The Best Five Songs Released this Past Week, Pt. 24

Cheers to the first week of fall! The week brought us a fresh selection of new hits. Here are some of our top picks!

Notable Albums & EP Releases:

Wayfinder, Boy Scouts
In These Silent Days, Brandi Carlile
the second ep, girlhouse
Pluto, Jake Wesley Rodgers
Crusher, Jeremy Zucker
trying not to think about it, JoJo
Expensive Pain, Meek Mill
9, Pond
In Heaven, Strands of Oaks
Let There Be Light, Sun Atoms
Colourgrade, Tirzah

In chronological order:

“Five N’ Dime” – Mills
Release date – September 29

“Five N’ Dime” is an original track from the relatively niche Mills. As of October 2nd, he holds 200,000 listeners on Spotify. His talents shine during this track, boding well for a potential rise in popularity in the coming years. “Five N’ Dime” is a relatively reserved piece that keeps Mills’ vocals in check. The entire track is a worthwhile addition to any chiller playlist, perfect for any fall friend gatherings. This will easily become one of Mills’ most recognizable tracks, on par with Hollow and Lovely.

“The Distance” – Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs
Release date – September 29

Naturally, I was intrigued by the band’s lengthy alias, but the power and command of “The Distance” kept me hooked. This is a particularly instrumental-heavy piece that occasionally calls upon the sprinkled airy vocals. This track is groovy enough that you can close your eyes and envision yourself floating through space itself. The beats per minute keep the spacey narrative in motion. It’s a truly atmospheric masterpiece. I will be returning to T.E.E.D in the future because they successfully piqued my interest with this track.

Interesting fact: They assisted Porter Robinson earlier this year on Unfold!

“Last One Standing” – Skylar Grey, Polo G, Mozzy, Eminem
Release date – September 30

“Last One Standing” appears to derive from the upcoming Venom soundtrack. This seems to be a trend for Eminem, as he featured on the previous Venom soundtrack (Venom). This project, in tandem with Eminem, focuses on Skylar Grey, Polo G, and Mozzy. Slim and Skylar have worked together on the recent Black Magic, proving the effortless connection between these two artists. The song allows each of the rappers a verse, as Skylar handles a spectacular and dynamic chorus. I wish Skylar had her own verse, but she does jump in for a particularly vengeful bridge section. Slim is on his game for his verse, too.

Venom: Let There Be Carnage released on October 1.

“I Don’t Want to Talk” – Wallows
Release date – September 30

“I Don’t Want to Talk” is the epitome of a tempo shift. The previous mention has darker undertones, while Wallows frolics in a meadow of bright flowers, accompanied by kazoos, flutes, and banjos. This upbeat track allows each of the band members to flourish vocally. The chorus, arguably a bit too busy, is fun and demonstrates how simple life can be. The theme of this track is clearly liberation to some degree—and Wallows handles that theme with aplomb. 

“Feels Like” – Gracie Abrams
Release date – October 1

Reigning as my personal favorite release of the week, Gracie Abrams lofts her way through “Feels Like”—a mature and impactful surprise. Abrams vocal caliber bounces off the charts and her choice of instrumentation acts as a perfect compliment. To my dismay, the track is only two minutes and thirty seconds, but Abrams aforementioned vocal maturity allows this song to continue along without a hitch. I was actually surprised to realize that the song was that short because it felt like it carried on for approximately four minutes. Songs with one focus tend to throw me for a loop, as the often cluttered and jumbled songs of late tend to skate you right through the quick playtime. Again, Abrams’ maturity nearly brings time to a standstill.