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. 

============================================================================

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. 

============================================================================

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.

============================================================================

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.

============================================================================

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.” 

============================================================================

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.

============================================================================

Black Bordello - The Sully Band - Chrissi Poland - Mae Mae

Photo - Lou Smith

Black Bordello - Drones.

Peckham, London based band Black Bordello today release new single "Drones" and announce their new EP 'White Bardo', out March 2022 via Hideous Mink Records (Opus Kink, Fake Turins, Body Horror). With inspirations ranging from PJ Harvey and Björk to Aphex Twin and David Bowie, Black Bordello's carnivalesque blend of art-rock, punk, jazz and Turkish psychedelia is a wholly unique aural experience.

Recently supporting the likes of Goat Girl and L.A. Salami as well as being handpicked by The Libertines to support them on their November UK tour, Black Bordello are a truly captivating live proposition. Regularly appearing on the London underground circuit alongside fellows risers Opus Kink, Blue Bendy, Modern Woman, Malady, Honeyglaze and Robbie & Mona, they have organically garnered a reputation as one of the most exciting live acts in the country.

The band's self-titled debut album was released in 2020 to a small but fervent wave of acclaim from publications including So Young Magazine ("It takes very little persuasion to fall under Black Bordello’s spell") and Loud And Quiet ("...simply calling Black Bordello's self-titled debut album 'genre-defying' doesn't do it justice. This album is an exercise in world building.")

The band announce their first body of work since their debut album, new EP 'White Bardo' - out next March via tastemaker indie label Hideous Mink Records. The announcement coincides with the release of new single "Drones" along with an accompanying video directed by Lou Smith. Written during lockdown 2020, (somewhat illegally) in a basement underneath a closed pub, "Drones" opens with a theatrical descending bass line, before erupting into a roar of magisterial brass, fizzing synth runs, and frenzied percussion.

Discussing the initial inspiration behind the track, vocalist Sienna Bordello said: "The idea for 'Drones' came about after I watched a documentary about a Drone pilot. He was a gamer who had been headhunted by the US military and recruited into the military workforce. He was given a gaming station with Xbox-like controllers and vintage screens which showed simplistic colours, much like the platform arcade games of the 80s and 90s. He was given missions like ‘cut the grass’, ‘trim the weeds’, ‘tidy this area’. After his service was done, he suffered PTSD when the realisation that he’d been controlling the distribution and attack of drone missiles on civilians sank in. I thought of this as an interesting subject matter for the song, namely because we were in a global pandemic and all life as we knew it had been halted, yet at the same time the UK and US (amongst others)  governments had put more money into military than ever before, and had recruited more troops to attack parts of the middle east throughout our so-called ‘international emergency’. I was gobsmacked that they were passing needless military operations whilst the world was distracted by the pandemic. Every person in this situation is a puppet, but who is pulling the strings?"

==========================================================================

The Sully Band - When The Battle Is Over.

On March 11, 2022, The Sully Band, voted Best Live Band at the 2020 San Diego Music Awards, will release their debut LP, Let’s Straighten It Out, conceived in the hallowed halls of Henson Recording Studio in Hollywood, California (formerly A&M Studios). With Let’s Straighten It Out, Sully and his bluesy, nine-piece beast of a band take us on a journey through the ups, downs, and all-arounds of love by way of 10 classic ‘60s and ‘70s soul, blues, and R&B tunes. The album will be released via Belly Up Records, and marketed and distributed by Blue Élan Records.

This labor of love album was recorded in only five jam-packed days, with “mostly-live” versions of carefully curated love-themed songs that made a mark when they were originally released and yet also feel relevant today. Sully’s soulful, heartfelt vocals cut across layers of horns and guitars that take the listener on an emotional arc of joy, disappointment, struggle, and redemption.

Multiple Grammy Award-winning producer Chris Goldsmith (Blind Boys of Alabama, Ben Harper, Charlie Musselwhite, Big Head Todd) provided the musical curation that makes up Let’s Straighten It Out. Treasured tunes like Billy Preston’s “Nothing from Nothing” and Jackie Wilson’s “Higher and Higher” share the tracklist with lesser-known nuggets like “Hallelujah, I Love Her So” by Ray Charles; the title track, first recorded by Latimore in 1974; Shuggie Otis’ “Ice Cold Daydream”; and “I Wish It Would Rain,” first made a hit by The Temptations. Acclaimed San Diego soul singer, Rebecca Jade, shared vocal duties with Sully on Mac Rebennack (aka Dr. John) and Jessie Hill’s “When the Battle Is Over,” while on “If You Love Me Like You Say,” the late Albert Collins is evoked by Anthony Cullins, the 20-year-old guitar sensation from Fallbrook, California.

Anchored by Grammy Award-winning slayer of the bass, James East (Eric Clapton, Elton John, Michael Jackson, and many others), The Sully Band is composed of seasoned, accomplished players who hail from diverse locales like Japan, Panama, and the island of Lemon Grove. The horn section features sax-flute-harp-man Tripp Sprague (Kenny Loggins, The Little River Band, Smokey Robinson, The Temptations, The Four Tops) and trumpet and flugelhorn player Steve Dillard (The Righteous Brothers and Lynyrd Skynyrd).

Sully himself is an enigma. He caught the music bug at age six after picking up a nylon-string guitar and playing the first few chords of “Sitting on the Dock of the Bay” with his dad. In high school, the barrel-chested, all-American football player rocked out to Boston and Foreigner with his buddies, starred in every show-tune-laden musical theatre production through college, and ended each day with James Brown or Stevie Wonder on his Pioneer receiver.

==========================================================================

Chrissi Poland - Destination Home (E.P).

Becoming a parent completely changes one’s perspective. Singer-songwriter Chrissi Poland chronicles her journey through music and motherhood in her upcoming EP Destination Home. Vocalizing the raw balance of being an active touring musician and a new mom to a two-year-old baby girl, Poland speaks her truth about life within her contemporary styled tracks.

Poland’s passion for music was fueled when she was born into her musically inclined family and has only flourished since then. Rooted in Poland’s shift of view when she embarked on motherhood, Destination Home shares how this journey has influenced her music and all aspects of life. The songwriter’s honest mid-tempo EP highlights the universal ups and downs of parenting while striving to achieve one's dream. Hoping to inspire parents across the globe with this intimate project, Poland shares:

“When I began to write the songs for what would become Destination Home, I was a new mother and had just come off of my first tour since my daughter had been born. After growing and carrying this little human, suddenly she was out in the world, and then a handful of months later, I was out in the world, without her. What an unsettling, strange and often at times debilitating feeling, to suddenly be away from her for stretches of time. And so goes the plight of every working mother around the world, no matter what field of work.” Poland continues, “I remember being on a plane with tears streaming down my face as I wrote the words to 'Destination Home,' grappling with feelings of guilt and anxiety, of general unease."

A personal and yet recognizable sentiment, the multifaceted musician aims to let her story be heard while inspiring others to believe in their own dreams as well as in themselves. Poland shares: “The whole EP turned out to not only be a letter of love to my daughter, but to mothers and caregivers. To all the mothers and caregivers everywhere who are forging ahead with their careers and also being loving parents and guardians, I see you! This is for you.”

Chrissi Poland · Destination Home

==========================================================================

Mae Mae - Apple Boy.

Atlanta-born and Los Angeles-based singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Mae Mae will soon announce the release date and track list for her debut EP, Gummy Heart Eyes. 

She has released the second single from that record, “Apple Boy” a fizzy pop song with a stylishly groove.

“Apple Boy” joins Mae Mae’s previously released debut single from Gummy Heart Eyes, “Squishy” a song that Consequence called “an easy, playful, sunny ode to a happy afternoon” and lies “somewhere between cutesy and dreamy.”

 

 

==========================================================================

Black Bordello - Sylvie - Gustaf

Black Bordello - Nunhead.

Peckham, London based quintet Black Bordello have released their new single "Nunhead". An uncompromising 5 minute art-rock attack of the senses, the track examines the gentrification of Peckham, its new generation of disrespecting residents and the inevitable fate of us all.

The release of "Nunhead" coincides with the announcement of the band's signing to Hideous Mink Records (Opus Kink, Fake Turins, Body Horror) and arrives alongside an accompanying video for the track, shot in Nunhead cemetery and directed by Will Reid (recently working with the likes of Malady, Slowthai, LEGSS and Lauren Auder).

Comprised of singer and guitarist Sienna Bordello, Eddie Amos (drums/percussion), Anthony Boatright (bass), Rachel Asafo-Agyei (backing vocals) and Henry Carpenter (keys), Black Bordello are widely regarded as one of the most unique and exciting live acts in London right now.

Pulling together the shapeshifting creativity and theatrics of PJ Harvey, the jazz-flecked tones of Billie Holiday and Bessie Smith with the emotional intensity of Patti Smith, Black Bordello are a force to be reckoned with and "Nunhead" is a momentous statement of intent from the 5-piece.

Speaking on the track, the band said: "'Nunhead' was written during the plague, at a time when people were confined to their houses. Sienna would visit Nunhead cemetery frequently as a place of refuge and to see the graves of her family members. There she was met face to face by the ills of gentrification. The place that always held profound, peaceful contemplation and wisdom buried deep within its grounds was now ruined by over-privileged pleasure makers who had no real connection to the area or its history. Sienna and the band felt this reflected the overarching psychopathy in our times."

==========================================================================

Sylvie - Falls on me.

Last month Sylvie announced their self-titled debut EP on Terrible Records, and shared its epononymous title track. The song is a cover of a song from an obscure 1970s record by Ian Matthews called Later That Same Year, and a track that serves as a partial inspiration for the band's existence. Before they adopted it as a name, the band (which is led by some time Drugdealer & Golden Daze member Benjamin Schwab and features Marina Allen and Sam Burton) started using the term "a Sylvie" to refer to "a song from the past that’s incredible but for whatever reason, is basically unknown," and the group's sound is a sort of homage to lost gems like Matthew's songs, and the recordings of Mad Anthony, the Southern California group that Benjamin's father John Schwab played in during the '70s. 

Now the band are sharing a new single from the EP and their first original composition, a track entitled "Falls on me" that features lead vocals from Allen, whose well-regarded solo debut Candlepower, came out on Fire Records earlier this year.

A gorgeously rendered song that feels as though it could have been airlifted directly out of Laurel Canyon, the track is anchored by a powerful and strikingly nuanced performance from Allen, but was written by Schwab who identifies it as the most personal song on Sylvie's debut.

"A lot of the songs on the EP feel like they're about other people's lives, my experience with them, or a time and place in the past, but this is the one off the EP that is directly about my life and my growth," Schwab explains. "When I was writing 'Falls on me', I was sorting through all these emotions that had built up over the past 5-10 years. Through rel-tionships ending, bridges burning, or whatever it was, I found myself at a place where I felt very distant from the source. 

Repeating similar patterns, being heartbroken over someone over and over again or whatever it was. I found myself really lost to the point where there was really no other place to go but home. The first half of the song explores this feeling, and then 3/4 of the way through the character meets a friend who reminds them of themselves. There is this person who reminds them just enough of who they are so that they can see themselves again or what it would be like to return home, back to the source, to yourself. This song to me is about deliverance and a returning home that took me many years to arrive at. Itʼs sung by Marina Allen, who realy did such an amazing job delivering the sentiment."

==========================================================================

Gustaf - Best Behavior.

Brooklyn’s Gustaf are sharing "Best Behavior", the follow up to the NPR-approved "Book" and second offering from the debut album Audio Drag For Ego Slobs, out October 1st on Royal Mountain Records. A frenetic and suitably buzzing from one of New York’s “hardest working…and most reliably fun bands” (BrooklynVegan), it comes ahead of an extensive of touring throughout the US, UK and Europe that sees them sharing the stage with IDLES, Pillow Queens, and Osees.

Vocalist Lydia Gammill explains, "“Best Behavior” was fun to record because it was one of the first songs we finished/crafted in the studio rather than onstage. It started out as a demo we had in the early days of the band but never ended up playing live. It sat forgotten until we began planning the record and came together pretty effortlessly in the studio." She continues, "Unlike the bulk of the album that we developed over the course of many live shows, it was exciting to be making decisions and constructing the final song as it was happening. It also helped us get our footing and identify how we wanted to steer and produce the remaining recordings."

"The song’s ethos is a bit of the old and the new attitude for Gustaf. Our narrator, the ‘ego slob’, is bargaining with itself, scrounging for self compassion and self assurance despite a pile of hurt feelings in its wake. In demanding spoils despite having done nothing to earn them, we see the initial cracks in a brutish facade— our antihero slowly realizing maybe the shell they built for themselves was not built for the world."

==========================================================================