Kylie gets existential, Troye bares his body, Patrick Cowley returns: Your weekly bop roundup

Has there ever been a week of new music that was this gay? That’s a rhetorical question, but the queer energy is undeniable amongst today’s biggest releases. Just when we were getting ready to ring in the first days of fall with a fuzzy throw blanket and pumpkin spice-scented poppers candles, these certified bops arrived to summon us to the dance floor.

Obviously, the Gay Twitter™ discourse of the weekend is sure to revolve around the latest offerings from a certain Aussie queen and kiwi king. Still, variety is the spice of life, and there’s a bevy of bops to dive into from our favorite LGBTQ+ popsters and allies. Whether you want to reminisce, blast off to another place, or well, just sit, we’ve got you covered.

Cancel your meetings, down your iced coffee, and get ready to dance. It’s time to spill this week’s edition of “bop after bop”….

“Hold On To Now” by Kylie Minogue

We spent all summer padaming our hearts out, and now Kylie Minogue‘s sixteenth album Tension is finally here. Thank the pop music gods! The Aussie icon felt “love, searching and abandon” while making the dance-pop record, which builds on the euphoria of 2021’s Disco. But no song feels as cosmic as “Hold On To Now,” an existential but inspirational banger that sums up everything her discography stands for: living in the present, magic, romance, and dancing your a** off.

“Got Me Started” by Troye Sivan

Long live the twink! Just as the popper fume high of “Rush” was wearing off, Troye Sivan returned with another taste of his upcoming album Something to Give Each Other. Whether you’re hung up on his sexy steam-room moment, *that* Bag Raiders sample, or the crotch-grabbing choreo, it’s clear that “Got Me Started” has got the girls, well, started. Though the production is glitchy and cerebral, there’s no veiling the horniness. Just as its sticky chorus closes, Troye makes a sexy confession: “Boy, can I be honest? / Kinda miss usin’ my body / F*ck it up just like this party did tonight.” We can already hear the newly-inspired Grindr pickup lines.

“Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl” by Chappell Roan

Chappell Roan is the moment. The Missouri-born queer pop star built up a cult following of loyal gays with singles like “Pink Pony Club” and “Naked in Manhattan,” becoming a critical darling and Las Culturistas fave. Still, her debut album The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess (out today) is proof the best was yet to come. “Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl” –– try saying that five times fast –– is a drag-inspired call from Roan, in search of her intergalactic equal. She preaches sage playgirl advice in a sassy, spoken opener (“Never waste a Friday night on a first date”), lubing us up for an explosive chorus and a vogue-reminiscent bridge. It’s safe to say we’re lined up for her pop invasion.

“Showing Up” by Samantha Urbani

There’s a palpable bleeding heart behind the put-on grit of queer pop singer Samantha Urbani. The LA-based singer-songwriter (whose debut album Showing Up dropped today) evokes the nostalgia of New York’s yesteryear DIY scene with modern sensibilities. Fittingly, title track “Showing Up” is comfortable with taking its time, letting funky bass lines peek through handclaps, synths, and candid confessions like, “Sometimes I wish I had more of a taste for vengeance / Sometimes I wish I’d been born more of a capitalist.” If showing up in a relationship (and in your art) is half the battle, Urbani passes with flying colors.

“Primitive World (Hifi Sean Mix)” by Patrick Cowley and Hifi Sean

With a penchant for disco, a synthesizer, and a dream, composer and producer Patrick Cowley is remembered as an EDM pioneer –– and an inescapable sonic force to be reckoned with at ’80s gay clubs. Though he lost his life to AIDS in 1982, “Primitive World,” which appeared on his final album Mind Warp, remains a captivating, groovy, and quirky dance floor staple. It’s fitting that rising DJ Hifi Sean revisited the track for a new collection of remixes, helping bring the future-sounding bop even further into the present. Hifi Sean throws a dose of ’90s tackiness and distorted house sounds into the already cluttered production, creating a new mix that feels as worldly, weird, and irresistible as its predecessor.

“Sitting (Josh Mac Version)” by Brian Jordan Alvarez ft. TJ Mack

Actor, writer, and bona fide Queerty fave Brian Jordan Alvarez has amassed quite the TikTok following by f*cking around. There’s no reasonable explanation why a short clip of him (in a ridiculous distorted face filter) singing about sitting in an accent became a viral sensation. But who are we to question the whims of the algorithm? And we’ve got to admit, the house-inspired remix (which just hit streaming services) is kind of a mood. “Sitting is the opposite of standing / Sitting in the opposite of running around / Sitting is a wonderful thing to do,” he croons. No lies detected.