Another month, another hot batch of excellent new music just for you! I’m supposed to be on holiday this week, so I’ll keep this short – but please do check out all 20 of the best songs to come out last month – I promise each and every one of them are worth a few minutes of your time! Hope you find something you like, and please subscribe to my weekly newsletter which rounds up the latest and greatest in new music every Monday and drops it directly into your inbox. Happy listening!
20. Chasing Stars (feat. James Bay) by Alesso + Marshmello
Never thought James Bay would venture down the senseless EDM-pop route for an extra slice of the pie, always felt like someone chasing a bit more *credibility*, but maybe he’s just a man after my own heart after all: someone who likes inoffensive, lyrically-senseless EDM pop. A nice wee song.
19. Stupid Feeings by 220 KID + LANY
Took me a while to figure out which song this reminded me from and it turned out to be 220KID’s other big tune Don’t Need Love with GRACEY (who also features this month). A pumped up adrenaline banger with some lovely vocals courtesy of LANY.
18. All Things $ Can Do (With Travis Barker + Tove Styrke) by Cheat Codes
This is quite low-key within the greater context of Travis Barker’s renewed musical dominance, but it’s a solid addition to the new wave of pop-rock music that continues to dominate in the minds of 00s nostalgia hunters. Deeply satisfying.
17. Cry With You by Jeremy Zucker
A little bit of cry pop from one of the saddest singers working in pop music that goes down a treat. A perfect lament that will sit you down with your emotions and force some much needed confrontation.
16. Wait by Nao
The vocals on this delicate ballad from Nao are absolutely gorgeous, and the control with which she draws you in before hitting her falsetto is stunning.
15. Childhood Bedroom by Ben Platt
Having only recently watched the second season of The Politician, I was not yet ready to let Ben Platt slip out of my life and lo and behold he dropped a whole new album just for me. He enlisted pop-guru Julia Michaels on Childhood Bedroom, an understated pop song about finding your mental safe space, and created a gorgeous treat for us.
14. Stupid by Cate
Starts off as your run of the mill pop tune about picking a fight with your partner, but when that enormous chorus hits it will floor you, I guarantee it – the melody is so simple and so deliciously good.
13. Just My Luck by Charlie Collins
This feels like it should feature on the soundtrack for a 90s/00s teen movie which is pretty much the highest compliment there is to give. The chorus is dangerously catchy.
12. Casanova by Blake Rose
After that very uneventful album from Shawn Mendes last year, I’ve decided it’s high time a new pop boy took control of that slice of the market, and that boy is Blake Rose: talented, personable, and full of catchy little tunes like Casanova which has been rattling around my head for weeks.
11. What A Waste by GRACEY
Ever get out of a relationship and feel like you’ve wasted a significant chunk of your life? GRACEY has, and she’s written a very good pop song about it.
10. My Life Is Better With You by Montaigne
After the bean dad debacle, the only podcast I have consistently listened to for 5 years needed a new theme song and enlisted the very talented Montaigne to sort them out. The product is this goofy, catchy, loving little tune that basically captures my personal feelings about the McElroy brothers. A very cute song with a very cute video.
09. Saving Me by Rubio
When the first ‘oh my god’ landed so did my finger on the repeat button. An excellent little pop song.
08. What A Damn Shame by Adam Melchor
Pre-chorus of the month goes to Adam Melchor with ‘I heard Sinatra wouldn’t be caught dead without a suit/Well I know I’m not him/My hair’s more curly and my eyes a little less blue’ – the way he twists it up the second time he uses it is perfect.
07. Burning Bridges by Sigrid
After Mirror, I wasn’t initially sure what to think about Sigrid’s comeback, but this bouncy disco-pop banger had its hooks in me before it hit the minute mark.
06. Loving The Light by Charlotte Jane
Already knew that Charlotte Jane’s voice was gorgeous after All My Life but the way it just slides into this song is pure magic. A piece of pop perfection featuring my favourite chorus this month.
05. Take My Breath by The Weeknd
ABBA’s Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight) meets Giorgio Moroder via Michael Jackson’s Thriller – dripping in euphoria from start to finish.
04. A Concert Six Months From Now by FINNEAS
Needed a bit of a cry and FINNEAS supplied the tools at just the right moment. This one is about making distant future plans with a partner who breaks up with you before the event. It’s a heart-breaking story that the older O’Connell sibling nails in his delivery.
03. Rumors (feat. Cardi B) by Lizzo
Not a bad moment in this instantly iconic duet about being famous, but my personal highlight has to be the tongue-in-cheek way Lizzo delivers ‘Readin’ shit on the internеt/My smoothie cleanse and my diet’. So good.
02. Roll The Dice by Haley Reinhart
Haley Reinhart is a unique, incredible vocalist, and the way she builds herself into this song, teasing and teasing and then unleashing the key-changing crescendo, is a musical masterpiece. They don’t make em like this anymore – except that they do, and her name is Haley Reinhart.
01. I wanna love you but I don’t by Ben Platt
His grounding in musicals has turned Ben Platt into an expert storyteller, which is what tips this slow-building pop tune over the edge of perfection is his ability to deliver an stunning vocal performance. The way he launches into the final chorus is pure euphoria.
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