Hatchie: “Giving The World Away”

“Giving The World Away” is the latest single and title track for Hatchie’s forthcoming sophomore album, the follow-up to her 2019 debut, Keepsake. The new track follows two earlier singles from the Australian artist, “Quicksand” and “This Enchanted.”

Hatchie said in a statement about the song: “‘Giving The World Away’ is about being gentle with yourself in the throes of depression. We made a simple lyric video with analogue effects to let the lyrics of the song speak for themselves.”

That message manifests in multiple questions in the lyrics, rather than prescriptive demands. Throughout the song, Hatchie asks, “If you tore up your thoughts and put them in motion, would you still feel desire? / What is it that makes us feel so invincible, like life is by design? / Could you regenerate all you’d hoped for yourself? / Could you start again?” The only request “Giving The World Away” makes is: “Stop giving the world away / Stop giving the only heart you’ve got.”

According to a statement, Hatchie had intended the record to suit a dance party, but the pandemic and lockdowns caused her to change tact and focus on introspection and self-discovery instead. Despite incorporating some driving percussion and mid-tempo beats, all three tracks shared so far from Giving The World Away share a darker, melancholy feel. About the record, Hatchie said, “This album really just feels like the beginning to me, and scratching the surface … I feel like I’m rebooting from scratch.”

You can pre-order the VMP edition of ‘Giving The World Away’ here.

TATYANA: “Between the Lines”

London-born electro-pop artist and harpist TATYANA is back with “Between the Lines,” her first single in 2022. Back in 2020, TATYANA was a VMP Rising artist, when we featured her debut EP Shadow On The Wall. She has not announced a full-length project or new EP on the way, but released several singles in 2021, including “Right Places,” with an accompanying music video.

“‘Between the Lines’ is a favourite of mine,” TATYANA said in a statement. “I wrote it after an ex told me I had an avoidant attachment style (lol!!) and I wanted to explore that idea in the lyrics. Making this song with Joe was so fun, I especially love the jammy instrumental outro in the song — those rising synths are so beautiful and it felt necessary to take it out with a shimmery harp solo.”

The blend of harp and synths in the outro achieves an aim that TATYANA talked to VMP about in a 2020 interview: Figuring out how to make harp pop, the genre.  “I think pop is healing,” she said then. “I think that genre can really be anything, and I’m beginning to figure out the goal I had in my head since I was a kid: ‘How do I bring this magical instrument into this genre? Like, how do I make harp pop?’ First, you have to know how to make pop, and you have to know how to play the harp, but I think it'll blend together in the future, and I hope it'll be really powerful in its healing properties.”

You can get the VMP-exclusive version of TATYANA’s debut EP, ‘Shadow On The Wall,’ here.

Tomberlin: “happy accident”

With the lead single “happy accident,” Sarah Beth Tomberlin has announced her forthcoming record i don’t know who needs to hear this…, her first full-length following her critically acclaimed debut in 2018, At Weddings. “happy accident” is her second single in 2022, after “idkwntht” — short for the album’s title.

The music video for “happy accident,” directed by Ryan Schnackenberg, is black and white and references fairytale, with Tomberlin dressed in chain-mail, resulting in a moody play on a “happy accident” versus a true “happy ending.”  

In a statement about the song, Tomberlin said: “‘happy accident’ is a song about relational obscurity. Trying to sort out who you are or who you were to someone. Is this relationship romantic or is it just sex? Do you want to spend time with me or are you just bored? Do I make my own decisions that are good for me or are my decisions predominantly based on what I think you might want or need?” 

She added, “I was kind of walking through moments in previous relationships in my life. I wanna know why someone wants to get to know me. Do you want to know me or just your idea of me? Do I want to know you or just my idea of you?”

As all those unanswered questions suggest, the song is fixated on the unknown: At the song's beginning, Tomberlin sings, “what’s the point of this / if I know how it ends” and closes the song with the contrary echo, “what’s the point of this / I don’t know how it ends.”

You can pre-order the VMP edition of ‘i don’t know who needs to hear this…’ here.

Fly Anakin, Pink Siifu & Billz Egypt: “Black Be the Source”

“Black Be the Source” is the latest single from Fly Anakin’s forthcoming debut studio album, Frank, and is accompanied by a cinematic music video directed by Jabari Canada. Anakin is joined by his frequent collaborator Pink Siifu — the duo behind 2020’s FlySiifu’s and the follow-up EP $mokebreak — and vocalist Billz Egypt. A co-founded of the Richmond, Virginia, rap collective Mutant Academy, Anakin signed to Lex Records for his full-length debut (after self-releasing his most recent EP, Pixote, via Bandcamp in 2021). “Black Be the Source” follows the previous singles “Sean Price,” “Ghost” and the Madlib-produced “No Dough.”

Nilüfer Yanya: “anotherlife”

London artist Nilüfer Yanya has released three singles from her upcoming sophomore album, PAINLESS: “stabilise,” “midnight sun” and now “anotherlife,” with a music video directed by her sister, Molly Daniel. Her 2019 debut, Miss Universe, was a loose concept album, followed up by the three-track EP Feeling Lucky? in 2020 (and Yanya also re-released a collection of her earlier EPs on 2021’s Inside Out). In a press release about “anotherlife,” Yanya said, “At the core of the song it’s just about being OK with things and accepting that this is where you are at. However, the ‘I’ll do anything’ line hints at a desperation of wanting to let that be known.”

You can pre-order the VMP edition ‘PAINLESS’ here.

P.E. & A. Savage: “Tears in the Rain”

“Tears in the Rain” is the latest single from P.E.’s The Leather Lemon, their forthcoming sophomore record, featuring Parquet Courts’ A. Savage. In a statement about the collaborative track, Savage said, “The relationship with Parquet Courts and P.E. goes back a long way. I put out both of the bands that combined to make P.E. (Pill and Eaters) on my label Dull Tools ... We’re old friends.” P.E.’s vocalist, Veronica Torres, said of the track: “[Savage] and I wrote lyrics side-by-side and for one another, intensifying the surreality of the instrumental and stretching it far beyond the classic ‘call and response’ duet format. The result is the most tender song on the record.”

Troye Sivan & Jay Som: “Trouble”

Troye Sivan and Jay Som have teamed up for “Trouble,” a synth-pop tune about experiencing tumultuous new love. The track is the first collaboration between the Australian star and Jay Som, who released her last solo album, Anak Ko, in 2019 and joined Bachelor and Palehound for 2021’s Doomin’ Sun. “Trouble” will be featured in the film Three Months (premiering this week), a coming-of-age story about a South Florida teen that Sivan stars in. Before rising to fame as a YouTuber and singer, Sivan was an actor; he acted most recently in Boy Erased in 2018, and is set to appear on The Idol, an upcoming HBO series created by The Weeknd, Sam Levinson and Reza Fahim.

Vince Staples & Mustard: “MAGIC” 

“Magic,” featuring Mustard, is the first single from Vince Staples’ Ramona Park Broke My Heart, the follow-up to 2021’s Vince Staples. In a statement, Staples said of the two records, “They were kind of created at the same time. I was in a similar state of mind. I’m still working through things and the questions that life poses. [Ramona Park Broke My Heart] will make even more sense if you heard the previous one.” Staples recently featured on Raveena’s “Secret” and Kilo Kish’s “NEW TRICKS: ART, AESTHETICS, AND MONEY” — Kilo Kish is a longtime collaborator with Staples, and was featured twice on his acclaimed 2015 release, Summertime ’06.

Toro y Moi: “The Loop”

Toro y Moi announced his upcoming seventh album, MAHAL, with the double single release of “Postman” and “Magazine,” and has released a third single, “The Loop.” The laid-back funk track opens with Toro y Moi, aka Chaz Bear, singing, “Oh my, where did the weekend go? / Oh man, Monday snuck up so fast / No one keeps me in the loop when I get back / Guess it’s up to me to stay in the loop.” The music video, directed by Bear’s Company Studio, is similarly breezy, with Toro y Moi and friends bopping around the Bay Area in a customized MAHAL Jeepney, among other forms of transportation.

You can pre-order the VMP edition of ‘MAHAL’ here.

SASAMI: “Make It Right”

“Make It Right” is the last single from SASAMI preceding Squeeze, our Album of the Week, which is due out this Friday. Earlier previews of the record, including “Skin A Rat” and “Sorry Entertainer,” firmly established that Squeeze is going in a different, more heavy metal-influenced direction than her self-titled debut. In a statement about the latest track, SASAMI said, “‘Make It Right’ is an ode to Fleetwood Mac’s more tantrum-y vibes with a hair of Crass-y marching snare. She’s a desperation bop about not being communicated with. I love a fuzzy riff. Need more guitar riffs in 2022.”

Honorable Mentions

• Dehd: “Bad Love”
• Buddy & Blxst: “Wait Too Long”
• maye: “Maybe Baby”
• Suzy: “Satellite”
• Bodega: “Statuette on the Console”