We recommend: The best new global music
Editor’s note: We’ve pulled together the best new tracks and albums—both international and Indian—that dropped in the last four weeks. Tune into June's playlist on splainer’s Spotify.
‘God Gave Me Feet For Dancing’ feat. Yazmin Lacey by Ezra Collective: Interpolating ‘Feeling Good’—made famous by Nina Simone and Aretha Franklin—this is a new jazz funk version with additional lyrics in Yazmin’s smooth voice.
‘:)’ by The Japanese House: Calm, airy and indie—this is a feel-good tune to begin your day even as the wordings narrate a confused state of mind. Breathy vocals sung fast, chiming guitars and scampering drums round it off as a mid-tempo smooth listen.
‘We Are Making Out’ by Mura Masa: The electronic-dance hitmaker produces gritty vocals, steady beats and hard bassline. It’s an experimental offering more suited to your personal jam rather than the disco.
‘Flirting Again’ by Bloc Party: This one’s bound to make it to your ‘sk8r boi’ era playlist. We can’t explain it, but in GenZ terms, it’s giving indie-coming-of-age film. It’s giving messy 20s vibe. And it’s giving post-punk stomping. We hope to see it on an OST near us soon!
‘The End’ by Halsey: The electro alternative pop singer is also a masterful lyricist who can pen her personal life and struggles eloquently. This song is a testament to that. Led by an acoustic guitar, this single is every bit heart wrenching but hopeful. FYI: The singer was recently diagnosed with lupus and leukaemia.
‘Do You Feel’ by AURORA: The Norwegian singer exudes ethereal energy. This song is the perfect blend of her signature vocals with dance music. It’s bound to make you get up on your feet and dance.
‘Genesis’ by RAYE: This seven minute experimental track from the British artist is genius in combining sing-song style rap with groovy hip hop beats—changing to Broadway-esque jazz towards the end. With the lyrics of a diss track, this song is an absolute bop!
‘B.O.A.T’ by Camila Cabello: For this, Camila Cabello sampled Pitbull’s hit bachelor’s party song ‘Hotel Service Room’ and turned it into a post breakup song. As expected both the original and the new rendition of the sound remain an earworm.
‘MANTO’ by Heems, Sid Vashi, Vijay Iyer: Desi munda in America, Heems, put out this rap song that addresses Partition and generational trauma. The song has jagged keys and drum beats which sets the mood and features the voice of his grandmother.
‘Maxillofacial Surgery’ by karshni: The Indian singer-songwriter loops, swirls and laconically expresses self-frustration—an unvarnished offering from the young artist. The 24-year-old ruminates on slightly morbid imagery which you wouldn’t realise were so—if one gets swayed away with the finger-picking guitar and self-produced gnarly effects.
‘Life’ by Jamie xx, Robyn: The English dance maven collaborates with the man of the hour—or more specifically—one of the hottest young producers from the UK—for a bumping track that’ll “give you life”. Revelatory, playful and just as familiar as is needed—you can loop this one all day.
‘the only conscious being in the universe’ by bar italia: Rock ragers—arise—-your time has come! In the paranoia of instrument-led music ‘being dead’—there’s plenty of young ‘uns taking risks with guitar music, smashing drums and that oh-so-sweet anarchy-inspired lyricism. Angst, release and resolution—all find home in this head bopping track.
‘Vintage’ by Moses Sumney: Known for his whisper-in-your-ear vocals and sensual structural swings—Moses Sumney crafts another mystical one—this time with minimal keys, complementary harmonies and a dissonant key change towards the end. A true master of his niche.
‘FromHere’ feat Snoop Dogg & October London by NxWorries: Anderson .Paak and Knxwledge make modern R&B under the banner of NxWorries—and it’s always something inventive, soulful and groovy. Snoop Dogg lends an old-school verse at the end—an earnest attempt to capture the current essence of African-American music—and it works!
‘Switch It’ feat. Cakes da Killa and GAWD by TOKiMONSTA: Future-forward, catchy and with multiple vocal layers—this is a masterclass in music production. At the minute mark—they sing-speak to thumping rhythms as Cakes da Killa adds some dynamic energy to the post-drop moment—with his menacing rap verses.
June 2024’s best albums
It isn’t always about a single. Below are the album releases from the past month that are worthy of your extended time and attention:
PS: Standout tracks from each album have been added to splainer’s June 2024 playlist on Spotify!
‘BRAT’ by Charli xcx: Calling the paparazzi on herself, being “everywhere”, wanting to dance with herself, bumping music till the windows crack—Charli’s self-proclaimed unhinged primadonna ‘it girl’ identification is finally being accepted by music critics and fans across the globe as the ultimate pop comeback. There’s also that already iconic remix with fellow alt pop girlie Lorde. The highest rated album on Metacritic this year—with a score of 95—you’d definitely want to keep “bumpin’ that”.
‘Voyage 2’ by Dhruv Ghanekar: Opening with a Tamil rendition this fusion music album is multilingual featuring illustrious female vocalists such as Ila Arun and Kalpana Patowary crooning in Hindi / Rajasthani, Marathi and Assamese. The composer-producer does a fantastic job of blending styles and genres—including Indian classical and folk, samba, Balkan music, funk, drum & bass, dub and jazz. The ten track song suite will leave you wanting—and grooving, for more.
‘Heartbreak 2020’ by Kamakshi Khanna: “I’m sorry I’m weird around you”—who of us can’t relate to this feeling around the object of our affection—off of ‘I Blew It’—the singer-songwriter’s opening track? Kamakshi traverses acoustic fare to pop sweetness on this four-track EP. A short and sweet listen—it serves as a lesson in heartbreaks and resigning yourself to being alone.
