Welcome to Songs You Need to Know, our weekly rundown of the best music right now. The Rolling Stone Philippines team is constantly sharing things to listen to, and each week, we compile a ragtag playlist of songs that we believe every music fan today needs to know. Whether it’s the hottest new single or an old track that captures the state of the present, our hope is that you discover something for your musical canon.
This week, NEW YORK’s “think of you” turns anticlimax into tension, letting hushed bleeps carry the weight. Ear’s “Give Way” shapeshifts through genres, folding drum ‘n’ bass and Brazilian funk into a glitchy dreamscape. Big Thief’s “No Fear” sprawls into a lush, seven-minute meditation that feels both cosmic and intimate. Pasay rapper NATEMAN leans into kitsch with “IMMA FLIRT,” where a cheeky sample and loose hooks make for effortless pop-rap. Oklou’s “ict” thrives on quiet textures, trading drops for lullaby-like details that hit harder than bombast. Plus, Japanese Surplus’ “multo sa bulsa” keeps things simple, a bedroom rock confession that lingers long after its last note. Each one sounds different, but they know how to get under your skin.
What bleeps do to Gen Z electronica
English electroclash duo NEW YORK — yes, that’s their actual name — keep their cards close to the chest in “think of you.”
At first, the track floats in hypnotic synth bleeps and hushed vocals that feel more whispered than sung. What should be a buildup to something explosive instead veers into deliberate anticlimax, sidestepping the EDM-drop clichés that usually weigh down songs like this. It’s a trick that makes the track strangely magnetic, the deadpan delivery turning intimacy into tension. Hyperpop’s influence lingers in the edges, but the pacing here is more patient, more lived-in, and, frankly, more surprising than what their name might suggest.
At over five minutes, it’s one of their longest cuts to date, proof that NEW YORK aren’t chasing quick hits or one-trick theatrics. It’s a slow-burner that works less like a background soundtrack and more as a mood-setter for the kids who prefer standing in the corner than on the dance floor. —Elijah Pareño
An eclectic mix of sounds, some lingering, some ephemeral
On September 3, American electronic duo ear released their debut album, The Most Dear and The Future.
In one of its tracks, “Give Way,” musicians Jonah Paz and Yaelle Avtan lay soft, whispering vocals over droning pads and glitchy, multi-textured drum programming. The beat traverses between genres, one second drum ‘n’ bass, the next Brazilian funk, among other things. And beneath all that: wind blowing onto a mic, birds chirping, and other sorts of noise that ground the track’s wispy production.
“Give Way” and the rest of the album veer into the experimental, but at this point in their careers, we can’t say for certain what ear is or will be just yet. —Pie Gonzaga
A lush, hypnotic seven-minute meditation
American folk rock band Big Thief just released their latest album on September 5, and it’s as verdant as the weird, cosmic lime in the album cover.
Lead singer Adrianne Lenker references the lime in the meditative “No Fear,” where the repetitive lyrics see-saw between two notes. “There is no time / round like a lime / destiny,” Lenker sings, her voice reverberating through a psychedelic arrangement. The track moves at a slow walking pace, almost defeated in the first half, before the textures pick up in the middle. While synths and cymbals sizzle, Lenker’s vocals soothe.
Double Infinity marks Big Thief’s first record as a three-piece band in its 10-year history, with bassist Max Oleartchik having left last year. It’s a promising — if not excellent — start to a new phase for the band. —Pie Gonzaga
Sampling is essential and interpolation is king
The line between tongue-in-cheek and throwaway gets blurrier with “IMMA FLIRT,” but that’s exactly where Pasay rapper NATEMAN finds his groove. Built on a sample that cheekily echoes R. Kelly’s “I’m a Flirt,” the track shrugs off hip-hop’s obsession with technical flexes and instead leans into pure kitsch. It’s loose, it’s shameless, and it’s engineered less for lyrical breakdowns than for the simple fact that it works on a dance floor.
In an era when rap group NOLIMIT 4L’s “ICE ICE” and other sample-heavy cuts dominate, NATEMAN’s entry feels like both an extension of that trend and a disruption. The verses barely stick to structure, favoring hooks that feel tossed-off but infectious. What he’s really selling is a vibe: playful, unserious, and firmly in the lover boy lane.
By the time the chorus loops back around, you stop questioning whether it’s a novelty and realize the point is to stop thinking altogether. It’s pop-rap designed for the street corner and the club alike, and it works because it refuses to take itself too seriously. —Elijah Pareño
Hush-hush pop music done perfectly
French producer and singer Oklou has made a career out of leaning into the ethereal soundscapes, and “ict” is one of her sharpest examples yet.
In a landscape where bass drops often function like blunt weapons, she trades in subtler textures: a trombone wandering in the distance, an offhand lyric about spotting the ice cream truck. The song plays like a lullaby made for a restless generation; it is blissful but never saccharine, playful without ever dipping into kitsch.
Oklou’s latest album choke enough yet has plenty of these moments, but “ict” feels especially transportive, an ode to childlike wonder that thrives on small details rather than bombast. It’s a reminder that not every electronic track has to chase peaks and valleys; sometimes the absence of a drop is what makes the floor cave in. For an artist who’s been quietly shaping how “quiet” electronic music sounds today, this is one of her most confident statements. —Elijah Pareño
A great love offering in a simple bedroom rock track
It’s been almost two years since Filipino musician Max Pontillas released “multo sa bulsa” under the project Japanese Surplus, but I still can’t stop listening.
On Instagram, the musician describes the song as “for da lovergirlz” — an offering to carry a loved one’s ghosts and other burdens. “Hindi ako takot na mahalin ka / hindi ako takot na mahalin ka,” they sing at the end of the chorus. Here, the three-instrument bedroom rock production is simple, but it also allows Pontillas’ vocals to shine as it jumps between hushed low notes and emotional, higher registers.
I hope we get more of Japanese Surplus someday. But for now, “multo sa bulsa,” and a few other original tracks (plus a cover of Mitski’s “My Love Mine All Mine”) are all we have on SoundCloud (This song is not on Spotify), and they’re pretty damn good. —Pie Gonzaga
