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 May’s playlist on splainer’s Spotify.
‘I Like It I Like It’ by Moses Sumney and Hayley Williams: This emo punk rock number is moody and underlines obsessive behaviour when you like something “a little much”. Mosey Sumney who ropes in Hayley Williams of the rock band Paramore.
‘So Be It’ by Aesop Rock feat. Open Mike Eagle: Pop-rap at its very best—masterful storytelling, either side of a catchy hook, set to a tasty beat with grand production.
‘Chinese Fire Horse’ by Garbage: Featuring their typical combination of distorted guitars with a more electronic rhythm section, the dance rock act that first broke through in the ‘90s continues to remind us they’ve still got it!
‘Repo Man’ by Bruce Springsteen: The rock whiz is still kicking everyone’s butts! This country rock song is from his archival record. This one comes from ‘Somewhere North of Nashville’, the country album Springsteen recorded in 1995.
‘Look To Windward’ by Sleep Token: Having initially dominated metal charts with a genre-bending sound reminiscent of Deftones, this British band changes gears for more deliberately paced ballads that build up to the heavy. The payoff is well worth it.
‘It’s Just Us’ by Kali Uchis: From the singer behind ‘Telepathia’, this is a lovesick song with alternative indie elements that make it an earworm for late night listening.
‘Intensity’ by Sofi Tukker featuring Liniker: Sophie Hawley-Weld and Tucker Halpern—the duo that make Sofi Tukker—sing about creating a partnership that’s “way too much / It’s the right amount for me.” The song is accompanied with samba-rooted Brazilian beats and guest vocals from the Brazilian songwriter Liniker.
‘DCMU’ by Kilo Kish: Now for something on the more experimental side of RnB, in which the Brooklyn-based singer plays around with a synth-heavy soundscape that wouldn’t be out of place in a scifi show.
‘Baddies’ by Aya Nakamura and Joé Dwèt Filé: Afrobeats with a Francophone flavour, yes please! This one comes from a Malian icon, with a Haitian guest appearance.
‘Lajpat Nagar Sometimes’ by Tarun Balani: Ever heard New York jazz influenced by Sindhi folk before? You have now—the opening track off of Balani’s new album marries guitar noodling with his signature jazz drumming.
‘Sky’ by Hamza Rahimtulla and Rajasthan Folkstars: Speaking of funky collabs, here’s a meeting of the minds between groovy house and Rajasthani folk
‘Panic’ by Preoccupations: With an industrial droning sound and introspective lyrics, this track off of the Canadian new wave post-punk band’s latest album ‘Ill at ease’ makes you feel as if you’re on a long solo train journey.
‘Benito’s Earlier Work’ by Propagandhi: Moving on to more traditional punk, these veterans of the scene use tasty riffs to delve into some commentary on the history of fascism.
‘The Logical End’ by Rivers of Nihil: This progressive metal act returns to showcase their technical prowess and dynamism—striking that tricky balance between the aggressive and the melodic.
May 2025’s best albums
‘Something Beautiful’ by Miley Cyrus: Miley is back! This album is a follow-up to her 2023 LP ‘Endless Summer Vacation’. With 13 tracks, this album doesn’t follow a specific theme but doesn’t shy away from showing off Miley Cyrus’s vocal range—despite her having Reinke's edema which has made her voice even raspier than before. Though there’s nothing that can beat ‘Flowers’, the standouts for us from this album is ‘Easy Lover’ Cyrus calls ‘Something Beautiful’ her “gayest” album yet. According to Pitchfork: the album “is the strongest display of Cyrus’ extraordinary voice on the album.”
‘7 piano sketches’ by André 3000: Yup, this is that album—the one that hip-hop musician and rapper André dropped after he walked the Met Gala red carpet as a piano. As evident by its name, the album comprises seven piano-solo tracks. As expected, it is experimental and feels off-beat—like a beginner piano recital. Rolling Stone sums it up: “7 Piano Sketches is a tribute to enthusiasm for its own sake. He sat down at the piano and played around, with no thought of living up to his history — just jumping into a moment of freedom and riding it all the way through.” Our faves are ‘And Then One Day You’ll …’ and ‘hotel lobby pianos’.
‘Alone in a World of Wounds’ by Steve Von Till: The Idaho-based elementary school teacher made his name 30 years ago by pioneering a subgenre of metal with the band Neurosis, but switches to gothic takes on folk and Americana in his solo work. As such, his seventh album sees him push genre boundaries even further resulting in a more cinematic sound. Make no mistake, it’s an emotional slow burn in every sense of the word but works magnificently as the deliberately paced arrangements—driven by his deep vocals—have a hypnotic effect.
PS: Standout tracks from each album have been added to splainer’s May 2025 playlist on Spotify!
