Manchester's own Joize throws us headfirst into a Friday night fever dream with his new single, "Nasty." And, boy, is it appropriately named. Not nasty as in, ew, gross. No. This is that electric slide-across-the-dancefloor-because-the-bass-just-possessed-you kind of nasty. Afro RnB, sure, but there are flickers of something a little…unexpected. https://open.spotify.com/track/01f7F7WKS6v8KAbEcBBJ3t The theme? Unabashed, unapologetic desire. The song unfolds in a single electrifying night. It's a brief...

Sam Ostler’s new single, “Lights,” then. It unfolds less like a sudden, intrusive glare and more like the slow, determined burn of a really good stage light finally finding its mark after a prolonged blackout. It’s pop, yes, vibrant and undeniably contemporary as advertised – clean lines, clear intentions. Yet, there’s a certain satisfying heft beneath the melodic uplift, a feeling that these notes...