This week’s list had a striking balance of blasts from the past and fresh young faces with their feet firmly planted in the door, on the journey to becoming household names. Twenty years ago Jagged Little Pill was released, to honor the benchmark Alanis Morissette issued a Collectors edition with extra tracks, including Superstar Wonderful Weirdos. And while we’re on the subject, Chance The Rapper highlights his eclectic nature on his latest “Angels.”
A new month is upon us; what better way to honor this new beginning than with all new music. Head over to Spotify for your new weekly favorite, and take a peak at New Music All Stars for this week’s best, as well as 90 other stellar songs from weeks past.
10. Refuse by Kevin Garrett
Another bright star in Roc Nation’s new talent lineup, Kevin Garrett shows us he knows how to pound the pavement with his latest single, that quickly followed his debut EP Mellow Drama in April. Refuse starts out with soft pianos, and keeps a slow but deliberate pace, paired nicely with his signature falsetto that sets his voice and style apart.
9. Flesh Without Blood by Grimes
Like a monster in a Pixar film, Grimes gets a rap for being lo-fi spooky, full of baroque poppiness and ‘witch house’, but still comes off nice and sweet. Flesh Without Blood is fully danceable and easy to get into, it’s only when you stop to listen to its cutting lyrics like “I don’t see the light I saw in you before” that you pause to think, a little harsh Grimes. She is an artist best enjoyed when all senses are activated, be sure to check out the video that plays out like a Baz Luhrman version of Marie Antoinette.
8. Fela by NVDES
To get an idea of what style music you’ll experience with NVDES look no further than their radioactive cantaloupe cover art; all business on the exterior, juicy trippy grooves in the funky core/soul of the group. Their work comes fresh out of Los Angeles, with only two other songs under their belt. There’s been speculation that the group is a formation from members of already well-known bands, but as the wha-uh-ahs of the chorus suck you in, you’ll be far from being too concerned. Good music to use while dubbing over the famous dance scene from Pulp Fiction.
7. Out Of Touch by Betablock3r
The kings of Nu Disco are back with another track, this time the easy breezy Out Of Touch. It’s a good (slight) variation/contrast to In My Head, which put the pair from LA on the map for themselves this year. While In My Head is more sit back and let the track unwind, Out Of Touch takes it up a notch and asks you straight to your face, Am I Out Of Touch? With an EDM groove like this one, not in the slightest.
6. The Hurt by Diego Boneta
There’s no denying that the beat on The Hurt carries the same pace as Gary Glitter’s football classic Rock ’N’ Roll (Part 2). The song could easily stand as a sweetly coated football warm up anthem, particularly as the singer blurts out the song’s mission statement, “I don’t want the love, I want the hurt.” The multi talented singer and actor is a pretty big deal in his native Mexico, having starred on the soap opera Rebelde, and though he’s just 24, his first album was released in 2005. After a stint on CW’s 90210, Boneta is looking to make a bigger name for himself stateside with his flourishing music career.
5. Thank God For Girls by Weezer
Straight from the creators of the alt rock pseudo ballads comes a string of run on sentences dedicated to the fairer sex in all their magnificent forms. From Tennessee to LA. the band is praising females, though I’m sure that was a small geographic oversight, and the band digs girls at least to Nova Scotia. What’s on the forefront of every Weezer fan’s mind is certainly, does this mean there will be a new album from the crew soon? After scouring the internet the magic 8 ball has confirmed that it is decidedly inconclusive. Keep your eyes on these guys for indication of more sweetness to come.
4. Memoir by Villagers
It takes a truly gifted act to be able take a track and make it sound better live in studio, but Villagers has accomplished just that. Recorded at RAK studio in London, the band took the jazz infused melodies, now five years old, and gave it a softer more fluid feel. Fans of Charlotte Gainsbourg will recall her breathy version, but few know the song was actually created by the Villagers. The good news of course is that the track stands solidly on its own in both versions.
3. Hello Miss Lonesome by Marlon Williams
It’s funny how you don’t have to be a fan of banjo or related genres to get into a track like Hello Miss Lonesome, it’s frenetic pace pulls you in like a tornado at the beginning, only slowing down to spit you out at the end. Oh and don’t forget about the beautiful Spanish guitars in the middle. The song seems seeped in the rodeo and ten gallon hats, but proving that good music is universal no matter the style, the musician is a Kiwi currently living in Melbourne.
2. Gold by Kiiara
There’s a brief flashback on Kiiara’s dynamic Gold to the era of exercising with a skipping disc player (RIP, we don’t miss you) where the track is remixed into a pattern of skips and blips. But like Rumpelstiltskin spinning straw into gold, Kiiara takes the staccato notes and turns it into a badass beat that’s likely to have the song blow up for her in a big way. Further proof? The song’s featured in an Apple Watch commercial featured the uber cool Chloe Sevigny.
1. Mess Around by Cage The Elephant
With a vibe that feels like it’s been soaked in California, and massive popularity throughout the UK, it’s easy to overlook that this band actually hail from rockstar sparse Bowling Green, Kentucky. Mess Around is the first peek into new music from the band in two years, the album following later this year in December. Mess Around takes you on a dizzying ride of Ahhs and Oh No!s, leaving you feeling spent by the end of the song. It ain’t nothing to mess around with.
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