Modest Needs is the musical moniker of Thomas Modig, a singer-songwriter from Uppsala, Sweden, and with his reflective new single, ‘Ett bättre jag’ (‘A Better Me ‘), now out, it’s the perfect time to learn more about him and his music.

Forty years after “The Final Countdown” put Europe on the map, the band’s full-throttle return to ’70s-inspired classic hard rock has cemented its place far beyond the hits that made it famous. Drummer Ian Haugland takes us inside Come This Madness and a band that, four decades into its career, remains as interested in moving forward as it is reliving its past.

With a new album, the wonderfully titled That’s When The Earth Becomes a Star just dropped, it felt like the perfect time to sit down with Sean McLeod to find out about his past, the current album, and what the future might hold.

A timeless-sounding country album, Why Do Lonely Men and Women Want to Break Each Other’s Hearts? by Athens’ The Star Room Boys is being reissued for the first time on vinyl by Strolling Bones Records. Dave Marr and Philip McArdle share why now was the right time to revisit the album, the thrill of performing live again, and how a record originally released in 1999 sounds as if it could have come out today.

With two singles now out ahead of an album to follow, it was the perfect time to sit down with Matt King, Andy Mitchell and Shawn Helton of The Real Anthem to find out how the band came about, what the new album will be all about and where things go next.

“We agreed pretty quickly we were going to try to give it as big a release as possible no matter how much time and energy it took. A big part of that decision was our love for Thom. I don’t know if any of us believe he’s watching down on us but there is that thought and maybe that was a motivation.” – Mike Barnett

Anthrax spent a decade away, then came back to record Cursum Perficio at Dave Grohl’s Studio 606, where Grohl would wander in mid-session and start headbanging. Bassist Frank Bello talks about the long road to one of the best albums of the band’s career, and why he’s not done yet.

Tokyo Tea Room’s dreamy, groove-heavy dance-pop has found a surprising second life, with streaming algorithms helping older songs rack up tens of millions of listens and bringing renewed attention to the English band. Beth Plumb and Dan Elliott talk about the band’s new album Feel Forever, their successful U.S. tour, and this new chapter in Tokyo Tea Room’s story.

With a sound not unlike ’70s-era Fleetwood Mac, The Family’s debut album, Delusions of Grandeur, nearly never saw the light of day. Written and recorded during the pandemic by members of a blended family with impressive musical resumes, the album sat unreleased until yet another family connection stepped in to bring it to listeners. James and Dylan LeBlanc, Angela Hacker, and Bay Simpson discuss the album’s star-crossed beginning and what it means to finally have it out in the world.

“I think music is such a beautiful reflection of what America is—it comes from everywhere, from all over the world.” – Margaret Glaspy

“Maybe adulthood isn’t about finally understanding yourself. Maybe it’s more about developing enough trust in yourself that you can survive not knowing, and enough compassion for your past selves that you don’t need to keep putting them on trial. I like the idea that we never really arrive, that we just get a little better at travelling with ourselves.” – Rowena Wise

Lily Seabird’s Lightspheres on Their Way is the best thing she’s ever made which is saying something. For now, it’s a reward reserved for those willing to track down the vinyl or CD, streaming arriving next month. On the eve of her UK tour, Seabird talks about the record, the Burlington, Vermont music scene, and the notebooks from which the lyrics were born.

Hawaiian reggae-country superstar Maoli discusses his new album MMO3, how he went from being a laborer to one of Hawaii’s most acclaimed musicians, and why he thinks his music has connected with listeners even beyond his native Maui

On Convinced Friend’s sophomore album, Nowhere Songs, Austin Wilson channels influences ranging from the Louisiana oilfields where he grew up to the Americana-folk spirit of Counting Crows, resulting in a captivating collection of story-driven songs that exist somewhere between memory, myth, and reality.

Mike Geier – the man behind Puddles Pity Party – discusses the clown with the golden voice who is endearing himself to audiences around the world

Another Wild Pink album worthy of “album of the year” consideration, John Ross’s songwriting blends the Tom Petty influence instilled as a kid growing up in Florida with Bruce Springsteen’s working class ethos. That combination has made him one of the defining voices of heartland indie rock, standing alongside peers MJ Lenderman, Fust, and Big Thief.

Best known for backing artists like Phosphorescent and Robert Ellis, guitarist Kelly Doyle steps into the spotlight with Thieves, an album that feels less like a standard jazz record and more like a lost film soundtrack. In this conversation with the Houston musician, Doyle discusses cinematic songwriting, vintage influences, and the art of tone.

Combining an intimate ’70s Laurel Canyon warmth with the distinctive chord changes of early-aughts songwriting, Johanna Samuels’ Sorry, Kid, is a modern take on nostalgia, a collection of songs with a history spanning decades. Samuels discusses why now was the right time for these songs, how her collaboration with Jonathan Rado provided the missing ingredient, and the influences that helped shape the album.

Neptune’s Core may sound like a band that’s been doing this forever, and, in a way, they have. After nearly a decade of playing together, the Chicago quartet made up of two sets of sisters is ready to introduce themselves anew with Pivot, a guitar-driven record full of tight harmonies, ’90s rock energy and songs that unfold with the kind of theatrical drama and emotional intensity that makes them feel bigger than their years.

From atmospheric noise-pop to urgent post-punk, NYC’s Slow Fiction have crafted a captivating and diverse debut with dollhouse. Julia Vassallo and Paul Knepple discuss the band’s evolution, the influence of older bands, and why they covered Bruce Springsteen’s “I’m On Fire”.

Something is brewing in Columbus, Ohio. Following in the footsteps of Villagerrr, Golomb, and DANA, psychedelic garage-pop band Big Fat Head is gearing up to be the city’s next big breakout with the release of their latest album, Global Voyeur.

Less a debut album, rather what Anastasiya Bazhenova prefers to call her “first complete artistic statement”, the release of From Mendelssohn to Madness was the perfect opportunity to sit down with the recitalist and find out how it all came together and what drove the creative process.

“Ultimately, we all want the same outcome, which is to make a cohesive collection of songs that we feel proud of. As we’ve been working on new material, we’ve been trying to push collaboration further than ‘Saw You Out with the Weeds.’” – Chris Corsi

“My songwriting philosophy is something that I would say is quite malleable, I don’t approach most of our songs with a clear mission or objective outside of expressing something in the moment. When spontaneity doesn’t lend itself to a finished product that we love, we listen to a song and tweak it until it becomes something we would want to listen to.” – Emma Shepard

“I feel like bands from Cleveland and Northeast Ohio historically have always operated outside a lot of the trends that are happening in other places. It’s pretty hard to be pretentious when you’re from Cleveland.” – Stephen Ovak

“Often when we’re adding some kind of ornament to a song, we try to exercise some restraint and keep the initial spirit intact. With “Factory,” our aim was to layer a little more texture and dreaminess to make certain sections unique or hit harder.” – John Corsi

Miles Hewitt’s Vainglory, is a gorgeous, gently-worn take on folk rock. The perceptive, perfectionist songwriter talks pedal steel, self-mythologizing, and why long songs don’t scare him.

Recorded 2004–05 and produced/mixed by David Fridmann, Having expanded the group’s palette beyond the intimate slowcore of earlier work, embracing denser textures, shimmering guitars, ambient passages, and widescreen production. The 20th anniversary reissue is out now on Translation Loss Records.

Deliberate but in no hurry, Johnny Delaware is taking a radical approach to releasing his latest album, On God’s Time, building his audience one listener at a time. With the record currently available only on vinyl and CD, Delaware talks about sidestepping algorithms and playlists, taking the music directly to people, and how classic songwriters like Bob Seger and Neil Diamond continue to shape his sound.

One Tribe Nation brings together players who’ve backed everyone from Zac Brown Band to Prince to Santana, and now, with Living Colour’s Corey Glover on vocals, they’ve unleashed a live cover of Black Sabbath’s “The Wizard.” Founder Michael Sanders and Glover open up about the song’s roots, the band’s genre-hopping chemistry, and where One Tribe Nation goes from here.

With the new single, “Brave, Rough and Ready To Go” just out, I managed to grab a few minutes with Sgt. Splendor to find out about their musical past, where they find themselves today, and what the future might hold for them.

Celebrated guitarist Steve Stevens discusses his Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction with longtime collaborator Billy Idol, and his new signature guitar series

Rock and roll is typically considered a young man’s game. John Robinson, starting a new band in his early forties, apparently didn’t get the memo. Ultra Lights isn’t reinventing the wheel on their debut, Pleasure’s All Yours, they wear their influences on their sleeves, but it’s that familiar sound that’s made this one of the year’s most surprising, most anticipated albums.

After hitting rock bottom and changing scenery by moving across the country, Nick Vicario has channeled those life experiences into Speculative Fiction, Smirk’s latest album, a brand of punk rock that pulls as much from Wipers as it does Television.

Andy: “I do everything mostly by feel without overthinking; I just let myself go with the flow. I also let myself be heavily guided by Gretchen’s vocals, often altering the song to better support her voice or the specific mood of her performance.”

“I came from a very poor area of Rio, and a lot of my motivation came from the arts, so maintaining a space in the city where many people frequent allows me to consciously expand my own sound.” – Lê Almeida

With a new album out, the fantastically named Music Sounds Better When You’re Stoned, I sat down with Gary Van Miert of The Sensational Country Blues Wonders! to find out all about his cool and creative world.

Ed Earl’s world of Naval Reserve Officer by day and country rocker by night might seem an odd balance, so I sat down with him to find out how he juggles the two careers.

Led by former Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell, the fourth Dirty Knobs’ album Mission of Mercy is a veritable jukebox of styles centered upon classic pop, rock, and roots music. The band will tour extensively in 2026 with stops including the Vic Theatre in Chicago on July 9 and the Town Hall in New York City on September 30.

“Haircut 100 was born out of Les, Graham, and me being three very close friends. So we were friends beforehand, that was the key to the beginning of the band: Les, Graham, and I being all single and all focusing on not being single, and through that process, living together, socializing together, being in a band, and really taking the band seriously together, living and breathing being in the band.”

Andrew Sa isn’t your typical cowboy, and that’s exactly the point. His Bloodshot Records debut, American Rough, is a heartfelt and tender romantic country album that expands what country music can look and sound like.

Sophie Harris spent her early years crafting intimate songs with a poet’s precision; then she started an art-rock, post-punk band. On Johnny’s Dreamworld, the full-length debut by Modern Woman, the results are as surprising and inevitable as that sounds.

“Human performances have slight imperfections and fluctuations, and I think that’s where emotion and individuality live. To me, a band is about imperfect people coming together to create sound. So what matters isn’t removing those imperfections, but figuring out how to make use of them within the music.” – Hiroshi Sasabuchi

“We could already see the limits of our live set with the existing songs, and simply repeating the methods we had used in the past no longer felt satisfying. Personally, I was searching for stimulation.” – Kiyomi Watanabe

“I personally love experiencing music live and being emotionally overwhelmed by it much more than simply listening through earphones. That feeling naturally shapes the way I approach songwriting, so I think an analog-like approach simply feels the most natural to me.” – Yoshitaka Sugahara

After the dissolution of their previous band and the disruption of the pandemic, longtime friends and collaborators Pierce Geary and Jacob Merritt have returned with The Silkies. Their debut, There You Have It, Lasting Peace, sounds like a commercial-free half hour of alternative radio: familiar, varied, and impossible to pin down.

“In the end, for me, my favorite band is The Coasters or old Excello Records sides and stuff like that. I love Bo Diddley. We are always going to keep those roots. We might go art-y for a second, but we’re always going to bring you back down to earth.” – Caspian Hollywell

“It’s the instrument that sounds more like a voice to me. Some say the fiddle, but I really think the steel guitar can really mimic a voice. I don’t know. It has the ability to sound like a lot of things. To me, it sounds like molten lava flowing, and then it can simultaneously sound like water freezing into ice.” – RJ

With her album of covers, Born in Time, now out, it seemed the perfect time to catch up with Racelle Garniez to find out about her influences, her start in music, travels and collaborations, and everything else that makes her one of the most eclectic, interesting and exciting music makers working today.

“It was like a family experience that was really new for me. Will (Smith) and Oli (Lipton) have been friends and collaborators for years and Oli and Staizsh (Rodrigues) are a couple, so there was a lot of love built in that I’ve been just lucky to stumble into.” – Karina Gill on the making of ‘Another Country’

“Staying up in my head is what I do to protect myself, but it never helps. Only allowing myself to feel the pain helps.” – Diana Darby

Futurebirds’ latest release, Far Out Country I & II, is the kind of album that inspires daydreams; their Americana rock weaves together alt-country, folk, indie, and jam band DNA into a sound that feels like an endless summer afternoon. The band recorded enough material for a double album, and while both records are available now on vinyl, the digital release is split in two with the second half arriving in September.

“We were different. That doesn’t mean it was perfect music because no, it was not, but it touched others, and it meant something to people.” – Anja Huwe on Xmal Deutschland

Nearly 30 years in, Aaron Perrino is still energized by the music he’s making with The Sheila Divine. In this conversation, he talks about the new album The Middle Ages, how the band’s current lineup is pushing him forward, and finding creative joy on the other side of a difficult year.

With a new album, Honky Tonk just out to mark 40 years in the game, I sat down with Dan Wheetman of Marley’s Ghost to find out more about the band’s long, rich, and rewarding sonic story.

Mark Scott grew up in Chillicothe, Ohio, and that small-town patience runs through every Villagerrr song; lowercase “c” country, unhurried and laidback, but with the undercurrent of a band that cut its teeth in Columbus dive bars. With Carousel out now on Winspear Records, we talked about local band bias, life on the road, and why a basement recording can sound like it had a real budget behind it.