Every week, there are hundreds of thousands of new songs hitting the airwaves. It’s too much for just your two ears to handle: With all those options, you can’t be wasting your time on tracks worthy of a thumbs-down click.
But don’t worry, we’re going to save you the hassle. We listen to some of the most-hyped and interesting songs each week, and tell you which are worthy of your precious listening time.
Here are our top 5 songs to stream this week:
Jeff Tweedy — Theme In Yellow
The latest single from Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy comes as an homage to famed poet Carl Sandburg, whose poetry collection Chicago Poems celebrates its centennial this year. An adaptation of Sanburg’s Theme In Yellow, the new track is set to soothing strings, acoustic guitars, and a very Wilco-esq melody. Tweedy’s effort is a tasteful tribute which may end up being Chicago’s fall soundtrack, just as soon as the colors start to turn.
Action Bronson and Mark Ronson — Standing In The Rain
DC’s Suicide Squad may not be racking up rave reviews, but it does come with one heck of a soundtrack. Case in point: Standing In The Rain, a Mark Ronson and Action Bronson collaboration that features Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys on a dark chorus, and is certifiably dirty. In fact, we can’t think of a song more perfectly suited to a movie which centers on a group of gritty, super-powered misfits.
Kevin Morby — Cut Me Down (and more)
A soft and compelling tribute to the choking death of Eric Garner in New York City in 2014, Cut Me Down was beautifully performed by Kevin Morby at the famed NPR Tiny Desk in a video released this week. The singer also offers stoic takes on two other songs from his latest record Singing Saw in the set, all of which are compelling reasons to catch Morby in person whenever possible.
Sugar Candy Mountain — Windows
Slow and classic, Sugar Candy Mountain’s Windows is just the sort of single you imagine rolling with the front-end credits of the latest Tarantino movie. It’s gentle and groovy, but has a gritty West Coast edge — well suited to the abandoned desert which the Joshua Tree band chose as the backdrop for the accompanying music video.
Valley Queen — In My Place
New Alt-country that shimmers atop perfectly executed Los Angeles production, Valley Queen’s In My Place shows the personal side to the quartet’s often vapid hometown. It’s a deep tale of the self-destruction of vocalist Natalie Carol’s family relationships which builds from a gentle melodic introduction to a heavily-rocking outro.
That’s it for now, but check back every week for more new tunes to stream!
