Singer-songwriter Harriette has shared a new single, ‘bc i love you’ via AWAL Recordings. The song balances airy synths and chugging electric guitar with a postmortem examination of a failed relationship. “I wrote this song a day after I got broken up with – I was trying to figure out what went wrong and was blaming myself,” Harriette explains. “It’s crazy the hoops we jump through to try to make something work because we don’t want to be alone. I guess this song is the product of me processing that phenomenon. It’s why I felt so crazy and alone in this relationship. The song came together so quickly and it was almost effortless to put together in the studio. It is also my favorite song to sing on the EP :).”

Last month, LA trio Gal Pal returned with the one-off single ‘Mirror,’ which reflected the jagged, clanging guitar sound groups like Palm have made popular lately. Yet their follow-up single and the track that properly introduces their new album This and Other Gestures—set for release on June 2—takes a considerably more pop-punk approach, with ‘Angel in the Flesh’ sounding like fellow Angelenos Cherry Glazerr at their grungiest. “I grew up listening to a lot of pop-punk and emo bands,” the group’s Nico Romero explains of the track’s inspiration. “I was a big fan of labels like Fueled by Ramen and Decaydance as a kid. I think this song definitely comes from that background a bit.” As with those pop-punk groups, much of the track’s emotion comes from a sense of longing covered in the lyrics, with Romero and co-vocalist Emelia Austin singing about leaning into love. “It’s easy for me to want to sing about crushes and longing because it’s a fun feeling to indulge in and romanticize, even when it hurts,” Romero continues. “So when I sent a demo to Emelia, I sang the chorus, mostly for reference of how I thought the vocal melody could work. She liked the lyrics so we stuck with it and she built the verses around that initial feeling. Our producer, Danny Nogueiras, saw where the song wanted to go and helped push it further, leaning into those emo-pop roots.” The track arrives with a video that’s less an examination of crushes and more a guilt trip about forgetting your pet’s birthday, told through the over-the-top emotiveness of ’90s sitcoms. [via Flood]

Tragic Sasha‘s latest single ‘The End of The World’ is a haunting and timely piece of music that eerily reflects the anxious state of the world today. Written with her two friends Kaity Rae and Scott Colcombe just before the pandemic in 2019, the song speaks of the fear and uncertainty that was already creeping into our lives. Tragic Sasha’s songs often seem to prophesy the future, and ‘The End of The World’ is no exception. As she says, “little did I know what was just around the corner.” The song’s emotive lyrics and epic synth chords combine to create a powerful sense of foreboding, while its accomplished pop songwriting ensures that it’s an instant earworm. The accompanying music video, which Tragic Sasha made with Dottie Kay, was shot in her grandmother’s old Tudor house in the country. The house, which has been crumbling for many years, provides the perfect backdrop for the song’s apocalyptic themes. Speaking on the new single and video, Sasha explains: ‘I wrote ‘The End Of The World,’ with my two friends Kaity Rae and Scott Colcombe, just before the pandemic in 2019 about being anxious for the state of the world- little did I know what was just around the corner. My songs sometimes have a habit of prophesying the future! I made the video with Dottie Kay in my Grandmother’s old Tudor house in the country. The house itself is beautiful but it’s been crumbling down for many years and I knew it would be the perfect location.’ [via Earmilk]

South London post-punk auteur Heartworms has shared her debut EP, A Comforting Notion via Speedy Wunderground, alongside a video for the blistering track, ’24 Hours’. “‘24 Hours’ is about general struggles of teenage growth, secondary school and moments of regret,” she says. “I wanted the video to be in a school…Gilbert instantly clicked with the idea I had.” The intense monochromatic video depicts a teenaged misfit suffering her way through a day in an oppressive scholastic environment. Her bloodied face and thousand-yard stare, reminiscent of shellshock war victims, is juxtaposed with an onstage performance where she has the high ground – and, therefore, total command of the school battlefield. She finally breaks free of the school uniform by trading it in for a quasi-military uniform, harnessing her power onstage, and literally rising above the bullies who make her life miserable. With this visual, Heartworms lampoons the sassy schoolgirl trope made famous by Britney Spears – and embraces the aesthetic of hip-hop giants Public Enemy, who famously don military uniforms to serve as their own security force. ’24 Hours’ shows the bleak reality of what it’s like to be at the bottom of the high school henpecking hierarchy, and the ferocious rebellion it takes to burn it all the hell down. Heartworms and video director Gilbert Trejo forged their collaboration through Instagram after he followed her and bought a t-shirt. “Gilbert, with kindness and vision for Heartworms, just wanted to help create something special,” she says. “The way he works in favour of the artist, he doesn’t want to take over, he wants to bring to life the small spark that starts in the soul of the artist. He’s a genius.” “Working with Heartworms has been incredibly natural,” Trejo replies. “Being so singular in her vision and having such a strong voice, she knows exactly what she wants and has the strength as a performer to do anything. This video is one of those rare occasions where everyone came together to shoot exactly what was in our heads from the very beginning.” [via Post Punk]

One of Australia’s brightest young talents Charley is back with her new single ‘Worst Taste In Girls’. Written with acclaimed production duo DNA (Jessica Mauboy, The Veronicas), the single is a blast of pure pop joy. A shimmering introduction leads into an addictive electronic beat with hints of the 1980s, before the chorus explodes in delicious melodies and an anthemic chant. The song is based on Charley’s experiences of heartbreak and the challenges of trying to love someone who is emotionally unavailable. “I lay my heart out on the line / They wanna leave it out to dry / Out there, oh, I swear / I’ve got the worst taste in girls,” she sings. “This song came from a place of heart break and needing an outlet to release all my anger that life has thrown at me,” Charley says. “But in writing this song it made me realise that I just need to embrace the heartache, be in love and go for what I want because at the end of the day we’re gonna die so may as well make life interesting while it lasts!” Also out is the music video for ‘Worst Taste In Girls’. Directed by Sean Higgins & Adrian Spuria of Shotography, the video is inspired by the over dramatic American slasher films from the 1980s such as Halloween, Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Friday The 13th. [via Women In Pop]

Hot off the heels of her acclaimed debut album Wellif, Tristan aka Isolde Van den Bulcke, is back with new single ‘More Like Her,’ one of Tristan’s most playful and light-hearted productions to date. ‘More Like Her’ comes with a lovely, unpretentious video which Isolde shot together with a couple of her besties. Featuring characters such as “The Slutty Deer”, “The Dandy Bear” and “The Delicate Cheetah” the video is all about unleashing your inner animal. [via Frontview Mag]

In the wake of her edgy, operatic dubstep number ‘Ego’, American-born experimentalist Alex Rapp shares the music video of her single. In the hands of German screen director and photographer Jendrik Schröder, Rapp’s depiction of psychological turmoil turns into a richly symbolic Tarkovskian treat. Combining spectacular costume design with striking low-key lighting and fluid camerawork, three different alter-egos of the main protagonist (Rapp) – a Namibian woman (Yozika Kahuure), a little girl (Kimberley Anne), and a mysterious dark horse – travel through unforgiving landscapes of her psyche. “Establishing the contrast of movement and immobility, of vastness and narrowness” became the main motif for the video. “Isn’t self-absorbed ego also extremely immobile?” he proposed. Starting from the filming location, the project was not short of challenges. Schröder’s recce to Lieberose – the largest desert of Germany 100km south-east of Berlin – with the executive producer Markus Pitta revealed a serious occupational health risk owing to the fact that the area had been a former training ground of the Soviet Tank Corps during the Cold War. “Unfortunately, we found out that the desert was used by the military and there were still mines on the site,” Schröder concluded. While the location they settled on – The Namib Desert in Southern Africa – was clear of landmines, it did have other obstacles that threw sand in the gears. “Because we only had a period of 1-2 hours in which we could shoot with the right light, one of the biggest challenges was to shoot all the scenes of a location before the light disappeared completely.” Another one was the wind. “When we scouted the locations, it was almost windless in the evening,” Schröder said. “Already on the first day of shooting, the wind was so strong that it was almost impossible to put the huge blanket over the horse,” Schröder describes. “The wind was so extreme that the mirrors in the sand were hard to fix and kept falling over.” This affected some cast members more than others. “It also made the soundscape extremely loud, which increasingly stressed the horse.” While the weather conditions might have shaken Schröder’s confidence at times, the footage they captured exceeded his expectations. “In the edit, it was precisely the wind in the horse’s clothing and the trembling of the mirrors that made the shots so magical.”

Halflives have had a fantastic start to 2023, and are continuing the momentum with the release of a new single. ‘EVERYTHING SUCKS’ tells a tale of fighting back against negativity and feeling unfulfilled, channelling those emotions into something more positive and raising the middle finger to those who put you in such places to begin with. Produced and mixed by Jack Wilson (Fickle Friends, Hot Milk) and mastered by Grant Berry (All Time Low, Deaf Havana, You Me At Six), Linda Battilani’s songwriting has this time produced a bass driven track full of defiance. With yet another chorus destined to become stuck in the heads of listeners for days and weeks to come, Halflives brand of alt pop/rock shows more versatility on ‘EVERYTHING SUCKS’ while always containing those enormous hooks Linda has become so well known for. For more on how ‘EVERYTHING SUCKS’ took something negative and turned it into a positive, here’s Linda to tell the story: “It’s funny how randomly and in such a natural way I came up with ‘EVERYTHING SUCKS!’. It’s a song about frustration and rejection, and back when I came up with it I was feeling pretty low, looking for recognition and acceptance that wasn’t coming my way. So I was venting by text with my managers and, long story short, some of the texts I sent in that conversation became the lyrics of the first verse of ‘EVERYTHING SUCKS!’. From there something clicked in my head and writing this song felt so easy, honest and liberating. I told myself “whatever, just say it all, don’t hold back, say whatever you’ve got to say”. And now you’ve got it. Unfiltered, angry, frustrated Linda, bare and raw. Not pretending that everything’s fine anymore. Musically speaking, especially the vocal line in the verses, it’s a little different from anything I’ve released in the past, but you know I didn’t fight the way the song was “writing itself”, I just let it flow and I’m happy with the way it turned out. I’ve never experimented spoken/yelling vocal lines before and I think it really fits the annoyed/angry mood of the song. I also had fun creating my character and costume for the music video as I wanted to be this character who’s been driven crazy by her life and the people in it. The lyrics that inspired it all were “you made a monster out of me”, and from there I also designed (and made) the red “monster” jacket I’m wearing in the music video.” [via Werk]

Melbourne’s queer bubblegum-punk duo Cry Club are back with a new single and video ‘I Want More’. Cry Club have become known for their addictive, cathartic pop-punk, and ‘I Want More’ is no different. Inspired by the injustices faced by marginalised artists in the music industry, the band draws upon 2000’s emo rock influences to create an anthem of empowerment and perseverance. Filmed at The Forum in Melbourne, the accompanying video (directed by Heather and Jono themselves) is interspersed with live footage from their electric show supporting Marc Rebillet in January this year. [via OUT in Perth]

Ahead of the March 31 release of upcoming album Portals, multi-Platinum 12 billion-streaming artist Melanie Martinez reemerged with new song ‘Death’. The track, which furthers the multilayered story of her alter-ego ‘Cry Baby,’ is now joined by a captivating official music video with visuals and a narrative grand enough for the big screen. The cinematic music video, directed, conceived, and costume designed by Melanie Martinez herself, is now available. [via the Music Universe]

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Björk has released ‘atopos,’ the lead single from her upcoming album Fossora, which is out at the end of the month. “it is a good intro …. kinda like fossora´s passport,” she wrote in a tweet. “sonically a heavy bottom-ended bass world we have 6 bass clarinets,punchy sub drilling,nesting and digging us into the ground.” She officially announced Fossora last week, revealing that she worked on the album with Indonesian duo Gabber Modus Operandi and had contributions from serpentwithfeet and El Guincho. Prior to that, she teased that the album would sound like “clubbing in the living room.” [via Stereogum]

Sorry are about a month out from releasing their sophomore album, Anywhere But Here. They’ve shared two singles from it so far, ‘There’s So Many People That Want To Be Loved’ and ‘Let The Lights On’ and now they’re back with another great track, ‘Key To The City.’ It’s gloomily groovy and gloriously bitter and sad. “I know that you’re somewhere out there, out there, getting fucked in someone else’s bed,” Asha Lorenz sings on it. “You said I always looked like a deer in the headlights in the headlights/ I still look lost in this city, in this city.” “‘Key to the City’ is a song that stemmed from a very specific situation in my life but that I hope has a more universal resonance,” Lorenz said in a statement, continuing: “It’s meant as a kind of tender ‘fuck you’ at the dying moment of a relationship you don’t necessarily want to end – when it’s hard to reconcile feelings of anger, jealousy, resentment etc. with the undeniable love you still have for that person. That crossover of pride and vulnerability led me to an image of a deer in the headlights. It’s about trying your hardest to retain control when you know you’re exposed emotionally, sexually, spiritually, everything. In the nude of the headlights, in the nude of someone’s love. The song came together after the original recording session and stemmed from Louis experimenting with new tunings to give us a bit of a push. This one has a Nick Drake feel. We wanted it to sound cinematic and lonely.” [via Stereogum]

Sudan Archives’ Natural Brown Prom Queen is out now. She’s also shared one more single , which joins previously released tracks ‘Home Maker,’ ‘Selfish Soul,’ ‘NBPQ (Topless).’ This one’s called ‘OMG BRITT,’ and it’s hard-hitting and concise, a celebration of what happens when you let loose. [via Stereogum]

Em Beihold takes viewers on a tour of the museum of anxiety and offers advice on how to overcome a panic attach in new video for ‘12345’ directed by Scott Felix. The singer says: “In writing ‘12345,’ my co-writers Dallas Caton, Alex Veltri and I wanted to bring attention to the 54321 method used to help ground you during a panic attack. The method involves naming 5 things you can see, 4 things you can touch, 3 things you can hear, 2 things you can smell, and 1 thing you can taste. Panic attacks are scary, but the point of this song is to remind people of ways to help stop them and to also remind everyone that they’re not alone.”

France based pop/rock trio, OAKMAN is thrilled to announce their upcoming EP, SCP, will be out September 30 via Rude Records. SCP, an acronym for “sugar-coated pill,” is the band’s third EP which follows up their sophomore EP, Plastic World, released back in 2018. The EP shines a light on the trio’s growth through the addition of 80’s style synths, punchy drums and a groovy bass, all the while keeping their core pop-punk energetic guitars .Alongside the EP announcement, the band has also shared the title track of the EP. The pastel-soaked video for ‘SCP’ goes hand-in-hand with the nostalgic instrumentals and vocals as OAKMAN brings a taste of the 1980’s to the modern day while infusing it with their own unique brand of indie-pop/rock. About the song, the band says, “Marine was watching a show during lockdown called Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. The main character reminded her of a character she had played when she was doing theater. After the foundation of ‘SCP’ was written, she wrote the lyrics about these two characters. ‘SCP’ is a sarcastic and second degree track about the fear of loneliness and not being loved at all costs with a neurotic side.”

Exploding out of their hometown of Toronto, MONOWHALES have been putting a new lease on the alt rock genre. ‘Change###’ sets the tone for their brand new record, Tunnel Vision, produced by Dave Schiffman (Vampire Weekend, PUP). Hook-heavy, but more groove-based, ‘Change###’ pushes the boundaries of what a rock song can be. The focus track features an explosive rhythm-section in the guitar solo and lead vocalist Sally Shaar’s Robert Plant-esque wailing of emotion carries into the final chorus. Drummer Jordan Circosta explains, “We wrote’ Change###’ at a time when it felt like the world was spinning out of control. I’ve never seen so much division in my life. People were in a lot of pain, and the media was taking advantage of that, pitting people against each other like caged animals. Some of it was valid, some of it wasn’t, and at a certain point it became almost impossible to tell the difference.” He continues, “The Tunnel Vision mindset had us staring into the void through our phones, trapped in the echo chamber. But that same focus, when pointed towards music and our love for each other, helped us navigate hopelessness, nervous breakdowns, and worse. Like we say in the song, all we could do was focus on ‘keeping it straight, under the weight of all this ‘Change###’.'”

Iconic singer-songwriter-rapper-artist Brooke Candy embarks on her next musical era with her first new single in more than three years. ‘Flip Phone’ is available now at all DSPs and streaming services. The uncompromising electro-powered new track is joined by an official self-directed music video, produced by PAPER Magazine – the NYC-based magazine’s first ever foray into music video production – with South Korean eyewear brand Gentle Monster. “I wanted this to be the first song I came back with because I had the most fun making it, and I’m just having fun right now,” Brooke Candy shares exclusively with PAPER. “The video was a challenge to make because I wanted it to come out so perfect. And it did. We rented a rain room in LA and just went all out with the help of PAPER and Gentle Monster. Some parts were inspired by Pamela Anderson in Barbed Wire.”

Rising artist LUCI (pronounced Loo Chē) will release her debut EP Juvenilia on September 23 via UK label Don’t Sleep. Across the EP LUCI’s incomparable vocal dexterity and incredibly self aware and reflective mindset are on display as she explores everything from empowerment, self reflection, pride and completely unfiltered self expression. Written over the course of 2 years, it was brought to life through collaborations with a number of artists and producers including Glass Animals’ Edmund Irwin-Singer, who mixed the entire EP. Now fans can experience another taste of Juvenilia via LUCI’s new single ‘Gnarly’ which was recorded with Tickle Torture (Elliott Kozel) and and Safe Jazz (Jesse Schuster). Of the song she notes, “This song is just about being in your bag. Poppin yo s and backin it up! My music is about digging deeper inside to find your gold. You don’t have to bury or tame anything. You need to be diligent and sure – people love to be struck with striking authenticity. The video feels a lot like I am lighting the world up from the sunken place.” [via Broadway World]

Petite Meller hopes to influence the world through music she dubs “peace pop”. The French-Israeli pop singer advocates for peace among nations through music. Sporting her signature porcelain doll makeup complete with rouge cheeks and bleached hair Petite Meller takes the spotlight in the music video for her new single ‘The Drummer’ where she dances, marches and gallavants in a world completely occupied by children. Petite says the peace she is advocating for is for children, “In this song I’m shouting for peace. Piece of existence. Peace of mind. That’s why I call it “peace pop.” Particularly children brought up in countries like her native Israel that are often defined by violence, “Having grown up with war around, I like to give a stage to kids who come from tough backgrounds. So they can navigate it by wandering into and getting involved with art.” Those who know Petite’s music adore her, her fans are devoted and enjoy the fantastical elements she brings to her videos paired with shots of Petite embracing the dress and scenery in various countries. Many of the moments in ‘The Drummer’ were shot in Russia during 2021. The song is inspired by and takes its name from the book The Tin Drum by Günter Grass published in 1959. It seems like an obscure book for a twentysomething-pop singer to reference but not to Petite. The singer holds a Masters in Philosophy and utilizes her education when conceptualizing new projects that comment on global issues through her creative work, “Music videos allow me to create realities I can live in. Realities where I can cry out and sing at the same time and meet real people all over the world. Discover their culture and folklore. And together we create a new public movement in moments that raise us up, as we dance our pain away. ‘The Drummer’ is the pop singer’s first video in a year, her new album is set to be release in 2023. Petite Meller will also be selling her outfits worn in the video via Instagram and is donating the proceeds to raise money for scholarships for children of the Rockwell Dance Center who danced alongside her in ‘The Drummer’. [via V Magazine]

Don’t let the facial piercings and D.I.Y. snarl fool you, carolesdaughter (née Thea Taylor) has the power to transmute turbulence into strangely soothing alternative pop anthems awash in lo-fi glitch, bedroom acoustics, and gutter goth elegance as heard on her newest single ‘sunshine and roses.’ The trailblazing alt-pop artist’s haunting track has been paired with an ethereal music video companion piece showcasing carolesdaughter’s love for the dramatic and cinematic.

Sultry vocals, an alluring cadence and a velvet-coated soundscape: the very components that coax us into Tristan’s brand new single, ‘Human Allergy’. It’s “about a break-up where several people are hurt,” explains the Belgian artist. Mimicking the watery movement of her spellbinding production, the accompanying visual for ‘Human Allergy’ shows Tristan performing routines of fluid contemporary dance — allowing her lyrics to soak deep into the skin of whoever bears witness. “There is a You, She and He, and I always speak from an omniscient perspective about how they think, what they feel when these are just ideas I impose on myself. For example, the voice in the pre-chorus is a kind of ‘devil on the shoulder’ that only whispers negative things in my ear,” says Tristan. Touching on sentiments that resonate with anyone who has been unlucky in love, the lyrics unfold stories of deceit and adulterous thoughts while the devil-like pre-chorus continues to hold the melody hostage — eventually causing Tristan to cave into temptation and become the object of her initial despise. Elaborating further on the concept, she explains, “The video is a kind of translation of all the voices in your head, which are all projections. I chose a kind of dream-like atmosphere that feels very unnatural, so I also wanted to work in scenes where only very small details sometimes return from previous scenes because in dreams nothing actually seems logical and yet everything can feel very realistic.” Plunging us into an almost dreamlike state, it is safe to say Tristan has made us all succumb to the aftereffects of a ‘Human Allergy’. [via Wonderland]

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