Each week, I go through Genius’ album lists and listen to anything I find interesting. Then, at least twice a month, I’ll go through their singles list, updated daily, and make playlists of a bunch of new releases. I also find music through Spotify, on Twitter and on music blogs, and May was absolutely brimming with great music and the excitement of both concerts and Broadway starting up again late summer/early fall.
With Olivia Rodrigo’s debut album arriving to astonishing results, Martin Garrix collaborating with freakin Bono & The Edge, as well as MercyMe, NCT Dream, Rag n’ Bone Man and girl in red all releasing solid projects, there was more than enough new music to listen to and more than enough tracks to consider for this past month’s roundup.
Below I have narrowed down to my top ten picks for the month. You can stream all singles mentioned out now, and be sure to check out the full “Best of May 2021” Spotify Playlist where I share all of my top tracks of the month linked at the bottom.
The Top Ten
10. “Mirror” by Sigrid
While nowhere near as explosive as my favorite of Sigrid’s tracks, “Plot Twist,” it’s a welcome return to the public consciousness for the Swedish star. “Mirror,” Sigrid’s first real foray into electro-pop/dance, sounds like a cross between a Zara Larsson track vocally and a Dua Lipa track production wise, which is really cool. She sings about self-acceptance, finally loving who she sees in the mirror, while acknowledging the people in her life that were around the bad times; “There was an emptiness, I think you met me at a strange time and you anchored me.”
- “Down” by St. Vincent
This song really makes you think about what Lana Del Rey would sound like if she ever decided to flip the script and go for some bluesy up-tempo sound. Jack Antonoff, who is set to have another monstrous year with big releases by Lorde as well as his band Bleachers (who I’ll be seeing here in New York in September), is all over this thing and absolutely nailed Vincent’s vision for a retro NYC sound. Hell, Jack was probably as involved in the thematic creation as she was.
Easily one of the catchiest songs of the year so far with the visual and sonic perspective of what Marilyn Monroe would sound like if she was making music in 2021. Vincent’s slinky, sensual vocal delivery slapped with Antonoff’s vocal distortion is both chaotic and beautiful at the same time.
8. “t h e . c l i m b . b a c k” by J. Cole
One of the hardest hitting tracks off of Cole’s record, The Off-Season. Cole raps about seeing too many people make bad decisions and die for it, playing shows for seven figures and a jealous friend who landed back in prison; “I brought him round close to me before but he became addicted to clout and all the hoes we’d meet. I slowly peeped jealousy on his breath whenever he spoke to me. Like on the low, he feelin’ that in my shoes is where he supposed to be.”
7. “The Outside” by Twenty One Pilots
There I was, thinking, “Man, ‘Shy Away’ is not what I’d expect from the band who dominated 2015 and 2016 and it didn’t have much of an impact” and then I hear this song, in which Tyler Joseph calls out the industry for moving onto artists that he deems are less interesting. I will say, he’s not nearly as pretentious as The 1975’s Matty Healy, who thinks Ellie Goulding isn’t an album artist and had the gall to compare The 1975 to Radiohead, one of the most prolific bands of all time in my opinion, but he certainly has his opinions too.
The instrumental here is groovy as hell and I love the vocal layering, the gang backup vocals, the fake-out build that ultimately leads to nothing after the chorus and the “kids will try to take my vibes” line. Tyler, it’s ok. None of these kids are ever going to make a “Car Radio.”
6. “Rest” by Alanis Morrisette
“Rest”, originally performed by Morrisette at Chester Bennington’s tribute concert following his death in 2017, is the newest release from the legend behind Jagged Little Pill. Fun fact: I bought a new a car, a Hyundai Elantra, in November and named it Alanis. My bandmate, Emi, calls the car Alanis the Elantrisette.
Despite the overwhelming popularity of JLP, Morrisette is criminally underrated and this haunting song will, likely, fly under the radar of many. She’s as present, eclectic and as powerful of a storyteller as ever here, begging the listener to have empathy for everyone, even those who appear as though they have it all; “You think it’s a walk in the park and it’s easy. ‘She’s got it as good as it gets’. This misunderstanding’s a line between living or being the walking dead.”
5. “Headspace” by Charli Adams ft. Ruston Kelly
Ironically, my first exposure to Charli Adams was with her remix of Nightly’s hit, “Twenty Something,” and this new track sounds like it was designed for them to return the favor. Instead, country singer Ruston Kelly does the honors, literally sounding like a stand-in for Jon Capeci since it’s just so much of his vibe, but still delivering a solid performance opposite Adams.
The pair sing about trying to save a partner from themselves, but ultimately giving up when they realized there was nothing left to do; “When you got down I was speeding like a fool. Thinking I could save you, like I’m an exception to the rule.”
4. “Out Of The Blue” by The Steel Woods
A killer country/rock track from Nashville-based band, The Steel Woods, about coming out of a dark place; “It’s the righting of a wrong, the writing of a song, thin air becomes something new. I’ve finally come out of the blue”. Lead singer Wes Bayliss has got Chris Stapleton-like pipes, showing off his massive range throughout the song and holding his own among the band behind him.
3. “jealousy, jealousy” by Olivia Rodrigo
Olivia Rodrigo is the new “it” girl in the music industry. You can’t deny it. After massive success with “drivers license” and, to a lesser extent, “déjà vu,” earlier this year, she quickly announced that her debut album, SOUR, was coming fast. The album, to no one’s surprise, is smashing every kind of record imaginable. Songs like “brutal” and “traitor” set the tone early while this track, “jealousy, jealousy,” is THE highlight of the latter half.
We live in a world where we crave, so badly, to look, sound and make money like the people we see on TV, in movies and on social media but are also told, repeatedly, that all of that doesn’t matter. It’s always, “That might not make YOU happy, you need to find your OWN happiness.” As true as that is, we still dive headfirst into the self-hatred. Rodrigo does it here and is now essentially a martyr for the rest of Gen Z who just want their angst to be heard without being dismissed for being young and dramatic; “I’m so sick of myself. Rather be, rather be anyone, anyone else.” That chorus melody is catchy the first time you hear it, but the second go-around leads right into yet another perfect bridge from Rodrigo, who inspired a whole Billboard list on the subject. The audience at Rodrigo’s live shows are going to go nuts during this part and I for one want to join them in their screaming fit of self-loathing; “Got a pretty face, a pretty boyfriend too. I wanna be you so bad and I don’t even know you. All I see is what I should be….happier, prettier, jealousy, jealousy.”
2. “What If It Doesn’t End Well” by chloe moriondo
Here we have yet ANOTHER teenager with vocal prowess beyond her years. It’s not even surprising anymore, to be honest. moriondo’s record, Blood Bunny, is one of my favorites of the year so far altogether, but my favorite track is the epic closer that is “What if it Doesn’t End Well.”
Here, in what I’d call a rare perspective, moriondo looks at what is seemingly her healthy relationship and expresses her fears of doing something wrong. The thoughts start to creep in before anything happens, leaving her overthinking and scared of something that isn’t even real. But why? On the surface, it seems like she got what she always wanted; “Around the sun and round again, you seem to look right through me. Another year being your best friend, feels like you always knew me.” With Rodrigo, it was about wanting to measure up to everyone and everything around her. With moriondo, it’s about needing constant reassurance because, honestly, people are fickle these days. There’s always someone else waiting if you make one small mistake, or even if you don’t. If they get tired of you, that’s it. So she’s scared. And she presents it brilliantly.
She sings the first chorus with a bit of resistance, with the hesitancy we all have to ask the hard questions. Then, the second time around, she unleashes her anguish, jumping up an octave and wailing those harsh realities; “But what if it doesn’t end well? Would you still stay? What if I f*** it up like I always do and my s*** gets in the way?”
- “Build Your Church” by Elevation Worship and Maverick City Music ft. Naomi Raine and Chris Brown
My favorite of the month is one that I, likely, would have never found on my own. I listen to worship music when I come across it, but I had never heard of Elevation Worship or any of the other acts on this track until my friend Jason recommended it to me the day their album, Old Church Basement, was released. My grandpa passed away less than 24 hours after I heard the song for the first time and in the days and weeks following, the song became my go-to. I needed something to cling onto while I was falling apart over and over again, and this was it.
All of the songs on the album are long, but “Build Your Church” is the penultimate opus, clocking in at over nine minutes. Singer Naomi Raine delivers one of the most impressive vocal performances I’ve heard in a very, VERY long time, showcasing her otherworldly stamina and improv skills. The way she’d lock onto specific phrases like, “We will never fail” and “Keep walkin….keep walkin. Keep preachin, keep teachin” and just rip into them by repeating them over and over while the choir continued around her was just mesmerizing. Chris Brown (no, not THAT one), did his thing here as a solo vocalist as well, but no one was about to stand next to Naomi and outdo her. She is in a class of her own.
I’m a total sucker for a big build, musically, so they decided to do, like, three of them. It is exhausting and exhilarating to listen to at the same time and I implore you to do so if you’re feeling lost.
The Top 50
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