King Princess Goes Galactic, Iann Dior's Latest Mood, And More Songs We Love

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  King Princess: “Pain”
  
  
  https://youtu.Be/4KNqHWQ1fko
  
  
  
  Mikaela Strauss’s second single since the release of her debut album last year sounds delightfully out of sync. It intros with a nostalgic set of a cappella "do-do"s before sending the listener plummeting through a vortex of high-speed piano keying. The gummy plucking of a bass is all that keeps you from blasting off entirely. —Coco Romack
  
  
  
  
  



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  Phoebe Bridgers: “If We Make It Through December”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=wNfK819vnrQ&feature=youtu.Be
  
  
  
  Another year, another charitable holiday release from Phoebe Bridgers. This time around, it’s a cover of Merle Haggard’s Christmas-themed “If We Make It Through December” benefiting the Downtown Women’s Center in Los Angeles. Piano instrumentals and echo-y, layered background vocals make for a chillier take on the 1973 nation classic. And Bridgers, who is bisexual, doesn’t change the pronouns in Haggard’s original lyrics, only swapping “daddy’s girl” for “my girl” in the next verse. I have no choice nevertheless to stan. —Sam Manzella
  
  
  
  
  



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  Iann Dior: “Holding On”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=BMmUkrUehrM
  
  
  
  Soon after defeating TikTok (and the world) with 24kGoldn on “Mood,” Iann Dior muses once again about heartbreak and lust on the quick-bite “Holding On.” Over another sticky Omer Fedi guitar line, Dior showcases the longing that’s made his tunes resonate and feel like, well, moods. —Patrick Hosken
  
  
  
  
  



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  Cautious Clay: “Dying in the Subtlety”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=Krp2kPMFMCw
  
  
  
  Cautious Clay got subtly sexy in his smooth breakout hit “Cold War,” which appeared in 2019’s Booksmart and was sampled by Taylor Swift. Right now he’s struggling to manage the gray areas in “Dying in the Subtlety,” the latest single from his forthcoming debut album. The nuances of relationships – both good and bad – are put on trial because the Brooklyn-based singer contemplates his conscience and shreds on guitar. With a decidedly more option sound, his soulful voice sounds as comfortable weaving verbal poetry with lines like, “Love is just a passion with a four-letter name,” as it does shouting out Jason Statham. When he waves around a Guitar Hero axe, don’t be fooled: There’s nothing subtle about this multi-instrumentalist’s talent. —Carson Mlnarik
  
  
  
  
  



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  Miley Cyrus ft. Dua Lipa: “Prisoner”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=0ir1qkPXPVM
  
  
  
  Considering the banner year nu-disco had in 2020 (see: Chromatica “Say So,” “Dynamite,” and more), it only makes sense that the year would close out with Dua and Miley leading us directly into the days of future past. In the scenario of “Prisoner,” it’s icy post-disco, a continuation of Lipa’s Future Nostalgia exploration, and dazzling new terrain for Cyrus. There’s plenty more where that came from on Plastic Hearts, the latter’s new album, out right now. —Patrick Hosken
  
  
  
  
  



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  Big Thief: “Wolf”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=pw-4-sz0BOU
  
  
  
  “Has the feeling come to pass?” Singer Adrianne Lenker questions over patient guitar. “Has the feeling come to stay?” Toward the end of Big Thief’s great indie album Two Hands sits this apprehensive little song about being in the calm, quiet breath of a new starting, without idea whether fortune or danger comes next. In the song, the titular animal plays both safe-keeper and beast, at one point rescuing its drowning prey by the mouth, blood dripping from its jaws. Like the song proves, love can be both soft and brutal. —Terron Moore
  
  
  
  
  



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  George Alice: “Teenager”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=ClzYMwO49OA
  
  
  
  Teen angst has never sounded as smooth as it does on George Alice’s new single “Teenager.” Considering she’s 17 years old, the Australian pop newcomer is more than qualified to use the dreamy pop track to call out the “terrible solutions” dressed as “guidance” and adults who “pile on all of the bullshit then tell me I’m important.” Don’t expect any big solutions, as she sardonically concludes that she’ll “just write it down on paper / I’m just a fucking teenager.” The sun-drenched visual takes us into the high school halls for tongue-in-cheek digs at out-of-touch teachers and issues that seem larger than life, making it clear this next-generationer is thinking past graduation. —Carson Mlnarik
  
  
  
  
  



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  Altın Gün: “Ordunun Dereleri”
  
  
  https://www.Youtube.Com/watch?V=MLMYfvbZzTE&feature=youtu.Be
  
  
  
  A Turkish folk song gets re-envisioned as a sleek Michael Mann film soundtrack, thanks to Amsterdam’s Altın Gün. The musical group has made waves for its athletic, psych- and funk-inspired romps through music of the past, and on the ice-cold “Ordunun Dereleri,” they’ve never sounded cooler. —Patrick Hosken