Hey! Did you know that there’s an entire aspect of KCRW music discovery that you might be missing out on? Fear not, because our 5 Songs to Hear This Week newsletter is now a weekly feature on our website. Watch this space for rundowns of the five songs that you need in your life immediately, curated by KCRW Music staff. Don’t want to wait for your latest taste of fresh tunes? Sign up for the Friday newsletter here, and always be the first to know.
Follow us on Spotify to keep up with our current obsessions, including 5 Songs to Hear This Week, Bent By Nature: Deirdre O'Donoghue and The Lost SNAP Archives (The Music), and our weekly sampler of KCRW’s Top 30 most played records.
St. Panther – “Not The Way”
There are plenty of reasons to look around these days and think to yourself… that’s not the way. Luckily, we’ve got art and music to cushion our emotional falls. In this heavy-lidded groover, OC-born musical prodigy St. Panther presents her woes and disappointments with the goal of blowing them right off. Breezy, beaty, and brilliant, this track feels as good as its lyrical story is bad.
Cuco – “Caution”
Our boy Cuco, who started out on Bandcamp while attending Hawthorne High School and has now graced the stages of international mega-fests like Primavera Sound, is a natural. From his inventive production style to unselfconscious speak-sing vocals and winky-face embellishments, the Chicano artist artfully captures the collision of anxiety and memeology swirling around the mind of every Gen-Z with a creative bent. Keep your eyes and ears perked on our channels for more Cuco soon.
Child Seat – “Off With A Bang”
Local indie-rock outfit Child Seat slid into our DMs this week with a submission — and we just couldn’t resist their big, brass … horns. Featuring fuzzy, lo-fi guitar riffs complemented by an unexpected trumpet track and perfectly snarling vocalization, this hot-off-the-griddle single is made even better by a super fun narrative video. Bang!
Daphni – “Clavicle”
Not that we’d ever want to join a cult under a single charismatic leader, but if we did, it would be the cult of Dan Snaith. The Canadian producer and composer behind Caribou, Manitoba, and the dance-focused Daphni, is so utterly, preternaturally talented in creating electronic music that he should perhaps be checked for a third eye. With a slew of genre-defining releases already on his rap sheet, Snaith shows no signs of slowing with this shimmering single.
Daniel Villareal – “18th & Morgan”
Bask in the relief of a track that simply shuts up. Featuring all instruments and no voices, this perfectly groovy single from Chicago’s Daniel Villareal is the ideal mashup of bossa nova, mellow funk, and 1960s supermarket music. Take some time away from your fellow humans this weekend to appreciate the company of bongo smacks, smooth bass, and organ key-tinkling on this winning instrumental track.