Shygirl's 'Mantra' and Four More Songs Defining the Week in Pop

By Elena Vasquez

Shygirl turns a declaration of independence into a beat-driven anthem on “Mantra,” one of five new tracks highlighted this week. The song appears on her new album, “Swallow!” The British singer, songwriter, producer and D.J. insists, “You can’t tell me what to do / how to live, nothing to lose,” over speedy break-beats and buzzing, pulsing synthesizers. The track builds to her vow to “rise and rise and rise and rise and rise.”

The playlist, rounded out by Dove Cameron, Rex Orange County, Hannah Jadagu and Twisted Teens, leans hard into two themes: heartbreak and self-assertion. Two of the five songs come from albums released this week.

What does Dove Cameron's new single deliver?

Dove Cameron vows to survive repeated heartbreak in “Breaks Open,” from her new album, “Final Girl.” Cameron is an actress and singer who, like Olivia Rodrigo, got her start on the Disney Channel. The arrangement piles on retro melodrama: a crescendo of strings, reverb-laden guitar, chimes and choir. Her vibrato reads as equal parts tearful and adamant.

The Disney-to-pop pipeline has produced chart-dominating results before; Cameron follows the same path with a far more orchestrated sound.

How does Rex Orange County reach back to the 1960s?

Echoes of the Beach Boys and the Beatles suffuse “Indecision,” the latest ballad about precarious romance from Alex O’Connor, who records as Rex Orange County. The song appears on his new album, “Dream Fatigue,” and features the vocalist Daniel Caesar. O’Connor opens wondering, “Is it getting to that time for me to go?” He then realizes the decision is not his to make. “Soon as I leave, you’ll run off to be with him,” he sings, cradled by bittersweet strings.

The collaboration pairs two singers known for melodic restraint, and the strings carry the emotional weight.

What is Hannah Jadagu risking on 'Curse'?

Hannah Jadagu sings about the thrill and trepidation of seeking emotional intimacy on her new single, “Curse.” A laconic bass line opens depths below her voice. Sustained synthesizer and guitar tones open up the airspace above it. Between those two layers, she commits to the gamble: “I want to know where it hurts / I want to know what it costs.”

The production gives the song a wide vertical space, and Jadagu's voice holds the center.

Why is Twisted Teens' pace remarkable?

The New Orleans rock band Twisted Teens delivers overdriven, raw-throated garage rock topped by wriggling steel-guitar lines on “When We First Met.” The track comes from “The Holy Cross Tigers” — the band’s fourth album overall and its third this year alone. That output rate averages out to a full album every four months.

The song is a hopped-up recounting of ecstatic early romance — “We used to do everything we could think of together” — that has since faded into a drunken memory.

What ties the week together?

Four of the five songs circle emotional vulnerability, from Cameron's vow of survival to Jadagu's costly curiosity, while Shygirl supplies the mission statement. With new albums from Cameron, Rex Orange County and Shygirl all landing now, the coming weeks will show whether these singles convert into durable catalog material.