If It's Too Loud...

Photo by Angel Alcala East Los Angeles garage punk band Hyper Minds have a new-ish single out off their upcoming album, and it's a must hear. "Sink or Swim" is more punk than garage. It's a fast and furious song with just enough fuzz on the guitar to keep it sounding garage. It's filled with gang vocals, and it's chaos that's just barely held together. This is amped up classic sounding punk, and at just under three minutes long, "Sink or Swim" feels like it's an epic. Hyper Minds have a breakneck sound on their hands, and punk fans are going to love this one. Roland (guitar, vocals) says of his band's new single: “I want people to know that they’re not alone in the struggle, and there shouldn’t be any shame or embarrassment attached to the challenges they face in their lives." You can listen to "Sink or Swim" below. Hyper Minds' upcoming album will be released on DC-Jam Records. For more on the band, check them out on I...

Photo by Cole Crusciel I'm admittedly a Tysk Tysk Task superfan, so I'm going to rave about virtually everything they release. That being said, they have something truly special with their latest single. "Home Now" is meant as a follow up to "Ocean Now" from 2022's You're Sorry More. This new song is truly gorgeous while still expressing raw emotion. It doesn't have that explosive quality that we typically associate with the Lowell band, but it's still powerful. "Home Now" is a slow burn, and it makes the noisier payoff towards the end matter even more. Rather than a typical loud/quiet/loud song, it's more quiet/less quiet/louder/less quiet/loud. The song is morphing through virtually its entire six minute length, and listening is a fully cathartic experience. There is less of Tysk Tysk Task's more current shoegaze sound in "Home Now" and more of a trip back to their more woodland grunge days, and even their indie ...

Photo by Lisa Czech Sean Coleman has been kicking around the Boston music scene for years, and is a member of the classic rock cover band The Bleeding Hearts. Now the songwriter, producer, singer, and guitarist has a new project dubbed Sean Coleman Project. For his debut single, he's joined with The Voice contestant Mia Boostrom on "You've Got to Choose." The new song starts off as a standard blues rock track, with the focus being on Boostrom's vocals. And it's a great song as it is. But then the guitars bring in the rock, and the entire song steps up completely. Boostrom's vocals and energy are also elevated after this point, and "You've Got to Choose" goes from good to great. Sean Coleman Project have a killer debut here, and we're looking forward to hearing what's next. Sean Coleman says of his latest single: “It's a story as old as time: A woman discovers her man has been unfaithful, so she gives him an ultimatum – you've ...

Photo by Rosie Cohe I'm old enough to remember when Eli Paperboy Reed first appeared in the Boston music scene, the general reaction was "Who is this kid singing soul music?" to "This kid is really great!" Now, that "kid" just released a single called "Like We Used To," with the line "Let's make love like we used to," which makes me feel downright ancient. The new song from Reed's upcoming Swamp Dogg produced album, is a fantastic example of neo-soul. It's one of those songs that sounds like it could have been released any time in the past six or so decades while still sounding like 2026. Reed is at his best when he's both vintage and modern, and "Like We Used To" easily stands up with our favorite songs from Reed.  Eli Paperboy Reed says of working with Swamp Dogg: “I knew Swamp had been focusing on his own material for quite some time and probably hadn’t produced another artist in thirty years, but when I...

Photo by Pooneh Ghana Austin's Annabelle Chairlegs is back with a new song, also from the sessions that produced her excellent Ty Segall produced album Waking Up. Of all the songs we've heard from Chairlegs, "Beef Witted" sounds the most like the album's producers. It's a fuzz-heavy burst of garage psych, and when we say fuzz-heavy, we mean that. There's a thick layer of feedback coating nearly the entire song, and there's a Stooges style slinkiness to the whole endeavor. Our adoration of Annabelle Chairlegs grows with each and every song we hear from the artist, and "Beef Witted" is no exception. It only shows how great Waking Up is if this was left off the original album. Bandleader Lindsey Mackin says of her new single: “I worked with my great aunt at a Scottish butcher shop, and I always remembered her saying 'he’s got beef for brains' in her thick Scottish accent. I wrote this song about a past lover that I would consider Beef Wi...

Photo by Chloe Aftel This year saw feminist punk legends heavens to betsy reunite for their first concert in more than thirty years, and now they're back with new (to us) music! "ain't never goin' back" is a previously unheard song from a demo recorded in February 1992, and will be a part of a new release due in October. This is from a demo tape, so it's raw, but that's kind of what we want from this era of indie rock, and from heavens to betsy. For fans that have been waiting over thirty years to hear anything new from the Corin Tucker and Tracy Sawyer project, "ain't never goin' back" is going to be a delight. And it's a reminder of just how great heavens to betsy were, and are, since they'll be playing more shows this fall! Tracy Sawyer says of her band's upcoming release: “I wasn't sure if I would ever revisit heavens to betsy, and then when we started talking more about it, and feeling how relevant the subjects are to...

There are a lot of days that feature a ton of live music in the Boston area, and choices need to be made. That's usually tough, but this Saturday, August 22, choosing is going to be virtually impossible with these five separate festivals happening around the Boston area! Let's hope the forecast clears up, because Saturday could end up being legendary! JP Porchfest, Sam Adams Brewery, Jamaica Plain, 12:00-6:00 I'm sure there are other great shows happening as part of JP Porchfest on Saturday, but I'm going to focus on the Meraki Main Stage at Sam Adams Brewery. It's a Boston hip hop showcase, featuring STL GLD, Oompa, Cakeswagg, Tori Tori, Lik Meraki, and Nahli. We're huge fans of the first four listed (we admittedly aren't familiar with Lik Meraki or Nahli), but this line up is absolutely bonkers and could easily sell out most venues throughout town. And Saturday you could see them all for free! Wildflower Festival, Keyes Field Stage, Milford, NH 12:00-9:00 ...

Photo by Georgia Mitropoulos Stef Chura's first single in seven years was an all-star affair, so her follow up is a much more stripped down song. "Lovesick" is a piano ballad, consisting mostly of Chura's vocals and piano. That doesn't mean that this new song is any less captivating than "Danny." The song is three minutes of pure bliss, allowing you to focus completely on Chura's vocals and lyrics. Chura's vocals have never been as emotive as they are on "Lovesick," and we can't get enough of this wonderfully simple song. While "Danny" was what we needed and expected from a Stef Chura comeback, "Lovesick" shows that she has some surprises in store for her upcoming album. Stef Chura says of her latest single: “It’s about desiring love and the journey to being lovable. It’s also about a toxic love and how it can feel addictive to want to be with someone who’s bad for you. I knew that this person made me feel bad ye...

Photo by Conor Shepherd We thought we knew what to expect from Wishy after hearing "Lovesick" back in June. However, the band has a new single out that defies the dream pop meets bubblegrunge sound we expected. "Sensational" is a groovy track. Sure, the song still fits in the indie rock category, but with a strong funk aspect to it. Wishy keep the dreamy feeling in their latest song, just a dreamy song you can easily dance to. The song reminds me of an indie rock version of early Michael Jackson mixed with "Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" and Soup Dragons' "Divine Thing." "Sensational" is a fun one, and it's great to see a young band show off so much range in their sound. You can watch the video for "Sensational" below. Nature's Pill is due out October 2 on Winspear, and is available for pre-order here . For more on Wishy, check out the band on Instagram . Upcoming tour dates are below the video and inclu...