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Glass Animals is a British indie rock band that’s been making waves in the music industry. Their music is a concoction of psychedelic pop mixed with synth-pop and indie R & B that brings a new sound to music that is both innovative and inviting.
Here is my list of the best Glass Animals songs for you to load up on Spotify and listen to!
Enjoy!
List of the 21 Best Glass Animals Songs
1. Heat Waves (2020)
Heat Waves is undeniably Glass Animal’s number one hit. Released in June 2020, Heat Waves reached number one in Australia in February 2021. It’s a song about loss and longing and being unable to save something.
Its lyric ‘somethings all I think about is you’ has been trending as a sound on TikTok. It’s a captivating track and I still maintain that it is one of their best songs.
2. I Don’t Wanna Talk (I Just Wanna Dance) (2021)
One of their newer singles, “I Don’t Wanna Talk (I Just Wanna Dance) is their first release since their last album ‘Dreamland.’ It’s about switching off technology, turning off your devices, and looking inwards.
Inspired by the problems with the Covid-19 pandemic, the lead vocalist of Glass Animals said about the song: “The uncertainty in the world and the inability to go out and create new memories makes you dig deep into the past.”
This new track is relevant to current times and I think everyone wants to take a break from the digital world and get out there and have a dance – I know I do!
3. Gooey (2014)
An oldie but a goodie. Gooey was one of the most popular songs from Glass Animals before Heat Waves topped it. This song is incredibly smooth and jazzy, and so catchy with chill instrumentals.
The song’s lyrics are a bit more abstract. The creators of this song have said this song doesn’t have much meaning at all – it’s just purely lyrics and an appreciation for the aesthetics.
Left up to interpretation, some think it’s about youth and naivety! I personally just enjoy the sounds.
4. Tokyo Drifting (Feat. Denzel Curry) (2019)
Tokyo Drifting features a collaboration with hip-hop artist Denzel Curry. This song is a delve into the hip-hop genre and speaks about lavish lifestyle and is honestly a bit of a flex!
It has a much different sound to some of their other tracks which is always welcome! I think they killed it with this song.
5. Tangerine (2020)
Tangerine is a bit of a hidden gem. Their music video for this song is worth watching. The story in the video is about a repeating cycle of a failing relationship.
The lead singer Dave Bayley explained the song is about getting lost in unimportant things and how over time your curious playfulness can get stifled.
The meaning is reflected in the surreal video.
6. The Other Side of Paradise (2016)
The bizarre chords and arrangement in this song are incredible. This song was one of the first songs I heard from Glass Animals. Musically the chorus is insane. The meaning is something that can be left up to interpretation much like many of their songs.
This one is another that is just best left to enjoy for the incredible musical aesthetic.
7. Space Ghost Coast to Coast (2020)
This song is about an ex-friend of an attempted shooter. It is a personal song by the lead singer Dave Bayley, who discovered a childhood friend of his grew up and attempted a school shooting.
This song is darker than their other songs for this reason and is paired with a hypnotic and strange music video.
8. Youth (2016)
This song is simply beautiful, a wistful tune about the happiness and nostalgia of being young. It is a sad song inspired by a story once told to the lead singer Dave. A woman was telling him about something awful that happened to her child, but she was smiling in a sorrowfully optimistic way.
The combination of sadness and happy memories is what this song tries to replicate, and it does so beautifully.
9. Your Love (Déjà Vu) (2020)
The instrumentals in this song are incredible. It’s about being in a toxic relationship, not necessarily romantic, that has probably affected most of us. That feeling of going back to a chaotic relationship with someone and being addicted to the self-destructive nature of it all is captured by the song.
10. Pork Soda (2016)
Pork Soda is the fourth track off Glass Animals’ record How to Be a Human Being, and the song is iconic as it was the beginning of the pineapple fruit being the symbol of the band’s fandom.
Many of Glass Animal’s inspirations come from random occurrences, and the name for Pork Soda came from a tattoo. The lyric ‘pineapples’ in my head came from a random homeless man on the street.
The start of the song is meant to give a feeling of a live performance like one off a street. The pineapple lyric could refer to the fact that pineapples also eat you as you eat them, due to the enzymes in the fruit.
The lyric ‘Got nobody ’cause I’m brain-dead’ could be a reference to the idea that someone or something is eating away at your head. The feelings and memories of a point of a relationship eating away at you.
This is just one interpretation as the beauty of Glass Animal’s songs is that it’s hardly ever straightforward!
11. Waterfalls Coming Out of Your Mouth (2020)
The song Waterfalls Coming Out of Your Mouth is an underrated song from Glass Animals’ album Dreamland. A short and sweet song that doesn’t reach 3 minutes long but has a lot to say.
It’s about looking back at a relationship and realizing that you were acting differently. The feeling of spending months not fully being yourself and playing a fake version.
The lyric ‘waterfalls coming out of your mouth’ alludes to the idea of nonstop words coming out of your mouth, nonstop spilling words that don’t have meaning. This song is universally relatable and incredible.
12. Black Mambo (2013)
Black Mambo is the second track from their debut album ZABA. I have listened to this song so many times. A fun fact is the song was thought of while watching the hit show Breaking Bad.
The song is about a sloth and mole facing off in a game of dominos. In Breaking Bad, the lead protagonist Walter White faces off many adversaries, often the underdog. The song is loosely based on the idea of trying to keep up with an opponent.
The name was originally even on the nose, to be called Crystal Meth but the name wasn’t allowed so they changed it. The song’s meaning is abstract, but it’s purely enjoyable for its slow and buttery beat.
13. Take a Slice (2016)
Take a Slice is a classic smooth song with sounds very similar to many of other Glass Animals music. It’s a simple song about lust. As part of their How to Be A Human Being album, this song is overshadowed by some of their other hits in the album.
But when the beat drops in this song, it gives me that best kind of feeling. Take a Slice is not as popular as many of their other songs but fully deserves more hype.
14. Toes (2014)
Toes is another track from their debut album ZABA from back in 2014. The lyrics are incredibly hard to decipher and explain and many have interpreted the song differently.
This is one of those songs that makes your imagination run wild. There’s a level of sensuality to this song that makes it feel private and personal. I simply love it, it’s also perfect to chill out to.
15. Love Lockdown (Cover)
Love Lockdown by Glass Animals is a cover of a famous Kanye West Song. I’m a big fan of Kanye West so it is awesome to hear Glass Animals recreate this song. I would say I prefer the original, but this cover is a buttery smooth version of the song, hard to go wrong!
It feels raw and personal, even with a cough at the start. It doesn’t seem overly refined or produced, just an emotional love song.
Simply eargasmic!
16. Pools (2014)
Another classic from their debut album ZABA, Pools is an exotic upbeat song. It’s inspired by a holiday and the unique soundscape is created by a lot of experimental percussion.
It sounds like a lively tropical holiday on the beach or something made in a jungle. The percussion in this song is simply joyful and happy.
17. Life Itself (2016)
Life Itself has some sci-fi feeling to it that makes it sound unlike anything else. Originally starting out as a dark and moody track, it was later infused with some optimism after revisiting the lyrics.
The chorus is my favorite part of the song, it’s so great to sing along to and karaoke. Lots of percussion and drums in this song make it a catchy beat.
This song is definitely a favorite of mine in their album How to Be a Human Being.
18. Season 2 Episode 3 (2016)
This song is a little too relatable right now with quarantine. The aesthetic of the music video is worth a watch. The song is simply about someone who hangs out and does nothing every day.
The sounds of the song are reminiscent of cartoons and old video games, giving that feeling of someone who doesn’t do much but consumes media. The title also references this idea of someone who binges TV and lounging around.
Sometimes I am this person, and I’ve known people like this. This song perfectly captures that feeling and it’s a great relaxing, soft, and fun song.
19. Young and Beautiful (Cover)
This song is a cover of Lana Del Ray’s famous song Young and Beautiful. Both Glass Animals and Lana Del Ray have a similar aesthetic in the way that they sing beautiful soft melodies with a lot of passion.
If you like the original, then you’re sure to love the cover. Not much to say but Dave nails it and it’s awesome to hear his voice in a song that isn’t classic Glass Animals.
20. Dreamland (2020)
Dreamland is an album dripping with nostalgia and this song encapsulates that feeling. Dreamland is autobiographical and psychedelic. Obviously, the track is also the name of the album, and the lead singer Dave described the song as “a table of contents for the album as a whole.”
You can tell a lot of soul has been put into the creation of the song and that it’s deeply personal. I enjoy this song for its dreamy ambiance although it is not very catchy to me.
I appreciate it for its sentimental and artistic value.
21. It’s All So Incredibly Loud (2020)
The song It’s All So Incredibly Loud is based on a specific scenario. When you say something that will devastate someone and those few seconds where the silence is incredibly loud – the tension and quietness are deafening.
The production of this song is next level. The build-up of the song reflects that tension build-up before you experience the deafening silence of your words.
It’s a haunting song that I wouldn’t jam to, but I would come back to after specific moments in my life. This song is an incredible work of art.
Alexandra loves playing the piano and guitar. She has always been a music lover, but it wasn’t until she was in high school that she realized how much she loved to play. It allowed her to express herself without having to be verbally expressive, which is something she found very empowering.