“Starburster” by Fontaines D.C.

"Starburster" was the first taste of Romance, the fourth album from Fontaines D.C., and it sounds like a band throwing itself off balance on purpose. Grian Chatten wrote the words and the whole band shares the music, and it lurches between a jittery, gasping rant and a sudden bloom of strings and Mellotron, Chatten and Carlos O'Connell trading keys, Conor Curley's bass throbbing, James Ellis Ford producing and mixing it into something panicky and gorgeous.

It gave the band its first spot on the UK Singles Chart, Spin named it the Song of the Year, and it drew a Grammy nomination for Best Alternative Music Performance. Soundtrack people loved it too: it runs through EA Sports FC 25 and Borderlands 4, and serves as the theme for MobLand.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.