Fakemink, Mechatok and Ecco2k’s Makka is a euphoric underground anthem

There’s loads of music out there, and sometimes it’s hard to keep up.

Rather than letting the algorithm dictate your music taste, you can listen to Rated by THE FACE – a playlist that’s lovingly curated and updated by our (human) editorial team every week.

Fakemink, Mechatok & Ecco2k – Makka

So far, Fakemink has been selective with his collaborators, preserving his lo-fi sound by only working with a small pool of underground producers and rappers of his generation. Makka sees the 20-year-old enigma step outside his circle to team up with Drain Gang’s Ecco2k and Mechatok, the London-via-Berlin producer who blurs the boundaries between club music, cloud rap and hyperpop. The move has paid off. Mechatok’s pummelling drums, wiry guitars and strobe-lit synths differentiate this from a regular Fakemink track, and Ecco2k sprinkles in a bit of star power with his emo hook. But both collaborators allow Fakemink to take the spotlight here. ​“I’m really smoking flavours in Bottega, got my bag up,” he raps, as if in giddy disbelief of his own hype. DR

Arca – Sola

Arca has just dropped two tracks, Puta and Sola, together as a double A‑side single. According to the press notes, the songs have been released together to ​“symbolise the complementary force of the liminal, the beauty in androgyny, and integration of both masculine and feminine energies that can harmonise in each person.” Puta is a grizzly banger that would go off the right DJ dropped it at the right moment at an experimental music festival. Sola, the title of which translates as ​“alone”, showcases Arca’s softer side. Over a gentle swaying Latin rhythm, the Venezuelan producer sings about love and tenderness. DR

Acopia – Talk About It

We’ve just published an article bigging up the Scenic Route label, and if you’re somehow still not tapped in, don’t worry, their new signing Acopia is a good place to start. The Naarm/​Melbourne indie trio’s new track Talk About It is repetitive, wistful and alluringly melancholic. DR

Wolf Alice – Bloom Baby Bloom

It’s been four years since Wolf Alice have released a new single, and Bloom Baby Bloom is an epic return. It’s an unexpected, unapologetic tune which opens up with a pounding piano riff before plunging us into proper rock with flourishes of anthemic pop. A departure from their previous material, to say the least, but a well-calculated risk – fittingly, the song is about growth. ​“Watch me you’ll see just what I’m worth/​Yes I’ll bloom, baby, bloom/​Every flower needs to neighbour with the dirt,” frontwoman Ellie Rowsell sings powerfully. It all bodes well for Wolf Alice’s upcoming fourth album, The Clearing, which is out on 29^th August. JW

Alessi Rose – Same Mouth

This new tune by the Derby 22-year-old sounds like it’s been pulled straight from the soundtrack to an early ​’00s teen movie. Turns out that’s exactly what Alessi Rose was going for: Same Mouth has the eaworm‑y chorus to match (​“It’s kinda masochistic/​I’ll hurt myself so you fix it/​Say you’re not down/​But you kiss me with the same mouth”) and echoes early Taylor Swift, only with hornier lyrics. It’s another notch in Alessi’s belt on her way to pop stardom, alongside upcoming stints supporting Dua Lipa and Tate McRae on tour. JW