This week’s instalment of What’s Going On is all over the map in the best way. There are messy R&B breakup anthems, big rock hooks, and at least one surprising cross-genre remix that you didn’t see coming. Let’s get into it. As always, if you dig what you hear, be sure to stream and follow these artists.
Waterparks – Houston trio Waterparks spiral inward on “PROWLER,” a pulsing, emotional rollercoaster of a track. Teasing their upcoming album JINX, “PROWLER” finds vocalist Awsten Knight unpacking loss, upheaval, and the weird loneliness of starting over. It’s anxious and loud, packed with big hooks and just enough chaos to keep things teetering. If that isn’t enough, expect features from Mark Hoppus of blink-182, Danny Elfman, Eric Nally of Foxy Shazam and Dillon Francis on the new album.
Listen to Waterparks’ new single “Prowler” below.
Jessie Reyez – One thing you can count on is Canadian pop/R&B sensation Jessie Reyez not holding back. The singer just dropped “N.Y.F.F.,” a razor-sharp breakup anthem that cuts straight through the bullshit. With Reyez confidently switching between rapping and singing, the track is built on grit, melody, and emotional release. Few artists make heartbreak sound this raw and this impossible to ignore.
Listen to Jessie Reyez’s new single “N.Y.F.F.” below.
BIG SPECIAL – English post-punk duo BIG SPECIAL double down on grit and gallows humour with their new 10-track EP O’JOY!, due out June 5 via SO Recording. BIG SPECIAL also shared their latest single, “ONLY FREE WHEN SLEEPING,” a bruised, head-down screed against modern malaise. The Birmingham pair’s upcoming North American dates supporting Lambrini Girls have been rescheduled to the fall, so you’ll have to wait a little while longer to see their rowdy and weirdly uplifting live shows again.
Listen to BIG SPECIAL’s new single “ONLY FREE WHEN SLEEPING” below.
Hedvig Mollestad – Hedvig Mollestad Weejuns take a left turn on Bitches Blues. The collection is a restless, shape-shifting set, quiet one minute, explosive the next and built on interplay and introspection. Multinstrumentalist and eternal disruptor Mollestad proves once again she’s less interested in genre than feeling, stretching the boundaries of rock and freeform jazz into something unpredictable and completely spellbinding. We dig it!
Listen to the title track of Hedvig Mollestad Weejuns’ Bitches Blues below.
BABYMETAL – We’ve got a big fun remix for you! Japanese rockers BABYMETAL collide with Major Lazer on “from me to u (Major Lazer Remix),” a turbo-charged rework of their collaboration with Poppy that leans hard into chaos. The beloved J-metal giants trade big riffs for club-ready bass without losing their edge. On paper, it shouldn’t work, but it does!
Listen to the new Major Lazer remix of BABYMETAL’s “from me to u” featuring Poppy below.
