End-of-Summer Music Musts: Femme Edition

As we wrap up summer, there is still plenty of time for some fresh bangers to hit up your eardrums and keep your steamy season going. We have some of the latest music releases that you need to know about and will absolutely end the season just right.

Alice Longyu Gao: “Kanpai”

The latest track from Chinese-born, American-based producer, songwriter, DJ and multidisciplinary artist Alice Longyu Gao is so beyond, we are living for it. Delivering an unapologetic mood and beats that call for drag performers to create something fierce with, the rap-like bridge aesthetic translates into a joyful vibe. The power of Asian pop culture is fine-tuned and delivered with an eccentric style and in-your-face, club-pop track.

Kitty Coen: “Disco Lemonade”

Psychedelic rhinestone cowgirl, Kitty Coen, has a new EP that defies genre and gets your body moving. Through stories of love, lust, heartbreak and self-acceptance, Coen’s dark and brooding lyrics combine forcefully with a mix of intense synth beats, rhythmic guitar strums, and the gleam of new-age indie disco. Imagine an alt-rock and electro-pop hybrid, and this Austin-based artist will get you up and grooving.

L’FREAQ: “Showgirl”

LA-based, dark-synth, pop artist, L’FREAQ, boldly takes a stand on power with the title track from her upcoming EP, Showgirl. A potent and powerful voice with a message, the lyric’s realness is executed in every note. Serving some fierce, witchy vibes, L’FREAQ turns trauma into triumph, tapping into the art of her heart and finding personal freedom.

Mini Trees: “Carrying On”

Lexi Vega, aka Mini Trees, is coming to terms with her unique identity and is coming more into her creative vision of progress. After playing drums in various projects for years, Vega began writing and recording her own music in 2018 as a way to explore themes of anxiety, dread, the existential motion of life, and the generational scars of her upbringing. From loving something that may not always be yours to questioning the reality of the surreal, Vega has delivered an indie-pop album that feels fresh and fiery.

Taraka: “Psychocastle”

The former Prince Rama frontwoman Taraka has released a throwback that we obsessed with. Giving us Joan Jett meets ultra-emo feels, the new track is far from the dance-pop sound that we know her from. Diving into a dirty, grungy fusion of lo-fi opulence, kaleidoscopic punk is angsty and alive in “Psychocastle.”

From Taraka: “Ever try to escape your bedroom, but feel like you’re still asleep? Ever try to wake up, but find yourself back in the dream?  Ever try to take off your mask, but another one pops up beneath it? Ever try to consult your inner self, but inside your skin is merely a rotting corpse? Ever feel like every path you take is just another mobius strip leading you back to where you first began? Congratulations, welcome to the Psychocastle.”

*Header image of Tanaka by Matthew Hoffman