Hyperpop Bliss Meets Anime Angst In Porter Robinson's New Single, "Cheerleader"

If we’ve learned anything about Porter Robinson over the years, it’s that running the emotional gauntlet of his music is unavoidable. His albums are few and far between, but when they do come, we all willingly plunge into his bitcrushed universe of unfiltered nostalgia.

As fans wait with bated breath for his long-awaited third LP, Robinson today released its first single, “Cheerleader.” The anime-inspired dance track shimmers like a Tokyo cityscape, fusing bubbly hyperpop and indietronica to deliver an incandescent earworm that earns its place among his best.

Its lyrics, an anguished confessional of unrequited devotion, pierce like cherry blossom thorns to mirror the fragility we all feel as a relationship’s expiration date nears. Robinson delivers them with tortured ache atop a fizzy synthpunk beat, mourning affection’s insatiable voids through harmonies drenched in longing.

Robinson in early-March said his upcoming album is complete, but stopped short of revealing a title or release date. The record follows Nurture, which he released in the spring of 2021 seven years after his fan-favorite debut, Worlds.

Listen to “Cheerleader” below.