Add to playlist: the righteous jangle and snaking melodies of Jawdropped and the week’s best new tracks

Why This Matters

Key context: <p>The LA-based powerpop project’s triumphant debut is a celebration of low-stakes creativity in the slacker-skater tradition</p><p><strong>From</strong> Los Angeles<br><strong>Recommended if you like</strong> the Lemonheads, Sugar, the Muffs<br><strong>Up next </strong>Secret to Spare released 18 September</p><p>Maybe it’s to do with getting older, maybe it’s to do with the broad-spectrum grimness of it all, but the thrill of low-stakes creativity, of making something for the joy of making it rather than in the hope of <em>making it</em>, feels particularly vital at the moment. And, if the sun-bleached cool of Jawdropped’s music is anything to go by, starting a powerpop project in your 30s will light up this pleasure centre like a dive bar pinball machine.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2026/aug/21/add-to-playlist-jawdropped">Continue reading...</a> This development from The Guardian highlights ongoing changes in the sector.