Willi Carlisle
The Grand Design
The Grand Design is not a tribute to the barely masked eye-rolls of Kevin McCloud as a middle manager from Exeter tells him they’re going to project-manage their own build, but a plaintive banjo ballad from the greatest Americana artist you’ve never heard of. A storytelling titan in triple denim, Arkansas native Carlisle delivers this razor-sharp musing on mortality with heart, guts and spirit. Proof that there’s much more to the Ozarks than a daft Netflix series.
Greentea Peng
Nah It Ain’t the Same
The immaculate video for Nah It Ain’t the Same is proof that Greentea Peng is living the Gen Z dream. It’s all there: the face tats, a proliferation of house plants, a perfectly angled cowboy hat and a massive spliff. Peng’s trip-hop-infused bullshit detector of a tune also fits the zoomer bill, placing her at a knowingly retro sweet spot somewhere between Neneh Cherry and Chet Baker.
Jorja Smith
Addicted
Making a breakup seem like the most enthralling thing in the world is just one of Jorja Smith’s many powers. A blissed-out dive into the knotty weeds of a toxic relationship, this is manuka honey for the soul. In other words, it feels impressively expensive, is just about sugary enough and will, when applied liberally to your bad bits, allegedly cure all ills.
Warish
Seeing Red
Fronted by the spawn of skater Tony Hawk, Warish sound almost exactly as you’d expect them to, driven by punky, crunchy guitars perfect for falling off your skateboard and face-planting some asphalt. In fact, Riley Hawk growls as if he’s still picking bits of gravel off his tonsils.
Japanese Breakfast
Be Sweet
Delivering some absolutely huge Pat Benatar energy is Japanese Breakfast’s Michelle Zauner, fully embracing 1980s powerpop riffs and moody synths, before settling it all in place with the lung-tickling mist of Elnett hairspray. If there’s a John Hughes teen movie out there missing its theme tune, we suggest it arranges to meet up with Be Sweet by the headmaster’s office just after morning registration.
