The first Friday of November is officially here, and that means it is officially time to launch our New Music Friday November series: Music To Be Thankful For.
And while the past week has been full of ups and downs as both the pandemic and election dominate our minds and the news- making it hard to be positive about anything- we are happy to report that despite the chaos that ensues in the world, this Friday is once more full of brand new music to help keep you sane and keep your mind off of the uncertainty of our collective futures.
With music spanning several genres form hip hop to acoustic emo to pop punk covers of pop bangers, our NMF playlist is full of some of the best releases of the week, and we cannot wait to share them with you.
You can read our full list of NMF favorites below, and be sure to check out our full new November playlist on Spotify, linked at the bottom.
“Nothing Hurts Like Love For The First Time” by This Wild Life
This Wild Life is one of the best emo acoustic acts in the world. Don’t believe us? Check out their newest single “Nothing Hurts Like Love For The First Time.”
Released this morning, the new track is an emotionally heavy- though instrumentally light- journey through the end of a relationship. Specifically, through the loss of a first love.
With vocalist Kevin Jordan’s unique but calming voice recounting the changes made throughout the end of the relationship to re-find themselves now acting as separate entities, the track makes listeners feel as though they are right there with him and reliving their own most painful breakups.
But even though the track is a classic TWL song in that it hits listeners deeply, and maybe makes you shed a tear, they are not a band you want to miss out on.
A hip hop track by rising Atlanta based artist 5AM, “Answer Me” is another song dedicated to relationships. But instead of breaking your heart, 5AM dedicates this track to trying to win over the love of his life by telling her all the ways they will be able to conquer the world together.
Trying to figure out where the stand, the singer shared his dreams for money and a good life- but reminds his love interest she has to answer when he calls in order to make that happen.
And with a catchy back track that will have you head bopping along to the beat, this song will make you want to call up your partner and begin planning your ideal life. But make sure you memorize their phone number- you never know what might happen.
“Watermelon Sugar” by Love Like Fiction (Harry Styles cover)
One of the best parts of being a fan of several genres of music is when two of your favorite artists collide. Last week we shared a few Harry Styles covers from The Maine and Charming Liars and this week we are so excited to add Love Like Fiction to the Styles cover collection.
Putting a pop punk spin on the summer banger “Watermelon Sugar,” Love Like Fiction have ramped things up a notch and given Styles’ single a bit of a harder edge. Adding electric guitars and increased percussion presence, the band kicked up the tempo to make the song even more of a rocking dance track than before.
And though live music is off the table for now, we hope that when Love Like Fiction is able to hit the road again that they play this to help get us going in the pit.
Being honest about your insecurities and inner feelings isn’t always easy, but Coleman Hell is using his new song to open up and let listener’s in on what goes on inside his head.
“real me,” which was written at the height of this year’s pandemic, goes through what makes Hell his own unique self- including the parts he has a difficult time accepting and loving. With a steady beat playing under his mix of singing and R&B style vocals, Hell keeps listeners engaged while also getting them to appreciate the aspects of their own personalities that make them “real.”
“I kept telling myself I needed to wait for some magical moment of perfection before I could fully love myself,” the singer shared. “but I think it’s important to recognize that you can continue to grow and improve while still loving your current self.”
Sometimes life feels so ridiculous that you just have to laugh at all of the misfortune you have experienced. And here to bring a little light to the absurdity of the world is Austin Plaine with his new single “Fangs.”
A look into the difficulty of life- as inspired by a fictional story about a troubled young woman who is considering taking her life- Plaine uses a raw folk-tinged sound to explore growing up in a world that feels like it’s falling apart. With lyrical references to some of the worst things one can experience at a young age, including death, uncertainty and a growing sense of anxiety surrounding your existence, the singer shares some of his own experiences with listeners while giving the topics a bit of lightness.
“You start questioning what any of [life] means, but the final verse ‘it ain’t a time to quit, how’s your new therapist? It’s an all-out blitz, it’s a comedy special…’ brings on something of hopefulness,” he shares. “We almost have to laugh at the lunacy of life and if you can laugh at yourself a little bit, everything feels a little more okay.”
“When You’re Smiling My Way” by GLASWING
A synth pop dream, “When You’re Smiling My Way” is the debut single by GLASWING- also known as Aaron Marsh, the frontman of iconic indie rock band Copeland.
With soaring symphonic melodies and simple yet heartful lyrics, “When You’re Smiling My Way” is a peaceful love song that leaves listener’s feeling good- regardless of what is happening in the world around them. A change from Copeland’s heavier instrumental presence, GLASWING’s debut uses unique synthesizer sounds mixed with piano and Marsh’s vocals to create a large but enveloping sound- wrapping listener’s up in the track’s atmosphere.
Serving as a nice reprieve from the chaos of this past week, this single reminds us that there is love and hope in the future- we just have to stay hopeful and find it.
A unique mix of pop punk meets EDM, the latest single by VYB showcases the band’s growth as they launch into the next era of new music.
Released this morning, “Deja Vu” navigates the feelings of trying to make a relationship work time and time again only to never really know if the connection is going to stick. Inspired by a personal experience frontman Tom Belau had, the song is about trying to work through the uncomfortable phase of defining a relationship or deciding if it’s time to leave.
And as the band’s first venture into a new soundscape, the track perfectly mixes the band’s pop punk roots and instrumental talents with catchy synth beats, helping to elevate the track to the next level. It’s not just pop punk and it’s not just EDM, but a fusion of sound that makes you want to dance around your room with the track on full blast.
Taken from a diary entry about a potentially unrequited love, “Take My Heart” is a gut spilling love track about feeling so deeply for someone and yet being unsure if they feel the same way about you- or if they even think about you at all.
Using her emotional, full vocal styling mixed with a pop beat, Lapro recounts the doubt that comes with wanting to confess your feelings to someone and replays the idea in her head that maybe it’s not worth telling them because there’s a chance they don’t reciprocate your feelings.
But in the same token, there’s a potential that this love could blossom into a beautiful relationship. And at the end of the day, Lapro encourages listeners to make the first move- even if it is scary.
“The song questions whether someone really cares about you or if they only think of you when there is nothing else for them to do,” she explains. “When you listen to this track, I want you to be inspired to not do what I did and wait until it was too late. If you care for someone, tell them.”
“True Crime” by DREAMERS feat. DeathbyRomy
One of the most unique acts dominating the alternative music scene over the past few years is DREAMERS- an electro meets pop meets alternative trio that are not afraid to experiment with their sound. And their newest single “True Crime,” which follows this summer’s “Heat Seeker” is no different.
A narrative track that tells the story of a tumultuous relationship set in New Orleans, “True Crime” is a very catchy alt pop track that will have you grooving along to the beat almost immediately while also getting lost in the track’s intricate lyricism. Recounting a night in NOLA where the band had an experience with witchcraft and got lost in the mysteries and history of Louisiana, “True Crime” navigates the “crimes” people commit in order to keep love alive.
And with a feature from alt-pop star DeathbyRomy adding a unique flair to the track’s second verse, “True Crime” is the perfect song to get yourself lost in on a cool fall night.
Insecurity is something we all have experienced at one point or another. Whether it’s in general or in terms of a relationship- we all have doubts about various aspects of life- and Fionn’s new track “Space” highlights some of those struggles when it comes to dating and being afraid of your relationship coming to a premature end.
With an electro pop backing track, the two sisters use the song to dive into the fears they experience when it comes to being apart from a partner who they are worried is becoming distant.
“We wanted the melody and lyrics to represent the hopeless feeling of friction between two people who love each other, but who are both experiencing demons that kill their ability to communicate,” they shared.
You can stream all of the above tracks now via the playlist below. Happy Friday!
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