If It's Too Loud...

The lack of anything resembling summer this year has caused me to latch onto anything even remotely summery. This might be why I love the latest single from Vancouver's Jenny Banai so much. "Gold" is a refreshing little slightly off-kilter folk/pop. It lands almost completely squarely into the mainstream side of things, except for the slightest feel of whimsy. It stops just shy of twee, but that's mainly because of the power of Banai's vocals. She has something inherently soulful about her voice without singing soul music.  Jenny Banai explains her song "Gold": "The first lyrics of my latest single, 'Gold,' are I'm returning.  What does it mean to return? In one ancient context, it means to repent. To repent also means to change direction. This song was birthed from a direction switch I needed in my own heart; a reminder that my breath is for peace and truth. This is my source and my hope. One day, driving around the city...

Photo by Marieke Macklon This is definitely not a song written for two cis, straight, middle aged dads, but I have a feeling we're going to be loving this band for a while. The latest single from England's Dream Nails is called "Vagina Police 2.0." It's the exact kind of punk I truly love. It's loud, and brash, and catchy as possible. It's more mocking in its tone than destructive, and fits right in with the current riot grrrl revival, but with British accents which just adds to the whole feeling.  Drummer Lucy Katz explains that the song is...  “our battle-cry against the persistent and pathetic-yet-insidious obsession of the state to police our bodies at any cost. It’s a song about reproductive rights and (in)justice in all its forms.” Bassist Mimi Jassson also says:  “From abortions being illegal, to forced sterilization of trans people. We stand in solidarity with our trans siblings in the face of the UK’s repression of trans rights.” You can w...

Photo via Facebook To celebrate the twenty fifth anniversary of Elliott Smith's 1995 self-titled album (and the deluxe reissue, of course, Kill Rock Stars has asked MAITA to cover Smith's "Coming Up Roses." MAITA's version is an obviously faithful cover, albeit a little more grungey than Smith's original. She absolutely nails the "... and I don't need your permission" line in a goosebumps producing way. Our favorite covers are the ones that balance staying true to the original while still adding something unique, and MAITA does that perfectly here.  You can listen to MAITA's take on "Coming Up Roses" below. Elliott Smith: Expanded 25th Anniversary Edition  will be out August 28 on Kill Rock Stars. You can pre-order a copy here . For more on MAITA, check out the artist's website .

In a better world than ours, King Buzzo's latest acoustic album would have come out back in June, I would have gone to see him at Great Scott (RIP Great Scott), and we'd all be filled with the joy from both experiences. Instead, Gift of Sacrifice was delayed until August 14, and we're just hearing the third song off the album. "Delayed Clarity" is a six and a half minute song that goes about three minutes before there are any vocals. And (in a word that may never have been used with anything Melvins related before) it's beautiful. Granted, King Buzzo's vocals could never be described as beautiful, but once he starts singing, the menace you get in his voice complements the beauty of the music surprisingly well. And then the song ends in thirty seconds of electric squall to cleanse the palate of any Melvins fans listening. You can listen to "Delayed Clarity" below. Gift of Sacrifice , the upcoming album from King Buzzo with Trevor Dunn, will be...

Photo by Erik Weiss By now we should all know the sound of Tricky. He's been making some of the world's finest trip hop for multiple decades, and he's a living legend of the genre. His newest single, "Thinking Of," moves back towards his classic sound than the previous single's ("Fall Please") more pop leaning sound. This isn't quite Tricky's dark trip hop of the 90's, but a lighter, more positive sound. Like "Fall Please," "Thinking Of" also features vocalist Marta, who Tricky discovered before a concert in Poland where he was left without a vocalist. The promoter suggested Marta, who was working in a nearby bar. You can listen to "Thinking Of" below. Fall to Pieces , the upcoming album from Tricky, will be out September 4 on False Idols. You can pre-order the album here . For more on Tricky, check out his website . Fall to Pieces by Tricky feat. Marta

Photo by Savannah Lauren Recently Riley Pinkerton popped up in my mind. It's been a couple of years since we heard any new music from the unique roots artist, so I went to her Facebook to see what she's been up to. The most recent post, dated August 15, 2019, said " Riley Pinkerton will be continuing forth for the foreseeable future as the frontwoman of Castle Rat..." Intrigued, I checked out Castle Rat. According to Castle Rat's Bandcamp, the band isn't fronted by Riley Pinkerton but by Rat Queen. She's joined by The Count, Dr. Mouse, and Sgt. Young. To say Castle Rat presents a departure for the now Rat Queen is to put it mildly. Their debut single, "It Isn't Clean," is a Black Sabbath meets early Alice Cooper style metal. It's heavy, but in that 70's style, with some glam thrown in for good measure. It's an unexpected sound, but one that we aren't arguing! You can listen to "It Isn't Clean" below. The ...

Artist : Taylor Swift Album : folklore Quick Description : Surprise folkish release from the pop megastar. Why You Should Listen : It's either good to be on the pulse of popular music, or good to hear a nice change of pace from one of the world's most famous singers. Overall Thoughts : It's difficult to listen to Taylor Swift in a vacuum. Her star power is so bright, and the weight behind everything she produces so strong, that it's hard to just take something she puts out on its own. From her shift from pop country to straight out Top 40 music, combined with her very confessional and in-your-face lyricism, it's hard to just let go, but folklore tries, in a pandemic setting, to put some distance between Taylor Swift the star and Taylor Swift the songwriter. Here's the thing: this album is the real deal, and is arguably some of the best music she's put out (with the understanding that she has produced some superlative pop and country songs in the pas...

Photo by Ellis Martin Oakland's Body Double are set to release their debut album, and have its first single for us to hear. "The Floating Hand" is a punk song. Us old fogies will have a hard time considering this punk, as it's definitely not the traditional blend of punk. Instead it's more of that harder edge dance-ish music the kids are calling punk these days, but if we're going to agree any of this is punk, "The Floating Hand" is it. Despite not being in-your-face, the song is dripping with attitude and has some of the most punk groove I've heard in a long time. Singer and multi-intrumentalist Candace Lazarou explains the song:  ""The Floating Hand" is generally about competition, and your options for reacting to it.  I grew up in a few different countries because my dad was a Marine, and each move felt interplanetary: the language changed, what was good and bad changed, even the bugs crawling on the ground changed.  I f...

The Americana thing is pretty huge right now. With all the neo-folk and alt-country artists out nowadays, it's nearly impossible for one to stand out and do their own thing. That's what's so great about the latest song from Rachel Angel. Her latest single, "Strapped," has that familiar country/folk sound that we all know and love. However, she tweaks it just enough so that it doesn't quite sound like anything else we've heard recently in the genre. It almost has a ramblin' troubadour sound to it, but there's a little too much here for that. It's almost impossibly stripped down even though the song has full instrumentation. You really need to take a listen to "Strapped," especially if you've been burned out on Americana lately. You can listen to "Strapped" below. Highway Songs , the new EP from Rachel Angel, will be out August 21 on Public Works Records. You can pre-order the EP via Bandcamp . For more on Rachel Angel...

This summer is undeniably horrible, but one thing we can look forward to every week is Colemine Records's Brighter Days Ahead singles series. Thanks to this series we've discovered some great neo-soul bands we had never heard of, like Dojo Cuts, The Harlem Gospel Travelers, and Thee Sinseers. Last week's single was from a band we do know: Boston's GA-20. Since GA-20 throw back to traditional blues, it's quite fitting that they're covering Jimmy Reed's classic "I Ain't Got You." How faithful is GA-20's version? Jimmy Reed's original is two minutes, sixteen seconds. GA-20's is two minutes, seventeen seconds. This isn't so much a cover as a loving tribute. It's the kind of cover that will make you immediately go check out the original and then fall into a Jimmy Reed wormhole for an afternoon. And, yes, I'm speaking from personal experience. You can listen to GA-20's version of "I Ain't Got You" below. ...

Heather Valley's 2019 album Desert Message  came out of nowhere and won us over. We couldn't help but get sucked in by her timeless yet somehow unique blend of folk and country. Now, she's back with an upcoming quarantine album of covers (one of the only good things to come of this year) and one original. This original, "Emily," is a gorgeously stripped down folk song. Valley's slightly above a whisper vocals give this song an intensely intimate and personal feel, which fits everything about it. Heather Valley explains "Emily" and her upcoming album: "In March, I was on a writing retreat in West Virginia when the borders were closed. I drove home to Canada and quarantined at a haunted farm. It was lonely living on 200 acres alone, so I started playing covers of my favorite songs for comfort, and overcome by nostalgia, I remembered Emily. When I was young, Emily cared for me one summer, and brought me to the lake in my hometown o...

If you haven't been as excited as we've been for the upcoming album from Marlowe (the collaboration between L'Orange and Solemn Brigham), "Otherworld" will push you over the edge. "Otherworld" is perfect hip hop. Brigham's flow is effortlessly smooth, and has just enough of a unique delivery to set him apart from other rappers. And then there's L'Orange's production. I miss when hip hop had some discordant qualities, and L'Orange brings that back here. It has the noise of when early hip hop was bare bones and sounded like punk rock, but with a modern lush-ness to it. "Otherworld" does all of this while still being a banger (if the kids still say that.) You can listen to "Otherworld" below. Marlowe 2 , the upcoming collaborative album from L'Orange and Solemn Brigham, will be out August 7 on Mello Music Group. You can pre-order the album here . For more on L'Orange, check him out on Twitter . For Solemn ...

It's hard for a song to be just over one minute long and not leave you wanting more. But Portland, OR's Era Bleak have nailed that with "Robot." The song is one minute and nine seconds, and it's perfect just the way it is. It's a frantic blast of post punk thrashing directly towards the punk side of that genre. It's almost like if Downtown Boys tried out post punk, and succeeded marvelously. It's loud and hard and fast and just perfect. Plus, with a band name like Era Bleak, they might just be the band of 2020. You can listen to "Robot" below. Era Bleak's self-titled album will be out August 15 on Dirt Cult Records. You can pre-order a copy here . For more on Era Bleak, check them out on Facebook . Dirt Cult Records · Robot

Matt Pond PA seem to have decided to stick with that name after all, and have an upcoming EP out next month. The first single on that EP is a cover of The Thermals's 2006 song "A Pillar of Salt." While the original is a highly energetic punky/dancey romp, Matt Pond PA slows it down quite a bit. Their version ("Pillar of Salt (Still)" is much more quiet and plaintive. It's that style of too organic to be electronic but too electronic to be folk rock that only Matt Pond PA can pull off like this.  Matt Pond says of the original version: " Pillar of Salt by The Thermals has resonated with me since it was first released in the aughts. I remember disappearing into my headphones— time after time on tour after tour — to help me renew a faded sense of self and waltz in a distant mental state, where good always prevails over evil." You can listen to "Pillar of Salt (Still)" below. Matt Pond PA have also released "Pillar of Salt (Stir...

Photo by Nicole Loucaides We've been getting more and more obsessed with the upcoming album from Fenne Lily. If you've been on the edge, her latest single, "Berlin," will definitely push you over the edge. "Berlin" is that kinda folk, kinda indie rock, kinda pop music that's been all the rage (at least with us) lately. It's an impossibly gorgeous mid-tempo song that slowly and slowly builds into a crescendo of the most beautiful fuzzed out guitar solos you've heard in years. The song is quiet and loud all at the exact same time. Plus, it features Lucy Dacus and Ali Chant on backing vocals. Fenne Lily says of "Berlin": “ When I was 21 I spent a month alone in Berlin. While I was there, I recorded everything I did as a voice note or in a sketchbook, even if it was boring. On the plane ride home, my phone packed up and I lost all my song ideas from my trip. Initially, it felt as though I’d lost a part of my brain, but gradually pie...

I had never heard of Jerry Joseph until yesterday, but any time Drive-By Truckers are go ing to be someone's backing band, you're going to get my attention. And if Patterson Hood says that a song "...  might be the most punk rock song I’ve heard in twenty years (or more)," I'm in. For some background, Jerry Joseph has been in various bands (Little Women, Jerry Joseph & The Jackmormons, Stockholm Syndrome) since the early 80's. His upcoming solo album was produced by Patterson Hood, and Drive-By Truckers are acting as his band. "Sugar Smacks," the most punk rock song Patterson Hood has heard this century, is indeed punk as hell... but not in the traditional sense. It's a seven minute rant set to music. Jerry Joseph lets loose with spoken word for nearly the entire length of the song, which doesn't sound like a Drive-By Truckers song in the least. Instead, it's a funky yet scary psychedelic jam, more along the lines of those weirdo ...

Every so often I'll find a song that I'm not completely sold on. It's undeniably good, but I'm not certain it personally works for me. Typically these take a little longer to fully work their way into my brain, and I eventually become completely obsessed with them. That seems to be the case with Bethany Thomas's "I'm Not Sorry And I'm Not Scared." It starts off with a hard rock guitar riff, which quickly disappears. The song then restarts as a heavier than normal R&B song, the kind you would hear in the 90's from En Vogue or Janet Jackson. But the song never loses its hard rock base, playing fully in both. It completely borders the typically separate worlds of hard rock and R&B. This is what both draws me in and pushes me away from the song in confusion. But, the more I listen, the more I'm getting drawn in. You can listen to "I'm Not Sorry And I'm Not Scared" below. BT/She/Her , the upcoming album from Bethany...

Photo by Savanna Hughes Girlpuppy is the moniker of Atlanta based Becca Harvey. Back in April she released a love song called "For You," and three months later comes "Cheerleader," a break up song about the same person. "Cheerleader" is about Harvey wanting her dog back from her ex. It's a lush, gorgeous song in its obvious melancholy. Harvey's vocals are what will truly pull you in. She has this softness and vulnerability that is palpable through a recording. The quiet instrumentation and harmonized vocals complement the song perfectly. "Cheerleader" is the kind of song that is going to stick with you for a long, long time. You can listen to "Cheerleader" below. For more on Girlpuppy, check out the artist on Twitter and Bandcamp . On Bandcamp you'll also find a perfect cover of Mazzy Star's "Fade Into You," so you'll want to check that out.

Photo by Ryan Mastro The latest single from Brooke Annibale is modern day folk/pop/indie rock done to perfection. "Home Again" stops just shy of being laid back, and is a dreamy tale of falling in love. Annibale's voice blends effortlessly into the music, giving a listener a joyful sense of the hypnotic. It's filled with hope, and optimism, and is clearly about the beginning of the relationship. The good news is that Annibale and the song's inspiration are engaged. The bad news is, they were supposed to be married on June 26, 2020.  Brooke Annibale explains the song :  “I wrote this song at the beginning of a relationship: a song about falling in love, figuring out how to communicate our love for one another, and ultimately build a life and home together. Over a year after I wrote it, I proposed to my girlfriend (she said yes), and we set our wedding date for June 26, 2020. For the past several months, I have looked forward to this day, a special day of ce...

Photo by Rachael Pony Cassells Just in case we weren't excited enough about Jess Cornelius's album being released Friday, she went and released another single to give us more to look forward to. "Here Goes Nothing" is a light and breezy sounding song, perfect for the summer. Laid back without being slow, the song has a modern folk/pop meets 60's soul and doo wop sound. It's an impossible to dislike track that is going to suck you in deeper and deeper the longer and more you listen to it. This is all despite, according to the press release, the song being about "...  Cornelius [parrying] with a messy affair." Jess Cornelius explains the song:  “ ‘Here Goes Nothing’ is about fantasy, really – the way we unconsciously create dramatic situations as an escape from whatever in our lives isn’t working. But I’m not saying that’s a bad thing. We need fantasy – you could argue that we’ve built entire lives on it." You can watch the lyric video for...

Photo by Megan Toenyes As much as I hated having to wait four years for new music from Lydia Loveless, it's understandable. She chose to take a break after touring for Real , split from her husband, moved from Ohio to North Carolina, and... everything else that has happened over the past four years. She's back with a new single, and it was completely worth the wait. "Love Is Not Enough" is fantastic. It shows a melding of the more pop side Loveless explored on Real with her country roots. It's much less rambunctious than other songs we've heard from her in the past, which isn't a bad thing at all. "Love Is Not Enough" shows a songwriter truly coming into her own and growing in confidence. If this doesn't get you excited for her upcoming album, nothing will. Lydia Loveless says about the new song:  “The song is a response to the old-fashioned idea that love is all you need as opposed to understanding, or give and take. On a larger scal...

Artist : Samantha Crain Album : A Small Death Quick Description : Latest from the folkie. Why You Should Listen : Crain has established herself as one of the best... Overall Thoughts : ...I just don't know why she isn't huge on the scene. She has such a great tone, and she's settled into a really great spot where she churns out better and better records, but I don't hear her name out and about a lot. This is more than worth your time, and is absolutely one of the better folk records of late and the best one this week. Dive in, then go into her back catalog - if you're not on the bandwagon, you're missing out. Recommendation : Mandatory listen this week. Artist : Illuminati Hotties Album : FREE I.H.: This is Not the One You've Been Waiting For Quick Description : New micro-album from an indie favorite. Why You Should Listen : In terms of quarantine content, this is good. Overall Thoughts : If we're being true to ourselves, this is a bit of...

Society has told us time and time again that pop punk and ska are both terrible forms of music and that any self respecting music fan hates them both. And, for the most part, I agree. But then something like the latest single from Devon Kay & the Solutions slips through my music snob defenses and I end up loving it. "252 Brighton Avenue" is an impossibly bouncy ska punk jam that is an ode to Boston, despite the band being based in Chicago. It's possible that it's my love of Boston and how much I miss this area of Allston that is home to Brighton Music Hall, The Paradise (kinda), and the dearly departed Great Scott, but "252 Brighton Avenue" is just a fun song. The song also marks Devon Kay & the Solutions's expansion from a three piece to a six piece with a horn section. It also showcases the band's ability to record despite its members living on opposite coasts. You can watch the video for "252 Brighton Avenue" below. The singl...

Photo by Duncan Wright Nuer musician Gordon Koang was born blind in what is now South Sudan. He began playing music on the streets of Juba, has fought for the independence of South Sudan, and is known there as the "King of Music." However, he recently moved to Australia as an asylum seeker, and was granted permanent residency right after finishing his latest album. "South Sudan" is the latest single off that album. It's about a man Koang knew in South Sudan and his work to keep the community out of poverty. The song is an absolute celebration. I doubt many of our readers understand Nuer (Koang's native language), but music this joyful can still be widely enjoyed. Unity features Koang collaborating with Australian musicians, giving the songs a true cross cultural feel and appeal. "South Sudan" is true folk music, and even if you're not usually a seeker of World music, you owe it to yourself to experience this song. You can watch the vide...

Photo by Rich Ferri It's impossible for us not to be fans of NOVA ONE's debut album lovable from earlier this year. Now Roz Raskin's musical project has released their cover of Britney Spears's hit "Lucky." There is a studio version of "Lucky" on the vinyl release of lovable , but this is the only non-vinyl version of this song. It was recorded roughly seven years ago in December 2019 in Big Nice Studio. It's a stunningly gorgeous version of the song, keeping the modern pop sound of Britney's original but adding the indie rock meets doo wop sound that makes us obsessed with NOVA ONE. For cover song fans like us, this is exactly the kind of thing that we love. You can watch the video for NOVA ONE's take on "Lucky" below. For more on NOVA ONE, check out the artist's website .