Even after countless numbers of spins over the last few months, “From Africa to Málaga” by jj still proves to be an especially potent song for me. The song, from the mysterious bands debut album JJ N° 2 out on Sincerely Yours, sounds like the Very Best remaking “Do You Realize.” The track is based on a shimmering electronic beat and exposes an unknown singer finding that it is “too easy to cry, when everything eventually dies/If not today, then maybe tomorrow.” The song has sad undercurrents that nearly pull the listener completely under before the bright electronics mesh with the lyrics which talking about taking pain and “Turning it into art.” The song succeeds in making the most of the strange mix of melancholy and bright optimism and is one of my favorite songs released this year. The whole album is a great and hopefully we will be hearing more from this jj, even if we never find out who she/they really are.

jj “From Africa to Málaga” (mp3)

Official