10 Cool New Pop Songs to Get You Through The Week: Cannons, Lauv, BAMBII With Aluna & More
Written by djfrosty on August 7, 2023
Looking for some motivation to help power you through the start of another work week? We feel you, and with some stellar new pop tunes, we’ve got you covered.
These 10 tracks from artists including Cannons, Lauv, BAMBII with Aluna, Meet Me @ the Altar and more will get you energized to take on the week. Pop any of these gems into your personal playlists — or scroll to the end of the post for a custom playlist of all 10.
BAMBII feat. Aluna, “Hooked”
Toronto-bred DJ BAMBII has become known for her unexpected fusions, ensuring each release offers a new roadmap to the same destination: a good time. On the sultry “Hooked,” she and Aluna journey through gently thumping, and at times oscillating orchestral beats — setting the scene as if the pair are slowly winding down a dim-light, hazy road in no rush at all to reach their destination. — Lyndsey Havens
Saint Motel, “Fine Wine”
The latest from Los Angeles pop band Saint Motel offers a reassuring take on growing up: “Our bodies will age but we’ll never grow old,” sings frontman AJ Jackson, comparing the process to that of fine wine, becoming better with time. And once the glimmering chorus hits, which sounds tailor-made to accompany an onstage curtain of sparklers, it’s hard not to buy in. — L.H.
Cannons, “Desire”
“I’ve got a fire / I feel it starting to grow,” Cannons singer Michelle Joy declares on their sensual new single, “Desire”: the line may be a knowing or unwitting callback to “Fire for You,” and like the band’s breakout hit, the new track conveys its yearning message through ’80s textures and clean, dreamy synth-pop. When Cannons release singles that are both smoky and designed for swaying, you better be ready to press the replay button. — Jason Lipshutz
Dylan feat. Bastille, “Liar Liar”
British singer-songwriter Dylan has specialized in emotionally heightened pop tunes during her speedy ascent, as have Bastille over the course of their mega-streaming career; together, Dylan and the band’s Dan Smith have conjured an intensely magnetic duet with “Liar Liar.” Both singers spit out the titular phrase as a decree against deception, accentuating the song’s piercing strings and sprinting beat with ample charisma. — J.L.
Lauv, “Love U Like That”
The single artwork for Lauv’s “Love U Like That” is a neon-purple lipstick print — a fitting image for a love song that embraces its listener with enough heartfelt emotion to glow in the dark. Lauv has earned billions of streams with this brand of vulnerable, immaculately constructed pop, and “Love U Like That” once again finds him navigating fizziness with airtight hooks and generous falsetto. — J.L.
Speedy Ortiz, “Ghostwriter”
“I’m tired of anger” is the lynchpin line on Speedy Ortiz’s bewitching new single “Ghostwriter,” as Sadie Dupuis sings about attempting to live with less rage while also existing in a world full of social injustices that deserve to be called out. Out of all of the singles that Speedy Ortiz has shared ahead of upcoming album Rabbit Rabbit, “Ghostwriter” may possess the most immediately satisfying balance of shimmer and substance, pushing forward with purpose as Dupuis ponders her next move. — J.L.
Chris Farren, “All We Ever”
“All We Ever,” the best song on Chris Farren’s great new album Doom Singer, essentially exists as a list of the singer-songwriter’s large and small desires: as the guitar surfs forward and a synth hook pops in and out, Farren proclaims that he wants to “fall asleep reading a book,” to “get drunk with my friends,” to “make my mother proud of me,” to “love being alive.” The cover of Doom Singer finds an animated Farren on his knees, pleading with the heavens; “All We Ever,” then, serves as that image’s lovely audio counterpart. — J.L.
LANY, “XXL”
Perhaps a song that’s nostalgic for the year 2018 will make you feel older than the dirt under your shoes, but LANY sell the not-so-distant look back on “XXL,” an expansive pop-rock track about a misbegotten romance and the too-large hoodie that makes the memories flood back. The repetition of the “XXL” motif, used at the end of each verse and throughout the chorus, serves the song well, turning what could have been a stray observation into a memorable anthem. — J.L.
Meet Me @ The Altar, “Take Me Away (Freaky Friday)”
For fans of Freaky Friday’s “Take Me Away,” as sung by actress Christina Vidal for the 2003 movie’s House of Blues performance scene, Meet Me @ The Altar put their spin on the classic track and revived it for Gen Z, just in time for the film’s 20th anniversary. Vocalist Edith Victoria injects a fair amount of bite, adding more of the band’s signature pop punk edge to the group’s rendition of the track. — Starr Bowenbank
Puddle Splasher, “Basic Forms”
Following 2019’s The Blankest Blue, Puddle Splasher — Brooklyn based trio consisting of members Dante Fotino, Andy Altadonna and Adam Thibeault — has returned with new single “Basic Forms,” their first in five years that doubles as the first look at an upcoming album. The band continues to dive headfirst into fuzzy, alternative leaning rock as Altadonna’s voice melts into energetic guitar and drum work at the turn of the chorus. — S.B.