So many artists, so little time. Each week we review a handful of new albums (of all genres), round up even more new music that we'd call "indie," and talk about what metal is coming out. We post music news, track premieres, and more all day. We update a playlist weekly of some of our current favorite tracks. Here's a daily roundup with a bunch of interesting, newly released songs in one place.
ALT-J - "THE ACTOR"
alt-J's anticipated fourth album The Dream arrives this Friday, and here's one more single: "The Actor." Like the previous singles, it finds alt-J showing off a more relaxed, chiller side, and here's what they say about the inspiration behind this one: "Hollywood, 1982. Another hopeful young movie star arrives in search of The Dream. What follows is a tale of desperation, drugs and death in LA’s most famous hotel. It’s ‘The Actor’."
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MIDNIGHT OIL - "AT THE TIME OF THIS WRITING"
Midnight Oil's new album Resist, which they say will be their last, is out next week and here's one final single before the whole thing is out. It's as anthemic as you'd expect as they lay out a bleak future if we don't do something about climate change.
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ANDY SHAUF - "SATAN" & "JACOB ROSE"
“When I was young, there were a few years where I wasn’t allowed to celebrate Hallowe'en,” Shauf says of the inspiration behind his new single "Satan." “The church that I grew up in was saying that Hallowe'en was ‘The Devil's Day’ and that it had its roots in satanic rituals. After a few years of this, my parents realized it was a bit silly to deny us our free candy and let us resume. The Christianity that I was brought up in said that believers went to heaven and non-believers went to hell. A sort of cartoon-like simplification of ancient texts. So with the lyrics of this song, I was trying to take this cartoon-like simplification of life (and death) and pair it with a cartoon-like version of this Christian hell. Where after you complete a long and disciplined life, you find yourself holding a bite-sized chocolate bar stapled to an invitation to a Hallowe'en pool party with Satan himself.” "Satan" is one half of a new digital single that also includes "Jacob Rose."
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HELPLESS - "THE EMPTY GESTURE"
As mentioned, UK metal band Helpless are gearing up to release Caged In Gold on 3/25 via Church Road, and here's second single "The Empty Gesture." It's got elements of sludge, grind, mathcore, post-metal, and more, and while it's not easy to pin down, it's very easy to like.
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8 KALACAS - "PUDRETE"
Orange County ska-core band are releasing a new album, Fronteras, on March 25 via Atomic Fire Records, and the first single is "Pudrete," a rager that sounds like if Voodoo Glow Skulls got into riffy metal. "We sing about the literal borders that so many countries enforce, that keep humans separated and discriminated against," the band says. "But we also sing about the borders in our head that keep us from being happy or that keep us from believing that we are worthy people capable of doing more than what society tells us we can do."
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BARRIE - "JENNY"
Brooklyn-based songwriter and producer Barrie's sophomore albu, Barbara, is due out next month via Winspear, and the latest single is "Jenny." "I was looking to James Taylor for the guitar and The Band for the organ to try to capture an Americana feel for Jenny," Barrie says. "These artists are able to simultaneously encapsulate a swagger and an earnestness that gives their music a grown-up, classic feel. I wanted Jenny to be like an American Songbook song; any level of musician could play it and it would feel good to play either alone with one’s guitar, around a campfire with some friends, or at a big concert with everyone singing along. I wrote it while reflecting on a memory from tour, when I met my wife. We had a day off in Austin, and a group of us went swimming in a creek. I was picturing that day, before I was aware of any connection between us, and imagining how it would have played out if I had been. I wasn’t devoted right away, I wasn’t sure."
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DEVON KAY & THE SOLUTIONS - "UNWRITTEN" (NATASHA BEDINGFIELD COVER)
Devon Kay & the Solutions have put their indie/pop/punk/ska/whatever spin on Natasha Bedingfield's 2004 pop hit "Unwritten." Pretty cool!
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REBELMATIC - "WALK ON WATER"
NYC punks Rebelmatic are gearing up for a new EP, Mourning Dove, which, according to Afropunk, is due this spring and features a collaboration with Fishbone's Angelo Moore. The first single is "Walk On Water," a ripper that sounds straight out of early '80s American hardcore.
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JO SCHORNIKOW - "VISIONS"
Nashville-via-Melbourne singer-songwriter and musician Jo Schornikow announced a new album, ALTAR, due out May 20 via Keeled Scales, and shared new single "Visions," a warm, wry track accompanied by a video directed by Noah Hanson.
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CHARMING DISASTER - "OUR LADY OF RADIUM"
Gothy orch-pop duo Charming Disaster will release new album Our Lady of Radium on March 4, an album inspired by Marie Curie. Check out the ornate title track.
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SUPERCHUNK - "ON THE FLOOR"
Superchunk will release new album Wild Loneliness later this month, and it's very different from any album they've made before, as nearly every song features notable guest musicians and vocalists. The latest single is "On the Floor," which has backing vocals by R.E.M.'s Mike Mills and piano from Franklin Bruno.
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SADURN - "SNAKE"
Philly indie band Sadurn just signed to Run For Cover for the release of their debut album Radiator< and you can read more about lead single "snake" here.
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KENDRA MORRIS - "NINE LIVES"
Kendra Morris' new album Nine Lives comes out next week, and you can read more about the retro psychedelic soul of the title track here.
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FIREBREATHER - "SORROW"
Sweden's Firebreather offer up seven minutes of fuzzed-out stoner doom on this new track that you can read more about here.
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PUPPY - "...AND WATCHED IT GLOW"
UK band Puppy's "...And Watched It Glow" is a heavy, shoegazy, catchy alt-rock song that feels like The Smashing Pumpkins and Torche in a blender, and you can read more about it here.
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Looking for even more new songs? Browse the New Songs archive.