CHVRCHES, Sirah, BANKS + More: 5 Must-Hear Pop Songs Of The Week
It's Tuesday! Time for another round of "5 Must-Hear Pop Songs of the Week!"
This week's roundup features a slew of up-and-coming electro-pop acts from overseas, including ethereal synth-poppers and quivering chanteuses, as well as a rapper on the rise and a newly debuted dance-pop troupe who are ready to get the party started.
1.) CHVRCHES, "The Mother We Share"
CHVRCHES' "The Mother We Share" isn't exactly new (it debuted last September), but it did just get the proper music video treatment this week. That's reason enough to celebrate the brilliant tune, which captures the Glaswegian group's immediately catchy brand of ethereal synth-pop. "In the dead of night, I'm the only one here/ And I will cover you, until you go," lead singer Lauren Mayberry solemnly swears above the bouncing beat, which sparkles with a kind of indie-pop cross between M83 and The Knife. Their long-awaited debut studio LP, The Bones Of What You Believe, still has about a month and a half to go before its Sept. 23 release, but the supernatural video for "The Mother We Share" should help to make that time pass quicker.
Listen to more Must-Hear Pop Songs after the jump.
2.) BANKS, "Waiting Game"
Burgeoning L.A.-based songstress BANKS (not to be confused with the Banks of the Azealia variety) began making waves earlier this year with eerie songs like "Before I Ever Met You" and "Fall Over." Now the singer is impacting the blogosphere harder than ever with her brooding, downtempo new tune "Waiting Game," produced by fellow moody artist SOHN. Sounding something like Ellie Goulding crossed with The Weeknd (fitting, given that she's opening for the Canadian musician this fall), the talented performer's quivering voice is as chilling as ever. "What if it only gets colder?/ Would you still wrap me up and tell me that you think it's smart?" she ponders above the chilly synthesized beat. Prepare to be haunted.
3.) Sirah, "On To The Next"
NYC-bred, L.A.-based rapper Sirah's simply over it. "I made the time for you/ Now I'm through," she declares on her brand-new track "On To The Next," a major kiss-off anthem from her upcoming EP, Inhale. The song's an unexpected blend of infectious electronic pulsing (à la Disclosure), huge pop choruses, and scathingly rapped verses -- sort of along the same lines as Nicki Minaj's chameleon-like pop-rap sensibility. This is even more of a genre-bending curiosity that nonetheless proves that there's room for this exciting new electro-indie-pop performer.
4.) NO CEREMONY///, "FEELSOLOW"
U.K. trio NO CEREMONY/// (yes, that's how it's stylized, but don't give up hope yet!) is about to release their self-titled debut LP in September. In anticipation of the album's arrival, the group's unleashed the single "FEELSOLOW," a dark and moody synth-pop production that gradually builds to gloriously ethereal heights. "Can you let me go? Can you let me leave this place? I'm a godless captive of something no one knows exists," lead vocalist Victoria aches. Like their past single "HURTLOVE," it's a gorgeous mixture of romantic piano melodies, moody beats, and glitched-out vocals. There's beauty in the brooding.
5.) SPF 5000, "Make Love To Me"
SPF 5000 is on a mission to make you dance: The Boston-based dance-pop outfit has just served up "Make Love To Me," their first major release off of Nicky Digital's brand-new record label, Knight Time Records. The track's an immediate burst of saucy lyricism, soulful throwback diva-size vocals, and funky hooks for days, conjuring everything from The B-52s to gossip to AVAN LAVA. It's a solid way to jump-start a career -- and a killer party.
Bradley Stern is a writer from New York. In his spare time, he enjoys organizing his Britney Spears CD collection in reverse chronological order and writing impassioned letters to Congress urging that Madonnalogy be taught in all public schools. But most of all, he spends his time tweeting and musing daily about pop music on his blog, MuuMuse.
Photo credit: Getty Images / Brendan Walter/ Sasha Shemirani/ Banks / No Ceremony
