Our recurring Songs of the Week column highlights the best new tracks from the last seven days. Find our new favorites on our Top Songs playlist, and for more great songs from emerging artists, listen to our New Sounds playlist. This week, we’re listening to tunes from Softcult, hemlocke springs, and others.
Amand Hammer and The Alchemist — “Calypso Gene” (Feat. Silka and Cleo Reed)
The second single from Amand Hammer and The Alchemist’s upcoming collaborative LP, Mercy, “Calypso Gene” is yet another hard-hitting, jazz-tinged, smoky hip-hop track that manages to feel urgent despite its laid-back vibe. After billy woods and E L U C I D trade verses over spicy piano chords and shuffling percussion, Silka and Cleo Reed sing a final refrain as the track takes a psychedelic turn. It’s as effective as it is wonderful on the ears. — Jonah Krueger
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Dazy — “I Don’t Wanna Think About the Money”
Earlier this week, Dazy, the Richmond-based indie rock project of James Goodson, surprise dropped a brand new EP, Bad Penny. Featuring seven more helpings of his hooky power pop, Bad Penny is 21 minutes of pure guitar-driven fun. Halfway into the tracklist lies perhaps the catchiest tune of the bunch, “I Don’t Wanna Think About the Money,” which almost sounds like what a mid-2000s Rivers Cuomo song might have gone for if Pinkerton didn’t flop (and, in case it wasn’t clear, I mean that as a high compliment). — J. Krueger
Ekko Astral — “horseglue”
The latest from Washington D.C. punkers Ekko Astral, “horseglue,” might be their most abrasive offering yet. The song is two minutes of buzzing guitars, clipping tracks, crashing cymbals, and, well, noise. Throw in the deadpan lead vocals and an abrupt-as-hell ending, and it almost seems like Ekko Astral has gone full no wave. If that’s the case, they wear the genre quite well. — J. Krueger
hemlocke springs — “heads, shoulders, knees and ankles”
Just in time for Halloween, hemlocke springs is back with a dramatic, absolutely chaotic new song, “heads, shoulders, knees and ankles.” What you need to know about hemlocke springs is she is thoroughly unafraid to take jarring risks and put her personality over perfectionism. Her piercing vocals and yelping high end are incredibly serious while also being unapologetically silly. The vocal harmonies are very akin to the chaotic choirs found in The Nightmare Before Christmas; the urgency and desperation that she conjures in just two minutes is enough to make you feel like you’re arriving in the center of a tornado, in the crux of a novel’s climax. Then, she dissembles the entire song and croons over a piano, providing a fascinating reprieve from the nightmare. With her long-awaited debut coming in February, hemlocke springs is in for a huge 2026. — Paolo Ragusa
Softcult — “She Said, He Said”
After their terrific single “16/25,” Softcult are back with another furious new track, “She Said, He Said.” Taking aim at “nice” men who pressure and eventually assault women, “She Said, He Said” points out how hypocritical these men — and the system that protects them — are. With spoken word passages that rise in intensity and fury, the song drives and combusts, accented by a swallowing bassline and warm harmonies. When Softcult get particularly dreamy, it’s easy to melt away into their lush sound. But when they open up and roar, like they do on “She Said, He Said,” they’re a force to be reckoned with. — P. Ragusa
Y — “Skipper”
London group Y have offered a punchy new single “Skipper,” and it’s a great primer for the collective’s moody post-punk odysseys. Sophie Coppin’s impassioned vocals have all the drama and allure necessary, holding your focus before a howling saxophone comes flying in seconds later. The band has no problem leaning into campier modes, and their confidence is pretty infectious — I’ve never seen them live, but this one sounds like it’d be a romp to witness. — P. Ragusa