Despite the ease of access that streaming has brought to the distribution of music, the volume that's released can make it a daunting task to find unique new stuff every week. In this recurring weekly feature we put together a short list of new songs from the past week that stand out amongst all the noise and deserve a spot in your rotation.
All songs featured in this recurring series can be found in our scrmbl selection 2025 playlist on Spotify or Apple Music.
CHO CO PA CO CHO CO QUIN QUIN — “Haiya”
The very name adopted by this trio refers to a percussive pattern found in Latin music, so it's fitting for CHO CO PA CO CHO CO QUIN QUIN's latest single to excel thanks to its rhythm. “Haiya” teases some YMO-ish techno-pop touches but mutates into something all its own as it hops along, the singing bobbing along to the beat turning into a pant as the music itself speeds up and this track turns into a display of sound for a stretch. When the singing re-enters later, it gets chopped up, becoming another element to highlight its bounce. Listen above.
Hitsujibungaku — “doll”
Rock outfit Hitsujibungaku do dramatic well, but their origins are from fuzzier and faster indie-rock sounds. That underground energy pulses through latest single “doll,” one incorporating splashes of feedback while still rushing ahead. Vocalist Moeka Shiotsuka's impassioned singing still comes through, but now it moves at an urgent pace rather than building up. It's right in the group's wheelhouse. Listen above.
kurayamisaka — “metro”
“Tracks 1–3 are the face of the album to me, so you have to grab their attention there,” said guitarist Shotaro Shimizu about the writing process behind his band kurayamisaka’s new album, kurayamisaka yori ai wo komete. Second on the track listing, “metro” serves as that rightful hook. As the wiry emo guitars get you swept up in the rush, the song launches into a chorus that heads skyward. Blink and you’d miss the bittersweetness at the song’s core because everything moves in a hurry. Though, perhaps the band would rather you focus on the brighter path it aims to lead you.
Nakamura Minami And MEZZ — “Miracle Body”
A high-energy rap-pop number all about embracing yourself. The duo of Nakamura Minami and MEZZ last linked up for 2023's high energy club cut “ROYAL MILK TEA,” but this time tackle a more carbonated beat nodding to Jersey Club produced by Trekkie Trax fixture andrew. They take turns celebrating themselves and the bodies they exist in, choosing positivity and shouting out everything that makes them unique. Listen above.
Noranekoguts — “Vega”
Spiky riffs scrawl atop a chug of muted guitar strums in Noranekoguts’s new song, the duo rolling out a hot-headed, motorik punk. The music is itching to get a move on, and its pent-up feelings seem ready boil over anytime. Amid all of the buzzing, Guitarist and vocalist guts helps keep cool through her sweet vocals. “It goes on / yes, of course,” she sings in the chorus. “Where did the good go from yesterday? / But that’s OK.” Laid over the jagged tune like a balm, the melodies of Noranekoguts make it easier to forget.
SUSHIBOYS — “Kienai Hi”
A slinky garage production brings SUSHIBOYS up to speed with today’s hip-house acts in this single off of the duo’s new album, Hi. What has yet to change from them in the six years since their last full-length are their underdog raps, drilling about how the work is still not over. “Fire dancing in the wind / it’s never going out no matter what,” they chant in the chorus. Riding along such a breezy beat, the two rappers make survival sound like a breeze.
