Mutual Gratitude or Celebrity Damage Control? Taylor Swift’s Revealed New Boyfriend — Matty Healy, 1975 — Bronx rapper mocked Ice Spice and made other offensive comments that may (or may not) have been sarcastic comedy in a since-deleted podcast. Social media went up in flames. Now, declaring her admiration and good feelings around, Ice Spice has her moment with the remix Swift track that heralds a karmic vendetta against all the singer’s opponents and disabled. Ice Spice seizes this opportunity in her poem, where she warns, “Karma never slacks off.”John Pareles
Beyonce, ‘America Has a Problem’ Featuring Kendrick Lamar
Beyoncé has now handed over the opening line of her song “America Has a Problem” to her former collaborator, Pulitzer Prize-winning rapper Kendrick Lamar. In his verses, he uses multiple voices and ranges to pick a fight with corporations (Universal) and technology (Artificial Intelligence) while acknowledging hip-hop history by praising Jay-Z. This is also a commercial nudge to the album Renaissance, deepening its sense of layered tradition and lore. Somehow the new track has a total timing of 4:20.parel
Dua Lipa “Dance the Night”
“I’m not playing it safe,” Dua Lipa insists on the disco-glamorous “Dance the Night,” the first single from the soundtrack to the upcoming Barbie movie. But the song itself is a slightly rearranged rehash of the trusty “Future Nostalgia” formula. “I can’t stop feeling this way!” Throw in — Make the opposite argument. Disappointingly self-serving and lighthearted in “Barbie Girl” camp, “Dance the Night” is a bland, fun summer jam that showcases Lipa’s easy confidence. ” Lindsey Zoraz
Water From Your Eyes “Minna Kuzureteru”
The title track of Brooklyn art-rock duo Water From Your Eyes’ excellent new album Everyone’s Crush has Rachel Brown twisting and rearranging a few deadpan phrases. It’s like a lyrical Rubik’s Cube until it creates a new meaning. “I’m with the people I love, but it’s all hard,” Brown declares, prompting Nate Amos to blurt out an acerbic, angular guitar riff. The song creates space to express both the collective feeling of general malaise and the relief of sharing it with others. “I stand with everyone I hurt, and it’s all love,” concluded Brown.Zoraz
Squid are one of several British bands to reframe prog in the wake of post-punk, blending musical technique with acerbic demeanor. On “The Blades,” Ollie Judge alludes to scrutiny and callousness, and eventually yells while singing, while Squid sings with a tense 7/4 beat and gnarled guitars, drums and horns. Set counterpoint. The song peaks with a harrowing vision of a crowd that looks like blades of grass “begging to be reaped” before tapering off toward a quietly alienated coda.parel
Jeff Rosenstock “I Liked You Better”
Long Island punk maestro Jeff Rosenstock’s knack for writing shout choruses is at its best on the one-off single “Liked U Better,” which is as catchy as it is intense. A rush of thoughts and a thumping heartbeat set the song’s whimsical tempo, before he shrugs it all off with a cathartic refrain. “I liked it better when you didn’t care.”Zoraz
Jess Williamson “Time Ain’t Accidental”
Behind “Time Ain’t Accidental” is the beat of a flimsy drum machine from a mobile phone app. The song is about a brand new romance with a longtime friend in a town you rarely visit. Texas-born and well-travelled Jess Williamson recently collaborated with Katie Crutchfield (Waxahatchie) as the rustic indie rock band The Plains. This will be the title track of her upcoming solo album. “I have a life so far away,” she sings, then joined by guitar and banjo, “Look into my eyes, I know this is experimental,” she says. But the song enjoys keeping her hooked.parel
BLK Odyssey Featuring Kirby “You Gotta Man”
The situation is clear–“You gotta have a man, I gotta have a girlfriend”–but Austin R&B songwriters Black Odyssey and Memphis native Kirby share their impressions of adultery-fueled affairs. The music is blurry and stupefying because it trades stilts and justifications. “Dopamine and Hennessy” Over a slow, annoying beat, in a swirl of echo-like voices and electric sitars, Blk Odyssy’s playing is incredibly hesitant, with Kirby’s high whispering. respond to it. Both are uncertain and luscious. “Let’s meet again in the next life,” the two swore before parting.parel
Ichiko Aoba “Space Orphan”
“Space Orphan” joins Ichiko Aoba’s extensive catalog of quiet, skeletal, and soothing songs, often accompanied only by her acoustic guitar. They resemble bossa nova, American folk pop, and Japanese koto melodies. A warm, sustained, sometimes vaguely harmonious string arrangement opens the track, and her Japanese lyrics tell an otherworldly romance. “Every night we go to sleep / In a quiet place neither land nor sea.” In an initiative called Earth Percent, led by Brian Eno, Earth is credited as a co-author and receives royalties for environmental programs.parel
Anzimile “The King”
“The King” has distinct echoes of the minimalism of Philip Glass, Meredith Monk and Steve Reich. The song progresses from a complex, wordless chorale to a whirlwind of keyboards and arpeggios, with Anzimir singing biblical allusions and wise advice.parel
