New Music Releases
Ratboys Surprise Release New Album Happy Birthday, Ratboy: Stream
Surprise! Chicago indie-folk rockers Ratboys have just released a new album called Happy Birthday, Ratboy in celebration of their 10th anniversary as a band. Stream it below via Apple Music or Spotify. Exactly a decade ago to the day, Ratboys released their debut EP for free on Bandcamp. It introduced them as an inventive group of musicians worth keeping an eye on, and since then Ratboys have gone on to record three standout LPs: 2015’s AOID, 2017’s GN, and 2020’s Printer’s Devil. As the fourth studio album in the band’s catalog, Happy Birthday, Ratboy is split into two sides; the first features new recordings of the five original Ratboy EP songs, and a second half has five new versions of rare college-era tracks. That’s not all! There’s one totally brand new song on Happy Birthd...
Don Lifted Shares New Single “Lost in Orion”: Stream
Memphis artist Don Lifted has signed to Fat Possum Records and shared a new single called “Lost in Orion”. It’s his first new music since 2019, and it’s a fascinating blend of genres that feels both fresh and familiar. As Don Lifted, songwriter born Lawrence Matthews has been putting out music since 2013. According to his Bandcamp, he dropped three volumes of The December LP series within a one-year-period, and then he followed those with two other albums that are currently on streaming services, 2016’s Alero and 2018’s Contour. Although the former of those two albums predated Frank Ocean’s 2016 opus by a month, Matthews is planted firmly within the Blond(e) school of music. Contour and the handful of singles he released that same year meld together ...
Wolf Parade’s Spencer Krug Announces New Album Fading Graffiti, Shares Title Track: Stream
Spencer Krug of Wolf Parade has announced his new album, Fading Graffiti. Due out on April 16th as the first release on his own Pronounced Kroog label, the LP marks Krug’s first album under his own name. He previously released several solo projects as Moonface and Sunset Rubdown. Spanning 10 songs, Fading Graffiti reimagines piano ballads originally posted on Krug’s Patreon page, which was used to help fund the creation of the album. Aided by a full band, the tracks were recontextualized as indie rock songs. “It’s kind of neat the way these songs transformed,” Krug told Stereogum in a new interview. “The piano versions were more fussy and intricate, because that’s how I end up writing on piano. I had an urge to simplify them a little bit, because I could hear some mellow soft-rock numbers ...
81355 Announce Debut Album This Time I’ll Be of Use, Share “Capstone”: Stream
81355 (pronounced “Bless”) is an Indianapolis rap trio signed to 37d03d, the label co-founded by Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon and The National’s Aaron and Bryce Dessner. Today, the group announced their debut album, This Time I’ll Be of Use, which is slated for release on May 28th. 81355 is comprised of Sirius Blvck, Oreo Jones, and David Adamson. According to a press release, This Time I’ll Be of Use finds the rappers “reflecting on Black struggle in the pandemic-ridden and democracy faltering landscape” while grappling with “hard-wired truths and imagines alternate realities with better futures while meshing mystical, somber and danceable elements throughout.” As a preview of the album, 81355 shared the opening track, “Capstone”. Over a spaced-out beat, the MCs demonstrate their lyrical...
POND Throw a Dance-Punk Party on New Single “Pink Lunettes”: Stream
POND are back. The Australian psych-rock weirdos have just released “Pink Lunettes”, their first new song in two years, along with a hazy, lo-fi music video. Stream it below. “Pink Lunettes” takes an unexpected twist compared to the band’s 2019 album Tasmania. Over relentless drumming and retro synth swells, POND do their best to get your blood pumping with hectic dance-punk that brings to mind LCD Soundsystem mixed with Suicide. It’s chaotic and manic, but it suits POND well, and they don’t lose their stride at any point across the track’s four-minute-long runtime. That feeling is all the more drawn out in the song’s music video, too. Directed by Jamie Terry, the clip peppers purple strobe lights around frontman Nick Allbrook as he sings along, karaoke-style, to the lyrics sprawled across...
Jamila Woods Teams Up with Peter CottonTale on “Breathe My Name” for Moog’s Explorations in Analog Synthesis EP: Stream
Peter CottonTale and Jamila Woods have teamed up on “Breathe My Name”, a new song from Moog Music’s freshly released EP, Explorations in Analog Synthesis. Stream the full project below. As with every other song on the 7-track EP, “Breathe My Name” was built around instruments and accessories included in the synthesizer company’s new Moog Sound Studio package. Accordingly, the beat combines R&B and ethereal synth-pop as Woods sings lyrics like, “It’s all on me, blessed burden/ You fall on knees, who you saving/ You know my name/ You don’t know my face.” Explorations in Analog Synthesis also features songs by Bonobo, Julianna Barwick, Dan Deacon, Madame Gandhi, Martial Canterel, and Ela Minus. Moog Sound Studio is marketed as a complete synthesizer package and features two variants, Moth...
Sons of Kemet Announce New Album Black to the Future, Share “Hustle”: Stream
London jazz band Sons of Kemet have announced their new album, Black to the Future, out May 14th on Impulse! Records. The project follows Your Queen Ii a Reptile, which was nominated for the 2018 Mercury Prize. This time around, the Shabaka Hutchings-led group brings in guests like Chicago singer Angel Bat Dawid, poets Moor Mother and Joshua Idehen, grime MC D Double E, and British rapper/spoken word artist Kojey Radical. “Black to the Future is a sonic poem for the invocation of power, remembrance and healing. It depicts a movement to redefine and reaffirm what it means to strive for black power,” Hutchings said in a statement. “The meaning is not universal and the cultural context of the listener will shape their understanding. Yet in the end, the overarching message remains the same: Fo...
Wavves Return with New Song “Sinking Feeling”: Stream
Pop punk band Wavves have returned with “Sinking Feeling”, their first new song since 2017. Check it out via the accompanying music video below. “Sinking Feeling” marks the return of Wavves to Fat Possum Records and came together with the help of TV on the Radio’s Dave Sitek after the band initially workshopped the song in a series of now-abandoned studio sessions. Although the single’s surf rock guitars evoke summertime, the lyrics address the all-encompassing darkness of depression. “It’s there on your face/ It sits in your mind,” sings frontman Nathan Williams. “It’s like this all the time.” In a statement, Williams elaborated on the meaning of the track. “‘Sinking Feeling’ is a song about a wave of depression that keeps coming back,” he said. “It’s that sinking feeling that drags ...
Gary Numan Shares New Song “Saints and Liars”: Stream
Gary Numan has released a new song, “Saints and Liars”. The pounding industrial track is the latest single from his upcoming album, Intruder. Stream it below. The concept album is written from the perspective of Earth, and the new song addresses the hypocrisy of humanity as the planet’s destruction approaches a point of no return. With textured backing vocals from electronica musician Gazelle Twin, Numan hauntingly sings lyrics like, “Can you feel your righteous anger/ It’s like a poison that feeds the soul/ Can you hide from snakes and liars/ Every word is the death of me.” In a statement, Numan elaborated on the song’s meaning. “‘Saints And Liars’ is the Earth drawing attention to our blind faith in religion, in a fictitious God, who in reality does nothing for us, while at the same...
Waxahatchee Releases Anniversary Reissue of Saint Cloud: Stream
One year ago, Waxahatchee exceeded expectations when she released her album Saint Cloud. It wound up being one of our favorite LPs of the year thanks to some truly unforgettable tracks. Now, Katie Crutchfield is celebrating that milestone by releasing a special first anniversary edition of the album with three previously unreleased cover songs. Stream it below via Apple Music and Spotify. In addition to the original 11 tracks that make up Saint Cloud, this new reissue includes three exclusive covers: a slow-burning country take on “Fruits of My Labor” by Lucinda Williams, a sunny cover of Dolly Parton’s “Light of a Clear Blue Morning”, and a gentle rendition of “Streets of Philadelphia” by the one and only Bruce Springsteen. Listening to them back to back, it’s easy to understand...
Floating Points and Pharoah Sanders Release Collaborative New Album Promises: Stream
Floating Points (photo by Dan Medhurtst) and Pharoah Sanders (photo by Debi Del Grande) Electronic composer Floating Points and jazz legend Pharoah Sanders have just released Promises, their stunning new album with the London Symphony Orchestra. Stream it below via Apple Music and Spotify. Broken up into nine distinct movements, Promises is a soul-stirring take on minimalist jazz, gentle instrumentation, and orchestra arrangements that can transport you into another dimension. At times, like in “Movement 6” and “Movement 9”, the percussion is so delicate that it feels like you’re in the middle of a movie score about the most contemplative, delicate moments of your life. Promises was composed by Sam Shepherd (AKA Floating Points) and sees the music brought to life via Sanders’ cel...
Beartooth Announce New Album Below, Share “The Past Is Dead”: Stream
Midwest rockers Beartooth have announced their fourth studio album, Below, which arrives June 25th. They’ve also unveiled the pyro-heavy video for the crushing single “The Past Is Dead”. The song opens with a soaring vocal build-up and before launching into an anthemic breakdown. The track’s melodies and upbeat metalcore riffing are paired with dark lyrical concepts, as reflected by the album title Below. In press release, singer Caleb Shomo questioned whether the new material was “too dark.” He said he drew upon experiences from the past year when writing the songs. “Below is by far my favorite album I’ve made to date,” Shomo stated. “It covers the dark side of dealing with mental strain during the last year. I gave it all I had — musically and lyrically. Is it too dark? Possibly, but it ...
