Out's editors pick their favorite jams of the week

Blur, "Go Out"

Of the countless music sins one could name, among the most egregious is that the highest charting Blur single in the US remains "Song 2," the band's satire on grunge that became a stadium anthem. New single, "Go Out," is unlikely to change that, but I wish it would. It's the sound of the Britpop pioneers at their boisterous, fidgety, surly best. It starts with a bright hook and a Cure-like beat, and then spins into a wall of dissonant sound as Damon Albarn drawls "oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh" over Graham Coxon's energetic riffs. Yes, Coxon is back (after 16 years), and so is the Blur we love. A new album in April will be their first since 2003's Think Tank. Here's hoping it's not their last.

--Aaron Hicklin, Editor in Chief

Father John Misty, I Love You, Honeybear

I've been listening to Father John Misty's new album, I Love You, Honeybear, so much the past two weeks that I've actually had to ground myself from listening to it. It's easily my favorite album of the year so far, a grand, sweeping, orchestral, irony-laced yet still big-hearted record reminiscent of early-'70s Elton John--if Elton were bitchier and much more explicit about his sluttiness and love of drugs. My favorite song on the album changes every day, but this week I'm in awe of "True Affection," maybe because it's dreamier and more electronic-based than the other songs and doesn't really sound like any of them. Also, I've been on a bit of a Pet Shop Boys kick the past few days, and this song sounds like an excellent update of their 1990 gem "Being Boring." It's about how much we rely on--and hide behind--smartphones and texts and chat boxes to communicate with the ones we love. Father John Misty just wants some face time. He certainly deserves it.

--Jason Lamphier, Senior Editor

Years & Years, "King"

I can't remember the last time I loved an up-tempo, yet non-female-led, track this much. At just the right rhythm I prefer for dancing, it's not just earworm-y, it kick-starts my endorphins, and since I don't have Spotify premium, I've simply had the YouTube clip on repeat on my phone. I choose to interpret the lyrics ("I was a king under your control...") as those of a big personality freeing himself from a confining situation, something I can really relate to these days. Mostly though, the synth-keyboard sounds just get me moving. In the video, frontman Olly Alexander walks through back-alleys of L.A. neighborhoods, but I power-walk to the song through the streets of New York. Apologies to any passersby I've almost clipped while raising my arms in giddy liberation.

--R. Kurt Osenlund, Managing Editor

Sleater Kinney, "Hey Darling" (from the new album No Cities to Love)
Welcome back ladies, you were missed. How could you not love a song that has the chorus:
"It seems to me the only thing that comes from fame is mediocrity."

--Greg Garry, Photo Director

Bjork, "Quicksand" (from the new album Vulnicura)

This breakup album was a slow burner for me, but I really love this '90s jungle-like track about the lifelong cycle of recovering from a broken heart.

--Greg Garry, Photo Director