Written by Ryan Getz

Muse – “Dig Down”: This song could be considered somewhat of a sequel to “Madness.” The minimalistic song has a similar bass buildup, and follows basically the same progression as its inspiration. In spite of this, the song still has the potential to become a fan favorite, although long time followers of the band will decry this song as something even further from the song they once loved. I saw some high schoolers covering “Hysteria” from the band’s Absolution days last week, so I think it’s fair to say there’s a market for both sounds. I can only hope Muse is pursuing this direction because they love it. The music video for this is badass though. I like the reference to the Max Headroom incident.

Now, Now – “SGL”: The following is from our friend Ilija Necovski from Carev Dvor, a Now, Now super-fan reacting to their comeback: “I’ve waited over three years to finally hear a new Now, Now song. Since first hearing threads in the second half of 2012, I was instantly hooked on Now, Now and what they had to offer, I thought the music was moody but not too dark and had a hint of pop in it that made the band so unique. SGL, the new single that was released last week really shows how much the two have evolved in their sound, a much more mature and catchy song with an early 2000’s pop feel. I think that Now, Now came back with a strong single and hopefully release an album this year with as much punch as threads but the catchiness that this new song presents. Overall I am very pleased with the song.”

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/321755360″ /]

Wayfarer – “Why’d You Let Me Out” (feat NOVAA): When I navigated to the Soundcloud page of this single, one of the first things I saw was a comment that simply stated “ethereal perfection.” Perfection isn’t a word I really throw around, but I think I’m on board with the spirit behind that comment. It’s certainly a unique approach to this sound. The tracks mixes elements of chillwave, dreampop and R&B. The vocals sound as if they were plucked out of a radio hit from a decade ago. I can’t really pinpoint why the vocals make me feel nostalgic, but they do.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/323230809″ /]