Molina is a Danish-Chilean electro-pop artist who’s been around since late in the 2010s. You might know her for her 2018 song “Hey Kids”, a sort of New Romantic take on dream pop that keeps racking on millions of streams on Spotify and Youtube. She also put out an excellent EP titled Vanilla Shell last year, and she is now following it up with a new single called “Cold”. It’s actually a three-song release including two songs in Spanish; the closer, “El Aparecido”, a cover of a song by Chilean legend Víctor Jara.

The Cold EP pivots round its title track. Featuring Mew’s Jonas Bjerre, this is Molina at her most experimental to date. There’s not much structure to speak of; instead, the song is comprised of little electronic fragments loosely connected to each other. It’s evident that Molina conserves her impressive ear for melody; “Cold” boasts a clear hook in its “I will come out with bullets on hold” part, but even that is somewhat elusive, as if hidden away on purpose. Fittingly enough, the instrumentation is icy and dark, the perfect backdrop for Molina’s and Bjerre’s aloof, vocodered vocals. Talking of perfect backdrops: “Cold” deserves a close listen while watching its ominous and claustrophobic music video, directed by Ali Asperheim. Watch and support the artist via Bandcamp below.

Listening to Takykardia‘s new track is like stumbling upon a delicate flower in full bloom: “Waving” charms with a soothing melody, refined texture and thoughtful lyrics. The self-proclaimed pop wizards have soaked in influences from a colourful palette of genres, and they’ve done their homework figuring how to employ them to their advantage.

As if tuning in on the radio just in the right moment, the listener enters the song to Luna Matz breathing out the line: “Cause I don’t like to wait”. Her voice is driven by patience and restlessness simultaneously, exposing the struggle people “running out of their twenties” face when navigating romantic relationships. “I don’t wanna sip wine with a stranger and test whether or not we’re a good match. I’m a romantic and I’d love to be completely swept away,” says the singer of her aversion to dating.

It may be hard to find a partner for life, but it’s easy to get swept away by the lustrous instrumental loops that exceed into joyous curls on several occasions throughout the song. The keyboardist David Nedergaard and drummer Troels Dankert provide a foundation which is enriched and embellished by three musicians joining the band on this track: guitarist Rasmus Oppenhagen Krogh, bassist Janus Bagh and harpist Selma Judith Trier.

With its pensive yet positive atmosphere, “Waving” is a sympathetic nod to other romantic souls out there, a comforting promise that their wait will be worthwhile. Watch the accompanying video, courtesy of the band’s very own Luna Matz and visual artist Ali Asperheim, below.