Weekly Roundup
Having penned a plethora of smash-hit pop tracks for various trailblazers like Ariana Grande and Dua Lipa, singer-songwriter Skyler Stonestreet establishes her own voice on this dreamy indie-pop release. Sweet, dreamily soft but confidently driven vocals grab listeners by the hand and sweep them through the whirlwind romance The Sunshine State reminisces on from years before. Having received warning from a friend who’d been wronged by Bob in the past, Stonestreet recalls the way that awareness of the disgenuiness surrounding her dreamboat’s devotion to their companionship didn’t matter to her in the midst of the exhilaration and adventure that defined the period of time they shared. Budding electric guitar and warm, easy percussion see the track through like a beautifully nostalgic daydream, with occasional flashes of an acoustic and some keys offering a stillness that strengthens the song’s storytelling nature. It’s a peaceful ode to shaking your head at all of the things you’d gotten tangled up in for the sake of precious experience in the past, and a lovely soundtrack to your upcoming summer road trips — preferably sans a no-good sidekick like Bob.
With folky vocals that shake with soul and wind around the track with a chilling rasp that echoes Stevie Nicks at times, this song tells a wistful story of words left unsaid. A relationship left in limbo or abandoned without identifiable cause can leave a lingering sting in the form of racing thoughts in its wake, exhibited here through harrowing lyrics that attempt to uncover what went wrong in a relationship and where that relationship stands now. “And it was all she could do to get through, to get you,” confesses the narrator ahead of the chorus, an admission sharpened by the climbing percussion, cinematic guitars, and vocals that express nostalgia and resigned, unsolvable confusion with an intimacy that’ll tug heartstrings tight. There’s something altogether intoxicating about this song, and upon first listen you’ll find yourself gravitating back with delighted frequency.
These expert indie-pop sad boys are back with another somber-spoken yet sway-inducing bop that’ll have you grooving and on the cusp of your own long-overdue confrontations all at once. Driven by a pleasantly catchy melody that’s layered with summery synths and simple yet earworm-guaranteeing guitar and claps, this track finds members Alan and Steven at a breaking point with someone putting off ending a relationship that they’ve clearly already checked out of. Abandoning such a facade by tucking the anger which is often present with such abandonment between simpler instruments results in a track that is both an irresistibly fun listen and a rewarding release to those through with being led on.
This powerfully infectious new track from indie pop trio Hey Violet sees frontwoman Rena Lovelis nursing a broken heart that’s been dragged through disregard and rejection all the way to unexplained abandonment. Rena finds herself betrayed by the person within whom she spilled all of the love and trust she had, yet she can hardly be surprised, as this person never reciprocated her energy and treated her so passively that she was so often left craving affection she never received and approval she never should’ve felt she needed. The melody is smart and fast-paced, with the groups’ signature edgy twist on pop that shifts between both modernity and nostalgia supporting the confrontational lyrics and frustrated emotions like a crisp breath of fresh air after being submerged below water. All in all, it’s one hell of a track, and a brilliant teaser for their newest EP “Problems” out now.
Future Haunts grab listeners by the chin and force them to take a long, hard, essential look at how the patriarchy constantly touches their lives for the worst in this fizzy guitar-driven track that blends a pleasantly scattered rock instrumental with poignant, introspective lyricism. Comparing the unavoidable grip the patriarchy and toxic masculinity have on our daily lives to a “social glue” we’re all stuck within, the Australian four-piece express bruised bewilderment at their own observations of this harmful societal system in their lives, at a loss for how one can adequately rise above something that infiltrates everything around them. Drawling vocals shift from damning callouts to stirring observations in a way that calls listeners to the only action that might prove helpful in eradicating all of this harm for the future; questioning their own personal perceptions of normal, and challenging the status quo that restricts the world around us all.
How do you part with someone your life would feel empty without? Punky alt-pop powerhouse LØLØ wrestles with this very problem in this playful yet brutally sincere new track, employingcatchy vocal melodies and blazing guitar to do her desperately torn heart justice. Troubled bythe fear of hands gone still after such intermittent periods of wanting to use them either tostrangle their lover or hold them close, she paints a portrait that anyone who’s ever felt damnedby love and its tendency to be anything but black-and-white would find validation within. It’s abanger that also happens to resonate deeply — what more could you ask for in a summeranthem?
Listen to all these songs on our playlist!
Review by: Tori Coker
