The Whyd Team’s Coups de Coeur of 2014

What a year! We’ve welcomed masses of new music lovers to our community, and there is an energy that pulses every day across the network. To sum up 2014, we dropped our Playlist of the Year last week, and we also crowned 20syl the Artist of the Year. 

So now, it’s our turn! We asked the diverse group of music lovers, the Whyd team, what our favorite albums from 2014 are. What do you think?

Shaka Ponk - “The White Pixel Ape”

The French experimental rock band is back with their latest effort, an energetic mix of popular and world music. 

Breton - “War Room Stories”

The Berlin-based group originally from London released this gem under Believe Recordings, strong and unexpected, like mixing whisky and espresso. 

Damien Rice - “My Favourite Faded Fantasy”

Ireland’s darling son croons his way through his latest release, laying earnest poetry atop beautiful melodies with veritable authenticity. 

Father Figure - “Heavy Meddlers”

This album brilliantly reconciles three genres: math-rock, jazz, and progressive rock. The result is pure intellectual and sensorial pleasure, from the first notes to the last. 

SBTRKT - “Wonder Where We Land”

The hidden person behind London’s SBTRKT prefers to have the music speak for itself. This album speaks loud and clear, with his signature blend of hip hop, pop, and electronic styles. 

FKA Twigs - “LP1”

Tahliah Barnett released this, her first full album, this year to immediate success thanks to its complicated R&B mash up of original vocals and familiar pop backing. 

Beyoncé - “Beyoncé”

You know who she is. You can probably sing more than a few of her songs off the top of your head. But damn, she made one hell of an album this year, and gave it a very appropriate name. 

Nick Warren Presents: The Soundgarden

This compilation by the English house DJ of purely instrumental electronic music will give you 3+ hours of mental focus. Use it when you need to tackle a huge obstacle. 

The Hottest Tracks of 2014

Every week we monitor which tracks are racing to the top of the Whyd hot tracks. Every week we listen to an array of awesome songs that rise and fall from the top. Every week the community speaks, and listens, and a winner is crowned. 

The Track of the Weekend has been honoring music for 2 and a half years. 2014 proved even more diverse, as our global community continues to cast a wider net. It’s also starting to get a bit more mainstream, as popular tracks from hot artists get launched on a journey around the world. 

So here they are, all of the Tracks of the Weekend from this year, the definitive playlist of the absolute best music of 2014, as determined by our fabulous community of music lovers:

Never stop jamming!

Quick Interview: Sekuoia’s Other-Worldy Sounds

Sekuoia is an emerging, electronic artist from Copenhagen, being shared like crazy across Whyd, so we went and asked him a few quick questions! 

Hey Sekuoia! How’s it going? When did you start making music and did you ever have a defining moment when you thought: hey, “I can do this!”

All good here in Copenhagen! Yeah, I guess it was when I played Roskilde Festival in 2013. That was a turning point.

Your music often sounds like it comes from another world. How do you start working on a new track? Are you trying to achieve a certain sound or do you experiment and keep what you like?

I guess I have various approaches to making a track. I think it important not to get stuck in routines, as I find this somehow limits ones sound. I guess I just want to achieve a sound that is somehow reflective of who I am, and a sound that is organic in one way or another.

How has your music evolved over the course of your career, and who are your biggest influences?

I think my music has become more band-like and more dynamic, I try not to think to much about it, and instead just develop naturally. Biggest influences would be Flying Lotus, James Blake, Four Tet etc.

What can we look forward to from you in 2015 and beyond?

A new EP, and perhaps also some side projects.

Thanks Sekuoia! 

Track of the Weekend #115: Hayden James - “Something About You”

Hanukkah is in full swing - Happy Hanukkah everyone! 

Christmas is just around the corner - Merry Christmas everyone!

And the New Year is coming fast - too soon to wish you a Happy New Year :) 

All of that means that it’s party time, to get together with friends and family and celebrate. And no celebration can exist without music. This week a new track from the Australian Hayden James called “Something About You" dropped, and it ignited the hot tracks like an outback brushfire. Why? Because it’s the perfect song to fit into your celebration soundtrack: pleasant like a baby koala, hoppy like a kangaroo, and not clichéd, unlike all of our terrible Australian references! 

Thanks to Lucile Araud for sending it up first! 

20syl: Whyd’s Artist of the Year 2014

Since the very beginning of Whyd we’ve been attracted to unique sounds. The first tracks shared across the platform were from obscure artists experimenting with original beats and unheard melodies. Now as we’ve grown into a buzzing community of music curators, we have been fortunate enough to follow the careers of these artists, some of whom have fallen into obscurity, and others who have blossomed into one-of-a-kind masters of their trade. 

Throughout 2013 there was the brother duo of Disclosure that kept on claiming the honor of the Whyd Track of the Weekend. Week after week new remixes and versions of their tracks popped up and shot to the top of the hot tracks. Their dominance was such that we had to come up with a new title for them: Artist of the Year

It was a tradition we wanted to continue this year, so we kept our eye on which artist was being shared the most across the entire global platform. 

No one on Whyd is a stranger to C2C, the DJ group whose album “Tetra” set fire to electronic music around the world last year. Many of our hip hop lovers also know Hocus Pocus. One of the members of these groups kept releasing remixes throughout 2014, and those remixes frequently ended up as the Track of the Weekend. That artist is 20syl

20syl, or Sylvain Richard, comes from Nantes, France. He is an acclaimed turntablist and rapper from On and On Records. We are proud to present this honor to such a gifted artist and music visionary.

Félicitations 20syl! 

Track of the Weekend #114: The Dø - “Miracles” Parrod Remix

As we’re plowing towards the end of the year we are looking forward to everything that 2015 has in store. But first, we have to celebrate the end of this incredible year. Our team is slowly reuniting in Paris, and there are christmas parties on the horizon. Next week we will be announcing the hottest tracks of 2014, along with our favorite albums and the Artist of the Year on Whyd. 

But first, to get you in the mood for the weekend, Parrad's epic remix of The Dø's “Miracle" will rock you to your foundation, turn it up for an epic weekend. 

Thanks to Louis de Sentenac for getting it to us first! 

Chinese Man: The Whyd Interview [in English & French]

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This interview was originally in French and translated into English. Pour la version originale en français, scrollez en bas! All photos courtesy of Chinese Man. 

Hello! You are three people in the group Chinese Man: Zé Mateo, SLY, and High Ku. About 10 years ago you started making music together, how? Was there ever a moment when you realized, “shit, we can really do this!”?

We started to make music together around 2003/04 but all three of us already had experience in the domains of Hip Hop and Electronic music. Our first project was the “Panda Groove EP” (Buy it here) which came out on 500 copies mainly directed towards DJs and people in our entourage.

Then we composed the track “I’ve got that tune” that worked really well and let us launch the group Chinese Man and the label Chinese Man Records.

It was that moment when we said: “shit, we can really do this! We can live off of our music!”

Your track “I’ve Got That Tune” came out five years ago, and we get the impression that a lot of artists are trying to imitate it right now. How did you create such a unique sound back then? 

The magic of creation. When we produced that track, we were trying to redo the paint at our studio in Ardèche. Sly unfortunately caused the ladder to fall, which hit the turntable that was playing the original of “I’ve Got That Tune.” The record went to 45 speed and we had the revelation. Incredible. We couldn’t get enough of it! 

It’s the same with your original verses, rapped in English! For a group from France, why English? Did Molière already use all of the good rhymes? 

It’s true that Molière wrote some great punchlines in French! But the reasons are much more simple: our primary musical influence is anglo-saxon music and mostly 90’s Hip Hop from the US so it seemed logical to us to collaborate with MCs that expressed themselves in English. And that language sticks better to our music, quite simply! 

You are on the third volume of the “Groove Sessions,” a series that began in 2007. How have the sessions evolved since the beginning? How do you approach these records?

The Groove Sessions project is a series of compilations from the artists on Chinese Man Records, the goal is to present the label’s work from one or more years. So it’s a series that lets out different groups on Chinese Man Records to experiment and express themselves differently from other albums. 

The main evolution of Groove Sessions comes from the number of artists present since 2007, adding Deluxe, Taiwan MC, LeYan or Skoob le Roi to the label. 

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What can we look forward to from Chinese Man in 2015? 

Right now we are working on a new EP that should come out in spring featuring new compositions and remixes from other French artists (High Tone, Fakear…). 

We will be touring in France and abroad with our latest show too. There will also be a lot of news from the label in 2015 with the new record of the group Deluxe, Taiwan MC’s project, and a lot of other surprises! 

Thanks guys! 

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Bonjour! Vous êtes 3 dans le groupe Chinese Man, Zé Mateo, SLY et High Ku. Il y a 10 ans, comment est-ce que vous avez commencé de créer la musique ensemble? Est-ce que il y avait un moment ou vous avez rendu compte que “putain, on peut vraiment faire ça!!”? 

On a commencé à faire de la musique ensemble vers 2003-2004 mais si on avait tout les 3 de l’experience dans le domaine du Hip Hop et de la musique électronique. Notre premier projet a été le “Panda Groove EP" sortit à 500 copies et principalement destinés au DJs et aux amis de notre entourage.

Puis on a composé le morceau “I’ve got that tune” qui a bien marché et qui nous a permis de lance le groupe Chinese Man et le label Chinese Man records. C’est à ce moment là qu’on s’est dit: “putain, on peut vraiment faire ça, on peut vivre de notre musique!”

Votre track “I’ve Got That Tune” a sorti il y a 5 ans maintenant, et on a l’impression que beaucoup des artistes essaient de lui imiter en ce moment. Comment est-ce que vous avez créé ce son atypique à l’époque? 

La magie de la création. Au moment de produire ce titre, nous étions en train de refaire les peintures de notre studio en Ardèche. Sly a malheureusement fait tomber l’échelle, un coup sur la platine qui était en train de jouer l’original de I’ve got that tune. Le disque est passé en 45 tours et nous avons eu la révélation. Incroyable. Nous avons tous repris des lasagnes ce soir là… 

C’est pareil avec les verses rappé en anglais! Pour une groupe avec ses origins en France, pourquoi l’anglais? Molière avait-il pris déjà toutes les bonnes rimes? ;) 

C’est vrai que Molière a écrit quelques bonne punchlines en français! Mais les raisons sont plus simple: notre influence musicale principale est la musique anglo-saxonne et plus principalement le Hip Hop US des 90’s donc il nous semble logique de collaborer avec des MC qui s’expriment en anglais. Et puis cette langue colle mieux à notre musique, tout simplement!

Vous êtes sur número 3 des “The Groove Sessions,” une series qui a commencé en 2007. Comment les sessions ont évolué depuis son début? Comment vous approchez ces disques? 

Le projet des Groove Sessions est série de compilations des artistes du label Chinese Man records, le but est de presenter le travail du label sur une ou plusieurs années. C’est donc une série qui permet aux différents groupes de Chinese Man records d’expérimenter et de s’exprimer différemment d’un album.

La principale evolution des Groove Sessions se situe au nombre d’artistes présent puisque depuis 2007, Deluxe, Taiwan MC, LeYan ou Skoob le Roi on rejoint le label.

Qu’est qu’on peut attendre de Chinese Man dans 2015? 

Nous travaillons en ce moment sur un nouvel EP qui devrait sortir au printemps avec de nouvelles compositions et des remixes réalisés par d’autres artistes français (High Tone, Fakear…). On sera également en tournée en France et à l’étranger avec notre dernier show.

L’actualité du label va aussi être assez riche en 2015 avec le nouveau disque du groupe Deluxe, le nouveau projet de Taiwan MC et plein d’autres surprises!

Track of the Weekend #113: Panthère - “Storm”

The northern hemisphere darkens as December begins. Night falls before our afternoon coffees. It’s a time of transition, towards the bitterness of winter. If there was one song that could contain this feeling, and relate to the inner turbulence in us all, it’s “Storm" by Panthère, the most popular track on Whyd this week. 

You will recognize the voice of Nili Hadida, the singer from Lilly Wood and the Prick, and the beats come from some of the dudes at Club Cheval. It’s a challenging sound, accompanied by a steamy video, indulging the forbidden parts of our mind and desires while ultimately rewarding our self exploration with muted satisfaction. 

Thanks to Maxime M. from Coloring My Clouds for sharing it with us!

West Coast Hip Hop: Playlist of Reference

Our new initiative at Whyd is to provide excellent playlist of reference that revolve around a specific subgenre or theme of music. But we don’t want to just give you music, we want to give you the story of its creation, and curation.

Music is awesome, music with context is what we should all strive for. 

Today we’re featuring the West Coast Hip Hop playlist curated by Slimane

Can you introduce yourself Slimane? Where are you from and what do you do in life? 

My name is Slimane, I’m 23, and I come from Caen, Normandy, although I now live in Paris. I started to work for a start up in the field of social media 6 months ago. 

When did you start listening to West Coast Hip Hop?

I guess my first experience with West Coast Hip Hop was Snoop (“Doggy” at the time!) Dogg’s “What’s my name.” I got hooked by the G-Funk sound, the crazy synthesizers and the laid back yet technical flow.

What are some example situations when you would listen to this playlist yourself?

Anytime! What’s good about West Coast Hip Hop is that it’s both chilled and intense. Best suited for cruising under the sun I guess, but it works fine at parties or whenever you want to get pumped up.

If you had to choose just one track from this playlist, which one would be your favorite?

It would be Eazy-E’s “Real Muthaphukkin Gs.” There’s everything a good west coast song needs: a whining synth, a crazy bassline, and to me it’s the definite beef-song, Eazy-E and his friends thrashing Dr. Dre and Snoop Doog. It’s a classic!

  • December, 2 2014
  • update
  • new blog
  • design
  • whyd
  • style guide

New Blog Design!

Look around you, notice anything different? As we modernize all of the Whyd properties, we are bringing everything in line with our style guide: large, beautiful images; a cleaner, brighter feel; and a simpler layout.

All of these elements are designed to put the content forward: to let our music lovers shine and to help our community more easily access the wealth of media that we have and continue to produce. Special thanks to Loïck for his vision and to Damien for putting it in place!  

Since the beginning of this blog back in 2012, we’ve featured hundreds of artists, playlists, and tracks of the weekend. We have made announcements and explained updates. We’ve pointed out funny things that happen too. And most importantly, we’ve laid out and reaffirmed our vision.

There are many exciting things coming to Whyd is 2015, and we can’t tell you enough how happy we are to have you with us.

Never stop jamming!

PS: Like the new design? Hate it? Tell us what you think [tony at whyd dot com]