Demikhov, courtesy.

George Hennessey and Charlie Clark bring the rock, Nicki Nicole brings the pop, Grace Gaustad brings the message, Demikhov brings the noise and Stuffy Shmitt brings a long-forgotten corporate mascot to this week’s Tuesday Tracks party.

Demikhov, “The Leader is Dead and Everyone is Grieving” — Let’s get this out of the way: Demikhov is an instrumental noisecore band named after the Soviet mad scientist who made a two-headed dog, among other things. I am not making that up. Don’t let that immediately turn you off, though. After a very noisecore intro, it segues into a more melodic post-hardcore direction. It even adds vocals, though they’re in the form of screaming. OK, so it still may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I like it and you might, too.

***

George Hennessey, “Prisoner” — Closer to the mainstream, George Hennessey claims to be a blend of Britpop and grunge, and it’s hard to argue with him. I couldn’t have put my finger on the components if he didn’t, but that’s exactly it. His voice also has a touch of hair metal to it, which sound strange but works really well. It all comes together into a package that’s familiar enough to be catchy and approachable but unique enough to be memorable.

Nicki Nicole, “Frío” — My standard disclaimer for non-English-language songs applies: I’m a stereotypical American and I only speak English fluently, so I have no idea what she’s singing here, other than that frío is cold and corazon is heart. So… cold heart. That’s what I’ve got. But what I do know is that I seriously dig it, even the AutoTune effect that makes her sound slightly digital and artificial. It’s good all around… unless the lyrics will get me canceled. I doubt it, though. Nicki Nicole, a former RIFF cover artist, generally has a positive, affirming message.

***

Grace Gaustad, “Like a Person” — Grace Gaustad’s point in “Like a Person” is to encourage people to use names rather than labels, something marginalized groups don’t get as often as they should. Perhaps if we did a better job of looking at people as people rather than as a sum of their characteristics, society would have a harder time using those labels and characteristics to demonize and discriminate. Dare to dream. (A note for my fellow old people: Dylan in the video is TikTok star and trans activist Dylan Mulvaney. TikTok is Vine but for young people. Vine was like YouTube but shorter.)

Charlie Clark, “No Big Deal” — Jangly indie rock is always around but rarely executed well. Clark bucks that trend by nailing it. “No Big Deal” offers a garage rock vibe without the irritating trend in modern lo-fi rock of using post-processing to make it sound lo-fi. Anything that legitimately sounds like a garage band at this point deserves to be celebrated. Nearly everyone has the technology to make garage rock and yet it seems like it’s done less and less every year.

***

Stuffy Shmitt, “Billy Kilowatt” — This one is strange and punk and fantastic. Clocking in at just over two and a half minutes, it’s the story of the hypothetical son of ’70s mascot for the concept of electricity Reddy Kilowatt, which existed for some reason. Who even remembers Reddy Kilowatt, let alone writes a song about his non-canon son? Stuffy Shmitt, for some reason, and I’m not inclined to ask too many questions because it works and we’re all better for it.

Danny’s Pick: George Hennessey’s “Prisoner” was more than a little tempting, but I’m going with “The Leader is Dead and Everyone is Grieving” by Demikhov. Perhaps it’s just a matter of mood and the noisecore just spoke to me. Maybe it’s hope that, like the song, our national and global chaos will even out into a melody. Whichever it is, the song is my favorite of the week.

Follow editor Daniel J. Willis at Twitter.com/BayAreaData.