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October 2025
Ladies, Gentlemen and Neuphorians,
In case you’ve been in airplane mode recently, Tay-Tay’s October 3 release “The Life of a Showgirl” has set the record for single-week LP “sales” for the modern era (since 1991) and is dominating the streaming charts. While the LP has received mixed reviews, it is a welcome rebound from the tortured poetic sameness of her recent collaborations with Jack Antonoff. In “Life”, Taylor reunites with Swedish hitmaster, Max Martin who was her partner on much of “1989” and “Reputation” and who is 2 nd only to Paul McCartney in writing #1 hits.
But contrary to popular belief, not all great new songs are by T. Swizzle. So close out your other tabs and listen to Neuphoria’s October Playlist!
If you wish to vote on the October Playlist, please submit your votes by EOD Sunday,
October 26 PT (Monday October 27 for the Europeans, Aussies and South
Americans).
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Happy listening!
Taylor Swift, The Fate of Ophelia (Pop)- In the World’s #1 most streamed song since its release, T.Swizzle thanks her lover (Travis Kelce?) for saving her from the tragic fate of Shakespeare’s Ophelia, who descended into madness and drowning in Hamlet. And Max Martin’s exacting ear for vocal and production nuances polishes “The Fate of Ophelia” into a pop gem.
Marshmello & Hudson Westbrook, Better Man Than Me (Country)- Following in the footsteps of other electronic DJ’s like Diplo, Steve Aoki and Avicii, Marshmello tries his hand at country music production with the 21-year-old Texas Hudson Westbrook. And the collab strikes gold on “Better Man Than Me” with an archetypal vulnerable, yet defiant lyric paired with an infectious major-league country guitar riff.
Tame Impala, Dracula (Alternative)- The groovy-spooky “Dracula” is a pre-release from Tame Impala’s (Kevin Parker) upcoming LP, “Deadbeat”, which is much anticipated given that Perth artist’s only 2 other LP’s since 2012 were both global top 5’s. Plus, Kudos to Parker for releasing a Halloween anthem; a welcome respite from Christmas Creep.
Almost Monday, Lost (Alternative)- After scoring their first #1 (US Alternative Airplay) in 2024, San Diego’s Almost Monday return with the snappy “Lost”. While Almost Monday’s goofy, yet charismatic singer Dawson Daugherty, often gets much of the attention, I’m partial to the Daft Punk-like 1970’s ARP Odyssey synth riff in “Lost”. Thanks to Neuphorian JoeMo for turning me onto Almost Monday.
Olivia Dean, So Easy (To Fall In Love) (R&B)- Neuphorian “It Girl” Olivia Dean is back with yet another hit song- and another place on Neuphoria, with “So Easy” from her Sept 26 LP, “The Art of Loving”. While “So Easy” conjures up a mix of Burt Bacharach- like production and 70’s R&B/jazz (Roberta Flack?), Dean’s sound remains fresh.
Ari Lennox, Vacancy (R&B)- DC’s Ari Lennox’s sultry slow jam “Vacancy” is classic baby-making music. “Vacancy” features an 80’s Mtume song sample, while Lennox’s lyric exploits the lodging metaphor for all its worth.
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Milo J & Trueno, Gil (Latin)- Full disclosure- I’m loving 19-year-old Argentine Milo J’s debut LP and it was hard to pick just one song for this playlist. For a teenager, Milo J shows incredible maturity in his vocals, songwriting and in integrating authentic samba, tango, latin folklorico and bossa nova influences with modern latin sounds.
PRZDNT, Ghosts-Scottish DJ cites his influences as Daft Punk, Beethoven and the Beatles- can’t argue with those, right? While “Ghosts” is a yearning love song, since it is October, I prefer to view it as a Halloween song, particularly with its ominous instrumental break. Thanks to Neuphorian Paddybear for turning me on to this one.
Lane 8, the Remedy (Electronic/Latin)- Palo Alto native and Occidental College grad, Lane 8 (Daniel Goldstein), moves outside his Chill/Melodic House comfort zone with “The Remedy”. Goldstein goes full dancefloor with “The Remedy”, chopping the Juanes sample from “Yerbatero”, which translates to “I bring you the remedy for the love sickness that shakes you”, into a hypnotic trance, supported by an ascending firm bassline and synth arpeggios.
Mochakk & Kwengface, Legumes (Electronic/Latin)- For many Gen Z’ers, beats are the new melodies. That is certainly true for Brazilian DJ, Mochakk and London drill rapper, Kwengface, whose gritty scorching genre-bender “Legumes”, showcases unhinged beats, even reducing Kwengface’s icy rap to a percussive instrument.
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Legumes Cover Art- Who knew a pea could look this menacing, but somehow it captures “Legumes” unsettling vibe.
Snõõper, Star 6 9 (Punk)- Big things were expected from chaotic Nashville punk band
Snõõper, when they were signed by Jack White to his label. After a disappointing 1 st LP, Snõõper’s 2 nd LP, “Worldwide” has been well received. With its propulsive synth, guitar
and drum machine and Claire Trammel’s mechanical, but playful vocal about the
frustrations of robocalls, “Star 6 9” was rated one of the new songs of the week by
Pitchfork.
Suede, Antidepressants (Rock)- With Oasis’s record sellout tour, and Pulp’s critically acclaimed comeback after 20 years, 90’s Britpop is back with a vengeance- so Why not epic glam-rockers Suede?
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Thanks to Neuphorians Paddybear and Eoin for re-turning me on to their remarkablecomeback LP “Antidepressants”. Maybe some Neuphorians can relate to the contradiction of Brett Anderson’s cynically snide singing of “I’m on antidepressants, I just lie awake- singing a song while I’m happy…”
Trivia- The London Suede is known as Suede everywhere except the US, as Nyack, NY lounge singer Suzanne deBronkart had copyrighted the Suede name in the US. Good thing- I would hate to get them mixed up……
Florence + the Machine, One of the Greats (Alternative)- Who could have done this
song but Florence? Remarkably, this 6+ minute song took Florence one take. Piercing,
positivist and powerful, Florence’s vocals carry this song to an uncomfortable
crescendo- an instant classic…….
Not for Radio, Swan (Alternative)- “Melt” is the October 10 debut LP from Maria Zardoya’s (of the Marias) new solo project, Not for Radio- and the LP has received rave reviews, being described as “wistful, plaintive… and stunning” by CLASH. The Radiohead esque “Swan”, is stripped down to a metronomical drum machine and simple piano, teasingly building to a zenith, only to pull back in restraint.
Trivia- While Maria Zardoya recently broke up with longtime partner and Marias drummer Josh Conway, Not for Radio is not the breakup of the Marias. Btw, Zardoya and Conway met at the famous Canter’s Deli in Los Angeles.
Kenshi Yonezu & Hikaru Utada, JANE DOE (J-Pop)- Enigmatic Japanese singer/songwriter and illustrator Kenshi Yonezu is presently the hottest star in Asian music with the #1 and #2 hits in Japan and Korea for the past 2 months. His frantic
J-Pop/showtune/ragtime mash-up “IRIS OUT” is #1 and the more accessible, “JANE DOE” is #2.
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Yonezu’s path to the top has been unique, starting out as a popular Vocaloid (Yamaha’s singing voice synthesizer software) songwriter/producer and anime-adjacent illustrator before transitioning to singing himself. Yonezu shuns the spotlight and avoids promotion and has been diagnosed with highly functioning autism.
Taylor Swift, Ruin the Friendship (Pop)- In the poignant “Ruin the Friendship”, Tay-Tay sings about the temptation and hesitation of ruining a friendship by kissing an old high school friend. Taylor’s lyrics of a “wilted corsage” and “shiny wood (gym) floors” transport the listener back to her high school prom, while her shift to a hushed vulnerable voice in the 3 rd verse when finding out later about his death, has the fingerprints of Max Martin’s masterful vocal coaching and production.
Trivia- Allegedly, the song is about Taylor’s late high school friend Jeff Lang, who anytime Taylor would write a song, "Jeff was the first to hear it” according to his mom. Lang died of complications of methadone use in college at age 21. Lang and Swift are pictured below:
Luna, Just Try, Just Try (Crossover Classical)- A tranquil closing from the mysterious Dutch pianist Luna.