If It's Too Loud...

Photo by Moni Haworth Kim Gordon's recent solo work has been more on the electronic/trap side of things, so her latest single is an almost complete departure. "PLAY ME" is much more laid back and has an underground hip hop feel to it. It sounds like the soundtrack to my high school summers, which isn't something I'd expect from Kim Gordon. While her recent singles have at least been hip hop adjacent, "PLAY ME" still comes off as surprising. This is a wonderfully chill song, and it's great that Gordon can continue to surprise us all this deep into her career. You can watch the video for "PLAY ME" below. The album PLAY ME is due out March 13 on Matador Records, and is available for pre-order here . For more on Kim Gordon, check out the artist's website . Upcoming tour dates are below the video. April 2 - Sid The Cat - Los Angeles, CA April 11 - Rewire Festival - Den Haag, NL April 12 - Variations Festival - Nantes, France April 14 - O2 Sh...

Photo by Daria Kobayashi Ritch It's been five long years since we've had a new album from Snail Mail, but luckily the drought is over! Lindsey Jordan's musical project is back with a new single and a new album due out in March. "Dead End" is a gorgeous mixture of indie rock and pop, which is kind of our jam around here. As melodic and poppy as the song is, there is enough of a chugging guitar to keep it in the rock genre. This is the indie rock goes pop genre at its absolute finest, which is what we've come to expect from Snail Mail. If anything, Jordan took the last five years to up her songwriting game, and "Dead End" may end up being considered one of her best. Welcome back, Snail Mail! We're thrilled to have you. Lindsey Jordan says of her new video: “ We shot the video for ‘Dead End’ in random places all around rural North Carolina between the hours of 5pm and 4am on one of the coldest nights of my life. The goal was to be inconspicuous with...

Photo by Moni Haworth I don't think anyone is going to argue that Kim Gordon has had the most interesting solo career of any of her former Sonic Youth bandmates. She's been diving straightforward into a more electronic dance music sound, and playing in the trap genre. Her latest single, "NOT TODAY," sees the indie legend expanding her sound even more. This one is much more chill than her previous solo albums, and is more akin to her former band than she's gotten before. It has some of the indie rock noise I love (and miss), while still keeping her experiments with electronic music alive. Plus, there are little hints of soul and pop in "NOT TODAY," which I don't think anyone could have predicted. Kim Gordon keeps pushing the musical envelope, which is exceedingly rare for someone with more than four decades as a musician. Kim Gordon says of her latest single:  “I started singing in a way I hadn’t sung in a long time. This other voice came out.” You ca...

Photo by Ebru Yildiz If you're going to write a proper country album, you need at least one drinking song. Julien Baker and TORRES have done just that with "Bottom of a Bottle." The song features TORRES on lead vocals and Baker on harmonies, and sounds exactly like you'd expect a TORRES classic country song would sound like. It has all of the twang along with TORRES' distinctive vocals, along with the edging into modern alt-pop that she does so well. When we first heard this pair were releasing a country album, this is exactly what we expected and wanted. All of the songs released for this album have been spectacular, but there's something a little extra special about "Bottom of a Bottle." You can watch the video for "Bottom of a Bottle" below. Send a Prayer My Way is due out April 18 on Matador Records, and is available for pre-order here . For more on Julien Baker & TORRES, check out the artists' website . Upcoming tour dates are ...

Photo by Ebru Yildiz We knew a collaborative album between Julien Baker and TORRES was going to be great, but each new single somehow surprises us with just how great it is. The latest, "Dirt," is a country ballad duet between Baker and TORRES (aka Mackenzie Scott), and it's both uplifting and heartbreaking. This is exactly what we expected and wanted once we heard this duo was releasing a country album, just much better and more captivating. If you're a fan of either artist (or both), you're going to love this song. If you've never quite gotten the appeal of one (or both) of them, "Dirt" is going to make you a fan. This song is just that good. You can listen to "Dirt" below. Send a Prayer My Way is due out April 18 on Matador Records, and is available for pre-order here . For more on Julien Baker & TORRES, check out their website . Upcoming tour dates are below the song and include a June 20 appearance at Green River Festival in Greenf...

Photo by Ebru Yildiz Julien Baker and TORRES teaming up for a country album is one of the true joys of 2025. The pair's latest single, "Tuesday," is fronted by TORRES, and according to the press release is about "... trying to overcome and heal from the guilt, shame and religious abuse that so many people experience discovering their identity and growing up Queer." The song is a twangy, laid back country track that lands somewhere between classic country and modern pop music (but nowhere near the current country pop sound). I'm not typically a lyrics guy and don't normally pay attention to the lyrics of a song until after multiple listens, but the lyrics of "Tuesday" grabbed me immediately upon the first listen. This is the type of song that is going to demand your focus and attention.  You can watch the visualizer for "Tuesday" below. Send a Prayer My Way is due out April 18 on Matador Records, and is available for pre-order here . F...

Photo by Chase Middleton The recent singles from Horesegirl have been a complete departure from their 2022 debut Versions of Modern Performance  while still sounding like themselves, and their latest one might be the best of all. "Frontrunner" is a relatively quiet and melancholy single, focused more on melody than noise. This is an absolutely stunning song filled with vocal harmonies that is truly special because of how stripped down it is. Horsegirl's previous singles from Phonetics On and On have reminded us of The Velvet Underground. "Frontrunner" is more along the lines of Kimya Dawson. Their new album is out in three days, and that might be too long for us to wait. You can watch the video for "Frontrunner" below. Phonetics On and On is due out February 14 on Matador Records, and is available for pre-order here . For more on Horsegirl, check out the artist's website . Upcoming tour dates are below the video and include a March 27 show at Arts ...

Photo by Ebru Yildiz Much like many of you, a collaboration between Julien Baker and TORRES is kind of a dream come true for us at If It's Too Loud..., so we're thrilled to bring you a new song from their upcoming album. "Sylvia" is a TORRES sung track about adopting her dog. It's a modern country ballad in the best possible sense. It's twangy enough to be a full on country song without sounding anything like modern pop country or classic vintage country. "Sylvia" sounds like TORRES writing and performing a country ballad, and if you've been as big of a TORRES fan as we've been, it's something you never realized you needed as badly as you do. Much like their previous single "Sugar in the Tank," "Sylvia" makes us even more thrilled for the duo's upcoming album. TORRES says of the new single: “The morning I went to pick up my dog Sylvia from an upstate shelter, I was at home making my coffee and I turned on WFMU and ...

Photo by Ruby Faye Formerly Chicago and now New York based Horsegirl continue their musical evolution on their latest single. "Switch Over" lands in the middle of their original classic Matador Records indie rock sound and the more Velvet Underground-esque style of their last pair of singles. The song has a swirling, hypnotic sound as it slowly grows in intensity. It's like an amalgamation of bands like The Magnetic Fields, Beat Happening, and Sebadoh. "Switch Over" is oddly upbeat, and shows just how much Horsegirl have grown since 2022's Visions of Modern Performance , released when the members were still in high school. That album could easily have been a one-off album for a band so young, but with a song like "Switch Over," Horsegirl are proving that they're only just starting. You can watch the video for "Switch Over" below. Phonetics On and On is due out February 14 on Matador Records, and is available for pre-order here . For m...