Watch: Slow Down by Animal Scream

Hailing from Pittsburgh, Animal Scream are duo Chad Monticue, who provides vocals and various instrumentation, and Josh Sickels, on drums and percussion. Both share production duties as they create a dark psych-pop sound that draws on influences as diverse as David Lynch, MF Doom and 60s reggae. The result is cinematic and deeply atmospheric.

Here on Slow Down, Animal Scream have created a thick weave of melodic, slowly picked guitars, layered vocals and dubby bass notes. The result has hints of Foals’ cinematic math rock, channeling Afrobeat and highlife stylings to create a sound that is modern and experimental, yet organic and earthy.

As Slow Down’s many components slip into my ears and slide through my mind, the experience is psychedelic and calming, despite the hint of darkness that pervades Animal Scream’s sound. Check it out below:

Listen: Between Your Teeth by Halo Kitsch

Challenging the stereotype of the flawless ‘it girl’ stereotype, LA pop artist Halo Kitsch’s new single takes the experience of evolving from jealousy to self-assurance and distills it into a perfect three-minute pop punk record.

Kitsch’s found inspiration for Between Your Teeth in her experience of suddenly being thrust into the limelight as a result of her first experience of internet virality, as she explains:

‘In the midst of those very humbling months on social media, faced with constant negativity, I found myself suddenly right back in the cyclical phases of jealousy, judgment, and justification … I spent an entire shift dreaming up this perfect girl, legs crossed, hair clean… the anti-me. And to counteract her, I began dreaming up a chorus of qualities that were one-of-a-kind, uniquely mine.’

The result, created as she channeled that more authentic version of herself, sees a song that disassembles notions of fake perfection. Between Your Teeth sees Kitsch sneer at an unspecified, plastic romantic rival, but really it is her own inauthentic sense of an ‘aspirational’ identity of flawlessness that she is deconstructing. It’s a compelling sound, with the energy and ethos coming from the same playbook as Olivia Rodrigo’s higher energy numbers.

Halo Kitsch relocated to Hollywood after California’s Woolsey fire displaced her from her childhood home. Taking that as an opportunity to create something new from adversity, Kitsch began writing music rooted in resilience, with songs that turn ‘heartbreak into bangers’. With a catalogue that comprises more than 20 songs, Kitsch has already released her debut EP, and amassed over 2-million streams across platforms.

Watch: Nobody’s Perfect by Tokyo Tea Room

Based in the Kent seaside town, Margate, Tokyo Tea Room are a UK dream pop outfit who explore themes of longing and the ephemeral nature of the human experience.

When checking out new music sub missions, I generally don’t focus on the accompanying visuals and just judge based on sound. I find it easier to know what I’m really listening to, by tuning everything else out. This meant that when I first heard the version of Nobody’s Perfect below, I didn’t actually clock that the recording was live. Such is the carefully arranged and mastered nature of this performance, with crisp, muted percussion and a gently filtered vocal duet. It’s striking to then absorb it, seeing the band playing live.

The overall song is a spellbinding, heartfelt and earnest — the vocals are emotionally charged, and yet the overall song is so retrained, creating a sense that this is more of an internal monologue than something said out loud. The sound has elements of trip hop, but I also feel the hushed, sunset vibes of someone like Yumi Zouma, a group I haven’t listened to in some time, yet for whom I suddenly find myself longing.

Sometimes quiet music feels like it can say so much more than anything loud, and the live nature of the Nobody’s Perfect video makes it clear Tokyo Tea Room have significant talent. The song is taken from their forthcoming album, No Rush. Check out the live video below, and look out for the album.

Listen: Miss My Flight by Yana Rose

The latest release from Indonesian-American indie-pop artist Yana Rose, Miss My Flight is a heartfelt celebration of those moments when you are reminded of the joy and pressure that comes from the freedom of life.

Now based in Nashville, Miss My Flight is inspired by an evening Yana spent the night before she was set to relocate to her new home from LA, as she describes in her own words:

‘This song is based on my last night living in LA, before I moved to Nashville the next morning. I met up with a guy for the first time, and we hit it off way more than he or I were expecting. We spent the night talking about non-first date like things and exploring parts of LA I hadn't seen while living there. I mentioned I’d wanted to get a tattoo while I lived in LA, so we found a shop and both got tattoos. It was one of those surreal, dreamlike nights that made me want to abandon all my plans and stay.’

The production and instrumentation at play here is both understated and yet also shimmers with an excited sense of the possible, a remarkable sense of economy at play. Yana’s performance is gorgeous, the vocal positioned at the equivalent point of someone trying to run whilst looking like they are only walking… It’s emotional, yet trying to hold back, only further emphasising the earnest excitement and uncertainty at play. She really wants to leave, but boy, does she wish she didn’t.

I also love the oxymoron in the song’s central hook, as Yana coyly sings, ‘Now I need to casually miss my flight’. You know that there is nothing casual about missing a flight, and the fact she is on the brink of actively choosing to do so only further underlines that her emotions are far from casual.

Overall, Miss My Flight is a pretty perfect pop song. That aforementioned economy is on display in the overdubbing of Yana’s vocals, simple yet so effective. The whole thing comes together in the bridge that precedes the final chorus. The instrumentation drops out so that Yana can hit that line one last time, a small, knowing giggle in the background, betraying how ridiculous she knows the entire thing is.

Miss My Flight is a departure for Yana, as she shifts from her established sound of more melancholic tracks to something more playful and upbeat. She does so whilst retaining a strong sense of emotion and authenticity, and I can’t help but feel excited about what is to come.

Stream: You by Cicada

Cicada is the musical project of Paris-born brothers Nathan and Elliott. Whilst born in France’s capital, the pair grew up in Provence, in the South of France, and the sun kissed azure coastlines of the region feel like they have infected the warm, hazy Mediterranean vibes of their music.

The pair, now 21 (Nathan) and 24 (Elliott), formed much of their sonic identity whilst on family road trips, a combination of Daft Punk, Justice, Pharrell Williams, and Michael Jackson fuelling their early love of music. In time, alternative hip-hop has influenced their taste, as they found artists including Tyler, The Creator, Kaytranada, Kanye West, and Childish Gambino.

The resulting sound is a tropical, lusty blend of house with pop and disco touches. Here on Cicada’s latest song, You, created in partnership with Noelle Vanyi, the pair wrap swirling melodies around her yearning, cut-up vocal. The lyrics are deliberately left open to interpretation, the You of the song’s title an invitation to the listener to make the song fit their own narrative.

What stands out to me on You is the seamless, crisp way that Cicada have layered together elements in the production. Noelle’s vocal is looped and sliced in interesting ways, without allowing it to disintegrate into pure instrumentation, as shimmering chords create a warm feeling in the listener. Towards the song’s conclusion, tom toms begin to roll, creating a lively, snappy sound that mimics the energy of live instrumentation.

Throughout the entirety of You, bass throbs, echoing string synth melodies, conjuring a sound that feels like it is about to crack beneath the warmth of the sun and the pounding of dancing feet… As we descend into a chilly autumn in the Northern Hemisphere, You has me longing for the warmth of hot sunshine.

Check out the song below, and add it on Spotify here.