Welcome to AP A-sides, where we’re highlighting the very best songs from the past week. Every Friday, the AP editors will wade through the daunting number of tracks released daily, narrow down their favorites, and give them to you in one playlist. Because the definition of alternative is constantly in flux, there are no rigid parameters to our selections — just tracks we’re obsessively talking about and listening to on repeat. This week’s playlist features artists diverse in genre but singular in sound, including Casi, the Garden, Cold Court, Split Chain, Harmony Tividad, and more.
Read more: Split Chain’s nü-gaze will make you feel alive
Check out our picks below, and stay informed about everything coming out in May with our monthly album release calendar.
AP A-sides – May 15, 2026
- Casi – “INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS”
- Cold Court – “Backslang”
- Feldspar – “Good Kids”
- The Garden – “5 Mile Ponytail”
- Harmony Tividad – “Mulholland Drive”
- The Healing Power of Horses – “i wait, i sink”
- ilykimchi – “Poser”
- Nara’s Room – “Reseda”
- Rare DM – “Mean Girled”
- Split Chain – “Scatterbrain”