The Bias List is a K-pop blog that also covers a fair amount of J-pop. But just like most music fans, I enjoy tracks from all around the world. So, I thought I’d start a monthly round-up of some of the non-K-pop songs that have caught my ear. No ratings — just highlights!
February 2022 // March 2022 // April 2022 // May 2022 // June 2022 // July 2022 // August 2022 // September 2022 // October 2022 // November 2022 // January 2023 // February 2023 // March 2023 // April 2023 // May 2023 // June 2023 // July 2023 // August 2023 // September 2023 // October 2023 // November 2023 // January 2024 // February 2024 // March 2024 // April 2024 // May 2024 // June 2024 // July 2024 // August 2024 // September 2024 // October 2024 // November 2024 // December 2024 // January 2025 // February 2025 // March 2025 // April 2025 // May 2025 // June 2025 Pt1 Pt2 Pt3 // July 2025 // August 2025 // September 2025 // October 2025 // November 2025 // December 2025 // January 2026 // February 2026 // March 2026 // April 2026 // May 2026 // June 2026 // July 2026 // August 2026 // September 2026
Check out my 9+ rated songs for 2026 by following this new Spotify playlist! (and check out prior years too, if you’re interested)
Bess – Diva
I’m really into the latest season of Finland’s Vain elämää and there have been a ton of great covers so far. This is such a fun club track.
Bingo Players – Catch Me (When I Fall) (ft. Otray)
This is one of those huge, somewhat generic, dance tracks that just works on all levels.
Cherry Bomb – Crash
Her album is coming out soon and I’ve liked everything I’ve heard so far. I love the synth strings on this one.
Chloe Jane – Spell On The Night
A fantastic disco revival.
Costee – Ennen sua
Finland is the place to go for anthemic, melodic pop music.
Francesco Michielin – La mia ragazza
A huge chorus gets the job done here. The sound just washes over you in such a powerful way.
House Of Serpents x DROIDGLOW – Hellbound
You could make a killer EP from all of the House of Serpents tracks released this year. This is one of the best and so perfect for Halloween time.
Jippu – GAY
Back to Vain elämää for the woman who is stealing my heart each and every week. Powerful, raw, emotional vocals meet Benjamin’s epic dance anthem.
Joe McElderry – Phantom Of The Discotheque
As they used to say when I lived in the UK, it’s “camp as Christmas.” And… all the better for it.
KEiiNO – Remember My Name
KEiiNO never make us wait too long for new music, and thank goodness for that.
Madison Rose – Dancing On Stars
Madison Rose has upgraded her already gigantic album with even more tracks.
Magdalene – Mattress Actress
Another upcoming debut album I’m very excited about. Magdalene’s singles have been uniformly fantastic so far. It’s early Gaga with a new wave twist.
METTE – The Movement
After a pair of brilliant singles, I found METTE’s album to be a disappointment, but this fun Flashdance-ish dance track stands out.
Mileo – The Bride (ft. wavvyboi)
Well, this is a fun, unexpected combination! I love them together and this is a banger along the lines of his Frankenstein from earlier in the year. Both its sound and melodies are very indebted to Lady Gaga’s Judas.
Olivia Rodigo x Chappell Roan – Expectations
I admit I don’t really get the hype behind Olivia Rodigo, but I am a big Chappell fan and this collaboration is so fun.
Olya Polyakova – My Future Ex
This is such a rip-off of “It’s Raining Men,” but there’s a reason that chorus melody has endured all these years.
Purple Disco Machine – Test My Luck (ft. MEEK)
MEEK’s one of my artists to watch this year and her vocals fit so well over a nostalgic 80s dance track like this.
Red Sebastian – Dance (‘Til I Die)
He’s continuing to supply us with the cheesy Europop we need.
Sam Feldt – Need That Love (ft. ÁSDÍS)
Simple but oh-so-effective. Some club tracks just hit harder and better than others. This one whips into a euphoric frenzy.
Souvenir – Get U Off (My Mind)
Coming from one of my favorite producers of the moment (FLORIO), this is brilliant, addictive synth-pop.
Tuure Boelius – Satan ja Tsiisus
For the umpteenth time, I tell you! Finland is where you need to go for the bombastic, high-octane pop music.
Valencia Grace – Exorcism
Another great Halloween banger, tied together on a new EP with her other recent hits.
wavvyboi – Fragile Machine
His EP is all killer, no filler and this new b-side is strong enough to compete with the singles.
Yseult – Superstar
Flat out one of my favorite songs of the year. NO ONE else is doing this kind of Jacksonian R&B/pop right now. Throw in a freestyle groove and bombastic stabs of electric guitar and I am utterly smitten. I can’t wait for the album.
ZPOT – Zpotlight Next
I recently discovered this new C-pop group and they have nothing but bangers to their name so far. Bulletproof choruses.
(Also, this song isn’t new enough to warrant a feature here, but I beg you to check out the awesome Frankenstein by another C-pop group HIGH5. You won’t regret it!!)
Agreed on Olivia Rodrigo, this collab is the first of her singles I’ve actually really enjoyed, so much so I’ll probably check out her album from earlier this year soon.
Carly Rae Jepsen’s latest album has fully and finally grown on me. The extra tracks she dropped a few weeks ago are in the growing stage too, but there’s a clear standout in ‘Yes’, which is basically the best song from the whole project. It best captures that feeling of anticipation and excitement she’s so good at eliciting.
https://music.apple.com/ca/song/yes/6813657673
I also enjoyed the recent track Justice dropped ahead of the GTA6 release. I’ve never played any of the GTA games but I always appreciated the music curation they did for their in-game radio stations, and the fact that Justice is producing the score for the game is a big step toward me checking it out for myself.
https://music.apple.com/ca/song/flower-in-a-hurricane-from-gtavi/6819802968
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I was hoping those Apple Music links would expand into media widgets like Spotify and Youtube links do but alas…
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Love the expectations remix! And I’ve missed Chappell, she mentioned that this remix has got her inspired to make music again so I hope we get that second album soon 🙏🙏 Though I was already a big fan of the original song and the whole album – yspsfagsil is 100% my most played alnum of the year and I absolutely adore all the singles. I think I mentioned it before in some comment section but something about Olivia’s music just works for me even though it doesn’t seem to align with the rest of my music tastes. I guess you never know what will click!
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