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Sunday, March 30, 2025

New Music: My Morning Jacket, Kilowatt Parade, Stereophonics, Mumford & Sons, Lucy Dacus


My Morning Jacket: Everyday Magic


The tenth album by the five-piece band from Kentucky continues its "pattern of inspired yet accessible rock music," writes Glide Magazine. "Each song has layers that build upon each other, with little guitar flourishes or pieces of percussion adding nuance to riffs that draw from funk, southern rock, and psychedelic rock." 

Kilowatt Parade: The Minute I Wake


This is the first release from a new project by Ottawa-based guitarist, songwriter and producer Andre Nault, who's also the artist behind Stand Up And Say No. The pitch is that he's "venturing into new musical territory with his latest indie-rock project." It's too early for us to say how different it will be, but this track seems to be in the same groove as, for example, SU&SN's "Shared Interests." 

Stereophonics: Seems Like You Don't Know Me


Here's a preview of the Welsh rock band's 13th album, Make ‘em Laugh, Make ‘em Cry, Make ‘em Wait. NME writes that the song takes the group "into new territory, experimenting with nostalgic synths, drum machines and acoustic guitar elements to create an eye-catching yet spacious sound. The vocals from Kelly Jones explore the nuances of relationships and the questions that arise about how well we really know one another." (Um... eye-catching sound?) 

Mumford & Sons: Caroline


A mixed - and very amusing - review in the Irish Times calls the new album Rushmere "spirited if uneven." It adds that the LP "is at its most enjoyable when the musicians focus on straight-ahead tunefulness, as they do on the single 'Caroline.'" And that's our choice for the New Music bin. (Do yourself a favor and read the snarky-fun review!)

Lucy Dacus: Forever Is A Feeling


This is the title song from the new album by this singer-songwriter from Virginia. AllMusic describes the LP as "examining 'it's complicated' relationships through an adult lens." The review calls this track "an obvious centerpiece." It includes Dacus' boygenius bandmates Phoebe Bridgers and Julien Baker, Blake Mills' bass, Madison Cunningham's 12-string guitar, Melina Duerte's drum programming and synths, Bartees Strange's additional drums, and more. "It temporarily changes keys and passes through several emotional contradictions" as the singer concludes she's in a relationship for the long haul.

Saturday, March 15, 2025

Lucius, OK Go, Thompson Springs, Great Tide, Watchglass added to the New Music bin


Lucius: Gold Rush


Coming in May is Lucius, the self-titled fourth album by singers Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig, their band and several guests. It will include last fall's single, "Old Tape," as well as this track the duo says is about "that addictive sweetness to love. The roller coaster highs and lows. ... It’s energy and grit: guitars wailing, heavy backbeat, dynamic vocals which flip from verse to chorus – mellow to strong – playing off the band and echoing the sentiment of the lyrics.” (Photo by Dana Trippe)

OK Go: Take Me With You


Here's another foretaste of the upcoming album And The Adjacent Possible, the group's first since 2014. The track is a sprightly, synth-y plea for companionship: "Oh, take / Take me with you / Whatever the mystic whispered voices tell you / I need to hear them, too."

Thompson Springs: All My Life


This indie band from Chicago blends rock with strains of country and blues. We've been sprinkling them into our mix since catching them in a small live show some five years ago. We hope this strong new single is a sign that an album might be in the works. In the meantime the group is about to start a tour through the Netherlands and into Belgium and Germany.

Great Tide: Passing Fancy


Although they're based in Norway, this quartet sounds like its heart is in the Laurel Canyon. They describe themselves as "a hard-working Americana, blues, and rock band ... bringing a timeless 70s-inspired sound with a modern edge." They cite the likes of Tom Petty, Eagles, and Fleetwood Mac as influences, and this track has us recalling Buffalo Springfield.

Watchglass: Soda Pop Plastic


We've just been introduced to this duo from Sydney, Australia, and their refreshingly new music, described as "equal parts melodic and hypnotic." Instrumentalist-producer Mark Vigano loves to experiment with sounds and styles, and Gina Graham adds the lyrics and the vocals. This track from their new album Long Ways Conversations is about disengaging from pop culture and social media to touch grass - literally!

Saturday, March 8, 2025

New music variety: Tune-Yards, Illuminati Hotties, Chris Church, I'm With Her, The Moons Of Jupiter


Tune-Yards: Limelight


The duo of Merill Garbus and Nate Brenner make music that doesn't neatly fit into any genre or category - maybe a bit like Rubblebucket in that way. Their last album was 2021's Sketchy, and now they've announced Better Dreaming is due in May. This bouncy first single was inspired by the couple's dancing with their 3-year-old to George Clinton music, and the toddler can be heard vocalizing on the track. "This one almost didn’t make it onto the album because it felt trite," says Garbus. "But it kept coming back as people kept responding positively to it, in particular our own kid."

Illuminati Hotties: 777


LA-based Sarah Tudzin "has pulled off a lot of different sounds under the banner of Illuminati Hotties, and her new single adds another one to the mix," writes Stereogum. "Heaping mounds of distorted guitar are pulled along by a relentless undertow, with Tudzin’s gleaming vocals and screaming/dreamy guitar melodies taking turns leading the charge." The single comes less that seven months after the most recent IH album, Power.

Chris Church: She Looks Good In Black


The word on this Lenoir, North Carolina, musician is that he has crisscrossed genres over a three-decade career - performing, writing and recording with power-pop, prog-rock and metal bands and releasing solo albums ranging from art pop to hard rock. Church describes this track as "suggesting country-rock." Its sound and lyrics also put us in mind of Marshall Crenshaw (think "Cynical Girl").

I'm With Her: Ancient Light


It's been seven years since modern folkies Sarah Jarosz, Aoife O’Donovan, and Sara Watkins released their first album as a trio, See You Around, and now they've announced their second, Wild And Clear And Blue, is on the way. The group says this first single "sets the tone for the entire album, communing with our past and future selves."

The Moons Of Jupiter: Dancing With Destiny


The English duo of multi-instrumentalist Nicky Rowe and vocalist James Harris just released their self-titled debut album, which expands on their 2023 EP Ghosts. They cite classic eletro-pop bands like Depeche Mode, The Human League and Tears for Fears as influences, and add a modern darkwave overlay.

Saturday, March 1, 2025

New music by Deep Sea Diver, Keeton Coffman, Gigi Perez, The Head & The Heart, Sleep Theory


Deep Sea Diver: What Do I Know


Vocalist Jessica Dobson, drummer Peter Mansen and their band just released their first album since 2020, Billboard Heart. We featured the title track when it came out as a single a few months ago. We'll be playing lots more from the LP, starting with this track, which Clash Music says is "full of punchy energy. Each member is given an opportunity to shine with swirling guitars in the middle section and synths also present. There is a lot going on but it never drowns in its ambition, finding the right level of chaos."

Keeton Coffman: I Think About It


We've had this Houston-based indie artist in our mix for a half-dozen years, and picked up his singles "Violet" and "Kathryn" last year. His new album, Coefficient of Fiction, marks a move from his earlier, guitar-based Americana style to what he calls "cinematic pop," with drum machines and synths in this mix - as on this slinky track.

Gigi Perez: Chemistry


This singer-songwriter's "Sailor Song" broke out in a big way last year, probably due mostly to its sexy lyrics. Its bedroom-demo sound didn't make it to our playlist, but we're giving this new single a shot - in its slightly edited but still suggestive form ("I'll never tell a soul about our secret life.") 

The Head & The Heart: After The Setting Sun


This single comes with word that the Seattle group's sixth album, Aperture, is on its way. Consequence of Sound reports it's "the band’s first entirely self-produced album, and their first with a brand new songwriting style. Each band member brought something different to the process, trying out new roles and centering Aperture as the work of a band, not just a songwriter and his instrumentalists." It says this track kicks off the album with "harmony-laden majesty and homespun folk."

Sleep Theory: Stuck In My Head 


This quartet from Memphis, Tenn., will release its debut LP this spring. Lead singer Cullen Moore says this preview single "is about someone you just can’t shake, no matter what you do. While the feeling can be more annoying than fun, we wanted to make the song both relatable and energetic."

Saturday, February 22, 2025

Sam Fender, Lucy Dacus, Lily Monaghan, Since11, Adult Leisure added to our New Music bin


Sam Fender: Arm's Length


The title track of his new LP, People Watching, has been getting airplay for the past few months, and now the full album is out. We're choosing this song for the New Music bin - one that's less depressive than most of the tracks and features backing vocals by Brooke Bentham. The lyric suggests two people getting closer - "Arm's length, small talk, and then some company" - while being wary about opening up: "Do you have to know me inside out / To have a good time?"

Lucy Dacus: Best Guess


Here's the latest single from the upcoming album Forever Is A Feeling by the Virginia-born singer-songwriter who is also part of Boygenius. Northern Transmissions calls this track "Dacus’ take on a love song, an anthem of queer tenderness that captures that mix of excitement and uncertainty as two people take a romantic chance with one another."

Lily Monaghan: Willing To Wait


From Edmonton, Alberta, comes this singer-songwriter who cites Brandi Carlile and Hozier among her inspirations. We previously featured "On Hold" from her debut EP, and this track will be on her sophomore effort. "This song is a love letter to friends," she says. "I’m a firm believer that platonic relationships can be as fulfilling and nourishing as romantic relationships, and I am aware that I’m lucky enough to have a massive abundance in these types of relationships."

Since11: Magic Moments For Rent


OK this is different - Two guys from the Swiss Alps making music that, as they put it, "sounds like a cocktail on a Hawaiian beach." The lyrics of this new single evoke casual flirtation by the sea: "This game of glances, fun in the sun / Both playing it cool, not fooling anyone / Just in that moment, a beachside scene / Nothing serious, living the dream."

Adult Leisure: Dancing Don't Feel Right


The latest single from this Bristol, UK, band is billed as "a refreshing dose of escapism." The band says the song is "about the urge to let loose, to break out of the mould and do the bad thing."