Josaleigh Pollett - Bywater Call - Lynn Hollyfield - Rusty Shackle - Black Bordello - Bri Fletcher

Josaleigh Pollett - If I Let It Quiet (Album).

Salt Lake City-based singer-songwriter Josaleigh Pollett has issued their fourth full-length album, ‘If I Let It Quiet.’ Produced by long-time collaborator Jordan Watko (Crowd Shy), the record is released via Audio Antihero (Frog / Tiberius / Avery Friedman / CIAO MALZ / Darren Hayman) and Lavender Vinyl on digital and vinyl. A tour of the Pacific Northwest and West Coast accompany the album's release. The work of Pollett and Watko has received a slow burn of recognition over the years, reaching a broader audience with 2023’s electronics-infused ‘In the Garden, By the Weeds,’ thanks to support from notable outlets, including NPR Music’s All Songs Considered, as well as awards and end-of-year lists.

Pollett went on to share bills with St. Vincent, Torres, Deep Sea Diver, DeVotchKa, Mini Trees, and Hibou, as well as performing at Kilby Block Party. Outside of their work with Watko, Pollett’s output included a prolific run of collaborations that included Ekko Astral in 2024 and 2025, in addition to writing a song a day in January 2025 (released as ‘bro’s bad january’). 

“This album is an exploration of what it takes to quiet the noise of geographical and emotional distance in order to hear ourselves and the ones who see us. In true independent DIY fashion and similar to 2023's In The Garden, By The Weeds, If I Let It Quiet is recorded mostly at home between my Salt Lake City makeshift home studio and Jordan's apartment in Japan. The difference this time is that we're bringing in more collaborations. In particular, Andrew Goldring, who in addition to mixing and mastering, brought deeper instrumentation to If I Let It Quiet.” – Josaleigh Pollett. 

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Bywater Call - Broken Souvenirs (Album).

A powerhouse seven-piece Southern soul, roots rock outfit from Toronto, Canada; Bywater Call was nominated for the 2025 UK Blues Award for International Blues Artist of the year for the second straight year, alongside artists such as Beth Hart and Walter Trout.

The band has also received multiple Independent Blues and Canadian Maple Blues Award nominations including Entertainer, Electric Act and Best Female Vocalist for the 2024 Awards Season.

Bywater Call’s music is an exploration of life’s highs and lows. From intimate ballads that lay bare the complexities of human emotion to electrifying anthems that demand to be played at full volume, their catalogue is a journey through human experience, featuring influences from the likes of The Band, The Wood Brothers, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Otis Redding, Little Feat, Sly and the Family Stone, and many more.

Often transcending genres, Bywater Call is known for their dynamic, emotional live shows, featuring powerful vocals and exciting interplay between all band members. And now, on the heels of a highly successful European tour and in the middle of their American tour here is their new album. 

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Lynn Hollyfield - Diving In (Album).

We have the new folk album Diving In from award-winning singer-songwriter Lynn Hollyfield. The album was produced by Grammy-nominated Seth Glier and 
is a stunning collection of songs that reveal the twists and turns in life, our humanness, loss, love, the times we are in, and the path we choose to go through. The range of styles on the album can mostly be called contemporary folk, with a few having a traditional feel and a timeless vibe.

Blend a beautiful alto voice, crisp acoustic guitar, and a heartfelt perspective on the world, and you have Lynn Hollyfield. Known for her warm stage presence and emotionally rich songs, she connects effortlessly with audiences. Writing in a contemporary folk style, Lynn weaves in jazz-influenced chords and bluesy guitar alongside passionate vocals, think Mary Chapin Carpenter meets Bonnie Raitt with a touch of George Gershwin. The result is her own distinctive voice, witty, soulful, and reflective.

Lynn has been writing songs since her teenage years, growing up on Staten Island, NY, surrounded by a wide range of musical influences, from jazz greats like Ella Fitzgerald and Frank Sinatra to artists like The Beatles and Neil Young. She began performing locally at a young age and later gained recognition as part of the duo Hollyfield & Spruill, appearing at festivals such as the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival.

After launching her solo career, Lynn released several acclaimed albums, including LAYERS (2010), IN THE BALANCE (2014), and LOOK UP (2024), earning national and international airplay along with multiple songwriting awards including being listed in the Top Artists/ Top Albums for the International Folk Alliance. During the pandemic, she also published a children’s book, The Tree, The Ship and Me, with its accompanying song recognized as a finalist in the Mid-Atlantic Songwriting Contest.

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Rusty Shackle - Stand Up Tall.

Welsh Folk / Rock band 'Rusty Shackle' new single 'Stand Up Tall' was released Friday 24th July. Taken from their forthcoming Album 'Mayfield' which is set for release at the end of August. A raw, heartfelt reflection on friendship, self-confidence andperseverance when times are hard. The universal message inviteslisteners to find their own meaning within the song, but at its heart,it serves as a mantra of encouragement for anyone who feels lost oroverlooked in life.Musically, the track embraces a stripped-back folk sound inspired bythe poetic storytelling of Neil Young, the pastoral textures of The Decemberists and Fleet Foxes, and the understated warmth of Wilco.The unvarnished arrangement allows the song's message to takecentre stage, creating an intimate and timeless atmosphere thatreflects its themes of resilience, compassion, and hope

Rusty Shackle are a hard-gigging folk-rock band from South Wales, known for their infectious energy, anthemic songs, and genre-blurring sound drawn from folk, rock, and indie roots. Since forming in 2010, they’ve built a loyal following through relentless touring and a reputation for exhilarating live shows that get crowds on their feet.

The band have released five studio albums to date, each one expanding their sonic palette while staying rooted in rich melodies, heartfelt lyrics, and a love of storytelling. Their 2022 release, Under a Bloodshot Moon, reached number 2 in the UK Folk Albums Chart and was praised as “a winner” by Get Ready to Rock and “their finest album yet” by Liverpool Sound and Vision.

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Black Bordello - Fugue.

Art-rock provocateurs Black Bordello announce their new EP, Midheaven Tempest, due 18th September 2026 via AWAL, and unveil its first offering with the new single 'Fugue' (24th July 2026), a Fitzgeraldian world of sepia-tinted nostalgia. 'Fugue' offers the first glimpse into the immersive world of Midheaven Tempest, a collection that sees Black Bordello deepen their singular dialogue between art-rock, post-punk and cinematic atmosphere. Expansive yet intimate, the EP embraces contrast, where ornate arrangements meet raw immediacy, and gothic romanticism collides with moments of striking clarity.

With 'Fugue', the band continue to blur the boundaries of artistic, gothic and experimental rock, while drawing more openly from the dramatic sweep and melodic ambition of 1970s rock music. Threaded with baroque flourishes and taut post-punk tension, the single unfolds as a richly layered introduction to the conceptual landscape of Midheaven Tempest, hinting at an EP that is both emotionally resonant and sonically adventurous.

The romantic Hammond-organ introduction to ‘Fugue’ evokes 1920s picture houses and travelling carnival calliopes, hinting at a Fitzgeraldian world of sepia-tinted nostalgia. But any promise of reverie is quickly upended by the verse’s psychedelic, buoyant theatricality. Dripping with the weary, eye-rolling detachment of Peggy Lee’s Is That All There Is?, the track instead unfolds in a haze of Velvet Underground fuzz, Black Heart Procession gloom, and Nick Cave–esque refrains. It moves through jarring shifts in tempo and melody, each one underscoring the band’s restless drive to experiment rather than settle into nostalgia.

Speaking on the single, vocalist and songwriter Sienna Bordello says: “Fugue is a joyful stab into the cardboard cutouts on the set of society's stage. It's our gift to music nerds, inspired by Bach.” 

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Bri Fletcher - Salt Water.

Nashville country artist Bri Fletcher releases new single "Salt Water." Bri Fletcher is crying good tears on her new single, “Salt Water,” an R&B-leaning country anthem that cleverly uses the healing properties of salt water as a remedy for heartbreak. While the production embraces a smoother, more soulful sound, Fletcher’s signature storytelling remains at the heart of the track, blending emotional honesty with undeniable vulnerability.

The song explores the idea that sometimes the first step toward moving on isn’t pretending you’re okay — it’s allowing yourself to feel everything. Fletcher transforms tears into a symbol of hope with the lyric, “Thought I’d never be the one to cry online / But WebMD just said I’ll be alright.”

Its memorable chorus reinforces the song’s central message: “Salt water, it’s good for my skin / I ain’t bothered, it’s got healing benefits / It’ll clean my wounds, rid me right of you / When these tears are running down my face / Salt water, yeah I’ll be okay.”

“Salt Water” marks another step in Fletcher’s evolving artistry, pairing contemporary R&B influences with the heartfelt lyricism that first established her as a country songwriter. It’s a reminder that growth doesn’t always come from hiding your emotions — sometimes it comes from embracing them. With “Salt Water,” Bri Fletcher continues to carve out a lane entirely her own, proving that authentic storytelling can transcend genre while resonating with anyone who has ever cried, healed, and found strength on the other side of heartbreak.

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This Is The Deep - A. Lee Edwards - Starpainter - Kate Prendergast - Lottie McLeod - Cassady Southern

Photo - Reuben Bastienne-Lewis

This Is The Deep - I'm Making.

London collective This Is The Deep announce their debut album Everything (Dick Herman, The Whale and The End Of The Beginning) arriving November 11th via 5dB Records (Mould, Martial Arts, anaiis, Ashaine White), and release of the kaleidoscopic and hallucinatory 'I'm Making.' Self-produced with additional production from SHOLTO, David Bardon, and Patrick Fitzroy (Katy J Pearson, Sorry), the upcoming album Everything is a richly detailed body of work that balances instinctive indie immediacy with the band’s broader, cinematic and playful art-rock ambitions. Across the record, a surreal fable emerges, unfolding through themes of perception, desire, consumption and escape.

New single 'I'm Making' brings all the contrasting elements to life. Pivoting between post-punk urgency, chamber-pop elegance and psychedelic abstraction, the track moves through jagged rhythmic shifts and intricate arrangements of strings, harp, bass, synth, guitars and percussion. Restless and unpredictable, it captures This Is The Deep’s ability to balance melodic immediacy with a persistent sense of the uncanny.

The result is a sound that moves fluidly between surreal, The Mighty Boosh-like imagery and a wide musical palette spanning the orchestral expansiveness of Smile-era Beach Boys, the chambered intensity of Black Country, New Road, the decadent theatricality of Roxy Music, and the experimental pop sensibilities of The Beatles.

Playful, curious and gloriously unconcerned with genre boundaries, the track captures a collective equally interested in experimentation and melody. Speaking about the single, band leader Ranald explains: "I'm Making is a song that explores the idea that life is more creative than we think. We make many things we don't even realise: Journeys, conversations, faces, spaces, and ultimately our own realities." 

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Photo - Molly Harris.

A. Lee Edwards - Without You.

A. Lee Edwards' latest single, "Without You," is out now. A quietly powerful song built around Alan's warm vocals and guitar, it carries a sense of reflection and longing, with an emotional weight that sneaks up on you.

"Without You" was inspired by a line from an old newspaper editorial I carried folded up in my wallet for years. The song came from thinking about disappearing mill towns, fading dreams, lost love, and how a lot of the things that once made life feel hopeful and connected seem to be slipping away. It’s about personal loss, but also the feeling that an entire way of life is disappearing.

At the center is Edwards’ self-taught fingerpicking guitar—patient, melodic, and unadorned. His playing forms the backbone for songs that remain sparse, sweet, and disarmingly direct. Like the work of Raymond Carver after Gordon Lish, Edwards’ writing finds its power in understatement, illuminating small moments of everyday life with clarity and emotional weight. The songs continue his ongoing meditation on what it means to be human, shaped by experience, sobriety, and the quiet rewards that come from paying attention.

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Starpainter - Rabbits.

After sharing the stunning single "I Found a River" at the beginning of June, this week Starpainter officially confirm their new album, Cayenne Flowerbed, will be out Sept. 9 on Ram On Records. The pride of Lethbridge, Alberta has also released the single "Rabbits" and announced fall Canadian tour dates in support of the album.

Cayenne Flowerbed is the follow-up to Starpainter's acclaimed 2023 album Rattlesnake Dream, and carries their musical vision into uncharted territory with the help of producer Chris Dadge (Alvvays, Chad VanGaalen). "Rabbits" showcases the band's more meditative side, musically echoing artists like My Morning Jacket and Fleet Foxes.

Singer/songwriter Joel Stretch explains, "'Rabbits' explores the ghost-like space certain people take up in my mind after they're no longer physically present -- friends, family, or artists I admire who have died, or even just people I used to be close to that I've lost touch with. I still live with their guiding presence and perspectives sort of looming over me even though they're not around in my life anymore. I really love the parts everyone in the band laid down on this one. It's one of my all-time favourite arrangements on a Starpainter tune."

Starpainter -- who along with Stretch is comprised of Joel Gray, Mickey Hayward, Dylan Wagner, Bailey Kate, and Tyler Stewart -- intended Cayenne Flowerbed, to be a bold artistic statement, exploring new sides of their signature indie-twang sound. Across the album's eleven tracks, the blend of cinematic folk, fuzzy country rock, and richly textured pop songs reflects how the band has honed its approach over the past few years of performing together.

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Kate Prendergast - Exhale.

“There’s no I left in this team.” Hidden within an ethereal wrapping of melodic guitar and soulful piano, Exhale is a bittersweet reflection of hard truths about the struggle of maintaining one-sided relationships. A mix of emotional turmoil, powerful vocals, and a rich musical tapestry, Exhale takes us on a journey through oscillating cycles of hope and failure. It raises caution about self-criticism and the treacherous comforts of familiarity in relationships where disappointment and disillusionment reign.

Written by Kate Prendergast, Exhale is the first track in her forthcoming EP also called Exhale. It continues the Meath based singer-songwriter's collaboration with veteran producer Declan Legge of Big Space Studios and is released under his Stray Dogs Records Label.

"Something brand new from Kate Prendergast who worships at the altar of Radiohead. But to me her music has been funnelled through the autumnal Irish countryside and it came out even more interesting than Radiohead. It's very Irish, it's very up my street, a song called Exhale on BBC Introducing."     Taylor Arthur Johnson, BBC Introducing.

Kate Prendergast is a young, rising Irish multi-instrumentalist with a gift for crafting deeply evocative songs, blending indie folk, blues, country and alternative rock. Her music is a raw and soulful mix of personal reflection and sharp storytelling, shaped by influences ranging from Bob Dylan to Radiohead and Jeff Buckley.

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Lottie McLeod - Wednesdays at the Waterloo.

Magan-djin/Brisbane-based singer-songwriter Lottie McLeod shows off her wry, lighter and more playful side on new single + video 'Wednesdays at the Waterloo,' a song that sprung up organically about losing at pub trivia due to a wordless crush on your teammate, taking the warm, indie-pop/alt-country sounds of previous single 'Sunburnt' to starry-eyed heights. The new music comes as McLeod is set to embark on tour in October across so-called VIC, NSW and QLD in support of her forthcoming The Boathouse EP; also recently announced as local support for Harlan Goode. The Boathouse EP which will include previous singles 'Important To You' and 'Sunburnt' is out Friday 25 September.

With its light-hearted indie-pop/alt-folk bounce and Lottie McLeod's wry-yet-rose-tinted breathless vocals & lyricism - almost following the circular rhythms of what it's like to have a crush's name going round your head, 'Wednesdays at the Waterloo' and its tongue-in-cheek clip paint the picture of a ultra-specific situation: doggedly losing each week at pub trivia just to spend time with an unknowing crush. 

Thanks to Lottie McLeod's "reputation for turning hyper-personal moments into something painfully recognisable" (Backseat Mafia UK), her sharp-yet-warm pen renders 'Wednesdays at the Waterloo', at its core, into a song about being left wordless by someone, wanting to tell them how you feel but it never seems like the right time, and choosing - with a self-aware smile - to keep quiet about it, knowing that can't last but getting a little lost in it all anyway. 

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Cassady Southern - Wild Horses.

Sometimes a cover of a classic song comes along that simply cannot be ignored. I'm old enough to remember the original first time around, and there is no point repeating exactly the same, so a fresher, less intense yet very personal take, really does work for Beehive Candy. So to the background: This cover of the Rolling Stones’ “Wild Horses”, by singer-songwriter Cassady Southern, is based on an acoustic guitar recording by her late father, John, which she found after his passing. Cassady has built on this recording, adding a compelling and unique vocal take accompanied by stunning electric guitar and drums inspired by the original recording. 

This rendition honours their lifelong love of the band and transforms a timeless classic into a moving tribute to family and enduring influence. It features John Southern on acoustic guitar, Rob Drummond on electric guitar, Glenn Welman on drums, Luke Payne on bass, Cassady Southern on vocals and Luke Payne on backing vocals.

John Southern recorded the acoustic guitar himself and the vocals and electric guitar were recorded at Parliament Studios by Luke Payne (Luke Payne Sound), mixed by Luke Payne, produced by Luke and Cassady and mastered by Darren Ziesing (Millennium Mastering).

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Chris Pierce - Brooke Annibale - Cut The Wire - The Bankes Brothers

Photo - Miles Bitton

Chris Pierce - It Ain’t Ever Wrong to Be Free.

Chris Pierce shares his new single “It Ain’t Ever Wrong to Be Free,” the next preview of the LA singer-songwriter’s forthcoming album Songs for the Heavy Hearted, out August 21. A soulful highlight from the new record, the empowering song serves as a rallying cry for freedom – for ourselves, the people we love and those who cannot fight for themselves.

"I've never believed my job as a songwriter is to tell people what to think,” says Pierce. “My hope is to help people see one another more clearly. I've spent enough years traveling this country to know that every policy eventually arrives at someone's front door. That's where songs begin for me—not in politics, but in people. 'It Ain't Ever Wrong to Be Free' is about the courage to protect your peace, speak honestly, and stand beside people whose voices are too often ignored. To me, freedom means the most when it makes room for someone else."

“Sometimes, we’re going to get beaten and broken,” Pierce reflects. “But, even if you fire, arrest or threaten to imprison us, we’re going to pick ourselves up, brush ourselves off and start again the next day. I’m still going to be out there moving forward with my voice, harmonicas and guitar in hand.”

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Photo - Sasha Pedro

Brooke Annibale - Birthday.

Indie singer/songwriter Brooke Annibale has released her new single “Birthday.” The track is the latest to release off her forthcoming new album Bolder Font, which is due out on September 17th. A touch of nostalgia delivered with a wink, “Birthday” is an ode to friendships lost to fading time. It captures the quiet irony of two people who were once close enough to buy each other birthday cakes, now too distant to even send a text. Atwood featured the single and raved “A gentle giant of a song, it carries years of memory on a brooding pulse, wrapping Annibale’s raw, unflinching songwriting in sweet warmth.”

“The whole premise of this song is built around an awkward feeling, sort of like the feeling of running into someone you lost touch with and forgetting how to connect with them, even though you once knew them well,” stated Annibale. “This is my tongue-in-cheek reaction to that feeling." That tension lives right in the opening verse, while in the chorus, she wraps that bittersweet ache in an irresistible melody, balancing tongue-in-cheek wit with genuine warmth.

“Birthday” follows the release of the electrifying “Make You Mine,” which burns with the thrill of chasing something you simply can’t walk away from: the pursuit of love, a creative passion, a road not taken. It captures that irresistible pull of going after what you want one more time, making the scenic route feel like the only route worth taking. Annibale also recently released “Daily Dose,” a spirited reflection on unfiltered enthusiasm; “My Favorite Part,” the heartbreakingly vulnerable opening track; as well as the title track “Bolder Font,” which wrestles with the album’s underlying theme of self-worth and the gap between who we are and the identities that have been placed on us. Forged through disappointment, the song ultimately offers relief, a reminder that we have the power to shed that pressure and simply be enough as we are.

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Cut The Wire - Find A Friend.

Boston’s wires are still fraying, but this time Cut The Wire are not just chasing sparks. They are looking for connection in the middle of the blur. After making their debut with “The Friction,” a fuzz-loaded first strike that already found its way onto major alternative and rock playlists, Cut The Wire return with “Find A Friend,” the second glimpse of their upcoming debut album, dropping November 20 via TCBYML.

Where “The Friction” introduced the band’s rusted, high-voltage indie rock, “Find A Friend” kicks the door open with jittery fuzz guitars, crashing dry drums, messy melodic solos and double-tracked slacker vocals that sound like they are trying to outrun the room as it tilts sideways. It is fast, nervous and catchy in all the right ways, pulling from 80s college rock, lo-fi analog grit and the distorted melodic chaos of bands who know that beauty often lives inside the rattle.

Lyrically, “Find A Friend” is all loose threads, worn shoes, smudged maps and lucky mistakes. It captures that strange in-between feeling of wanting someone to reach for, while everything around you shakes just enough to make standing still impossible. The chorus says it best: “It’s a wire blur, it’s a mess I prefer.” That is the whole Cut The Wire world in one line: frayed, restless, loud, human and somehow better because it refuses to be clean.

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The Bankes Brothers - Risk It All.

Victoria, BC rock outfit The Bankes Brothers share “Risk It All,” a high-energy, angsty, and jubilant new single that captures the tension between burnout and bold decision-making. Driven by punchy guitars, an old-school rock edge, and a sense of restless momentum, the track channels the frustration of chasing stability while trying to hold onto a creative dream.

At its core, “Risk It All” reflects the reality of building a life in music while navigating the uncertainty that comes with it. “Being in the music industry is everything we wanted starting out,” Nelson Bankes shares. “As we’ve gotten more into it, there’s often a lot more ‘hurry up and wait.’ We’ve all had to work jobs to support ourselves while we chase this thing which can burn you out pretty quick. This song is about that shared frustration, and the reminder that life is what you make of it.”

The song began almost accidentally in the most unassuming way. “This one mostly happened in the shower,” Nelson explains. “I just started humming it and realized that it was a song that hadn’t been written yet.” From that simple melodic idea, the track quickly evolved into one of their most direct and explosive recordings to date.

With rhythm guitar, bass, and drums locked in early, the song still felt like it needed something to fully ignite it. That missing piece arrived unexpectedly in the form of guitarist Carson, who was recovering from a heavy flu during the session. “He was buried in his hoodie on the couch in the corner,” Nelson recalls. “Within two or three takes, he had this crazy lead part that tied the whole song together.”

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Soft Loft - Alex Dupree - Allegories - Penny Lane Pickets - Marie Dahlstrom

Soft Loft - Wednesdays.

Soft Loft returns with their new single “Wednesdays,” an uplifting indie-folk anthem about learning to rely on yourself. Inspired by the iconic Mean Girls line “On Wednesdays we wear pink,” the Swiss collective flips the script: happiness doesn’t come from being chosen by others. 

Driven by warm acoustic guitars, catchy melodies and Jorina Stamm’s unmistakable voice, “Wednesdays” celebrates personal growth and finding comfort in your own company. The track is lifted off the band's forthcoming album Throw The Dice out September 4th via [PIAS] Recordings.

Wednesdays is about sitting with yourself and feeling real good about it. It's about trying to feel good without depending on others for validation or happiness. It's about buying yourself flowers, taking walks or simply telling yourself today is going to be okay. It's about a tension between isolation and comfort, between feeling unseen and learning how to sit with yourself and be okay there. 

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Photo - TJ Masters

Alex Dupree - I Can See Her In Your Eyes.

“I Can See Her In Your Eyes” is the final glimpse into Talking to the Dog before the full album arrives August 14 via Scissortail Records. The record was produced by Michael Krassner, and it’s an album I’ve really loved spending time with. For all of its thoughtful, layered lyricism, it never feels weighed down — it feels alive. Like a band in a room, discovering the songs together, following the energy, and capturing those moments when everything clicks. There’s a spontaneity and warmth running through it that makes the whole record feel immediate and human.

Quote from Alex: "I love country duets, they have so much narrative possibility. The initial spark for this song came while writing for a duet project with Whitney Mower (They/Live) called “Dawn & Dupree”. It’s two perspectives on the same relational dead-end — he’s still hung up on an old love, and she can tell. The fun comes from how the language works on both sides. 

Having Jolie Holland sing on this is a dream come true. She’s an absolute legend, and hearing her album 'Catalpa' in high school probably changed my life. At that time, I hadn’t heard anyone so tapped into the deep vein of American music. I didn’t know it was possible to still go there. Not as a genre thing, but as real, true embodiment. And she’s still doing it! Jolie is on another level."

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Allegories - They'll Never Suspect Us.

Experimental duo Allegories return with “They’ll Never Suspect Us,” a deceptively beautiful and unsettling new single that reframes the idea of the murder ballad as something colder, more detached, and strangely euphoric. Built on ethereal dream pop textures and gliding indie electronic production, the track pairs some of the duo’s most luminous instrumentation with some of their darkest lyrical content to date, collapsing beauty and brutality into the same breath. It’s the latest single from Allegories’ upcoming new album, By accident, On purpose, set for release on October 16th, 2026.

At its core, “They’ll Never Suspect Us” is an imagined scenario pushed to its most uncomfortable extreme: a gleeful, fictional descent into violence narrated with eerie confidence and emotional distance. “There’s a long tradition of murder ballads,” Adam Bentley explains. “But what about murder anthems? A song that gleefully imagines the act, while rubbing the victim’s face in the idea that no one will care about their demise.”

Rather than leaning into shock alone, the track uses its narrative extremity to interrogate perspective itself, folding humour, discomfort, and abstraction into a single unsettling lens. “It’s a morbid, bleak, and weirdly fun exercise in trying on the hat of a truly reprehensible sociopath,” Adam adds. “And setting it all over what might be the dreamiest instrumental on our entire record? That somehow makes it even more twisted. Sometimes imagining the worst can bring out your best.”

That contrast becomes the defining feature of the song. Sonically, “They’ll Never Suspect Us” drifts through hazy dream pop atmospheres and understated indie rock momentum, anchored by soft focus melodies that feel almost calming in isolation. But the emotional framing destabilizes that calm, turning the track into something quietly disorienting; a lullaby with intent hidden just beneath the surface.

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Penny Lane Pickets - Best Damn Time.

Following the high-octane sunshine of their debut, Santa Cruz’s Penny Lane Pickets are dialing in a heavy, street-level groove with their upcoming single, "Best Damn Time." Shifting gears into a mid-tempo 160 BPM stomp heavily inspired by the infectious energy of modern ska-punk icons like The Interrupters, this track is a raw, grounded anthem dedicated to the sacred, gritty spaces where we escape the daily grind.

Built on a foundation of dry, punchy production, "Best Damn Time" features sharp, rhythmic electric guitar upstrokes and a fluid, melodic walking bassline that drives the entire track forward. Right from the very first second, a powerhouse brass section kicks in, commanding the melody and carrying the song side-by-side with an unforgettable chorus. The raspy, honest delivery of the lead vocals is perfectly elevated by soaring, 3-part Beatles-esque harmonies, striking that perfect, unique balance between 60s pop hooks and raw punk-rock attitude.

Lyrically, the track captures the hazy, smoke-filled atmosphere of a local urban refuge. It’s an ode to those unplanned Tuesdays at 4 PM that somehow turn into the ultimate Friday night. It’s about peeling bathroom stickers, spilled drinks on tattered maps, and the comfort of familiar faces under an industrial sky, filling the gap between the work, the sleep, and the bills.  

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Photo - Lennon Gregory

Marie Dahlstrom - Night & Day.

Marie Dahlstrom today releases her new single 'Night & Day', the latest taste of her third full-length album 'Marie' due out 18th September via JFH Records. The Roskilde-born & London-based vocalist, songwriter and producer will mark the release of the new album with two headline shows in London (8th October) and Copenhagen (13 October).

The new single 'Night & Day' pairs playful talk-box flourishes with buoyant neo-soul grooves, capturing the everyday work of sustaining long-term love in what Marie Dahlstrom affectionately describes as “a couples’ make-up song”. Speaking on the release, Dahlstrom said: "Love and relationships have their ups and downs. We have to put in the work and stay intentional to make them last."

Her third album Marie arrives at a moment when life has become fuller, busier and infinitely more complex. Since her previous releases, Dahlstrom has become a mother of two while continuing to build a life between London and Copenhagen.

Written over the past two years between London, Copenhagen and Los Angeles, the self-titled record draws on deeper jazz influences, live instrumentation and a close-knit international cast of collaborators, including Corey Fonville of acclaimed Richmond jazz collective Butcher Brown, Los Angeles pianist and producer Elijah Fox, Cuban percussionist Eliel Lazo, and her longtime collaborator (and partner in life) DanDiggas, resulting in Dahlstrom's warmest and most personal work to date.

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Mama’s Broke - Scarlet Tantrum - Sheffer Stephens - Mollie Coddled

Mama’s Broke - Build it Up.

Mama’s Broke present “Build it Up”, the third single from the Nova Scotian duo of Amy Lou Keeler and Lisa Maria’s forthcoming album Reunion, out August 28th via Free Dirt Records and Forward Music Group. “Build It Up” is a meditation on memory, change, and the things worth holding onto.  “As roads become highways and forests disappear, we are reminded of the cost of losing what we value most. Communities, traditions, and landscapes, survive only when we choose to nurture them”- Mama’s Broke. 

Like “Build It Up”, the songs on Reunion don’t preach or prescribe; they reflect, holding up a mirror and leaving space for something else to take shape. The album reflects a world coming apart in plain sight, tracing fractured communities, the erosion of shared ground, and the growing awareness that the systems we were taught to trust no longer hold or deliver the promises they were meant to keep. 

Mama’s Broke have forged a style carried across landscapes rather than tied to one. For over a decade, the pair have been in near-constant motion, bringing their folk-without-borders approach to small clubs, DIY spaces, and everywhere in between. This tradition is continued with their biggest tour yet which will see them play across Canada and the US. Speaking on the upcoming dates the pair explain, “This album is named Reunion because it’s so much about coming together and galvanising against the forces that attempt to keep us isolated and afraid. This album is meant to be experienced in a room of people, not on the internet.”

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Scarlet Tantrum - Rumors.

Carthage, North Carolina's Scarlet Tantrum returns with "Rumors," a confrontational slice of alt rock built for anyone who's ever caught a "friend" talking behind their back. This is the sound of receipts being pulled out in real time.

The track digs into betrayal in its most modern form: gossip as currency. Scarlet Tantrum doesn't hold back on the record's defining line, "Spreading rumors for the fame like it's do or die," a direct shot at anyone willing to trade loyalty for a little attention. It's petty, it's personal, and it's exactly the kind of energy that makes for a great rock song.

Musically, "Rumors" leans into Western-tinged electric guitar work that runs through the verses, adding a Southern rock edge that sets it apart from typical alt-rock fare. Then the breakdown hits, and Scarlet Tantrum flips the switch entirely, a gritty vocal fry delivery that trades the song's early bite for something darker and more aggressive.

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Sheffer Stephens - Time Time.

"Time, Time” is a driving, horn-laced rock & roll single from Sheffer Stephens — loud guitars, a hard-charging rhythm, and loose swagger from the first hit. Fast, bright, and full of motion, the track rides a deep rock & roll groove with the lift of a full band in stride. Beneath the surface, the lyrics quietly circle memory and the strange mercy of time

Sheffer Stephens makes roots-forward rock & roll with a loose spirit, a restless pulse, and a classic spark. His songs blend traditional rock & roll charm, glam-rock swagger, hypnotic grooves, and choruses that land quickly, familiar without feeling stuck in nostalgia. 

With loud guitars, vivid melodies, and arrangements that often turn unexpectedly cinematic, Stephens’ work moves between indie rock, stripped-down Americana, and soul-tinged rock & roll while keeping the focus on feel. Recent singles “Magic” and “Time, Time” point toward a forthcoming full-length album built on movement, raw charm, and the strange electricity of the present moment.

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Photo - Georgia Zimmerman

Mollie Coddled - The Art Of Falling Apart.

For Yorkshire (England) songwriter, producer and self-described "glitter-coated bedroom-pop auteur" Mollie Coddled, falling apart has become a productive place to begin. Today, she releases new single 'The Art Of Falling Apart', the first taste of a new project set to be announced later this year.

Reintroducing Mollie Coddled as one of UK indie-pop's most singular young songwriters and producers, 'The Art Of Falling Apart' opens with a spoken-word diary entry before slipping into a shimmery, daydream-like dissociation - weaving together glowing Juno synthesisers, chorus-soaked lead guitars and towering vocal harmonies.

Self-written and produced by Mollie before being mixed by Lee Smith (Holly Humberstone, Griff, Chloe Qisha), the track pairs stream-of-consciousness lyricism ("How is everyone staying sane? / And they're not academically a train wreck?") with bright, synth-laced production.

On the new single, Mollie Coddled said: "I work in cycles of manic to depressive. For me, hitting rock-bottom is the only way to regain my lust for life; it’s the only time I start to feel better. The Art Of Falling Apart isn’t for clean girls who go to the gym and get A’s on their school work, it’s for the people forgetting to eat and shower, bed-rotting until 4am and then going “why the f... am I so tired” every day!” Humour has long been Mollie's way into difficult conversations. Intrusive thoughts, uncomfortable truths and everyday catastrophes are filtered through off-kilter pop hooks, self-deprecating wit and an unwavering refusal to take herself too seriously.

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