Playlist Picks: Dermot O’Leary

Welcome to Rolling Stone UK’s Playlist Picks. In the ever growing and all consuming world of music streaming, it’s increasingly hard to find something that really stands out from the noise and might just become your new favourite. So here’s where we step in. Every week, we’ll be recruiting a noted tastemaker and familiar face to tell us the six songs they’re really vibing with at the moment. In turn, we hope that you’ll find something in those songs too. You’ll be able to listen to all the picks on our new Playlist Picks playlist on Spotify.

So let’s get to it, shall we? First up, it’s Radio 2 host and all round national treasure, Dermot O’Leary.

Aaron Rowe – ‘Please Don’t Hate Me’

I haven’t had the chance to have my finger on the pulse in terms of new stuff as much as I would like to ever since I moved to a breakfast show on Radio 2, but Aaron just really resonated with me. He’s such an honest songwriter and there’s a real depth to his voice and his experience. He doesn’t try and dress up as anything other than working class Dublin and it’s got that lovely universal feel that Sam Fender and Lewis Capaldi both have. I’ve seen him play live a few times now and he’s a really, really mesmeric performer. ‘Hey Ma’ is such a great tune about immigration, but it’s his newest song which I really like. We played it on the radio and he’s an amazing talent.

Miley Cyrus – ‘Secrets’

I found this song by accident because it made it onto the Radio 2 playlist and they’re very good to us on Radio 2. They kinda let us play what we want to an extent on the weekend. We can’t go too rogue, but it’s collaborative, and I just loved this song. It’s obviously got Mick Fleetwood and Lindsay Buckingham on there, but it really does sound like an old Fleetwood Mac tune – it could have been on Rumours. It’s got this lovely layered sound and I’ve been getting into a lot of seventies stuff recently. I think Miley’s just got this great voice. There’s a real authenticity to her choices as well. It was probably my favourite song of last year. I just think she’s the real deal.

Sam Fender – ‘Wild Grey Ocean’

I’ve seen Sam a few times and I’m really just so impressed by him. It’s similar to Aaron Rowe, he has this great authenticity and this way of being quite colloquial but with an experience that cuts through universally. I like this song and ‘The Dying Light’ because they’re quite small town songs in many ways. Springsteen is my god, but what I love about Sam is the fact that the comparisons [to Bruce] are real without ever mimicking.

Sam [is] almost lost to Newcastle now, because his life is so removed from what it was. Yet, like Springsteen, he still has that incredible ability to keep the fire in his belly burning and there’s still a great social commentary to it all.

Bon Iver – ‘Speyside’

This song popped up on new releases a little while ago and I just thought it was beautiful. I’ve been meaning to play it on the radio for the last couple of weeks and I keep running out of time, which annoys me because it’s so beautiful. Justin Vernon makes these great songs where you can stop and take stock for four minutes. There’s a beautiful simplicity to it all. I was brought up around Irish folk, so anything that has a warmth and great harmonies, I am always going to be a sucker for.

Dawes – ‘Peace in the Valley’

Dawes are probably one of my favourite bands of the last 15 years. Taylor Goldsmith is such a great lyricist and their debut, North Hills, is my absolute favourite. I could listen to all their records, but there’s a lovely Laurel Canyon sound on this particular record and song off it. They’re very quintessentially Californian, but their lyrics are brilliantly whimsical and melancholy. I love that they’re not afraid to write good songs which are five or six minutes long. They remind me a bit of Wilco too – the lyrics are so beautiful. I think happy people quite like sad songs. I’m a very happy person for the most part, but I really just love this music. They also did a festive song with The Killers called ‘Christmas in LA’ and I’d definitely recommend that.

Medium Build – ‘Cutting Thru The Country’

I discovered Medium Build, or Nick Carpenter a couple of months ago and it’s just been on repeat. I’ve struggled to pick a single song because they’re all so good, but he is honest and original and the hooks are brilliant. It’s hard to find clear blue water between a single song when they’re all so good!

Dermot presents Reel Stories: Rick Astley, available now on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer. He also broadcasts on BBC Radio 2 each Saturday, 8-10am.