10 Best Songs of the Week: Ducks Ltd., Haley Heynderickx, Confidence Man, Heartworms, and More
Oct 18, 2024
Welcome to the 34th Songs of the Week of 2024. This week Andy Von Pip, Caleb Campbell, Mark Moody, Matt the Raven, and Scotty Dransfield helped me decide what should make the list. We considered over 20 songs and narrowed it down to a Top 10.
Issue 73 is out now. It features Maya Hawke and Nilüfer Yanya on the two covers and can be bought from us directly here.
To help you sort through the multitude of fresh songs released in the last week, we have picked the 10 best the last seven days had to offer, followed by some honorable mentions. Check out the full list below.
1. Ducks Ltd.: “Grim Symmetry”
Toronto-based duo Ducks Ltd. released a new album, Harm’s Way, in February via Carpark. This week they shared a new song, “Grim Symmetry,” that was recorded during the Harm’s Way sessions but didn’t end up on the album. It features backing harmonies from Julia Steiner (of Ratboys) and Margaret McCarthy (of Moontype).
“Grim Symmetry” follows “When You’re Outside,” another new song the band shared in May that was also recorded during the Harm’s Way sessions.
Ducks Ltd. is Tom McGreevy and Evan Lewis.
“This is actually one of our older songs,” explains guitarist/vocalist McGreevy in a press release. “We wrote it early on in the Modern Fiction writing process, and the demo was a favorite among the people we shared those with, but we didn’t quite get it right when we tried to record it for that album. We always liked it though, so we kept it around and tried it again when we were tracking Harm’s Way. It didn’t end up quite fitting the vibe of the album, but we did manage to get it to where we wanted it to be, so it’s exciting to finally share it.”
McGreevy had this to say about the rest of the tracks on the album in a previous press release: “They’re songs about struggling. About watching people I care for suffer, and trying to figure out how to be there for them. And about the strain of living in the world when it feels like it’s ready to collapse.”
Portland, Oregon’s Hayley Heynderickx is releasing her sophomore album, Seed of a Seed, on November 1 via Mama Bird. This week she released another single from the album, “Gemini.”
While no quote from Heynderickx on “Gemini” was provided, a press release describes the meaning behind the song in greater detail: “‘Gemini’ is about imperfection, letting oneself understand and accept that there is no immutable beginning but one long, winding, journey full of mistakes. More importantly is the revelations that the deepest learning, and potential for growth, comes through the process of failure. Acceptance and growth churn under Heynderickx’s deft fingerpicking, at once melancholic and resolute. ‘Gemini’ is a reminder that every day is a new day, and that new day is ripe with potential.”
Heynderickx’s core band on the album was Daniel Rossi on drums, Denzel Mendoza on trombone, and Matthew Holmes on electric and upright bass. The album also features electric guitarist William Seiji Marsh and Caleigh Drane on cello.
The album is due out digitally on November 1, with a physical release scheduled for December 6. By Mark Redfern
3. Confidence Man: “Sicko”
This week, Confidence Man, the Australian electro-pop mavericks, now based in London, released “Sicko,” the latest single from their third album 3 AM (LA LA LA), which came out today via Casablanca. While known for their high-octane, dance-infused sound, “Sicko” embraces a more subtle ‘90s indie-dance crossover vibe, a little less frenetic than much of the album but still unhinged and unmistakably Confidence Man.
The single arrives alongside a stunning black-and-white video that almost resembles what might happen if you tried to make a musical based on Reservoir Dogs and Trainspotting—stylish, edgy with a gritty film noir sensibility and laced with a dark, twisted sense of humor.
Fronted by Sugar Bones (Aidan Moore) and Janet Planet (Grace Stephenson), and backed by masked musicians Clarence McGuffie (Sam Hales) and Reggie Goodchild (Lewis Stephenson), Confidence Man are set to scale new heights with 3 AM (LA LA LA) as they continue to evolve their sound. Talking about the album, Sugar Bones says, “It’s 3am, it’s never not 3am, and we party all the time.” Janet Planet adds, “It’s hard. It’s fast. It’s basically Muhammad Ali, and your ears are everyone he ever boxed.” By Andy Von Pip
4. Heartworms: “Warplane”
This week, South London artist Heartworms (aka JoJo Orme) announced her debut album Glutton for Punishment, which will be released on February 7, 2025 via Speedy Wunderground. Alongside the album announcement, she shared her new single “Warplane,” accompanied by a video directed by Gilbert Trejo.
“Warplane” showcases Heartworms’ passion for military history, with lyrics that paint a vivid picture of an air battle. She explains, “The opening lyrics set the scene of a dogfight in the air while civilians are witnessing it take shape. My imagination is always out of my control, and my love of Spitfires even more so, so I couldn’t help but make this about a spitfire pilot.”
Heartworms dedicates the song to William Gibson Gordon, a Spitfire pilot who was killed in action at the age of 20, adding, “The song ends how I imagine his falling Spitfire sounds to me, like an angel losing its extraordinary wings.”
Produced by longtime collaborator Dan Carey, Glutton for Punishment broadens Heartworms’ sound, combining post-punk with more melodic, pop-oriented influences. “With my EP, people kind of pigeonholed me into post-punk,” she says. “I was like, ‘Cool, I can do that, but I can also do way more’—I can do post-punk, but I can also be poppy and catchy, and this album represents that. I think people might be surprised when they hear it.”
Discussing the album’s themes, Heartworms reflects: “I’ve been chastised my whole life; made to feel as if I didn’t belong, punished for not fitting into a perfect image of how a growing woman should be. When you’re told something enough times you start to believe it. I often find myself locked into an unhealthy cycle of craving harsh discipline, greedy for the familiarity it brings but terrified of the consequences—better the devil you know. But this album doesn’t just reflect my own experiences; it reflects those of the people in my life and the stories of others that I think need to be heard.”
Read our 2023 Heartworms interview HERE. By Andy Von Pip
5. Father John Misty: “She Cleans Up”
Father John Misty (aka Josh Tillman) is releasing a new album, Mahashmashana, on November 22 worldwide via Sub Pop. This week he shared another new song from it, “She Cleans Up,” and announced some new tour dates. Destroyer will be the support act on the tour. Check out the song and tour dates here.
When the album was announced Father John Misty shared a new song from it, the near-seven-minute long “Screamland,” via a music video. The song featured Alan Sparhawk from Low on guitar and was one of our Songs of the Week.
