This edition of LITM Pop Picks brings to you tracks by Revived Echoes, November Sky, John Smyths and more!
1. Revived Echoes – Power in My Life
Power in My Life is warm, uplifting, and motivational without being preachy. With lyrics like “I have a mountain to climb / I’m ready, I’ll see the sun shine”, London-based Revived Echoes weaves mellow electropop with an easygoing acoustic guitar, producing a result that’s as danceable as it is heartening. Despite the chill ease in Revived Echoes’ vocal delivery, there’s a tangible passion and energy to them, producing an overall intimate simplicity in the track that makes you want to listen again and again. Power in My Life beautifully captures the drive to push forward despite everything, and it’s a track that feels at home in every setting.
2. November Sky – Avenge You
November Sky captures power and longing in Avenge You, a soaring track that feels effortless. Every element of Avenge You is pushing and pulling with every other, giving the song an intensity and energy that’s clearly been crafted with care – the male and female vocals themselves, belted out with clarity and energy, are constantly twisting around each other, creating a release from the built-up tension. It’s produced with maturity: none of the track’s instrumental elements are muddied or in competition with the vocals for attention. It’s safe to say that with this track, November Sky has produced something captivating, intricate, and utterly alive.
3. John Smyths – Now I’M Wiser
With a hoppy, country feel, Now I’M Wiser explores the experience that comes with maturity and lessons learned the hard way. Smyths’ vocals are vulnerable but energetic and approachable, inviting listeners to share in his vulnerability. It’s easy to imagine the song being sung in a small country bar where everyone knows you and you know everyone. It thrives on simplicity and structure without relying on overcomplicated lyrics or production, transporting you to a place where life feels easier. Allowing the energy and emotion to take prominence, Now I’M Wiser is the perfect blend of country melody and modern production, and is sure to leave you with a skip in your step!
4. Creek Road Eleven – Almost Ghost Town
Finnish band Creek Road Eleven immerses itself in melancholic nostalgia with Almost Ghost Town, a snappy country-folk track. With powerful vocals and clear lyrics, it explores the feeling of helplessness that comes with returning to a place you once considered home, only to find out that it has moved on without you (“My hometown glory days are long gone,” and “The world keeps changing too damn fast for me”). Creek Road Eleven showcases artful restraint in the track’s production, ensuring that it feels full without becoming overwhelming. Almost Ghost Town is sad, yes, but it’s also hopeful and accepting in a way that leaves its cautious optimism behind for you to keep.
5. Cybophonia – Fading Light
Fading Light is the quietly dystopic, ethereal opening track of Cybophonia’s upcoming EP, Sway. It’s intentionally unsettling with its raspy, almost robotic vocals and heavy backing that lingers more than it guides, but it’s hypnotic, and you can’t put it away. Its effectiveness lies in how it builds intensity with measured control, taking you through rising and falling waves of force with ease – it knows it’s in command, it demands your attention with that knowledge, and it’s confident that it’ll hold your full attention through its runtime of just over five minutes. Fading Light is immersive and self-assured, and leaves you suspended in its otherworldliness long after it ends.
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