', might be the perfect introduction. There, Senra will let you know what he doesn't want: to be a singer. What he does want: to be something better. And what's unimportant to him: bass, drums, talking to other professionals in the industry. Senra is a minimalist punk. The only guideline he appears willing to follow is that of his own impulses. If that means a discography alternating from brilliant to boring every few songs, I guess, so be it.

Lolo Zouaï, 'Give Me a Kiss' (RCA Records/Sony Music, 2022)

Enough of Spain for now; let's fly to France. Then Algeria. America next. Or less carbon-consuming, let's just play Lolo Zouaï. Born in Paris to French-Algerian immigrants, she moved to San Francisco as a kid, and to New York later as an aspiring singer-songwriter. With a viral hit on her hands by 2017, one catapulted by playlist placements — good old times! — she quickly had all the labels at her door, promising pop stardom. From the offers, she picked RCA's. Luckily, for a two-album-only contract. By the time she fulfilled it with 'PLAYGIRL' in 2022, the team that signed her had mostly left the label, so staying didn't make sense. For someone as resourceful as Lolo, that's a favor, not a crisis. She's gonna be fine. And continue making great, immersive, detail-oriented pop music, like 'Give Me a Kiss', in the process.

ace-log

Thread of notes.

• Earlier this month was Carnaval in Brazil, the most awaited time of the year in this country. My very personal picks for the 2024 hits are 'Tenho Que Me Decidir' (the Forró version of the Trap song), and 'Baby Eu Tava na Rua da Água'. The actual hit, though, was 'Macetando', which I'm not particularly a fan of, but happy for Ludmilla for bagging that one regardless.
• On that same weekend, the Super Bowl was happening in the US, and to dodge all the obvious music-related things I could possibly be about to mention, I'd like to point out this little fun sync fact reported by Billboard:
  • First, watch this BMW ad until the end. Now, isn't it amazing how the writers of Usher's 20-year-old hit 'Yeah!' made money from it even though the song wasn't actually used? All it took was three people agreeing with each other in a random dialogue. But there was the idea of the song, and of course, Usher himself, so, just in case, everyone is paid up.
• Not as entertaining as the Music Publishing Industry is the Music Biopics Industry. I went to see 'Bob Marley: One Love' in the theater and left feeling as frustrated as with any other similar project I've watched in recent years. It covers a very specific period of time, from 1976 to 1979, and somehow still feels weak in its purpose. I'd say it takes the lead among the Freddie Mercury, Elton John, and Gal Costa movies as the worst one yet — I can't say it's worse than 'Elvis', though, because I refuse to watch that one, but it's probably not.

All Aces, The Visuals

Worth-noting music, in video.

So!YoON! ft. jibin of Y2K92, 'Gave you all my love' (Magic Strawberry Sound/Kakao Entertainment, 2023)

Soyoon is one-half of SE SO NEON. Formed in 2016, the Korean indie rock band was already winning national awards by 2018. A new level of online fame came, however, in 2019, when this video went viral. In 2023, Soyoon released her second solo album, and performances like the one below serve to reinforce her acquired reputation of tantalizing raw performances.

Thank you for reading ALL ACES! For suggestions and feedback reach out at ac@fromallaces.com.