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. In these concertless times, that includes daily livestreams and live concert videos we love. 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.
EL MICHELS AFFAIR - "ALA VIDA"
Soul revivalists El Michels Affair have shared another track off their upcoming LP Yeti Season (due 3/26 via Big Crown), and this one's a gorgeously cinematic instrumental.
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CASSANDRA JENKINS - "CROSSHAIRS"
Cassandra Jenkins has shared the third single off her anticipated new album An Overview on Phenomenal Nature (due 2/19 via Ba Da Bing). This is the most somber one yet, and it's yet another promising taste of this LP. "I wrote ‘Crosshairs’ in the before times – not thinking about isolation," Cassandra says. "Listening to the song now, it reads more literally; I've never craved human interaction in the way I have over the course of the past year, and my experience of time has completely shifted."
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MAVIS STAPLES - "ONE MORE CHANGE" (ALA.NI A CAPELLA REMIX)
Mavis Staples has released an a capella version of "One More Change" from her 2019 album, We Get By. This remix was created by ALA.NI at Damon Albarn’s Studio 13. “What a sheer honour it was to sing alongside and produce around the legend that is Mavis Staples and that voice,” ALA.NI said. “I must admit, I was very intimidated at first. Her growl alone will do that. Left bare and in full effect. Raw, pure vocals. Plus, the song was written by Ben Harper, whose music is etched into my life.”
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MORCHEEBA - "SOUNDS OF BLUE"
Trip hop vets Morcheeba will release new album Blackest Blue on May 14. Skye Edwards and Ross Godfrey made the record during lockdown which allowed them more time and freedom than usual. “"There weren’t so many pressures so we could really take our time getting the songs right,”" says Skye. First single "Sounds of Blue" is a typically moody track, bouyed by Edwards' soaring voice.
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MOUSE ON MARS - "YOUMACHINE"
"AI is capable of developing qualities that we attach to humans, like empathy, imperfection and distraction, which are a big part of creativity," says Jan St Werner, one half of forward-thinking German electronic duo Mouse on Mars. "We need to get past the old paranoia that fears machines as the other, as competitors who will do things faster or better, because that just keeps us stuck in our selfishness, fear and xenophobia. Machines can open up new concepts of life, and expand our definitions of being human." AI tech helped Mouse on Mars create their new album, AII, which is out later this month.
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KATY KIRBY - "PORTALS"
Texas-based songwriter Katy Kirby's debut LP, Cool Dry Place, is due out next week, on February 19 via Keeled Scales, and her latest single is the frank, intimate "Portals." "I’ve always been uneasy with the idea of alternate universes, or realities," Katy says. "Even choose-your-own-adventure books used to stress me out. I wondered if it might be equally interesting and more helpful to consider 'alternate universes' something as simple as other people. Around the time I wrote this song, I had been considering what I’d retain from a relationship if or when it ended—what I might be left with in the long run, after it didn’t hurt anymore. I realized that it’d be an alternate version of myself. Hell, how many parts of whatever I call a self aren’t even accessible without a particular interaction? 'Portals' is me thinking about the alternate, purely interior worlds that slide open with each person/universe we intersect with, and if what we think of as 'closeness' to that person has anything to do with what gets opened."
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GABRIEL GARZÓN-MONTANO - SOMEONE (ARMANDO YOUNG REMIX FT. JAMILA WOODS)
Gabriel Garzón-Montano has shared a new remix (by Armando Young) of "Someone" from his 2020 album Agüita, and this one is spiced up by newly-added vocals by Jamila Woods.
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EBHONI - "X-TING"
Toronto R&B singer Ebhoni is gearing up to release her debut EP this year, and she has now followed January single "Hit This" with her second single of 2021, the blissful-sounding "X-Ting."
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FLOATIE - "CATCH A GOOD WORM"
Chicago's Floatie will release their debut album Voyage Out on March 26 via Exploding In Sound, and lead single "Catch A Good Worm" finds them putting a fresh spin on the kind of fidgety, '90s-style indie rock that EIS is often known for.
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LO(U)SER - "SET IT ALL ON FIRE" (ft. WE ARE THE UNION)
Lo(u)ser is the chiptune/ska project of Chris Graue (best known for directing videos for NOFX, Reel Big Fish, We Are The Union, and more), and for his second single, he got some assistance from WATU. It's a very catchy ska-pop song with a hint of video game synths, and it comes with a Super Mario Maker 2-themed video.
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CONAN - "HAWK AS WEAPON" (LIVE)
UK sludge metal greats Conan are releasing a new live album, Live at Freak Valley, on March 12 via Napalm Records, and you can get a taste with "Hawk As Weapon," which gives you a very good idea of how intense this band is on stage.
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NERVOUS DATER - "TIN FOIL HAT"
Nervous Dater have shared another new single off their new album, Call In The Mess, due out February 26 via Counter Intuitive Records. "Tin Foil Hat," which features lead vocals from drummer Andrew Goetz, rattles with energy while its lyrics consider conspiracy theories.
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LÉANIE KALEIDO - "ALL THE THINGS I'M MADE OF"
Leanie Kaleido is the daughter of Yardbirds guitarist Top Topham and makes piano-based orch pop. Her new album, How to Weigh a Whale Without a Scale, was produced by Ride's Mark Gardner at the band's OX4 studio.
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JIMBO MATHUS & ANDREW BIRD - "POOR LOST SOULS"
Jimbo Mathus and Andrew Bird, who both spent time together in Squirel Nut Zippers, are collaborating for the first time in 25 years for upcoming album These 13. The album's out March 5 via Thirty Tigers, but you can listen to the twangy "Pour Lost Souls" now.
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DRY CLEANING - "STRONG FEELINGS"
UK band Dry Cleaning have announced their anticipated debut album New Long Leg which will be out April 2 via 4AD. "The title is ambiguous," says singer Florence Shaw. "A new long leg could be an expensive present or a growth or a table repair.” New single "Strong Feelings" features Shaw's cool, dry, observational style over a laid back groove.
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SONIC BOOM - "ON A SUMMER'S DAY (REMIX)"
Former Spacemen 3 cofounder Pete Kember released All Things Being Equal, his first record as Sonic Boom in three decades, last year. He has since reworked many of the album's tracks, and added a couple that were previously only available in Japan, for a new album, Almost Nothing is Nearly Enough, which will be out April 23 via Carpark.
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316 - "COMMANDO FOR CHRIST"
This isn't an actual '80s hair metal band but "Commando for Christ" certainly sounds a lot like Stryper. 316 are a fictitious band from the upcoming film Electric Jesus and the songs were creatied by Daniel Smith of Danielson.
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MATT SWEENEY & BONNIE 'PRINCE' BILLY - "HALL OF DEATH"
Having dropped the great "Make Worry for Me" back in November, Matt Sweeney and Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy have announced their second collaborative album, Superwolves, which will be out digitally on April 30 via Drag City and out physically on June 18. This new single features Mdou Moctar and Ahmoudou Madassane.
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CITIZEN - "BLUE SUNDAY"
Citizen have shared the second single off their anticipated new LP Life In Your Glass World, and you can read more about it here.
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X - "TRUE LOVE, PT. 3" & "STRANGE LIFE" (ft. ROBBY KRIEGER)
X have put out two previously released songs from the sessions for their 2020 comeback album Alphabetland. The former is a twangy reworking of the funk-inspired "True Love" from 1983's Under The Big Black Sun, and the latter is a punk ripper that features guitar from Robby Krieger of The Doors. You can read more about them here.
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BIITCHSEAT - "ANTI-DEPRESSED"
Cleveland indie-punks Biitchseat announced a new EP, and you can read more about this lead single here.
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SLOWTHAI - "CANCELLED" (ft. SKEPTA)
slowthai's anticipated new album TYRON this Friday, and he put out one more single ahead of the release, which you can read more about here.
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Looking for even more new songs? Browse the ‘New Songs’ archive.