- Words Notion Staff
Boy Bleach choose 10 of their favourite bops right now to get you grooving, from Anderson .Paak to Blood Orange and more.
Born and raised in East London, Boy Bleach are made up of two sets of brothers: Lou and Jimi, James and Nick, and their best friend JJ. Rebelling against the manufactured boybands that came before them, they united with a shared desire for free-wheeling escapism in a world full of anxiety.
Their music tackles these generational anxieties: self-sabotaging thoughts, body image, and the pressure of constantly gunning for greatness. With their new single “Perfect Guy”, the boys wanted, in Jimi’s words, to “escape from the confines of toxic masculinity, what it means to be a ‘perfect guy’ and why people feel such a weight to be something they aren’t to please people who don’t deserve it”.
All talented musicians in their own right, their sound is as diverse as their roster of musical influences: everything from New Romantics and Depeche Mode to BROCKHAMPTON and Glass Animals. The boys are all distinctly individual, but their shared passion for creating anthemic pop songs will take them far.
To celebrate their new single, Boy Bleach choose 10trax for Notion to get you grooving, from Anderson .Paak to Blood Orange and Bon Iver. Dive in!
"Polly" by Dora Jar
“Just a bop all round, the melodies and flows are too gas, the production is exceptional. Just one of those songs that gave us instant stank face."
"33 GOD" by Bon Iver
“This song cuts, easily one of our top three artists of all time - whittling it down to one track from Bon Iver was actually really hard but this whole album is amazing - the production is something to admire.”
"Ambivalence" by Hanz, emawk
“emawk has a way of writing that you can’t quite compare with anyone else. Enigmatic lyrics and harmonies, his music is so intriguing and I found myself listening to this over and over again.”
"Liquor Store" by Remi Wolf
“Hook after hook after hook, it’s just mad how bouncy and funky she can be without it sounding oversaturated, it sits perfectly in that pocket. Her music sounds like you can suddenly feel all the colours at once.”
"In Your Room" by Depeche Mode
“We were raised on Depeche Mode, literally all we heard on our way to school - it’s engrained in our want to create music, our earliest music memories are Songs of Faith and Devotion and Violator”
"Tuesday People" by Deaf Havana
“We’ve listened to like a billion songs since this came out but this track has moments of just pure energy and emotion that still give me goosebumps - feels like they were in our heads writing this song.”
"Come Down" by Anderson .Paak
“Just so suave. All you need is a really good loop and Anderson .Paak and it’s a wrap. His delivery is just so enviably entertaining, and that bass tone. Plus his Tiny Desk of this song slaps.”
"Dark & Handsome" by Blood Orange, Toro y Moi
“Honestly anything Dev Hynes is a part of is gonna make a list like this, just a ridiculous talent as is Toro y Moi - my mate sent me this track when I was driving back from uni and it was just the perfect alignment of song and scenery so I get a good feeling when this shuffles on.”
"Everybody Hates Me" by The Japanese House
“I first heard this song on a flight to Barcelona, and I was obsessed with it for about 2 months after that. The vocal prod is insane, if either Amber Bain or Justin Vernon wanna share their vocoder tips with us we’d appreciate it. This song was hauntingly isolating and spilled my mood at a moment where I actually felt quite contained in my life, so that was cool.”
"(No One Knows Me) Like the Piano" by Sampha
“This is just a very special piece of music, the lyrics and the delivery are so genuine and powerful, perfectly done and feels so homely and nostalgic - the vocal is so raw, really feel the intimacy of the concept.”