Filiah - Michele Ducci - Silva Lining - Sofia Härdig - Coley Kennedy

Filiah - Atlas.

Emerging as a deeply personal single ‘Atlas’ chronicles Filiah’s journey through creative paralysis to artistic rebirth. Following her 2022 release For Someone, Filiah found herself trapped in the exhausting cycle of self-management – from booking shows to handling her own PR. The weight of wearing every hat eventually crushed her creative spirit, leading to a complete musical shutdown. The turning point came unexpectedly on the Croatian coast, where welovemelodies, an artists' collective, invited her to a songwriting retreat. "Before writing 'Atlas' I was on a 2-year hiatus from my own music," Filiah reveals. "I felt emotionally and physically exhausted, burnt out and going through a lot of changes and challenges in my personal life."

Surrounded by fellow creators, Filiah found her voice again. The result is 'Atlas' – a masterclass in turning pain into poetry. Here, her powerful vocals float over intricate indie-folk arrangements, while she crafts a meta-narrative about the very thing that silenced her. It's a delicate balance of vulnerability and strength, where writer's block becomes both subject and vanquished foe. In writing about what stopped her from writing, Filiah hasn't just broken her silence – she's transformed it into something beautiful. 'Atlas' stands as both confession and triumph, marking the moment when a promising artist finds her feet again, this time with the support she's long deserved."It was inspired by feelings of self-doubt and the struggle to meet both personal and external expectation," explains Filiah. "It explores the feeling of thinking you're never enough, wired all wrong and struggling to believe that someone will ever get you, while simultaneously wanting nothing more than just to be yourself."

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Michele Ducci - Even Before.

‘Even Before’ is the second single from the ‘live in the studio’ album ‘NUBA Live Tape’, by Michele Ducci. The album contains alternative versions of 3 tracks from his debut album, ‘SIVE’, released in June 2024, along with 4 new songs. ‘Even Before’ starts as an upbeat Samba played on a Bontempi keyboard, a sunny love song with an uplifting chorus: 

“Sunshine
Rain falling
I know what my love means
When the day rises
And I was smiling even before”

The track then slows into a dreamy waltz for the outro. Letizia Mandolesi’s bright backing vocals in the chorus and delicate sighs in the outro beautifully accentuate Ducci’s warm melodic vocals. Accompanying the single is a cosmic animated video created by Ducci and Mandolesi. About the song, Ducci says, “Even Before was born in scenes, as a movie. I had found a ten euro Bontempi keyboard and I let it do almost everything, playing it all live together with Letizia.

I have been reflecting for a long time on the absolute of change: it gives itself as an inverted perspective. It’s like a chorus in a song: coexistence of past and present, of a past that insists on a present that coexists with it and that, passing by, is the intrusion of an unpredictable novelty. You always find yourself in the middle of an act that was already in action before it was done and that, being fulfilled, becomes something that is no longer possible but fatally real. Deja: Jamais: Encore. It is an eternal return that is like a magical infinitesimal calculation, lived in the depths of what I call myself. It is the experience, the passage, that resonates in its immediate data like a chorus: an ocean of sive, of ‘that is’, that are the foundation of every ‘where’ and every ‘when’, as in the passages between verse and chorus: an incessant translation into, which is a crossing, not an impasse, but an impassage: an even before to which we must go back to probe the experience in its immediate data. It is an experience of variation that is done at the limit, near infinity.

Letizia and I drew the video by hand, and it is a sort of twin of the song: a cosmic paraeidolia…the experience that makes itself felt in the foreground like a procession of faces still in the making: a chorus. The song as a sort of paramnestic paraeidolia of creative evolution. All of my work is all about that.”

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Silva Lining - Only Today.

Silva Lining's first single of 2025, "Only Today," starts off with a bang. This Latin Rock-inspired track features snappy brass riffs, energetic percussion, and plenty of solos—just the way they love it! The upbeat nature of the song contrasts with its somber message: one person in a couple wants to end the relationship but lacks the courage to do so. This song is the second duet in the band's repertoire, with Tiago and Catarina sharing the main vocals, all accompanied by that classic Silva Lining big band sound.

Born in Lisbon, raised in London. Born in London, raised in Lisbon. Three generations, two cities, one family. Nuno, Catarina and Tiago, Portuguese roots with English charm fused to create the Silva Lining Band.

Most people would say less is more… but not when it comes to the Silva family. The more the merrier is the family motto and Silva Lining is no exception with the band’s debut album “Lisboa” including over 12 musicians spanning various genres ranging from Funk to Swing Jazz to Rock.

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Sofia Härdig - Pale Fire.

Multi-instrumentalist and genre-defying artist Sofia Härdig continues to push boundaries with her latest single 'Pale Fire,' a mesmerising collaboration with renowned musician Bebe Risenfors (Tom Waits, Elvis Costello)

The track emerged from an intense period of creative isolation during which Härdig wrote hundreds of songs. "I wrote on my own in solitude for almost two years. I read a lot, wrote a lot, and recorded more than hundred of songs," Härdig recalls. "I was in this cave of writing.” The magic of 'Pale Fire' crystallised when Risenfors, who spontaneously joined Härdig for a performance in Malmö, added his distinctive touch to her original demo. "I remember opening the song on my phone and listening on headphones while sitting in a park. I started crying and listened on repeat. The best birthday gift ever," says Härdig of first hearing Risenfors' contributions.

'Pale Fire' showcases Härdig's signature sound, which draws influence from alternative rock, post-punk, and New Wave, while maintaining her distinct artistic voice. The track is part of a larger body of work that represents what Härdig describes as "the tip of the iceberg of a long cycle of lyrics, often a novel/short story that I have built in solitude." Anchored by brooding piano work and haunting chord progressions, 'Pale Fire' unleashes the full force of Härdig's commanding vocals while highlighting her masterful touch as both producer and songwriter. The single is accompanied by striking visuals created in collaboration with a close friend and photographer Jessica Nettelblatt, who was so moved by the demo that she immediately envisioned the cover art, listening to the track on repeat during the photoshoot. For fans of Nick Cave, PJ Harvey, and Anna Calvi, 'Pale Fire' further cements Sofia Härdig's position as one of Sweden's most compelling alternative artists.

Her upcoming album Lighthouse of Glass, self-produced by Härdig, represents a bold step forward in her artistic evolution. Recorded between her home studio and a three-week residency at Visby Center for Composers, the album features an impressive roster of collaborators. The recording process became a unique blend of creativity and community, with Härdig's kitchen and tin roof serving as unconventional meeting points for the musicians. "Working with Bebe was such a treat - he really got what I was after," Härdig explains. The album also features contributions from two of Sweden's finest guitarists, Robert Johnsson (Robert Johnson and the Punchdrunks) and long-time collaborator John Essing (Bob Hud), with Grammy-awarded Nille Perned handling the mixing duties.

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Coley Kennedy - Neptune Blue (Album).

Coley Kennedy (known for his work with the bands Welcome to Ashley and Black Vincent), who is currently based in Jackson, Michigan, released his solo debut Neptune Blue just a week ago.
 
Neptune Blue collects seven Coley originals and a cover of "Don't Let Your Hunger Die" by Justin Collins (Justin and the Cosmics) and continues his path of producing stylish post-punk, this time with an emphasis on 80's synth pop and new wave. 

The album features contributions from Welcome to Ashley's Pete Javier, Scott Collins (The Smoking Flowers), Marie Vavro, Larry Roy Sumner Jr., and Jennifer Kennedy.

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Shilpa Ray - Heather Maloney - The Delines - DownTown Mystic - Adwaith

Shilpa Ray - Portrait Of A Cat Lady.

"Portrait of a Cat Lady" is a reflection on aging, and a refusal to be invisible. "My body trashed by time / Do you like my story? / Am I captivating?" Ray says the song was influenced by Lucinda Williams, ABBA, Dick Dale, Big Star, and The Byrds. It's genuine, infectious, and fierce. Fans of  Ray's rich catalogue will not be disappointed.

"Portrait of a Cat Lady" is the first single from a collection of post-pandemic / post-hysterectomy songs from iconoclastic singer-songwriter, Shilpa Ray.

The lyrics tell a coming of middle age story from a writer who refuses to disappear and is set against a musical backdrop of what Americana could sound like from a second generation immigrant perspective.

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Heather Maloney - Exploding Star.

Exploding Star was never intended to be released. Written after the death of her father, the songs were the most vulnerable body of work ever created by Maloney- meant and written only for her. The idea of releasing and then promoting an album went against her instincts to keep this art near and dear. Luckily for us, her closest friends and family convinced her otherwise.

Maloney was able to track for 2 days in her childhood home- recording songs, backing vocals, the crickets in the yard and even percussion played directly on the walls and floors of the house itself. The result is raw and exquisitely personal. 

“That house is the backdrop to so many moments with my father that became song lyrics on the record, so having *the house itself* be a part of a few songs was such a beautiful and intense experience for me,” Maloney reflects. “I will never forget what it felt like to return to the place those memories were made, and sing them with such grief and gratitude. At times I felt that my dad was still somewhere in the house, and I was singing directly to him. At other times it felt like I was surrounded by all of our young and distant ghosts.”

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The Delines - The Haunting Thoughts.

The Delines just shared their new single “The Haunting Thoughts,” the next offering from their upcoming album Mr. Luck & Ms. Doom, out February 14 via El Cortez Records. Led by tender piano and sauntering instrumentation, the poignant song tells the story of a woman who’s reeling from an existential crisis, with Magnet Magazine praising its “film-noir feel.”

“‘The Haunting Thoughts’ is about a woman who can’t shake the fear that the world she’s in is going to collapse,” says Willy Vlautin, songwriter and guitarist for the band. “She sees all this desperation around her on the streets of Portland, Oregon, and she’s worried it’ll catch her, too – that she’ll end up on the streets. We wanted that uncertainty and vulnerability inside the fabric of the song. It’s one of those rare tunes that worked from the get-go. It just played itself. Cory's piano is so great on this one and it's my favorite Amy vocal to date. Amy has this pure way of getting inside the world of the lyrics. She just kills me on this one.”

Vlautin on the video: “We’ve been really lucky to get Greg Schmitt and Efrem Peters to film these videos. And Zach Jones who edits them. They’re all so cool and so good. They filmed the band stuff at The Showdown in Portland and the rest was shot driving around the city. Portland has such an edge to it right now, with so many people living on the streets, in broken-down RVs, in cars, and in tents. I’m endlessly heartbroken by it and also I’m scared hitless that it could be me one day. The song has that edge to it and I think the video carries the same edge.”


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DownTown Mystic - One More Chance.

With 7 releases in 2024, US roots rocker DownTown Mystic isn’t skipping a beat to start 2025. The artist has been building momentum with airplay on over 100 Non-com Radio stations with each release.

Following the successful Better Day Digital 45 in October, the new One More Chance single sets the stage for DownTown Mystic’s next album project, The Wish, which shows DTM’s unique RnR style & sound evolving.

The One More Chance single features co-writer and longtime DTM musical Ally Bruce Engler on Lead Guitar. It also features one of the last sessions by drummer Tommy Mastro, with PJ Farley (Trixter, Fozzy) adding tasty bass lines. The single is a mini opus of sorts. Besides a musical interlude in the breakdown section, One More Chance also features the band recorded jamming live as the track fades out, making for a unique musical statement. Check out the One More Chance AI Video.

As with Better Day, DTM offers up another positive message with One More Chance. DownTown Mystic Writer/Producer Robert Allen comments, "I want to put out positive vibes in the world with my music. It's why I make music. One More Chance is a song of hope and light."


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Adwaith - Heddiw/Yfory, Purdan, Y Diwedd, Ni.

Critically acclaimed Welsh trio Adwaith continue to captivate with the release of four new tracks from their forthcoming album, Solas: ‘Heddiw / Yfory’, ‘Purdan’, ‘Y Diwedd’, and ‘Ni’. Meaning “light of being” or “enlightenment” in Celtic, Solas (out Feb 7th via Libertino Records) marks a significant milestone in the band’s journey. Recorded across diverse locations—including the Outer Hebrides in Scotland, Lisbon in Portugal, and multiple studios in Wales—Solas reflects Adwaith’s growth and evolution as artists. Overflowing with romance and magic, this 23-track double album completes a coming-of-age trilogy chronicling their transformation from teenagers into empowered women, exploring themes of self-discovery, escape, and resilience.

Of the new tracks, the band shares: "'Heddiw / Yfory' is a deeply nostalgic song that captures the intense bond we have with places that shaped us. It reflects on the comfort and familiarity of returning home, where even the simplest things—like gazing out a bedroom window or walking familiar paths—can evoke a powerful sense of belonging.

'Purdan' was written and recorded during our time in Lisbon. The song explores the complexity of being lured into a false sense of security by someone or something, feeling drawn to them despite knowing they might not have your best interests at heart.

‘Y Diwedd’ is a breakup song that delves into the poignant moments of knowing a relationship is nearing its end, yet fearing to acknowledge it. It captures the bittersweet tension of those final moments together, where both parties are reluctant to let go, even though the inevitable looms.

'Ni’ is a song about unity, love, and the importance of finding your tribe—the people who truly understand, love, and support you. It’s a reminder that, even in a world of 8 billion people, there are those out there who will love, embrace, and accept you for who you are."

Libertino · Adwaith - Heddiw Yfory / Purdan / Y Diwedd / Ni

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Carrying On Catching Up With: Phoebe Green - Paris Paloma - Hailey Whitters - Boreal - Flora Hibberd - Run Remedy

Phoebe Green - What Are You Doing. 

Manchester's Phoebe Green announces her new EP 'The Container' and presents new single "What Are You Doing". New five-track EP 'The Container' will be released on 21st March ahead of Phoebe's recently announced April UK headline tour. Marking a significant evolution in her artistry, new EP 'The Container' was written and produced by Phoebe within the intimate settings of her flat in Manchester and her parents' house in the coastal town of Lytham St Annes.

"‘The Container’ feels so right for me at this point in time, I just think that these songs represent where I’m at in terms of taste, ability and emotional state. It’s been so freeing to be able to go back to recording in my bedroom and writing out of a sheer need to express myself, to document my growth and allow others into that," Phoebe offers.

New song "What Are You Doing" is released today and provides another enticing glimpse into the project, following first taste "Precious Things" released late 2024. Blending shadowy synth-pop with introspective lyrics, "What Are You Doing" grapples with the lingering anxieties and self-doubt ("Do you watch me from a distance?") that can surface after navigating a challenging and emotionally draining relationship.

Speaking more on the inspiration behind her new single, Phoebe said: "‘What Are You Doing’ explores the mourning of a pretty toxic relationship, coming to terms with how damaging it was in hindsight, but how thrilling and all-consuming it felt at the time. Now that it feels so far in the past it’s impossible not to be curious about what this person is doing, how they’re going about their day to-day-life and wondering if I still take up space in their mind."

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Paris Paloma - HUNTER (the cacophony).

Paris Paloma releases the re-imagined version of ‘HUNTER (the cacophony)’, reprising the idea behind 'LABOUR (the cacophony)', where over 250 fans lend their voices to the empowering track.  
 
A fan favourite both live and on record, originally featuring on her 2024 debut album ‘Cacophony’, Paris says, “once again, it’s been so emotional to hear the voices of hundreds of fans coming together to join me on a new Cacophony version of this song. ‘Hunter’ is one of the most personal songs on the album, it’s a story of the internal triumph over darkness and pain at one of the most mentally turbulent times in my life. Seeing people relate to this song, to come out in force to sing it with me feels so powerful, and a testament to the strength of so many people who find my music resonates with them, it makes me feel so empowered and proud.”
 
Paris returns to North America this March for her anticipated 15-city sold out headline tour, starting March 4th in Atlanta and wrapping March 27th in Los Angeles. She will follow this with further UK & Ireland dates, including a sold out show at London’s O2 Shepherds Bush Empire in June. The dates follow her previously sold out UK, EU and US runs, where she has cultivated a dedicated fan community who have made her live shows a magical experience, from trading fairy messages to swapping books to impromptu fae circles.

Paris Paloma · HUNTER (the cacophony)

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Hailey Whitters - Cassaroles.

The Iowa-born, Nashville-based singer/songwriter Hailey Whitters released “Casseroles,” her first major release in nearly two years out now via Pigasus Records/Big Loud Records/Songs & Daughters. Written by Whitters’ close collaborators Hillary Lindsey, Tom Douglas and James Slater, the moving song threads the needle between the raw grief of a tragic loss and the hope that can follow.

About the new single, Whitters explains: “I was sent this record from three of my favorite collaborators who've written many songs that have defined the foundation of my appreciation for modern country music — Hillary Lindsey, Tom Douglas and James Slater. During my first listen, I was absolutely floored. I lost my brother suddenly thirteen years ago, and from that moment on, my life was changed forever. 

I particularly remember everyone bringing loads of food and casseroles over and how I couldn't eat for days because I was so distraught. Remembering that moment was what made this song hit so heavy for me. What happens when the casseroles stop coming and everyone has moved on, but it feels like you never will? As heavy and somber as the lyric and melody is, I also think there's hope in the message and pray that it lands between ears that need to hear it.”

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Boreal - Winterbirds.

Canadian folk trio Boreal shares "Winterbirds," the title track from their sophomore album that will be officially released on all digital platforms March 7. Singer/songwriters Tannis Slimmon, Katherine Wheatley and Angie Nussey began making Winterbirds in 2023 as the long-overdue follow-up to Boreal's 2014 debut album Winter’s Welcome. While a chilly theme is still predominant on much of Winterbirds, it’s a collection intended to bring joy year-round, with the music presenting a balance of soulful intensity with moments of lightness and celebration.

Among the album's other standout tracks are Angie's "Shepherd Of The Road," inspired by a conscientious truck driver who helped guide her home during a blizzard, Tannis's "Weathervane," co-written with Guelph, Ontario music scene fixture Lewis Melville, Katherine's haunting "Beautiful Blue," and a cover of the Gordon Lightfoot perennial favourite, "Song For A Winter's Night."

“Collaborating with Tannis and Katherine feels like working with a dream team,” Angie says. “We admire each other’s strengths, which inspires us to continually elevate our efforts for one another. The whole is definitely greater than the sum of its parts. And to top it all off, we share a ton of laughter along the way.”

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Flora Hibberd – Lucky You.

Indie-folk artist Flora Hibberd has just released her highly anticipated debut LP Swirl via 22TWENTY (Oracle Sisters, Cornelia Murr). Made in collaboration with producer Shane Leonard (Foy Vance, Mipso, Field Report) during a sweltering summer in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, this illuminating body of work explores the weight of words, their different meanings for different people, their evocative power, their problems, and their possibility.

Along with the album comes a lyric video for release day focus track, "Lucky You." Made by band member Victor Claass with font hand-drawn by Flora Hibberd herself, the video collages fascinating archival footage and scientific diagrams of plant growth cycles. About it Claass says:

Watching the video for Lucky You is supposed to feel like flipping through a book about mosses and lichens. These soft and fragile organic forms appear in the lyrics, which reveal themselves across the screen until they crowd each other out and saturate. The effect is an instability, a sense of disturbance, reflecting the song, holding all its tension until the last.

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Run Remedy - Kerosene.

Run Remedy, the project of New Jersey-born, Manchester-based artist Robin Koob, unveils her new single, Kerosene. Known for blending intimate storytelling with experimental textures and folk influences, Koob's latest offering is a hauntingly beautiful meditation on love, loss, and resilience. The track also serves as a preview of Run Remedy’s highly anticipated debut album, which is set to be released in June.

Kerosene recounts the tragic loss of Koob’s first “puppy love”, Lily, when the pair were involved in a tragic car accident during her teenage years. Raised in a strict Evangelical Christian household, with two preacher parents, Koob spent her adolescence lost and closeted, struggling to understand her identity within the confines of a conservative community. On Kerosene, she reflects on how the tragedy reshaped her life and pushed her toward self-discovery and a broader world beyond the confines of her upbringing.

On her new single, Koob shared: “Losing Lily so young is a big part of what gave me the courage to really live. It was a face-slap way to learn how short and precious life is. Kerosene is about that bright flame of being young, filled with the promise of life. It’s about the destruction and terror of that day, as well as the brightness and life that come afterward.I don't know if I ever would have been brave enough to leave the comfort of my world or risk being my true self without that experience.

I have a tattoo for Lily now. We used to talk about what we wanted to get, and after her death, when I finally got my cliché violin back tattoo, I got hers on my hand too—so I wouldn't ever forget that lesson.”

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Bumper Catch Up featuring: Rubblebucket - Mollie Elizabeth - Lilly Hiatt - The Kearns Family - WILDES and St Francis Hotel - Lucette - Caroline Strickland - Mon Rayon - Lala Salama

Keeping the comments a little shorter so we can cram a few more songs in than usual, this is our first bumper catch up of some really fine recent releases. In no particular order we present:

Rubblebucket — Anyone Else But You (Live @ SiriusXM).

We have always loved the Moldy Peaches song "Anyone Else But You." The lyrics are so poetic and the song is so simple. Despite being so soft the performance has a punk ethos in its level of carefreeness. The vibe really captures our spirit and the lyrics deeply speak to our story of being friends, then romantic and then just friends again. In that way it also brings out the spirit/story of our most recent album Year of the Banana which is about enduring friendship in its various poetic snapshots of our cosmic collision. 

It was a little challenging to figure out how we could bring something fresh to something so perfect without ruining it but we're happy with our added syncopations, percussion, trumpet and synthesizer. We also made sure to run it by our friend Adam Green who is one half of Moldy Peaches who said in response: "This is great!! Love the trumpet and the ethereal pads in the second half - you guys do it perfectly - I wouldn’t overthink it - the nature of the song is casual like this so it really works... You guys sound superb singing it." Thanks Adam!

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Mollie Elizabeth - Vegas Venetian.

Mollie introduces herself: Hi there, my name is Mollie (aka doeyedfairie), and I am a singer and songwriter from the woods of Washington State’s Cascades. 

To me, every melody is a tiny world that invites you in—an invitation to be both fierce and delicate, and to celebrate who you are, who you have been, and who you are becoming. 

My music isn’t just for listening—it’s for wandering, for imagining, and for finding a piece of yourself in a place you’d forgotten. I hope my songs resonate with you!

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Lilly Hiatt - Kwik - E - Mart.

Lilly Hiatt will release Forever on January 31, 2025 via New West Records. The 9-song set is Hiatt’s first album in four years and was produced by her husband, Coley Hinson, and mixed by Paul Q. Kolderie (Radiohead, Pixies, Hole).

Forever is a raw, unvarnished work of love and trust that walks the line between alt-rock muscle and singer-songwriter sensitivity. It is a bold, guitar-driven, exploration of maturity and adulthood that grapples with growth and change, escape and anxiety, self-loathing and self-love, and the songs are intensely vulnerable, full of diaristic snapshots.

Already met with critical acclaim, Uncut Magazine named it their “Americana Album of the Month,” exclaiming “Hiatt has rarely rocked harder than on Forever.” MOJO said “Stability and appreciation of life’s little victories have rarely sounded more delightful” while Nashville Lifestyles magazine said “Lilly Hiatt steps into the bold, punchy future on her fourth album, Forever…her creative re-awakening captures the excitement of a new start.”

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The Kearns Family - The Old Days.

The Old Days is a story song about the narrator’s relationship with their father viewed through hazy nostalgia and both good times and bad. Years pass until the narrator has the ultimate realization that no matter how different they want to be, they’re still a lot like their parents.

Mojave Desert singer-songwriter Pat Kearns persists among the most recognizable voices in the high-desert folk-rock landscape, further cemented by winning the Joshua Tree Voice “Joshua” award for Best Make Vocal of 2023. Accompanied by artist/stylist/musician Susan Kearns on stand-up bass; together, they’re the Kearns Family: a wide-brimmed, steely-eyed duo embodying the traditions of ‘60s/70s outlaw/cosmic country with deep-rooted power-pop sensibilities.

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WILDES and St Francis Hotel - In The Floodlight.

WILDES and St Francis Hotel just revealed the new track "In The Floodlight" - the final taste of new collaborative EP Kopfkino, out 19th February - which will feature the previously released title track and "Are You Gonna Speak?", released in December last year.

Together WILDES and St Francis Hotel bring with them a wealth of critical plaudits, and notable collaborations between them with acts including The Flaming Lips, Little Simz and Michael Kiwanuka.

For new EP Kopfkino, the pair delve into the mind's captivating power, exploring the spectrum of human experience from poignant introspection to exhilarating escapism, sonically noting the influence of 80s synth-pop bands such as Erasure, The Human League, and Depeche Mode, as well as trip-hop artists like Massive Attack and Portishead.

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Lucette - Heading For The End.

Canadian singer-songwriter Lucette shares the relatably fatalistic new single “Heading for the End,” the latest from her upcoming EP Nice Girl From The Suburbs, which releases on March 21. This song finds Lucette living in the complexity of being human while still resisting people pleasing stereotypes. Singing “everytime it hurts, I’m heading for the end,” she exists both as someone experiencing the real feelings of pain, as well as an observer chiding her own tendency to catastrophize.

“Heading For The End” follows Lucette’s previous single, the pedal-steel-filled boot-stomper “Back in the Blue” featuring Mariel Buckley. Speaking about the new song, she explains, “‘Heading For The End’ is an extension on topics that I began to speak about on my last album. It’s a dark, sarcastic way of looking at my near melodramatic behavior when I feel low. Thinking that when I’m hurt, I’m heading for the end. Telling myself stories that probably aren’t true. Leaning into those feelings a bit too much at times.”

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Caroline Strickland - Prettiest Girl of Heaven.

Caroline Strickland is an alternative rock musician out of Brooklyn, NY. Her music revolves around themes of self actualization and realization, analyzing the tension between our arrogance and tenderness, how we fall in love and how we let go.

Driving guitar and smoked out vocals are highlighted with thecoccasional one-string lick or tap on the piano, a sparse style that somehow fills the void.

"Prettiest Girl of Heaven" is the new single from Caroline Strickland. It's the latest single off of their new EP, Martha's Calling, out March 7th.

Good Eye Records · Caroline Strickland - "Prettiest Girl of Heaven"

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Mon Rayon - On the Riviera.

The song began as an instrumental piece, reflecting "the mysterious and glamorous life on the French Riviera," like a scene from a European spy film with "beautiful scenery, fast car chases, enchanting women, and the emptiness in the aftermath."

When Josef shared the idea with Christoffer, he was thrilled and wrote lyrics that ask: "What happens when the glamour is gone? What should one do with the void in your heart when all the lights are out? Is there more happiness beyond the next star?"

It’s a story of love at a crossroads. You’ve "played your cards and feel like there’s nothing more you can do." Stepping outside the "sparkling and color-filled casino of love," the world shifts to black and white—yet hope lingers that "your breakthrough lies beyond the next star."

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Lala Salama - Kuva Susta.

The Helsinki-based indie band Lala Salama will releasde their third and final single, Kuva Susta, last Friday, January 17, ahead of their debut album Miltähän me näytettäis yhdessä, set to drop on March 21, 2025. The album has already been introduced with two singles: the 2023 shoegaze hit Summer Love and the heartfelt Aurinko sulattaa mun pään. While the first two singles were intimate summer anthems, Kuva Susta is the perfect addition to winter’s melancholic playlists.

"‘Kuva Susta’ represents Lala Salama’s more sensitive side; it’s an emotional depiction of longing, memories of the past, and the difficulty of letting go," says the band’s singer and guitarist Rosa Jules.

Lala Salama: One of Finland's most promising indie bands: Lala Salama has quickly risen as one of Finland's most promising indie bands. The debut album’s first single, Summer Love, was released in 2023 and immediately gained international attention. The single topped the Hype Machine chartsand was the fourth most-played song of the year on Radio Helsinki. The British Clash Magazine praised it as an "ultra-catchy shoegaze anthem."

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Welcome Back With... CocoRosie - Tommy Keyes - better joy

When Beehive Candy decided to take a break, a few weeks became a few months and nearly became forever. The break was needed and so much has happened for us in the past year plus, however this time around it's for the love of good music and nothing more. Some new ideas are floating around, but one thing at a time, anyway welcome back, the constant visits since we stopped have been incredible, so thank you for your interest and support, we are really grateful.

CocoRosie - Little Death Wishes.

CocoRosie, the sister duo of Bianca and Sierra Casady announce the release of their eighth studio album Little Death Wishes, out March 28th on Joyful Noise. Along with the album and the upcoming European tour announcements, they share the album’s second single and music video, 'Cut Stitch Scar.'

For just over twenty years, Bianca and Sierra Casady have transmuted the love, hardship, and ecstasy of sisterhood into some of the most daring, dangerous, and wildly original music our increasingly sanitized culture has known. CocoRosie has been a project consistently at the musical vanguard, influencing countless musicians while inspiring and creating refuge for the “criminal queers” of the world. Above all, CocoRosie has been a conduit for irrepressible artistic self-realization.

Little Death Wishes is as open and tenderhearted as anything they’ve ever created. The songs tell a kaleidoscopic story of the generational hardship of women and the shattered realities of their lives, the precarious and precious nature of being human, of being done wrong by love, and a final wish to be unbroken. It boils everything CocoRosie down to its most brutal essence: turning pain into knowledge, sisterhood into polemic, trash into treasure, and recalcifying kitsch and cliché into fresh truths.

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Tommy Keyes - The Key Of Blue.

The sixth single from the acclaimed album the Key of Blue is the title track and is a throwback to the classic jazz-pop era.

It's accompanied with a sublime co-vocal from Dara MacGabhann along with some brilliant solos from Dick Farrelly on guitar and Richie Buckley on sax.

Tommy Keyes is an Irish singer-songwriter who returned to music in 2016 after almost 40 years away.  The current album is his 8th and he’s had 6 Number Ones in the Irish iTunes singles charts.

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better joy - waiting on time.

Kicking off 2025 with intent, Manchester-based Bria Keely, better known as better joy, has shared new single ‘waiting on time’ and announced debut EP ‘heading into blue’ will be released on 28th March.
 
New single ‘waiting on time’ continues to showcase Bria’s personal experiences through her candid and autobiographical lyrics about life. Written about her own mental challenges and the importance of having time to heal, the tender lyrics are coupled with jangly guitars and a cheery melody, building in measured intensity to a euphoric chorus of release.
 
Bria says, “waiting on time at its core is about going through mental challenges and losing yourself in the process, and the healing process that comes after. For me, it takes time to feel like myself again after I’ve gone through something difficult, and this one is just about the wait and the inevitability that I will find myself again. When I’ve been at my lowest, it’s hard to see through the fog of it all so I wanted this song to be a reminder to myself - and in general - that if you do all the right things to get yourself out of the rut, the fog can clear, it’ll just take some time.”
 
Alongside new single ‘waiting on time’, Bria has announced the debut better joy EP ‘heading into blue’ produced by Mike Hedges (The Cure, U2, Manic Street Preachers). The 6-track EP features previous singles ‘carnival’ and ‘what a day’ alongside new single ‘waiting on time’, as well as three brand-new tracks, ‘couldn’t run forever’, ‘quiet thing’ and ‘can I land the plane?’. It is the first full-length project from better joy and is both a perfect introduction to better joy’s alt-pop sound and an exciting taster of more to come this year.

 

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Surprise Baby - Pen Pin - Von Wildenhaus

photo - India Coombs

Surprise Baby - Motorcycle.

Surprise Baby is the Los Angeles based project of musician and songwriter Sarsten Noice and producer Claire Morison. Described as rock and roll cowboy meets indie pop, the two, who are originally from Northwest Montana, use their long-standing relationship as friends and creative partners to craft a sound which is both authentic and captivating.

Their upcoming EP is a result of Surprise Baby refusing to be pigeon-holed and see’s the two exploring a realm of different genres and sounds. Following the release of their debut single “Poison the Well,” “Motorcycle” is the second track from the EP and details a commentary on the feeling of escapism. It is a mostly fictional narrative on the desire to escape a relationship, specifically on a motorcycle heading to New York. Noice shares, “Call it a quarter life crisis, call it fear of commitment, the feeling is that of running away. There is also a sentiment of not wanting your partner to worry over you, and making the unrealistic promise that you won't die on the road. The fact that the narrator believes so deeply they won't die while simultaneously desiring to be as close to danger as possible is the irony of the song itself.”

“Motorcycle” shimmers with muted, jangly guitars, mellow melodies and celestial harmonies, creating an iridescent soundscape that you can truly lose yourself within. Not afraid to speak her truth, Noice shares how she uses songwriting as a way to process her internal world and give intense emotions a way out of her body. She shares, “I try to create imagery that accurately captures a specific feeling and then allow myself to build lyrics in an abstract way, opposed to straightforward storytelling. This I hope leaves the songs open to the listeners’ interpretation.”

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Pen Pin - Fringe.

Pen Pin is the new sun-soaked indie pop project from songwriters and multi-instrumentalists Jeni Magana and Emily Moore. Both established musicians in their own right, they met while touring with Mitski and started writing and recording their debut album whenever they weren't on the road. The result of their "pen pinspiration" has become a chill, vintage pop album that sounds and feels like lounging by a Palm Desert pool when the afternoon becomes the dusk.

The whole process of self-producing these songs has captured a moment of inspiration and a joyous collaboration between friends. The LP entitled Pony Up is about these feelings: the spark of inspiration, holding onto happiness, and friendship.

Pen Pin's single "Fringe" details capturing a moment in a relationship that is pure joy and recalling that feeling when times get tough. The breezy track features golden-hued vocals, dreamy melodies and nostalgic piano, creating a warm and cathartic musical moment. Designed to bring you company on your evening walks through the park, Pony Up is set to be released Spring, 2024.

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Von Wildenhaus - Ketamine.

Apocalyptic avant-pop artist Von Wildenhaus has shared new single “Ketamine”, ahead of a UK tour across September. In lieu of a traditional album release the artist is issuing an extended series of singles across the coming months, culminating in a new compilation ‘Von Universe’, which will be available exclusively at the UK shows.

A spacious, sublime offering that sees Von Wildenhaus fuse alchemistic rhythms and airy instrumentals with celestial vocal delivery and a cavernously clean approach to production, “Ketamine” is the sixth track to be taken from the artist’s forthcoming compilation.

Evoking a feeling that is as fragile as it faraway, Ben von Wildenhaus explains of the new track: ”Ketamine” embodies the feeling of dissociation that overwhelms when you separate from someone you love. We often play this as spacey folk, but here we really wanted to take it into the realm of ethereal ‘80s pop — that crisp digital world full of inorganic heartbreak.”

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The Artist Formally Known as Vince Band - Ashton Nyte - Shadwick Wilde

The Artist Formally Known as Vince Band - A Problematic Opera (E.P).

This one came out back in May but escaped our radar at the time, anyway it's never to late for some robust 'recent' new music when it's this good! The Artist Formally Known as Vince Band (or TAFKAVince Band for short) formed in 1996 and began playing out regularly upon the release of 2002's At Last CD. Other notable releases include 2007's Welcome To The Show, the 2011 vinyl release On Display, and the singles "NYC" and "Luck," which were released in 2014 and 2016, respectively.

TAFKAVince features Vince SanFilippo on vocals and guitar, Lauren Kurtz on vocals, Brian Chinino on drums, percussion and backing vocals, Chris Geisler on bass, percussion and backing vocals and Vee Sonnets on guitar, backing vocals and keys.

The band plays a heady mix of glam, power pop, punk, and rock n' roll and has built a reputation as a fierce live act who have graced stages at the Empty Bottle, Beat Kitchen, Liar's Club, Subterranean, Reggie's, The Hideout, and Double Door in their hometown of Chicago and have performed at the esteemed venues Berlin (NYC), Plain Dealer Pavilion (Cleveland) and Slash Run (Washington DC) while on tour.

TAFKAVince Band has opened for (and held their own against) Michael Monroe of Hanoi Rocks, The Fleshtones, The Undead featuring Bobby Steele of The Misfits, Hunx & His Punx, The Dollyrots, The Melismatics, Scott Lucas and The Married Men, Prima Donna and many other celebrated bands from the indie underground.

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Ashton Nyte - The Garden.

Singer-songwriter Ashton Nyte has just released Autumn's Children: his eighth album and second book of poetry, short stories and musings, as well as the fourth video single, "The Garden". Based in the U.S., Ashton Nyte is a South African-born composer, singer, multi-instrumentalist, writer, and producer. He has released seven solo albums as Ashton Nyte and eleven albums as The Awakening, one of South Africa's most prominent alternative rock bands.

Nyte has contributed vocals and lyrics to a number of other projects, featuring members of The Cure, Cheap Trick, Peter Murphy, The Mission, and Beauty In Chaos, among many others.

Ashton has written and performed in theatrical productions and hosted philanthropic events, including his “Rock Against Rape” concert series and presenting a lecture series at U.S. universities focusing on tolerance and acceptance. He’s worked on film scores, most recently with Ethan Gold on the movie Don't Let Go, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2019. His songs have also been featured in major television shows, including Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin (HBO Max), The Purge (USA Network), and more.

Described by music journalists as "Johannesburg's Bowie" for his widely varying musical styles and theatrical performance approach, Nyte has a released catalog of over 300 original songs and has received airplay and chart success on major independent radio stations worldwide.

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Shadwick Wilde - Floating Away.

Shadwick Wilde has released "Floating Away," the third single from his upcoming solo record Forever Home, produced by renowned Nashville drummer Ken Coomer (Billy Bragg, Will Hoge, Margo Price, Vance Joy, Al Green, Wilco and Uncle Tupelo), available everywhere September 22nd!

"My partner Sarah and I came up with the concept of this video while out on a walk in the woods together. She can do just about anything that requires a great deal of fine motor skills. We had both been imagining the paper boat playing a lead role, but the rest was all her. The theme of water comes back a lot on this record. While writing and demoing “Forever Home”, before it had a proper title, I had jokingly titled it “Waterworld” after the behemoth film that almost ruined Kevin Costner.

The parallels are difficult to ignore: both he and I nearly bankrupted ourselves to bring our apocalyptic visions into reality. I have been thinking and writing a lot about water these past few years; how Heraclitus said we can never step into the same river twice… both the human and the river being in a constant state of flux. Our bodies have roughly the same salinity as the ocean, the source of all life on Earth.

I learned a lot of letting go, in the process of making this record. We all are in this river of time, everchanging. All we can do is row, row our little boat, gently down the stream– making small adjustments to our course, but ultimately heading toward the same destination: the ocean that is eternity, the infinite vastness of the cosmos. When the waves of this life come and knock us down, we have a tendency to forget that, we too are the ocean, and that in fact everything does come in waves." - Shadwick Wilde, on "Floating Away" and its video.

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Daniel Walton - Thrillhouse - Ghost Party

Daniel Walton - Through The Glass.

An endless need for self expression has helped songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Daniel Walton focus on his creative vision as an independent artist to write and produce his debut EP titled Island: a beautiful, heartfelt collection of songs about love, loss and change.

The 28-year-old from Hamilton, ON has been involved in a handful of collaborative original bands spanning many genres (Wooly Mantis, Downstream) but “Island” is the first of many projects that are from the mind of Walton as a solo act. Being able to have full creative freedom has allowed Walton to find his voice in the songwriter space.

Reminiscent of the Laurel Canyon era of folk and singer-songwriter with a genre-blending modernism, Walton’s latest single “Through The Glass” is a drift inspiring transportive listen.

About his songwriting intent: “My goal with songwriting is to take the listener on some kind of journey, whether it may be from lyrics, music or both. To take the listener out of the present moment and into a place that feels familiar, yet new and exciting. A place that is comfortable, where the listener does not feel alone and can drift away in peace.”

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Thrillhouse - Big Tree.

Brighton duo Thrillhouse, release the intimate yet expansive new album Something About This Place, with the lead track ‘Big Tree’.

Showcasing their electrifying Alternative-Indie-come-Alternative-Country tendencies, the album further delivers on the unique sonic approach which has seen the band garner widespread acclaim from musical luminaries such as KEXP, Radio X (John Kennedy), and BBC Introducing. The brainchild of duo Sam Strawberry and Jack Nielsen, Thrillhouse gained their name as a humorous and nostalgic nod to an old Simpsons episode, but digging a little deeper, the name also evokes the yearning of being stuck in an increasingly bleak present whilst being rooted in a fragmented and pretend past.

Now releasing their hotly anticipated debut album 'Something About This Place', the band describe the 11 track release as: “A hark back to childhood - to simpler times, before ambition, failure and regret wrapped us up with our dreams and tossed us crashing back down to Earth.”

Capturing a melancholic sincerity tinged with wry humour within the captivating lyricism, the band's stylistic sound shines across the album. Heartfelt and honest vocal delivery comparable to Matt Berninger glides above intricate musical backdrops of driving drums, warming, intertwining guitar tones, sparkling synths and melodic hooks to create spellbinding, genre-bending soundscapes. Comparable to The National, Nick Cave and The War On Drugs, Thrillhouse boldly challenges the boundaries of contemporary Indie music with a post-punk flare and alternative undertones.

The new lead track ‘Big Tree’ is a perfect representation of the band's approach, blending melancholic beauty with intricate musical ideas and an underlying sense of driving energy.

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Ghost Party - Yankee Reaper.

"Yankee Reaper'' borrows its name from a Van Dyke Parks album, conveys a sense of nostalgia and loss through the guise of the surreal, and is treated with a vintage sounding gospel stomp arrangement, where barrelhouse piano, soaring pedal steel, fuzzed out guitar, and hand claps all create a ruckus, supported by the pulse of a finger picked acoustic guitar. Evocative of a psychedelic tent revival, "Yankee Reaper" suggests some sort of cosmic mashup between T.Rex and the White Album sessions. Ghost Party is joined by pedal steel master Will Van Horn, notable for his contributions to Khruangbin and Leon Bridges' latest collaborative EPs.

Ghost Party is the nostalgic, retro psych revival project of McCullough Ferguson. Mixing the ingredients of classic acts from the golden era of 60s psych and Americana music with modern interpreters as well a adding a bit of the subliminal sublime, spooky nature of the great beyond, we arrive at the Ghost Party.

Part garage rock, part cosmic country, part psych, Ghost Party came into existence in Houston Texas in 2020. As half of psychedelic rock tricksters Flower Graves, Ferguson has shared the stage with Roky Erickson, Night Beats, Holy Wave, and many more.

Ferguson is joined by Austin Sepulvado, Victor Sanchez, and Kendrick Ballard on bass, drums, and organ/keys/mellotron, respectively. They have released two singles in 2023, tracked and produced by Steve Christensen, notable for his production work with Khruangbin. Ghost Party will be releasing their first full length album this fall and will be appearing at River Revival alongside The Black Angels.

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