If It's Too Loud...

Photo by Daisy & Tomos Ayscough For their latest single (and the closing track on their upcoming album), mary in the junkyard have released an epic indie rock power ballad. "Mouse" is a gorgeous and powerful track. It starts off as quiet as it could possibly be, feeling deeply personal. Even as the volume and tempo speeds up, the song continues feeling intimate. Even at its most quiet, "Mouse" is a great song and would be one of our favorites of the year. However, when more instruments and volume kick in, mary in the junkyard suck you in even deeper. This is one of our favorite tracks of the year, and makes us more desperate to hear the full album, which is due out next month. Clari Freeman-Taylor (vocals, guitar, violin, viola) says of the band's latest single: “I went to Iceland and became obsessed with the ocean. I remembered I was a fisherman in a former life with a mouse in my pocket, lost in a storm. It is about me reconnecting with the mouse when they...

Just a few weeks ago we brought you a list of upcoming summer music festivals to check out since Boston Calling, The Capitol Groove, Back Cove Music and Arts Festival, New England Metal and Hardcore Festival, and FreshGrass aren't taking place this year. It was a list of seven diverse festivals, and now we have more to share! Prescott Park Arts Festival, Portsmouth, NH, June 22 through September 6 Not a traditional music festival, but the Prescott Park Arts Festival has been one of my New England summer highlights for over ten years now. The festival is mainly a family friendly play (this year is Cinderella), but for our purposes they bring in some fantastic musical artists throughout the summer. Plus, it's only a $20 suggested donation (we implore you to donate so they keep putting these on) to see artists that would cost far more at any other venue. The artists tend to be more along the lines of folk and Americana, and this year brings a bunch of our favorites to seacost New ...

Regulator Watts formed back in 1994 when Hoover disbanded and guitarist and singer Alex Dunham formed the new band with Cret Wilson and Areif Sless-Kitain. We haven't heard from the trio in thirty years, but last week they returned with "It's Gonna Happen." If Dischord Records or D.C. post-hardcore mean anything to you, you're going to love this new song. It sounds like it could have been lifted from anytime in the 90's, and it shows that the past three decades haven't slowed down Regulator Watts the slightest bit. It's loud, it's discordant, and it has just enough melody to keep it from devolving into pure noise. Dunham has one of the best yells out there today, and "It's Gonna Happen" is guaranteed to hit you right in the primal part of your brain. You can listen to "It's Gonna Happen" below. kWh is due out August 14 on Solid Brass, and is available for pre-order through Bandcamp . For more on Regulator Watts, check ou...

Photo by Cooper Smith Nashville's Taylor Bickett has a brand new song out that is good enough to defy genres. "Driving in the Dark" shows off the pop rock side of the singer-songwriter while just the slightest country twang. The song is intensely emotional, and about "... the reckless intensity of loving someone even when you know it's headed for disaster." This is a depiction of a wildly unhealthy relationship. It has that pop meets indie rock sound we can't get enough of these days, with a heavy lean towards the pop side of things. Taylor Bickett is showing incredible promise with "Driving in the Dark," and you'll be just as excited about her upcoming debut album once this you hear her latest single. Taylor Bickett says of her latest single: “'Driving In The Dark' tells the story of a couple so intertwined they leave claw marks on each other when it’s over. They’d rather hurt each other than be apart. It’s like driving with your h...

Montreal's Taxi Girls have a new single out that adds some power pop to their garage punk sound. "Secret Handshake" is undeniably catchy and totally upbeat. Listen once and try not to get the chorus or the "Ooooh ooooh"s out of your head. As sugary sweet and poppy as the song is, Taxi Girls still keep a punk edge in the song. I'm personally a sucker for garage rock and power pop, so I'm the target audience for "Secret Handshake." Aside from that, you're going to love this one. It's a great song that is quite simply irresistible.  You can listen to "Secret Handshake" below. Static is due out June 26 on Stomp Records, and is available for pre-order through Bandcamp . For more on Taxi Girls, check out the band on Instagram and Facebook .

Photo by Alina Andreea Grigorescu Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio have returned with their first new music in four years with a new single, "Chicken Leg." The new song and its B-side were recorded during the I Told You So sessions and feature Jimmy James (Parlor Greens) on guitar and Grant Schroff (Polyrhythmics, Champagne Bubblebath) on drums. The song is perfectly funky, and is the kind of instrumental that doesn't need any vocals. The organ is front and center on "Chicken Leg," which is kind of obvious given the band's name. James' guitar sets down a perfect groove, and if you aren't moved to groove even the slightest, you may need to check to make sure you have a soul. You can listen to "Chicken Leg" below. The single is out now on Colemine Records. For more on Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio, check out the band's website . Upcoming tour dates are below the song. Mon, JUN 8 - Garcia's- Chicago, IL Tue, JUN 9- Thunderbird Café & Music Hall...

The Pines of Rome formed in 1999, released an album in 2003, and then disbanded. The Providence slowcore band reformed in 2023 and released The Unstruck Bell , and are now back with a new album due this month. They have a new single out that feels more early 90's college rock than what I typically consider to be slowcore. "Brass Knuckles" is a little more jangle pop, and kind of sounds like if Toad the Wet Sprocket were on Dischord. The song is shockingly epic, with layers of fuzz coating some terrific harmonies. If you're just discovering The Pines of Rome for the first time like we are, you're going to wonder how they've existed for almost three decades without you knowing. Luckily, they have some already released music to tide us over while we wait for the new album. You can listen to "Brass Knuckles" below. When You are as Full as the Moon is due out June 16 on Solid Brass, and is available for pre-order via Bandcamp . For more on The Pines of Ro...

Photo via Facebook Rachel Sumner & Traveling Light have a new song out that borders traditional folk and folk pop. Musically, "Yodelay" is pure traditional folk. It's made with traditional instruments, with vocal harmonies being the main focus. But, it also sounds so smooth and poppy that we can't help but get some folk pop vibes. This is a simple song that is fully mesmerizing, and fans of any form of folk or Americana is going to find a lot to love with "Yodelay." Rachel Sumner & Traveling Light are one of the most underrated artists in Boston, and songs like this latest single show exactly why.  You can watch the video for "Yodelay" below. Rachel Sumner & Traveling Light's new EP is due out June 19. For more on the artist, check out their website . Upcoming tour dates are below the video and include July 11 at Westport River Vineyards in Westport, MA opening for Lucy Kaplansky, September 19 at Scenic Songs Hiking Concert in Peter...

Photo by Sorcha Frances Ryder Dundalk, Ireland's finest folk punk band, The Mary Wallopers, are back with a new single. "Crowns of England" is everything we've always loved from the band. It mixes traditional Celtic folk with a punk edge, but the song also sees them moving their sound forward. It's more palatable for a mainstream audience, but without losing the edge and everything that makes them great. This new sound is kind of like a Trojan horse to trick your co-workers into enjoying it. Audibly, "Crowns of England" might be less rough around the edges than we're used to from The Mary Wallopers, but the message and bite certainly isn't. Charles Hendy says of his band's latest single: “The song is about being in England and feeling like an outsider in all that colonialism.  And it’s about Irish people who move to London and then assimilate by trying to get away from being Irish. That outsider status could apply to immigrants generally, or ...

Photo courtesy Today Junior Today Junior are an indie fuzz-punk band out of Boston. They have a new single out today, and it's the kind of song that makes me wish local modern rock radio still existed. "Keep On Pushing Me" has such great crossover potential. The song is layered in fuzz and perfectly jangly, with vocal melodies that creep right on the mainstream while still having a punk element. This is punk that insists you dance. Not just mosh or pogo, but actual dancing. Considering "Keep On Pushing Me" is about how the entire world seems to be collapsing with government overreach and the constantly ballooning of the cost of living, the song is shockingly upbeat. Of course, a song with that subject matter probably should be the Song of the Summer in 2026... Today Junior day of their latest single: “To us, it’s about not giving up when it feels like you are being pushed off the path you’re trying to achieve. It’s about being resilient and having determination ...

Painting by Robert Smith; Design by Derek Smith We've grown accustomed to the folk and psychedelia leaning sounds of Derek Smith and the Cosmic Vultures, but on their latest, the Boston band moves into a different sound. "Lady Bathory" is still steeped in psychedelia, and there are elements of Americana in the song, but this is more of an alt-rock track. It's much heavier than we're used to hearing from them while still sounding like a Derek Smith and the Cosmic Vultures track. This isn't so much a complete left turn into a new sound as it is an expansion on what we love from them. For someone as prolific as Smith is, he keeps releasing fantastic new music. Derek Smith says of his band's latest single: “The song is about confusion. We have come to the point on this planet where we don’t know what’s real or fake anymore. We can’t trust anything we see or hear. Everything is a fucking lie.”  You can listen to "Lady Bathory" below. For more on Derek...

Photo by Travis Gillett While touring with Built to Spill, Melanie Radford began going on long walks through cities and neighborhoods, making field recordings as she walked. Those field recordings became the basis for her upcoming solo album with melodies and rythyms being built based on the recordings. Her latest single, "Philadelphia," has its field recording taken behind Union Transfer in Philadelphia. The song is a stunning ambient folk track that commands attention by being so quiet. Despite being so quiet, the song has a certain tension to it based on the drone building behind Radford's vocals and bass. It can work on the level of being just a good song to listen to, and it also works on being an experimental piece of art. "Philadelphia" is a unique and engaging track, and we're thrilled to bring it to you. You can watch the video for "Philadelphia" below. For the Sake of Stillness is due out June 26 on Jealous Butcher Records, and is availab...

Vulture Twin are a duo out of Chapel Hill, NC featuring Elizabeth Vallero (vocals, guitar) and Eddie Sanchez (drums, bass, synthesizer), who used to be in The Love Language and Fing Fang Foom. They recently released a three song self-titled EP that's going to be loved by fans of 90's indie rock, particularly the North Carolina scene. The songs have a noisy and drone-y quality to them, with a lo-fi element that is decidedly a feature of the songs. Plus, all three tracks are heavy on psychedelia, which is only aided by the use of synthesizers. Maybe it's because I've been listening to a lot of Fiery Furnaces in anticipation of their show in Somerville, but I'm getting vibes of a trippier version of that band. Vulture Twin knocked it out of the park on their debut release, and we can't wait to hear more from them. You can listen to Vulture Twin's new EP below. It's out now on Fort Lowell Records, and is available via Bandcamp . For more on Vulture Twin, che...

Photo by Swan Studio According to the press release, "The music of Leenalchi is taken from pansori , a traditional Korean style of musical storytelling that tells epic tales of love, virtue, and sorrow." The Seoul based band has a new single out, and it's one of the most unique sounds we've heard in a while. "Bird" is a simple and complex track that (as far as Western sounds go) mixes indie rock, pop, hip hop, and R&B. This is one of those rare times that I can't compare a band or song to another artist. "Bird" has such a unique sound, even though it has some roots in music you already love. As soon as you listen to this song (repeatedly), you'll be joining us in a deep dive into Leenalchi's catalog.  You can watch the video for "Bird" below. Here Comes That Crow is due out June 12 on Luaka Bop. For more on Leenalchi, check out the artist's website . Upcoming tour dates are below the video and include an October 31 dat...