British Music

Hopefully you've downloaded the new Chiddy Bang mini-mixtape Air Swell. (If not you can get it HERE.) The tape was made during Chiddy's trips to England to do shows, and promote their EP. And in typical Chiddy fashion, they used mostly British artists as samples for the tape. This got me to thinking. While Chiddy did a great job with the samples, these artists are good in their own right. Unfortunately, their success and exposure does not always transfer over here in the states. So I am going to highlight two of the artists, Kate Nash (sampled on "Breakfast"), and Ellie Goulding (sampled on "Under the Sheets"), and hopefully get some people interested in them, as they are both extremely talented.

I first heard of Ellie Goulding when I was in England this past fall for three months. Her style is a kind of blend of folk and electro, as odd as that sounds. She has been in the spotlight for a while, and finally put out her debut album Lights (produced by British super-producer Starsmith) this past March, which I highly recommend checking out. Here's "Starry Eyed," which carries the same electro feeling of "Under the Sheets," while also showcasing Ellie's unique voice.

I had never heard of Kate Nash until I listened to Air Swell, but I thought the sample of her on "Breakfast" was probably the best on the tape. So I looked into her, and I really like her style. Like Ellie, she is kind of a blend of acoustic/piano/electro, and has a very unique voice. Some say she over-states her accent, but I think it's fine. Chiddy samples "Skeleton Song" on their tape, but I'm going to give you guys her more popular song "Foundations." This song uses a bouncy piano beat, which contrasts with the pessimistic and somber lyrics. Anyways, it's a great song, as are the rest off Ms. Nash's Made of Bricks.