New Music To Know: Girls Gone Alt

I love R&B, pop, and hip hop as much as the next person, but every now and then, I get a taste for a vibe that's a little out there sonically. That's when I turn to alternative music, to songs that blur genre lines and really push the envelope. The more out there, the better, if you ask me.

If you're looking to switch things up on your playlist, this week's slate of New Music to Know is right up your alley. Headbangers make a comeback, as do fantasy-inspired trap melodies à la Bad Bunny — and you already know we've got the moody folks covered with some emo anthems.

You know the vibes.

Nashville artist ENZI takes typical blues sounds and injects them with her own personal flair for "Mad Chemistry," the sonic experiment resulting in an intriguing track that you'll keep on repeat.

Australian electronic duo Hermitude flips R&B on its head with some help from Kimbra. If "Janela" sounds like a track that you'd hear on a night out, it's because it is — this song was made for dancing.

"Unbound" wraps listeners in dreamy nostalgia, its sounds marked by familiar R&B elements that will take you back to the good 'ol days of the 90s.

Pop-punk trio Meet Me @ the Altar feels just like the bands we jammed out to in the early 2000s, but these talented women of color are forging their own path in the music industry. Exciting new offering "Garden" is more energetic than emo, but it induces the same scream-at-the-top-of-your-lungs zeal as your favorite alternative rock classics.

Kathleen's "Can't Sleep" takes a hard look at the state of the world, wondering how humanity can undo the damage we've done to our environment.

"I can't sleep anymore. I can't dream when everything's a nightmare," she signs sorrowfully. "I'm thinking how am I gonna get out of this one?"

From Blu DeTiger's mellow vocals, to the deep hum of her bass, to the filtered aesthetics of its accompanying visuals, everything about "Cotton Candy Lemonade" feels like a daydream you won't want to wake up from.

The spirit of Edward Scissorhands is strong in Maggie Lindemann's new single, a lament for all of the misunderstood people with good intentions. The dark pop singer knows that she's different, but she can't change who she is — instead, she pushes the people closest to her away.

Get all our recommendations. Listen to the full New Music To Know in 2020 playlist on Spotify:

Talia drops the facade of strength in moving new single "colder," weaving a personal tale of vulnerability and loneliness at the hands of a lost love.

While some are feeling cold from their loneliness, Mariposa turns up the heat with "Quemando." The lo-fi track is a banger — Latin trap never fails — but don't mistake the vibes for a good time. Mariposa is getting deep and dark with it.

You's Joe Goldberg has nothing on Nessa Barrett, who bares her teeth in the sultry (but haunting) new single "if u love me." Barrett sings of the consequences of a heart that's been broken one too many times, reflecting on her past lovers with frightening detachment.

The Clavin sisters brilliantly call out toxic masculinity one act at a time, addressing the many different injustices that they've suffered at the hands of emotionally stunted men — and the culture that enables them.

Okay, so Art Auré's bubbly new single isn't exactly alternative, but I couldn't send you off into the weekend without at least one feel-good hit to balance the mood. In the song, the singer-songwriter cheerfully looks forward to better days, and her eternal optimism is absolutely infectious.