BEST OF NEW MUSIC TUESDAY - WEEK 49

While you guys try and decide if you should spend your hard earned money on the Kanye West tour or the Lana Del Rey and Courtney Love experience next year (as long as I go to the “1989” tour, I’m good), we’ve been coming up with a list of the best new tracks released this week! There’s a bunch of new material from old favorites like Wu-Tang, Gwen Stefani, Avicii, and She & Him, as well as stuff from newer artists Holychild and Seven Lions. So sit back and read on to catch up on this week’s best new releases!

HOLYCHILD - RUNNING BEHIND

Holy hand claps! Los Angeles duo Holychild will perk you up with their insanely catchy new single, “Running Behind.” Featuring lots of handclaps, thundering marching band-style beats, and bratty sing-a-long vocals, it’s an energetic electropop hit that I’m totally obsessed with.

GEORGE MAPLE - VACANT SPACE

Australian songstress George Maple provides some haunting and sultry vocals on her soul-pop single, “Vacant Space.” Featuring pulsating electronic elements, fuzzy synths, and her strong vocals, it’s a wonderfully eerie and captivating track that should make anyone a fan.

WU-TANG CLAN - A BETTER TOMORROW

Wu-Tang is back after seven years with their highly anticipated new album, A Better Tomorrow. The title track features Teddy Pendergrass’ and Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes’ hit song, “Wake Up Everybody” that delivers a powerful message.

BASTILLE - TORN APART VS GRADES

From VS (Other People’s Heartache Pt. III) comes Bastille and London producer Grades’ track, “Torn Apart.” The track has the kind of dramatic and melodic vocals that people love and expect from Bastille, while Grades adds a more dancey electropop flare with his addition of synths and club beats.

AVICII - THE NIGHTS

Continuing in the vein of “Wake Me Up,” Avicii merges EDM with a touch of folk on “The Nights” off of his new EP, The Days/Nights. Featuring encouraging and uplifting vocals from Salen Al Fakir, along with acoustic guitar, hi-hats, melodic synths, and gang vocals shouting “hey!”, it’s a catchy track that’s ready for radio.

AXWELL^INGROSSO - CAN’T HOLD US DOWN

Two-thirds of Swedish House Mafia, Axwell^Ingrosso, have just released “Can’t Hold Us Down” off of their upcoming debut album. It’s a progressive house track packed with synths and industrial beats that keeps things interesting and fun throughout it’s entire 6 and a half minutes.

SEVEN LIONS & XILENT - THE FALL

DJ Jeff Montalvo, aka Seven Lions, just released his latest track on OWSLA Records titled “The Fall.” Featuring lots of atmospherics, trance-y electronic elements, and a heavy pulsating beat, “The Fall” is definitely a track you gotta experience at full volume.

WILLIE NELSON, SISTER BOBBIE - LAWS OF NATURE

Off of his new collaborative album, December Days: Willie’s Stash Vol. 1, Willie Nelson teams up with his sister, Bobbie, on the farming-themed track, “Laws Of Nature.” Featuring a peaceful blend of harmonica, acoustic guitar, and piano, his calming vocals tie the whole thing together and create a nice, folky song about nature.

SHE AND HIM - UNCHAINED MELODY

Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward are back with a simply gorgeous rendition of the classic love song, “Unchained Melody.” Featuring nothing but M. Ward on guitar and Zooey’s deep and haunting vocals (along with the Chapin Sisters), it’s a beautiful track that’s perfect for cozying up on a wintery day.

GWEN STEFANI - SPARK THE FIRE

Following up “Baby Don’t Lie,” Gwen Stefani just released her second single, “Spark The Fire,” off of her upcoming third studio album. The Pharrell-produced track is a super fun and danceable pop song that’s a shift in mood from “Baby Don’t Lie,” and should tide fans over until the next No Doubt album. Plus, the video is insanely cute and colorful making it super gif-able:

See ya next week!

About Erin Crider

Erin Crider eats, breathes, and sleeps pop culture. If you have a question about a one-hit wonder from the ‘90s or need help remembering lines from a SNL skit, she’s your girl. When she isn’t lurking the internet, she's either going to a show or hanging out at Disneyland. Erin lives in Southern California and has a B.A. in Creative Writing from Cal State Long Beach.