Favorite Alt Music

I am back for a quick-ish Monthly Music Picks post. It’s been a while, but I wanted to post again, and although we’re already some days into June, I still wanted to do this for last month.

For the music picks this time, I chose a few newer songs and a throwback. I’m excited to share my thoughts on these songs, so let’s get started.

“Sticky” by The Maine – My favorite band, that is still together, is The Maine, and they are getting ready to release their eighth album, XOXO: From Love And Anxiety In Real Time, that comes out exactly one month from today. “Sticky” is the first single off the upcoming record and it is a great way to introduce the new era with its fun, upbeat music. It’s also very catchy with cute lyrics. And speaking of lyrics, fans caught the line “And I finally found those letters lost under my tongue” which references their song “Black Butterflies and Déjà Vu” from their album Lovely Little Lonely. We love it when artists do this.

“LIKE IT” by Waterparks – I’m aware that Waterparks released their newest album Greatest Hits at the end of May on the 21st, but this song has been on repeat every since the release. I absolutely love the beat and how frontman Awsten Knight sings the lyrics. The song’s pace is great, too, with it sounding chaotic, but that’s what makes this specific song stand out from the others especially in this album. The lyrics are also deep and heavy which makes this song so much more meaningful and powerful. With its fast-paced tempo and instruments, it sounds like an angry song in a way, and even though it has parts where Knight shares his frustrations, it’s also a way for him to let out his thoughts and emotions. Music is so wonderful at allowing people to do this.

“Good Times” by All Time Low – This weekend I will be graduating with my bachelor’s degree and this song makes me think of this. The past three years at the university I attended were pretty much the best years of my life. In the chorus, frontman Alex Gaskarth sings “I never want to leave this sunset town but one day the time may come” and that is the most powerful line to me—I don’t want to leave the university, but the day has come when I have to leave and begin a new chapter of my life. Goodbyes are hard, but the memories made there are wonderful. The song’s music is also very beautiful to me—it sounds like part of a movie when the protagonist leaves their home and reminisces on the time spent there.

“Bodybag” by chloe moriondo – Unlike the three songs above, this tune is a lot softer with more lowkey vibes, especially in the verses. I found this artist when adding one of her tour stops to a magazine’s online calendar that I intern for. This was the first song I heard since it’s a recent release, and I immediately fell in love with it. I’m sure many people can relate to this one—it’s a delightful song, but it is about being torn between liking and hating a person you’re crushing on. It’s a frustrating situation, and moriondo does an excellent job portraying her feelings about it.

You can listen to this month’s (well, last month’s) music picks below along with previous monthly picks. Happy listening!