Last year, on a soulful cover EP, perpetual American Idol Kelly Clarkson turned what seemed like post-divorce energy into a fiery rendition of Billie Eilish’s breakup anthem, “Happier Than Ever.” Poured in. Now in his first two offerings on an upcoming album called ‘Chemistry’, Clarkson uses a similar register to tell his own story. The biting midtempo “Mine” effectively taps into her rage and desire for revenge. Her second single, the fiery ballad “Me,” is a bit of a familiar lane for Clarkson (with a surprising writing credit from her Gen Z pop star, Gayle), but she’s nonetheless Live with deep emotion and pristine exaltation. vocal. “I don’t have to need someone when I get mine,” she concludes. Paraphrase Former “Idol” judge Randy Jackson, I agree with you, good friend.Lindsay Zoraz
Romy, “enjoy your life”
xx’s Romy Madley Croft’s latest solo single, “Enjoy Your Life,” has an undercurrent of melancholy that makes the bliss achieved in its chorus all the more explosive. “I promised her mother that I would stop running away from my problems. The song deftly blends wisdom and elation, its introspective tone suddenly turning into dance floor euphoria.” Zoraz
Jorja Smith “Try Me”
Jorja Smith’s “Try Me” beats can be traced back to Bo Diddley, Cuba and West Africa. It’s a propulsive, percussive archetype, three-on-two, carried over to ever-shifting instruments and samples by her producer Sandame. But the song is fiercely personal, confronting someone who was completely selfish with an irrefutable, grieving claim to justice. “I have changed”. John Pareles
Definitive pink, ‘Ode to Boy’
Decisive Pink—a duo of experimental indie artists Kate NV and Angel Deladrian—”Ode to Boy,” stretches the somewhat absurd idea into something mildly sublime. The new single filters Beethoven through the weirdest kind of lens of the early ’70s. synthpop. “I want to know, we want to know,” they sing together in robotic yet fantastical harmonies. Mission complete.Zoraz
Dawn Richard “Bubblegum”
Following last year’s sumptuous collaboration with composer Spencer Zahn, “Pigments,” the ever-evolving Dawn Richard takes another left turn with his bold, uptempo new single, “Bubblegum.” Over a rousing but frenetic beat, Richard checks Beyoncé and Prince names and brags with the energy that backs them up.Zoraz
Speedy Ortiz “Scavus”
For the first time since 2018, Sadie Dupuis has brought back her freaking dirty indie rock band Speedy Ortiz. asks the chorus. Co-produced by Illuminati Hotties’ Sarah Tudzin, the song intertwines meter-shifted guitar riffs and multi-syllabic verses punctuated by the utterly infuriating refrain “Don’t talk to me.” I’m here.pareles
Megan Moloney “Girl in the Mirror”
“I loved the boy more than the girl in the mirror” sums up this desperate country waltz.Megan Moloney ponders her shattered self-esteem with tears in her voice, and the arrangement doesn’t try to comfort her or distract her.
Dudu Tassa & Jonny Greenwood featuring Rashid Al Najjar, ‘Ashufak Shay’
Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood has collaborated with Israeli native Dudu Tassa on his upcoming album ‘Jarak Qaribak’. They support singers across the Middle East performing vintage love songs from countries other than their own, such as Mayhad Hamad’s “Ashfaq Shey” from the United Arab Emirates and songs by Rahid Al Najjar from Lebanon. . Behind the traditional vocals and Middle Eastern flutes and violins are plenty of Radiohead touches. Bass lines, eerie piano tones and drum machines are all pulled separately into the beat to add tension.pareles
