If It's Too Loud...

Photo by Grant Hindsley According to the press release for "Bronwyn," Hannah Frances makes music that is "progressive avant-folk, progressive rock, and folk-jazz." It may be all of those things, but "Bronwyn" sounds much more accessible than that. The new song may be unique and push a boundary or two between genres back, but Frances starts the song off in such a (mostly) standard folk and singer-songwriter way that you're already sucked in before you realize you're listening to one of the most unique and compelling songs in the various genres. "Bronwyn" cycles through sounds and changes so slowly and gracefully that you hardly notice as it happens until you realize you're listening to something completely different around the halfway mark of the song. And then it just keeps getting better and better. You can watch the video for "Bronwyn" below. Keeper of The Shepherd is due out March 1 on Ruination Record Co., and is availab...

Photo by Ruben Alvarado Jackie West was born in Boston, raised in St. Louis, and now lives in Brooklyn. Her latest single, "Tiny Flowers ii," has a surprisingly elegant sound that elevates it above the typical singer-songwriter fare out there. Something about West's song is just impossibly captivating. As soon as "Tiny Flowers ii" starts, you'll feel the need to drop everything and focus fully on the music. West has also worked as a jazz singer in Manhattan clubs, and despite how sparse and non-jazz the song is, some of that sneaks its way through.  You can watch the video for "Tiny Flowers ii" below. The single is available now via Ruination Record Co. For more on Jackie West, check out the artist on Instagram .

Sarah Goldstone has spent the last few years playing with artists like Lucy Dacus, boygenius, and Hurray for the Riff Raff. Now she's releasing her own music and her debut album. Her new single, "Athens 1975," is going to appeal to fans of the band's she's previously played with while still sounding like her own thing. Goldstone is playing in the land in between pop, folk, and indie rock with this single. It has a little more of a light and breezy feel to it, and has an almost bedroom pop quality to it. Goldstone's vocals are quiet but have a certain something to them that makes you want to listen more intently to make sure you fully hear her. "Athens 1975" isn't background music. This is a song that is going to demand your full attention to be appreciated. You can watch the video for "Athens 1975" below. Waving is due out December 1 on Ruination Record Co, and is available to pre-order through Bandcamp . For more on Sarah Goldstone, ch...

Photo by Rose Bernhard Chicago's Hannah Frances is making folk music that skirts the mainstream but is firmly in the alt-folk world. Her latest single, "Floodplain," is a song that is absolutely beautiful and stunning at times but a challenging listen at others. It's an odd mixture of Nick Drake and Fiona Apple's Fetch the Bolt Cutters. There is an underlying feeling that Frances is trying to make a hit adult contemporary song, but keeps getting pulled into the odder side of folk. There is unique instrumentation used at various points in the song, and Frances' vocals occasionally meander off away from the tempo of the music without warning. It's one of the more interesting and compelling takes on the genre this year. Hannah Frances says of her new single: “Floodplains are bodies of water composed of sediment deposited during flooding and erosion. As I was nearing the end of a grief cycle and releasing narratives that were keeping me stagnant in my growth, ...

Sluice is the current musical project of Durham, NC musician Justin Morris. The band's latest single, "Centurion," is quite close to being a simple modern folk song, although at the very least a very artsy one. But as the song goes on, Sluice adds more and more indie rock noise to it. Plus, it has these drums that are very upbeat and make you want to bop around a little. And then the swirling guitar noise comes in and out like no one is able to control it even though they're really trying. It makes for a truly unique song made up of so many parts all smushed together expertly.  You can listen to "Centurion" below. Radial Gate is due out March 3 on Ruination Record Co. The album can be pre-ordered at Bandcamp .  Radial Gate by Sluice

Cincinatti's Mol Sullivan has been making music for about ten years, but she's about to release her first studio album. The first single, "A Little Hello," is one of the most unique slices of indie pop we've heard in a while. The song is an upbeat indie pop song that is reminding me a lot of Juliana Hatfield (both Sullivan's voice and the way she delivers the phrase "give it a spin"), but a far poppier version. (It's kind of like a hybrid of Juliana Hatfield and newer artists like Lucy Dacus.) As pop as the song may be, Sullivan injects just enough of an indie rock edge into "A Little Hello" to keep it from being too pop for some of us snobbier listeners. There are also the occasional country twang flourishes that give the song an entirely different vibe. This is a fun song that is going to win over a lot of people. You can watch the video for "A Little Hello" below. A Little Hello , the EP, is due out February 3 on Ruination ...