new (and old) music friday #50: kylie minogue, nasty cherry, isac elliot, jodie connor, bryce bowyn

it's hard to be believe this is my 50th (!) new music friday post, but here we are. 

i've said it before, but when i first started this blog in august 2015 (!!) i never thought it would still be going almost five years later, but here's to another five. 

1. kylie minogue 

when kylie announced her new single say something earlier this week, it sent Gay Twitter into meltdown as it had been nearly 2 years since her country-inspired album golden was released (the less said about that the better). 

like every Pop Lover, i've been a fan of kylie since i was about six years old, so i was excited for her long-awaited return to the world of pop, or more specifically disco. 

while say something was described by various news outlets as a "disco inspired" track - probably because her upcoming album is literally titled disco - it has a more 80s-inspired sound thanks to the backing track which sounds eerily similar to radio ga ga by queen. 

though it's certainly not a bad thing, i definitely felt a bit misled when i listened to it for the first time, so hopefully the rest of disco will actually sound like, you know, disco. 

yesterday i also discovered the incredibly chaotic banger skirt from 2013 and if i can't have you, a collaboration with sam sparro (of black and gold fame) and producer garibay, which spotify was kind enough to automatically play once i'd finished my 67th consecutive listen of say something. 

2. call me loop

when strike was first released in may, i declared it one of the best songs of the year and it's a statement i still stand by. 

this frighteningly catchy bop has an excellent Big Chorus, but then again i'd expect nothing less from call me loop, who co-wrote the pussycat dolls' comeback single react and has released a string of impeccable bops over the last four years. 

3. nasty cherry 

my most played song this week has to be better run run by nasty cherry, from their latest EP, season 2. after being put together by charli xcx - who documented the whole thing in the form of a netflix documentary series - the group have formed what appears to be a genuine bond and their passion for the music they've been making is obvious. 

i adored their earlier singles win and live forever, but this new EP shows them moving in a more experimental direction, building on their super nostalgic 90s sound with the dylan brady-produced i am king and cardamom december, which has a moodier cocteau twins feel. 

4. isac elliot 

another song i've played to death is weekend by finnish singer isac elliot. from the moment i pressed play and felt goosebumps all over my arms, i knew this was a special song. i can't explain how or why certain songs make me feel this way, but i truly can't get enough of the synth-driven production of this banger. 

naturally i had to delve into his discography and discovered a whole host of bops including glitter, engine and tired of missing you from his 2014 album follow me. they all went straight into my glory days playlist, which celebrates the golden era of pop production from roughly 2008-2016, and there was more of the same with paper plane, are you gonna be my girl and new way home, which all appeared on his debut album, new way home. 

both albums are reminiscent of up all night and take me home by one direction - which would make sense as elliot was just 12 (!) when his first album was released - but as a lover of what most people would deem "trashy" pop, i firmly believe all of these albums still sound excellent to this day. 

5 vardaan arora 

i've been a fan of vardaan arora for just over a year now, and he just keeps getting better with every release. 

back in june he gave us imposter syndrome, an incredibly ~relatable~ bop which encourages listeners to "embrace their anxieties" and it definitely reassures me that i'm not the only person prone to overthinking. 

his latest single i don't wanna know - a collaboration with korea's first openly queer artist MRSHLL - is a total 180, described as a "confident no strings hookup anthem", and i am here for it. 

with his debut EP heartbreak on the dancefloor arriving on august 21st, i'm hoping for even more bops that manage to encapsulate the full spectrum of millennial struggles we're all going through during this challenging time. 

6. dorian electra 

the last year has been incredibly busy for dorian electra; in 2019 they released their debut album flamboyant, which i recently re-listened to and basically haven't stopped playing since. 

along with singles career boy, daddy like, man to man and of course flamboyant, the rest of the album is impeccable. highlights include mr. to you, live by the sword, emasculate, fReAkY 4 life and guyliner, which is one of the biggest bangers of recent memory. 

sorry bro (i love you) was released in may this year, featuring production from longtime collaborator dylan brady, along with a remix album in june. a particular standout was the bronze avery remix, which brings his signature pop sound - best heard on his outstanding single boys! - to the track; my only complaint is that it's just 1 minute and 15 seconds long. 

then yesterday dorian released give great thanks, another dylan brady-produced masterpiece that is most definitely not safe for work, and sees them moving in an even more experimental direction, if such a thing is possible. 

7. dagny 

my introduction to dagny came with her 2017 single love you like that, a song that still sounds incredible every time i listen to it. clearly i'm not the only one who thinks so, as katy perry interpolated it into her 2019 single never really over. 

this year dagny has also blessed us with more bops, including come over and somebody, which peter robinson of popjustice recently tweeted about, bringing it back to my attention and reminding me to give it a long overdue write-up. 

while i do agree that the "middle eight could work a bit harder", the song captures the same feel-good energy as love you like that, and for that reason it's back on repeat. 

8. jodie connor 

a few weeks ago i put my party playlist on shuffle and rediscovered good times by roll deep, which features vocals from jodie connor. released in 2010, the song instantly brought back (somewhat traumatic) memories of my Teenage Years, and i felt compelled to investigate jodie connor's spotify page in case she too had released some bops of her own. 

i was definitely not disappointed as i unearthed the masterpiece which is bring it, a 2011 collaboration with tinchy stryder that i wish i'd been aware of ten years ago. there was also take you there, which would have made an excellent eurovision entry, and her most recent release, 2016's good lovin, which manages to merge the sound of elena foureira and PC music, a combination that on paper sounds terrible but somehow works. 

9. bryce bowyn 

i became aware of bryce bowyn when he followed me on twitter a few months ago, so i listened to his music and instantly became obsessed with nostalgic, which - as the title suggests - finds him reminiscing about a past relationship. 

it's a feeling i know all too well; just when you think you've fully moved on, the tiniest thing can remind you of that person and bring you right back to a certain time, good or bad. starting out as a electro-pop bop, it crescendos into an incredibly dramatic middle section before descending into a full on Club Banger. 

this same theatrical~ energy can be found on his most recent song just love me, which has a touch of artpop-era lady gaga about it, and i can't get enough. 

10. GIRLI/rony rex 

my obsession with girli shows no signs of slowing down thanks to cold feet, her recent collaboration with rony rex. this is a dancefloor-ready banger that makes a walk to the corner shop feel like you're on the drag race runway, and now that the odd one out era is over, i can't wait to see what's next for the rising star.

odd one out: girli at band on the wall

as i've previously mentioned on this blog, I! Am! Not! A! Spontaneous! Person!

this applies especially to gigs, which for me and many others, are something akin to a Religious Experience; finally being in the same room as an artist you love and yelling along to your favourite songs after months of playing them on repeat is a feeling like no other. 

as writer ben smoke said in his review of robyn's now-iconic two night stint at alexandra palace:

"there’s an emotional weight to seeing an artist that you love. that much is obvious. to see the songs that soundtrack your life – the ones that permeate your deepest, darkest moments or are woven into sun drenched kisses, in the flesh is a deeply moving experience.

if you’re like me, you prepare for that. you listen to the music in the run up to the gig. you run through all the songs that matter to you. the ones that draw up vignettes of previous versions of you in your head – ready to lean in or away from them, depending on the flavour of the memory they evoke."

ironically, the last time i booked a last minute gig ticket was to see the wombats at that very same venue back in 2015, and it ended up being one of the best concerts i've ever attended. 

i've been trying to take a more relaxed approach to my ideas of ~success~ and shake off these preconceived ideas of where i "should" be in terms of my "career" - this 2012 tweet from cher is an Eternal Mood - but i still find it difficult to make impromptu plans.

this brings us to girli: i've been a casual fan of her music for years and still remember reading this 2015 interview from when she first started releasing music on soundcloud. it was around the time that PC music was starting to make waves, confusing critics and listeners alike as they struggled to work out if the elective electronic collective was for real. mainstream feminism as we know it now was still in its infancy, with discussions about sexual assault and body positivity hidden in the depths of tumblr threads. with her bright pink hair and platform trainers, the artist originally known as millie toomey fit right in with the DIY aesthetic that had taken over my own tumblr feed. 

admittedly i wasn't a huge fan of her early songs such as ASBOys, but remained intrigued and inspired by her unwillingness to conform to what the male-dominated music industry and critics expected of her. then, in 2016, came the Gay Bop i didn't know i needed - LGBT artists were only just starting to become more visible - in the form of girl i met on the internet. as the name suggests, it chronicled a romance that blossomed online and became an escape from her mundane teenage life, echoing my own experiences in a town where openly gay people were few and far between, forcing us to find connections slightly further afield. 

another highlight included it was my party, which any teenager who came of age in the mid 2000s can surely relate to. with references to skin tight dresses, "layers of MUA foundation" and that glorious combination of "corky's mixed with tesco sprite", she perfectly captures that unbearable self-consciousness that frames our formative years and which we subsequently tried to hide under "fake lashes from the petrol station" in a bid to seem older than we really were.

i didn't pay much attention to girli after that, her songs failing to thrill me until she released feel ok in 2017, an accidental collaboration with grime artist lethal bizzle, who i have a vague recollection of being forced to watch at one of many student nights in kingston. the next year saw her release day month second, a super-catchy bop featuring her signature rap style (no doubt inspired by early lily allen).

the song that really made me sit up and take note of her upcoming album odd one out was deal with it, another slice of pop perfection which i had on repeat straight away. the album was released on the 5th april, and i was somewhat dismayed that it contained five tracks that had already been released. 

it was around this time i started seeing promotion for her tour and though i'd been a fan for a while by this point, i still wasn't sure if there were enough songs i'd want to see live. however i couldn't shake the feeling that they'd probably sound a whole lot better live, so two days before the gig i bought two last minute tickets for my (reluctant) mother and i. 

naturally, i was correct.

tucked away behind the main streets of manchester's northern quarter, the legendary band on the wall seems fairly unassuming from outside but gives way to a cosy bar decorated with a plethora of fairy lights and paintings from local artists. after feeling incredibly self conscious in my outfit that would be considered pretty Out There for people in my town, i instantly felt at home when i saw the sea of fishnet tights, crop tops and ugly trainers; the crowd looked like an advertisement for manic panic. 

the first thing that struck me was how young everyone was. i jokingly made this tweet but as soon as we made our way downstairs where the gig was taking place, i literally felt like i was at a school disco as hordes of excitable teenagers bopped to lorde, robyn and charli xcx. luckily i didn't have long to assess the situation as support act ashnikko took to the (tiny) stage. 

with her bright blue pigtails and blunt fringe, she reminded me of a young(er) brooke candy, and this was even more evident in her sound, a plethora of sex-positive rap tracks that covered everything from halloween to consent. the people around me knew pretty much every word; a devastating reminder of how deeply out of touch i now am with The Teens. nevertheless, i couldn't help bop along to every song. 

soundtracking the agonisingly long wait until girli blessed us with her presence were classics such as hollaback girl and mr brightside, which took the vibe from school disco to a student night without the alcohol. hearing people around me talking about their a-level options and struggling to get into the venue without ID, i suddenly felt about a thousand years old, even though it's only six years ago that i was discovering the joy of getting drunk at my now ex-girlfriend's house (who i did in fact meet on the internet). 

but once she bounded onto the stage, pink ponytail bobbing animatedly, i was ready to scream every word back to her, and my platform shoes ensured i could pogo with the rest of the sprightly young things around me. she opened the set with young, and i took great pleasure in yelling about "how much it hurts" and that "no-one told us it would be this way". this was swiftly followed by pink - now a firm fixture in my karaoke playlist - and fuck right back off to LA, another new favourite that i've had stuck in my head ever since. 

one of my highlights from odd one out, friday night big screen was emotional in all the best ways, a synth-heavy ode to rom-com classics such as heathers and grease that had me tearing up despite never having been In Love. after all that, i was thankful for day month second to bring the energy back up before not that girl, another song i recently discovered. this is Peak Girli, unafraid to be herself despite the expectations constantly being placed on women in spite of all the "progress" we've supposedly made. 

it would seem life really does imitate art; about three quarters of the way through the gig, an incredibly drunk girl who'd been sitting on the edge of the stage, close to passing out, was removed from the venue after a valiant effort from the security staff. as girli said in it was my party, "that chick can't handle herself, there's always one". usually i choose my spot quite well - off to the side so as to avoid a potential mosh pit situation that i really am far too old to partake in - but of course this girl was only a few people in front of me, making it slightly more difficult to enjoy new tracks up and down and stick out, but by the encore i somehow managed to make my way to the front row for closing tracks deal with it (my favourite!) and hot mess, and i certainly lived up to that, leaving the venue soaked in sweat. 

for someone who complained about being horrendously old, i'd like to think i had more energy than most of the crowd and i'd forgotten how good it feels to really Let Go and not care about what other people think - two central ideas that have shaped girli into the artist she's become since her early soundcloud days. much like lily allen, she seems somewhat ahead of her time as the topics she sang about back in 2015 have made their way into the mainstream, and PC music have become fully fledged artists, collaborating with pop mainstays like carly rae jepsen. 

i often wonder what it's like for teenagers these days and whether school has become a slightly more tolerant and accepting place for those who refuse to conform, but it seems that snapchat and reality TV stars continue to shape the way they see the world and their appearance. while this might always be the case, it's reassuring to know that people like girli provide a safe space for young people questioning themselves and their place in the world, and i only hope her message travels even further in the years to come. 

in contrast to robyn's world-weary fans, girli's teenage audience have yet to experience the crushing blows often dealt by adulthood, but i'm certain they're in good hands as her powerful message of self-acceptance will no doubt see them through any hard times that lie ahead.

new (and old) music friday #33: kim petras, dorian electra, joan

when do you feel the most alive?

for me it’s in the dead of night, my favourite songs blasting through my headphones at full volume, fully allowing myself to feel all the things i try so hard to keep at bay during daylight hours.

yesterday - along with the new songs from this post - i revisited melodrama; tracks like liability, writer in the dark and green light, brimming with possibly and reminding me that it’s okay to feel too much, to be on the edge of the universe about to jump head first into the unknown.

for the first time in years i have no idea what the future holds but as long as i have music to soundtrack the highs and lows, i’ll be okay.

1. kim petras

i'll be honest, i've felt conflicted about supporting kim petras as she continues to work with dr luke and the debate about whether it's possible to separate art from the artist rages on, but there's no denying she's released some impeccable bops lately. 

she marked the end of "era 1" with the release of three new songs, and my favourite has got to be 1, 2, 3 dayz up which features the grammy-nominated (!) SOPHIE. live videos of the track have been circulating since last summer but i only became aware of them the day before it was released, so luckily i didn't have to wait long for an official ~studio~ version. straight away this party-ready anthem became one of my most played tracks and shows no sign of stopping. 

it took a few days for if u think about me to really work its magic, but once it did i found myself yelling along to this break-up banger at any given opportunity despite having not had a relationship for nearly six (!) years. slightly more subdued for the pop lover, the chorus still packs a punch with her signature "woo-ah" becoming a "you-ah", and if that's not growth i don't know what is. 

2. joan 

if you've been reading this blog for ten minutes or more, you'll probably know that 80s music is my One True Love, hence why this next track would have knocked me off my feet had i not been sitting down. synth-pop duo joan have been making waves with their retro sound since 2017 and their offerings have been mixed so far, but this track was an instant stand-out. with all the hallmarks of a thompson twins or tears for fears track, drive all night will be on repeat in the coming months. 

3. GIRLI 

another artist whose releases have been hit or miss, the north londoner hit the nail on the head with her latest offering, deal with it. bearing all the hallmarks of pop music's past - think teenage dream-era katy perry and when kesha still had the dollar sign in her name - yet still decidedly fresh, it harks back to when pop music was all about Having A Good Time and with artists like kim petras at the helm, i'm delighted to see more upbeat tracks infiltrating the mass of depressing hip-hop/trap infused music clogging up the charts of late. 

4. dorian electra

following a string of super catchy bops, dorian electra decided to try something new and "crowdsourced" their latest single with the help of their instragram followers. the songwriting session for 2 fast took place via a live stream in which a plethora of fans - many of them musicians themselves - added their input on the lyrics, BPM and even cover art for the track; more than 200 people are credited with its creation at the end of the lyric video. in theory it should have been a disaster, but somehow dorian and their team of collaborators (which includes bonnie mckee who is responsible for this Absolute Banger) managed to produce one of the best songs of 2019 so far. 

5. kerrie-anne

last week saw the return of eurovision: you decide, in which the public and a panel of judges (including saturdays alumnus mollie king) decided which song should represent the UK at this year's song contest. as predicted, they went with the safe option, a budget sam smith wailer by the name of michael rice whose track bigger than us shows all the signs of an x factor winner's single from 2010; its only redeeming feature was a slight key change in the middle. 

in my opinion, the real winner was kerrie-anne and her song sweet lies, which would be far more memorable with audiences. the worlds of x factor and eurovision have collided somewhat in the last few years, with more and more acts hoping the international song contest could be their Big Break. but anyone who knows eurovision knows that cheesy pop reigns supreme; loreen's impeccable euphoria, the iconic outfits worn by bucks fizz and of course swedish behemoth ABBA are what everyone remembers. 

sweet lies would be right at home not only blasting through the speakers of a gay club at 2am but on the stage in tel aviv this year and it's criminal that pop lovers everywhere will be denied this moment. adding insult to injury, the track isn't even on spotify, but was uploaded to youtube yesterday, so if you need me i'll be playing it at full volume and dreaming of what could have been. 

6. slayyyter 

after what feels like an eternity, mine is finally here. slayyyter posted a snippet of the song at the end of january that sent Gay Twitter into a meltdown, and the 90s-inspired club ready bop was definitely worth the wait. 

new (and old) music friday #26: charli xcx, years & years, loote

given the mostly terrible time i've had since graduating, it's hard to believe it's only been a year since i arrived at london's royal festival hall, put on my cap and gown and shook hands with fashion designer zandra rhodes after collecting my certificate. 

of course nothing is ever as it seems, and in reality the day was a sweaty, stress-inducing blur. travelling to london and back in one day with temperatures reaching the early 30s and nearly having a breakdown in a toilet cubicle at euston station because the dress i bought specially for the event wouldn't zip up is hardly the height of sophistication. my life continued on a downward spiral as i hurtled through a series of retail jobs and hellish internships, but recently things have started to improve. 

as well as having some semblance of a social life thanks to meetup and securing a place on the news associates course in september, i also managed to arrange some work experience at mancunian matters for august, the online magazine set up by tutors from the course. 

though i'm still nowhere near my goal of becoming an Actual Journalist and find myself questioning if i'm doing the right thing, poring over this interview with florence + the machine - in which she questions "did i dream too big?" - and this speech lorde made before performing liability, in which she described feeling like she was "too much" for anyone to love was heartbreaking yet weirdly empowering. to some people i might be too passionate, too driven,  wear too much make up, care too much about what i wear, but already i've found people who will be screaming along with me when my favourite songs get played on a night out, and they remind me that it's okay to be "too much" and i'm not the only one who feels things so deeply. 

i'm getting to the point, i swear.

what i'm trying to say is that for all the people who've told me to just get a "normal job" and made it clear they don't understand my love for fashion and pop music, there are those who understand and who never gave up, and i only hope one day i can be one of them. 

for now though, i've been overwhelmed with the barrage of new music released this week, so i'm going to try and cover as much of it as possible before my brain overheats. 

1. charli xcx

just over a year since i saw her perform at the jazz cafe and held back tears when the opening notes of no angel rang out, charli has finally released a studio version of the track, as well as another "new" track focus. i put "new" in quotation marks because she's been playing both tracks as part of her live shows for the past few months, so it was more of a relief than anything when she finally unveiled the official versions. all i can say is i hope my neighbours like the sound of A.G. cook-produced pop, because that's all they'll be hearing in the days to come. 

2. bebe rexha

it seems like we've waited an age for a full length album from the albanian star, and expectations was finally released last week. overall i wasn't thrilled - aside from previous single i got you, the only other stand outs were two piano-heavy ballads. usually these are the kind of tracks i'd skip in favour of something more upbeat, but her raspy vocals take centre stage on grace - which sees her agonise over how to amicably break up with someone - and pillow, where she pines for an absent lover. though they might not be contenders for song of the summer, i'll be playing them on repeat. 

3. GIRLI

since finding fame on soundcloud in 2015, GIRLI's back catalogue has been mixed, so i was pleased to discover her latest single day month second is an Absolute Bop. the track features much more singing than her previous rap-heavy releases, but her lyrics are sharper than ever as she calls out a cheating ex. 

4. years & years

it's no secret that i've been less than impressed with the trio's latest singles in the lead up to the release of their second album palo santo, but they finally came through with a party-ready banger reminiscent of G-A-Y favourites shine and king; all for you is pretty much the only song i'll be listening to as i get ready to go out tomorrow night. 

5. pale waves

i think i must have written about pretty much every track the manchester four piece have released so far, but noises stands out in a way i can't quite explain. perhaps it's the lyrics which address heather's own insecurities and like lorde, feelings of being Too Much, as she told the BBC "it’s about dealing with how you look, you feel, the pressure of everyone else these days telling you how to look, what to say, don’t make a wrong move." i also can't get enough of the synth-heavy breakdown which reminds me of pegasus bridge, another manchester band who are sadly no longer. following the premiere of the track on beats 1 yesterday, heather also revealed the group's debut album will be out at the beginning of september, which gives me plenty of time to get acquainted and learn the words before i see them for a second time at the ritz on the 28th.

6. betty who

another artist who has featured heavily in my new music posts, the girl really can do no wrong. her latest EP features the starship-esque just thought you should know as well as the uber-catchy taste and low-key break-up anthem ignore me. i also stumbled across her collaboration with nordic dance duo lemaitre; rocket girl will have you up on your feet in seconds.

7. loote 

the best discoveries always happen by accident - as i clicked on the video for my my my! for what must be the tenth time this month, a notification popped up inviting me to try out youtube music, which i presume is their equivalent of spotify. like the streaming giant, it also provides a selection of songs it thinks you might enjoy, and though this slightly terrifies me, i can't deny that they picked out some excellent new tracks i'd never heard before. 

one of these was your side of the bed by electro-pop duo loote. alarmingly catchy, i couldn't get it out of my head and checked spotify to see if they had any other songs. i wasn't disappointed; my searched yielded a whole EP titled single, which was released earlier this month. highlights include wish i never met you and longer than i thought, which features vocals from joe jonas. 

8. aly & aj

i played the former disney stars' comeback EP ten years endlessly last year, so i was delighted to see they had a new single out a few weeks ago. good love is a tad more subdued than their previous offerings, but after a few plays, the 80s synths which have now become their ~signature~ and achingly honest lyrics were impossible to forget. 

9. king princess 

i've fallen hard for the new york native since harry styles led fans to her debut single 1950, and she delivered once again in the form of two new tracks which form part of her make my bed EP. upper west side has a country lilt but still features her trademark autotune and details her feelings for a super rich girl who'll never give her the time of day. however my favourite is holy, which is rich in innuendo and really needs no explanation, so i urge you to just press play. 

10. blair st. clair 

never did i think i'd be the kind of person to eagerly await the release of a new track by a drag queen, but following my recent immersion in all things drag race - as always, this a spoiler free zone - i was ecstatic following my discovery of blair st. clair's new EP, call my life. the super catchy title track dropped the other day, but barricade and irresistible manage to fuse club-ready beats and honest songwriting.

all these songs - and more - can be found here.  

new (and old) music friday #19: lorde, jakil, hurts, calvin harris

today the UK woke up to the news that the conservatives are back in power and forming a coalition with the DUP - northern ireland's answer to UKIP. the blow was softened slightly by the fact that 72% of young people voted as opposed to just 43% in 2015, and also this news story. 

but we're not here to talk politics - for decades pop music has been an antidote to such testing times, and today is no different, so without further ado i present a bumper edition of my favourite songs from the last week - and all the other ones before. 

1. lorde

i think almost every post i've made in the last few months has included lorde, as the release date for her second album melodrama draws ever closer. a few days ago she blessed us with a new song perfect places which she explained in detail here, and i've had it on repeat non-stop. there's a quality to lorde's sound that i've never seen in anyone else, that careful blend of agony and ecstasy, or as she put it in this time interview, "like crying and dancing in equal parts". her latest release sober - a more low-key affair - didn't thrill me as much, but i'm hoping it will grow on me in the coming weeks. 

2. halsey

the new jersey native released her second album hopeless fountain kingdom last week, and though i'm disappointed overall - she seems to have fallen foul to over-production from pop heavyweights like sia and cashmere cat, meaning i'm still unsure what her signature sound is - the heartbreaking ballad sorry and her newest single strangers are my stand-out tracks. critics also seem spellbound by the soft 80s synths and breathy vocals provided by fifth harmony's openly bisexual lauren jauregui (i knew there was a reason why she was my favourite).(they also gave an excellent performance of it on the today show.) love songs sung by and about women are still few and far between in the mainstream pop arena, and i couldn't help myself tearing up when i first heard the line she doesn't kiss me on the mouth anymore / cause it's more intimate than she thinks we should get. unlike the queer-baiting i kissed a girl, or the shrouded-in-metaphor cool for the summer, strangers is bold, brash and unflinchingly honest, and i'm pretty sure it's halsey's peak. 

3. katy perry

speaking of katy perry, i couldn't help but include swish swish and bon appetit in this post, simply because my best friend and i had them on repeat while getting ready to go out last week, and they remind me of a good time. however, i fully support the idea that she's been making questionable decisions lately, and is struggling to stay relevant after the monumental success of teenage dream, also her peak. a catchy hook and guest verse from (the inimitable) nicki minaj just won't be enough to save her as she seems to have strayed too far away from the "purposeful pop" she promised her next album witness would contain. 

4. GIRLI

the london-based artist has been making waves in the music world for a while, and i was a huge fan of her song it was my party last night, an ode to teenage life and house parties. her latest offering, the super summery feel OK features guest vocals from lethal bizzle; an unlikely pairing that apparently came about after his producer diztortion played her track in the studio by accident and he decided to contribute. the accompanying video is awash with neon hues of pink and blue, and it's a feel good summer anthem that i'll be playing well into the autumn. 

5. jakil

again, i've discussed the edinburgh indie pop outfit on this blog before, but their latest single fool without u has been stuck in my brain for weeks now. featuring the 80s sound that has quickly become one of their signatures, the tracks talks escaping the Big City when things all feel too much, and a girl who apparently looks ridiculously good in high heels.

6. carly rae jepsen

the queen of everything made her return to pop a few weeks ago with the super summery cut to the feeling. an E•MO•TION off-cut, the song features on the soundtrack for the french animated flick leap!, released last year. it features the typical euphoric sound of tracks like run away with me, i really like you, and of course, call me maybe, and will tide me over until the release of her next album; hopefully the rumours about it being "disco inspired" are still true.

7. hurts

the manchester-born electronic duo are still working on their next album, but after listening to - and loving - their newest single beautiful ones, i stumbled across lights on youtube, a disco-lite number that i just can't seem to get enough of. also excellent is nothing will be bigger than us, an anthemic party-ready track from 2015's surrender. 

8. steps

getting ready for my last night Proper Night Out at uni last month, i finally got around to listening to the latest offering from steps, titled tears on the dancefloor. i expected it to be the usual bland pop churned out year after year by bands who were popular in the 90s and early 2000s looking to make a quick buck, but i should have given steps a bit more credit. after the sensational scared of the dark, they followed it up with an entire album of cheesy, party-ready pop, with not a single Sad Piano Ballad in sight. picking a highlight of this album is near on impossible, as every song went into my party playlist on spotify, so if you love pop music as much as i do, you won't be disappointed.

9. calvin harris 

my current pick for Song Of The Summer is still a toss up between drake's passionfruit and heatstroke, by calvin harris, who's been churning out hits left right and centre the last few years. this one is something special though, perhaps due in part to guest vocals from ariana grande. either way, this song is Pure Summer, i.e. the feeling you get at approximately 5pm on a friday in early may - when it gets properly warm and you can walk to work/school/uni in just a t-shirt - when everyone starts leaving work. living next to a main road in my uni house, i was privy to such a sight every week as it became congested with cars queuing to presumably get out of town, and many of them were blasting both passionfruit and heatstroke. both evoke fond memories of nights out during my time away, and heatstroke first came to my attention when we were all crammed into a taxi on our way home from Tha Club one night, and i'm wondering if a similar situation may occur later tonight when i meet some of my friends in manchester who have travelled Up North for parklife festival this weekend; a place i tend to avoid as 99% of people from my year at school will be there. 

10. sunstroke project

as a lover of eurovision, i was super disppointed with this year's show, especially the acoustic track that lead portugal to victory. my winner was definitely sweden - who did come fourth - as i was spellbound by the excellent electro-pop and on point choreography of i can't go on, performed by robin bengtsson. however, a majorly underrated entry was moldova. hey mamma by sunstroke project grabbed my attention straight away with its catchy sax refrain, and i'll be blasting it while i get ready later on. 

this week's playlist is here. 

new (and old) music friday #10: GIRLI, niall horan, BANKS, the japanese house

this week's post comes in the form of a podcast; a new Thing i'm trying out after one of my uni tutors asked if anybody in the class made them. at first i thought it an odd thing to do, but after stumbling upon a podcast by tyler oakley, and reminiscing about my old barbie karaoke machine that i used to record myself on when i was younger, i decided to give it a go. 

i really want to continue this and have a mix of written posts and podcasts, so i plan on getting my mother/best friend/anyone who is willing involved as it would be nice to have someone to talk to instead of just rambling on for half an hour by myself, but for now it's just me.

as it's the first one it won't be perfect, and i encountered several Technical Difficulties trying to record/upload it - the internet kept going off as i was trying to upload it to soundcloud, perhaps a sign that a career in radio/podcasting (is that a Thing?) isn't for me - but it's now available to listen to here. 

also, a playlist of this week's tracks - and some extras - can be found here.