If It's Too Loud...

Artist : Sleaford Mods Album : The Demise of Planet X Quick Thoughts : Ken was on the Sleaford bandwagon fairly early, and while it took me a little while to join him, I can't deny the unique and singular energy the duo brings to the table these days. Judging by the list of guests here (ranging from Game of Thrones actress Gwendoline Christie to a surprise Sue Tompkins), everyone else is getting smart to it as well. This is Sleaford at their finest - a great mix of songs reminiscent of their early efforts with a lot of modern flair and political commentary. A really brilliant record that sets the bar for 2026 quite well. Songs of Note : "The Good Life," "Elitist G.O.A.T.," "No Touch," "The Demise of Planet X," "Gina Was," "Flood the Zone," "Kill List" Artist : Langhorne Slim Album : The Dreamin' Kind Quick Thoughts : My first experience with Langhorne Slim was his opening for Clem Snide sometime two ...

Artist : Kendrick Lamar Album : GNX Quick Thoughts : We knew a new Kendrick was coming after having arguably the song of the summer during the Drake beef, but a surprise drop was unexpected to everyone. GNX suffers slightly from Jack Antonoff's production in many areas and is unlikely to end up as anyone's favorite K.Dot record, but "squabble up" and "hey now" are two of the better rap songs of the year that aren't "Not Like Us." I definitely think he probably gained some new fans this year (myself included) and this album is likely to be stratospheric in impact, but it's worth the time. Songs of Note : "wacced out murals," "squabble up," "hey now," "tv off," "heart pt. 6," "gnx" Artist : Poppy Album : Negative Spaces Quick Thoughts : Poppy's biggest flaw is the semi-identity crisis. She started as a robotic pop deconstruction, went full metal, and now comes at us wit...

Long hours means a double dose of music this week. Artist : Adia Victoria Album : A Southern Gothic Quick Thoughts : We're big Adia Victoria fans here, and this album came out of nowhere a bit for me. I wasn't expecting new music, and I definitely wasn't expecting A Southern Gothic , which has a true feel that mirrors its title while still bringing the sort of songwriting and musical know-how that Adia Victoria always brings. Right now, I wouldn't be shocked to see this on both of our best-of lists this year. Songs of Note : "Troubled Mind," "Magnolia Blues, "Mean-Hearted Woman," "You Was Born to Die," "Whole World Knows," "Carolina Bound" Artist : Ruby Fields Album : Been Doin' It For A Bit Quick Thoughts : The album title accurately describes what this album sounds like, even though this Aussie singer-songwriter is only 23. There is some great indie rock here throughout. I enjoyed her initial seven ...

Poppy tries hard to be an enigma wrapped in a riddle with an influencer sheen and an appreciation of pop music to successfully lampoon it ironically. Then she found metal music. What we saw glimpses of with "X" and "Scary Mask" got a full album treatment with I Disagree , and the result nearly defies description. It's sort of an American Babymetal - all the pop trappings and all the metal instrumentation. It's melodic and harsh, it's brooding with a bop - there's a lyric, "bury me six feet deep/cover me in concrete/turn me into a street" that is so vivid and dark and hilarious, it's almost unreal. And I love it. I love it so much. Few albums this year made me stop and say "hey, you gotta hear this," but Poppy pulled that off. An early release this year, it's stayed in semi-regular rotation and got a lot of people to notice what she's been up to. Quite the feat. Songs...

Finally, some new music! Lots of EPs this week for whatever reason, though... Artist : Moon Hooch Album : Life on Other Planets Quick Description : Buskworthy brass rock. Why You Should Listen : A fun party-style sax record with some interesting parts to go along with it. Overall Thoughts : Wow, what a way to kick off the new year! I didn’t know about Moon Hooch before this week, but having spent a little time in Skerik’s back catalog last week, sax-based oddities have been my jam as of late. Moon Hooch is probably best described as Too Many Zooz informed by electronica, even though it sounds like most-to-all the instruments are live and everything is organic. It’s a album I couldn’t help but dance around to, and is an instant favorite this week. I’ll be digging into their back catalog for the foreseeable future, I’m sure. Recommendation : A must-hear. Artist : Alexandra Savior Album : The Archer Quick Description : Retro-style music from a great singer-songwriter. W...