01) Mansionair x NoMBe - I've heard a decent lil amount of Mansionair's music before and I wasn't expecting this at all. Cool as fuck without much effort. Songs by men called "Guillotine" in TSC have a 2/2 hit rate!
02) Goldilox - Allie X is S H A K I N G at Goldilox stealing her spinning and upgrading it with body contortion. I think I get more of a kick out of the entire package than I genuinely like the song, but alas, I still get a kick out of it.
03) Ladilla Rusa - Okay, this already caught my attention and I'm really hoping to not be let down. There are parts of it that are so fucking questionable to my taste, but this was a ride and I was never once bored by it.
04) Lauv & LANY - It's pleasant, but I wish it progressed to more than it was. Pleasant, but one-note.
05) Bling Bling - I can confidently say that this is my favorite of the k-pop entries this week by a pretty large margin. I think the lack of vocals actually helps it for me. Just such a good sound.
06) Amel Bent x Imen Es - French bop is a French bop. Sexy and classy.
07) UZARI - This has better MARUV production than MARUV's song this week, ooop. Some of the vocal choices are questionable to say the least, but overall, a really good song.
08) Liza Owen - I know this isn't Tengaged Music Video Contest, but I feel like I need to let it be known how much I hate her star contacts. This is like a less bombastic Sleigh Bells, which I can definitely fuck with. Wish it went slightly harder.
09) Anabel Englund & MK - Hypnotising and sexy. An absolute yes from me.
10) ORÎ - The voice sounds a bit put on to me, but it *could* grow on me over time. Everything else feels pretty on point for the type of track this is. I just know I'd be caking about this if it was a woman, so I'm willing to overlook, what to me, is a questionable vocal.
11) Pink Fantasy - I don't love the pre-chorus, but the chorus is really solid and elevates it quite a bit.
12) Medina - I know we're all going to be making Mel C comparisons, so here's another one to be uniform. Very Mel C lite, and that's not a bad thing.
13) CupcakKe - Feel like it's been a while since mom graced us with her presence in TSC, but it probably actually hasn't been. <3 It doesn't have the meme appeal that a lot of her popular TSC stuff does, but she still snapped.
14) Stray Kids - Definitely stands out in this semi thus far on a vibe and energy level. Maybe I'm easily impressed, but I liked the little touch in production with the door right before the drop. (yes, I immediately realized that I was in fact easily impressed). The rapping existed, but I prefered the softer parts of the verses. Mixed bag.
15) Lou Elliotte - Chorus is a bit uninspiring/Spotify friendly. The rest offers some intrigue and I like the overall vibe, but it's a lot safer than I originally thought it was/was going to be.
16) Klava Koka - You kinda get the entire gist of it within the first little bit, but it's a sound that I'm almost always into and this was no different.
17) Matt Maeson - That intro got me really fucking excited and then it broke out into guitar and I genuinely pouted, lmfao. Not totally my style, but I eventually kinda got into it.
18) aespa - I'm usually much more into songs that are intended as bangers than this on the first few listens, which probably isn't a good sign. It's fine, but not crazy about it.
19) MARUV - I know most of y'all are over MARUV at this point, but I found this extremely dark and sexy (as I do with pretty much everything that's been sent by MARUV). I wish the chorus ended up being more than THAT, but still really enjoyed it.
20) Gregory Dillon - Voice is immediately... interesting. It became less interesting rather quickly. The production is cool and I like when it picks up in the chorus. It's fine.
21) TAYANNA - This song is amazing. 0 points.
22) Victoria Justice - I truly buy it when she squares up for her rap verse -- acting, baby.
23) Ambar Lucid - I didn't think much of this in the beginning, but it really grew on me throughout. She's giving VOCAL and variety in her vocal. Love the way she sings "meEeEeeee" right before the chorus, just sounds so stunning. Good.
24) Karmen x BRUJA - Wish it went a BIT harder, but still right up my alley stylistically.