Cross Section Download April

In an effort to continually seduce your ears, Clash has rounded up the cream of the music that is spoken about in this issue and slapped it on a download album.

The average human has five senses, and using as many at once is a virtue Clash hopes to promote. That said, while you’re using your sight to read through our perfect pages, we’d love for you to use your hearing and stuff a string of MP3s down your lug holes.

We’ve compiled a download album featuring some of the best artists from this issue. All you have to do is go pick ’em up.Then, perhaps you can touch yourself up while sniffing and chewing our pages, making it a sensual full house... It’s up to you, like...

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1. Tunng ‘Don’t Look Down Or Back’ (Full Time Hobby)



Folk infused electronica should be a marriage made in hell, but opposites most definitely attract in this instance. The UK collective may have a preference for covers, but this track is all their own doing. ‘Don’t Look Down Or Back’ will make you feel chilled out to the max and comes with a positive message for pessimists, and a stark warning to vertigo sufferers.

2. Race Horses ‘Cake’ (Fantastic Plastic)



What the fuck are they singing about? Who cares. Lovable curly-haired four-piece Race Horses may share an equine namesake with their torturous Leeds counterparts Pulled Apart by Horses, but the similarity definitely ends there. Swapping visceral beats for tricks and treats, ‘Cake’ sounds about as good as it tastes: like a big slice of Battenburg washed down with a cup of sweet tea. This aural sensation is taken from the band’s debut LP, ‘Goodbye Falkenburg’, which is an exercise in trippy ’60s psychedelia, with a very special Welsh twist. Tidy.

3. Lawrence Arabia ‘Apple Pie Bed’ (Bella Union)



If you’ve got a sweet tooth then you must be salivating right now in greedy anticipation. Sink your teeth into the doughy softness of a Lawrence Arabia pie and gorge yourself silly on his oozing sugar-pop fruitiness. But before I start sounding like an M&S advert, let me tell you that this track was awarded the Kiwi equivalent of an Ivor Novello. This New Zealander may be miles from home, but he has already made his musical mark on the UK.

4. Othello Woolf ‘Stand’ (Young And Lost Club)


Put those hips away! Smooth like Tropicana, Oliver Wolf is the new Bryan Ferry in sheep’s clothing. But he’s not a jealous guy, just a very suave one with incredible cheekbones. Confessing a love for all things Morrissey and with a Chris Moore produced album, he’s got all bases covered: this is new-wave with an electro edge. Add Wolf’s effortlessly soulful crooning to the mix, and you’ve got a sure fire winner, and a lot of smitten, quivering girls.

5. Grasscut ‘High Down’ (Ninja Tune)


What starts off like a mysteriously subdued Philip Glass piano number quickly mutates into a slab of epic orchestral electronica, of rather glitchy proportions. And this musical beast carries on shedding its layers, twisting and turning until you are drowning in an epic shower of metallic sounds. Ninja Tune have come up smelling like freshly cut grass, again.

6. Frightened Rabbit ‘Skip The Youth’ (Fat Cat)


The Scottish brothers return with another indie-folk anthem, and their smoothest sounding effort to date. A lengthy instrumental intro complete with repetitive drum beat and crescendoing guitar creates pacing anticipation, right before Scott Hutchinson bursts straight in with his distinctive vocal ramblings. Frantic acoustic, toe-tapping nonsense. Just what we like to hear.

7. The Ruby Suns ‘Cranberry’ (Memphis Industries)


This track from thee native New Zealander was made in Seattle, although it could easily have been written on a beach in Thailand. Or up a tree in Mongolia. Ryan McPhun is a worldy-wise traveller with a thing for twee indie-pop. And you can’t ignore his varied interests-this track demonstrates this culture clash at its most digestible.

8. Bass Clef ‘Night On Mare Street’ (Blank Tapes)


A dubstep homage to East London’s party street? Yes please. And if anyone has been lucky enough to sample the night-time delights of the aforementioned street, then this is definitely the soundtrack to your debauched adventures: you will hear tunes just like this one pumping out of many an insalubrious basement crack den, er, sorry, club. The tracks ends on a Jamaican note, which is how your night may also end: with a huge slab of jerk chicken and a can of Red Stripe.

9. The Brian Jonestown Massacre ‘Our Time’ (A Records)


Taken from their recent, eclectic 'Who Killed Sgt Pepper?' album, 'Our Time' showcases the band's shoegazing side with Anton playing the angel faced card over a wash of guitar and a propelling rhythm section that equal parts Joy Division, My Bloody Valentine and Can.

10. Sugar Minott ‘Frontline’ (Greensleeves)


This track was produced by George Phang, with Sly & Robbie on the Powerhouse label, who stepped in for Sugar’s 1984 ‘Buy Off The Bar’ album. The brooding dub bass plays a good foil to Sugar’s satin tones. Lyrics detail the ghetto of his Kingston youth, eating ackee and saltfish and generally kicking back.

11. Lissie ‘Little Lovin'’ (Columbia)


From a distant boot heel thud to a flow blown hoe down, 'Little Lovin'' showcases Lissie (Maurus) in a neat four and a bit minutes. She's a little bit country, a little bit rock'n'roll but thankfully shmaltz and rhinestone free. Produced by Band Of Horses' Bill Reynolds, she taps into the history of American music, channeling all the best bits, topped with her own impressive voice.

12. Crookers ‘Remedy (feat Miike Snow)’ (Southern Fried)


Recent single and mid album track on their excellent 'Tons Of Friends' album, the Italian duo of Phra and Bot are joined here by the trio that make up Miike Snow for 'Remedy'. The duo are interviewed in the April issue of Clash Magazine, you can read an excerpt on ClashMusic.com HERE.

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