- Words Notion Staff
A weekly playlist sharing our pick of the best new music from the world's most exciting emerging musicians. You heard it here first.
‘The Best Tears of Your Life’ by English Teacher
Leeds four-piece English Teacher have built a burgeoning fanbase who fiend for their sprawling indie rock compositions. Releasing their debut album, This Could Be Texas, today, the band seduce you into a dreamy soundscape before launching into experimental cuts like ‘The Best Tears of Your Life’. Lead singer Lily Fontaine plays with melodic autotune while the band paints a dulcet sonic palette beneath.
‘I Deserve It,’ by tendai
Polymathic producer and vocalist tendai is back on our radar with the leftfield afrobeat jam, ‘I Deserve It,’. Co-signed by Stormzy and sampled on Strandz’ ‘An Idea Was Born’, the uncompromising artist travels intrusive thoughts and lets us into his innermost anxieties through a Freudian lens.
‘Rita Ora’ by KiLLOWEN
KiLLOWEN is going clear of the UK rap game on the nostalgic, ‘Rita Ora’. From Skins references to Mike Skinner samples and Damien Duff evocations, the y2k wordsmith takes us back to the ‘00s over a summer-ready UKG instrumental.
‘Save It for the Rave’ by Sarah Meth
“We’re different but I can’t keep up with you, babe”, sings Sarah Meth in her trademark tones on the opening line of ’Save It for the Rave’. The songwriter laments a relationship gone wrong, delivering a striking and painfully beautiful vocal performance over lucid lo-fi production.
‘think.’ by denn.
Dazzling us with delicate tales of life in The Big Apple, NYC indie pop stalwart denn. brings the groove on his new single, ‘think.’ Like many of his bedroom rock contemporaries, he’s unapologetically himself, relaying life stories with an honesty that’s hard to come by nowadays.
‘Ladybird Song’ by cruush
Manchester shoegaze revivalists cruush are pioneering a darkwave scene in the north west which is starting to gain heaps of attention. A destabilising grunginess inhibits their sweet cacophony, which takes influence from bands like My Bloody Valentine and The Smashing Pumpkins. ‘Ladybird’ is our pick from their new EP, Nice Things Now, All The Time.
‘damn shame’ by qu, Josh Kye
Vietnamese-German artist qu joins forces with British vocalist Josh Kye for the tender new single, ‘damn shame’. The singer’s sugary falsetto sifts through the song’s soulful textures, crafting a narrative that resonates with love and the emotional complexities of relationships.
‘Believe Again’ by Serena Ittoo
Enfield maestro Serena Ittoo is making waves with her authentic pop balladry. On ‘Believe Again’, the singer-songwriter revels in twinkly EDM production, shimmering brightly with an iridescent soundscape and incandescent story.
‘Body From Mind’ by Cellini, AMOS
Belgian-based electronic experimentalist Cellini returns with the visceral new single, ‘Body From Mind’. Chronicling a supernatural experience, the song’s spiritualistic nature expands your psyche with rumbling rhythms and Mediterranean textures. On the track, Cellini says: It's an acknowledgement of the complexity of my identity and a celebration of the unique experience of balancing between different cultures and traditions.”.
‘lord I’ve tried’ by kwn
Impassioned with painstakingly beautiful lyricism, kwn delivers the gospel-textured track, ‘lord I’ve tried’. Sombre in tone, the sub two-minute tear-jerker finds peace in the power of family, threading needles of hope through woollen anecdotes of unrequited love and melancholia.