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:
Idles | Dancer
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Tangk is the righteous and vibrant fifth album from madcap truth-seekers Idles. Pronounced “tank” with a whiff of the “g” — an onomatopoeic reference to the lashing way the band imagined their guitars sounding that has since grown into a sigil for living in love — the record is the band’s most ambitious and striking work yet. Where Idles were once set on taking the world’s piss, squaring off with strong jaws against the perennially entitled, and exercising personal trauma in real time, they have arrived in this new act to offer the fruits of such perseverance: Love, joy, and indeed gratitude for the mere opportunity of existence. Despite his reputation as an incendiary post-punk sparkplug, frontman Joe Talbot sings almost all the feelings inside these 10 songs with hard-earned soul, offering each lusty vow or solidarity plea as a bona fide pop song — that is, a thing for everyone to pass around and share, communal anthems intended for overcoming our grievance.”
The WindUps | Oh I Know
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Are you happy like this?” Purveyors of raw power pop and punk, The WindUps may or may not be curious to know. Since the release of their 2021 debut Try Not To Think, the Northern California bedroom-project-turned-touring outfit have gained the reputation of a lights-out live band, emulating the same breakneck pace of the record. And you are damn sure to find that same frenetic combustion on their second LP Happy Like This. It finds frontman Jake Sprecher once again in his comfort zone–writing, performing, recording and mixing the entire record himself from the backyard confines of his home in the college town of Chico. You’ll hear many a blistering hook in the form of tracks like Oh I Know and Tell Me Again (How Pretty I Am) and odd-measure pushers like Nothing But Time and Starting To Lose Ya.”
Lambrini Girls | Boys In The Band
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Based in Brighton, Lambrini Girls are Phoebe Lunny and Lilly Macieira. They have a strong artistic bond over their creative common ground — hot-button societal issues combined with a biting, tongue-in-cheek lyrical style all their own. Following their debut EP You’re Welcome earlier this year, they share an important video for Boys In The Band. “We’ve been planning the release of this music video for a while and the recent events in the media just confirmed its relevance further. Our song Boys In The Band is about SA and abuse in the music scene. The recent influx of conversations of abuse culture, comes down to another bombshell revelation in pop culture when another celebrity turns out to be a nonce. However, we need to be shouting about this constantly. Opening conversations about abuse culture is appropriate all the time because this happens all the time.”
Neal Francis | Can’t Stop The Rain (Live)
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Can’t Stop The Rain (Live) is the third song off my forthcoming live album Francis Comes Alive, out Nov. 3. The album was recorded to tape at Thalia Hall in Chicago.”
Mannequin Pussy | I Don’t Know You
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Mannequin Pussy introduce their upcoming new album I Got Heaven with a video for I Don’t Know You. The album, produced by John Congleton, is due March 1. Marisa Dabice says, “This is simply a song about having a crush. About the excitement and playful fantasy that can come from meeting someone unexpectedly at a festival, or on the street, or in line at the grocery store. You don’t know when you’ll see them again but the rush of their possibility lingers, making you yearn to know more about them.”
Office Dog | Gleam
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Office Dog will release their debut album Spiel on Jan. 26. Hailing from Auckland by way of Dunedin, Aotearoa/New Zealand, the trio are led by acclaimed songwriter Kane Strang. The 12-song set was produced by De Stevens (Marlin’s Dreaming) at Roundhead Studios and was recorded over the course of two days, tracking into the early hours of the morning. Office Dog fearlessly explore the depths of complex emotions through layers of tension and release, while Spiel serves an introspective view on profound experiences, turmoil, and hopeful prospect.”
Creeper | Further Than Forever
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The towering ambition of Creeper’s larger-than-life and darker-than-death new album Sanguivore has been heralded with the best reviews of their career. Now, they showcase their black-hearted rock opera by sharing the epic and cinematic nine-minute video for its opening track Further Than Forever. The song is the most grandiose and escapist moment of the record, a rush of Jim Steinman-esque theatrics, rollicking rock riffs, prog excess, lashings of OTT dark humour, a touch of their goth-punk roots, and a spoken-word section for good measure. It introduces the story’s two main characters: The deceptively sweet but devilishly sinister vampire Mercy, an ‘Armageddon girl could end your world with one look’ and Spook, who is dangerously beguiled by her spell.”
Duxius | Good Move
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Duxius chose an unusual but fascinating setting for their latest song Good Move: The small town of Bad Sülze in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Taken from their new debut LP Remanence, Good Move tells a story of decisions: Big and small, difficult and easy, spontaneous and hesitant. Bad Sülze fascinates Edyta Rogowska-Żak, the driving force behind Duxius. She knew from her first encounter with this place: This is where her music video should be made. In the video for Good Move, the band accompany a photographer and writer on his first walk through Bad Sülze. The city itself becomes the protagonist, a silent guide and the artist meets people who proudly present their hometown. The spa town does not want to be forgotten, but wants to promote art, culture and a life worth living. The town opens its doors to guests and immigrants, including artists, creatives and entrepreneurs who, like the protagonist in Good Move, make important decisions and help shape the place.”
Minor Moon | Miriam Underwater
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “At the heart of Minor Moon’s open-ended and knotty country rock songs is an undeniably inviting lightness. Their latest offering Miriam Underwater opens with simmering interlocked guitar riffs and wah-tinged psychedelia. Buoyant, warbled pedal steel shimmers atop a driving, percussion-layered groove. Along with intimate and imaginative lyrics about a (literally) shape shifting lover, there’s a warm and inviting current of pastoral twang that ripples through the track’s playful moodiness.”
Neil Young | Before and After, Pt. 1: I’m the Ocean / Homefires / Burned
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “On his Dec. 8 album Before And After, Neil Young has approached a totally eclectic collection of mostly obscure songs like a painter with a new palette. Picking from a vast array of his originals, Young chooses favorites from his playbook like a trip into his music history and performs them mostly alone, taking a solo acoustic journey to a new place. Each of the songs blend and create one continuous flow, clocking in at a 48-minute pure and intimate listening experience. Produced by Lou Adler and Young and mixed by Young and Niko Bolas, aka The Volume Dealers, this is unlike any other album he has released to date. “The feeling is captured, not in pieces, but as a whole piece — designed to be listened to that way,” Young says. “This music presentation defies shuffling, digital organization, separation. Only for listening. That says it all.”
Mito y Comadre | Siento Una Pena
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The second single from Mito y Comadre’s debut album is Siento una Pena (I Feel Sorrow). It offers a further showcase of how Mito y Comadre are reinventing traditional Venezuelan music. Mito y Comadre are the duo of Guillermo Lares (Mito) and Shana (Comadre) who met in Bogota. Their experiment into electronic sound always pays homage to traditional musical forms — the acoustic guitar and syncopated Venezuelan rhythms define this new single. The accompanying video, produced and directed by Peruvian design studio Tenis, is an animation depicting the journey of a migrant emerging into different environments, taking a canoe trip until he/she reaches the sea.”
Lonely The Brave | Long Way
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Lonely The Brave continue to share new music from their upcoming album What We Do To Feel. True to the album’s messages of hope, togetherness and unity, Long Way’s bright and optimistic energy makes for the perfect LP opener. Guitarist Ross Smithwick says: “Musically it was a track that came together with a feeling that it offered a really positive vibe, it’s maintained a riff but certainly moves away from the dark,” vocalist Jack Bennett says. “Lyrically, it’s a bit of an exploration of the commitment of relationships and the desire to keep going no matter what.”
Sløtface & The Buoys | Fight Back Time
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Norway’s much-loved Sløtface return today to share a new collaborative single with breakout Australian indie stars The Buoys. Fight Back Time encapsulates the all-too-relatable feeling that you should always be switched-on, always be productive, and that any time not spent achieving a goal is somehow wasted. It’s about the guilt that builds up underneath that feeling and the ensuing battle to claw time back for yourself in order to retain some semblance of control. Sløtface vocalist Haley Shea says: “Fight Back Time for me is about feeling way too caught up in everything you’re doing when you have too much going on, and desperately trying to grab some pieces of your life back so that you feel in control. It’s about staying up late when you should get a good night’s sleep just to feel like you have some free time and feeling like there must be a fix to how you’re feeling out there somewhere. I love how the chorus has stacks of vocals egging me on to indulge in my bad habits, it feels very much like the voices in my head.”
Sonny Vincent | Flying
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Sonny Vincent, known as the founding member of N.Y.C. punk heroes Testors and bandmate of Bobby Liebling in the doom-metal band The Limit, has unearthed a collection of the earliest recordings from his proto-metal days. The new LP collection Primitive 1969-1976 arrives Dec. 8. Vincent was truly ahead of his time, and the world is finally catching up. These are incredible snapshots from the N.Y.C. music scene in the pre-’77 punk era. These tracks all show the foundation on which Vincent’s appeal was built: Ripping riffs, raw energy, and soulful, authentic vocals from the gutter. Criss-crossed between heavy-handed biker rock and thug rock supreme, dripping with chain grease and burnt skin, a true ball-crushing, tit-ripping rock ‘n’ roll gem for the ages, sadly unreleased and completely unknown during its time.”
The Blips | Who Took My Baby Away?
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Back in late 2019 Taylor Hollingsworth, Wes McDonald, Will Stewart, Eric Wallace and Chris McCauley collided in Birmingham’s Ol’ Elegante recording studio and wrote an album in three sessions. Their self-titled debut The Blips struck lightning. So here we are with The Blips, Again. Back with more boogie, beast and beauty. This band rolls like The Stones, haggards like Merle, and snots like Mike Ness. Again carries you on a not-too-long trip through a varied landscape of far out, well made and dusty rock songs that stick to your black boots and go with you when you go. While there are four different lead singers and writers throughout this album, it is apparent Again is executed by a band, rather than disparate musicians playing along on a track in a cold studio.”
Jaime Wyatt | Back To The Country
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Jaime Wyatt reconnects with her roots with her latest track Back To The Country. The song is a retrospective look at her wild life and the impact of a journey around Nashville. “Back To The Country is dedicated to the memory of a fan who became a friend and lost their battle with cancer,” Wyatt says. “They came on a trip to Nashville and I took them around to honky-tonks and out to the country in Goodlettsville to feed mini-ponies. It was one of the funnest times I’ve ever had, honestly. My friend passed away a couple months later and it made me start valuing my life and my time here on Earth.”
Millie Milner & The Deadnames | Lie
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Beginning as a solo project and growing into a band, Manchester’s Millie Milner & The Deadnames were forged with a stronger mission at the heart: To be the queer representation that the band’s members struggled to find in their own teenage years. Performing under the alias of their own members’ deadnames as an act of striking back they are, if anything, truly authentic to themselves. Exploring themes of youth, friendship, love and validity through their music, the group offer audiences a choice to step into their lives through the music they make or relate it back to their own lives. Whichever choice is made with Millie Milner & The Deadnames, you become not only a fan, but a member of the family that they have created for themselves.”
The Helltones | Nothing Compares To You
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Oakland garage-rockers The Helltones bring a beachy, modern doo-wop vibe to their new album Medusa (out Nov. 17), drawing inspiration from psychedelic surf, soulful Americana & retro rhythm and blues. Its harmonized backing vocals, sun-kissed handclaps, grooving organ and overdriven guitar create a cinematic album about love, addiction, picking fights, making up and navigating adulthood while maintaining your sanity. Primary songwriter Darwin Siegaldoud started playing guitar when he was eight years old in Santa Barbara, but only began treating it as a medium for self expression after high school, when he spent a year living in Israel on a kibbutz on the outskirts of Haifa. “During that kibbutz year,” says Siegaldoud, “I had these two Canadian neighbors who were both rippin’ musicians. One was a fingerstyle guitar player who liked country. He’d always play Johnny Cash and Old Crow Medicine Show songs. The other guy was a producer who had Ableton on his laptop, and he showed me the basics of recording. After work we had all this time with nowhere to go and nothing to do. I just asked them to teach me. Teach me scales. Teach me songs. They did, and after a while it sank in.”
