Nick Ward – Gimme

Nick Ward is back and he’s opening a brand new chapter that offers a glimpse into his highly anticipated debut album slated for release later this year. “Gimme” is the first offical single and it perfectly lays down the foundations for a vulnerable unravelling of his queer experience intertwined with punchy production. Reflecting on his teenage struggles with his identity, the Sydney based musician admits he thought he should’ve known everything at the time, but instead he was in the moment of discovery and should’ve just sat in it. “Gimme gimme answers! I don’t need suspense. Give me all the passwords, I know they’re in my head” he sings before later admitting “When I was seventeen, I tried to question everything. Took myself apart and tried to find a single piece that made sense”. The introspective lyrics are accompanied by an angsty pop-punk production that brings that teenage energy and will have you ready to run into a mosh-pit to have a moment of catharsis while you scream the lyrics out. While the song feels really big and arena-ready, there is also a DIY approach to it which ties into his earlier material and makes it feel cohesive with its natural evolution. 

SZA – Saturn

SZA is making her long-awaited return to Australia this April with a sold-out 7-date tour, and now the Grammy award winning artist has surprise dropped her new single which will have you falling deeper in-love with her. Just in-time for Pisces season, “Saturn” is a deeply relatable track that croons with a sensuality and vulnerability. Dreaming of packing her bags and escaping to Saturn, she finds herself questioning why certain things in life play out like they do. “If there’s a point to losing love. Repeating pain (Why?). It’s all the same. I hate this place” she ponders before deciding it’s best to move to another planet and restart. “I’ll be better on Saturn. None of this matters. Dreaming of Saturn, oh” she sings. The production sits in this melodic RNB pocket, that feels like the perfect continuation of her recent album “SOS”. It’s personal, relatable, and socially catchy that you will find yourself hitting replay over and over again. 

Aleksiah – 24

Following a sold out run supporting Cavetown in Melbourne, Sydney, and Brisbane this week, Aleksiah has shared one of her catchiest pop tracks yet. “24” is a coming of age track that hears her bringing a cynical perspective to her songwriting intertwined with an empowering catharsis that drives the chorus. Opening with the lyric “Don’t waste your twenties on a dream” she details how easy it would be to give into your inner-monologue and others around you when things aren’t going as smoothly as you would hope. But the chorus refines an empowering stance of looking forward to the future and the uncertainty and just riding the wave. “Maybe she’s a winner. If she’d ever check the score. Life will be better at 24” she’s sings. Produced by Chris Collins, this track delivers a big punch of indie-pop energy that is reminiscent of Holly Humberstone. It taps into that euphoric feeling she needs to push ahead and gives the listener that serotonin they need. 

Selena Gomez – Love On

It’s always a great time receiving new music from Selena Gomez, and she’s delivered another infectious pop track for you to obsess over with “Love On”. The pulsating production follows in the footsteps of recent single “Single Soon”, and feels like a natural elevation from her previous album “Rare”. The carefree track entices you with this pure-pop groove intertwined with a playful vocal delivery. And then she adds an extra punch with the sexual innuendo charged lyrics that have a fiery and confident attitude to them. “This doesn’t have to be some sort of mathematical equation. Slip off your jeans, slide in the sheets, screamin’ ‘yes’ in quotations” she sings before later adding “I deserve an applause for keepin’ you up late, ’til you can’t see straight, just wait”. It’s a song that’s not meant to be serious, and instead is another euphoric pop track that highlights the positive and happy headspace she’s currently in. 

The Driver Era – Get Off My Phone

The confidence behind The Driver Era’s discography has always been unparalleled, but as they step into a new chapter the band have penned what may just be their catchiest and most confident release yet. “Get Off My Phone” is an angsty break-up track that hears them channeling a vulnerability intertwined with an eagerness to move on. “Get off my phone, leave me alone. Don’t wanna think of all the ways that we went wrong. I can’t resist, what hell is this? On, it goes on, I need to forget and get you off my phone” Ross Lynch sings during the punchy chorus. The production is fuelled with that desperate need to move on when you’re hurting, and incorporates these heavier guitars and drums than what we’ve previously heard in their music to represent that.