Welcome to “Cut Through the Noise,” an entertainment column from the St. Louis Park Echo covering new music releases. Every week, a different Echo staffer takes on the role as writer, reviewing recent single releases from a variety of artists.

Black Eyed Peas — ‘NO ONE LOVES ME’ ★★★★☆

Black Eyed Peas, an all too iconic musical group of rappers, recently dropped their latest album “Elevation.” Featuring a multitude of songs, the band’s ninth album was a well-rounded display of talent. Included on the album was “NO ONE LOVES ME,” featuring Nicole Scherzinger. The song outlines a simple idea — someone loving you like nobody else. While not particularly deep, the song is catchy and fun. I particularly enjoyed apl.de.ap’s verse, which had a nice flow. Though the word play in his verse wasn’t his best, the faster pace of the verse kept me engaged and thoroughly entertained. Taboo’s verse had some excellent world play and rhymes, even if the pace dragged a little in comparison to apl.de.ap’s verse. I wish the music and beat were more developed though, as the songs sounded reminiscent of 2016 trap music, which doesn’t do the more organic flow of the words and structure of the lyrics justice. The song wasn’t bad, but it definitely wasn’t a stand out on the album to me. While I enjoyed the lyricism, the backing fell flat at times.

AJR — ‘The DJ Is Crying For Help’ ★★★★☆

The pop trio AJR, most famously known for hits like “Bang!” and “World’s Smallest Violin,” recently dropped a new song, “The DJ is Crying for Help.” The song is a largely upbeat pop tune about a sad topic. The song follows a DJ who is struggling with unemployment and drugs. For the most part, the song has the iconic AJR sound. I found the actual chorus to be a little underwhelming compared to the rest of the song, but the well composed pre-chorus made up for that issue. The bridge was the highlight of the song, it had excellent composition and was a satisfying ending to the song. Overall, “The DJ is Crying For Help” is a classic, well-done AJR song that doesn’t try to push any boundaries and doesn’t have to.

Cigarettes After Sex — ‘Pistol’ ★★★★☆

The indie band, Cigarettes After Sex, released a new single, “Pistol.” The song is quite sad and talks about missing an ex-lover and wishing you could convince them to come back. “Pistol” follows the band’s usual slow, laid-back style. It’s exactly what you would expect from a band called “Cigarettes After Sex.” The slow and simple, yet engaging beat paired with a soft, mellow voice allows the words of the song to shine through — which is a common trait of this style of indie music. The song follows the comfortable format of most indie singles, which happens to be reliable and well-performing, leaving little room for listeners to be disappointed. If you enjoy sadder and more simple songs, you’ll surely enjoy this single. While this song doesn’t change much in terms of its structure and stays conservative in its experimentation, it doesn’t lack creativity. The simple, well-known structure works well for this more mellow, sad song. Overall, “Pistol,” is a reliable song for when you’re sad and missing someone and it’s hard to be let down by this single.