So many artists, so many songs, 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.
DROWSE - "UNTRUE IN HEADPHONES"
Drowse, the shoegazy, slowcore-ish project of Kyle Bates (not to be confused with the Philly hardcore band of the same name), is releasing new album Wane Into It on November 11 via The Flenser. First single "Untrue In Headphones" is named after an experience listening to Burial's Untrue on a train, and it's a hauntingly gorgeous slow-burner with guest vocals and guitar by Madeline Johnston, aka Kyle's Flenser labelmate Midwife.
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MAKAYA MCCRAVEN - "THE FOURS"
Jazz great Makaya McCraven has shared another taste of his anticipated new album In These Times (due 9/23 via International Anthem/Nonesuch/XL), and "The Fours" pushes the boundaries of jazz, incorporating hip hop beats, modern classical flourishes, and more, and it's the kind of song that subtly engulfs you.
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FRAN - "SO LONG"
Chicago-based musician Maria Jacobson released her debut album as Fran, A Private Picture, in 2019, and now she's back with her first new music since then. "So Long" is a gorgeous indie folk track with just a touch of country twang.
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COLD MEGA (ANGEL DU$T) - "SWINGIN' THE DOG"
Angel Du$t/Trapped Under Ice frontman Justice Tripp recently released his self-titled debut solo album as Cold Mega, and now he's shared another song from the project, a jangle pop track that isn't too far removed from the last Angel Du$t album.
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ROZI PLAIN - "AGREEING FOR TWO" FT. ALABASTER DEPLUME & KATE STABLES
UK musician and This is the Kit bassist Rozi Plain has announced a new album, Prize, due out January 13 via Memphis Industries. The first single, "Agreeing For Two," features vocals from This is the Kit leader Kate Stables (who also appears in the video), and saxophone from Alabaster DePlume. "This song was started when I spent a week on the Isle of Eigg writing new music," Rozi says. "Mainly it’s thinking about how easy it can be to unknowingly make decisions on behalf of other people, thinking you might know what’s best or right for a situation where as maybe it’s just what was easiest for you.. I love the saxophone line that Alabaster Deplume added - brings a bit of his trademark heart and hopefulness."
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DISHEVELED CUSS (TERA MELOS) - "REMOTE VIEWER"
Disheveled Cuss, the solo project of Tera Melos' Nick Reinhart, has shared "Remote Viewer," a lovely indie pop song off his upcoming sophomore album Into The Couch.
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GOINGS - "RED"
Philly's Goings have signed to Refresh Records, and their first single for the label is "Red," a dose of mathy indie pop in the vein of stuff like Minus The Bear and Maps & Atlases.
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FISHXGRITS - "JERNT" (ft. CURREN$Y)
Rapper FishXGrits has announced a new project, Up Against the World, due October 10 via self-release, and new single "Jernt" features Curren$y, whose permastoned delivery makes for a nice contrast to FishXGrits' auto-tune-fueled verse.
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A.A. WILLIAMS - "THE ECHO"
Dark singer/songwriter A.A. Williams has a new album, As The Moon Rests, due October 7 via Bella Union/PIAS, and here's the eerie, ethereal, seven-minute new single "The Echo."
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R.A.M.B.O. - "DEFY EXTINCTION"
Philly hardcore supergroup R.A.M.B.O. -- vocalist Tony Croasdale, guitarist Andy Wheeler (Reagan Squad), bassist Bull Gervasi (Policy Of Three, Four Hundred Years), and drummer Jared Shavelson (The Hope Conspiracy, None More Black, Paint It Black -- are back and have announced that their first album in over 15 years, Defy Extinction, comes out November 4 via Relapse. Here's the riotous title track.
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THE BLACK ANGELS - "EMPIRES FALLING"
Austin psych greats The Black Angels release new double LP Wilderness of Mirrors on Friday and have shared one more preview before dropping the whole thing. “‘Empires Falling’ is a critical and reflective plea that examines humanity's repetitive art of violent mass destruction," say the band. "As we say in the chorus, "it's history on repeat." We are living in a Wilderness Of Mirrors, where it’s hard to tell what’s right from wrong, up from down, or the truth from lies as we navigate through these times where the fate of humanity is being refracted and reflected from one state of panic to another. The world is a "bleeding animal" and we are left exhausted, polarized, and "pleading from street to bloody street." History has proven, time and time again, that without a drastic metamorphosis from our leaders, politics, and ultimately ourselves... "
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MYKKI BLANCO - "PINK DIAMOND BEZEL"
The latest single from Mykki Blanco's anticipated new album Stay Close To Music is "Pink Diamond Bezel." "I am always hoping to create a new alchemy for my sound and for my entire entire career I have been experimenting with how far I can push rap - from the production to the musical choices to the inspirations," Mykki says. "Much of my new album and last year's Broken Hearts & Beauty Sleep is a departure from anything I had done in the past and I hadn’t really made a hip-hop track in years when I wrote ‘Pink Diamond Bezel.’ The song feels as if it’s the love child of Pharrell Williams and The Neptunes as much as Jack White. When I think about the vibe of ‘Pink Diamond Bezel’ I imagine a stretch limousine riding through snow capped mountains, drinking Kahula and cream with a group of friends in cashmere sweaters, very après-ski- then out of nowhere a shaman appears in the middle of the road, the car halts - a spell is cast, the road catches fire, and we’re forced to kneel in supplication to the forces of nature! I had fun creating this song, it’s a flirtation, it’s sexy and thumping and the second half is pure psychedelic rock chaos."
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RHETT MILLER - "HEART ATTACK DAYS"
“I wrote the verse lyrics that kick-started 'Heart Attack Days' in an apartment in Dallas’ Lower Greenville neighborhood,” says Rhett Miller. “I hadn’t been back in a while and was stunned by how much the place had changed. The few remaining examples of the kind of funky rent-houses where my friends and I had lived in the ‘90s were either abandoned or in the process of being torn down. I watched the sun set over a half-demolished duplex, and couldn’t help but make a song out of the feeling it inspired, a bittersweet longing for a bygone time.” "Heart Attack Days" is a little less Americana and a little more new wave than you might expect and is off Rhett's new album, The Misfit, that's out this Friday via ATO.
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WILL SHEFF - "IN THE THICK OF IT" FT. CASSANDRA JENKINS
The latest single from Okkervil River's Will Sheff's debut solo album Nothing Special is "In The Thick Of It," a melancholy piano ballad featuring vocals from Cassandra Jenkins. "In the Thick of It is a song about moments of grace right in the frenetic middle of things," Will says. "I wrote it remotely with Will Graefe in a frantic flight out of L.A. to the desert. Zac Rae leads the charge on piano and I asked Cassandra Jenkins to sing the song along with me. I had this big music video planned, but then everybody who was supposed to make the video got COVID. So I borrowed a camera and sang the song while walking my dog Larry through some of our favorite spots in the city. We had a great time and we only spent 200 dollars."
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DEHD - "EGGSHELLS"
Dehd begin their fall tour next week and as a reminder they've shared this mellow but very catchy new track that comes with a stylish video directed by the band's Emily Kempf, and Kevin Veselka.
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THE CACTUS BLOSSOMS - "TELL ME THAT ISN'T TRUE" (BOB DYLAN COVER)
Minneapolis duo The Cactus Blossoms will release an EP of Bob Dylan covers, If Not For You, on September 30 and they've just shared the first single, their version of "Tell Me That It Isn't True" from 1969 Nashville Skyline. "I’ve always liked the raw emotion of the song… you don’t know if he’s just jealous and delusional or if she’s really seeing someone else," says the band's Jack Torrey. "That vagueness and earnest attitude in the lyrics feels universal somehow."
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WOOLEN MEN - "WHY DO PARTIES HAVE TO END?"
Portland's Woolen Men are back with a new standalone single that finds their earnest, Wire-influenced style still in fine form.
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JOHN CARPENTER - "THE PROCESSION"
Here's the first-released track from John Carpenter's score to the upcoming Halloween Ends. Pick it up on exclusive, limited edition Blood Splatter vinyl in our shop.
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ANGEL OLSEN & STURGILL SIMPSON - "BIG TIME"
A collab between Angel Olsen and Sturgill Simpson has been long been in the works, and the pair of stellar country singers turn Angel's "Big Time" into a fantastic duet. “It’s crazy to write a song and then watch someone else you really admire sing your words; kinda turns the whole thing on its head,” Angel said. “I loved the song already, but hearing Sturgill’s take on ‘Big Time’ made me smile ear to ear, he made it come alive on a different level.” Read more about it here.
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BILLY NOMATES - "BALANCE IS GONE"
This is the new single off Billy Nomates' second album that's out in January.
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TORCHE - "IT NEVER BEGAN"
Torche are about to begin an East Coast/Midwest tour with Meshuggah and Converge, followed by a West Coast and Southern run with Meshuggah and In Flames, and lead vocalist Steve Brooks recently said those would be his last tours with the band. Now they've released a new song, "It Never Began," which you can read more about here.
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KEIJI HAINO & SUMAC - "A SHREDDED COILED CABLE WITHIN THIS CABLE SINCERITY COULD NOT BE CONTAINED"
Keiji Haino & SUMAC have announced a new collaborative album, Into this juvenile apocalypse our golden blood to pour let us never, and you can read more about the 9+ minute lead single here.
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TRIBULATION - "HAMARTIA"
Tribulation have shared their first new song with new guitarist Joseph Tholl, and they say more new music is on the way. Read more about it here.
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CITIZEN - "A PASSING THING" & "I DON'T LOVE YOU"
Citizen have released a deluxe edition of 2021's great Life In Your Glass World featuring two new songs, and you can read more about them here.
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KELELA - "WASHED AWAY"
Kelela has returned with her first new song in five years, the ambient-leaning "Washed Away." "I love a banger, but for the first point of contact out of my hiatus, it felt more honest to lead with an ambient heart-check," she says. Read more here.
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ALGIERS - "BITE BACK" (ft. BILLY WOODS & BACKXWASH)
Algiers have returned with a new single, "Bite Back," a six-minute track that deals with "Black resistance, PsyOps and police oppression" and finds lead vocalist Franklin James Fisher trading verses with two of the most innovative voices in underground rap, billy woods and Backxwash. Read more about it here.
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Looking for even more new songs? Browse the New Songs archive.