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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Izzy Oram Brown - River Shook - Peter Parcek - Sam Burchfield - Twin Bloom - Empty Melon

Photo - Natalie Jordan

Izzy Oram Brown - What I Want (Album).

“Love U the Same”—a plainspoken, broadly strummed pop ballad and the emotional highwater mark of Izzy Oram Brown’s new LP What I Want sketches out a journey toward accepting emotional paradox. Singing in hushed but soulful tones that bring to mind Christine McVie, the Massachusetts-born, Queens-dwelling songwriter returns to chords that she reframes in every verse, setting up a resolution that never comes, mirroring the lost promise of a broken compact between lovers who really tried to make it work. An ambiguous chord, neither bright or despairing, frames both an admission of hurt and bittersweet statement of re-devotion (“But no matter what I do or say, you’re with me.”) 

It is only after the narrator accepts that only time can make mutual empathy and acceptance possible that the harmony settles and the arrangement expands: “If we tire of the work/of finding who’s to blame/I will remember/I love you the same.” With its nostalgic, carefully arced melody and lyrics, the song holds pain, contradiction, and a genuine warmth of spirit easily. It’s a combination which often eludes even the greatest artists who write about romantic wires getting crossed.

These strengths permeate What I Want, Brown’s sophomore release, from beginning to end. Each song dramatizes a frank and comprehensive self-analysis session in their basic structure. Throughout the album, Brown convincingly tackles the broadest possible thematic material with deliberateness and clarity. Though she began life immersed in singing folk songs, she has spent much of her musical career as an accomplished session and touring guitarist—known for her work playing with musical legends like Julian Lage as well as rising NYC bands like Why Bonnie and Youbet. 

Taking a break from jazz studies, she moved to Nashville in her late teens to do live and session work, and fell in love with the architecture of pop songwriting. For her, writing music is as much a responsibility as a pastime. “Every song I’ve ever written happened because I decided it was time to write some songs,” she explains. Hesitant to waste anyone’s time, including her own, she writes when she is ready to, and as a result, the songs on What I Want ring out with the lucidity of someone who has thought hard about what they are going to say long before they say it. 

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River Shook - River Shook (Album).

River Shook’s self-titled debut album is out this weekend via Blackberry River. On River Shook, arrow-to-the-heart honest lyrics, rock-god guitar solos, shimmering pedal steel, and Shook’s unmistakable voice cuts like a ray of light through a great darkness. A sense of poise, a contagious strength coaxes the listener towards a deeper level of honesty about ourselves, our choices, and the shifting landscapes of modern life.

In the spring of 2025, River Shook was getting through the remaining Sarah Shook & the Disarmers’ tours. The beloved country rock band’s decade-long run was set to come to a close that summer, but Shook was mentally miles ahead already, dreaming up a new future as a solo artist. Despite a powerful armory of brand new songs, Shook’s demos yielded no bites from labels. Frustrated with the slow-turning gears of the music industry, Shook pitched an unconventional idea to their lead guitarist and partner, Blake Tallent - they would make the entire record themselves on a shoe-string budget, and sort out a label deal down the line.

The Disarmers played their final show at the end of June 2025. On the first day of July, Shook and Tallent dug deep into their small home studio, and got to work. The songs felt light years ahead of Shook’s past writing. “I’ve talked a lot about evolving as an artist, about personal growth as a tool to avoid stagnation or hitting a plateau,” explains Shook. “The finality of the Disarmers disbanding felt like a weight had been lifted, like I was seeing my life with perfect vision for the first time. Evolution wasn’t enough for what I wanted to achieve with this record, I had to die. I had to completely kill my old self, and all inhibiting beliefs about myself, my potential as an artist, and my limits as a creator.”

Shook and Tallent pulled off the impossible with River Shook - in a modest home studio in rural North Carolina, two people created an album that feels larger than life. Vast, rolling landscapes of sonic layers gently envelope timeless themes into each other: a great sacrifice that gives nothing in return, a false friend’s betrayal, a longing to be truly seen by an emotionally unavailable parent. Throughout the album, Shook gently illuminates themes we tend to mentally avoid, reminding us we’re braver than we think, we can handle hard truths about our lives, and we can change course the moment we’re ready.


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Photo - Tom Hazeltine

Peter Parcek - Twistified.

Acclaimed guitarist, singer-songwriter, and blues innovator Peter Parcek returns with Most of the Time, a powerful new album arriving August 14th. The album’s first single, “Twistified,” captures Parcek’s fearless approach to modern blues. Fueled by roaring guitar, hypnotic grooves, and a nod to Mississippi bluesman Roosevelt “Booba” Barnes, the track honors blues tradition while pushing the genre into bold new territory, setting the tone for an album that is both rooted in history and unmistakably forward-looking. Listen here.

A 13-song collection of originals and inspired interpretations, Most of the Time showcases Parcek at his most expressive—as a songwriter, vocalist, arranger, and one of today’s most distinctive guitarists. From the haunting title track, written by Bob Dylan, to soulful takes on Bill Withers’ “Grandma’s Hands,” John Hiatt’s “Mississippi Phonebooth,” and Mose Allison’s “Don’t You Worry ’Bout a Thing,” the album balances emotional depth with extraordinary musicianship.

The album also marks new territory for Parcek, incorporating horns on four tracks for the first time and featuring an exceptional lineup of guests, including Duke Robillard, Luther Dickinson, Mickey Raphael, Kevin Barry, Danielle Miraglia, and Tom West, alongside longtime bandmates Marc Hickox and Tim Carman.This is Parcek’s fifth major release and follows an acclaimed run of albums including the Blues Music Award-nominated The Mathematics of Love, the EP Pledging My Time, Everybody Wants To Go To Heaven—praised by Premier Guitar for its “close to the bone” approach and “earthy and ethereal” sound—and 2020’s Mississippi Suitcase, which expanded his signature blend of blues, rock, folk, and gypsy jazz.

Peter Parcek · Twistified

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Photo - Aram Aghababian

Sam Burchfield - One More Setting Sun.

Sam Burchfield has released a new single on Cloverdale Records (Evan Honer, Winyah), “One More Setting Sun.” Over rapturous rhythm and zagging electric guitars, Burchfield celebrates another year of vibrant life. 

He shares: We're just little eternal beings trapped in bodies trying to love each other and navigate the cosmos. The world is beautiful, we are in it and we are part of the beauty.  I wanna love you forever—that’s what this song is. What else can I say? It’s a summer bop.

This is the second glimpse into a new full-length expected later this year; details to be announced. Burchfield shared “Leave the Light On” this spring to acclaim from Northern Transmissions, Atwood Magazine, DittyTV, and Whiskey Riff among others, amidst a rolling tour including dates with The Strumbellas. The run continues with headlines as well as support for Joe P, Wilderado, Max McNown, and Evan Honer.

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Twin Bloom - Summer's Gone.

Twin Bloom’s self-titled debut EP, slated for release in summer 2026, captures a moment of transition, caught between looking back and pushing forward. Lead single “Summer’s Gone” distills the band’s approach most clearly, pairing an easy, driving rhythm with a bittersweet sense of seasonal shift. Twin Bloom isn’t chasing trends or big statements. The band is focused on writing songs that stick, sound good turned up in the car and feel just as natural on the tenth listen as the first.

Twin Bloom makes indie rock that balances momentum with atmosphere, drifting between the glow of 80s new wave, the haze of shoegaze and the melodic pull of classic guitar pop. Based in Oakland, the band leans into warmth over sharp edges. Guitars shimmer and blur, melodies stick quickly, and close vocal harmonies give the songs a familiar, lived-in feel. Influences like Teenage Fanclub, Alvvays, The Cure and The Strokes are present, but never foregrounded, filtered instead through a sensibility shaped by years of playing rooms, basements and clubs.

There’s patience in the band’s writing, but also a steady sense of drive. Songs unfold gradually, carried by chiming guitars and propulsive rhythms that keep things moving even as textures bloom and recede. The arrangements stay lean and focused, favoring clarity over excess and letting repetition, tone and melody do the work. The music feels emotionally grounded and immediate, well suited for hazy summer drives and warm, nostalgic nights that stretch on longer than expected.

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Empty Melon - Don’t Look Away.

Created and developed in Montreal’s DIY scene, Empty Melon (the solo project of Ada Lea bassist/producer Summer Kodama) follows up on her debut single, “Hoping to Find,” with “Don’t Look Away,” an atmospheric, dark, and emotionally charged song that transforms late-night spiralling into something strangely beautiful. Blending experimental electronics, art pop textures, and cinematic sound design, the track embraces discomfort rather than avoiding it, finding clarity through directness, vulnerability, and self-confrontation.

“Don’t Look Away” first emerged during a solitary drive in the early hours of the morning. “It started with spiralling while driving alone at 2am and improvising on the bass guitar,” Summer explains. What began as a fleeting emotional moment gradually evolved into a meditation on honesty, both with others and with oneself. “I think there’s a catharsis to expressing yourself and your needs with plain, direct language,” she says. “It allows you to facilitate an alignment with your most authentic self. Honesty is the most important component of self-expression.”

That sense of emotional directness is reflected throughout the production. Where “Hoping to Find” drifted through the hazy space between sleep and wakefulness, “Don’t Look Away” occupies a darker emotional landscape. Summer describes the two songs as “polar siblings,” with one basking in sunlight while the other emerges under the cover of night.

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Rick Hromadka - Frank Rabeyrolles - Hanne Leland

Rick Hromadka - Are You Magical? / My Son.

Rick Hromadka has long been a major player on the LA power pop scene, from his early days fronting Double Naught Spies in the '90s through the 25-year (and counting!), four-album run of the mighty psych-rock and power pop quartet Maple Mars. Most recently heard from on the hit 2022 album Someone's Got To Listen and last year's special Anniversary Single, Maple Mars is still going strong, but it's far from Hromadka's only musical venture. Recent years have seen creation of his occasional sunshine pop-oriented side project Ruby Free, and he's always maintained a solo career with album releases in 2014 and 2020, as well as occasional standalone singles including one each for the Christmas and Halloween seasons, both now firmly enshrined as perennial holiday favorites. 

It's to those solo endeavors that the singer-songwriter returns on the new double single, pairing AM Gold vibes with a touch of psychedelic melodicism on “Are You Magical?” and mining real life experience on the sweetly whimsical B-side “My Son.” Of the lead track, Rick says: “This song was originally written and recorded for the first Ruby Free album. I’ve always loved the tune, but because the album was self-released, I felt it never reached the audience it deserved. That inspired me to revisit the song, re-recording it with new musical parts and updated lyrics. I also wanted to involve family members, especially my kids! The song is about meeting someone very special, but hoping the love is real, and not just some grand illusion!” 

If the B-side “My Son” brings not just a smile but also a hint of cinematic origins, that's down to Hromadka's other job in the movie industry. “While doing sound design on Dog Man for DreamWorks Animation, which went on to be the number-one box office film for two weeks in 2025, I noticed the story carried a strong father-and-son emotional thread. During one of the early animatic screenings, an older song I had written years ago suddenly came back to me. 

'My Son' was originally written shortly after my oldest son Dylan was born. I decided to revisit the song and record it with a cinematic, film-score-inspired feel, hoping it might eventually find its way into the film’s end credits. Unfortunately, the director was also a musician and already had several of his own songs featured in the movie, so there simply wasn’t room for another track. I played all the instruments on the recording and brought in my stepdaughter, Kylah Langevei a tremendously talented singer to add the background vocals.”

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Frank Rabeyrolles - Bossa in My Heart.

Last February saw the release of "Slow" by Frank Rabeyrolles (Too Good 47). In three weeks' time, the album will be joined by its companion piece. Made up of eleven tracks drawn from the same writing session (with the exception of one song whose title hints at a later composition). 

"Slow 2" was entirely written, performed, produced, mixed and mastered by Frank at home, driven by an almost obsessive desire for freedom and independence, and created with whatever means were available.

"Slow 2" (Too Good 56) will be released on June 19 as a limited edition CD (presented in an 8-page A5 booklet featuring a variation on the artwork from the first volume - once again designed by Studio Trois Quatre) and digitally. 

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Hanne Leland - Say It Once More.

Hanne Leland is a Norwegian indie pop artist and songwriter based in Oslo, known for her melodic, emotionally charged songwriting and a distinctive crystal-clear voice. She has amassed over 26 million streams across all platforms (17M+ on Spotify alone) and has toured the UK extensively, supporting All Saints across 10 sold-out shows and Gavin James at O2 Academy venues in Brixton, Sheffield, Glasgow, Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham.

Her new single "Say It Once More" is an 80's-inspired summer pop anthem, female-led, storytelling-driven and production-forward, sitting in the emotional cinematic pop space. It was picked up by Amazing Radio the UK station credited with the early discovery of Dua Lipa, The 1975 and Wet Leg — with 29 UK and USA airplays across their Pop and Easy Listening streams, plus a feature on their flagship "Audition" show with DJ Charlie Ashcroft.

In the studio Hanne has collaborated with Jim Eliot (Ellie Goulding), Red Triangle (Little Mix, Charlie Puth), Hight (Charli XCX, Ava Max) and Brian West (Nelly Furtado). Her track "Stay" went viral on YouTube with over 4 million views, and her 2024 single earned a five-star review from Norway's leading newspaper Aftenposten. 

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Bandits on the Run - Lo-fi Jones - Breakfield - Mirqa - Brooke Annibale - Christa Wells

Photo - Hunter Brown and Lucy Werner

Bandits on the Run - Rough Magic (Album).

Between their innovative arrangements, instrument swapping, scope of emotions and experiences conveyed in their songwriting, and an eclectic group of old friends and collaborators, NYC-based trio Bandits on the Run are truly living up to what they call their “ethos of artmaking” on their new album, 'Rough Magic' just released 12 June 2026.

“With a reverence for imperfection, grit, commitment, an acceptance that chaos is inevitable, and a deep gratitude for the friendships that are truly the foundation for everything — ‘Rough Magic,’ like love, is both a noun and a verb. It’s the goal and the method. It’s the god we’re evoking and welcoming into the room with each song we write and each show we play. At our core, we’re NYC buskers. We’re throwing our jackets on the ground and playing troubadour style — timeless and evergreen. We know the alchemy at play when you dare to believe that an empty section of a subway platform full of strangers can turn into a concert hall with new friends. None of this is perfect, or requires permission, it only asks that you dare your heart to be seen — even with all the rough edges. Because it’s rough, it’s magic,” the band says.

With rotating lead vocals and varied instrumentation, the trio of Adrian Blake Enscoe, Sydney Shepherd, and Regina Strayhorn evoke the 60s and 70s spirit of bands like Fleetwood Mac, The Mamas and the Papas, and The Velvet Underground while also carrying the sonic inventiveness of the modern folk power pop acts like First Aid Kit, Bonnie Light Horsemen, and Lucius. They swim in the same lyrical waves as  I’m With Her, Folk Bitch Trio, The Staves, and other trios featuring impeccable harmonies and elevated songwriting so good they make the balancing act seem simple.  

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Photo - Mark McNulty

Lo-fi Jones - Coming Sŵn (Album)

Lo-fi Jones, a folk-indie four-piece from the heart of mid-Wales, recently announced the release of their debut album, Coming Sŵn, available now on all major platforms (12 June 2026). Recorded primarily at Our Lady Studio in Borth with producer and engineer Mike West, the album is an eclectic, defiantly original debut — rooted in Welsh folk and indie, but defying easy categorization. Additional tracks were recorded and produced in Oxford by Nikò O’Brien and Hannah Jacobs of pecq, in Cardiff by Mei Gwynedd, and in frontman Siôn Rickard’s bedroom. Adam Walton of BBC Radio Wales once described the band’s work as being like ‘an excellent home brew’ — ‘take one sip and it might take you somewhere you weren’t expecting.’ Words that certainly ring true for this record.

The album opens with a rhythmic, syncopated thrum of nylon strings as fiddle and harmonica glide the listener into an upbeat rendition of the Welsh traditional ‘Diofal yw’r Aderyn’. From there, the band veer off the beaten track, moving between genres and moods — playful, lyrical, reflective, and subversive. Original songs tackle topics ranging from broken toasters to refugees, climate change, and the language, landscapes and communities of Wales. Lo-fi Jones weave seamlessly between Welsh and English, with a smattering of Spanish and French.

“Some of these songs were written when we were still teenagers; others are much newer. We’re chaotic, obsessive, and it’s probably a miracle we finished the record at all — but we’re excited about what comes next.” — Siôn Rickard, Lo-fi Jones.

“With the music we make, we want to take the Welsh heritage — the folk, the stories, the storytelling of the people and Cymru — and bring it to life through the visions of people from different backgrounds; like myself, from Nicaragua, for example. Channeling the contemporary stories we all carry, through the language of the land.” — Rolando Bertrand Ruiz, Lo-fi Jones.

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Photo - David McClister

Breakfield - Breakfield (Album).

Nashville-raised band Breakfield released their self-titled album this weekend via Rounder Records. Produced by The 400 Unit’s Sadler Vaden (Jason Isbell, Beck, Morgan Wade), Breakfield reincarnates the band formerly named Boy Named Banjo as a four-piece that’s fully in tune with their most adventurous instincts.

Breakfield has already garnered support from Ones to Watch, MusicRow, Holler, All Country News and Americana Highways, who praised the album’s “sharper-edged storytelling” as the band delves into the complexities of relationships. Early singles include the rowdy “Straight for Heartbreak,” the optimistic “Pull Some Strings,” the bittersweet “Darker Out Tonight,” the tender "Ever-Loving Mind" and the anthemic “Canyon Walls.” Reimagining never-released material through the lens of their less-is-more approach, the album harnesses the spirited vitality they’ve shown at major festivals like Bonnaroo and historic venues like the Grand Ole Opry, while capturing the joyful abandon of their earliest days 15 years ago.

Formed in their teens, Breakfield includes Barton Davies (vocals/banjo), William Reames (guitar/vocals/harmonica), Ford Garrard (bass) and Sam McCullough (drums). The self-titled album follows their 2023 LP Dusk, which earned acclaim from American Songwriter, BrooklynVegan, Holler and Garden & Gun, who said "their sound has evolved and deepened, no longer penned in by just one genre."

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Mirqa - Interesting Times.

Artists such as Patti Smith, A.A. Williams and Slowdive come to mind within the first few bars of “Interesting Times.” The atmospheric density, urgency, and sonic expansiveness associated with these artists resonate throughout the new single by Bern-based musician Mirqa. With “Interesting Times,” she delivers an impressive solo debut.

Yet Mirqa is far from a newcomer to the Swiss music scene. As a drummer, singer, songwriter, and now also a producer, she moves confidently between different musical worlds. Alongside her solo work at Studio MMI and on her own label, Greymouse, she plays drums in two bands: the singer-songwriter trio “The Schrad’Elles,” of which she has been a member for more than 35 years—with interruptions—and, since 2024, the indie alternative rock formation “Curvy Curls.”

After spending an extended period abroad, Mirqa returns with a whole series of new songs. Her music comes straight from the heart—sometimes in Bernese German, sometimes in English—depending on which side of her artistic expression is calling to be heard. For her productions, Mirqa records most of the instruments herself, only occasionally receiving support from guest musicians. This independent and highly personal approach also defines “Interesting Times.”

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Photo - Sasha Pedro

Brooke Annibale - Make You Mine.

Indie singer/songwriter Brooke Annibale has announced her new album Bolder Font will release on September 17th. Her first collection of brand new music in four years, Bolder Font finds the Rhode Island-based, Pittsburgh-native at the precipice of a creative rejuvenation as she rediscovers her self-worth after a series of disheartening and unexpected setbacks. Bolder Font also marks the first time she dove into full creative control of an entire album, including writing, recording, producing, editing, and mixing entirely on her own.

This weekend Annibale shared “Make You Mine,” her electrifying new single that 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.

“I wrote this song after writing a few quite lyrically heavy ones, feeling like I just wanted to write something fun,” stated Annibale. “I pulled up a drum loop, set up my mic, and just started playing to see what would come out. The writing of ‘Make You Mine’ fell out in about a day. I love those kinds of songs, because they just feel natural, unforced. Tommy Ng, who played bass on this, really created this danceable element with the driving bass line in the choruses. I hear it in my head even when I’m playing it solo. Sure this could be taken as a simple love song, and it has some of that inspiration in there. But it also is about the pursuit of dreams, and chasing something more.”

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Christa Wells - I’m Okay.

Christa Wells new single “I’m Okay,” is a gentle piano-led meditation on presence, acceptance, and finding safety in the moment you're in. Built around delicate piano, warm vocals, and a simple yet powerful refrain, the song creates space to slow down. There’s no rush, no destination, no pressure to be anything other than exactly who you are right now.

It feels like sunlight through a window. Like exhaling after carrying too much for too long. Like remembering that sometimes the bravest thing you can do is simply stay present.

At its heart, “I’m Okay” offers a reminder many of us need to hear: “In this moment - In this body - I'm okay” With each repetition, the song becomes less of a statement and more of an anchor. A grounding presence. A quiet reassurance that even amid uncertainty, there is safety in the here and now. This isn't a song about fixing yourself. It's about recognising that, for this moment, you are enough exactly as you are.


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Eyre Llew - Asteroid Lily - Tyson Ray Borsboom - Liv Wade - Vox Umbra - Watashi Wa

Eyre Llew - Oban.

Nottingham trio Eyre Llew shared their new single 'Oban' a couple of days ago, the latest single from their upcoming album Bloom — due September 18th. Named after the unofficial capital of the West Highlands, ‘Oban’ is built around a feeling most people recognise but rarely articulate: the pull towards a place you've never lived but somehow already belong to. For Eyre Llew, that place is the Scottish west coast — white sand beaches, open lochs, a landscape that slows the pulse and sharpens the senses all at once. The lyric "my blood is blue" runs deeper still — part physical rush, part quiet reckoning with identity and the kind of belonging that doesn't need a postcode to be real. Simple, honest, and quietly devastating.

"'Oban' is about longing for a slower, quieter life — the feeling of belonging to a place you don't yet live, but already feel connected to," the band explain. "It's drawn from years of family holidays on the Scottish west coast, swims in lochs, time with loved ones in that landscape. At its core it's about imagining a future built on peace, family, and escape. A dream of one day living somewhere that feels like freedom, even before it's real. It's home — but one we don't know yet."

Beginning with quiet intimacy before building to something genuinely anthemic, 'Oban' showcases Eyre Llew at their most cinematic — a post-rock slow-burn that earns every moment of its crescendo. It's the kind of song that could only come from a band who've been somewhere and returned changed. EYRE LLEW spent years in relentless forward motion — touring over 20 countries, playing Glastonbury, fielding label interest at what felt like a breakthrough moment — before lockdown brought everything to an abrupt halt. 

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Asteroid Lily - You & I.

Asteroid Lily have shared their new single “You & I,” a dreamy electro-pop track that feels suspended in time. It sounds like late-night drives with nowhere to be. Like staring out the window convinced the world could still become something bigger. Synths shimmer beneath emotional vocals as the song drifts between nostalgia, devotion, and wide-eyed possibility. What begins as a love song slowly becomes something larger: a celebration of the people and moments that make life feel infinite.

At its heart, “You & I” is about trying to hold onto a feeling before it disappears: “I’ll never learn how to say goodbye - So don’t you dare even make me try”

There’s something bittersweet running through it. It's the rush of dreaming about escape, endless love, and all the adventures still waiting ahead, while quietly knowing nothing stays the same forever. The song moves between intimacy and imagination, turning ordinary moments into something cosmic. But this isn’t really a song about goodbye. It’s about the people who make life bigger, brighter, and more exciting while they’re there.

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Photo - Brayden Treble

Tyson Ray Borsboom - These Days (Album).

After previewing his latest album These Days over the past few weeks with several singles including the title track and "Let You Down, Vancouver-based singer/songwriter Tyson Ray Borsboom officially releases his new nine-song collection this weekend, marking his arrival as one of Canada's rising alt-country stars.

Tyson's work on These Days embraces the kind of country music that doesn’t shy away from hardship and loss, and everything else that makes us human. It’s been a steady evolution for the artist originally from Calgary, from releasing his debut EP in 2018 to building an audience across western Canada through shows with Field Guide, Kacy & Clayton and others, and more recently to packing venues both in Canada and the EU.

For These Days, Tyson teamed up with producer Phenix Warren (Wyatt C. Louis, The Dust Collectors) to make the album at Pocono House in Calgary with a band of seasoned vets who have also worked with Noeline Hofmann and Shred Kelly. Now able to reflect on the sessions, Tyson describes the final product as the seamless result of working with a dream team.

“I think Phenix really understands where I’m at as a songwriter. He heard how I was performing the songs live, and we talked a lot about how my favourite records sound. We pretty much recorded my vocals and guitar and then I let him run with it. He’d send me mixes, and apart from a few minor tweaks, they would be perfect.”

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Photo - Melanie Orr

Liv Wade - Fur Queen (EP).

After releasing the internationally acclaimed EP Radios And Buffalos in 2024, multi-talented Indigenous recording artist Liv Wade officially returns with a new five-song collection entitled Fur Queen. Overall, it displays Liv’s wide-ranging musical approach that blends traditional storytelling with soaring modern production.

Fur Queen's previously released singles, "Darkest Hour" and “Carolina,” explored similar theme of holding onto hope in challenging times, with the music a product of Liv’s longtime partnership with producer Winston Hauschild, who works out of The Treehouse Studio on Bowen Island, near Vancouver. Other tracks on Fur Queen, “Fall For You” and “Blue House Paint,” offer bold variations of modern pop that fans of Liv’s previous work will be familiar with, but the title track may come as a surprise—a rollicking, fiddle-driven country number that pays tribute to her family’s history in northern Manitoba.

Liv explains, “This song is a story of my birth mother and her life as a ‘Fur Queen,’ as part of the Northern Manitoba Trappers Festival. It was the first piece of information I gathered when I was legally able to search for my birth family. At that young age, I had no idea about the festival or what or who a ‘Fur Queen’ was. But because my birth mother was one, it pushed me to discover further information about my Metis heritage. I travelled to The Pas in my early twenties, and had the honour of attending a Trappers Festival, which was so much more than I ever imagined. So with this song, I hope to share some of what life is like for many in northern communities across Canada. And of course, my love for land and our connection to it.”

Absorbing the music of Canadian icons such as Leonard Cohen, Ron Sexsmith, Kathleen Edwards and Sarah Harmer from a young age, by her teens Liv was combining all of it with her Royal Conservatory of Music studies, which soon earned her residencies at the prestigious Banff Centre for the Arts and Creativity and Manitoba’s Indigenous Music Program. Her debut studio record, and first collaboration with Hauschild, Resilience, was released in 2017, earning her a nomination for Best New Artist at the 2018 Indigenous Music Awards.

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Vox Umbra - Afterglow / The Train.

Vox Umbra returns with their two song maxi-single, "Afterglow" / "The Train", which pairs the duo's cinematic atmosphere and emotionally focused songwriting. Across these companion tracks, the release explores movement, uncertainty, devotion, distance, and the fragile clarity that can emerge when old certainties fall away. Darkly elegant and deeply human, "Afterglow" / "The Train" balances widescreen tension with intimate emotional stakes.

"Afterglow" / "The Train" is a cohesive two-song statement about how people carry each other through uncertainty, whether side by side or from afar. One song moves through pressure and fracture. One song lingers in grace and release. Together, they create a resonant emotional arc. For fans of thoughtful, atmospheric songwriting and listeners drawn to shadowed textures, lyrical depth and songs that stay with them after the final note, "Afterglow" / "The Train" offers two compelling new entries in the Vox Umbra catalog.

Vox Umbra is a darkwave duo formed in 2025, blending rich haunting melodies with cold atmospheric textures. Tiffany, based in Seattle, composes the music, drawing from the city's moody landscape and industrial influences, while Florian, located in northern France, provides evocative vocals that deepen the band's emotional impact. Their collaboration, despite the geographical distance, creates a unique sound that fuses introspective, melancholic rhythms with dark, cinematic arrangements. Together, they offer an immersive journey into the darker corners of the human experience, balancing shadow and light in perfect harmony.


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Photo - John Sontag

Watashi Wa - I Am.

Watashi Wa releases the first single from its forthcoming full-length album for Lost In Ohio. “I Am" is the band’s most focused statement in years. The title is deliberate: “Watashi Wa” literally translates from Japanese as “I am.” Bright, hook-driven, and unmistakably Seth Roberts, it carries the melodic confidence of The Love of Life while drawing on the band’s formative influences of the 1990s. It is the sound of a band that knows exactly who they are. 

Roberts had this to say about it: “I Am” is a song about God, and about the way truth calls us back to who we were made to be. We are made in the image of God, and the best parts of our lives carry pieces of that truth. We feel it in the songs that stop us mid-thought, the books that seem to know too much about us, the places that feel like home, the memories that still have some dirt on their shoes, the beauty we almost missed, and the people who remind us what actually matters.

But we all wander. It is one of our more reliable talents. We can know what is right and still drift from it. We can know what is true and beautiful and still trade it for foolishness, usually at a terrible exchange rate. We can leave the path that brings peace and go chasing after something smaller, shinier, and much less satisfying.

But truth has a way of finding us again. It does not usually kick the door down. It waits on the porch light. It calls us home. It helps us recalibrate. It reminds us of what we knew deep down all along, before we got distracted by our own cleverness. That is God. Even when we veer off course or sell ourselves short, it is always possible to return. To come back to what is true. To choose beauty again. To live with peace, purpose, and a heart that feels at home.

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Kate Prascher - Moving Into Tucson - Scarlett Macfarlane - Winona Oak - Heather Anne Lomax - Eli & Fur

Photo - Sander Randall

Kate Prascher - Jubilee.

Kate Prascher, whom No Depression once praised as "a mesmerizing singer whose traditional-sounding tunes upend any feeling of comfort with lyrics that cut deep," has announced her highly anticipated follow-up album. ‘Sunday Afternoon’ will be released August 28 on First City Artists (Alexa Rose, Carly King). Co-produced by Diana Walsh (Amanda Shires, Jason Isbell, Wild Rivers), the collection brings esteemed comparisons to mind—the classic country soprano of Allison Krauss; the dark, dusty Americana of Gillian Welch; the bright melodicism of Madison Cunningham—as Prascher examines the forward motion of life. 

Of the lead single, Prascher shares: 'Jubilee' follows a ghost train. I wrote it while walking on an old train trestle in Rosendale, New York, a town ringing with the eerie history of a stone quarry, carrying memories of my hometown across it. By the time I climbed down from the track, the song was mostly written. It's a lyrical exploration of the word 'jubilee' as both a signal of celebration, and of forgiveness.
 
Prascher was raised in Memphis, a childhood spent amidst the haphazard heart of blues music and the haunted spirit of Southern storytelling. “Where I’m from, it’s expected for the people in your life who’ve passed to show up again, one way or another,” she says. She carried that ominous elegance with her to New York City, and embraced the lively vibrance of the city’s Bluegrass scene, taking mandolin lessons from Michael Daves and joining open sessions at staple venues like The Jalopy, Mona's, Sunny's.  
 
Prascher wrote about half the songs on ‘Sunday Afternoon’ while she was living in Brooklyn—the rest, after she left. “I’m interested in how environment informs identity,” she shares. “Leaving New York was a reckoning for me. I moved there out of ambition. If I left, could I still consider myself ambitious?” Now based upstate, she’s grateful for the opportunity to answer that question. “My life is less about chasing one thing, and more about grounded rituals, the practices of work and creation. I can hear myself more clearly. I know what I want to say.” 

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Moving Into Tucson - Turn The World Around.

Moving Into Tucson strikes a chord for the future with the urgent new anthem: "Turn The World Around." Opening with a soul-stirring piano and organ chorus that immediately sets a timeless, high-stakes tone, the track marks a powerful shift for the band. "Turn The World Around" is the sixth official taste of their highly anticipated 2026 album All Dressed Up, and it arrives at a moment when its message couldn't be more vital.

Musically, the song is a masterclass in Indie Poprock, blending driving guitars and Britpop swagger with a soaring, anthemic refrain. But beneath the "bells and whistles" lies a raw, modern-day hippie cry. In a world currently shadowed by war, climate crisis, and fear, the lyrics serve as a rhythmic call for unity: "Turn the world around, stop wasting more precious time."

Moving from rain-soaked verses into a massive, hands-in-the-air chorus, the song tackles the weight of the unknown and the necessity of standing together. It’s an urgent reminder that to secure a future on this planet, we must walk these uncharted paths as equals. Bold, catchy, and deeply rooted in the "now," "Turn The World Around" is more than just a single, it’s a demand for change. We stand together, in rhythm and in rhyme.

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Scarlett Macfarlane - Fireflys.

Following on the heels of the vulnerable single, “Sorry,” Scarlett Macfarlane returns with “Fireflys,” a warm and nostalgic pop single that captures the fleeting magic of youth, memory, and the quiet moments that stay with us long after they’ve passed. Rooted in feelings of ease, joy, and reflection, the track leans into a softer, more sentimental side of Scarlett’s songwriting, offering a moment of lightness grounded in emotional depth.

The song was sparked by a simple, intimate setting. “I have a string of lights that I like to sit out under on my balcony that mimic the randomness of fireflies,” Scarlett explains. “I was sitting out there one night and the rest is history.” That quiet moment of inspiration expanded into something more universal; a reflection on the small, meaningful experiences that shape how we remember our lives.

The title itself carries layered meaning. Inspired by childhood memories of summer nights celebrating her mother’s birthday, Scarlett connects the imagery of fireflies to a sense of wonder and togetherness. “Those are moments from my life that I wish I could capture in a jar and keep forever,” she says. “Much like a child wishes to keep the magic of a firefly forever.” Even the stylized spelling of “Fireflys” serves as a personal touch; a nod to storytelling, nostalgia, and her own creative instincts.

Musically, “Fireflys” embraces simplicity and warmth. A standout moment arrives in the bridge, where a last-minute addition of a whistled melody adds a playful, childlike quality to the track. “One of my favourite things to do as a kid was whistle melodies,” Scarlett notes. “Getting to use that skill in a song was a fun moment for me.” That sense of play carries through the arrangement, which builds gently before opening into a refreshed final chorus that feels both familiar and new.


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Winona Oak - Bones.

Swedish singer-songwriter Winona Oak has shared her powerful new single ‘Bones’ taken from her forthcoming second album ‘Bloom’ released on 25th September via Nettwerk. Following recent singles ‘Do You Hate Me Now’, ‘Horses’, ‘Stay the night’ and ‘Breaking Point’, new album ‘Bloom’ marks a new chapter for Winona Oak and is a testament to survival, showcasing both her emotional and musical growth and devotion to connection. Allowing herself to slowly open up again with honesty and hope after a period of grief and heartbreak, her new record lets the listener into a deeply personal world where beginnings emerge from endings. 
 
Winona released her EP ‘Salt’ last spring, which was a poignant personal documentation of her physical and emotional states. Throughout the last year, she has been working on new music and a more organic progression in her raw and unvarnished sound, whilst still writing candidly about the highs and lows of life; loss and repair, heartbreak and love, resistance and patience. Winona says, “Like a flower emerging after a long winter, blooming isn’t instant - it’s the result of surviving the darker seasons.Bloom reflects the transformation - the idea that even after pain life still finds ways to grow. It’s a gentle but powerful reminder that healing isn’t about forgetting the past, but about allowing yourself to open again to the light."
 
New single ‘Bones’ is about learning to live again after experiencing heartache, and is a song of two halves, with both fragility and courage co-existing together. The emotional track opens delicately, showcasing the tenderness of Winona’s vocals, before building to a majestic chorus that is a confident statement of intent - “I wanna live until my body turns to bones”. Winona says, “’Bones’ is about having been through darkness and felt the weight of unbearable pain but still choosing to fully embrace life. It’s about growth, freedom and feeling every part of the human experience, because one day, all we’ll leave behind are bones. This song is a reminder to live deeply, love hard and not be afraid to truly feel alive.”

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Photo - Remi

Heather Anne Lomax - Come Along.

Heather Anne Lomax announces her forthcoming album, Who Do You Think You Are, due August 28th via The Blackbird Record Label, with the release of her new single, “Come Along.” It’s an uplifting blast of Rock, Soul, and Blues inspired by the classic sounds that helped shape the record. “‘Come Along’ is a song really inspired by the Black Crowes,” says Lomax. “I wanted something uplifting and hopeful despite all of the darkness in the world.”

Fresh off the release of her previous album, Lomax slipped a pair of songs by cult-favorite rock band Broken Homes into her set at LA’s storied Troubadour. The response—and her own connection to the material—was immediate. What felt like kismet soon became the creative spark behind her latest album, a deeply collaborative collection that blends Rock, Blues, and Soul into a sound that feels both timeless and unmistakably her own. Recorded live at Love Street Sound Studios in Los Angeles, the album captures the raw energy and spontaneity of classic 1970s recordings. Rather than chasing perfection, the sessions prioritized feel, chemistry, and performance, resulting in a record that crackles with authenticity and heart.

Produced by Zachary Ross (Rose’s Pawn Shop), mixed by Jason Hiller (The Freewheelers), and mastered by acclaimed engineer Maor Appelbaum (Faith No More, YES, Halford, Def Leppard), the album features an extraordinary cast of musicians. Among the contributors are bassist and mixer Jason Hiller; drummers Rob Humphries (Kacey Musgraves, Leonard Cohen, Jason Mraz), Jordan West (Grace Potter), David Goodstein (Jackson Browne, Dolly Parton), and Jamie Douglas (Shooter Jennings, Samantha Fish); keyboardists Ty Bailie (Katy Perry, Tanya Tucker), Jerry Borge (Ziggy Marley), and Carey Frank (Bruce Springsteen, Tedeschi Trucks Band); along with guitarist Zachary Ross and Lomax herself. Additional textures come from flutists Fuzzbee Morse (Bono, Peter Gabriel), Lily Elise (Gwen Stefani, Miley Cyrus), and Mary Scholz.

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Photo - Vika Petlakh

Eli & Fur - Dreams At Dusk: Part II (EP).

Celestial songstresses, Eli & Fur, return with the continuation of their Dreams At Dusk concept with their latest EP, Dreams At Dusk: Part II, which officially arrived on June 5 via [PIAS] Électronique. A transcendent body of work, the six-track EP is an anthology of sonic and emotional contrasts, an exploration of the gray areas in between.  

Trading heavier production for elemental and intuitive creation, Dreams At Dusk: Part II proves to be the duo's most organic and expansive project to date. Written largely while they were on the road touring, moving through different cities and energies, letting their environment naturally influence the music. Juxtaposing light and dark, warm and cool, this project is a delicate balance of newness and familiarity – a natural progression of Eli & Fur’s artistry that feels true to their distinct sound while opening up less explored sides of their sonic realm.  

From Eli & Fur: “With Part I, everything felt very much about the beginning, the excitement of building the Dreams At Dusk world, the anticipation of shows, that outward energy – Part II came together more gradually. We didn’t sit down and decide on a direction, it revealed itself – we’re excited about how different the tracks are when you play them out. A lot of this EP came from the kinds of moments where we didn’t overthink things, we just followed instinct and let the track evolve into something unexpected. We want it to feel immersive. Something you can move through depending on your mood, whether that’s in a club, driving, or just listening on your own.” 

Eli & Fur · Dreams At Dusk Part II

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