You either love it or really hate it; the outlier of any serious and professional conversation about music as a whole, yet the focal point of any cultural discussion; the genre with the most polarising and divisive qualities that is always the basis of general chit-chat be it because of its obscene music videos, obnoxious sounds, or risqué concepts and themes.
It’s pop music. But, like, really good pop music – tracks converging a plethora of genres and stimulus into something sickeningly catchy by artists that actually have some serious admiration for the complex logistics and mathematics of pop music.
Miss Doja is really out here stepping her game up constantly and consecutively. It seems as though every time she hops into the studio she’s there with the burning intent to one-up herself. Bottom bitch is a pop-punky, early-2000s hip-hop style song boasting about her ride-or-die right-hand. Dojo’s staple of vocal styling has reached a seamless maturity with an expertise that has existed in her talents from the jump, but now it’s dynamised by the quality and level of the production she’s been getting since getting her foot in the door of the industry.
The combination of Zedd and Kehlani’s styling wasn’t something I ever expected to happen, but Good Thing actually ended up being a great thing. The track is a certified banger and a gorgeous anthem of self-love and respect. Kehlani lists all of the things she buys and does for her own fulfillment without the help of a significant other, and finding paints that second-hand love with somebody else as a small addition to her worth instead of being a prerequisite.
This one’s for all you ookie-spookie gremlins out there who started preparing for Halloween in September, but hit a bit of a dip come the beginning of the month. Don’t worry though, Kim Petras is here for all of you with an addition to her pulverising Halloween themed mixtape. With traces of techno, electronica, and house influences I’m certain that this track will give you ghouls the right pick me up to get back into the swing of things.
Caroline Polachek – So Hot You’re Hurting My Feelings
I’ve said it once, and I’ll say it again: Pang – Polachek’s upcoming record – is going to be the album of the year, and I implore everyone to hop on the bandwagon before it’s full. This track is quite different from what Polachek has released in the last few weeks in the sense that it’s simpler, catchier, and subdued both musicals and lyrically. It’s funky; it’s lowkey; it’s breezy and punchy all at once. Thematically, it’s almost funny, with references of receiving nudes from a past lover and how emotionally overwhelming that can be.
A jazzy track about, you got it, rough coitus and an anthem to power-bottoming! It’s actually a little more complicated than that, on a deeper level it’s about devouring oneself entirely to someone, being completely vulnerable and becoming someone’s plaything just to please them. I especially love how the track developed through a solitary, sombre piano to an electronic and, almost, groovy bop.
Charli XCX – Next Level Charli
The track is the opener to XCX’s album that really paves the way to the real roots of the record core principles. The entire album is objectively amazing and is pumped full of ethereal, futuristic and cybernetic energy thanks to the help of PC Music’s A. G. Cook. Next Level Charli is fast, glistening, shiny, vivacious, and slaps overall. The track develops and evolves with the throttling prowess of a designer car driving through a supersonic tunnel quickly reaching the piercing light at the end.
Carly Rae Jepsen – Want You In My Room
I’m not the biggest Carly Rae Jepson stan, but I’d be lying if I said that she doesn’t know how to write a really thorough and complete chart hit. There is a very classic, 80s like vibe to the track too that elicits some sort of nostalgia. I’m also a sucker for a good old fashioned speak-singing moment that suddenly shifts the track, and Jepson really throws it in at the most perfect moments.
By David Lazarevic
