Thursday soundcheck: 5 tracks worth knowing before the weekend
Every Thursday, we pick five songs that deserve a spot in your weekend playlist. No real theme, no rules — just good music we think you should hear. This week, we’ve got hazy electronic pop, folk, dark R&B, jangly British indie and a country song that definitely isn’t your usual country song.
★ Orange Tesla - Kamela ★
There’s something really hypnotic about “Orange Tesla.” Kamela creates this hazy, slightly dark world that pulls you in almost immediately. Her dreamy vocals sit somewhere between soft and distant, while the production gives the whole thing a late-night feeling. It’s atmospheric without trying too hard to be. The kind of song you put on when you’re walking home at 2 a.m. and suddenly feel like you’re in a movie.
☆ close to u - Leea Clem ☆
“close to u” sits somewhere between a dark pop track and an R&B song, and it’s ridiculously easy to get stuck in your head. The production keeps things moving, while Leea Clem’s vocals make it feel much more personal. The song is about that feeling of finding someone who makes you forget, even for a moment, everything else going wrong. For the Italian singer-songwriter, it also feels like the start of something new — more independent, more experimental and very much her own.
★ Allergy Season - Evelyn Bustin ★
“Allergy Season” sounds like summer at first — sunshine, a big field, birds singing. But there’s something darker underneath it. Brighton singer Evelyn Bustin’s voice feels incredibly natural, almost like she’s singing straight from a diary. The folk influence is obvious, but it’s the lyrics that give the song its personality. Warm and easy to listen to, but with a little more going on underneath.
☆ Sonder - Polyphonic Sonder ☆
If you like your indie with jangly guitars and a bit of British attitude, you’ll probably like Polyphonic Sonder. “Sonder” is only their second single, but it already sounds like a band that knows exactly what kind of energy they want. There are obvious echoes of The Libertines and The Kooks, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It’s rough around the edges in the best way, with big melodies and the kind of sound that makes you want to see them in a tiny venue with a sticky floor. They only formed this year, so we’ll be keeping an eye on them.
★ Cowboy - Maisie Jean ★
“Cowboy” takes country and throws it into a hazy electronic world. The result is dark, weird and surprisingly catchy. Maisie Jean wrote the song about a toxic ex who clearly thought he was some kind of rebellious cowboy — hence the title — and you can hear the resentment all over it. Taken from her independently produced second album No Gear, All Ideas, the track is a good example of what makes her sound interesting: she doesn’t seem particularly interested in sticking to one genre. Country guitars, electronic textures and a very specific kind of bitterness somehow work perfectly together.