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.
Drakeo The Ruler, Ketchy The Great, Ralphy the Plug, “No Hard Feelings”
It’s strange feeling a wave of poignant appreciation over a Fairly Oddparents reference, but Drakeo The Ruler’s latest posthumous project, The Undisputed Truth, delivers in ways you can’t expect. The L.A. rapper’s standby reference — Chip Skylark from the Nickelodeon cartoon with the word “chip” transformed into a violent threat — is a tidy summary of his lyrical charisma, an asset that’s getting its due as Kendrick Lamar’s new music seeks to pay tribute (or imitate). “No Hard Feelings,” a posse cut with Drakeo’s Stinc Team members Ketchy The Great and Ralphy the Plug, is classic Drakeo from its menacing ‘80s DePalma movie synths and promises of unrelenting vengeance. —Jordan Darville
Dutch Interior, "Sandcastle Molds"
"I’m no good at overconsumption," Jack Nugent sings as he scrolls infinitely, memes and atrocities blurring into one glob of content. "Sandcastle Molds" is an itchy song for disaffected times with Nugent describing his descent into a perceived irrelevance. That same pang of malaise can be found in the music, a combination of off-kilter drums and brass instruments that arrive with a sense of defeat. "Sandcastle Molds" may diagnose the world with hopelessness, but there is some comfort in being gently guided into the pits with a smart, heartfelt song such as this. —David Renshaw
rusowsky, Bb trickz, "uwu^^"
When Bb trickz first heard rusowsky’s new song “uwu^^,” she loved it so much she threatened to leak it. The Spanish singer initially had no plans to put it out, but Bb trickz’ enthusiasm convinced him to flesh it out into a duet, pulling her razor-tongued raps — now delivered in an ASMR whisper — into his world of soft strings, distorted textures, and warm fuzz. Over this spare but compelling soundscape, they rap about a devastating affair that’s destroyed their relationship. Thankfully for us, their real-life, creative partnership is safe and sound. —Steffanee Wang
girlpuppy, "Champ"
"Champ" is a springy indie rock song about being on the back foot and fighting to keep a friendship alive. Becca Harvey's vocal delivery is sugary, lacing the grizzled guitars with a little sweetness as she flames out. Trying to convince someone you're worthy is never a nice feeling, and "Champ" nails that unique mixture of neediness, hurt, and missed opportunity. —DR
DJ Koze feat. Damon Albarn, "Pure Love"
Taken from DJ Koze's upcoming album Music Can Hear Us (due out April 4), "Pure Love" is a song about treasuring life's unpredictable moments. Damon Albarn shows his versatility, lurking in the corners of a song that marries Spanish guitars and an almost amapiano rhythm to create a hazy but addictive groove. This needs an extended edit ASAP. —DR
Scarlet Rae, "bleu"
Underneath the grunge and emo grime of “bleu” is a tender ode dedicated to the New York City-based musician Scarlet Rae’s late sister, who passed away earlier this year. “But I can’t save you, just know I love you, Bleu,” she sings in the softest falsetto. It seems like it could be a weighty release for Rae, who’s also using the song to announce her latest signing to Bayonet Records. But if it is, she navigates the tangled emotions with ease, and remarkable poise. —SW
TV Girl and George Clanton, “Fauxllennium”
TV Girl are a blog-era indie pop band who, thanks to TikTok, are experiencing an MGMT-like wave of popularity for music released nearly a decade ago. Their latest project, Fauxllenium, sees them team up with vaporwave pioneer-turned-pop iconoclast George Clanton for a collection of carefree pastiches that sound like Panda Bear at his most party-forward. The EP’s title track merges their sensibilities keenly — it’s indie sleaze at its kindest. —JD
Mu540 feat. MC Laranjinha & Cave, “06:40 AM”
São Paulo producer Mu540 is an elite builder of cross-cultural bridges between favela baile funk and “middle-class” house music, and cross-continental ones to techno, trap, and other forms of dance music and hip-hop. On “06:40,” he teams with MC Laranjinha, whose flexible flow pivots quickly with the beat as it drops from tense perch into a pounding four-on-the-floor pocket, and Cave, who dons a Travis Scott Auto-Tune cloak as the beat reboots, hurdles toward the precipice, and teeters there tantalizingly before dropping once more. —Raphel Helfand
Rojuu & EvilGiane, “Family Mart”
Surf Gang CEO EvilGiane has had a banner year, and he’s showing no signs of slowing down as 2024 rolls into its final month. His first collaboration with Spanish emo trapper Rojuu feels both blown out and lasered in with Giane’s explosive beat held tight by the gravitational pull of Rojuu’s magnetic vocals. —RH
MIKE, “You’re the Only One Watching”
Let’s be honest: Every MIKE song is a Song You Need in Your Life. On the lead single from his newly announced 10th solo album, Showbiz!, the 26-year-old rap phenom delivers a minute and change of patiently brilliant bars — it’s part love song, part personal reflection, part ode to his late mother — before letting his winkingly intimate beat ride out under a muffled vocal clip of a hushed prayer. —RH