Here we go, Round Two of Get an Earful of This; a small selection of tracks that have tickled my fancy over the last week or so including the long-awaited return of Shura with ‘Recognise’, her first new music since becoming a pro gamer and leaving the rest of us hanging. There are two absolute pop gems from Miso Extra and Chloe Qisha with ‘Certified and ’21st Century Cool Girl’.

Mattt Maltese gets detrimentally horny on ‘Anytime, Anyplace, Anyhow’, Sienna Spiro showcases her vocal chops on the titanic ballad ‘Butterfly Effect’ and Matilda Man showcases her debut album with the sweeping strings of ‘Just Because’.

Miso Extra

British-Japanese electro pioneer Miso Extra has previewed her debut full length project ‘Earcandy’ (out May 16th via Transgressive) with the absolutely delicious synth-house inspired pop track ‘Certified’.

“Certified centres around the attempt to be seductive and the stubborn determination that comes with it,” she explains of the new track, which follows the excellent ‘Good Kisses’ featuring Metronomy.

Miso Extra appeared at the inaugural Borderline Festival in Dublin in early 2024 before returning to Ireland to open for Rejjie Snow in 3Olympia Theatre in November. No doubt, she’ll be back in Ireland under her own steam very, very soon.

Chloe Qisha

Following her eponymous debut EP featuring the ’80s throwback single ‘Sexy Goodbye’, Chloe Qisha established herself as a real one to watch for 2025. New single ’21st Century Cool Girl’ continues her streak of swashbuckling pop channelling ABBA, Kate Bush and Maggie Rogers into a sleek slice of modern teenage angst.

’21st Century Cool Girl’ is ‘that’ girl. An ode to my teenage self who treated every day like I was in some 90s romcom. I loved reminiscing on the throes of past teenage romance – and the awkward heightened emotions that come with that – as well as growing up and owning your insecurities and being open and ready to love someone. It’s like putting your cards on the table and saying, “Well, this is me. I’ll love you forever if you want in”.

Shura

Following an incredibly long five-year gap between releases, which was elongated by her new found love of video games, Shura has returned with a new urban Zelda look and armed with new single ‘Recognise’ ahead of the release of her third album ‘I Got Too Sad For My Friends’, which, you can safely assume from the title, will give The Smiths a run for their money in the happy/sad department. We will have to ban computer games if they continue to stifle production in such a manner but for now we’ll accept ‘Recognise’ as a down payment.

Matt Maltese

The king of high romance Matt Maltese’s new single ‘Anytime, Anyplace, Anyhow’ is simply Matt Maltese at his finest, exploring the darker edges of love and obsession.

“I think there are those people for all of us that occupy a certain incomprehensible place in our brain… a place we don’t quite have control over. People that have affected you so deeply you almost live with them still, remembering and imagining them against your will. And this song speaks to that, and to the physical (sorry) side of it too.”

Matilda Mann

One of my favourite songwriters of the last five years or so, Matilda Mann should be household name in the near future. Hopefully, her debut album ‘Roxwell’ (out Feb 28th) will put her well and truly on the map because her songs are exquisite. The lush orchestral folk of ‘Just Because’ is a great example of her modern take on folk tinged pop. Catch her in The Grand Social April 20th. Tickets €18.90 available here

Sienna Spiro

Sienna Spiro’s fifth single ‘BUTTERFLY EFFECT’ is giving serious Raye and Olivia Dean vibes thanks to her huge vocals and the track’s throwback musical arrangements. The track is drawn from the London based singer’s forthcoming debut EP, ‘SINK NOW, SWIM LATER’ out Feb 21st.

“‘BUTTERFLY EFFECT’ is the introduction track to my debut EP and really sets the emotional tone of the project,” Sienna Spiro explains. “I created the track to have an unexpected climax and lack of structure to capture the unpredictability that mirrors ‘the butterfly effect’ concept and really tells the story of what this song is about. I’m so excited to be getting this out into the world and to share a collection of music I have been working on for such a long time.”

Check out all the tracks featured this week in the Get an Earful of This playlist below: