Best Songs of the Week

By the time I broke down my favorite shit from last week, Hucci had released his latest EP. And while there's been some debate on just how impressive/important his new release, Rose Gold, truly is, consider the fact that there's already been a fuckload of debate on his music. At 17-years-old, this UK producer has already ignited the trap scene in the UK, even if he recycles a number of sounds... and drops. But fuck that, dude really took it "there" with this release, expanding not only what he was using as source material, but giving us a glimpse into the different chambers of his own output. Just take "Prism," which almost completely abandons anything consider "trap" around the 2:30 mark and goes into some dubbier territories. I'm not going to say that Hucci is trap's prodigal son (although he might be), but if your problem with the trap scene is that everything sounds the same, why not watch dude rise to the occasion and let his true potential eek through?  - khal

I'm a sucker for anything that sounds like it was lifted from the first era of video gamedom, and even though Solomon Grey toes the line by bringing in a big beautiful string section into "Firechild," I'm gonna let it slide. This here's one of those songs that gets your attention almost immediately courtesy of a relentless little synth tapping away between the cellos and violas. It's all about movement and motion, and the lyrics are peppered with action verbs like "jump" and "run." Just a little bit of futuristic pop fun. Happy Friday, ya freakin' animals. - Crax

Burial's music is a perfect accompaniment to introspection and reflection. His music can provide moments of calm and stillness amid the hustle and bustle and perpetual motion of modern life. Put your headphones in, hit play on Untrue, and you can well and truly lose yourself in the music. This collaboration with fellow electronic music luminary Four Tet has those same haunting vocal samples (Mariah Carey, this time) for which Burial is best know, but with some extra weight and low-end, presumably courtesy of Four Tet. Anyway, who cares who did what, just hit play. - Constant Gardner

WHEN THE LIGHTS GO OUT: SOUNDTRACKING YOUR NIGHTTIME DRIVE

Fé uses their guitars like a night sky uses stars, sprinkling the sound over tracks in bright bursts. This is Fé's second single, and the London locals continue to pour on the warble to great effect. The duo opens the song by explaining "West London women have no passion," so "She Came" must be written about some fiery Argentines—it pulses with gritty resolve, a victory lap despite some definably morose vocals. Slightly rockier than their debut "Time," but "She Came" leaves us no less excited about the things to come for Fé. - Crax

Naomi Pilgrim is a pop star, through and through, and "No Gun" is a stunning introduction to her sound. The Scandinavian singer fuses elements of soul, R&B, and pop, ending up sounding a little like Robyn, and a lot like the next big thing. - Katie K

It's very easy to be cynical about pop music. The complaints are familiar. It's formulaic. It's manufactured. It's soulless. It's incessant.

All of those facets, however, can be wielded as weapons in able hands. On debut single "Bridges," New Zealand duo BROODS use pop form in all its hook-y glory. Sharply written verses, well-placed bridges, production that packs an airy, electronic punch, and an immediately memorable, primetime-ready chorus make "Bridges" a welcome bolt from the blue hinting that New Zealand might pack a few more names with their sights set on the charts. It's pop done right, no gimmickry or pretension. Just solid songwriting nicely balances personality and instant accessibility. - Jon Tanners

Fellow Pigeons & Planes team member Constant Gardner aka The British One listened to this song and said he liked it just fine but it was "nothing special." I don't like him anymore. This song is my shit, and it is very special. - Confusion

Full disclosure: this HudMo remix of Four Tet's "Parallel Jalebi" is actually not yet finished. After it premiered on Triple J's show, and the blogosphere picked it up, Hudson Mohawke tweeted to clarify that this is the unfinished version. Well, I'm not sure what to make of it, because even this unfinished version sounds impressively massive, with its slow build into an imminent explosion of frenetic synths and drums. If this is HudMo's half-assing it, I could only imagine what he's got in store for the final edit. - Joyce

The first couple of time I played "The Power" I was a little disappointed. It seemed a little corny, a little too straightforward for one of my favorite experimentally minded electronic/pop artists, but I kept coming back to the song, kept finding myself listening to it and humming that melody. "The Power" is a really well written pop song, nothing more, nothing less, and for that lack of pretension it should be applauded.

And listened to.

A lot. - Constant Gardner

ARTISTS YOU SHOULD LISTEN TO IF YOU LIKE JAMES BLAKE