Conan Gray (Alley Rose- Pop/Alt)- Tying for #1 in the March 10 playlist, “Alley Rose” returns to this playlist. The 25 year-old LA//Japan/Texas native, Gray dropped out of UCLA to pursue his music career, but initially had more success modeling for Puma, Yves St. Laurent and Burberry.  “Alley Rose” from his forthcoming 3rd album “Found Heaven”, sounds like it would fit perfectly on an old Eric Carmen album. “Alley Rose” shows Gray’s acute awareness of pop music historical references- and an A5 vocal range.

Hozier, Too Sweet (Alternative/Pop)- Certainly not prolific, the Irish Hozier is back with his 3rd release in his 11-year career, which started with the global #1 hit “Take Me to Church”.  “Too Sweet”, featuring Hozier’s retro blue-eyed soul, which was popularized by Amy Winehouse/Mark Ronson and again very recently by Teddy Swims, is already in Spotify’s Global streaming Top 10. 

Justin Timberlake, No Angels (Pop/R&B)- “No Angels” shamelessly takes us back to “Contemporary R&B” of the 00’s- and at the end, even resurrects the Vocoder vocals of Daft Punk.  Like Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s “Murder on the Dancefloor”, JT’s lyric “There ain’t no angels here on the dancefloor”, paints a dystopian vision of dancers- Caution Meg, Judy, Nikki, Becca, et al.

Tierra Whack, Ms Behave (Rap)- With such a notable given name (yes, Tierra Whack is her real name), you may argue that the critically-acclaimed Ms. Whack doesn’t need a pseudonym.  However, she uses Ms. Behave as a vehicle for a clever brag rap, with lines like “I’m the coolest, I was born in a refrigerator”, over a raw Brazilian Baile Funk (the rap music of the favelas) beat.  No wonder Ms. Behave was named the best new song of the week by Consequence of Sound.

Ahadadream, Priya Ragu & Skrillex, TAKA (World/Dance)- The artists on “TAKA” make strange bedfellows.  Ahadadream is a London DJ who fuses South Asian sounds with Baile Funk (like on “TAKA”) and Dancehall, while Priya Ragu is a Sri Lankan/Swiss singer, who I’m partial to (she used to be an accountant 😊)- and Skrillex, who is a well-known dubstep/trap DJ.  The result, “TAKA” is a highly syncopated banger.

Remi Wolf, Cinderella (R&B/Alternative)- The Palo Alto native and ex-American Idol contestant, Wolf takes her funky soul pop up a level with “Cinderella”, which after 3 days is already her most streamed song ever.  The catchy “Cinderella” is punctuated by a horn section, a disco whistle and the infectious “Yeah, me and the boys in the hotel lobby” chorus.  A shoutout to Neuphorian, Linda Lavelle who turned me on to Ms. Wolf.

Maggie Rogers, So Sick of Dreaming (Alternative)- Rogers has taken a circuitous route to semi-stardom through NYU and Harvard Divinity School- and her first album was part of her master’s thesis.  The Sheryl Crow-esque “So Sick of Dreaming”, will be featured on Ms. Rogers upcoming release “Don’t Forget Me”.

Tyla (feat. Tems), No. 1 (AfroBeats)- The 21-year-old South African Tyla, has become a global sensation in the past seven months, with the #1 song on the World Afro Charts and a 2024 Grammy award for Best African Music Performance.  “No. 1” appears on the Indian/African artist’s  newly-released first album “TYLA” and features the Nigerian Tems’ unique chromatic androgynous vocals. 

Mustafa the Poet, Imaan (Alternative/World)- Like “Alley Rose” above, Imaan tied for the Neuphorians’ favorite on March 10. 

The smallness of the world is captured poignantly in “Imaan”.  Until “Imaan”, the South Sudanese émigré and Grammy winning Mustafa (2019 Best Urban Contemporary Album), had kept his Islamic beliefs as a subtext in his music.  However, in “Imaan”, Mustafa wears his faith on his sleeve with a lyric about two young muslims looking for love and god, while balancing their faith’s modesty with western borderless culture. The music portrays the same tension, using a lilting Eqyptian Violin Oud phrase as a proxy for their faith and then blending seamlessly into an acoustic western melody; simple and elegant.

Waxahatchee, Crimes of the Heart (Country/Alternative)- While most Neuphorians may be familiar with Waxahatchee, it is a music project of the native Alabaman, Katie Crutchfield.  For the record, Katie Crutchfield is not related to Neuphorians Jeff and Laura Crutchfield (or is it Critchfield?). “Crimes of the Heart” is from Waxahatchee’s newly-released 6th album, “Tigers Blood” and tells the story of the low-esteem partner’s helplessness in an unhealthy relationship.  

Xavi, Corazòn de Piedra (Latin)- “Corazon de Piedra” is the 20-year-old Xavi’s follow up to “La Diabla” which was #1 on the Global Latin charts and #4 on Billboard’s Global 200.  Like his other songs “Corazon…”, features a crisp Requinto Guitar, a signature of traditional regional Mexican music. Unlike his precursors, Natanael Cano, Peso Pluma and Fuerza Regida, Xavi’s songs are mostly tumbados romanticos (romantic songs).

Dasha, Austin (Country)- Dasha is an unlikely new country artist, hailing from San Luis Obispo, California and being of Eastern European descent.  While “Austin” was released in late 2023, it has recently gone viral on TikTok as a line dance and is now moving rapidly up both the US and European charts; very unusual for a country song.  “Austin” is Dasha’s first single and is a boot-stomping ode to a noncommittal lover.

Kacey Musgraves, Cardinal (Country/Alt)- This week Kasey made the rounds to both the Today Show and the Tonight Show to promote her new album- so if you missed her you must live in the past or the future- not the present; or maybe you don’t own a TV.  “Cardinal” opens her new album and borrows liberally from the Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young sound- and features a cardinal as a metaphor for a spirit from the afterlife.  

Justin Timberlake (feat. NSYNC, yes NSYNC!), Paradise (Pop)- OK- I admit that I was in the 10% of 90’s Americans that didn’t get NSYNC.  But after getting chills seeing videos of the audience reaction to NSYNC’s onstage reunion at the JT concert last month- and after listening to the unabashed pop melody and the vocal harmonies of “Paradise”, I now get it.  Better late than never.

Ariana Grande, Supernatural (Pop)- Given that Ari’s “Eternal Sunshine” includes so many potential hits, I added “Supernatural”, even though it is now two weeks old.  Co-written with hitmaker Max Martin, “Supernatural” has a familiar, yet unique pop melody and is a platform for Ari’s subtle display of her 4-octave vocal range.

Olivia Rodrigo, Obsessed (Pop)- Rodrigo released an extended version of her 2023 #1 album “Guts” on Friday, including a handful of new songs, including "Obsessed" which is already in the global streaming top 20. “Obsessed” features her trademark clever, but relatable lyric and a sound which alternates between power pop and 90’s grunge.  Her clever new song “So American” is also recommended. 

Benson Boone, Slow It Down (Pop)- “Slow It Down” is the follow-up to the 21-year-old Boone’s surprise #1 hit, “Beautiful Things”.  Like Dasha and so many other new artists, Boone first became popular on TikTok and now has > 6 million followers.  His debut album “Fireworks & Rollerblades” is scheduled to be released on April 5. 

Justice & Miguel, Saturnine (Electronic/R&B)- Known for using 1980’s era synthesizers like the Roland JUNO-106, the French duo Justice has always been confounding ear candy to electronic DJ’s, who try unsuccessfully to replicate their unique sounds.   On “Saturnine”, Justice uses samples created from an old E-mu synthesizer (think “Moments in Love” by Art of Noise) which provide an interesting juxtaposition against the San Pedro, CA native Miguel’s Prince-like falsetto.

Additional notes- Beyonce’s country album “Cowboy Carter” is due out this Friday- so stay tuned.

Happy listening!