Freshly Squeezed, Vol. 77: Andrew Cassara, Binx, Drew Holcomb, FIDLAR & more

Welcome to Freshly Squeezed, a weekly new music playlist: spanning country, pop, EDM and urban, mainstream and other.

Let’s get down to this. sick. beat. Andrew Cassara makes his way down a funkadelic hallway of throwback R&B, overdosed on ’80s bubblegum pop and arena-packed swagger. “Get Down” is zipped tighter than most on the Hot 100 and is the first drip of new music from the newcomer since 2018’s debut full-length, The Big Bang. Here, he eyes grandeur as he matures into the sheen of the limelight and finds his groove, both literally and metaphorically. He even calls upon his album’s title for the stickiness of the hook, ripping cues from Frankie Goes to Hollywood in shimmering glamour. But he’s assuredly making plenty of splashy moves of his very own. Cassara is perched to snatch some wigs, guys.

Odyssey-girl Binx, whose 2016 The African Bee EP still gets consistent rotation ’round these parts, plots a starry expedition with her rhythmic new single. “Space DJ” culls her South African roots and playfully sturdy percussion work, layering on her own vocals for a rather cosmic, pounding mix. She’s a daredevil of extreme textures and sonic touch points and flexes her strengths in usurping convention for a juicy pop song that’s as quirky as it’s polished and ripe for mainstream radio play. If we’re not paying attention, shame on us!

Indie-rock band Pedro the Lion prime their upcoming album, Phoenix (out January 18), with a supple new cut called “Quietest Friend,” which jangles hard on the eardrums with whiskey puddles. Folk tunesmith Morgan Cameron Ross muses on lost love with his stunningly muted piano ballad titled “When There’s Doubt.” Between each subtle crash of ivory, his voice floating like a paper boat in the middle of a ravaging, relentless hurricane, his raw emotion fizzes upward like a soft mist. Even though its runtime is less than two minutes, it is a heavy and necessary statement piece on the current status of humanity.

Our rather expansive, musically-rich new playlist includes cuts from: Aaron David Gleason, A New International, Vandoliers, Betty Who, Our Native Daughters, Alec Benjamin, Luther Dickinson & Sisters of the Strawberry Moon, Marlene Oak, City of Sound, Big Wild and many others!

In all, we’ve got 50 new songs to sashay with into the weekend ahead. Get going.

Each playlist will be refreshed every Friday morning/afternoon. We reserve the right to update anytime during the week, so make sure you bookmark this page.

Take a spin:

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