Essential Songs — New Tracks You Need to Hear
1. Glaive is a name known throughout the supposed monolithic underground. The 15 year old vocalist and producer has made waves as of late with extremely catchy hits suchs as “astrid” and “clover.” This week, he yet again knocked it out of the park with his new single “arsenic.” Often unfairly lumped into the vaguely defined hyperpop genre, glaive synthesizes sounds from pop, hip hop, electronica and emo-tinged rock genres to create something that is altogether his own and needs no genre categorization. The beat is initially composed of minimal guitar with soft, emotive vocals that bring home the confessional feel, freed from any autotune or excessive vocal effects. As both the beat and vocals ramp up, the song bursts out into a high energy, wide ranged vocal hook supported by vibrant electronic instrumentation. Like so many of glaive’s songs before it, arsenic is a testament to the artist’s extreme songwriting ability and a worldwide hit waiting to happen.
2. Australian underdog changing cleo is back on the scene with “gold,” a feel-good mix of airy vocals, melodic 808s and soft indie instrumentation. With the ukulele instrumentation off the bat, the emotional-yet-warm vocals blend nicely, especially with sugar-sweet lyrics like “take a picture of your pretty face.” As the boyish innocent indie melodies mix with a gentle r&b flow, backing 808 percussion comes in to support, bringing the song through its natural course. There is, of course, a melancholic aspect of romantic struggle, which makes it all the more appropriate for a love song at this point in the internet era. With warm ukulele instrumentation, chorus-backing 808s and an emotional complexity to both the lyrics and vocals, changing cleo has the formula down.
3. Genre-bending creator of “music 2,” login, brings yet another mind-consuming masterpiece to the table with his new single “confusion.” With a deceptively sparkly beat and heavily-edited vocals, confusion might seem like just another song in a specific niche of alternative r&b, but the track immediately unfolds itself. With odd-paced vocals that fall into an almost rapped cadence, the song continues into a bouncy, bursting beat and a well-written vocal hook delivered with comparative intensity. With some breaks added into the instrumental, Login’s EDM side starts to pronounce itself more beneath the distorted vocals which fairly quickly give way into pained, post-hardcore reminiscent screaming that adds yet another layer of dimension to the already successfully ambitious track. Continuing to warp-between high energy electronica and aggressive r&b, login makes it clear that every song should bring something new to music. Any fans of interesting sounds that haven’t already checked login out should do themselves a favor and blast “confusion” ASAP.
4. Electronic/hip hop artist emotegi returns with a haunting, emo-tinged pop rap ballad, “Junji Ito.” Named after the Japanese surrealist horror artist and manga author Junji Ito, the heavy, haunting electronic production lends itself well to the self-proclaimed “paranormacore” style. While the lead vocals are a distorted, catchy tangle of melody, anthemic backing shouts reinforce the out-of-genre influence and add layers to the track. While retaining the melody and vocal cadence, the song becomes increasingly intense, fully embodying the emo influence that is no surprise given the artist’s name. Whether it’s deconstructed club or alternative rock fused with hip hop, emotegi is always crafting something unique, innovative and infectious.
5. Producer and songwriter Brody has graced music with yet another new single titled “It’s Whatever.” A bubbly instrumental at the start, it works surprisingly well with Brody’s heavily rock-inspired signature style, supporting the vocal melodies in a way that proves guitar beats aren’t the only option for 808-emos. The ironic feigned apathy of the song with lines like “never wanted anything so bad but it’s whatever” fits well with the poppy, upbeat instrumental style contrasted with the emotional depth of the vocals throughout the song. It’s not all dark and gloomy, though, with some soft, sweeting singing and an increase in the upbeat energy of the instrumental. Most important to the song is Brody’s songwriting skills. He seems to effortlessly craft infectious hook after infectious hook, pumping out hits. With the amount of earworms already in his pocket and production skills that have piqued the interest of the whole of alternative hip hop, there’s no place for Brody but stardom.
6. Post-hardcore heavyweights Static Dress are back at it again with a brand new single blending emotive melody and raw intensity on “for the attention of…” Becoming increasingly adept at evolving the 2000s emo formula, rough screams above sweeping guitars instantly jump to the ears of the listeners, broken by anthemic emo choruses that wouldn’t be out of place in a Myspace display song. However, there’s more to the gruff screams and artfully-crafted emotional melodies of Static Dress’ new single. With forays into electronica and collaborations with digital producers, Static Dress has a production legup that no Victory Records band could’ve had. Their understating of production styles in genres foreign to their central scene not only gives the track a modern twist, but allows for a broader approach. The harsh blasts of the drums and shredded guitars blend with the Finch-esque vocal delivery for a track that is uniquely modern, yet impossibly nostalgic of the guyliner era. Accompanied by expressive visuals, there is no doubt Static Dress have a strong control of the associated artfulness of a musical aesthetic, and will undoubtedly become a bigger and bigger name as the months rage on.
