Golden Features
Thomas George Stell (born 1991), known professionally as Golden Features, is an Australian deep house / dance DJ and producer currently signed to Warner Bros. Records. Three singles, "Tell Me" featuring Nicole Millar, "No One" featuring Thelma Plum, and "Wolfie" featuring Julia Stone; received listener's votes for the Triple J Hottest 100. They were listed, successively, at No. 101 in 2014, No. 92 in 2015, and No. 70 in 2016. Golden Features performed at the Hard festival in 2016. His debut album, Sect (26 July 2018), reached No. 11 on the ARIA Albums Chart.
Golden Features | |
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Birth name | Thomas George Stell |
Born | 1991 (age 29–30) |
Origin | Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |
Genres |
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Occupation(s) |
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Years active | 2013–present |
Labels | |
Associated acts | Bronson |
Website | goldenfeatures |
Biography
Tom Stell has performed as Golden Features since 2014.[1] When Peking Duk members, Adam Hyde and Reuben Styles, relocated from Canberra to Sydney they shared a house with Stell for a year.[2][3] He recalled, "Those two are like my brothers and without both of their support and guidance the Golden Features project never would have seen the light of day."[2]
Stell was previously Bomber in an electronic duo, Kyro and Bomber, with Kyro Herbert.[1] They combined with DJ Tigerlily (p.k.a. Dara Hayes) to release a single, "Look at the Lights" (featuring Jenifer Chung), in September 2013.[4] It is co-written by Stell, Herbert and Hayes;[5] which peaked at No. 14 on the ARIA Club Tracks chart.[4] Another charting single, "Every Nation", was attributed to the Mane Thing and Kyro & Bomber featuring Oh Snap!, using remixes by J-Trick, Spenda C, Jamie Vlahos, Pop the Hatch, and Rouge.[6] It had reached No. 45 on the same chart in March of that year.[6]
Golden Features adopted a gold mask for performances and initially maintained his anonymity. He explained, "You go out, you do whatever you have to do, you put it out there in the world, and you don't expect personal credit for it. You just do it because it satisfies you... I didn't want my face plastered over things just because I prefer to have a character that I speak through."[7] As a solo artist, he released a four-track self-titled extended play in February 2014.[7] After he revealed his name, he observed, "it became a gimmick and people became more interested in who is making the music rather than the music itself. So I cut it off and put my face up everywhere. The initial idea was like the music speak for itself, it backfired but I stand by it."[3]
The producer provided a remix version for the Presets' single, "No Fun" (August 2014), which made it to No. 13 on the ARIA Club Tracks.[8] His EP provided a single, "Tell Me" featuring Nicole Millar, in the following month, which reached No. 14 on the ARIA Dance Singles and No. 7 on the ARIA Hitseekers Singles charts.[9] It missed being listed on the Triple J Hottest 100, 2014, and was placed in the Second Hottest 100 (101–200) at No. 101.[10]
The artist's second four-track EP, XXIV, was issued in July 2015, and reached No. 56 on the ARIA Singles Chart.[11] The reviewer from Oz EDM felt, "[he] is known for his genre-bending signature sound (apart from his Mask)... [the EP] offers nothing short of amazing production and originality and genuinely is something for dance fans to get excited about."[12] Its lead single, "No One" featuring Thelma Plum, peaked at No. 58 on the same chart.[11] It was listed at No. 92 on the Triple J Hottest 100, 2015.[13]
Included on XXIV was "Telescope" featuring K.Flay, which the reviewer noticed provided, "intriguing RnB style vocals" by Flay and "offers a somewhat new style of what we have come to expect from Golden Features. Showing light elements of trap, 'Telescope''s upbeat tempo is less dark than the rest of the tracks."[12] In 2016 he released, "Wolfie" featuring Julia Stone, which reached No. 70 in Triple J Hottest 100, 2016.[13] Pilerats' Troy Mutton described, "it proved a little surprising to some. Not the out-and-out dark and brooding banger we've come to expect from [him], rather something sweeter, less intense. It's so sweet in fact that it's named after – and features a sound byte from – his young nephew... [Stone's] twee, Australian lilt is toned down ever-so-slightly to create something that is somehow both melancholic and euphoric."[14]
Golden Features supported Alison Wonderland on her tour of the United States in 2016 and undertook his own headlining tour of the US in February of the next year.[15] He released his debut album, Sect, on 26 July 2018, which reached No. 11 on the ARIA Albums Chart and No. 1 on the iTunes Chart.[16] Rudi K of Sputnikmusic rated it at 4.0 and explained, "[it] won’t do anything to dissuade critics of the cliché that Australia is perpetually one step and vast oceans behind everyone else when it comes to breaking new ground... but there are worse artists to draw inspiration from. For now, SECT introduces a distinctive enough sound to make the future enticingly dark."[17]
Discography
Studio albums
Title | Album details | Peak chart positions |
---|---|---|
AUS [16] | ||
Sect |
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11 |
Collaborative albums
Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | |
---|---|---|---|
AUS [19] |
US Dance [20] | ||
Bronson (with Odesza as Bronson) |
|
23 | 5 |
Extended plays
Title | Details |
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Golden Features |
|
XXIV |
|
Raka (with The Presets) |
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As lead artist
Title | Year | Album |
---|---|---|
"Tell Me" (featuring Nicole Millar)[22] |
2014 | Golden Features |
"No One" (featuring Thelma Plum)[23] |
2015 | XXIV |
"Wolfie" (featuring Julia Stone)[24] |
2016 | Wolfie / Funeral |
"Falling Out"[25] | 2018 | Sect |
"Worship"[26] | ||
"Always"[27] | ||
"Woodcut" (featuring Rromarin)[28] | ||
"Paradise" (with The Presets)[29] |
2019 | Raka |
"Raka" (with The Presets) | ||
"Heart Attack" (with Odesza as Bronson; featuring Lau.ra)[30] |
2020 | Bronson |
"Vaults" (with Odesza as Bronson)[30] | ||
"Dawn" (with Odesza as Bronson; featuring Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs)[31] | ||
"Keep Moving" (with Odesza as Bronson)[32] |
Remixes
Year | Title | Artist | Note |
---|---|---|---|
2014 | "No Fun" | The Presets | |
"Years of War" | Porter Robinson | featuring Breanne Düren and Sean Caskey | |
2017 | "Lose It" | Flume | featuring Vic Mensa |
2018 | "Memories That You Call"[33] | Odesza | featuring Monsoonsiren |
Mixes
Year | Title | Song | Artist | Note |
---|---|---|---|---|
2014 | Hidden City | "Voices" | Fake Blood | |
"Baby F-16" | Panteros666 | |||
"Turn It Up" | Mercer | Tchami Remix | ||
"Must Be Love" | Riton | |||
"Lately" | Jade Blue and Frequency |
Vox Remix | ||
"None A Them" | Hannah Wants and Chris Lorenzo |
|||
"Roadgame" | Kavinsky | ID Remix | ||
"Maybe We Are Different" | Golden Features | |||
"Give Me Back The Nights" | Brodinski | |||
"Guillotine" | Golden Features | |||
"Go Harder" | AC Slater | featuring Dell Harris | ||
"Moderation" | Light Year | |||
"Turn Of Phrase" | TACHES | |||
"Feel Good Inc." | Gorillaz | ID Remix | ||
"Tell Me" | Golden Features | featuring Nicole Millar | ||
2017 | Diplo & Friends Mix |
"Guillotine" | Golden Features | VIP Mix |
"Diamonds" | Malaa | |||
"Dynamite" | Boys Noize | featuring Benga | ||
"Baxter" | Golden Features | |||
"No Fun" | The Presets | Golden Features Remix | ||
"Let There Be Light" | Justice | |||
"New Wav" | Madeaux | featuring Kaleena Zanders, Wuki Remix | ||
"Into The Night" | Nero | |||
"Tell Me" | Golden Features | featuring Nicole Millar | ||
"Television Rules The Nation" | Daft Punk | |||
"Do You?" | Golden Features | |||
"Lazer Beams" | Green Velvet and Harvard Bass |
Golden Features Remix | ||
"Wolfie" | Golden Features | featuring Julia Stone | ||
"Years Of War" | Porter Robinson | Golden Features Remix | ||
"No One" | featuring Thelma Plum | Golden Features | ||
"Saturate" | The Chemical Brothers | |||
"2 Live" | Boys Noize | |||
"Guillotine" | Golden Features | |||
"Propaganda" | DJ Snake | Habstrakt Remix | ||
"Funeral" | Golden Features | |||
"Etude" | Nero | |||
"D.A.N.C.E." | Justice | |||
"Telescope" | Golden Features | featuring K.Flay |
Notes
References
- Collar, Matt. "Golden Features Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
- Hitch, Georgia (6 August 2014). "Golden Features: The Man Behind the Mask". Pulse. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
- MacIntyre, Kieran (13 August 2015). "The Australian Takeover: Part II: Golden Features". Monsters & Critics. Retrieved 26 January 2017.
- Wallace, Ian (18 November 2013). "Week Commencing ~ 18th November 2013 ~ Issue #1238" (PDF). The ARIA Report. Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) (1238): 20. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 November 2013. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
- "ACE Repertory – Work ID 893736230". American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP). Retrieved 21 December 2018. Note: user may have to enter the title/performer for other tracks to access further information.
- Wallace, Ian (18 March 2013). "Week Commencing ~ 18th March 2013 ~ Issue #1203" (PDF). The ARIA Report. Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) (1203): 20. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 March 2013. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
- staff writer (9 April 2014). "Golden Features Is Big in Australia Right Now – But Who Is He?". Thump. Vice. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
- Wallace, Ian (8 September 2014). "Week Commencing ~ 8th September 2014 ~ Issue #1280" (PDF). The ARIA Report. Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) (1280): 20. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 September 2014. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
- Wallace, Ian (20 October 2014). "Week Commencing ~ 20th October 2014 ~ Issue #1286" (PDF). The ARIA Report. Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) (1286): 17, 21. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 October 2014. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
- staff writer (1 February 2015). "These songs just missed out on a Hottest 100 placing". FasterLouder. Archived from the original on 3 February 2015. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
- Wallace, Ian (6 July 2015). "Week Commencing ~ 6th July 2015 ~ Issue #1323" (PDF). The ARIA Report. Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) (1323): 4, 16–17, 21. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 July 2015. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
- "Album Reviews: Golden Features – XXIV EP". Oz EDM. 2 July 2015. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
- "Search Hottest 100 Archive". Triple J (Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)). Retrieved 22 December 2018.
- Mutton, Troy (December 2016). "Golden Features unveils new double-A side, 'Woflie' feat. Julia Stone and 'Funeral'". Pilerats. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
- Kallenbach, Kris (23 January 2017). "Golden Features Hits the Road with Wolfie Tour". The Nocturnal Times. Retrieved 26 January 2017.
- "Discography Golden Features". australian-charts.com. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
- Rudi K (9 August 2018). "Review: Golden Features - SECT". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
- Meadow, Matthew (27 July 2018). "Golden Features drops one of the year's best albums with "Sect"". Your EDM. Archived from the original on 28 July 2018. Retrieved 29 July 2018.
- "ARIA Australian Top 50 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. 17 August 2020. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
- "Top Dance/Electronic Albums: The Week of August 22, 2020". Billboard. 22 August 2020. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
- "Raka – EP by Golden Features & The Presets on Apple Music". Apple Music AU. 15 November 2019. Retrieved 19 October 2019.
- "Tell Me (feat. Nicole Millar) [Radio Edit] – Single by Golden Features on Apple Music". Apple Music AU. 2 May 2014. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
- Davies, Hayden (5 June 2015). "Listen: Golden Features – No One feat. Thelma Plum". Pilerats. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
- "Wolfie / Funeral – Single by Golden Features on Apple Music". Apple Music AU. 29 November 2016. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
- "Golden Features teases his forthcoming debut album with steamy new banger, Falling Out". Pilerats. 23 March 2018. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
- "Listen to Worship, the second single from Golden Features' debut album, SECT". Pilerats. 12 June 2018. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
- Davies, Hayden (13 July 2018). "Golden Features channels Justice for heavy-as-hell new single, Always". Pilerats. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
- "Woodcut (feat. Rromarin) [Remixes] – Single by Golden Features on Apple Music". Apple Music AU. 14 December 2018. Retrieved 26 July 2018.
- Carr, Debbie (11 October 2019). "The Presets and Golden Features take us to 'Paradise' in new collab single". ABC. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
- Newstead, Al (29 April 2020). "Listen to the first tracks from Odesza & Golden Features' new project BRONSON". ABC. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
- Mao, Jessica (30 June 2020). "Bronson enlist Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs for 'Dawn' [Stream]". Dancing Astronaut. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
- Narozniak, Rachel (21 July 2020). "'Keep Moving' with BRONSON's latest single, music video". Dancing Astronaut. Retrieved 5 August 2020.
- "A Moment Apart (Deluxe Edition) by ODESZA on Apple Music". iTunes Store. Retrieved 14 December 2018.