A selection of new and/or relevant pop tracks that have recently left an impression on us. For the full playlist click here.
Alex Tolm – “Ombres en boucle”
Alex Tolm is a French musician based in Brussels whose songs are emotionally evocative and layered with poetically framed lyrics. His work is influenced by the ‘Bruxelles vibe’, a distinctive style of wielding French by Belgian musical maestros like Jacques Brel and Stromae. His latest album, ‘PRÉSENCE ABSENTE’, presents “the tension between what was and what is”. “Ombres en boucle”, the title of the opening track, means “looping shadows” when translated into English. As indicated by the title, this is a track that circles around a suffocating sense of isolation, where internal noise clashes with an outward silence. With sparse instrumentation and a steady pulse, Alex Tolm leaves space for the vocals to carry the full emotional weight, echoing the raw, vulnerable delivery often heard in artists like Lewis Capaldi. Even for listeners unfamiliar with French, the emotional weight comes through effortlessly, making the track feel intimate and universally resonant.
“Ombres en boucle” is a container that holds all your looping questions, embracing both the heartache and the quiet freedom of solitude when you are hit by an existential crisis at 2 AM.
Frank Joshua – “Glass”
Frank Joshua is a London-based singer-songwriter known for producing introspective, reflective songs that engage with emotional depth and the process of meaning-making. “Glass”, the lead track from his upcoming fifth album, allows you to step into the nostalgic and bittersweet emotional landscape of grieving the loss of the simplicity and innocence of childhood. Through shimmering guitars, highly skilled vocal delivery, a restrained yet steady beat, and careful melodic direction, Frank Joshua constructs a tenderly hypnotic, dreamy track surrounded by a vintage aura.“Glass” gives you a chance to time travel and accept the fragility of the structures you rely on to build your identity. As you tap ‘play’, simply close your eyes and embrace the process of suspending your sense of self as you go on a wistful journey of nostalgia and question who you were before the world told you who to be.
Wahnsucht – “Blinded by Life”
‘Wahnsucht’ is a multi-genre, Swiss-based music project directed by Phillip Keller that pairs human care and creativity with AI technology to access a variety of rich auditory textures without requiring an extensive studio setup. “Blinded by Life”, the latest release under Wahnsucht, is a guitar-driven track with melancholic lyrics delivered in an upbeat and ecstatic manner. The lyrics are full of rich imagery featuring nature and natural elements like the sky, fire, and storms, which adds an ethereal flair to the track. The central repetition, “I’m losing my home, nowhere to return, blinded by the life”, encapsulates a feeling of being untethered while experiencing profound personal transformation. Ultimately, this pop-rock track is a crowd-pleaser, and you’ll enjoy it no matter when and where you listen.
