Kevin Bronson on March 17th, 2022

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Missives from the Dept. of Pop: Hear new singles from Still Woozy & Remi Wolf, Mike Taylor, Ashlynn Malia, Bay Ledges and Creature Canyon …

STILL WOOZY & REMI WOLF, “Pool”

On the occasion of her big tour announcement — oh denizens of L.A., mark your calendars for Sept. 17 at the Shrine — pop phenom Remi Wolf has released a new single, “Pool,” made with Still Woozy. It’s Wolf’s first tune since her breakout album “Juno,” released in October. The song is nice and breezy, and its creators make the collaboration sound easy-schmeezy. “‘Pool’ came together in an afternoon of hanging out with Remi and Jared [Solomon, Wolf’s co-writer on most of ‘Juno’],” says Still Woozy, aka Oakland’s Sven Gamsky. “It was one of the quickest written songs I’ve ever been a part of. Remi and I had been hanging out talking about life all morning, so the content for the song was fresh on our minds as we went to write.” Adds Wolf: “Pool was such a beautifully natural collaboration — and is a great reflection of how life can just so seamlessly turn into art. … I love how when I listen to the song it feels like a true time capsule to both of our life situations at the time.”

MIKE TAYLOR, “Looks Good On Me”

We first heard Mike Taylor’s good vibes at his Satellite residency a few years back. Bad moods were not allowed, and they still aren’t. The singer-songwriter and DJ (best known for the hit “Everything Black”) has also set his sights on fashion design, and his new single showcases something else that “Looks Good On Me”: happiness. The song, produced and co-written by Bleu, is relentlessly celebratory, and surely there’s something to celebrate, right?

ASHLYNN MALIA, “Coordinates”

Twenty-year-old Ashlynn Malia, who a year ago released her debut EP “Rather Be Alone,” returns this week with a new song that might represent her having second thoughts about the whole “alone” thing. “Coordinates” again finds her working with writing/production collaborators Andrew Weitz and Koby Berman, whose touch is light on the aching acoustic track. “I wrote coordinates when I was missing someone,” Malia says. “That was honestly the only thing I had in my head. Just the phrase ‘I miss you’ over and over. I knew better than to reach out, so I put the words here instead.”

BAY LEDGES, “Float”

After the 2020 release of the Bay Ledges EP “New Daze,” songwriter Zach Hurd has stayed busy,  releasing a handful of light, limber and sometimes-glitchy electro-pop singles. Notably, they’ve included “Walk Away,” released early this year, and “Waterfalls” in late ’21. Now the Maine native has unveiled the upbeat new track “Float” — and announced that his debut album, “Ritual,” will be out May 27. Of the album, Hurd says, “Since I was a kid, music has been a way to get lost in something. It’s been a way to process emotional weight. It’s also been a practice that’s helped me feel connected to a deeper part of myself. The title ‘Ritual’ speaks to the way this relationship with music is still true for me. The last two years have been a time of transition: I moved from L.A. to Maine, got engaged and tried to figure out my professional future. A lot of new beginnings.” See Bay Ledges on June 17 at the Troubadour.

CREATURE CANYON, “Mirrors”

Forget the cringeworthy video, if you can. San Diego-bred Creature Canyon has gone from the dancefloor (“Pressure,” which has gotten some attention on radio) to the lounge for a smooth pop/R&B track. “Mirrors,” produced by Private Island’s Christian Lum, is the group’s second single since their 2018 album. It’s a spacey-sounding track that’s anything but glassy-eyed lyrically: “It’s the only thing I see / I’m my own worst enemy.” Austin Steele sings.