Back in March, indie-punk trio VIAL unveiled their second album, burnout, which contained a catchy set of songs that skidded between dark anthems and raucous heft. To end the year on a high note, they’ve rerecorded their 2019 debut EP, Grow Up. Titled Grow The Fuck Up, the project arrives November 29 via Get Better Records and will be available on vinyl for the first time. The LP also includes the ripping new song ‘DIY or Die,’ a rewrite of a deleted Grow Up B-side, and comes with a music video where guitarist/vocalist KT Branscom gets doused in blood while dressed like a beauty pageant winner. “We rerecorded our debut EP Grow Up to look back on our progress as musicians and revisit some very nostalgic songs after five years of VIAL,” the band say. “It’s like a little love letter to our younger selves. When we first recorded Grow Up, we had very limited resources during the recording process and didn’t even use our own cables. We feel very lucky we’re able to revisit this EP now that we have access to the funds, skills, and equipment we’d always wanted to allocate toward these eight songs.” [via Alt Press]

Last month, Romy and Sari Lightman announced their debut EP under the Lightman & Lightman name, a release called Sister Smile that will be out December 6, and features contributions from several notable musicians, including Hand Habit’s Meg Duffy, and members of Cola, TOPS and Jessica Pratt’s band. The LP was announced with the single ‘Bethlehem XL,’ and now the sisters are sharing a second preview of the EP, a track called ‘Weave Your Name In Mine.’ Lightman & Lightman say of the track: “I wanted to capture the passion, desperation, even the romantic infatuation to converse with and be seen by the divine. A love song to God through the eyes of Etty & Jeanine with the devotional sincerity of a 60s girl group. I wrote this one much later than the rest of the album. I was walking through a public garden, staring at the roses, thinking of Dantes’ Paradise, and thought what would a pop song about divine love plucked from the secular sphere sound like? In the music video animated and directed by Zak Tatham, we asked our friend, a contemporary dancer to play the role of “the divine source on the ceiling” holding and reflecting back our shared and interconnected humanity. We recorded most of the track in our garage in Tujunga, with Riley Fleck (Tops, Jessica Pratt) playing drums and Meg Duffy (Hand Habits) on guitar.”

Following her recent East Coast tour – which experienced such high demand that a second Naarm/Melbourne show was added – singer-songwriter Odette shares her serendipitous new single and video ‘Seahorses’. Harnessing a songwriting craft that’s nothing short of exceptional, Odette’s approach to lyrical expression is strengthened by her unique sense of curiosity and openness, allowing for moments of vulnerability and catharsis to coexist with her unapologetic self-assurance. With subtle allusions to authority figures and power dynamics, Odette finds a happy medium between scathing cynicism and blissful idealism on ‘Seahorses’, as she playfully flips between vocal registers. Her soaring melodies find their match in the vibrant, playful instrumentation, with the energetic piano-led groove melding with delicate woodwinds and resonant percussion. Speaking on the song, Odette reveals, “’Seahorses’ is buoyant and fun and scathing. I wrote this when I was angry and joyous at the same time in the studio with Kiah. It’s how I was looking at the world in that moment and everything felt beautiful and nightmarish at the same time. I think it still does.” In the self-directed music video, Odette, along with a team of her friends and collaborators, captures the ephemeral moments of joy that lie at the heart of ‘Seahorses’, safeguarding each snapshot for her future self. She shares, ”This is my favourite video I’ve ever done and I directed it!! Monte (@monteemadeit) is one of my favourite producers I’ve worked with. He’s the kind of guy who will get on the ground when you do, it just makes the space feel very collaborative and exciting! This video is just me and my friends having fun together. I wanted to document everyone digitally so I can look back at the funny things we did when I’m older. I love them with my entire heart. I wouldn’t be here without them, seriously.” [via TwentyThree]

Fresh off of touring with Wallows in North America and Olivia Rodrigo in Australia, New Zealand alt-pop player BENEE has a brand-new single for us. Titled ‘Animal,’ this new one follows September’s ‘Sad Boiii.’ Both will show up on her forthcoming album, which drops next year. Upbeat and anthemic, ‘Animal’ has a clear hip-hop influence, with a glitchy backing track. “And you can’t stay mad at me, I’m just an animal,” BENEE sings on the chorus. “A micro-celebrity, but I mean nothing at all.” Benee shared this statement on the song: “’Animal’ is a song I wrote when I felt extreme existential dread. When flying in a plane on tour, looking down onto what looks like an ant-like world really inspired the lyrics. How huge something feels when you’re in it, but zoomed out so SMALL. I love thinking about life like that. I thought about this concept long and hard, and I feel we can only be playful with the thought of how insignificant and small we are compared to the universe. There’s peace in not knowing what anything is here for. It makes me want to enjoy everything in life even more.” Watch the ‘Animal’ video, directed by Keith Herron, below. [via Stereogum]

New Zealand artist and producer Fazerdaze unveils her second album, Soft Power, a release that marks the realisation of her ambitious sonic vision. Steeped in deep meaning and fueled by fierce self-compassion and empowerment, Soft Power is out now via section1 and Buttrfly Records (AU/NZ). This expansive record provided Fazerdaze a space to fully embrace her inner strength and power, while staying connected to her softness, rawness, and vulnerability. Speaking about what it means to her, Fazerdaze (real name Amelia Murray) shares, “This is what I created during the darkest, loneliest, most tumultuous years of my life – entering womanhood, navigating the world, the music industry, and what I thought was love. In my scariest moments, this album was my anchor for hope, purpose, and light. I am so relieved and content to finally share with you; Soft Power.” With an atmospheric feel reminiscent of sunset festival sets, the album beautifully balances lightness and tenderness with a sense of determination and resilience. Listen and watch the first animated Fazerdaze video, for the focus track ‘So Easy’, below. The video was filmed in LA during a day off from tour, directed by Lanning Sally and animated by Rollinos (Gabriel Rolim) in Sao Paolo, Brazil.

Desire share new single/video ‘Drama Queen’ from their upcoming album Games People Play, which is coming soon via Italians Do It Better. The track comes ahead of their upcoming European tour, which starts next week in Lisbon and sees shows in Porto, Vigo, Barcelona, Madrid, Lyon, Paris, London, Leeds, Edinburgh, Brussels, Utrecht, Hamburg, Berlin, Poznán, Prague, Vienna, Zagreb, Milan, Bologna, Rome, Vilnius, Riga, Tallinn & Helsinki. ‘Drama Queen’ is a high-energy disco anthem built for the dance floor, blending classic piano house with bold, modern production. With the lyric “On The Road… Torture Mode,” Desire delivers unapologetic attitude & sassy edge. Packed with catchy hooks & symphonic stabs, ‘Drama Queen’ combines ethereal ‘70s Disco with a fierce, contemporary twist. Its accompanying music video, inspired by the end scene of Stanley Kubrick’s 2001, adds a cinematic edge, amplifying the track’s bold attitude & setting the scene for ‘Drama Queen’s live debut across a 25-date European tour.

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Multi-talented singer, songwriter, and artist Kat Von D has released a new music video for ‘I Am a Machine,’ which features Arch Enemy vocalist Alissa White Gluz, and is included on her just-released album My Side Of The Mountain. The music video was directed by Vincente Cordero (Jinger, Cradle of Filth, Suicide Silence etc.) “I’ve been such a huge fan of Arch Enemy for so long, it’s been a dream come true getting to create music with Alissa,” says Kat. “I was actually nervous about even asking her to sing on one of my songs, considering I make more dark, electronic music and not metal, but was so happy/relieved when she agreed to be a part of this album. She’s one of the most talented friends I have. Getting to record her massive vocal range in person was beyond inspiring.”

Last month, Grumpy announced their signing to Bayonet Records (Beach Fossils, Mei Seimones) who will release their new EP Wolfed at the end of October. A NYC-based project led by Heaven Schmitt (they/them), the band has been attracting attention in NYC over the last year, appearing on bills with artists like Katy Kirby, This Is Lorelei, Sinai Vessel and Al Menne. Heaven and the gang are back to share a new single called ‘Flower’ alongside a video co-starring NYC DIY pop musician May Rio. Where lead single ‘Saltlick’ and pre announce single ‘Protein’ were awash with glitchy electronics that envelope Heaven’s intimate and inventive songwriting, ‘Flower’ shows a gentler side of the project, while still flashing the distinctive production flourishes that have set this new EP apart from Grumpy’s earlier material. A waltz, that gradually incorporates strings and layered harmonies over a spare guitar figure, the song is about love can transcend the romantic where it began context. Heaven says of the song: “Relationships arent’ forever, but love can be. ‘Flower’ is about how, for me, at this stage of my life, love isn’t about building a permanent commitment to someone, it’s about nurturing a bond so that it may last a lifetime. In ‘Flower’, I accept the end of a relationship with a peacefulness and gratitude that it happened at all. When I love someone, I know that love is bound to change shape, rather than dissolve, post romance.”

If you have been paying attention to independent music over the last decade you might recognize the voices of Romy and Sari Lightman, even if you don’t recognize their names. Twin sisters, originally from Toronto and now based in LA, the pair first came to public attention as long time members of Austra. Separately and together the sisters have also appeared on recordings from Yves Jarvis and TOPS, released a pair of albums in a project called Tasseomancy, which featured both Lightman sisters and Evan Cartwright of the band Cola, and Romy is one half of the Lightman Jarvis Ecstatic Band, a collaborative project with Jarvis that put out a record on ANTI- in 2021. Now, Romy and Sari are back to launch a new project called Lightman & Lightman, and announce their debut EP under the name, a release entitled Sister Smile. To mark the announce Lightman & Lightman are sharing the single ‘Bethlehem XL’ which features contributions from Hand Habit’s Meg Duffy, and is accompanied by a video written by Romy and directed by Zak Tatham. ‘Bethlehem XL’ is the EP’s opening track and serves as an overture, as the sisters explain in a statement: “An introduction to the record, intended as an overture. The narrator of the song slinks around like a Jean Rhys character, walking alone through empty streets late at night, filled with a material and spiritual longing. Feelings of interconnectedness & disassociation ebb and flow until the ending takes us to a higher, celestial place of joy and belonging.”

Cults, have released a new music video for ‘Onions,’ the track is off their latest album To the Ghosts. Directed by Alice Fassi, whose work has been recognized at prestigious film festivals such as Cannes Lions, brought her unique blend of satire and horror to the clip. Madeline plays a tender housewife with a dark side, hiding a sadistic, thrill-seeker within. Brian plays her half-dead counterpart, likely fallen victim to one of Madeline’s homecooked brews. Set in a secluded country home circle 1980, the video unfolds with colorful cinematography, and a surreal, delightfully macabre charm. [via Northern Transmissions]

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