Every week, there are thousands of new songs hitting the airwaves — and it’s just too much for your two ears to handle. With all those options, you can’t be wasting your time on tracks that deserve a thumbs-down click.
But don’t worry, we’re going to save you the hassle. We listen to some of the most-hyped and interesting songs each week, and tell you which are worthy of your precious listening time.
Here are our top five songs to stream this week. Also, don’t forget to subscribe to our Spotify page for a playlist of our weekly picks, which can also be found at the bottom of this post.
Chris Cornell — Fell on Black Days (Live at SiriusXM)
The tragic passing of songwriter Chris Cornell shocked the music world this week, with tributes pouring out from rockers and fans the world over. This acoustic recording of Soundgarden’s Fell on Black Days perfectly showcases Cornell’s iconic voice, with his gravelly tone backed by beautiful live cello and acoustic guitar accompaniment.
Flying Lotus — Night Grows Pale
https://soundcloud.com/flyinglotus/night-grows-pale
Electronic king Flying Lotus released Night Grows Pale, a Queen-sampling single, this week, giving fans a heavy-hitting throwback to the hip-hop-style beat-making that helped grow his career in the first place. This one’s a well-layered instrumental track featuring a tastefully down-pitched Freddie Mercury sample to tie it together. It provides listeners young and old with something to chill out to over this late-spring week.
Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit — If We Were Vampires
Gorgeous acoustic guitar tones in stereo join simple strings on Nashville songwriter Jason Isbell’s latest song, If We Were Vampires. It’s a gentle single about love and loss from his upcoming album, The Nashville Sound. He sings lyrics like, “Maybe we’ll get 40 years together, but one day I’ll be gone, or one day you’ll be gone,” in appropriate harmony with his wife, Amanda Shires.
Beach House — Chariot
There’s a massive scope to the sound of acclaimed indie act Beach House that makes every song feel as though it was designed to accompany big, wide-angle shots of beautiful places. Such is the case with the band’s latest single, Chariot. It’s five minutes of synths, guitars, and soothing voices that feels like it could easily score the next season of Planet Earth or The Cosmos.
Soccer Mommy — Out Worn
This week’s breeziest bedroom pop number comes with melancholy lyrics courtesy of New York-via-Nashville musician Sophie Allison, whose single Out Worn explores a complicated relationship gone sour.
That’s it for now, but tune in next week for more tunes, and check out the playlist loaded with our recent selections below: