An overwhelming amount of music is released daily, and we're here to help you weed through it all. Every week, we will share select releases we are all looking forward to and personalized picks from a few of our editors.
Welcome to the first edition of our New Releases to Check Out guide featuring the most notable music released in the week of July 26.
And don't forget to check out our YouTube, where DeVán reports on the latest music news every Friday.
BLIGATORY Picks
Kaonashi - A Second Chance at Forever: the Brilliant Lies from Casey Diamond (EP)
Emo-Pop, Post-Hardcore, Progressive Rock
via Equal Vision
The rabbit hole goes deeper, the Kaonashi-verse grows larger, and the experimental post-hardcore band becomes even more difficult to categorize (and we love that).
A Second Chance At Forever is the third [canon] installment of an ongoing narrative set forth on 2021’s Dear Lemon House. It is also the group’s second release of 2024, following up on the heavy and techy but extremely vulnerable five tracks that made up The 3 Faces of Beauty: A Violent Misinterpretation of Morgan Montgomery.
As the newest Kaonashi lore drop, A Second Chance At Forever expands upon the titular character of Casey Diamond. Like the previous release, it serves as a prequel to the events that unfold in Dear Lemon House, where we are first introduced to the main character, Jaime, and the foundation these stories are built upon.
That said, you don’t have to analyze every intricacy (though Kaonashi’s YouTube channel is a great resource for those looking to) in the lyrics to get into their music. They have incredible range, illustrated wonderfully by the information that the EP’s closer, “Exit Pt. VI (The Guilt in the Rearview),” was reportedly inspired by Death Cab For Cutie’s “Plans.” And amidst their wide-ranging influences and technical prowess, you will also find some of the most cathartic, powerful, and deliberate storytelling.
A Second Chance At Forever: The Brilliant Lies of Casey Diamond is out now via Equal Vision Records.
Dummy - "Nine Clean Nails"
Neo-Psychedelia, Post-Punk, Krautrock
via Trouble In Mind Records
Spiky, dreamy, DUMMY! The Los Angeles band share the second single from their upcoming sophomore record with “Nine Clean Nails.”
Bolstered by a steady motorik beat, it exemplifies Dummy’s avant-pop stylings at their peak. A charged and heavily guitar-driven track (the interplay is phenomenal), their latest offering is noticeably punchier than lead single “Nullspace,” but still radiates the same level of warmth and optimism.
Free Energy, is out September 6 via Trouble In Mind Records.
Enumclaw - "Not Just Yet"
Indie Rock, Post-Grunge
via Run for Cover Records
Tacoma, Washington's Enumclaw share "Not Just Yet," the second single from their upcoming sophomore record, Home In Another Life.
The single is bolstered by its high-energy, guitar-driven foundation, but it shines the brightest through vocalist Aramis Johnson. As explained in a press release, the song was written for band members Aramis Johnson and Eli Edwards’ Uncle Mike. Mike, "who is the man who taught [Aramis] everything," was recently diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's. With "Not Just Yet," the band captures an inexplicable sense of longing and desperation within a deeply personal ode.
Home In Another Life is out August 30 and marks Enumclaw's first release with Run for Cover Records.
Katie Gavin - "Aftertaste"
Indie Pop, Singer-Songwriter
via Saddest Factory Records
Lead MUNA vocalist Katie Gavin is going solo (but not forever). Her new spacey alt-pop single, “Aftertaste,” leans towards the acoustic/electronic trends of 2000s pop with a twinge of country in the melancholic chorus and shiny electric guitar tones. Gavin’s versatile vocal range is pivotal for the song’s progression, as she bursts into each chorus with her higher register. The song is well-written and radio-ready.
Her debut solo album, What A Relief, contains 12 tracks, with the sole feature being Mitski on the song “As Good As It Gets.” It’s out October 25 on Saddest Factory Records.
Ravyn Lenae - "One Wish" (ft. Childish Gambino)
Cont. R&B, Neo-Soul
via Atlantic Records / Three Twenty Three Music Group
On what could be the final preview of the album before its release on August 9, Ravyn Lenae and Childish Gambino deliver smooth vocals on an incredibly soulful sample chop. It’s another look at how different her upcoming album Bird’s Eye might sound compared to the Steve Lacy & Monte Booker-assisted HYPNOS (2022). With executive production from DJ Dahi, the “One Wish” beat sounds equally fit for a boom-bap style wordsmith. The interjecting vocal chop is just abstract enough to blend in when needed while still adding a creative punch here and there.
Bird’s Eye is shaping up to be a majestic showing of modern R&B that can’t come soon enough. The 11-track album drops August 9 via Atlantic.
SPIRIT OF THE BEEHIVE - "SOMETHING'S ENDING" / "I'VE BEEN EVIL"
Neo-Psychedelia, Indietronica, Jangle Pop
via Saddle Creek
Spirit of the Beehive (SotB)'s follow-up to their “LET THE VIRGIN DRIVE” single comes in the form of “SOMETHING'S ENDING” / “I'VE BEEN EVIL.” The Philly-based collective has made a name for themselves as having a deep and unpredictable bag of tricks. Unwilling to fit within a mold, SotB's material never fails to emanate a hypnagogic phosphorescence.
An avocado-holding-hand pierced by a knife with thick splotches of blood decorate the surface underneath. What the artwork is symbolic of is anybody's guess. Maybe breakfast time went array? Some things are sometimes better left a mystery. The band sinks deeper into the psychedelic treacle with each release.
YOU’LL HAVE TO LOSE SOMETHING, SotB's new record, is set for release on August 23 via Saddle Creek Records.
Atticus' Picks
K Suave - It Was Never Serious
PluggnB, Rage, Melodic Trap
via 1400/800
Uninterested by Future and Metro Boomin’s behemoth albums earlier this year? The presentation of K Suave’s newest album, It Was Never Serious, draws parallels with Future’s 2022 album I NEVER LIKED YOU (see the album covers and titles)—for some reason, despite indulging in very different realms of modern hip hop. Suave’s smooth, nonstop autotune melodies are directly reminiscent of D. Savage; however, he prefers the more euphoric rage-inspired chords with loads of bright synth lines fluttering about.
The production will occasionally reach slightly brain-rotting levels of maximalism, akin to current underground favorite Xaviersobased as well as the lord of messy overcompression himself, Hi-C. However, most tracks settle for a cloudy medium instead, which is a lot easier to handle.
Jorja Smith - "High"
House, Alt. R&B
via FAMM
Despite dropping an album late last year—and a reimagined version of the same project in May—English R&B superstar Jorja Smith comes through with a new loosie (?) titled “High.” The track is a building groove that flourishes as more elements pour in over a classic four-on-the-floor club beat. The softly-stabbing low synths sit perfectly within the busy drum knocking, and Smith's immaculate voice becomes an instrument within the soundscape.
“High” takes a foolproof formula and executes effectively, but is Smith already back in album/project mode? Most likely not, but one cannot complain about a surprise single this solid.
Cam's Picks
Ice Spice - Y2K!
NY Drill, Jersey Club Rap
via 10K Projects / Capitol Records
Ice Spice's debut album—though it is shorter than the deluxe version of her recent Like...? EP—is out now. Bouncing, complex New York sub-bass and gritty deliveries. If you can stomach the poop entendres, it's worth the ride.
Porter Robinson - SMILE! :D
Electropop, Indietronica
via Mom + Pop
Porter Robinson has had a wild last three years: his reputation as an artist in the EDM space has radicalized into a position of prestige, he's married now, and he went on an extensive tour! SMILE! :D is an intriguing development of his sound with pop punk that either embellishes digibeats or outright frames the aesthetic of the whole song. The New York affiliate, hyperpop & twee rock duo Frost Children also make an appearance.
Dominick's Picks
Robber Robber - Wild Guess
Post-Punk, Indie Rock
Self-Released
Burlington, Vermont’s Robber Robber—Nina Cates (vocals/rhythm guitar), Zack James (drums), Will Krulak (lead guitar), and Carney Hemler (bass)—share their debut album with the self-released Wild Guess.
Moving through an eclectic mixture of post-punk and indie rock—with some occasional krautrock flair—Robber Robber’s first full-length is a testament to the two words featured in their Bandcamp bio: “loose parameters.” More than anything, Wild Guess is a fluid exercise in tension and catharsis.
Clothesline From Hell - Soon We'll All Be Smoking (EP)
Slacker Rock, Hypnagogic Pop, Post-Grunge
via 444%
Soon We’ll All Be Smoking is the third project from Toronto-based musician Adam LaFramboise, AKA Clothesline From Hell. Crafting semi-metallic amalgamations of modern indie rock, lo-fi hip-hop, and more, LaFramboise’s arrangements are some of the most exciting within all of ‘alternative’ music. Raw and gritty, but well-studied and masterfully concocted—Soon We’ll All Be Smoking should be slotted directly into your regular rotation.
Gnarcissists & Promiseland - Banana Split (EP)
Garage Punk, Electropunk
via Bliss Records
Two NYC acts link up for this four-track EP, with two offerings each from garage punk group Gnarcissists and multidisciplinary artist Johann Rashid (AKA Promiseland).
Gnarcissists’ two songs include a newly recorded version of their song “Fentanyl” and a new original titled “ZaZa.” The former is more polished and slightly springier than previously heard on their S/T EP (2018) and their near-perfect 2019 double EP/mini-album, Caught In the Webb.
The songs from Promiseland are a unique pairing with “Bingo” and “Can You See.” The latter is a spacey, gothic-rock cut, while the former is a sub-2-minute blast of high-octane techno punk.
Show Me the Body - CORPUS II EP 1 (EP)
Noise Rock, Post-Hardcore, Industrial Hip-Hop
via CORPUS
Seven years after the release of Corpus 1—which boasted collaborations with Denzel Curry, Moor Mother, Princess Nokia and more—NYC’s Show Me the Body share the first installment of the mixtape’s successor.
CORPUS II EP 1 has six tracks on it: two new Show Me the Body songs and four original collaborations with Zulu, B L A C K I E, YL Starker, and King Yosef.
Citric Dummies - "Trapped in a Parking Garage"
Garage Punk
via Feel It Records
Minneapolis garage punks Citric Dummies announce a new 7” behind the titular track, “Trapped in a Parking Garage.” The new four-song EP comes after the release of their latest album, Zen and the Arcade of Beating Your Ass, less than a year ago in November 2023. Fast, raw, and (self-admittedly) dumb punk.
Trapped in a Parking Garage is out August 9 via the Cincinnati-based label—and essential follow for any punk fan—Feel It Records.
Feeling Figures - "Doors Wide Open"
Post-Punk, Indie Rock, Noise Pop
via K Records / Perennial
Less than a year ago (in November), Montreal band Feeling Figures released their first album, Migration Magic. And while that is an album worth recommending to any fan of modern guitar-driven rock, it’s technically not the band’s debut album. Recorded prior to the sessions for Migration Magic and announced last month, Everything Around You is their true-blue, DIY debut album.
This week, Feeling Figures share the second track from it with the scrappy and super fun single, “Doors Wide Open.” It’s a punky and noisy song, no doubt, but it’s also undeniably catchy and delightfully fun.
Everything Around You is out September 27 via K Records and Perennial.
Peel Dream Magazine - "Wish You Well"
Neo-Psychedelia, Dream Pop, Avant-Pop
via Topshelf Records
Last month, Peel Dream Magazine—led by songwriter Joe Stevens—announced their fourth full-length album alongside the highly addictive, motorik-pop lead single, “Lie in the Gutter.” This week, they bring the second preview of Rose Main Reading Room with the dreamy and subdued “Wish You Will.”
Of the song, Stevens writes:
"'Wish You Well' is a song about the animality that we are all hardwired with, and how it can bring out the worst in us. Instinct drives some people to be ruthlessly competitive, Rose Main Reading Room deals a lot with this juncture of the civilized and natural world. I wrote this song as a statement, like, freeing myself from the influence of people who've pushed me around at different points in my life. In the music video, Olivia and I are portraying people who secretly try to undermine others. Everyone's behavior is juxtaposed with these brutally violent scenes from nature, as well as all of this DNA and cellular imagery to establish this idea that its completely elemental. We shot this video with an awesome filmmaker who goes by Otium, and got to play around with all these different performance setups in front of a cyclorama wall in downtown LA.”
Rose Main Reading Room is out September 4 and marks the band’s first release with Topshelf Records.
Peter's Picks
Alien Nosejob - "Bird Strike"
Garage Rock, Egg Punk
via Anti Fade (AUS) / Drunken Sailor (UK) / Total Punk (US)
"Bird Strike," the latest single from Jake Robertson (of Ausmuteants, Hierophants, and more) is the first to lay ground for his next album as Alien Nosejob, Turns the Colour of Bad Shit. There's a real dichotomy at play here; the synthesizers feel hopeful, but the lyrics and overall musical construction, hopeless. “The plane goes down as the sun goes up,” utters Alien Nosejob. The bird that struck the engine certainly set off a chain reaction of events.
Alien Nosejob's seventh album Turns the Colour of Bad Shit is set for release on September 20. It also marks Anti Fade Records’ 100th release.
Tall Juan - "Dark Hole"
Neo-Psychedelia, Hypnagogic Pop
Self-Released
The opening track to Tall Juan's upcoming album, Raccoon Nights—an album of nine songs that grapple with isolation and uncertainty—has been set free from its submerged status. The dark hole in which it was birthed has been opened for a peep inside. “Dark Hole” explores the nuances and complexities of finding comfort amidst despair.
"Dark Hole" was co-produced with MGMT's Andrew VanWyngarden, one of many guest contributors to the Queens-via-Argentina artist’s upcoming release. Raccoon Nights taps over 30 different players, including a feature from Indie darling Mac Demarco, a Juan Wauters appearance, and more.
An independent release, Raccoon Nights is out September 6.
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