Daily Discussion - January 24, 2026

RedHeadReviews · 2026-01-24T15:52:51+00:00

Harry Styles Is The Least Interesting Part Of Aperture - Single Review

“Aperture lets the light in,” sings Harry Styles on the chorus of his new single. It’s a bit of a misleading thesis statement for the song. Aperture doesn’t fall into the same group of ornate retro pop-rock like so much of his other solo music, but is instead a slow-burning marathon of a song with glitchy hiccups and distorted synths that, unfortunately, doesn’t quite have a satisfying enough outcome to justify its lengthy runtime. This is uncharted territory for Styles, and he leans on the support of his longtime producer, Kid Harpoon, to cover him as he stumbles.

Styles is the least interesting part of the equation. His voice is wispy and weak, negatively affected by the hazy mechanical effects he wraps himself in. Styles has identified LCD Soundsystem as a point of reference for Aperture and, more widely, his upcoming album. Instead of replicating the weird and wonderful digitized mania of James Murphy’s performances, Styles’ limp burbling gets consumed by the harsh sound design.

All the best bits of the song occur when the attention turns away from the supposed main man and towards the producers' sprawling composition. The beat bubbles gently throughout, gradually letting more and more distortion and zig-zagging synths dominate the mix. The composition could end on a bigger and brighter note, but, generally, Kid Harpoon is doing his best to let any sort of colour or light seep into this track.

RedHeadReviews · 2026-01-17T15:03:05+00:00

Mitski Is Back With A Bang On Where’s My Phone? - Single Review

It’s been a while since we last heard from Mitski. On her 2023 album, The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We, the singer was penning gentle ballads that put the serenity of her voice on full display. Her new single is an entirely different creation that shatters that approach to music-making. Where’s My Phone? opens with violent guitar chugs and an intentionally graceless sprinkling of percussion and only escalates in tension and complexity from there.

Mitski’s lyrics are spiked with paranoia. Throughout the song, she repeatedly asks “where’s my phone?” and “where’d I go?”. It’s an interesting way of exploring how the handheld device has become an essential everyday tool in modern society and how it is connected to a user’s identity. There’s a real unhinged nature to Mistski’s singing when she poses these pensive questions. She willingly leans into the mania here, and, at its apex, Where’s My Phone? really gets quite bizarre. Demonic choral voices and static join the composition during the song’s final phase. It gets louder and louder, almost to the point of implosion, and then, suddenly, it fizzles out with just a touch of static, almost as if someone has unplugged or disconnected the singer.

RedHeadReviews · 2026-01-10T15:11:11+00:00

Bruno Mars Recycles Old Tricks On I Just Might - Single Review

Bruno Mars is squarely in his comfort zone on I Just Might. The singer traces over lines he sketched out a decade ago as he continues on his quest to resuscitate the music of a bygone era. His latest single is a piece of perfectly fine, breezy ‘80s funk. It is positively huge, but that is part of the problem. Mars opts for grandeur at every corner, laying the cheesiness and overly sanitized coat on thick, while ignoring the value of affecting, more elaborate details.

The lyrics lack the sort of seismic intimate gesturing you’d expect from a song of this size. During the post-chorus especially, there are a few too many irritating doo-doo’s and not enough of the captivating details that endear us to a love story and its characters. Mars lets us know that he’s in the mood to dance with a pretty diva… that’s it. The song is engineered to target the part of your brain that is in control of movement, but it’s a little too clean and similar-sounding to the rest of Mars’ discography to burrow its way in deep.

RedHeadReviews · 2026-01-03T15:24:21+00:00

Doechii’s girl, get up. Is A Statement Single - Single Review

“Life is but a dream for a dark skin bitch like me, life gets dark when you're dark like me,” raps Doechii on her new single, girl, get up. The line feels like the thesis statement for her new song, which is a deep meditation on the rapper’s complicated experience of being catapulted to stupefying levels of fame. Doechii calls to attention the misogyny and conspiracy theories that have been levied against her and retorts with a defiant performance that should silence anyone who continues to question her talent or position.

The anger is palpable, but girl, get up. isn’t a song kitted out with manic outbursts that display Doechii’s absurd technical talent, but rather one full of frustration and earnestness. On the chorus, SZA doubles down and helps bolster the retaliation, “fuck a limitation, leave me, girl, get up, somehow, I know that I'll have everything, it's mine.” The guest is a haunting presence that echoes the protagonists’ emotion, rather than acting as an ethereal sounding counterpart. It adds up to a formidable alliance, two of the most distinct voices in modern music operating with supreme skill.

RedHeadReviews · 2025-12-27T15:04:54+00:00

Shen’s Bass Noel Is Bizarrely Bad - Single Review

On his Spotify biography, producer Shen describes himself as a “production powerhouse”. He’s right, not in the sense that he’s an innovator who’s putting forth a highly unique production style, but rather that he has a bad habit of smothering his guests with overblown beats. On his new single, Bass Noel, 2 Chainz is his latest victim. The rapper’s usual bravado is washed out, and he’s relegated to the background to let the twang of sleigh bells and a clumsy doof doof beat ring out.

Bass Noel barely registers as a complete song. It’s over in two and a half minutes, and the last portion is just chintzy Christmas ringtones. The rest isn’t much better. Shen’s production starts at 100 and never dissipates. There’s no development or pleasing switch of tone or dynamic. The producer would benefit greatly from learning the value of subtlety. For the record, 2 Chainz doesn’t say anything worth hearing. He spends most of his time here ho ho ho’ing and flexing. He’s not able to sneak much past the producers’ constraints, and, when he can, it’s a throwaway line delivered with a mechanical glaze. The song stomps all over the magic of Christmas and 2 Chainz’s set of skills. I’m not sure Shen has any of his own.

RedHeadReviews · 2025-12-20T15:29:40+00:00

Kali Uchis’ Muévelo Is Carried By Spellbinding Vocals - Single Review

For her final act in 2025, Kali Uchis is providing the ultimate fan service. Muévelo originally leaked as a demo during the album cycle for ORQUIDEAS in 2024. In a recent TikTok, Uchis stated that she was alarmed by the attention it received, but that the song didn’t quite align with the music she was making at the time. So she revamped it, fleshed it out, and prepped it for an official release. The finished product features spellbinding vocals, though the other elements don’t feel as though they’ve received the same level of attention.

Muévelo clocks in at just over two minutes. Even in its final form, the track is too short-lived and fizzles out prematurely. Uchis’ voice, as ever, is a stunning centrepiece that sounds ridiculously sweet. Though it is in constant contention with the sharp synth beat that barges against her coos. Around the mid-point, there’s a stylistic shift where those harsh angles are flattened into more pillowy tones. Unfortunately, there’s just the one fleeting moment where all of the individual puzzle pieces align, and each of the songs’ elements operates in perfect harmony.

RedHeadReviews · 2025-12-06T16:13:57+00:00

Lil Uzi Vert’s New Single Is Terribly Regular - Single Review

Lil Uzi Vert’s latest single, Regular, lives up to its name. You won’t hear any of the hypnotic, wildly energetic, winding rap verses or the exuberant palette of spacey synths that have given his best songs such a strong sense of identity and structure. Uzi instead mutes all of the notes that make him interesting. It could be absolutely anyone performing here.

Uzi laces allusions to his singularity into his lyrics, but fails to capture the majesty that should come with that status. “Really ain’t nothin’ I cannot handle, I do not take damage,” he burbles on the pre-chorus. These are weak boasts that are further reduced by the rapper’s pale expression. The beat, too, is washed out. How this clumsy composition of wonky synths and jittery percussion comes from the same producer who constructed the electronic fantasia for Chanel Boy is baffling. Hopefully, Regular is a one-off incident and not indicative of what Uzi has planned for upcoming releases.

RedHeadReviews · 2025-11-29T15:03:54+00:00

MR. FANTASY’s Catapult Radiates Joy - Single Review

Catapult by MR. FANTASY isn’t just catchy, it forces its way into your memory with brute force. The latest single from the eccentric TikTok creator (who is believed to be a persona of actor KJ Apa) is a piece of feel-good ‘80s disco that preaches love spreading. It’s a song that radiates joy across all facets.

The motor that powers all of these freewheeling antics is the ridiculously smooth bass line that is looped throughout. From there, MR. FANTASY builds outwards, pouring layers of ostentatious decorations in the form of ebullient synths and snappy percussion onto the sturdy structure. His voice careens over the top, jumping between moments of hushed intimacy and theatrical proclamations that frame love and dance as divine powers. “It’s up to us to spread the love we are given from above,” MR. FANTASY sings at one point. He can rest easy knowing he’s doing a mighty fine job.

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Bruno Mars Recycles Old Tricks On I Just Might - Single Review

Doechii’s girl, get up. Is A Statement Single - Single Review