NEW INDIE MUSIC: THE 10 HOTTEST SONGS OF THE WEEK

Photo by The 1975

Happy Monday, everybody! How are you? Are you having a fun summer? Between my allergies and an eczema flare-up, I'm personally having a pretty tough time, but I'm thankful for cold brews and awesome music for getting me through. With another hot few days ahead of us, then, why not check out the latest edition of We Are: The Guard's New Indie Music, featuring The 1975, Alvvays, Låpsley, and more?

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THE 1975 – PART OF THE BAND

Following weeks and months of tasters and teasers, The 1975 is finally back with "Part of the Band." The first single to be unveiled from their forthcoming fifth album, Being Funny in a Foreign Language, "Part of the Band" is a lovely, reflective bit of Bon Iver-esque freak-folk that was produced by Jack Antonoff. "She was part of the Air Force, I was part of the band/I always used to bust into her hand," begins the cut, with Matty Healy as quotable as ever throughout the neurotic string symphony.

ALVVAYS – PHARMACIST

It's been five years since they dropped Antisocialites, but Canadian outfit Alvvays is back and sounding bigger than ever on "Pharmacist." Lifted from their forthcoming third album, Blue Rev, "Pharmacist" is a thrashing, melodically rich assault of shoegaze that hears Molly Rankin being confronted by memories of an ex. "I know you're back/I saw your sister at the pharmacy/Picking up/Said you had that new love glow," sings Molly – her voice rushing into the distorted chamber of confusion.

LÅPSLEY – 32 FLOORS

There's nothing quite as scary as falling in love, but English singer-songwriter Låpsley is feeling the fear and doing it regardless on the heady "32 Floors." Produced alongside Joe (Theo) Brown, "32 Floors" is an ode to embracing the fragility and vulnerability that comes with giving up control. "The metaphorical idea of falling off the side of a '32 Floor' building and 'landing in their arms' is the idea of trust," explains Låpsley of the cut – a potent dance pulser that builds to terminal velocity.

PHOEBE GO – THE KID

Snakadakal's Phoebe Go recently made her debut on We Are: The Guard with "We Don't Talk," and today, the Australian act is continuing to build momentum around her solo career with "The Kid." The latest single to be lifted from her forthcoming debut EP, Player, "The Kid" is a gauzy chugger about getting in touch with your inner child. "I got a handful of hope/But the voice in my Head/Is still tying me up/With every word unsaid," sings Phoebe – her translucent voice scattering like dandelion seeds in the breeze.

HOT CHIP – ELEANOR

Earlier this year, Hot Chip unveiled the Universal Togetherness Band-sampling ode to mental collapse "Down," and this July, the British electronic act is back with the lively "Eleanor." "It's about the world smashing into you, waves crashing into you, all-encompassing pain, and how you have to walk through it," notes Alexis Taylor. "The verses are about separation when families are divided against their will. It's about strong friends." An effervescent dance dream full of emotional heft, "Eleanor" is Peak Hot Chip.

JULIEN BAKER – GUTHRIE

Ahead of embarking on the Wild Hearts Tour alongside Sharon Van Etten and Angel Olsen, Julien Baker is returning today with the gutting "Guthrie." According to Julien, "Guthrie" was recorded during the studio sessions for 2021's Little Oblivions, but didn't make the final album tracklisting. "I really like in its own right," adds Julien on Instagram of the ballad – a despairingly sparse acoustic meditation that hears the Boygenius star touching on her disenchantment with religion and the Pursuit of Goodness.

OLIVER SIM – GMT

Back in May, Oliver Sim spoke out for the first time about being diagnosed with HIV on "Hideous," and this month, The xx bassist is returning with another emotive banger in the form of the Brian Wilson-sampling "GMT." Written in Australia alongside Jamie xx, "GMT" is a dance-floor devotional about homesickness and being apart from somebody you love. "I'm on Greenwich Mean Time missing you, missing you," croons Oliver in the tender chorus atop a choir of vocals taken from the mythological SMiLE.

CHAI (FEAT. SUPERORGANISM) – HERO JOURNEY

They recently came together for "Teenager," and today, CHAI and Superorganism are teaming up once again on "HERO JOURNEY." The follow-up to CHAI's "SURPRISE," "HERO JOURNEY" is a sugar-rush of a listen about heroes coming in all forms "and how amazing that is." "Superorganism has reached all nationalities and ages, recognizing those differences and embracing them. The perfect fit for this song," adds CHAI of the cut – a maximalist banger that goes straight to the head like fizzy pop.

METRIC – FALSE DICHOTOMY

Canada's Metric is reminding us that humans are large and contain multitudes, to quote Walt Whitman, on their twinkling latest single, "False Dichotomy." "It's saying, 'I don't have to be one or the other. I don't have to be starving to be a poet. I don't have to only express love or hate. It's just not that simple,'" explains Metric of the cut – a synthy explosion that flickers like a disco inferno. "When you embrace the complexity of things, it allows you to lead a much richer and deeper existence."

GOLDEN VESSEL – SUN+TIDE

Australia's Golden Vessel is finding peace in domestic life on his sparkling latest single, "sun+tide." Featured on his recent third album, everythingeverydayeverything  – an 11-song collection featuring Mallrat, Akurei, Emerson Leif, The Nicholas, Abraham Tilbury, and more – "sun+tide" is described by Maxwell Byrne as being "about replacing prayer with simple everyday tasks." With Golden Vessel's voice humming with all of the comfort of returning home, "sun+tide" is a glistening anti-summer anthem.

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Jess Grant is a frustrated writer hailing from London, England. When she isn't tasked with disentangling her thoughts from her brain and putting them on paper, Jess can generally be found listening to The Beatles, or cooking vegetarian food.