Some bands take decades to find the right synergy and groove together. For Black Country, New Road, it only took a few songs. The British band kicked off with their 2019 single “Sunglasses”, a nine-minute track that oscillates between post-punk/rock and experimental jazz. Ants from abovethe sequel to their critically acclaimed debut album For the first time, is a dynamic and exhilarating project. The album’s first song “Intro,” an instrumental preface to the band’s transgender influences, won’t properly prepare you for the intense breakup experience that will follow in “Chaos Space Marine,” the album’s first single (which the group proclaimed to be the best they had ever written), as well as the series of three tracks ranging from “Concorde” to “Bread Song” and “Good Will Hunting”. Former lead singer Isaac Wood’s eclectic vocal performance is made more bittersweet with the announcement of his departure from the band, made just four days before the album’s release. The band plans to continue the music in his absence, but with their future sound now up in the air, it’s clear that Ants from above is a project to truly cherish.

Parannuul is an artist shrouded in mystery. The anonymous Korean rock singer, who composes and produces all his music in his bedroom, first gained traction with the release of his music on Bandcamp, a platform that helps musicians get paid directly for their work. His latest EP, White Ceiling / Wandering Blackheads, is no exception and can be streamed online for free. The EP is a B-side birthday present to fans of his second studio album, To see the next part of the dream, and is the continuation of the self-prescribed themes of “escapism, fantasy and disillusionment, struggle and the most ordinary existence”. Parannoul, who describes himself as “below average in height and looks and all”, sings distorted vocals that fade behind heavy guitar for a psychedelic style that is the signature of the shoegaze genre. The standout tracks are “Escape,” “Soft Bruise,” and especially “Growing Pain,” which features a rare moment that highlights Parannoul’s slightly offbeat vocals, mostly unobtrusive.

Korean-Canadian producer Luna Li, born Hannah Bussiere Kim, wants to reconcile her two halves: the part of her that is Korean and the other half that is Canadian. She extends her aptly named debut album Duality as a source of comfort for women who may feel the same as they try to define every aspect of themselves. To further her goal, the producer sourced the voices of women of color, such as Jay Som, Dreamer Isioma and Beabadoobee, and combined them with her own voice to create a warm collaborative effort. Kim said she chose the nickname Luna Li so she could slip into a fiercer alter ego, but Duality is infused, at its core, with the singer’s kind and empathetic nature, with tracks like “Trying,” a heartfelt song about trying to do your best despite what life throws at you. Duality is slated for a full release on March 4.

Hyperpop queen Charlie XCX is ready to step down from her throne, at least for now. The artist has announced his fifth and final album for his recording contract with Atlantic Records, crashby declaring to derogate from his signature sound: “Hyperpop RIP. To become the new flesh, you must first kill the old flesh,” the singer wrote in an Instagram post. Instead, Charlie seemed to adopt more traditional pop, with the release of four singles from the album, “Good Ones”, “New Shapes”, “Beg For You” and “Baby”. crash signals a new era for the singer, most notably in “Beg For You,” featuring fellow British singer-songwriter Rina Sawayama, with bouncy synths and an addictive yet simple hook. crash is slated for a full release on March 18.

TikTok has become the epitome of the music industry, with new talent finding their big breaks on the platform simply by going viral. Taylor Gayle Rutherford is one such artist who has captured the hearts of the TikTok generation, quickly amassing over 3.5 million views for her song “abcdefu”, a breaking anthem about her anger towards her ex and her family. . The track, released via Atlantic Records, quickly exploded, topping Billboard’s Global 200 and Billboard Global Excluding US charts at number one for consecutive weeks in January, and has since amassed more than 500 million streams on Spotify. The singer recently announced her upcoming debut EP, A Human Experience Studio Volume One, which will include “abcdefu” and its equally sarcastic follow-up single “Ur Just Horny.” The EP is slated for March 18.