To kickstart the monthly roundup series, I decided to go for a genre that’s starting to build a strong foundation in the echelons of popular music. Of course, electro-pop is far from niche, but it’s a rapidly growing style that will soon be one of the definitive forms that pop takes on. Often over produced, auto-tuned, and hyper futuristic, it does even today sound like tomorrow’s music. So, without a full blown rant on my thoughts and opinions on the genre itself, here’s five of the best electro pop tunes I’ve come across in this month!
5. Pariz – Watch It Sink
A haunting and depressive track about breaking things off, ‘Watch It Sink’ is a full throated vocally driven EDM piece. The 21 year old producer from Fort Worth fully capitalises on the feature he’s enlisted here. In a very old-school almost classic EDM fashion, the tune is powered by a hammering drop at the onset of each chorus. Till then, atmospheric beats and production populate the verse. ‘Watch It Sink’ is as emotive as it is cleansing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EafkP9uEqZ0
4.Jord – (Gay) Teenage Dream)
On the track, Jord says “It’s about my experience being closeted in high school and the feeling of missing out on that cliché teenage romance you see in those John Hughes films from the ’80s.” That couldn’t be more apt. Its the kind of song you’d expect to play in the montage section of a coming of age film — particularly the part where the titular main character finds himself lost and alone. To anyone who felt insecure about being themselves in high school, consequently missing out on those experiences we so eagerly romanticise, it hits very close to home.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2fuWNQ_SsA
3. Joe Skylark – Everything Is Happening
‘Everything Is Happening’ is loud, anthemic, and defiant; but, the song is all about grappling with loneliness. In his debut single, Joe is incredibly introspecting, delving into this own personal insecurities in a very singer-songwriter-esque fashion. But in stark contrast to the minimalism that form of song writing tends to espouse, Joe’s production synthesizes a combination of electronic beats, samples, synths and a touch of strings to create a truly holistic electro-pop anthem.
2. JOSEPHINE – Face Value
Blending together elements of dream and bedroom pop, JOSEPHINE’s latest track Face Value is a spacey bubble that needs to be experienced with headphones. Sultry, sedative, and smooth; the song is akin to an Alina Baraz piece. Worth a full listen.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NAjypMO3LA
1. Cardiac Half – Looking Glass
Combining elements of indie, rap, electronic, and bedroom pop, ‘Looking Glass’ is one of the best produced songs I’ve heard all year. In fact, in terms of singular moments in a song — those five to ten second clips that refuse to leave your memory — few top the “where we go when we go” and the ensuing ‘drop’ that is as cacophonic as it is seamless. Genre-defying, definitely. Eclectically electronic couldn’t be more appropriate.