Way Worse

There's a buoyancy to this track that conceals genuine melancholy — the production skips lightly on a bed of chopped samples and soft percussion while the lyrical undercurrent carries something heavier. PinkPantheress contributes her characteristic wispy, almost conversational delivery, her voice hovering just above the beat rather than anchoring into it, which creates an uncanny sensation of emotional confession delivered at a slight remove. Trippie Redd's presence adds melodic roughness, a contrast that emphasizes the track's tonal duality. Skrillex's production here borrows from UK garage and two-step, compressed into something that functions simultaneously as pop and as something more architecturally interesting than pop usually attempts. The tempo is brisk but never aggressive, propulsive in the way of a fast walk through rain rather than a sprint. Released in 2023 as part of a creative reinvention, this track represents Skrillex absorbing a decade of underground sounds and synthesizing them without losing his instinct for the hook. It's music that works in headphones on a commute and in the background of a late party equally well — it doesn't demand full attention but rewards it when given.