The Two Awesome Tracks You Should Hear Today

We listen to a lot of songs here at Popdust, from lots of different places. But today we’d like to spotlight one particular sort of song: the kind that gets gushed over by music blogs, but never reaches as many fans as it deserves to. Not all of these songs are good, mind you; too many times, the real gushing’s done by publicists. Not here. We have listened to–and re-listened to–both these songs on our own initiative and our own accord. Won’t you do the same? Your week deserves it.

WILLY MOON, “RAILROAD TRACK”

When we last wrote about Moon, it was for “I Wanna Be Your Man,” one of the few tracks that manages a new approach to the “retro meets modern” cliche. Call it moon rockabilly, perhaps: the vocals come from the ’50s, but the skittery clatter beneath them sounds like nothing more than the future as interpreted by 2003 Timbaland.

We said we couldn’t wait to see what he did next, and here it is. It’s slightly less original, as you will notice within five seconds. The track itself’s built on a sample “Walk With Me” by the Arc Choir–the same one Kanye West used for “Jesus Walks.” That said, if you’re going to emulate any Kanye song, you could do far worse, and there’s a grit to Moon’s vocals that “I Wanna Be Your Man”‘s spacey production had previously masked.

And besides, Kanye might namedrop Jesus, but did he sample “Black Sabbath“?

ALISON VALENTINE, “PEANUT BUTTER”

If you thought Willy Moon and “Bo Diddley remixed by Swizz Beats” was a killer concept, try this one, by New York artist Valentine: “SebastiAn and Janet Jackson go to the beach with the Tom Tom Club.” That’s a name-droppy way of saying “Peanut Butter” is pure joy, with squelchy vocals playing off a feather-fine chorus and a house track that sounds breezy and fresh even when it seems like they’re all pop-house tracks. “Don’t you ever go away,” Valentine sings, before her voice dissolves into bits; she’ll have enough fans before long saying the same.

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