If It's Too Loud...

Photo from Facebook The legendary Throwing Muses keep getting more and more intriguing as time goes on. Their latest single, "Frosting," is perfect for long term fans of the Rhode Island natives. It has the same intensity that classic Throwing Muses has, albeit a little more laid back than they were thirty years ago. It's nearly impossible to keep your sound this intense while being more laid back, but the Muses somehow pull it off. Plus, the slight sound of discordant noise lingering behind the entire track is some of the grooviest noise you would have ever thought possible.  You can watch the video for "Frosting" below. Sun Racket , the upcoming album from Throwing Muses, will be out September 4th via Fire Records. You can pre-order a copy here . For more on Throwing Muses, check them out on Facebook and Twitter .

Ska-punk might be the most maligned genre in existence. It's something we're supposed to listen to as teenagers and then abandon completely, embarrassed and hoping no one ever brings it up. Devon Kay & the Solutions might change that. Their latest single, "Oh Glorious Nothing," is bouncy ska-punk. Like, ridiculously bouncy. It has all the fun from ska that we enjoyed in high school and college, but with a more grown up, adult sound. I mean, sure... anything that is ska or punk is going to make you feel a little silly when you're in your 30's and 40's, but "Oh Glorious Nothing" is the closest we're going to get to ska-punk made for adults.  You can watch the video for "Oh Glorious Nothing" below. The song is available now on A-F Records via Bandcamp . For more on Devon Kay & the Solutions, be sure to check out their website .

In the wake of the end of The Sheila Divine (although maybe not, since Aaron Perrino announced he will still use the name and the band was listed for this year's obviously cancelled Boston Calling), Aaron Perrino has finally released some music as a solo artist. Dystopian Demos doesn't sound like The Sheila Divine at all. Some of the songs on the EP have more of a pop sound and less of a guitar. "The Sun Will Grow" and "Dylan the Villain" have a lo-fi New Wave feel to them. "A Love Uncertain" sounds a little more like newer Sheila Divine, but still not quite exactly the same. "Virus Got Me Doing Vaporwave" is nearly an 80's style electronic ballad.  You can listen to "A Love Uncertain" below. Dystopian Demos  is now available on The Sheila Divine's Bandcamp . For more on Aaron Perrino, check out The Sheila Divine on Facebook and Twitter . Dystopian Demos by The Sheila Divine

We're in the doldrums of summer, and the new releases this week (along with a few we missed) aren't ones I have a lot to say about, so some quick hits. Highlights: * Vanilla Sugar - She (If She Makes War and Poppy had a kid.) * Allegra Krieger - The Joys of Forgetting (Solid, interesting listen.) * Matt Pond PA - Songs of Disquiet (Awesome as always.) * Marlowe - Marlowe 2 (Nearly as good as the first one.) * Grain Thief - Gasoline * Leila Moss - Who the Power Of note: * Jacknife Lee - The Jacknife Lee (Interesting release from the noteworthy producer.) * Peggy Gou - Play Gou (Billed as a workout mixtape, it's a solid electronic sampler.) * Pomplamoose - Lucid Dreaming Soundtrack * Helvetia - This Devastating Map * Jason Molina - Eight Gates * Jody Glenham - Mood Rock * Jenny O. - New Truth * Washed Out - Purple Noon * Mary Chapin Carpenter - The Dirt and The Stars * New Fries - Is the Idea of Us * Figueroa - The World As We Know It EPs: * L...

Photo by Tamara Staples I first discovered Mamie Minch at the 2012 (I think?) Freshgrass Festival, and became enamoured with her combination of folk and blues. It's been a long, long time, but Minch is finally releasing new music. "Deep Footsteps," the first album off her upcoming EP, is a perfect intro to Minch. It's a down home folk/blues/soul song. There's no pretense here, just a great song from a great musician. "Deep Footsteps" leans a little more to the blues side of the musical spectrum than folk, but with Minch's voice, it's kind of hard not to at least be a little bluesy. You can listen to "Deep Footsteps" below. Slow Burn , the upcoming EP from Mamie Minch, will be out August 18. You can pre-order a copy via Bandcamp . For more on Mamie Minch, check out the artist's Facebook page . Slow Burn by Mamie Minch

Photo via Facebook Squirrel Nut Zippers were by far the best band to come out of the 90's swing revival. Most others seemed to be more tongue in cheek or like caricatures of swing bands. Squirrel Nut Zippers always seemed to legitimately love the music they were playing, which is why they're still at it decades later. When you listen to their new single, "Animule Ball" (a cover of a 1938 song from Jelly Roll Morton), it's not a stretch to say that they're making the best music of their career now. "Animule Ball" is deeply rooted in jazz and ragtime, and it fits squarely in the current Americana craze going on right now. If you haven't listened to Squirrel Nut Zippers for the past twenty-plus years, you owe it to yourself to give this one a listen. You can watch the Fleischer Studios inspired video for "Animule Ball" below. Lost Songs of Doc Souchon , the upcoming album from Squirrel Nut Zippers, will be out September 25. For more ...

Back when Linnea Herzog announced the formation of Linnea's Garden after Powerslut disbanded, I assumed she was going to tone down the subject matter of her songs. Well... that is definitely not the case. "Like the Patriarchy," the latest single from Linnea's Garden is a noisy, dance friendly burst of power pop, with a chorus that includes "I wanna fuck you like the patriarchy." Other lyrics like "Lift me onto the sink 'til I can't even think" and "On the floor, want it more" show that Herzog is just getting started. Plus, "Like the Patriarchy" might be the catchiest song we've brought you in months. You're going to find yourself singing these lines to yourself while walking your toddler around the neighborhood or sending out work emails, so be warned. You can watch the video for "Like the Patriarchy" below. The song is currently available on Linnea's Garden's Bandcamp . For more on Linnea...

In a world where STL GLD's 2017 song "I Can't Breathe" sounds like it was written last week, we've been desperately waiting to hear something new from the Boston hip hop group. Last week they came back with "My Block," and we are definitely not disappointed. "My Block" is a slow burn of a song that seethes with intensity. If you were to just listen to it in the background, it might sound fairly chill, but if you focus on the song at all, you'll be sucked in by just how intense it is. And that's before the gang chorus kicks in. It has an almost dirty feel to it, despite how slick the production is. Let's just hope this is the beginning of a flurry of new music from STL GLD. You can watch the video for "My Block" below. The song is available now via AR Classic Records. It's available through multiple platforms here . For more on STL GLD, check out their website .

Earlier this year, in the before times, we were thrilled to bring you Brooklyn's Answering Machine, a pop punk band that includes two public school teachers and their grown up pop punk sound. Considering how much we love covers, we're even more thrilled to bring you their cover of The Clash's "Clampdown." It's a surprisingly stripped down acoustic cover, but Answering Machine make it work. I typically get very judgmental over Clash covers that change the original, but these folks do it right! You can listen to Answering Machine's version of "Clampdown" below. The song is available on ATTENTION: A Black Lives Matter Compilation from Wiretap Records. It's an all covers compilation raising money for Black Lives Matter, and also includes American Television covering Operation Ivy. You can get your copy via Bandcamp . For more on Answering Machine, check them out on Facebook . ATTENTION: A Black Lives Matter Compilation by Answering Machine

Photo via Facebook As much as we've heard from Sarah Shook over the last few years, we've never heard her stripped down like this before. She's currently writing for a new album, and she's made an acoustic demo available for us to preview. "Stone Door" is a gorgeous song, which is a way I never thought I'd describe a Sarah Shook song. Her voice keeps that same sound we've always loved from her, but she's singing far more beautifully than we've heard her sing before. The country-punk is missing from this song, and instead it's a straight up country song. Just hearing Shook with a guitar is a completely new sound, and one that has us as intrigued as we are thrilled to hear a new record. You can watch the lyric video for "Stone Door" below. To keep track of what Sarah Shook is up to with her upcoming album, be sure to follow her on Facebook and Twitter .

Juanita Stein, formerly of Howling Bells, is set to release her third solo album. "Snapshot," the new single from the album, has some folk adjacent qualities, but is otherwise hard to pin down. It's almost mainstream, but goes off in too many bizarre directions to be mainstream, even though it's definitely not exactly experimental. It starts off in a hypnotic, kind of mellow way, and then just progresses into a more full, more odd direction. And then it just keeps evolving into different directions. It's almost like the song branches out like a tree while the main structure remains the same. If anything, it's similar to some of The Beatles's more oddball songs. You can watch the video for "Snapshot" below. Snapshot , the new album from Juanita Stein, will be out October 2 on Nude Records. You can pre-order the album here . For more on Juanita Stein, check out her website .

Photo by Rachel Winslow Gothic country should be a much bigger genre. the duo known as Anne Malin recently moved from South Bend, IN to Nashville, and are set to release their second album. The first single, "Empty is the Day," may not be for everyone, but it really should be. The song is gorgeous, but also a rough listen. The song is purposefully painful, almost like traditional country listened to through an dark prism. "Haunted" is a cliched description for music, but "Empty is the Day" sounds truly haunted, almost as if singer Anne Malin Ringwalt simply needs to exorcise herself the song in order to be free of it. If that doesn't convince you to listen, I don't know what will. You can listen to "Empty is the Day" below. Waiting Song , the new album from Anne Malin, will be out October 2. You can pre-order a copy on Bandcamp . For more on Anne Malin, check out their website . Waiting Song by Anne Malin

British Columbia's Jesse Roper is making folk music for giant festivals. His latest single, "Right Now," takes the normally quiet and personal genre and makes it huge. Sure, there are other folk/Americana artists that play arenas, but they typically lose what makes folk great. "Right Now" is a huge arena ready folk/rock song that keeps the true spirit of folk alive, despite being a huge rock song. It starts off simply enough, like most more mainstream folk songs do these days. And then it just keeps getting bigger and louder as the song goes on. Plus, it couldn't be more obvious in its political leanings. As the press release says, " Roper  doesn't expect this song to change the world. He does, however, want to rock the fuck out, sing things into a microphone that he believes, and crush guitar riffs." You can listen to "Right Now" below. Horizons , the upcoming album from Jesse Roper, will be out soon. For more on Jesse Roper, che...

Photo by Gregory Berg Mickey Leigh is best knows as Joey Ramone's brother and the author of I Slept With Joey Ramone: A Family Memoir. He's also been in bands since he was ten, including Birdland (with music journalist Lester Bangs), The Rattlers, and Sibling Rivalry (with Joey Ramone). Anyone with this kind of musical legacy will immediately get a listen from us, and his latest single does not disappoint.  His current project, Mickey Leigh's Mutated Music, has released a single. "Little Cristine" is a catchy as hell garage punk rock song. It's fuzzed out with huge guitars and a groove that has to be heard. If you were even slightly intrigued by his bio, "Little Cristine" is going to be a perfect listen for you. You can watch the video for "Little Cristine" below. The song is available as a single on transparent red vinyl via Wicked Cool Records (and digitally) here . For more on Mickey Leigh's Mutated Music, check out his websi...

Photo by Mark Howe When a band forms over a shared love of Yo La Tengo, any aging Gen-X hipster can't help but check them out. Hailing from Sheffield, Crawlies are far from a Yo La Tengo cover band, but the influence is definitely there. Their new single, "Old News," is a progressively glorious slow burn of an indie rock jam. It has more of the dreamy, swirling quality than aggressive noise, and will suck you straight in as you listen. It's all harmonies and organ, and I promise you it's far more compelling than that sounds.  Tom of Crawlies explains the song:  “It started off as a demo with just Sarah and a keyboard but we changed it to an organ and added a big fuzzy bassline and some drums to make it sound bolder. It’s very simple but sounds really interesting when it builds up to the louder sections and almost turns from ‘sad and a bit lonely’ into this big cathartic release. When the drums change at the end it makes me want to give someone a hug.” Yo...