Jordana – ‘Is It Worth It Now?’
Figuring out life isn’t usually a dreamy process, but Jordana’s new single makes it feel that way. A bright guitar line drifts over twinkling synths and a laidback bassline as the Kansas musician asks the big questions: “How much time is left for you to work it out? / Is it worth it now?” The 22-year-old describes the song as being about “questioning decisions and leaving self-pity and excuses behind”, but her approach to doing so feels refreshingly gentle and thoughtful.
Björk – ‘Atopos’
“Our differences are irrelevant,” Björk sings over bass clarinets, rolling out the ‘r’ in a way that almost mocks anyone who thinks otherwise. ‘Atopos’, the first song to be taken from the Icelandic star’s upcoming album ‘Fossora’, puts society’s clashes under a microscope (“Are these just excuses to not connect?”) and offers hope in the face of them lyrically, but the music turns its focus elsewhere. Pounding drums come in near the song’s end, while the interweaving melodies tumble and fall over each other. It’s discordant and overstimulating at times, perfectly reflecting the constant doom-tinged barrage of modern life.
Greentea Peng – ‘Top Steppa’
“Three-legged march forward into my chest, I shoot arrows,” Greentea Peng sings on ‘Top Steppa’, the latest track to be taken from her upcoming mixtape ‘GREENZONE 108’. It’s a deliciously shadowy piece of neo-soul, the south London singer commanding attention with low-slung vocals over a growing instrumental of slinking piano and dubby drums.
Suki Waterhouse – ‘Nostalgia’
Nostalgia is often framed as an indulgent negative in our modern world – a refusal to be in the moment, overlooking what’s good right now in favour of past glories. In her first piece of new material since her debut album ‘I Can’t Let Go’, though, Suki Waterhouse revels in the romance of reminiscing. “Together, forever, nostalgia / It’s crazy, baby, I want you,” she sings longingly on this elegant dive back into an old relationship, a song so softly addictive it makes you want to dive back with it.
Jackson Wang – ‘Blue’
One of the highlights of Jackson Wang’s second album ‘Magic Man’, ‘Blue’ switches things up from the record’s previous singles. Where ‘Blow’ and ‘Cruel’ presented strutting, stomping bangers, their successor dials things back to a more emotional, raw base. “When the sky is on fire / I know that I can run wild / With you,” Wang rasps, minimal guitar strums cushioning his admission: “I’m so blue.”
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