Browsing Tag

hyper pop

The Emotional Guillotine Falls with Hyper-Trap Pop Precision in Yung Blasian’s ‘I’m Sorry’

Posted on 30 March 2025

With every scathing line and serrated hook riff in I’m Sorry, Yung Blasian proves that vulnerability in hyper-trap pop doesn’t have to come wrapped in polished platitudes. Instead, it hits like a sledgehammer wielded by someone with nothing left to lose. The Philadelphia-based artist, who has been quietly sharpening his sonic edge on SoundCloud since 2017, goes in for the emotional kill in his breakthrough hit, which carves through the noise with Latin-laced guitars, delay-drenched choral hooks, and a beat that knows no mercy once it drops.

There’s no pretence in his lyrical candour—just a supercharged vignette of coming-of-age heartbreak told from the raw end of rejection. The Haitian-Japanese vocalist and producer doesn’t just wear his heart on his sleeve; he shreds it open to expose how quickly self-esteem can be reduced to rubble when left picking through the wreckage of fading affection. The emo-adjacent anguish isn’t self-indulgent. It’s methodical. Calculated. Intentional. Yung Blasian doesn’t give you space to pity him—he drags you into the chaos of every self-effacing lyric and leaves you reeling in the aftermath.

Yet somehow, through the storm of scorn and dejection, he keeps the energy high. It’s a whiplash-inducing contrast that’s fast becoming his signature. With his ahead-of-the-curve production style, sincerity at the core of every expression, and an authentic voice that cuts through the noise, he’s not just riding the hyperpop wave—he’s building the playground it thrives in.

I’m Sorry is now available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify. 

Review by Amelia Vandergast.

CALEBAKACNOTE Raises the Stakes on Hyper Pop with ‘Forever’

Posted on 16 March 2025

CALEBAKACNOTE isn’t interested in half-measures, and his latest single, Forever, makes that abundantly clear. With a hyper pop structure that spirals skyward, guided by faith, hope, and sheer force of will, the single transforms a bitter-sweet trap pop heartbeat into a track you can effortlessly get into sync with.

The future-forward production melds effortlessly with the pitch-perfect harmonies, creating an electronic pulse that refuses to settle into the background. There’s no divide between the melody and the emotion—it’s all stitched together in a way that makes Forever one of the most affecting pop hits of 2025. The track doesn’t waste time on empty sentimentality; instead, it builds on realism, offering a resonantly grounded take on 21st century relationship dynamics.

CALEBAKACNOTE’s instinctive approach to pop draws from a genre-fluid background, his sound fuses pop, R&B, gospel, and alternative influences into a unique sonic signature you will want scribed through your playlists. His refusal to be confined extends beyond the music—his presence in the creative world spans songwriting, production, and visual storytelling, ensuring that his artistry is as immersive as it is immediate.

It’s rare to find a hyper pop track that lingers without gimmicks, but Forever is an earworm with substance, engineered for longevity. Whether it pulls you in for the euphoric rush or the lyrical weight, one thing’s certain—it won’t let go.

Stream Forever on Spotify now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

‘sssnake’: r/ginola’s Venomous Dive into the Electronic Spectrum

Posted on 17 January 2025

With sssnake, the up-and-coming artist and producer, r/ginola, strikes again, delivering a sonic venom that bites hard and fast. Forgoing the usual slow-burn build-ups, the track hooks instantly, plunging listeners into a speaker-slamming anthem that meshes bass-heavy EDM with hyper-pop chaos. The glitchy techno interjections and euphoric house swells create a kaleidoscope of sound that refuses to play by the rules, colouring far beyond the conventional lines of electronica.

Building on the foundation of his first official release, Edgar Allen Poe, a genre-defying electrotrap banger, r/ginola continues to scribe his unique sonic signature across uncharted auditory territory. While his chaotic approach to production lands firmly in the remit of modern trends, his distinctive style carves out a space that’s entirely his own.

sssnake not only showcases r/ginola’s adventurous approach to sound design but also hints at his potential to become a trailblazer in the EDM scene. With a tighter structure and a little more polish to his sound, he could be poised to dominate the electronic frontier.

sssnake was officially released on January 17th; stream the single on SoundCloud and Spotify now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Melody Key: The Virtual Girl Group Taking Pop to Rapturous Heights – An Exclusive Interview

Posted on 4 December 2024

With infectious energy and a mission to uplift, Melody Key is redefining what it means to be a modern girl group. Formed virtually in 2022 by Katy “Kitty” Kunberger and Lashnate “Shanti” Johnson, the trio has already made waves with their viral TikTok videos, empowering anthems like Girls Rule, and a dynamic collaboration with UK rapper 0milicu0us. In this interview, they discuss their songwriting journey, their forthcoming debut EP, and their vision for spreading positivity in a pop landscape often focused on despair.

Melody Key, thanks for sitting down with us to discuss your discography and burgeoning pop career. We’d love to know what initially brought you together in 2022. 

Our girl group, Melody Key, was originally a virtual girl group that was founded on May 4, 2022, by me (Katy “Kitty” Kunberger and Lashnate “Shanti” Johnson). A couple of months earlier, I was posting an audition call for members who were interested in joining a girl group. However, I wanted to have a girl group since 2014 but kept it a secret but finally revealed it when I posted the audition call online.

Shanti was the third girl to audition for the girl group after two girls had told me that they could not stay nor continue with the girl group. Since then, we made songs and posted singing videos on social media. We have three members in Melody Key and hope to have one or two more members to make it a total of four or five members.

How does the songwriting and recording process play out between the two of you?

Shanti and I usually write original songs and all of us recorded songs on Bandlab. Bandlab is an app where we record our songs, even remotely. Although, we would like to meet together in person sometime next year whenever we are available to record songs at a studio.

How did it feel to go viral with your dance videos to your original music on TikTok? 

To be honest we felt very honored to have our TikTok videos go viral! It has been part of our dreams to have our TikTok videos go viral, let alone dancing to our original music.

How did you connect with the British rapper, 0milicu0us, for your official debut track, College Groove? 

We met 0milicu0us on Instagram last year! He discovered us and sent us a message requesting that he could rap in a song someday. We accepted his request to collaborate with our song, “College Groove” and then he recorded his rapping verse on Bandlab! We released the song this past January 12th!

Your latest single, Girls Rule, is an instantly iconic lo-fi hyper-pop anthem; what’s the story behind the single? 

The story behind “Girls Rule” is how girls could be anything they want to be, meaning girls could have professions that only boys had once upon a time. For instance, Mary Blair was a female animator back in the 1940s to early 1950s and she worked for Disney. It was not typical for women to be professional animators and often those who were employed took masculine names.

There’s an eclectic mash of aesthetics and genres in the mix, allowing the track to unravel as an infectiously upbeat celebration of feminine power; what do you hope your listeners take from it?

We hope that our listeners will be inspired by the positive message and the upbeat tempo of our songs. Our group has been somewhat dismayed by the numerous pop songs that focus on depressing themes of despair, We believe that life is full of joy and opportunity and we want to inspire young people, especially girls to seize opportunity and live life to the fullest.

Can you tell us a little about your upcoming debut EP? 

Our debut EP has six songs:

  1. Reach the Stars
  2. The Girls and I
  3. Take Me Back to the 90s
  4. Golden Age (Best Years)
  5. Lover Girl
  6. Bright

We do not exactly have a title for our debut EP but we are planning to release the EP this coming May. “Golden Age” is my personal favorite song, but “The Girls and I” will hopefully be our most popular song in our EP and we would like to have our own music video for the song, “The Girls and I”. The mock instrumentals are already made but needed their official remakes. This is our golden opportunity to travel to Los Angeles, California and meet up there in person in order to record our EP and do our music videos whenever we are available.

How does your forthcoming EP fit into your broader ambitions as an artist?

In our forthcoming EP, other members in Melody Key other than myself wrote some of our songs such as “Lover Girl” and “Reach the Stars”. Additionally, all six of our songs have different themes and stories behind them. “Reach the Stars”‘s theme is Zodiacs and Astrology. Whereas, “Golden Age”‘s story about how great and optimistic vintage culture is unlike modern-time media that can cause anxiety and melancholy.

Stream Melody Key on Spotify.

Follow the artist on TikTok.

Interview by Amelia Vandergast

Embrace the nostalgically chaotic empowerment in Melody Key’s hyper-bubblegum-pop hit, College Groove, ft 0mili0us:

Posted on 2 December 2024

Melody Key’s official debut single, College Groove, featuring British rapper 0mili0us, is an explosion of Y2K pop nostalgia ignited by unapologetic hyper-pop ferocity.

Formed virtually through TikTok in 2022, the trio—Kitty, Shanti, and Bella experimented with their creative synergy by recording tracks on Bandlab and releasing them on Soundcloud. After a year of digital experimentation, they’ve graduated to the big leagues with a debut that’s impossible to ignore.

Sticky-sweet bubble gum harmonies form the earworm’s anatomy, but its soul thrives in its feminist grit. Between the euphoric bursts of neon-coloured melodies, 0mili0us delivers rapid-fire rap bars that sharpen the edges of this otherwise sugar-coated anthem.

By injecting Y2K aesthetics with a progressive punch and proudly wearing their serotonin on their sleeves, Melody Key became the ultimate conduit of female empowerment with their anthem that crashes onto the airwaves like a fresh feminist wave.

TikTok virality may have been their genesis, but Melody Key proves they’re more than a digital gimmick. They’re a powerhouse with enough energy to keep their fans craving more.

Whether you’re here for the nostalgia, the empowerment, or the unapologetic chaos, Melody Key delivers it all with an infectious swagger that commands attention. It’s pop, but not as you remember it—this time, it’s here to stay.

Stream College Groove on Spotify now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Mars Playground carried an arsenal of earworm potential in his alt-pop hit, ‘S.O.S.’

Posted on 9 September 2024

Mars Playground, helmed by Chris Dixon, embarked on a bitter-sweet alt-pop exploration of angst and existential rumination with his latest track, “S.O.S.” The South Florida native melded the nostalgic beats of mid-2000s hip-hop with the crisp innovation of modern bedroom pop, set to the pace of hyper-pop while touching the raw nerve of pop-punk to craft a boldly original sonic profile worthy of drawing comparisons to the likes of Dominic Fike and Post Malone.

The icon of genre fusion synthesised trap’s rhythmic dynamism and indie’s subtle introspection to create a masterpiece of modern sound which oozes commercial potential. After initiating with percussive breaks that nod to the likes of Alexisonfire, the song subverts expectations with its euphonic pop aesthetics which envelop an emotional upheaval wrapped in a veneer of sticky-sweet melodies that cling relentlessly to memory.

As Mars Playground continues to chart a course towards critical acclaim, S.O.S. is yet another testament to the resonance of his boldly candid sound. The universal plea for solace amidst chaos sends a lifeline, woven with the threads of his vibrant, varied influences and the unvarnished truths of his journey.

S.O.S. hit the airwaves on August 28th; stream the single on Spotify now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Salon is an icon of raw authenticity in his alt-rap hit, About Me, I’m Real

Posted on 10 July 2024

Salon’s latest single, About Me, I’m Real, is an unflinching testament to the power of raw, unfiltered self-expression in a world that often demands the opposite.

The heart-piercingly poignant single doesn’t just hit close to the bone, it’s enough to tear your soul in two through the choked-with-emotion vibrato in the vocals, the strident reflections of a frenetic soul through hyper-pop hooks, and the intimately intricate guitar layers which conjure elements of Midwest emo into this alt-rap hit, which serves as a visceral statement of intent from an artist determined true to himself, regardless of whether facades would serve him better.

Each lyric hammers intense emotion into your psyche, guiding you through a bittersweet lament of how authenticity can be your downfall. This track leaves no listener unscathed; its confessional nature, while pensive, invites you to embrace your own idiosyncrasies and reject incessant pressure to conform.

Since 2018, Salon has used music as therapy, transposing feelings into something tangible in the same vein as the late Chester Bennington, who left a sonic void of catharsis behind. Bennington is a big artist to live up to, but Salon, with his ability to turn vulnerability into salvation is succeeding on a profound level.

About Me, I’m Real was officially released on July 5th; stream the single on SoundCloud now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

USUALLY MODEST became the biggest free-from-vanity rockstar in pop with ‘Toothpick’

Posted on 7 June 2024

USUALLY MODEST came in red-hot with his latest rock-licked hypersonic pop hit, Toothpick, which blurs genre boundaries through an explosion of high-energy hooks and a sense of unfettered exuberance that becomes infectious from the first progression.

Unravelling like an accelerated sonic lovechild of the Weeknd and the 1975, Toothpick speeds past contemporary trends, arriving safely in the confines of the future of pop, inviting listeners in by laying out a doormat woven by innovation

Just as his moniker would lead you to believe the up-and-coming Switzerland-born-and-raised artist with Ukrainian roots, his free-from-vanity sensibility shines through in Toothpick. The sticky-sweet emotional underpinnings are the cherry on the hyper-augmented sonic cake, which will undoubtedly allow the self-taught singer, songwriter and producer to rack up even more streams.

Since his humble beginnings on SoundCloud in 2017, USUALLY MODEST is well on his way to becoming a viral sensation. In the last three years, he’s racked up over 350,000 streams on Spotify along with 50,000 total views on YouTube. His standout single, Soul Searching, has also been in regular rotation on one of the biggest Swiss urban radio stations, yet, we’re sure that there are far bigger accolades waiting to fall on the revolutionary.

Stream the official music video for Toothpick when it premieres on June 7th via YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Hyper-pop originator, KAWAII HOE, delivered hyper-surreal alchemy with their debut single, Kaleidoscope Love

Posted on 23 April 2024

KAWAII HOE’s debut single “Kaleidoscope Love” synthesises the future of hyperpop with layers of 8-bit nostalgia in a boundary-pushing production. With a backdrop that cuts across familiar trends, KAWAII HOE charted a course to untouched alt-pop territory; the sticky-sweet anthem uses a throbbing backbeat and heavy basslines to create a compelling contrast with the crystal clear, autotuned vocals that endlessly ascend into otherworldly euphony.

The single doesn’t merely add to the cacophony of generic love songs; KAWAII HOE transforms the quest for love into the epicentre of their narrative, presenting it with a purity and serenity that belies the intense musical undercurrents.

KAWAII HOE weaves together influences from icons like 100 gecs, Charli XCX, and Dorian Electra, creating a quirky and unapologetically experimental tapestry, stitched by hyper-surreal alchemy. We can’t wait to hear the next installation of ingenuity after this exceptionally promising debut.

Kaleidoscope Love was officially released on March 23rd; stream the release on all major platforms via this link.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Slip into the hypersonic vortex of Peach Giraffe’s latest experimental track, Intertwined

Posted on 21 March 2024
https://youtu.be/naEFngCu_2w?si=RpNo9ZUkg64hUqLS

Peach Giraffe’s new single, “Intertwined,” is a masterful blend of skate punk, hyper-pop, trap nuances, and a touch of Arcade Fire, creating a vortexical kaleidoscope of avant-garde electronica. The grungy and antagonised vocal lines sink into this eclectic mix, stitching “Intertwined” with a mind-altering amalgam of aural aesthetics.

This daring combination cements Peach Giraffe as one of the most bold, indomitable, and fearlessly innovative artists in the alternative music scene. As genre lines blur in “Intertwined,” Peach Giraffe’s commitment to sonically visualising emotional themes shines through. The single is a lyrically poetic exposition of a relationship where distance doesn’t necessitate disconnection, despite the ambiguous parameters that could easily send the mind into a spiral with too much contemplation.

Peach Giraffe’s approach to music is an unforced journey of experimentation, spanning over a decade. His process involves piecing together a puzzle of sounds and ideas, driven not by genre constraints but by spontaneous inspiration. “Intertwined” is a testament to this organic and free-flowing approach to music creation. It’s a track that doesn’t just fit into the alternative music scene; it stands out as a bold statement of Peach Giraffe’s unique and unbridled creativity.

Intertwined reached the airwaves on March 10; stream the official music video on YouTube now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast