Every day I get hundreds of new singles, videos, EPs and albums from artists, publicists, managers and record labels around the world. And here’s the honest truth: Most of them are crap. You know it. I know it. Even the people pitching me know it, whether or not they’ll admit it. But within that avalanche of mediocrity, I sometimes find nuggets of awesomeness. And I compile them into this all-killer, no-filler rundown. You’re welcome. Let’s get to it:
Patty PerShayla & The Mayhaps | I Want It Faster
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “It’s here! After hoarding this footage for several weeks, I’m proud to present the official music video for our song, I Want It Faster. This video is what happens when you grow up in a wrestling household where mom listens to Judas Priest and you watch Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure a hundred times. I had this bike chase in mind before I finished the chorus to this song, so please, indulge in these marvelous six minutes of good, old-fashioned stupidity we made on a shoestring budget.”
Shooter Jennings | Excitable Boy (Live)
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Grammy winner Shooter Jennings is celebrating the songs of the late, great Warren Zevon with Shooter Jennings & The Werewolves Of London Do Zevon, an all-new live album arriving Nov. 3. Recorded in concert at Monterey’s Rebels & Renegades Music Festival and featuring wall-to-wall Zevon favorites, the album is heralded by this live video for Excitable Boy. “This last year we had a blast doing two separate shows paying tribute to one of my favorite artists of all time, Los Angeles legend Warren Zevon,” says Jennings. “When Zevon was picked to be potentially inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame this year we, along with millions of Zevon fans, were hoping that he would finally get his due… Unfortunately, Zevon didn’t make it in this year and won’t be honored on Nov. 4, 2023, in New York City at the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame ceremony. Upon hearing this news, the Werewolves of Los Angeles gathered in our Wolfcave to discuss what we could do about it. We decided that even though Warren wasn’t going into the hall of fame, we could… do our own celebration of Warren’s bad-ass music.”
Black Pumas | Angel
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Grammy-nominated duo Black Pumas have shared their latest new song, Angel — the third track to be released ahead of their anticipated sophomore album Chronicles Of A Diamond, out on Oct. 27. Angel was written and co-produced by the band’s singer-songwriter and producer Eric Burton, with production by guitarist and producer Adrian Quesada. A deeply emotive track, Angel showcases Burton’s impressive vocal range and masterful storytelling skills. The video, filmed at the iconic Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles, sees Burton delivering a haunting solo performance in a setting that works as an effective backdrop, complimenting the intensity of the song. Angel is a mesmerising slow burner, graced with majestic guitar work, moody melodies, and soul-baring lyrics that Burton composed in a laundromat over a decade ago. Eric explains, “I remember feeling overwhelmed by everything going on with my family and the neighbourhood I was living in and hoping to find sanctuary in the actual voice of an angel. There was a laundromat nearby that served as a quiet place for me, and that song started to come to me as I stared into a still-life painting of flowers.”
Bar Italia | Jelsy
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Bar Italia have released new single and video Jelsy, taken from their forthcoming second full-length of 2023, The Twits, out Nov. 3. Led by the group’s three-way vocal dynamic, Jelsy plays out like a conversation between friends over wistful, buzzing country blues, the alternating voices at points comforting, wry and hopelessly yearning. Jelsy follows first single My Little Tony.”
Jenn Champion | Good News, Bad News (We’re All Gonna Die)
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Jenn Champion’s new album The Last Night Of Sadness, out Friday, contains some of the former Carissa’s Wierd member’s rawest material to date. Her single Good News, Bad News (We’re All Gonna Die) is moody and retro-futuristic. It opens with a dark synth arpeggiation, which gives way to a subtle dance groove and Champion’s crystal-clear vocals. “What they say is true we’re all gonna die / Sometimes it doesn’t feel right to be alive,” she sings, honestly acknowledging the difficulties of day-to-day existence. It’s accompanied by a K.C. Perry-directed video, which features footage of Paris Helena Elyte dancing around L.A. Jenn offers: “This song has always been about how hard it can be to stay alive, stay healthy, get through whatever it you are trying to get through and how death is so scary but also this release. Around the time I was working on it a friend’s kid, maybe 5 years old, was sitting at the dinner table as everyone was eating pizza and out of nowhere he said, ‘Good news, bad news everybody — we’re all gonna die,’ and when I heard that I just thought, ‘Yes — exactly.’ ”
Bad Cop / Bad Cop | Safe & Legal
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Bad Cop / Bad Cop share another song off their upcoming double A-side 7”, Shattered / Safe & Legal, due Dec. 8.. You’ve already had a taste of Shattered; here’s the next installment. The release coincides with a period of heightened threats to abortion rights in the U.S. and around the world. BCBC are leveraging their platform to raise awareness and advocate for universal abortion access. Linh, the band’s bassist, shared her thoughts on the song below: “Abortion is a crucial aspect of healthcare, and everyone should have the right to access it without facing any form of social judgment. Our ongoing effort is to remove legal restrictions and integrate them as a routine medical procedure. It’s a private health-care matter, plain and simple.”
Juicebumps | Edging In Heaven
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Bay Area post-punk freaks Juicebumps share Edging In Heaven, the final preview of their new album Jumbo out this Friday. Carried by slobbering guitar, analog synthesizers, and a jittering rhythm section, Juicebumps slip between post-punk, new-wave and no-wave, leaving behind a sticky trail of catchy hooks and horrors. Spawned in San Francisco in the year 2016, Juicebumps formed inside musty dive bars and house parties in the Sunset district. They quickly became known for their manic live performances filled with bizarre onstage antics that have included a live alien birth, appearances by their mascot Cokiee, and countless other B-horror vignettes. Their costumes change with every performance, so no two shows are alike.”
Tex Crick | Silly Little Things
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Tokyo-based Australian Tex Crick will release his new album Sweet Dreamin’ this Friday. Today, he has revealed the final album preview track Silly Little Things, alongside an official video shot by friend Luke Casey on the outskirts of Tokyo. Crick’s baritone vocals bare a vintage charm while carrying listeners into the moment. He shares, “It’s like some offbeat lounge act singing in harmony. Like most of my songs, this one is about appreciating those fleeting moments in life. Small pleasures that leave a lasting impression.”
Violent Femmes | Gone Daddy Gone (Live)
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Violent Femmes will celebrate the 40th anniversary of their 1983 self-titled debut with a special reissue of the seminal cult classic. Due out Dec. 1, the deluxe 2-CD and digital formats will feature newly remastered audio and over a dozen demos, B-sides, and live performances from the pioneering folk-punk trio — including alternate versions of iconic songs like Blister In The Sun, Please Do Not Go, Gone Daddy Gone and Add It Up. A special four-disc vinyl box will follow on Feb. 9, limited to 5,000 copies worldwide. Housed in a lift-top box with die-cut window detail, this collectible edition offers three 180-gram LPs — the original album, alongside the demos, and live material — plus a replica 7-inch single.”
Laura Jane Grace | Dysphoria Hoodie
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “A true dysphoria hoodie is a pullover hoodie, not a zip-up. A zipper is too aggressive, metal teeth to catch your hair and skin. And a zipper asks of you. A true dysphoria hoodie should only give. Plus, a zipper is a point of vulnerability. A point of entry. And you don’t want to let anyone in when you’re wearing your dysphoria hoodie. A true dysphoria hoodie should blanket your vulnerabilities. Dysphoria Hoodie is a song about gender dysphoria and your favourite hooded sweatshirt. Any trans person out there knows what a dysphoria hoodie is — it’s the hoodie you wear when feeling low and dysphoric and you don’t want the world reading your gender. Hide your body shape, hide your head, disappear as much as you can. Wrap yourself up in it like a blanket anywhere you go. Make your flesh become cotton. Instant protection from the outside world. My dysphoria hoodie happens to be an Adidas hoodie, so yes, this is in fact really just a tribute song to my favourite Adidas hoodie.”
Desire Marea | The Only Way
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “South African artist Desire Marea has shared The Only Way, the latest taste of what to expect from new forthcoming EP The Baddies of Isandlwana, due Nov. 9. Marea explains, “I was really just feeling myself here, it’s one song where I fully express my bad bitch energy. It’s giving pheromones at a beach party on the African coast.” Desire describes the new EP as “a trio of songs inspired by my time living in Amandawe, KZN. It’s an infusion of sounds that dominate nightlife in SA such as Gqom, Amapiano and Afrobeat. The EP is symbolic of a time when I was trying to find myself in the world I occupied, which extended to my ongoing quest to find myself in history, hence the title.”
Caleb Nichols | J’ai Vu La Lune!
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Caleb Nichols has a new single/video out called J’ai Vu La Lune. It’s from his upcoming album Let’s Look Back, out Friday. Nichols put himself on the map with Ramon, a critically acclaimed queer Beatles rock opera. Now, he’s tackling something of a more radical proposition — just 11 great songs, full stop. Here is Caleb on the new single: “The singles we’ve released from Let’s Look Back have represented a lot of things, but mostly they’ve been about pain… In stark contrast to these, J’ai Vu La Lune is a bop about queer joy! I’m using an exclamation point very pointedly here, because! It’s! About! Joy! And my experience of that, several years ago, literally riding my bike around on a warm autumn night, feeling the electric buzz of being in love with (almost) everything and everyone. J’ai Vu La Lune is about the capacity queer people have to be so very in love with the world: A joy that is so often born out of pain.”
Hippie Death Cult | Red Giant
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Portland heavy and doom rock trio Hippie Death Cult premiere their powerful new single Red Giant. Their third studio album Helichrysum arrives Oct. 20. Says bassist and vocalist Laura Phillips: “Lyrically a red giant star is used as a metaphorical reference to the powerful goddesses of fire and death. Exploring these transformative energies that affect the emotions and psyche in an intense but crucial way as one moves through the trials and tribulations of life, rising from the ashes stronger than before.”
Cronies | Rentboy
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Cronies’ new album L1V3 S1CK0 L0V3 F3ST will be released Oct. 20. First single Rentboy absolutely captivates. Building over four and a half minutes, the song bursts with attitude and stadium-size hooks, spewed across a slow groove. A fresh, young take on ’90s stylings, it hits like a maniacal new re-imagining of early Rage Against The Machine. As hard as Rentboy goes, this anthem is just one of eight, equally banging bangers. There are no misses on L1V3 S1CK0 L0V3 F3ST. The formula is golden. With one hand, Cronies offers euphoric melodies and unapologetic bounce; with the other, scorched tones and unhinged vocals. One hand welcomes you in, the other goes for the throat. “I see Cronies as being the trainer,” says vocalist Brad Hoyt. “The listener is the dog whose nose we’re pushing into the shit.”
Kabbalah | Sailor’s Lament
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Kabbalah’s occult version of the CCR cut Sailor’s Lament and second single from the compilation Burn on the Bayou: A Heavy Underground Tribute to Creedence Clearwater Revival, due Dec. 3. The album features a total of 32 CCR songs reimagined by War Cloud, KIND, Great Electric Quest, High Priestess, Stonebirds, Thunder Horse, Void Vator, JPT Scare Band, Cities of Mars, Kyle Shutt of The Sword and many more. Kabbalah comment: “When we saw the opportunity of taking part in this Ripple tribute to CCR along with some killer bands from the label, we jumped into it. We thought that Sailor’s Lament could work nicely with a dark approach, so we tried to do that. It had many possibilities to work with the voices as well, and the process to take the song to our field was enriching and very satisfying.”
Dylan LeBlanc | Coyote
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Dylan LeBlanc has released the title track from his long-awaited new album Coyote, a semi-autobiographical concept album centered around a man on the run from his past. Coyote is out Oct. 20. The song kicks off the album and sets the first scene for the main character, who is trying to find his way out of poverty and goes to work in the criminal underworld of Mexico. The song also includes an ode to Santa Muerte, a saint often worshipped by cartels as they pray for safe passage during their illegal endeavours. LeBlanc explains: “Coyote is a man whose name is derived from being a loner within a pack. And it explains the kind of man he is inside his own desperation and circumstances.”
Full Time Men | High On Drugs
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Full Time Men share High On Drugs, the third single from their forthcoming album Part Time Job, out Oct. 27. First released in 1988 on the band’s full-length album Your Face My Fist, High On Drugs is one of the most hard-rocking songs in the band’s catalog. High-powered vocals and guitar feedback increase in intensity to the very end of this ripper that features an all-star lineup including Keith Streng (Fleshtones), Peter Buck (R.E.M.), Dave Faulkner (Hoodoo Gurus), the late Pat Dinizio (Smithereens) and Chris Clements.”
Kendra Morris | Fine Right Here
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “’Fine Right Here, a bonus cut from Kendra Morris’s new LP I Am What I’m Waiting For, takes a look into the deeply introverted side of Kendra. “This song is about being ok just sitting inside and missing the party,” Kendra explains. “It’s the antithesis to FOMO.” Written to accompany a rainy day, the song feels like you’re being enveloped in a hug. Sonically, the track tips its hat to Ethiopian jazz and soul of the ’70s, like Rose Royce and Delfonics. The warm vibraphone, sturdy bass line, and vocal reverb create a layered tapestry of sound that wraps around your shoulders and drifts into your ears.”
Superchunk | In Between Days
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Superchunk will release Misfits & Mistakes: Singles, B-sides & Strays 2007–2023, their fourth singles collection, on Oct. 27. Today they are excited to share one of the 50-song collection’s many hard-to-find gems: Their cover of The Cure’s In Between Days. Recorded a few short months after the announcement of Majesty Shredding, this cover had been banished to all but the darkest corners of the internet — until now! Here’s what Mac McCaughan has to say: “Without taking a poll of our band, I’m going to say The Cure is one of the few groups that we all agree upon. I was a fan in high school and love the early records, but when The Head On The Door came out, it was one of those ‘How can an album be this good!?’ moments, and of course, this song is a classic. I wish I could sing like Robert Smith, but don’t we all?”
Beekeeper Spaceman | Beebe
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Like its sprawling hometown of Dallas, cinematic indie-rock band Beekeeper Spaceman’s self-titled debut album evokes a never-ending collision between bucolic bygones and the urban present. Born out of an online multimedia project called Fire Bones, the duo — primary songwriter/ singer / guitarist Greg Brownderville and producer / multi-instrumentalist Spencer Kenney — have shared bills with artists like Erykah Badu, Leon Bridges, Shakey Graves and Black Pumas, and have been lauded in both local music outlets and national literary publications. Brownderville is editor-in-chief of a literary magazine and author of three books of poetry, while Kenney fronts a solo electro-pop project under his own name and is involved with a variety of acts.”
The Mutts | Excited + C’mon. Come Up, Come In
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The Mutts released a double A-side single, C’mon Come Up Come In / Excited on Feb. 20, 2006. The 7” only release was their first since their debut album Life In Dirt arrived in the summer of 2005. A ferocious live act propelled along by the primal roar of lead singer Chris Murtagh, the band toured extensively with the likes of Soledad Brothers and The Dirtbombs. As Chris himself explained: “We live to gig. As far as I’m concerned, we could tour forever. I just wanna play.”
Sun Room | At Least I Tried
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Ringleaders of SoCal’s thriving surf-rock scene, Sun Room capture the energy and chaos of their garage jams on the new single and upcoming EP title track At Least I Tried. Barely making it through the week, but remaining totally unphased by it, the band show that they’re just along for the ride. The two-and-a-half-minute ripper sees the band lose their keys, crash their car, and have their van towed. Frontman Luke Asgain said, “The second I dropped out of school and Sun Room started touring, a bunch of my friends suddenly thought I had all this money, all of sudden, and thought I had it all together… but that wasn’t true at all. If anything, life just got more hectic in an almost comical way. Going on tour, especially because we were winging it, things go wrong more often than not, and you just gotta laugh it off and try to figure out where to go from there.” He continues, “Some of our favorite stories from the road are when everything goes completely wrong and you just end up sitting there dying laughing at yourselves because you can’t believe how wrong things turned out. I think that’s kind of where At Least I Tried came from – finding fun in the chaos of life and being in a touring band.”
The Hated | Miggy’s Delight
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The original emo band: The Hated.”
Why Bother? | Calling All Goons
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Would it be October without a new Why Bother? album? Calling All Goons is WB?’s fourth album in three years — a lexicon for the freaks, a beacon of hope amidst the digital deluge, or just a true artist’s piece depending on how you see it. And that’s the beauty of Why Bother? They are the enigma. A band that extends from the roots of Midwestern punk while adding something new to the conversation. This is the kind of rare phenomenon that is outwardly difficult to describe…so step into the world of Why Bother? and let these new 13 tracks dilute your mind!”
New Visionaries | Summer Rain
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “New Visionaries are U.K.-based Australian artist Joel Sarakula and Dutch musician Phil Martin. Their debut album Roadmaps blends contemporary elements with nods to musical pioneers, creating the band’s signature sound. This collection resonates with soul enthusiasts, cinematic groove aficionados and music explorers. Roadmaps weaves a sonic tapestry, blurring boundaries and shining as a true gem. The New Visionaries story starts with an unexpected rendezvous in the summer of 2019, when Phil joined as a conga player for a Joel show at the very last minute. From that point onwards, spontaneity becomes the cornerstone of their musical relationship: impromptu recording sessions arranged just days in advance, gigs scheduled a few weeks beforehand, and song concepts emerging from jam sessions…”
