Scene Queen shares of the new track: “’Tracksuit’ is what would happen if you combined my two favourite things: y2k fashion and terror. The song is meant to feel like a continuous train of thought from when you bust in the door of your home and see a tracksuit that isn’t yours (imagine thinking SCENE QUEEN wouldn’t notice a tracksuit that isn’t pink) to when I get arrested for murder. The message is simple: don’t cheat on SCENE QUEEN because she is crazy.”

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Scene Queen has shared a spectacularly graphic new single, ‘Finger’. Taken from her upcoming debut album Hot Singles In Your Area – which is due out in ‘late 2024’ – the latest effort from our favourite bimbocore star is, according to Scene Queen herself, “about my queer awakening”. She continues: “I also wanted to flip the script on songs written to sexualise women in a way that was for a man’s pleasure. I wrote this song about two women experiencing things equally. So the song is vulgar like any sexual song but with a woman driving the narrative about her own body and taking control of her own pleasure with step-by-step instructions.” Even more brilliantly, Scene Queen says that the accompanying music video “features a dance made to be accessible to anyone both sitting or standing. I wanted to feature that in the video because, as someone who struggles with POTS, I was at one point completely unable to dance like I do standing in the video. So I wanted something to make everyone feel included because sexuality and pleasure is something everyone can and should be able to relate to.” [via Kerrang!]

Yaya Bey shares the latest offering from her forthcoming album Ten Fold with the new single ‘sir princess bad bitch’. Serving as one of the album’s centerpiece statements, the song and its accompanying video embody the complexities of Yaya’s identity as a genderqueer person, with her stating resolutely that she is “no other thing but the thing I am.”

Call Me Spinster has released ‘Burn the Boxes,’ the latest single from their debut album Potholes, out April 12 via Strolling Bones Records. With its jovial bluesy groove and a New Orleans-inspired trumpet to boot, the new song is an empowering anthem about breaking free from societal expectations and re-defining life on your own terms. ‘Burn the Boxes’ arrives with a playful music video, showing the group reusing pieces of cardboard as the colorful backdrop for this impactful metaphor about change. Call Me Spinster on the new single: “‘Burn the Boxes’ is all about tearing down and re-defining terms – of relationships, of our contract with societal institutions. It felt fitting to rip apart and reuse cardboard boxes to make something colorful, haphazard and beautiful – a reminder that change takes the creative, destructive and playful mind of a child.” On the music video: “Amelia’s husband Dan got the idea for this music video at 7 in the morning, groggily watching our six and two and a half-year-olds crafting away, hot-gluing cardboard dioramas and a dollhouse they are perpetually retro-fitting with found objects. By 10am we were deep in a cardboard frenzy, the assembly line led by six year-old Amos and our art director friend Chad. We sent our kid off to first grade the next morning exhausted and still covered in spray paint, but proud of his first (and likely not last) production design credit.” [via Broadway World]

Bambie Thug has shared the music video for their upcoming Irish Eurovision entry ‘Doomsday Blue’. The Cork-born artist leans into black magic in the new video, which follows the story of a witch who inadvertently conjures up a strange creature after casting a spell to make a new boyfriend. It’s a brilliantly vivid visual that is no doubt set to wind up a small but vocal minority in Ireland who weren’t too happy and dared to accuse Bambie of promoting Satanism after they triumphed earlier this year with the alt-rock track. “I think it was quite iconic to have created such uproar. I’m pissing off the right type of people – people who suppress love, compassion, understanding, people who are slaves to their programming, transphobes, the far-right and a few priests so it seems,” Bambie explains. [via Rolling Stone UK]

Ariana Grande has released her second single, ‘We Can’t Be Friends (Wait For Your Love)’, from her new album Eternal Sunshine — and the music video is heart-wrenching. The singer recently released her chart-topping album,and her latest music video to come from the album pays tribute to the movie which inspired it: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. The video shows Grande taking on the character Peaches, who finds herself at the “Brighter Days Inc” doctor’s office to undergo a procedure to erase her painful memories of an ex. The video harks back to the film, which sees Jim Carrey’s Joel and Kate Winslet’s Clementine having similar treatment. Behind the short film is ‘Yes, And?’ director Christian Breslaur, while Dahmer actor Evan Peters appears alongside the singer as her ex. Her character moves through her memories of her ex, triggered by a box of his things. The video sees Peters’ character winning the singer’s character a bear at the arcade, recalling an argument they had in the middle of the night, making snow angels together, holding hands in bed, and sharing a very 16 Candles moment with a kiss over a birthday cake; all of which get deleted from her memory. Then, in perhaps the most heartbreaking scene of the music video, Peaches wakes up crying and clutching at her necklace. She bargains with the medical team to “keep this one please”, and they re-attribute Peters giving her the jewellery to a collar for her dog. In the end, her character seems relieved that her painful memories are no longer there hugging the doctors before her box of things is incinerated. Later, Grande’s character seems to have moved on with someone else, as did Peters’, when they walk past with no recollection of each other. Grande said in an Apple Music interview with Zane Lowe that the song is open to interpretation, but sums up “the album in a video”. “I think it can be applied to any kind of relationship, really, especially when you see the video. I think you’ll understand the importance of it,” she said. [via Pink News]

Allison Ponthier has shared new single ‘Skin’. Out now, it was seemingly prompted by a memorable concert, with Allison Ponthier left enraptured by her favourite artists. There’s a twist, however – she felt genuinely obsessed with the artist. Hailing from Dallas, Allison’s neat melodies and unerringly accurate pen have brought critical plaudits, with songs like ‘Cowboy’ going viral. ‘Skin’ takes her a step further – musically, it recalls everyone from boygenius to Japanese Breakfast, while also lacing in subtle hints of Americana. She comments: “I had this complicated feeling where I absolutely loved the show but also felt overwhelmed with jealousy — I wanted it to be me so badly. I left the venue with the lyrics to the verse in my head and assumed it would become a ballad, but when I went into the writing session I got the idea to sing ‘I wanna wear your skin’ at the chorus. I love how it sounds horror-movie-esque but describes a very real feeling I was afraid to express out loud.” The video was shot by Julian Buchan, taking stylistic cues from 90s thrillers. The clip co-stars Ponthier alongside Independent Spirit Award-nominated actor Suzanna Son. “I’m really attracted to writing songs that explore my weaknesses, and the challenge of ‘Skin’ was to create something that gave a voice to my inner saboteur,” says Ponthier. “I wanted to talk about feeling like you’re not good enough — which is something that every single person goes through — but to do it in a way that’s got some levity and feels upbeat and fun.” [via Clash]

Delilah Bon has just unveiled a triumphant new single called ‘Maverick’. The song’s release coincided with International Women’s Day (March 8), and as such Delilah explains that it’s about “self-worth and reclaiming your confidence, reminding yourself that you belong in the rooms you don’t always feel welcomed in. It’s about looking yourself in the mirror and believing in your power without needing the approval of others.” Excitingly, a press release also confirms that ‘Maverick’ is a “sneak peek into her upcoming second album, set to be released later this year” – so keep your eyes peeled for more on that… [via Kerrang!]

A rising star in the punk underground, Kate Clover recently announced her new record, The Apocalypse Dream, due out April 5. Following the release of ‘Damage Control’, which came alongside her LP announcement last month, now sees a video-only release of her raucous second single, ‘Like A Domino’. The video, directed and edited by Clover, spoofs a late-night talk show performance, and sees her and a cadre of backup dancers broadcast their new dance, “The Domino” to the world. Speaking on the origins of ‘Like A Domino’, Clover said, “I overheard a conversation where a woman told her friend she “played him like a domino”. Intrigued by this sentiment I wrote the chorus with the phrase. I like the innuendo it exudes. With this theme in mind, I enlisted my choreographer friend Sandi Denton of Rated Z dancers to create an original dance to accompany the song, titled “The Domino”. It’s a nod to the twist, the mashed potato and the Loco-motion. I wanted this song to be a garage rock banger that gets people up on their feet and prod some fun.”

Los Angeles indie-poppers the Marías made a name for themselves with their first two EPs, 2017’s Superclean Vol. I and 2018’s Superclean Vol. II, and they were already a big deal when they released their 2021 debut album Cinema. Since then, the Marías have truly blown up, collaborating with big stars like Bad Bunny and Young Miko. Early this year they collaborated with LA producer Eyedress on the singles ‘Separate Ways’ and ‘A Room Up In The Sky.’ Now, the Marías have announced their sophomore album Submarine, and they’ve dropped a pretty great lead single. Submarine comes out this spring, but we don’t have a tracklist or any details yet. What we have is ‘Run Your Mouth,’ a sleek and funky new track. Bandmates María Zardoya and Josh Conway wrote the song, and Conway produced it. It’s a warm and genuinely catchy fuck-you song. The glammed-out video, directed by regular collaborator, looks like a ’90s Gap commercial. Here’s what Zardoya says about the track: “This was one of the first songs Josh and I wrote on Submarine. I was conflict avoidant at the time, and whenever someone wanted to talk about something serious, I’d run and hide. I learned that was a protective mechanism and I didn’t have the capacity to open up. There’s no other song on the album like it, hope you dance to this one.” [via Stereogum]

Toronto-born, Los Angeles-based alternative sensation Abby Sage treats her audience to a captivating video for ‘Three Floors, Three Doors,’ the focus track from her debut album The Rot. The project released March 1st via Nettwerk. The second track of the album, ‘Three Floors, Three Doors’ juxtaposes a dreamy sonic profile with Sage’s uncomfortable realization that she can never return to the innocence she had as a child. The song tears down and rebuilds everything she thought she knew, admitting and welcoming the uncomfortable fact that change is inevitable. Like the rest of the album, ‘Three Floors, Three Doors’ was made in collaboration with London-based production team MyRiot aka Roy Kerr and Tim Bran (who worked on Sage’s 2022 The Florist EP). “Three Floors, Three Doors’, to me, is the realization that nothing can be erased. Everything I’ve been taught and have experienced will always live inside of me no matter how badly I want to pick and choose what I keep and what I let go,” Sage explains. “It describes a spiraling moment I had one evening where I felt like I was looking at my body from three floors above. From above, I could clearly map everything out and think rationally but when I returned to my body nothing had changed, I still felt everything I had before.” The accompanying music video serves as a captivating voyage of self-revelation, offering viewers a glimpse into Abby’s mind as she struggles with, and eventually embraces the concept of interconnectedness. With figures draped in both black and white, the video presents a compelling visual dichotomy – symbolizing the complexities of memory and perception, echoing Abby’s internal conflict as she navigates the contours of her own psyche. “‘Three Floors, Three Doors’ deals with acceptance of self and the vertigo of change in your journey,” Sage continues. “Masks have been this visual throughline in the project so far, and I think they worked especially well here to capture the feeling of struggle and the different masks you wear along your journey. I also wanted to demonstrate that struggle through the choreography. The scene with the two doors specifically, shows the push and pull of navigating through two sets of choices to find the right path forward.” [via Broadway World]

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Born from Riot Grrrl, VENUS GRRRLS are an alternative rock band from Leeds. From twinkling synth motifs to raspy guitar lines, the girls present the dark yet empowering discourse surrounding their own synergistic experiences. Seeing someone you care about manipulated, demeaned, and have their self-esteem crushed by a narcissistic individual can evoke a sense of helplessness and frustration. ‘Liar Liar’ is written from the abuser’s grip, but encourages the idea that people can reclaim their autonomy, rediscover their worth, and ultimately, forge a path towards renewed emotional well-being and empowerment. The band say, “‘Liar Liar’ took some time to finish, both lyrically and instrumentally. The topic, often very personal and contextual was something I wanted to make sure was adequately represented despite its vast nature. The idea was that the ‘narrator’ of the song has become aware of the dynamic of another relationship, and that it isn’t necessarily a good dynamic. Spotting patterns of emotional manipulation and abuse, the narrator seeks not only to empower the victim but to let the perpetrator know that they’ve figured out what’s happening despite the ‘games’.”

Acclaimed indie R&B singer, songwriter Celine Love shares the gorgeously cinematic music video for her new single ‘Gold Plated Tears’. The track is taken from her upcoming new EP Colouring In, out on October 26. Following the release of her breezy, summer single ‘Candy Eyes’, the new single slows the pace down and showcases Celine’s love for indie and folk music. With a haunting guitar riff at its core, Celine’s gorgeously sultry vocals take centre stage. Lyrically, it explores situationships that you find yourself pouring too much of yourself into. She says, “I am a sad guitar girl at heart and find that I get to be me truest as an artist when writing with an instrument in my hand. My love for Jeff Buckley definitely comes to light in this track through dark and deep metaphors with an emotional and soulful performance. The song is about a situationship I poured far too much of myself into. The first half was written when I was still very confused about it. By the time I recorded the song and wrote the rest of it I was more angry and hurt, which is why the song takes a turn emotionally. The idea behind the ‘gold plated tears’ line was a happy accident because I was simply trying to make the song fit the colour theme of the EP. However once I wrote that line, it shaped the meaning of the track. Tears were spilled because of the sadness and anger I felt but because I get to create art from my experience they became valuable. Plated in gold. I can only hope the listener is inspired to be true to their emotions. This is one of the most honest songs I’ve ever written, and I especially struggle writing about people who have hurt me. If sining or crying along to the track can give anyone some sort of catharsis, then the message has been delivered.”

“Our hostess starts out perfect, but gradually begins to unravel as the song progresses,” says SURVIVAL GUIDE, a.k.a. Emily “Agent M” Whitehurst (former vocalist for punk standouts Tsunami Bomb) about the deranged Stepford Wives treatment for her video for ‘Pie,’ the third single off her fourth full-length electropop Survival Guide album deathdreams, out October 19 via Double Helix Records. The vivid metaphor in the lyrics as a protector (“Let me bubblewrap you / Hide you from his eyes”) begins to reveal itself as she dreads younger women having to endure some of the darker things she’s been through. The song’s origin as a “basic demo” with just a “weird clicky drumbeat, a few bass synths and the vocals” was fleshed out at Mesa, AZ’s Flying Blanket Recording Studio with producer Bob Hoag (Dear and the Headlights, The Ataris, The Format) who added in some various layers in production to make the song shine. “Bob really filled it in with harps, violins, mellotron flutes and so much more, and turned it into this unique song,” she says. “Also, I really love desserts and baking, so I’m excited that I figured out how to make pie such a focus in one of my songs.” “Some of the instrumentation on ‘Pie’ gave it a hint of a 1950s sound, which inspired video director Bryan Heiden and the team at The Motivated Mind Group to create the look and feel of the music video,” she adds on the video’s treatment. “Even though the song isn’t literally about pie” she laughs, “we all wanted to use the imagery of it, so we filmed a cooking show set in the ‘50s. I loved getting to attempt all the different emotions that went into this character. And since I enjoy baking so much, it was super fun to do an exaggerated version of a baking show for the video. It even comes with a few commercial breaks!” The deviant ‘Pie’ video follows in tune with the previous action-packed videos: ‘Lady Neptune’ which follows a narrative driven ‘rise and fall’ type story that features a plot of a character who wants something more out of life, but ends up choosing organized crime,” and the macabre and blood-splattered short film-esque music video for ‘Blood Perfume,’ which stars Em as a deranged serial killer who outsmarts her victims.

London-based newcomer Lola Wild shares her debut single ‘Rendezvous’ via Tip Top Recordings. The single, a pensive indie burner for fans of artists like Angel Olsen, Sharon Van Etten and Chromatics, is the first to be taken from her forthcoming debut EP. The single is accompanied by a striking music video featuring showgirl dancer Coco Belle and directed by Jack Satchell and Mars Washington. ‘Rendezvous’ is a retro-tinged ode to pansexuality and sexual fluidity. The story of the single holds a more poignant meaning than the up-beat crooney, Fosse inspired video lets out. Written about two same sex lovers and the social pressures of where they should sit with their sexuality and gender roles, the song recounts Lola’s own experience at the time she began exploring her sexual identity. It details the challenges faced by two friends falling in love and fear of the judgement and stereotypes that came with it. Of her new single, Lola says: “Bob Fosse is one of my biggest idols, he influenced the choreography in the music video. Films like Sweet Charity and Cabaret inspired me to make music in the same way that Fosse made films. He created an entire signature style through embracing insecurities and experiences, ditching emulation and embracing individuality. I never thought that ‘Rendezvous’ would end up turning into a queer love song. It’s loosely based on my own experiences and the stereotypes I faced when exploring my own sexuality.”

Scene Queen has released a new single, ‘Pink Push Up Bra’. “I wanted a song about finally getting the Justice you deserve because I realize that doesn’t happen for a lot of women,” she explains. “I was having a not so great day that ended up turning into one of my new favorite songs. The idea for the song actually came to me in the shower as I was getting ready for the studio session because I was feeling very triggered that day. I was an hour late to the session because of it, but knew it would be a quick write. The whole song top to bottom took about 2.5 hours total to write and record. It’s probably my most rage-filled song and one of my heaviest. I hope anyone that relates gets the Justice they deserve or at least can use it as an outlet for all the complex emotions that go along with the trauma of assault.” [via Dork]

This past Friday, CHAI released their new self-titled album, the Japanese group’s fourth full-length overall, and they’ve been rolling it out over the last few months with ‘We The Female!,’ ‘PARA PARA,’ ‘NEO KAWAII, K?,’ and now they’re sharing the video for ‘GAME’. Here’s what the group’s MANA had to say about it: “Winning isn’t the goal, it’s the strategizing and challenge that matters♡ So it doesn’t matter if you lose. Take that loss and turn it into an even better strategy! Life’s a game! We made the video with our lovely friend Ginger Root♡ It’s fun and NEO KAWAII♡ As long as you’re living, you can play the game as many times as you want. Be honest to your heart, don’t take it too seriously, and live life.” [via Stereogum]

Experimental pop artist Eartheater has released her sixth full-length studio album Powders. The project is available via her own label, Chemical X, and features the previously released singles ‘Pure Smile Snake Venom’ and ‘Chop Suey.’ The latter is a blissed-out cover of System of a Down’s nu-metal classic. Producers and contributors on Powders include Yves Rothman, Sega Bodega, Lecx Stacy, Casey MQ, Elliott Kozel, Tony Seltzer, Luis Aponte, Isaiah Barr, Sammy, and Kiri. Powders arrives alongside a video for the album track ‘Crushing.’ Andrew Thomas Huang, who has previously worked with Björk, FKA twigs, and Kelela, directed the video, which culminates with Eartheater shattering a wine glass with her extraordinary voice. In a statement, Huang says, “The video concept for ‘Crushing’ arose out of a mutual intention between me and Alex [Eartheater] to focus on process instead of results. After long conversations about the themes of chance, entropy and chaos behind Powders, we landed on the idea of breaking a wine glass with Alex’s voice as a simple, powerful performance act. The resulting video is builds to this climax while drawing inspiration from the aesthetics of erotic thrillers of the early 90s, the introspective surrealism of Albrecht Durer’s Melencolia, and the ‘memento mori’ eroding dice collection of the late actor magician Ricky Jay exhibited at the Museum of Jurassic Technology. Ultimately, ‘Crushing’ is a portrait of the artist as an observer contemplating the unraveling universe both in the external world and in the crashing inner depths of the heart.” [via The FADER]

Lime Garden are a Brighton four-piece who, whilst growing into adulthood together, are writing coming of age indie-rock with the influence of the modern pop culture that surrounds them Horrifying and brilliant in equal measure, Lime Garden’s video for new single ‘Love Song’ dropped earlier this week at your peril! Last week, the band announced that their debut album One More Thing will be released next February and they’ll be going on a big ol’ UK tour so they can bring all your favourite newbies to life. The debut album One More Thing is the band’s love letter to the indie music they surrounded themselves with in their formative years, as well as a statement of love, fear, gratitude and embracing imperfections. [via The Fat Angel Sings]

Sadness & Complete Disappointment have released the second instalment of their forthcoming GBH EP. The ‘B’ of the EP, ‘BARB’, is out now. Says drummer and lead vocalist Esmee Baker, “Everyone thinks this song is about someone called Barb. And I am happy to let them believe that. BUT alas, it is not. My grandmother’s name was Barbara though – she changed it to sound more English – yuck. BACK TO THE SONG – this one is simultaneously about wanting to fuck someone’s brains out (not grandma), but also knowing they are a terrible person. And then it’s also about how, no matter how we wile away our mortal hours, we are all on the slow march to the grave (like grandma).” As is becoming the band’s signature move, a delicate and atmospheric overture of falsetto vocals gives way to a magnificent riff-edged finale.

Girli has released a new video for ‘Matriarchy’. The single follows her 2023 EP why am I like this?, and arrives to coincide with a headline tour of North America. She says of the track: “I wrote ‘Matriarchy’ about sapphic relationships and how they feel like an act of rebellion towards the patriarchy. Women are taught that they exist for the male gaze, so when women love women, it’s like putting a massive middle finger up to the homophobic, transphobic, misogynist, patriarchal society we live in and saying “f**k you, I exist and I’m gonna have fun”. Existing in the female gaze feels so liberating. When I’m in love with a woman, it feels like we’re rewriting the rules of society and creating our own brand-new world.” Of the video, she adds: “I wanted to create a dreamy her-storical matriarchal world ruled by sapphics, set in a forgotten era of the past. We shot the video at a palatial manor house and had an amazing cast and crew of women. It’s sensual, powerful and queer. It’s the kind of music video I wish I’d seen growing up and figuring out my sexuality.” [via Dork]

Pop sensation Slayyyter has just released the highly anticipated music video for her latest single, ‘I LOVE HOLLYWOOD!’ The track is part of her new album, STARFUCKER, which has been generating buzz among fans and music critics alike. The ‘I LOVE HOLLYWOOD!’ music video exudes a sense of glamour and extravagance, perfectly capturing the essence of the album’s theme. Set against the backdrop of the luxurious Chateau Marmont, the video features stunning visuals, vibrant colors, and Slayyyter’s signature edgy style. It is a true visual feast for fans and a testament to Slayyyter’s creative vision. [via Foggy Media]

Last year, the impossible-to-categorize New Jersey artist 070 Shake released her album You Can’t Kill Me. This year, Shake appeared on RAYE’s massive UK pop hit ‘Escapism’ and on Christine And The Queens’ ‘True Love,’ and her sampled voice popped up on the Fred again.. banger ‘Danielle (Smile On My Face).’ Right now, Shake is touring American stadiums as Coldplay’s opening act. She’s got another new LP in the works, and she’s just dropped its first single. The new 070 Shake song ‘Black Dress’ is a banger. Shake recorded the track with her longtime collaborator Dave Hamelin and with Johan Lenox, a producer who’s done a lot of work with Metro Boomin. Shake has been performing ‘Black Dress’ live all year. It’s a ghostly, pretty song with heavy, churning guitars, blurry synths, and trap 808s — the kind of thing that might happen if the Deftones tried to make a Future song, or vice versa. The song’s Noah Lee-directed video starts out with Shake stuck in a tree, hanging from her parachute, with the wreckage of a crashed plane strewn on the ground around her. From there, things get psychedelic. [via Stereogum]

In addition to dropping her fourth studio album, Scarlet, Doja Cat also released a music video for her song ‘Agora Hills.’ The song is the ninth track on Doja‘s latest album, and has already amassed over 1 million views on YouTube. The highly stylized, mildly hellish video features Doja Cat in several unique outfits, hanging with friends at a dystopian mall setting, as well as sitting on a sign that says ‘Agora Hills.’ The video is directed by Hannah Lux Davis & Doja Cat. [via American Songwriter]

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Manchester based talent Freak Slug has shared details of her new EP. The songwriter dips into 80s indie pop tropes, adding something surrealistic, hazy, and somnambulist. New EP Viva la Vulva – an excellent title – lands on May 3, and it finds Freak Slug moving into a fresh space. Informed by the roots of her adopted city Manchester – think The Smiths, Durutti Column – Freak Slug also adds something startling, and new. Lead single ’27 Club’ is online now, and it’s the perfect fusion of light and shade. She comments: “’27 Club’ juxtaposes happy melodies with sharp sarcastic lyrics about losing somebody you loved to suicide and wishing you’d have known how to be there for them before the age of suicide awareness, reminiscing about how you met, and who they could have been if depression didn’t take over.” [via Clash]

Scene Queen has released a new single, ’18+’. With the song calling out sexual abuse and grooming in the music industry, a portion of the single’s net profits will be donated to anti-sexual violence organisation RAINN. Scene Queen says of the track: “I wrote ’18+’ to be controversial and I hope that’s what I’ve achieved. When I wrote the song I made it my mission to make something that sounds like an intense personal call out but also broad enough that it covers an entire epidemic within the scene. Having people arguing over which band I might be upset with, arguing over security measures taken place in the scene, or even arguing whether the lyrics are good or just borderline unsettling is the exact point of the song: to get people talking about what we’ve refused to talk about in the scene the last ten years. When I left the scene around 2015, because it no longer felt like a safe space for women, I swore that if I ever came back I would make it my mission to set fires until it was safe. I alluded to this heavily on Bimbocore Vol. 2 with my song ‘The Rapture (but it’s Pink)’ featuring Mothica, but ’18+’ is me finally making the first step into that. Predatory behavior is something that has been happening in the scene for years and still happens now. If I waited for the perfect time and the easiest way to start the conversation, I would never get the chance.” [via Upset]

Bristol-based post-punk grungers Peach release their second single ‘I’m Scared’, along with an enjoyably sinister video produced and directed by members of Holding Hands With Horses collective Lee Kiernan of fellow Bristolians Idles and artist Charlotte Gosch. The vid emits serious Wicker Man vibes as the four-piece cavort uncertainly in the countryside with a group of masked and be-ribboned figures. The song alternates between a fierce wall of sludgy guitars and wailing from singer Ellie Godwin and quieter, more spacious interludes with gasped, whimpered vocals. Written by all four members, the band say the song is: “about having that fear to do something completely out of our comfort zone, and the continuous battle of excitement and fear in making good or bad choices.” Godwin’s impressive, versatile voice takes us on a whole trip through to that dark side and back again, at times recalling (for this listener) Jennifer Finch, Kat Bjelland, Mitski, early PJ Harvey and perhaps Katie Jane Garside. [via Loud Women]

Thai multidimensional songwriter and creator Roskamala has just unleashed the latest single and visuals from her upcoming EP. Called ‘Loving Mess’, the upbeat pop anthem features singer Lia Apa and is an intoxicating listen. ‘Loving Mess’ is a song all about self acceptance and trying again and again with love even if you fail. The autobiographical narrative was written as a self reflective look at Roskamala’s own issues and flaws but in a lens of acceptance, knowing that she is always trying to improve herself. Lyrics including,”Let’s be fools / break the rules / if you make me fall for you / see what this loving mess can do,” show that Roskamala is ready to make herself vulnerable for the one she desires. ‘Loving Mess’ reminds us all that while we have baggage, we can still be brave and open to experiencing love in all of its forms, even if we are afraid. Sonically, the single features bright hip-hop drenched landscapes, decadent soul-drenched vocals and cathartic melodies full of fervor and heart. In the accompanying visuals, Roskamala plays a barbie like doll figure in a colorful ice cream parlor where she is brought together with a ken like doll by three mysterious figures for an interesting and thought-provoking watch. [via Earmilk]

100 gecs have unveiled the video for their new single ‘Dumbest Girl Alive’, taken from their just dropped album 10,000 gecs. The electro-punk duo, comprised of Dylan Brady and Laura Les, have been teasing the release of 10,000 gecs since December last year, when they released the surprise Snake Eyes EP. They followed this up with the release of singles ‘MeMeMe’, ‘Hollywood Baby’ and ‘Doritos & Fritos’. [via Dork]

The Ghanaian-American singer Amaarae impressed a lot of people with 2020’s The Angel You Don’t Know. She’s popped up here and there in the two and a half years since, but now she’s ready to start rolling out a new album. It’s called Fountain Baby, and its lead single ‘Reckless And Sweet’ is out now. The song brings an eerie, almost PinkPantheress-like quality to booming, cinematic African pop production founded in drum programming but laced with acoustic guitar. [via Stereogum]

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In the aftermath of Roe v. Wade’s overturning, Dove Cameron wants to make an impact with her new music video. The singer and Emmy-award-winning actress reverses gender roles in the powerful visual for her song ‘Breakfast.’ Following up on her queer anthem ‘Boyfriend’ from earlier this year, Cameron builds an alternate universe in the ‘Breakfast’ video. Opening with a TV reporter declaring Roe v. Wade’s impact on men, the Lauren Dunn-directed video liberates women at their expense. “With this video, I want to show the disturbing contrast between stylized femininity and masculine power and the gender stereotypes that plague our social commentary,” Cameron says. “I want the audience to notice how strange it is to watch the roles be reversed and it was important to highlight how ingrained these roles really are in our nervous systems.” The video’s ’70s-inspired costume and set design call back to the early movement for abortion rights, which culminated in the Roe v. Wade decision. However, Cameron acts out a thought-provoking twist, where men are the ones stripped of autonomy and forced to fight for their reproductive rights. Wearing an oversized suit, she leaves her husband at home before heading to an office full of female executives and male assistants, turning gender roles on its head. In the spirit of the chorus, “I eat boys like you for breakfast,” Cameron proceeds to be brazenly abusive of the men around her. She inappropriately kisses, touches and feeds alcohol to an underling, who then has to run out for an abortion (which the doctor shames him for as he lies vulnerable in stirrups). However, Cameron’s fantasy of female domination eventually comes to an end. In the final few seconds, news commentators describe the present reality of abortion rights being rolled back, and Cameron is left to settle with the true state of the world. “This is a video to remind us that ‘how it’s always been’ should never be a reason for desensitization or upholding broken systems,” Cameron says. “Hopefully by re-contextualizing these familiar scenes, this video will encourage people to vote for a world where we leave gender discrimination as a thing of the past and stop bringing the past into the present.” Cameron concludes the video with the words, “This is not the end,” before offering four “direct ways to get involved” through abortion funds, voter registration efforts and other organizations working towards gender equality. These include Supermajority, EMILY’s List, Headcount and National Network of Abortion Funds. [via PAPER]

Fauness has put out a new EP every year for the last four years, and now she’s finally ready to put out her debut album. Cora Gilroy-Ware, the art historian and musician behind the project, will release Fauness’ first LP, The Golden Ass, in October. Now, she’s sharing the sparkling pop song ‘Mystery’ as the album’s lead single. “For a while I’ve been thinking about how the concept of ‘Mystery’ is obsolete,” Fauness said in a statement. “Transparency and complete exposure seem to possess the beguiling, coveted allure that mystery once had.” She continued: “The song is an elegy to the idea of mystery, and for the video I wanted to create an embodiment of the concept, a masked character who makes her way into the sea and disappears. I thought that there’s no one better to narrate Mystery’s passing than the maenad, a type of nymph from Greek mythology. Holding her tambourine and sacred staff, a thyrsus, the maenad describes Mystery’s departure from this world.” [via Stereogum]

‘Better’ is a nostalgia-soaked piece of indie-pop/rock from the delightful Yugambeh/Gold Coast duo GENIIE BOY released alongside the accompanying music video. Hot on the heels of the groovy ‘Shaky Ground’, this new single ‘Better’ marks their third release for the year – a cruisy tune packed with warmth and effortless feel-good guitar-driven rhythm. Its magic is punctuated by clever drum fill motifs, polished production and Alisha’s distinctively silky voice that shines in the foreground, as well as in the catchy accents of backing vocals that are bound to have listeners smiling along. Listening once is good, but twice is definitely better. The song was written about the lifelong pursuit of ‘betterness’, and the many ways we duck and weave the obstacles of modern life to find it. Alisha elaborates: “The old saying – ‘if you love something, you’ve gotta let it go’ is almost the entire moral of this story, and that perhaps if we ‘let go of our hold’ on things, we can see the bigger picture more clearly.” In pure GENIIE BOY fashion, they bring all their creative joy and larger-than-life humour in the accompanying music video as they explore a day in their life when performing on breakfast TV – giving the producers a heart attack. Always going the extra mile in their extravagant music videos, all hands were on deck to prep each of their giant paper mache heads before diving head first into this self-produced clip.

Polish techno misfit VTSS (real name Martyna Maja) shares ‘Body Mind Hell’, taken from her vocal-led mutant pop forthcoming EP, Circulus Vitiosus out September 16 on Ninja Tune. Across four tracks, her musical character steps further into the light, backed up by razor-sharp production. From recently released ‘Make You Scream’s deadeye hooks and devastating seduction to the self-reflexive, low-slung ‘Incredibly Annoying’, ‘Body Mind Hell’ is a fever-dream of physical intimacy that teases with a confidence all too often denied to women in the hypocrisy of male-defined societal values. The meaning is many-layered as a sample repeats, “out with the old, in with the new,” with VTSS embracing the liberation of this new self-defined sphere she moves in. It’s the perfect summation of Maja’s intentions with this release, to not hold back on what she wants to explore about herself and the identity she is shaping. It gives away something of herself, but only she knows for sure how much. For the rest of us, we’re learning as we go, and every cryptic line feeds our curiosity.

ALASKALASKA have shared new single ‘TV Dinners’ in full. The group remain impossible to pin down, sitting somewhere between gilded synth pop and free improvisation, nestling up against South London’s much-vaunted jazz and post-punk scenes while retaining a curiously original identity. New album Still Life – out on October 14 – spins the creative dials once more, with Simian Mobile Disco’s Jas Shaw helping to align their flood-tide of ideas into something approaching coherency. ‘TV Dinners’ was constructed during one of our many lockdowns, and it’s a stream-of-consciousness ode to the pleasures of time alone. Left-field moves that still feel resolutely ‘pop’ in its loosest sense, ‘TV Dinners’ is neatly melodic while also billowing past any boundaries, or preconceived rule set in its path. Lucinda Duarte-Holman comments… “‘TV Dinners’ was the only song on the album written during lockdown (the rest were written previous to Covid). I wrote it in about 20 minutes as a stream of consciousness kind of poem. Very literal. Even though, like a lot of people, I wasn’t really sure what to do with myself under the circumstances, I was still really quite happy to have some time doing nothing – noticing the way the light changed in my flat and the sound of the birds and trees outside. I felt a real sense of privilege that I was able to enjoy a space in time that for a lot of people was incredibly testing on so many levels. And with that privilege, a sense of guilt: “What once was bliss, becomes a certain kind of ignorance.” We all take part in it in some way – you can change the channel if the news becomes too much, or steer away from doom-scrolling, and I think you should as a way of protecting yourself, but I also think it’s important to recognize that its a privilege to be able to do so.” [via Clash]

Margo Price is starting to roll out a new set of songs. We don’t have any news on a new album yet, but she’s billing her new single ‘Been To The Mountain’ as the start of a new era. She wrote the song with husband Jeremy Ivey, and Jonathan Wilson produced it during a weeklong stint at Fivestar Studios in Topanga Canyon. The song’s punchy strut is matched by the music video, directed by Courtney Hoffman in Los Angeles. A quote from Price: “’Been To The Mountain’ is part one of an introspective trip into our subconscious. It is the perfect continuation of my search for freedom in my art and freedom in the modern age. I have a lot of high hopes for this next chapter and truly believe this is the most exciting music I’ve ever made in the studio with my band. We have all grown so much, we operate like one single organism – it’s telepathic. Courtney Hoffman brought my wild visions to life with the help of an incredible cast and crew in the music video. I wanted the story’s hypothetical 8 to 12 hour window to feel like a mini-lifetime. We also wanted to portray how an intense psychedelic experience has the potential to become a spiritual experience, and how that can change your perception of the world around you.” [via Stereogum]

Rising LA-based pop trailblazer Grace Gaustad has shared their new single and music video for ‘Old Ways’ – taken from their upcoming multimedia concept album PILLBX: whts ur fantasy?. Each track from the album will be released like an episodic mini-series, culminating in Summer 2023. ‘Old Way’s is a stunning piano led pop ballad, that showcases Grace’s cathartic and triumphantly considered songwriting at its most raw. The music video sensitively and artistically captures Grace interacting with past versions of themself – resembling self-growth, new mindsets, and evolution of identity. Speaking about the track they say: “’Old Ways’ is one of the more personal records on the album. For me, it represents the desire to revisit the past with all of the knowledge I know now. Old habits and old people hold value because there is safety in the devil we know as opposed to the devil we don’t. I think everyone has wished to revisit old versions of themselves in hopes that maybe by redoing the past, they could rewrite the future.”

London pop figure Liz Cass is an over-sharer. Someone who pours every ounce of her soul into her music, incoming debut album The Words finally affords Liz Cass a broader landscape to work with. Out on October 21, it’s led by new piledriver ‘Near Miss’, an alt-pop statement that delves into her thoughts on relationship. Refined, finessed electronic pop, ‘Near Miss’ is “about not wanting to give up on someone when they can’t figure out what they really want. When you’re not ready to let go but have that need to be able to look back and say you gave it everything you had.” Brisk of vocal and buoyant of chorus, ‘Near Miss’ is a deliberate attempt to re-shape the narrative around Liz Cass’ work As she puts it: “The song shows a different side to me and comes from a less melancholic place. I was in a better headspace when I wrote ‘Near Miss’ and wanted to reflect that with some really uplifting pop. There’s no more wallowing from me… At least for a while!” A jewel of a single, we’re able to share the Conrad Gamble directed video, which takes you around the singer’s favourite East London haunts. [via Clash]

On new track ‘End Of My Life’, Kailee Morgue unpacks the pressures of young adulthood. Anyone who’s reached a certain point in their 20s will know that life looks very different depending on who you are. One of your friends might be getting married, while the other solo travels the world, the other lives solely to party, and the other’s on a career drive just two steps away from being CEO. This tapestry of circumstances is one of the beautiful things about our younger years – there are so many options, but equally, look around and you may well think: “What the hell am I supposed to be doing?” ‘End of My Life’ sees the Arizonan alt-pop artist platform this pressure of feeling time’s scarcity despite being merely at the beginning of adulthood. Inspired by the Bridget Jones Diary book series, Morgue’s fears of getting older are brought to life by a light-horror-esque music video, both symbols of her long-standing love of light entertainment forms like ‘90s movies and soap operas. She channels this into her own brand of “coming-of-age” art which she uses to empower her inner teenage self and likely many young listeners of today. The good news is that ‘End of My Life’ is taken from Morgue’s newly announced debut album Girl Next Door – due on October 28. [via Wonderland]

Scene Queen and Set It Off have collaborated on new single ‘Barbie & Ken’. Scene Queen says of the new track: “This song is the perfect combination of the crazy chaotic hyper feminine “Bimbocore” sound my music has combined with the high energy and theatrical sound of cinematics era Set It Off. I was so excited to get in a session with Cody in general but the collab that it morphed into was honestly more fun than I could’ve even hoped for.” Set It Off’s Cody Carson adds: “We knew as the song was coming together that this was something fun and truly special. I even got to tap into a little bit of the neurosis I let out on our previous album Cinematics. So I feel like Set It Off fans will really appreciate that.” [via Upset]

Greentea Peng has shared details of a new mixtape, Greenzone 108, which is set to be released next month. The news comes a week after the artist returned with a spiritual new song called ‘Look To Him’, which has now been given an official video alongside the mixtape’s announcement. Discussing the new mixtape, which will be released on September 9, in a statement, Greentea Peng said: “GREENZONE 108 is a free flowing, open field of expression. A collection of works accumulated over a transitional period of my life. An elevation of sorts from MAN MADE, in the sense that so much has changed and formed in the 2 years since that conception. GREENZONE108 is freer, less formed and more of an open dialogue/ space exploring all different types of topics from spirituality, and originality to mental health and politricks hence why this is a mixtape and not an album.” Talking about the meaning behind ‘Look To Him’, the artist added: “‘Look To Him’ explores the idea of originality and the notion of tapping into source energy for creativity and inspiration rather than just searching for it amongst your peers and surroundings,” Greentea Peng said of the new song in a statement. “At the same time, it challenges the idea that anything is truly original as nothing is truly our own rather seeped into us from a Higher Power and thus channelled from God him/herself.” [via NME]

No one really knows why love begins or ends, but just that it does. The LA-based artist, Arima Ederra, poses the question we all know too well—the one we might to scared to ask or hear the answer to—with her new deeply-felt single ‘Portals.’ The second offering from her long-awaited fall project is sewn with the tenderness of falling and the truthfulness of doubt when yearning for something that as already come and gone. Gently serene vocals carry her sincere confession that all rests on a blanket of sweet guitar strummings and lightly layered vocal riffs. Following her first single,’Free Again,’ Ederra expands on her intent to follow the tendrils of her psyche through reflection and revisiting the people, moments, and dreams that inevitably lead us to who we are. “’Portals’ is a message about longing to be longed for. How humility guided me through a portal back to myself after heartache. It’s about confronting why the absence of love seems to be the only time we realize we’re out of time to say how we earnestly feel,” the artist shares. The accompanying video follows the artist into a manifestation of her into the unconscious as she slowly untangles the mystery of love, heartbreak, and what comes after. “I’ve always been a fan of surrealism, magic realism, and the beauty of the subconscious mind. The video was a way for me to express what sort of dialogue occurs during the meeting of the selves, both literally and figuratively. When do we allow ourselves to reach that stage of vulnerability? If the sun took us all tomorrow, would we then be able to say how we really feel? It’s hard to know where I end and you begin and for that reason I think it’s important to hold space and compassion with myself and others during the journey.” [via Flaunt]

Effortlessly witty and seductively playful, ‘Taste of V’ is the ultimate read-it-and-weep anthem for industry moguls who have tried and failed to stunt Rromarin’s creative expression. With her ever-joyful vocals out to play, Rromarin delves straight into a sexy narrative that celebrates lust and desire from a female perspective — a concept that is all-too-often shunned from charts even within the modern day. In keeping with her daring approach to storytelling, the single also comes hand-in-hand with a mesmerising visual, showing the Melbourne vocalist and producer in a state of freedom, where inhibitions are left at the door. In her own words, Rromarin explains, “While playful, flirty and tongue-in-cheek, ‘Taste of V’ is also a deeper commentary on my experiences as a female artist navigating a largely conservative music industry. Over the years there have been countless moments in which I’ve been pressured by those in power to dilute my creative vision, to write music that is ‘safe’ and ‘accessible’ – in other words, ‘vanilla’. This pressure to conform and fit in the box also extended to my identity as Rromarin, and is an issue that I felt deeply when making the decision to step into motherhood. ‘Taste of V’ is my response and retaliation to this; it is a celebration of taking creative risks, a challenge to those who don’t, and my attempt to break the stereotype of what a female artist should be.” Ensuring her addictive pop hooks and pulsing production remain prominent throughout, ‘Taste of V’ has given us all of the energy and angst necessary to combat an otherwise conservative society — with no apologies necessary. [via Wonderland]

London based alt-pop force Selin returns with ‘cool’. The Istanbul-born artist is fast becoming a key player within the UK pop scene, with her lyrical over-sharing and superb vocals standing out from the chasing pack. New single ‘cool’ comes at the tail end of summer, but it taps into those party energies. A bolshy, exuberant return, Selin comes bursting out the speakers, with perhaps her most on-point vocal performance yet. ‘cool’ has another side to it, however, with Selin depicting the fissures within a post break up relationship. As she puts it… “It’s a song about the realisation of how it is genuinely hard to stay friends with an ex-partner due to current relationships and the fact that you’re no longer with them anymore. Although there are moments in the song where I am being slightly petty, it was primarily a fun way to let go, move forward and highlight that sometimes it’s hard for people to accept change. It’s a weird feeling of detachment that you have to accept. Memories fade. Your worlds are different now. The act of letting go and moving on from the past can be challenging and this song is kind of a bittersweet anthem highlighting those situations.” The video leans on the sheer colour and vitality of her performance, depicting a pop star in bloom. [via Clash]

Rising So Cal rock trio The Aquadolls have released their new single, titled ‘Beachy’, out now. The song, produced by Chris Szcezech (Goo Goo Dolls), finds The Aquadolls dipping into their nostalgic roots, for a 60s meets 90s dream pop self-love song. ‘Beachy’ tackles the hardships of coming out of a global pandemic and quarantine. Front woman Melissa Brooks says the song, “takes the listener on a trip to the California sunshine with reverb-y guitar and saccharine vocals. While alone at home, we are left with the thoughts of missing those we are far apart from, but realize that self-love is key to making it through these hard times.” ‘Beachy’ serves as the lead single to the band’s upcoming Charmed LP. [via TotalNtertainment]

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