Australian Country artist Beth Lucas has released her deeply personal new single ‘What I Deserved'. Written eighteen years after the experience of her first love, the track is a candid reflection on the complexities of young adulthood and the mistakes made on both sides of a first serious relationship - a song she never expected to write. Though the track was already written, Lucas refined the key elements during the recording process alongside producer James North.
Through her trademark confessional storytelling, Beth explores her own shortcomings and the lessons learned from a formative romance she once thought she’d never revisit. After surfacing subconsciously, years after Lucas had “pushed it down and moved on”, ‘What I Deserved’ has evolved into a form of therapy - transforming a suppressed memory into a moment of growth and resolution.
“This is easily one of the most vulnerable songs I’ve ever written and I know it’s finally the right time to share this part of my story. Like a lot of my songs, the lyrics eventually found their way out in the middle of the night, and when I sat down the next day, the song basically wrote itself. It feels good to finally release it”.
Beth Lucas creates confessional modern country with an alt-edge, blending “sad girl country” vulnerability with the vocal power of Sara Evans. Her sound is a deliberate evolution - originally rooted in the emo and alternative scenes, Beth returned from a brief hiatus with a refocused devotion to raw, honest storytelling.
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Emory Duncan has shared the second single from his forthcoming EP Semicircles and Half Written Songs, produced by Jamie Mefford (Gregory Alan Isakov, Nathaniel Rateliff). Duncan’s soft, gauzy vocals float over an elegant tangle of violin, piano, and slide guitar, as he examines the power of real love to pull us out of self-sabotaging cycles.
Duncan shares: “Semicircles” is about the rhythms we find ourselves in, patterns that we fall into and define us, and the cold realization in hindsight that the agency to change was ours all along. We become victims of our choices, stuck in our little loops despite our awareness of them. Semicircles, at its core, is a lack of self-control. It’s reconciling regret and emotional distance with a love that’s powerful and real. That’s the tragedy, that honest love is no match for self-destruction, although they both exist in a messy complexity of internal struggle.
Originally from Houston, Duncan now lives and writes from a log cabin tucked beneath the Redwoods of the Santa Cruz Mountains, crafting pastoral Americana as dreamy, foggy, and serene as the setting he inhabits. He released his debut EP For Someone I Don’t Know in 2024 followed by a string of singles. Duncan’s music has independently racked up millions of streams and landed in tastemaker compilations by Alexrainbird, Indie Folk Central and more.
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Strange Plants return with “Ground Falls Away,” an energetic rock single that blends kinetic grooves with the band’s signature analog warmth. Driven by pulsing rhythms, vintage textures, and an undeniable forward motion, the track captures the restless feeling of pushing through life’s daily pressures and refusing to stand still. Following up on February’s “Lay Your Mind,” it’s the second release to be shared as part of a collection arriving throughout the year.
The inspiration for “Ground Falls Away” came from a candid conversation between friends. “I was speaking with a friend over drinks one night and he was really going through it,” explains songwriter Matt Brannon. “He was hustling day to day just to stay ahead, and it felt like if he ever stopped moving the ground would just swallow him up. Despite all this pressure, he remained hopeful and willing to keep soldiering on.”
The song first began with a riff from songwriter Travis Flint, an acoustic figure that weaves through the verses and anchors the driving momentum. Though written several years ago, the band initially set it aside after recording the foundational tracks during a transitional period. Returning to it later gave the song new life. “We had recorded the bed tracks but shelved it for a while,” Matt says. “Coming back to it now, it feels like it was meant to be. It’s so much better and we couldn’t be happier.”
One of the most distinctive elements of “Ground Falls Away” lies in its rhythm section. The bass lands on the upbeat against the kick drum’s downbeat, creating an unusual push-and-pull groove that fuels the song’s sense of motion. The chorus then expands dramatically, culminating in an instrumental back half that delivers emotional impact without relying on additional lyrics.
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Aldous Harding has dropped a second single from her upcoming fifth album Train On The Island, which lands on 8 May. The track, 'Venus In The Zinnia' got its first spin last night on Lauren Laverne’s BBC 6Music show.
On the song, Harding teams up with H. Hawkline—who handles bass, guitar, and backing vocals—while John Parish jumps in on drums, Wurlitzer, and percussion. Keeping up her streak of striking visuals, the new video features both Harding and H. Hawkline, and was made with the support of NZ on Air Music.
The 10-track Train On The Island was co-produced by long-time collaborator John Parish (PJ Harvey, Dry Cleaning) at Rockfield Studios in Monmouth, Wales, where the pair recorded the New Zealander’s previous bodies of work, Party (2017), Designer (2019) and Warm Chris (2022). Joining Harding and Parish on Train On The Island were pedal steel player Joe Harvey-Whyte, harpist Mali Llywelyn, synth artist Thomas Poli, drummer Sebastian Rochford (Polar Bear) and Huw Evans (H. Hawkline) on bass, vocals, acoustic/electric guitar and organ.
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| Photo - Rakel Stammer |
Nic Panken understands the perseverance of art and its intentions to ground and inspire us. He sees how melodies ruminate deep in the belly of uncertainty, blossoming to bring fresh clarity and a whispering optimism. Over the years, the Brooklyn-born songwriter has endeavored to spread the invigorating presence of song, initially through fronting the Americana-folk group Spirit Family Reunion and now, through his own evolution as a solo artist. Panken strives for equilibrium and purpose, and it's through his gorgeously sensitive yet gutsy delivery that an exhale can be found, away from our amplified anxieties and collective mourning.
Now residing in Kingston, NY, Panken divides his time outside of music-making between working as a puppeteer, hosting his weekly radio show, and mixing sound at beloved local venue Tubby's. By immersing himself in the restorative power of the arts, every day is decorated with the potential to be present; to find new meaning and community through his various, purposeful practices. After years of relentless touring with Spirit Family Reunion, Panken found solace in staying still, and it’s in this shift that he began crafting what would become his new body of work.
His debut solo album Near Divine or Merely Rhyme is the result of trusting your gut and the process, no matter how unexpected the outcome. The foundation of these songs were spurred on by a wink from the universe, when Panken met multi-instrumentalist Jared Samuel (Kevin Morby, Aldous Harding) while performing at a local Hudson Valley house show. Samuel and his partner Sarah La Puerta run the small recording studio Pale Moon Services in Cambridge, NY, with core beliefs that music making is for all, and that to say yes to one instant is to say yes to all of existence.
“As soon as I walked into that space I knew I wanted to make music there,” Panken says, citing Samuel’s “encouraging yet patient,” energy that served as a catalyst in the album’s tapestry. The previously stripped-down arrangements of Panken’s songs soon morphed into an expansive landscape, as the pair’s chemistry propelled the sonic direction. “I learned to just allow it to be what it wants to be.”
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| Photo - Eshe Taylor |
Desperately Seeking Suki, are an exciting duo made up of siblings Natassa Zoë and SIG SALI (Danny Pugh), based in Australia and the UK. They introduce you to their world with their impactful debut single 'Suki' out on the 10th of April, lifted from their forthcoming EP.
‘Suki' is a love song about life’s messy, beautiful bits, the good, the awkward and the real. It’s about meeting someone who truly sees you and being free to be completely yourself. Standing on the dancefloor in the eye of a carousel of glimmering synths and infectious beats, Natassa’s evocative and literate spoken word puts you into her mind's eye. Bursting into synth-dapped, earworm alt-pop choruses. ‘Suki’ embodies the ups, the downs, the laughs and the big feelings, love with an open heart, even when it’s messy. A rushing and cinematic song built for 2026: relatable yet universal, it burrows into your head and won’t let go. Desperately Seeking Suki will take you by the hand and take you for a ride.
Natassa says: “Suki is about embracing the light and dark in yourself and finding love that holds through the chaos.” Natassa Zoë, who lives between Australia and the UK, and Danny Pugh, based in Bristol, started Desperately Seeking Suki by sending tracks back and forth across continents before reuniting to launch their debut EP. Together, they craft a sonic tapestry that fuses melodic indie pop, art pop, and dynamic synth pop.
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Award-winning husband-and-wife duo Eleyet McConnell return with their gripping new single and video, “The Ledge,” available worldwide on April 10th, 2026. The track is the latest release from their critically praised sophomore album, The Journey, which debuted March 6th across all major digital platforms.
Written by Angie and Chris McConnell, “The Ledge” stands as one of the album’s most emotionally charged and sonically intense moments. Driven by raw vocals, urgent instrumentation, and unflinching honesty, the song captures the breaking point in a toxic relationship—where silence, manipulation, and emotional weight collide with the need for liberation.
Opening with stark confrontation—“One of these days you’re gonna realize you needed me”—the track builds into a defiant chorus that declares independence and self-worth: “Standing on the edge of the ledge / I need to break free from here.” The imagery is vivid and immediate, placing listeners at the brink of a personal reckoning. It’s a song about reclaiming control, shedding emotional chains, and choosing truth over illusion.
Musically, “The Ledge” leans into the duo’s evolving rock-forward sound, blending driving guitars with dynamic rhythms and powerful vocal delivery. It reflects the broader sonic direction of The Journey, an album that expands Eleyet McConnell’s palette while staying rooted in their signature authenticity.
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