Sound Off: 10 New Songs You Need to Hear Now
Music

Sound Off: 10 New Songs You Need to Hear Now

by Shaad D'Souza

It's impossible to be across all the new music out each Friday. Luckily, PAPER is here to help you out: each week, we round up 10 of our favorite new songs from artists — emerging and established — to soundtrack your life. From the surreal to the sublime, these songs cover every corner of the music world. The only criteria: they all have to absolutely rip.

Kelis — "Midnight Snacks"

Kelis' first solo single since 2014 is sublime and bass-heavy, an evocative R&B track that recalls her classic work as much as it does contemporaries like Kelela. Welcome back to a legend!

Lauren Jauregui — "Colors"

The first taste of Lauren Jauregui's new album is a simmering, meditative introduction that burns slowly until it bursts into a moody spoken-word trap track.

Lily Konigsberg — "Proud Home"

Although she's a devout experimentalist with her band Palberta, Lily Konigsberg is secretly one of the strongest pop writers currently working, and "Proud Home," which takes the guise of a punk barnstormer, is proof. It's all hook, even as it rages.

Arca & Sia — "Born Yesterday"

As present as Sia's vocal is on "Born Yesterday," this is still 100% Arca's song, and it's an exciting first taste of Kick ii, her sequel to last year's superlative Kick i.

Hatchie — "Crush"

Hatchie's cover of Jennifer Paige's "Crush," which evokes Ray Of Light-era Madonna with its chilly Balearic tones, joins Jai Paul's version in the growing-pantheon of essential "Crush" reworks.

Eartheater — "Scripture"

"Scripture", a collaboration with Sega Bodega, finds Eartheater in a state of glorious, gripping flux. As she told PAPER in our recent interview: "I was feeling very validated and rewarded in trusting my stars after following my heart, for years, down an unorthodox and uncertain path."

Porches — "Back3School"

"Back3School" is an ebullient highlight of Porches' fifth album All Day Gentle Hold !, its cool tones evoking memories of the band's classic Pool while maintaining the new album's sense of forward motion.

Mitski — "Working For The Knife"

"Working For The Knife" expands Mitski's palette just enough to keep us interested for her long-awaited follow-up to Be The Cowboy: is that a hint of Nine Inch Nails creeping in at the edges?

Tame Impala — "Breathe Deeper (Lil Yachty Remix)"

Tame Impala has born so much influence on rap music over the past five years that this new remix of "Breathe Deeper" featuring Lil Yachty makes perfect sense.

Kylie Minogue — "A Second To Midnight (feat. Years & Years)"

Kylie'sDisco is getting a deluxe reissue, and from the sound of "A Second To Midnight," its new additions will be completely essential. It's 20 years since Fever was released, and there's still nobody better.

Photo courtesy of Mike Mora