Ashnikko – Smoochies

Label: Parlophone / Warner Records
Released: 17th October 2025

Ashnikko has never been shy about saying exactly what she means, and ‘Smoochies’ doesn’t exactly ease that volume down. Across the record, she uses direct, unambiguous language as the hook itself. The point is clarity, not coyness: desire is written in capital letters and pushed to the front of the mix.

That bluntness is matched by pace. The songs move quickly, built for instant impact and short travel time between set-up and payoff. ‘Itty Bitty’ is proof of intent, with its direct questions, revelling in the affirmative. It’s hard to mistake what the record is trying to do – seize attention, then keep it with momentum.

The high-speed approach doesn’t shut down breadth. ‘Sticky Fingers’ taps a turn-of-the-millennium, super-catchy bounce; elsewhere, the palette shifts through glossy synth leads and crunchier, distortion-nicked textures without losing immediacy. The production stays bright and upfront, built so choruses bite on the first pass and verses don’t overstay their welcome. Even at its brashest, the writing aims for slogans you can remember rather than baroque wordplay you have to decode.

‘Smoochies’ also plants its flag thematically. ‘I Want My Boyfriends To Kiss’ is a straightforward example: a thumping, chant-ready pop song that treats queer affection as something to sing along with, not to explain or justify. More broadly, the album positions pleasure and body-confidence as a stance available to anyone who has been told to quiet down or make themselves smaller. The sexuality is overt, but it is also a statement about who gets to speak at full volume.

That straight line can read abrasive if you want subtext. This isn’t a set built for innuendo or slow reveals, and can feel cartoonish because of it. The writing uses direct address because it wants to be heard, not decoded, and the instrumentals stay locked to that brief. You can argue about subtlety; you definitely can’t argue about intention.

What makes ‘Smoochies’ work, though, is its consistency. It knows the effect it wants – speed, brightness, catchphrases you can shout back – and it lands it repeatedly. Ashnikko has made a record that treats provocation as pop craft: immediate, proudly explicit, and designed to lift people who recognise themselves in it. Whether you place it under “dirty pop”, “hyperpop”, or just “loud and fun” matters less than the simple fact that these songs stick the landing they aim for. How much you vibe may well depend on how hard you blush.