This morning a friend sent me a message about Greentea Peng and there was a very brief exchange about whether it was her real name. I almost mentioned Buzzy Lee, because I’d been listening to her stuff, and it seemed unlikely that Buzzy Lee could be a real name. Although, and this is where my thoughts went next, she does sound like the kind of person who could have the kind of parents who might call a kid Buzzy. I don’t mean people from Burnley who conceived on eccies and wanted to commemorate the fact, I mean American buzzheads. In my head, these ones are quite posh and they always drive Volvos in films.
About 2 minutes googling later I collided with a huge lump of wrongness. Buzzy Lee’s real name is Sasha Speilberg and at least one of her parents directed Jaws. So she didn’t have the kind of parents who would call someone Buzzy, nor does Stephen Speilberg strike me as a big buzzhead. He probably had a Volvo at some point, which means I probably get half a point.
The Buzzy Lee thing is story-telling, with that air of shiny, sunny, glamour and decadence that wouldn’t really work if she had been conceived in Lancashire. The album is called Spoiled Love, which nails it, like an old peach that went off in the back of Lana Del Rey’s Buick or something. Definitely not a Volvo. The production through the album gives the whole thing a lift, steering us clear of troubadour clichés, partly thanks to Nicolas Jaar, who first hit my radar with releases on R&S in 2015. In other words, he’s got techno credentials pumping out of all his woofers.
Julia Holter’s edit of Strange Town goes a step further away from song structure in favour of synth wash. It lends an sensation of tethered, weight breeziness, mirroring the lyrics´ talk of luck, lane changes, slot machines, and misdirected navigation. Little choices with potent consequences tied in. In this case, I guess the Strange Town is a destination that works, by accident.
THIS WEEK
Buzzy Lee – Strange Town (Julia Holter edit)
769 views since 2nd June Weekly Average Views – 598
LAST WEEK
Ikram Bouloum – The Game
Weekly Average Views – 244 Blog Week Views – 105
EXTRAS
Buzzy Lee – Strange Town
Buzzy Lee = High On You
Nicolas Jaar – Fight