Press play on the latest edition of NOTION NOW, the playlist featuring the freshest tracks you need to hear.

‘Cowbella’ by bar italia

The first new release from the trio since their 2024 record The Tw*ts, ‘Cowbella’ by bar italia is shapeshifting and transcendent. The London-based group is made up of members Nina Cristante, Jezmi Tarik Fehmi and Sam Fenton, with each member taking it in turns vocally on the track, delivering their discordant and infectious tones over a slice of infectious guitar music.

‘What?’ by XL Regular

A regular on AliA’s Artisjok imprint, XL Regular’s propensity for Bruk-infused club bangers has made him one of Rome’s standout producers. Sharing time between Italy and Belgium, his pecussive and polyrthymic new single ‘What?’ applies some dancefloor pressure through stretched-out grooves and tribal drums, with the added instance of acidic melodies for good measure.

‘Girl Reborn’ by I.Jordan

Freewheeling off the release of their debut album I AM JORDAN, I.JORDAN brings their latest single, ‘Girl Reborn’. Featuring Tom Rasmussen, a musician and drag performer, the single provides a perfect pre-Glastonbury soundtrack that blends elements of trance, techno and Eurodance.

‘DON’T LISTEN’ by corto.alto

Following the release of his debut album Bad With Names, corto.alto releases ‘DON’T LISTEN’. With off-kilter beats and fizzy basslines, the track is both genre-bending and sonically intense. He is set for a busy summer, with appearances at multiple festivals, including Latitude and Glastonbury, scheduled.

‘Justin’s Headed Out’ by Mercury

Rising Nashville artist mercury unveils her new single ‘Justin’s Headed Out’. Toying with alt-rock, the track unpacks the times in adolescence where you really feel alive and possess unspoken feelings between others. “It’s about what it feels like to finally pull yourself out of a hard place and celebrate being alive,” says Maddie Kerr.

‘5am’ by EsDeeKid & Fimiguerrero

What in the world of Scouse debauchary is this, a debut mixtape from EsDeeKid? Alongside fakemink and Fimiguerrero, who features on new single ‘5am’, the North West of England rapper’s online presence is growing rapidly and the announcement of Rebel means his stocks will continue to rise. The Fimiguerrero collab stands out not only because we’re yet to hear them on a track before, but because the beat has that mutant, cybernetic trap quality only Wraith9 can produce. As for the lyrics, EsDee’s tales of “lime bike exploring” and Fimi’s penchant for pairing words like “carni” and “Paul McCartney” is as entertaining as ever.

‘Retrun Of The Sharp Heads’ by Baxter Dury & JGrrey

We’re into this, the latest collab between Baxter Dury and JGrrey. Working with legendary producer Paul Epworth, the single gives space to the east London poet’s monotone drawal, as he comments surrealistically on people’s “charity shop hair cuts” and “Olympic, ozempic hips”. The second single from his ninth album, Allbarone, ‘Return Of The Sharp Heads’ feels like a level up on the synth-driven indie hits of his past.

‘FISHSCAELS’ by Isaiah Hull

Mancunian poet Isaiah Hull is mixing in the right circles, working with producer Kwes Darko on his first tape since signing to Young, POCOMANIA. ‘FISHSCAELS’ is characteristically manic, as the self-professed “stand-up tragedian” yaps with similar inflections to Danny Brown about the complexities faced by Black Britons today.

‘Special’ by dexter in the newsagent

‘Special’ by Dexter In The Newsagent is the latest offering from the South London rising star. Arriving just before Dexter makes her appearance at Paris’ Fête de la Musique, the track is a meditation on her feelings about “love, youth, and everything in between”.

‘Call The Bluff’ by $ebbuku

UK artist $ebbuku merges jazz, punk, and funk to make something inherelently his own on ‘Call The Bluff’. “‘Call The Bluff’ is exactly what it says on the tin. It’s about questioning what’s actually cool and kicking out the actual fools!” $ebb explains. Written and recorded in a matter of hours, the track is a way of the artist letting listeners know, “that you can use your art and passion to actually shout about what you care about.”