Once upon a time, the only way you could find out about new music was by being a mag head. Flipping through pages took you away from the Top 40 and introduced the Four Tets, the Kevin Devines, and the Metrics of the world. For most, nothing felt better than throwing a new artist onto their third generation iPod and falling into the deep end of a different sound, and that’s where this feature comes in. Every month, we’ll mess with nostalgia and generate a staff-selected mix of new tracks and re-works that you may have missed, introducing a goodie bag of vices that deserve a spot in your rotation. Flipping various genres, here are 20 Songs You Need To Listen To Now.
RYAN HEMSWORTH – “SMALL + LOST” (FT. SINEAD HARNETT)
“Shy Diplo” drowns you in a synthetic abyss as his Guilt Trips lead-off devours every bit of your heart.
DANNY BROWN – “FLOAT ON” (FT. CHARLI XCX)
The unlikely duo team up again with this Old cut bashing in memories, old school sincerity, and gritty realness.
DISCLOSURE – “APOLLO”
That one friend: “You don’t listen to Disclosure? Maaaan you need to re-evaluate what you’re doing with your life”.
MANSIONS – “CLIMBERS”
Christopher Browder and co. have upped the fuzz and our ears are delightfully bleeding all over the place.
SWEARIN’ – “DUST IN THE GOLD SACK”
Distorted and fucking beautiful, Swearin’s sophomore jam will make you miss bottle rockets and keg stands.
WHITE LUNG – “DOWN WITH YOU”
All hail White Lung. All hail Vancouver. And all hail songs that make you want to cause havoc with Lemmy.
JOEY BADA$$ – “MY JEEP” (FT. FLATBUSH ZOMBIES, UNDERACHIEVERS & CHUCK STRANGERS)
Beast Coast vibes collide with shout outs to Brooklyn, Christian Dior, Kate Moss, and Beenie Man.
JEREMIAH JAE – “FUN”
Chi-town preachin’ over a classic shot to the psyche: “Looking at the sun, try to find it through a tear hole”.
CONNAN MOCKASIN – “DO I MAKE YOU FEEL SHY?”
Even if he is the second coming of Ariel Pink/Thom Yorke, the Kiwi riff guy is all about the strange and wonderful.
SKY FERREIRA – “HEAVY METAL HEART”
Sky’s found her voice and we could give you 1,000 reasons to go buy Night Time, My Time. Seriously.
HAIM – “EDGE”
Just when you thought they couldn’t get better, the sisters wrote a song with Twin Shadow just to break radios.
ANCIENT SKY – “WISHING WELL”
Drop acid with your Dad and listen to his LPs as he slowly melts into Robin Pecknold. That’s Brooklyn’s Ancient Sky.
PAINTED PALMS – “SPINNING SIGNS”
Reese Donohue and Christopher Prudhomme are cousins, new Polyvinyl signees, and psych pop geniuses.
ANTHONY GREEN – “YOUNG LEGS”
The Circa Survive songster lets his guts spill out on a poignant, full-bodied tune that clings to anger and sadness.
SAINTHOOD REPS – “RUN LIKE HELL”
No Sleep are up to something and the Long Islanders are bent on letting their sound get caught in your throat.
STATE FAULTS – “AMALGAMATION”
State Faults aren’t just a new breed or a new favourite – they’re an obsession that will gnaw on your insides.
FLUME – “SPACE CADET” (FT. GHOSTFACE KILLAH & AUTRE NE VEUT)
The collaborators will make you go holy shit and solely because this track is an eccentric sign of things to come.
PUSHA T – “NOSETALGIA” (FT. KENDRICK LAMAR)
Pusha’s flow pops, tears, and beheads some airy production until Kendrick steps in to make sure the deed is done.
MADLIB – “BLACK WIDOW”
The L.A. producer’s Rock Konducta Vol. 1 single is a brainfreeze via headphones but who doesn’t like that?
MØ – “XXX 888” (FT. DIPLO – JOE HERTZ REMIX)
Danish singer Karen Marie Ørsted and her Diplo-assisted track gets sedated into something gorgeous.