Supercharged anthems best for powering through and winding down
Welcome back to Wonder Fresh, our monthly roundup of brand new tunes that deserve spots on your heavy rotation playlists. This month, Rina Sawayama and Ylona Garcia are front and center.
If we could only use one word to describe the Month of May, my pick would be “polarizing.” So many significant events put us under immense stress. Add the possibility that our personal lives becoming too overwhelming into the mix—finishing the month strong feels like a gold medal sport. But at least good tunes and fresh drops have our backs, offering us things to look forward to at each end. Aside from Harry Styles’ Harry’s House and K-pop comebacks left and right, this month’s Wonder Fresh features tracks from pop stars like Rina Sawayama and Ylona Garcia. The common thread? They all offer supercharged anthems best for powering through and winding down.
Scroll ahead for our monthly playlist!
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Calvin Harris’ Potion kicks off this playlist. The easygoing dance track has Harris’ signature electronic funk flavor, Dua Lipa’s husky drawl and Young Thug's punchy flows, making a heady sonic potion (lol). This track serves as the perfect prelude to another installment to the DJ’s well-loved discography. Next, Ylona Garcia’s newest release, Vibin’, sustains the mood. The soft R&B track is a mix of cheeky and cheesy, giving Sweetener-era Ariana Grande. Next, Cheat Codes recently released the third installment of Hellraisers. The last track, I Just Wanna, easily became a personal favorite. This song, featuring Felix Jaehn and Bow Anderson, brings the mood up with its fun rhythm. It’s not too jumpy but the perfect type of song you’d play while unwinding.
Calvin Harris ft. Dua Lipa and Young Thug, “Potion”
Ylona Garcia, “Vibin’”
Cheat Codes, “I Just Wanna”
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For the unapologetic humans, your next anthem could be Sawayama’s This Hell. If living your truth sends you straight to hell, so be it. Meanwhile, Florence + The Machine’s newest album marks the return of this almost-supernatural being with Dream Girl Evil. Her ethereal vocals and earthy instruments offer a different kind of power, something more organic and natural. But lyrically, Florence satirizes the societal expectations women experience on the daily, turning it into a taunting look between binaries: good and evil, angels versus devils.
Rina Sawamaya, “This Hell”
Florence + The Machine, “Dream Girl Evil”
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Tove Lo, the one who Euphoria-ed long before Euphoria’s inception, brings forth another song called No One Dies From Love. Cosmic and otherwordly, we can only describe the Swedish singer’s signature pop sound as dark but glittery. Sparkling, beautiful but oddly dangerous, just like the track. Meanwhile, Sky Ferreira returns with her first single in three years. Don’t Forget belongs to Night Time, My Time, with hazy vocals and warping sound effects adorning her rock roots. Taking on the hat of a vengeful, grudge-holding persona, Sky Ferreira reestablishes herself as one of the queens of the darker side of pop.
Tove Lo, “No One Dies From Love”
Sky Ferreira, “Don’t Forget”
You know the drill. Listen to Wonder Fresh May 2022 on Spotify:
Art Macky Arquilla
