Songs You Need In Your Life This Week
Tracks we love right now, in no particular order.
Songs You Need In Your Life This Week

Each week, The FADER staff rounds up the songs we can't get enough of. Here they are, in no particular order. Listen on our Spotify and Apple Music playlists, or hear them all below.

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MIKE, "Pieces of a Dream"

These days, it seems like MIKE can’t stop cranking out bleary-eyed bangers even if he wanted to. On “Pieces of a Dream,” his high is wearing off, but he “ain’t sober yet,” slurring his words ever-so-slightly over a self-produced beat that sounds like the end of a night out. —Raphael Helfand

Momma, "Ohio All The Time"

Momma’s last record, Household Name, was full of grunge-inspired indie rock reminiscent of the likes of ‘90s staples Smashing Pumpkins and Pavement. But their latest single, “Ohio All the Time,” fast forwards to the early aughts, all soaring bubblegum-pop melodies over gritty guitars. A love letter about nostalgic daydreaming, the hooky coming-of-age tune is a celebration of the euphoric unpredictability of life. Welcome to the new Momma era. —Cady Siregar

Soccer Mommy, "Abigail"

Sophie Allison’s forthcoming record evergreen, out October 25, is about grief and how processing sadness from loss changes and evolves as you grow older. “Abigail,” however, is a break from the theme, a joyous, sun-soaked pop song devoted to Abigail, Allison’s purple-haired “wife” in the video game Stardew Valley. “Just say these words we’ll make it true, I do, I do, I do / Abigail, I know you more than anybody has before,” Allison sings. —CS

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Baba Stiltz & Okay Kaya, "I Believe In Love"

Baba Stiltz started out making woozy and playful Scandi-club music, including 2014 album Total which he released via the esteemed Studio Barnhus label. Over the years, though, he has slowly pivoted away from the dancefloor and toward a looser, folkier sound. "I Believe In Love," a collaboration with Norwegian-American songwriter Okay Kaya, marks his biggest step in that direction yet. The acoustic song is a gentle sigh that softly wraps itself around the feeling of companionship. The pair's voices intertwine as they slowly become one. "It’s a lonely world, Can’t believe I met someone like you," they sing in unison, recognising that the root of joy is not what you do, but who you do it with. —David Renshaw

Mk.gee, "Rockman"

Released ahead of an upcoming European tour (and perhaps as a reminder to Grammy voters, too) "ROCKMAN" is Michael Gordon a.k.a. Mk.gee's first new material since he dropped breakout album Two Star & The Dream Police earlier this year. The spirit of Phil Collins and Sting's '80s excess runs through the new song, with Gordon's guitar delivered in a synthetic tone synonymous with the era of oversized pastel suits and bouffant hair. There is an inherent confidence to taking such deeply uncool influences and serving them up in a newly appetizing package. That same conviction can be found in the lyrics, with Gordon promising to "bite down on the world for the taking." Right now he's sitting on top of it and would be foolish not to try. —DR

Sharon Van Etten & The Attachment Theory, "Afterlife"

Sharon Van Etten has never been one to "jam," but a recent change of heart led her to bringing her live band, The Attachment Theory, into the studio for the first time. The resulting switch brings subtle electronics to the mix, with synths that blip and sparkle atop her sturdy analog rock sound. "Afterlife" is the first taste of a self-titled album, due in February next year. Arriving at a mid-career point where many artists lean into comfort and repetition, the change suits her. Plus, it's not all strange and unfamiliar. Lyrically, Van Etten is locked in devastation mode with "Afterlife" providing a direct line to a loved one who has passed away. "Does it feel like coming home?" she asks, pondering what lies ahead. Adapting to change on multiple levels, Van Etten may be unsteady but she's ready to go again. —DR

Mereba, "Counterfeit"

It's been over three years since Mereba, the Ethiopian-American alt-R&B singer with a voice of silk, last released new music. It was for good reason; she became a mother and she took some time to do the hard, necessary work of healing "her inner child," writes a press release. On "Counterfeit," her first single back, we see the confident fruits of that labor as she sings over a shuffling beat about recognizing her own rarity — something we all could do to hear: "You’re the original / You go, they wanna go too / You’re the original / Don’t let them counterfeit you." —Steffanee Wang

Dora Morelenbaum, “Essa Confusão”

On this standout from Rio de Janeiro rising star and MPB scene leader Dora Morelenbaum, sumptuous strings arranged by the artist and her father swirl around the rises and falls of a majestic melody. The lyrics move in perfect sync with these twists and turns, describing the emotional tumult induced by a relationship in which one never knows where one stands. Read our full review of her new album here. —RH

Wicca Phase Springs Eternal, “My Name is the Endless Night”

The final single from Midnight at the Castle Moorlands, Adam McIlwee’s forthcoming EP as Wicca Phase Springs Eternal, feels like an oddly pleasant fever dream. Treble synths that would otherwise sound obnoxious ride smoothly over the track’s bare-bones, drum-bass trap beat and provide a lively foil for McIlwee’s zoned-out flow. The full project, due out on October 25 via Run For Cover Records, is full of surprising synchronicities like these, enabled by McIlwee’s intuitive production and Matt Schimelfenig’s feats of engineering. —RH

Lexa Gates, "Stupid"

Lexa Gates is a rapper and singer from Queens, New York City, who keeps her signature cat-eye wing as sharp as her bars. Her songs often pair drowsy, hip-hop beats with her scathing yet nonchalant flow (that she honed during fights with her mom and boyfriend) to alluring effect. You can hear it on “Stupid,” a standout cut from her new album, Elite Vessel. It’s a song about having an attitude and leaning into the over-indulgent side of yourself as she raps, “I'm acting stupid, that's what normal girls do.” Shame rightfully isn’t a word in her dictionary. —SW

Songs You Need In Your Life This Week