Indie rock artist Fred Abong presents ‘My Way’, the second singe from his forthcoming Fear Pageant album, slated for release in late summer via Seattle-based label Disc Drive. Earlier, Abong released the record’s lead track ‘Father’.
Modern London synthpop icon Rodney Cromwell (a.k.a. Adam Cresswell of 90s indie folk band Saloon and 2000s electronic duo Arthur & Martha) and Solemn Arcade have teamed up to present “Memory Box Solemn Arcade Revision”.
On hEARoes, the threesome eschews firepower (for the most part) for chamber music, as if they’re trying to make up new works for small classical ensembles.
Indie rock outfit Beau Jennings & The Tigers present their new single ‘People in This Town’, out June 9 via Oklahoma-based record label Black Mesa Records. What starts as a scrappy ten seconds of scuffling and static emerges as a summer anthem from this Oklahoma band.
Texas roots-rocker Marina Rocks releases a new EP, _Texcentric-, a short, sharp and shockingly good collection of songs that take in established standards to the state of the world around her, and from chilled Americana to full-on rock swagger.
Regardless of what your favorite 70s band is, there is something in While We Were Making Plans for everyone, but The Splatter Pattern emerges with a fully formed, compelling artistic voice that is all their own.
Trans-Atlantic alternative neo-folk collective Lusitanian Ghosts present ‘Shameless’, a song about love, regret and reconciliation, which previews the band’s forthcoming Lusitanian Ghosts III album (out in autumn via European Phonographic). This is the second taste of their full-length album, following up the first life-affirming single ‘The Long Train’.
Recreate is not blindly optimistic, but it is an infectious burst of compassion from a voice that is so needed in this moment.
Always You is a wonderful addition to the artist’s repertoire, and a testament to the continued importance of jazz pop.
Atlanta-based atmospheric alt-pop duo I Am a Rocketship present their new single ‘Do You Feel Good’, a powerful introduction to their forthcoming album La Cruella, a collection of ten tracks about uncertainty, fear and dreams.
A mover and shaker in the fifties, jazz label Contemporary Records lured saxophone great Sonny Rollins from his home base in New York to Los Angeles to record with West Coast musicians.
King Analog remains compelling and exciting over the entire album, an often difficult feat for instrumentalists, and the artist emerges as a dynamically challenging force to be reckoned with right out of the gates.
The Blue Highways are a British rock band based in London. Formed in 2018 by brothers Jack, Callum and Theo, the band is known for its modern Indie/American Roots-inspired rock sound coupled with Callum’s narrative storytelling. Acclaimed as one of the most exciting upcoming acts in the U.K. music scene, The Blue Highways have recently released their new album Out on the Line to critical acclaim.
Brooklyn lounge-chill artist Roman Angelos and electronic producer Scott Solter (St. Vincent, Maps & Atlases, Spoon, Superchunk, The Mountain Goats). have released their collaborative record Supermarkets, Underwater via London label Happy Robots Records.
Four years after the last Swans album, Gira and crew finally return with The Beggar, another album of grim tidings and aspirational gloom.
The generous hat tips the group gives to their predecessors will win over staunch traditionalists, but First Penetration will undoubtedly appeal to almost every fan of the genre.
Manhattan-based artist Nevaris presents his debut Reverberations album, a fruitful and soulful collaboration with legendary bassist-producer Bill Laswell. This instrumental recording combines dub, funk, Afro-Latin rhythms, turntablism and extended improvisation.
Bassist and composer Yosef Gutman Levitt continues his prolific ways with Soul Song, the first album on his new imprint of the same name.
Brazil-based sonic adventurers BIKE present the video for the live performance session, recently recorded at KEXP in Seattle and broadcast on Cheryl Waters’ Midday Show. The session includes select tracks from their new Arte Bruta album, released via Before Sunrise Records.
Formed in 2015 by Julito Cavalcante (guitar and vocals), Diego Xavier (guitar and voice), Daniel Fumega (drums) and João Gouvea (bass), BIKE’s trajectory has been one of impressive journeys – both sonically and geographically.
Bergquist doesn’t try to shake the world with Wiser Then, but it’s almost as if he wants to slip into the room quietly, preferring to slowly blow away the listener with the accumulation of his strongly poetic lyricism over time.
A coming-of-age album, Chuck Rock is the work of a group still growing, and it’s a fantastic snapshot of a moment in time, while the band purposely plays down the album’s remarkable merits at every corner.
High intensity seems to be the running theme of Zombie Telegram as Mallory expresses themselves unabashedly in an exposed, maudlin, and sometimes even violent manner, creating an extremely captivating, thrilling experience that continues to unfold with each listen.
ABBA’s 1973 debut album Ring Ring was the first of the Swedish pop phenomenon’s “golden eight.” For those with a sweet tooth, it’s a crafty pop confection.
Never Sleep is a fantastic expansion of Feder’s sound, offering a more vulnerable, introspective side of the artist, and it’s set to be released June 23rd.
It’s always seemed to be an intense thing for Royal Thunder to make music – the band’s albums practically glow with vivid emotion and acute conviction.
The gloomier side of artists like The Cure or the emotional intensity of Cocteau Twins are clear influences, while stylistically she is closer to musicians including Lana Del Rey and Cat Power.
Taylor Robert has toured the country with various bands as well as a solo artist, played out at notable venues in the Twin Cites, released a multitude of albums and EPs, working with MN legends like Michael Bland (Prince, Soul Asylum) and Ryan Liestman (Jonas Bros) in production and songwriting.
LA-based collective Beauty In Chaos has joined forces with Leeds-born vocalist Julian Shah-Tayler and drummer Pete Parada (Face To Face, The Offspring) on their new collaborative single ‘Kiss Me (Goodbye)’.
Since leaving the Bad Plus a few years ago, pianist Orrin Evans has simply gone from strength to strength, putting his prodigious talent at the keyboard to the service of strong tunes and surrounding himself with top-flight backing musicians along the way.
Toronto-London collective The Flowers Of Hell have released their sixth album Keshakhtaran (their first in six years), as well as the first vinyl pressing of their Lou Reed-endorsed 2012 cult classic Odes album, now available directly from Rolling Heads , from other select UK stores, and on import.
Alternative-electronic artist Slighter presents his new single ‘Have No Fear’, an intense, moody and cinematic offering with traditional A-side and B-side versions, released via Confusion Inc. This is the first taste of his full-length album This Futile Engine, due out on July 21 via Brutal Resonance Records.
Canadian alternative pop artist Apricity presents her new single ‘Allison Wonderland’, a clever adrenaline-filled composition about imagining and seeking the type of relationship, love and companion you most want. A song that is, at the same time, a light forewarning about creating that perfect person in your mind.
Pioneering shoegazers The Veldt present “The Everlasting Gobstopper”, the first taste of their Illuminated 1989 album, the release of which has been anticipated for decades. Produced by Cocteau Twins’ Robin Guthrie in autumn 1989 (and remastered by him in 2023), this record was intended to be the band’s first album. However, their label Capital Records shelved the recording (resulting in their debut Marigolds album being produced by Lincoln Fong of Moose).
Malice marks a major step forward, in both songwriting and production from previous releases, but most importantly it represents a fantastically cohesive statement from a band unequivocally finding their voice.
Beggars Banquet continues its vinyl reissue series for Love and Rockets with round two: a pair of LPs that never quite found the cache of their predecessors.
Melodic indie / alternative rock duo Para Lia presents their single ‘Sunchild’, the first new music since announcing the duo has signed to Berlin-based About Us Records for their third album In Clash With The Zeitgeist (out on August 25). This driving, guitar-laden indie rock lead track is accompanied by a fun-filled nostalgic self-directed video.
Buoyed by the passionate support of the ZombieNation, their global legion of fans, The Nearly Dead sophomore album We Are The Nearly Deads is the eagerly-anticipated follow-up to their critically-acclaimed EP, Revenge of The Nearly Deads.
In between official full-lengths, the group has continued to churn out anthem and earworms. Notable highlights include “Freakshow,” “My Evil Ways,” “Watch Your Back,” and their recent Unearthed Ep which eloquently reformulated five fan favorites with a vibey ethereal panache.
Following up the deeply personal Reconnected, an album that explored his Latin and Turkish heritage, trombonist Altin Sencalar opens the doors to the wider world on his third album In Good Standing.
Bassist Vicente Archer has a quarter of a century of sessions and sideperson gigs behind him – oddly (or not), Short Stories is his first album as a leader.
How Bob spent the pandemic.
Joanna Pearl’s “Love Her” is a new original single inspired by her trip down the unspoiled coast of Highway 1 in California and is themed with nature and humanity co-exsisting through respect and love. Co-written and produced by award-winning Daniel Martin, “Love Her” floats with a light groove, warm-vocals and is anchored by a melancholic cello played by Mai Bloomfield (Jason Mraz/Raining Jane).
The stellar new *Cowboy Junkies” record captures the band reflecting on death and loss, while firing on all cylinders and engaging listeners with their signature sound.
Six years on from the masterful two-disk, one-song album Mirror Reaper, the duo returns with The Clandestine Gate.
Mostly Trees is a 4-piece band from Minneapolis, known for their take on guitar driven rock that ranges from grunge to dream pop. Their new style is a stripped down version of their earlier work, realized after bonding over a modified version of the board game Sorry! Once they made up the rules, the possibilities were endless. With a heavy influence of guitar effects pedals, their new album Moon Dogs showcases a diverse range of sounds and instruments.
Hearkening back to the funky, R&B-heavy fusion of the early seventies – Herbie Hancock/Crusaders division – Golden Mean paint colorful portraits that promote accessibility over complexity for its own sake.
If there’s a better name for a vocal group than Roomful of Teeth, we haven’t heard it.
From the evidence presented here, Boston’s Eddie Japan has never met a pop melody they didn’t like.
Drawing on influences from the likes of Blondie and The Ramones, Green Day and The Dollyrots, this tight-knit family unit uses humor and the power of music to push back on all the crap going on in the world. Bad Mary holds up a warped mirror to the current culture and reminds us that having fun is the best way to give yourself an escape from the craziness.
Not only has he just put out his memoir Easily Slip Into Another World, but he’s released his latest piece of music The Other One.
