The Drop: Your Guide To New Music Friday Featuring Astrid S & LPX

Mike Wass | April 14, 2017 7:00 pm
The Drop: Juanes & The Aces
Your guide to New Music Friday featuring Juanes and The Aces.

Fridays can be overwhelming for pop fans. Every week you’re bombarded with a glut of new music, which can lead to ear candy falling through the cracks. I’m hoping to circumvent that tragic scenario with The Drop — a cheat sheet (of sorts) to get you through New Music Friday. By now, you’ve probably heard Noah Cyrus’ rebellious “Stay Together” and possibly checked out Kendrick Lamar and Rihanna’s “Loyalty.” But that’s just the tip of the pop iceberg.

Let’s start with Astrid S. The Norwegian pop diva double dips this New Music Friday, dropping a pair of remixes. She jumps on a new version of The Vamps & Matoma’s “All Night,” adding a female perspective (and a little Scandinavian longing) to the streaming smash. The 20-year-old then calls on LAUV to rework “Breathe.” This is more of a reimagining than a remix. He sings on the track, plays with the tempo and implements a mini-drop. It’s a worthy bookend to the original.

You probably know LPX (real name Lizzy Plapinger) as the frontwoman of flawless indie-pop duo MS MR. She made her solo debut earlier this year with a grungy electronic bop called “Tightrope” and impressed all the right people. The Neon Gold Records co-founder backs it up today with “Tremble” — a bigger, brighter pop moment . If you like your pop with edge and attitude, Tkay Maidza should also be on your radar. The Australian first made waves as a rapper, but she dabbles in electro-pop on “Glorious.” This infectious anthem could be a well-deserved commercial breakthrough.

Tkay isn’t the only chick from the southern hemisphere with a fire track this week. New Zealand’s Chelsea Jade, who made a huge impression last year with “Colour Sum,” returns with a dreamy, multi-layered anthem called “Life Of The Party.” It’s a blurry, ambient-adjacent offering with a pounding pop sensibility. She is definitely One To Watch. At the other end of the electronic spectrum is Kiiara & Felix Snow’s full-blooded party anthem, “Whippin.” Turn this up loud.

The guys were also in an experimental mood this week. Denmark’s Goss has been generating heat with his twisted brand of future-pop, but “Soo Bad” could be the track that finds a wider audience. With its blurry samples and jarring synth, it’s every bit as weird and wonderful as his previous output. However, at its core, this is well-camouflaged pop song. SAVEUS, another Dane, takes a different approach. “Levitate Me” starts off traditionally enough before mutating into something very different half-way through. This reminds me of early Seal.

Looking for something a little less mind-stretching, but just as compelling? Johnny Balik’s “Made 2 Love U” is the song for you. The Tennessee-based singer, who shares a manager with Chance The Rapper, oozes sincerity on the sugary-sweet, mid-tempo ballad. Quirky production flourishes add a sheen of alt-credibility, but there’s no reason he can’t find favor at pop radio. Equally heartfelt, but less commercial, is UK newcomer Haux. “Touch” is a delicate burst of dream-folk that blends genres in a fresh and effortless way.

It’s festival season, so let’s wind this up with a couple of bangers. DEAMN is a rising producer with a knack for churning out euphoric, tropical-tinged bops. A symphony of pitched vocals, quirky synths and good vibes, “Drive Me Car” is his best song to date. It’s time to release a larger body of work. Sweden’s Charlie Who? takes a more organic approach on “You,” combining acoustic elements into his synth-soundscape. This is all about the drop. Check it out in my playlist below.

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