Okay. Hey, hi, and hello, everyone. Anthony Fantano here, Internet's busiest music nerd. Hope you're doing well. It's time for our weekly track roundup. My thoughts and feelings on a bunch of songs that have dropped over the past seven days. That's literally the point of the video. All right, let's get into it without any further ado.

Now the worst track single one of the week.

Yeah, I'm sorry to do this, but it's pretty much the new Lizzo song, "Love in Real Life". Why is she singing over a Strokes instrumental? I don't really get it. With a bit of like an '80s pop rock almost like a bit of a Queen switch up on the pre-chorus. I'm not really feeling it. I just don't really feel like this is Lizzo's strong suit as far as the vibe and the sound and everything. It just feels like a bad impression of something else, in my opinion.

But moving on from there.

Meh, the tracks I wasn't crazy about.

But you might like them more than me, they are as follows. We have a new one from the upcoming Djo album, Joe Keery of Stranger Things fame. I'm sorry, I don't watch anything other than the clouds roll by. Yes, obviously, Joe is known for his acting chops, but he has been trying to push his way into the music world for a minute now. His last full-length LP I wasn't crazy about, but he did see a lot of success behind it. A lot of people did enjoy it. And the first single off of this new album did nothing for me. However, "Delete Ya" is cute. It's a cute bit of a throwback, '80s rock feel with some very modern lyrics. I think I might delete ya. In terms of the terminology. Okay, the term... It's like an anacronism, okay? It's like some new verbiage on an older sound and vibe, okay? All right, okay. It's a well-put-together song, too. Kind of snappy, slick. I'm liking the vibe. Better than the awkward talk rock thing that he was doing on his last single.

All right. Viagra Boys have come through with a new one titled "Uno II". Not as crazy about this new single as I was "Man Made of Meat" when it came out. I feel like the bit of meta-commentary about what the band is going on about in their lyrics and so on and so forth, I get, I appreciate, I enjoy. I just feel like the structure is very meager. It doesn't really have a whole lot of development or meat on the bone, and I could take or leave the chorus. Again, thematically, I mess with what the song is doing, and it's a very self-aware moment for the band, but musically, is it one of their strongest showings? I don't think so, personally.

All right, we have the Ting Tings, who are sounding a lot like a combination of Stevie Nicks and Dire Straits on this new track. "Good People Do Bad Things". It's a sweet little single, liking the vibe, liking the throwback '70s rock shtick going on here, and the very glistening pop rock chorus going on. So yeah, it's quite a sweet one from the Ting Tings, who are sounding very not Ting Tings on this new track.

We have Tropical Fuck Storm coming through with "Goon Show". Liking the social commentary; liking the bright, chirpy, almost abrasive vocal harmonies; liking the noisy freak out toward the back end of the track. I just wish there was more development of the song overall, and that the beat wasn't so like plotting. But with that being said, I still do appreciate the very dark and very aware of the state of the world art that TFS continues to drop, continues to release into the world.

All right, we have a new one over here from By Storm, formerly known as Injury Reserve, or rather the project that was born out of Injury Reserve changing and phasing out. A new track over here, "Zig Zag", which I'm not so crazy about. I could see where it's going and what it's attempting between the abstract beats and the bluesy, somewhat acoustic-ish, very raw guitars, and Richie doing this mixture of singing and some spoken stuff. But the structure, I feel like, is just too formless, and the progression really could use some retooling. I think the vibe combination is there, the genre combination is there, but it's not heading in the strongest direction, I'll say. A very emotional performance vocally, though, I will say, on this track. A lot of reservations and regret and grief being expressed throughout the song in a very intense way. Just not super crazy about the path that it takes or the progression of it all, I guess I'll say.

Next we have Rwake, sludge metal outfit. Rwake, they're back, first single in a long time. First album on the way in a decade. And this multi-phase track where you have pedal steel, you have big primal drum bits, you get a little bit of everything with this insane metal a la carte experience on this track. "You Swore We'd Always Be Together". I do think there are some pockets of it that are a bit long winded and maybe a bit too edgy for its own good. But with that being said, this was a very surprising listen, to say the least. And I am looking forward to hearing if more cuts from this forthcoming album are as adventurous as this one for sure.

Next we have Lucy Dacus, who has come through with a track that I think, instrumentally, isn't quite as strong or as bold as the past two singles from this forthcoming album over here, however, I do think the lyrics of this track, "Best Guess", are cute in terms of your intentions, going into a connection or relationship, whatever you want to call it. But yeah, I do like the intention behind the song. I like the storytelling, but instrumentally, I feel like it could be doing something more interesting for sure.

We have Julien Baker and Torres, who are once again giving us a taste of their alt country indie singer-singer-songwriter mix on this new track, "Tuesday". I feel like the instrumentation is there. I feel like the aesthetic is there, but the vocal melodies leave a lot to be desired. They fail to, I think, fit into a smooth, snug, entrancing flow. They're always off-kilter in a way that I feel takes the song really out of anything that could potentially be immersive or alluring about it. But yeah, I'm just not really feeling the vocal melodies on this one too much.

Integrity, metalcore and hardcore outfit extraordinaire. Integrity has come through with a new split with Earth Crisis, which I want to point out that they do on it an eight-minute repetition of the riff from the classic Earth Crisis song, "Firestorm". So if you ever want to hear the "Firestorm" riff, there's probably so many people that don't even listen to metalcore watching this video. They're like, What the hell is he talking about? If you want to hear the "Firestorm" riff go for eight minutes, listen to this.

Okay, moving on from there. We have bbno$ over here, who I think is giving us a very bbno$ type track. You have those monotone rap vocals, big, bold, bouncy, rubbery, in your face dance beat. And then he's just saying some slick, catchy, somewhat silly, cheeky stuff on top. And yeah, that's pretty much what he's doing here. "Antidepressants" is the name of the track, and he's talking and rapping about being in a good mood because he's on antidepressants. Yeah, it's on the surface level, but still very silly and very entertaining. I respect it. It's all right.

Okay, 2hollis has come through with a new track as well. 2hollis continues to surprise, truly surprise with every new single. We are hearing something completely different in terms of sound and vibe and style. And that is also true of this weird, maybe not quite as endearing, electro rap hybrid on the song style. Yeah, I'm not crazy about it, personally. I guess at a loss for words. I think it's okay. It's all right. Not nearly as bold or as catchy as some other singles that have been released recently. And after so many switch-ups on each new track that has dropped in recent weeks, I'm just wondering, when are we going to settle into a groove, like a direction, something? It just seems like with each new song, it's just radical switch-up after radical switch-up. I mean, I guess we'll see where it heads, but this particular 2hollis iteration, I'm not quite as crazy about. All right.

Best tracks of the week.

We have quite a few of those to go over. They are as follows.

Starting off with a new one from Backxwash, rapper Backxwash, who with this new single over here, I feel like is going from where she left off on the closing track from her last full-length LP, in that the sound and the production wasn't quite as aggressive or edgy or dark. It felt like there was a lot of lyrics there and an instrumental that showed a lot of heart and a softer side of Backxwash. And while there is definitely some anguish going on in the lyrics of this track, I feel like it is resolved in a way that is quite hopeful in a way that I like a lot. "9th Heaven" is the name of the track. Give it a spin, give it a listen. It feels like Backxwash is taking a slightly lighter approach on this track, which I appreciate.

Okay, we have The Bug Club, who has come through with this cute new post-punky track called "Have U Ever Been 2 Wales?" It's this funny little rock song about going to Wales, but also not. It's also just silly play. But yeah, I respect the track. It's quite funny and jovial and just a good time all around.

All right, we have test plan, new single, "My Teeth", very dark, dramatic post-punk stuff with a lot of great grooves. And yeah, that's pretty much what the band served up on their last single. It's what they're serving up on this one with a totally different sounding song. And yeah, it sounds incredible. They're just giving some raw performances, some great groups, some solid lyrics, some over-the-top vocals, and some bass to die for as well.

Okay, next we have Swans, legendary experimental rock outfit, Swans. "I Am a Tower", new single, new album cycle on the way, said to be their last, or at least last for a while – a loud, big, big, loud, loud, big, loud album. And "I Am A Tower", again, is the name of the track, and it is a 20-minute monster, multiple phases, random dog barking in the middle of it, lots of heavy, droning, massive walls of instrumentation, a lot of ruckus, a lot of highs and lows. It's quite intense. And like any good Swans song from this particular era should be, it is massive and overpowering and heavy as hell. It's quite an experience, and I will leave it at that. If you got 20 minutes to kill, do it with this song. All right.

Little Simz coming through. Brand new track, brand new single, teaming up once again with Obongjayar. These two just cannot fail when they're teaming up. Moonchild Sanelly is also featured on this track, and it's got some killer vocal chemistry, as well as some dark, very grumbling bass, some primal drums. It's very cerebral. It's very heavy. It's quite grim. I'm liking Simz and Obongjaya, really exploring this dark sound, this dark side on this track, really making me excited for this forthcoming Little Simz album, maybe a bit of a darker experience in comparison with Sometimes I Might Be Introvert. It's going to be interesting to say the least. So yeah, pretty hype about this. This is going to definitely be one of my most anticipated albums of the year. Keep an eye and an ear out for my thoughts when they drop.

Okay, we have Natalia Lafourcade, "Cancionera", new track. I think by her standards, it's fine. It's good. It's a decent track, but a decent Natalia Lafourcade track is quite a bit better than your average song out there. I mean, it's not quite giving the jammy, jazzy Latin flavor that I have enjoyed on some of her recent works. This is more of a straightforward vocal ballad, straightforward vocal jazz experience. And of course, the vocal performance is amazing. The band isn't rippin or anything like that on this one. It's very low key. It's very dramatic. It's very theatrical. With, again, a beautiful, gorgeous, stunning vocal performance. Bam.

Okay, a couple more.

We have Jim Legxacy over here who's really coming together with an interesting, terminally online combination of pop and rap and experimental stuff on this track, "father" over here, with some interesting sample work, some very personal and confessional commentary, especially in regards to Jim Legxacy's father and their childhood and so on and so forth. But yeah, some homespun production, but a very, very, very full of character vocal performance and some thoughtful lyrics, too. Liking again just how upfront and honest this track is with its feelings. Respect to that, for sure.

Okay, we have Jenny Hval, who is really embracing some spacey, beautiful, almost Julia Holter-esque art pop on this new track over here, "To Be a Rose". Not typically Jenny's sound, or at least what I recall and what I enjoyed the most about Jenny's earliest works, but still interesting and very mature, I would say, to put out some music going in this direction, and for it to sound as glamorous and wondrous as it does. So Jenny Hval, "To Be a Rose", new single, new album on the way.

We have Jane Remover over here with a new single that I'm pretty excited to talk about over here, because honestly, I know Jane Remover is a very versatile artist. "Dancing with your Eyes Closed" is the name of this new track. And a lot of cool and interesting reference points and influences have been turning up on this recent batch of Jane Remover singles. But I got to say this new track over here, it's giving Metro Station, man. It's giving... look just like... If Metro Station's "Shake It" could be weird and legitimately alternative. I think that's the track. I think that is the track that we have been given here by Jane. I'm pretty excited to hear what you guys think about this track in the comments. I think it's pretty sick, honestly. Looking forward to hearing maybe a little bit more going in this direction on the forthcoming Jane album. All right.

We have Deafeaven dropping a new single that, I'll be honest, I was not really all that crazy about the band's last album where they took things and almost like a spacey twangy, atmospheric indie rock direction, but seemingly on this new single over here, they are combining that with their black metal sound and these heavier passages that honestly hit very hard, have a great contrast, and I think go over much better. "Heathen" is the name of the song song, killer track, highly recommend it.

Also recommending this new Model/Actriz track over here, "Cinderella". The band is back once again with their trademark combination of plucky guitars, weird noises, all syncing up into intense, dark, grim dance groups, and a lot of twisted and confessional, and quite dark and personal spoken word lyrics. And yeah, I'm just continuing to love the band's groups and emotional intensity.

And yeah, that is going to be it for the Weekly Track Roundup this week. Hopefully, you guys got some good recommendations. You're the best.

Anthony Fantano, Weekly Tracks, Forever.