• The Kiffness, Eating the Cats (Caribbean/AfroBeats/Parody)- Former President Trump’s debate comments about Haitian immigrants eating pets (does that mean they would be Felinivores?) has lead the news cycle recently, but by placing them against a carefree Caribbean accompaniment, The Kiffness (South African, David Scott) has reached a new level of absurdity.  While you may not be an afficionado of stupid pet videos, the singing dog and cat in the video had me LOL.

• Lola Young, Flicker of Light (Alternative)- Oh to be 23 again! The August 28 playlist winner, Lola’s “Flicker of Light” takes a wild ride of chaotic emotions with her no-nonsense vocals and tightly urgent sound.  I’m looking forward to seeing Lola with some fellow Neuphorians at the Fillmore in October!

• The Dare, Perfume (Dance/Electroclash)- Similar to the Kiffness, the Dare is not a group, but is former West Coast turned Brooklynite producer, Harrison Patrick Smith.  After 5 years of nonsuccess as a more serious musician, Smith adopted the sophomoric Dare identity, debuting with the 2022 single, “Girls” which was an “epically silly and epically debauched” viral social media hit, named as one of the Top 10 songs of 2022 by the NY Times.  Fresh from producing the UK and Neuphoria #1, “Guess” by Charli and Billie, Smith has returned with the Dare’s first LP “What’s Wrong with New York?”, featuring “Perfume” which is a play on the recent teen male trend of “smellmaxing” with cologne.

• Bby, hotline (Alternative/post-punk)- Although just formed in 2023, London’s bby are already going viral for their impromptu pandemoniacal popup concerts called “hangs”, which they promote through social media and play in the midst of their fans https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgmTMjnZky4 .  Thanks to Neuphorian Paddybear for turning me onto “hotline”, the first single from bby's new debut LP “1”.

• LINKIN PARK, The Emptiness Machine (Rock)- “The Emptiness Machine” is LINKIN PARK’s first release after singer Chester Bennington’s tragic suicide in 2017, being the first single from the expected November LP, “From Zero”.  The PARK hopes that “From Zero” follows the success of the band’s previous 7 LPs which all charted at #1 or #2 globally.  A certified heater, “The Emptiness Machine” has debuted in the global Top 10 and at #1 in Germany and throughout Central Europe- which I can attest to as we’ve been traveling in Bosnia and Serbia this week.

• Molchat Doma, Ты же не знаешь кто я (You Don’t Know Who I Am) (Darkwave)- Hailing from Minsk, Belarus, Molchat Doma’s Судно went viral in 2020 as a background for TikTok videos showing post-Soviet images of Eastern Europe.  Since the band members condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, they had to leave Belarus, spending time between Poland and New York City.  The minimalist/brutalist “Ты же не знаешь кто я” is from their newly released LP, “Белая Полоса”.

• Zedd & Jeff Buckley, Dream Brother (Electronic)- The classically trained, Russian-born, German DJ Zedd, released his third LP, “Telos” on August 30 and hopes to repeat as a Neuphoria #1, with “Dream Brother”.  Zedd updates Jeff Buckley’s 1994 brooding masterpiece “Dream Brother” with an orchestral electronic sound, while retaining Buckley’s singularly remarkable and emotive vocal.  Simply stunning.

Trivia- Tragically, Jeff Buckley drowned in 1997 at age 30 swimming in the Mississippi River. After spending the first 10 years of his career as a session guitarist, Buckley transitioned to a solo career, surprisingly displaying a multi-octave voice, releasing “Grace” named by Rolling Stone as one of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time and being named by Rolling Stone as one of the greatest ever singers. Chart success for Buckley came posthumously; with his cover of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah", hitting number 1 in 2008.

• Altin Gün, Bir sigara iç oglan (World/Rock)- The Dutch/Turkish Altin Gun is on a mission to resurrect Anatolian Rock from the 1960’s and 1970’s.  Turkey had a rich psychedelic rock scene during that time- and many Western rock acts, such as Led Zeppelin or Blue Oyster Cult incorporated Moorish or Arabic influences in their songs.  “Bir sigara iç oglan” tells the story of two would-be lovers separated by overbearing parents- complete with an economical Arabic-influenced guitar solo that takes you to a different place.

• Bad Bunny, Una Velita (Latin)- “Una Velita” is Bad Bunny’s cautionary reminder of the imminent hurricane season in his native Puerto Rico, upon the 7th anniversary of Hurricane Maria’s devastation of the island.  Bad Bunny has been critical that Puerto Rico’s infrastructure is lacking to deal with natural disasters and it is no coincidence that he released “Una Velita” shortly before Puerto Rico’s elections.

Trivia- Given the significant Puerto Rican population in Pennsylvania, today's Washington Post had an article "The pop star endorsement that could really swing the election? Bad Bunny." https://www.washingtonpost.com/style/power/2024/09/19/bad-bunny-kamala-harris-endorsement/

• Charli XCX & Troye Sivan & Dua Lipa, Talk Talk (Dance/House)- “Talk Talk has already been included on Neuphoria”, you may say.  Yes, but this version has been completely reinterpreted, sounding only remotely like the original.   Charli’s brilliant strategy of reimagining brat. songs has extended the brat. summer and this time, Troye Sivan and Dua Lipa join the brat. pack helping convert “Talk Talk” from electropop to house, the lyrics from flirty to explicit and Ms. Lipa adds Spanish and French lyrics to boot!

• LE SSERAFIM, Crazy (K-Pop)- “Crazy” is record-setting K-Pop band LE SSERAFIM’s follow up to their Global #1 debut 2023 LP “Unforgiven”.  In “Crazy”, LE SSERAFIM lean heavily into a retro-house vibe, alternating between Korean and English, creating a new verb “girling” in the process.

Trivia- How does LE SSERAFIM explain their strange name?  Well, it is an anagram for “I’m Fearless”- while also referring to Seraphim, the 6-winged celestial beings from Judaism, Christianity and Islam.  Whew- that is a real stretch from Korea’s Source Music LTD who created LE SSERAFIM…..

• Laila!, IDONTNEEDUANYMORE (R&B/Rap)- Named as one of the songs of the week by Pitchfork, the downtempo jazz/soul “IDONTNEEDU….” is from the 18-year-old Laila!’s brand new debut album “Gap Year!”.  Laila!, who went viral earlier this year with social media hits “Not My Problem” and “Like That”, is rap royalty, being the daughter of Conscious Rap pioneer MosDef.

• Rod Wave, Passport Junkie (Hip Hop/R&B)- “Passport Junkie” follows Wave’s streak of three-straight #1 LP’s on the US charts- and debuted in the Top 10 Streaming charts this week.   “Passport Junkie” continues with Wave’s successful formula of rapping/singing to smooth R&B hooks, with vulnerable, yet relatable lyrics, like “She can’t come to your room, unless it’s in Tulum”, in “Passport Junkie”.  

• Jungle, Let’s Go Back (Alternative/R&B)- The Brits, Jungle’s new single, “Let’s Go Back” is trending on both Apple Music and Spotify.  While Jungle is known for their retro 70’s soul sound and falsetto vocals, “Let’s Go Back” delves even further back, evoking early 60’s groups like The Shirelles, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles and The Impressions.  

• Sabrina Carpenter, Coincidence/Bed Chem (Pop)- The avalanche of Sabrina Carpenter summer 2024 hits continues with “Bed Chem”, now #11 on the global streaming charts and rising.  Each year, I compile a list of the words/phrases of the year, and “Bed Chem” is sure to make the 2024 phrase list, with Ms. Carpenter and company’s lyric defining the phrase in alternatingly teasing and graphic terms.

Postscript- I decided to make a post-release change to Sabrina Carpenter songs here- to "Coincidence", which I think will be more popular with Neuphorians and seems to be a better written song. You can vote for either Sabrina song!

• Koe Wetzel, Casamigos (Country)- The 31-year-old Texan, Wetzel appears to be gaining momentum after a slow career start, with his 2022 LP hitting #12 and #3 in the US and US Country chart.  His newest song, “Casamigos” is about addiction and breakup and is the top trending country song on Apple Music and Spotify.  

• Nilüfer Yanya, Ready for Sun (touch) (Alternative)- Yanya released her fourth LP, “My Method Actor” this week and appears on Neuphoria for the 2nd straight playlist.  The evocative Nick Drake-like orchestration of “Ready for Sun” fits Yanya’s beautifully wistful and conflicted lyric like a glove.