Last year, Suzie True released their sophomore album Sentimental Scum. Last month, the LA rockers shared ‘Angel Baby,’ and now they’re back with ‘LEECHES (PLAY DEAD!),’ produced by Jon Siebels of Eve 6. “This song is about being a life-long people-pleaser and the difficult journey of trying to learn not to be,” the band said in a statement. “Women are taught to fully give themselves to everyone and everything around them, making everyone else happy and comfortable at the expense of our own happiness, comfort, and sense of self. Most of these lyrics are specifically about losing yourself in a relationship, realizing it, and then working towards healing and rediscovering yourself. It’s about the murky area between loving yourself and loving someone else that feels so easy to get lost in.” The track starts off sounding like the Cure’s ‘Just Like Heaven’ before catapulting into their typical punk-adjacent sound, which they describe as “if the Powerpuff Girls started a Blink-182 cover band.” [via Stereogum]

The Meanjin and Yugambeh-based musician LAVELIN has made waves with her dark fantasy music. Her recent single ‘Addicted’ is a seductive, toxic siren’s song, and she has now released a music video to match ahead of her debut EP Forget About Us, out May 24. The 80s-style synth and drum machines in the song make for an alluring journey back in time, and paired with her vintage prom dress and oversized bows, this music video is an eerie retro dream. A divine, dark atmosphere is contrasted with the hyper-feminine imagery of the singer’s flowing pink dress and ribbons, making an ominous, intimate music video that unsettles the senses and perfectly compliments the coquette seduction tone of the song. The creative team for the music video, Jemma Morley, Shannan O’Neill, Luke Wormald & Jayden Bate, made sure to capture a video worthy of the fae. The fairy lights and natural filming environments make an alluring video that invokes a sense of timelessness and placelessness. Though the production had its difficulties, it came together seamlessly, LAVELIN says, “Originally the music video was going to be on roller skates, however with the brutal summer rains and my apparent lack of coordination we ended up throwing those plans out the window and getting creative as a team on the spot to shoot the film.” This creativity shines through in this moody, glowing music video that feels undeniably personal, and only builds anticipation to see what her upcoming EP has in store.

Helena H. Rebensdorff aka Brimheim shares the music video for her new single ‘Into the Ooze’, which is taken from her critically acclaimed album RATKING, which came out March 22 via Tambourhinoceros. The new song follows the previously shared singles ‘Literally Everything’, ‘Brand New Woman’ and Normies’. Her vocals are a force of nature and the songs on RATKING are bold and always take a surprising turn. She effortlesly glides from soft ballads, gut-punching alt-rock to a more upbeat pop sound. Now, she shares the thrilling and surrealistic music video for ‘Into the Ooze’, directed by Heiðrik á Heygum. [via Turtlenek]

Following the release of appetite-whetting single ‘The Thrill Of It’ earlier this year, Liverpool’s Pixey has now confirmed that her debut album Million Dollar Baby will arrive on August 2 via Chess Club Records. It comes after a quartet of smaller projects and was written between her native Liverpool and London. Produced by Pixey herself alongside Tom McFarland and Rich Turvey, Million Dollar Baby is set to unite her love for nostalgic ’90s breakbeats with her flair for modern alt-pop earworms. Speaking about the album, Pixey has shared: “It’s the final form of years of trying to prove myself. I’ve always felt as if I’m so close to something but never quite there. This is the story the album tells; navigating the perception of myself through the male gaze, whilst also trying to take some power back and form my truest identity. The sentiment of the album is this: the path to fulfillment isn’t a performance for others but instead, is a journey of becoming your authentic self.” To mark the announcement, the Scouse songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist has shared the LP’s title track, as well as confirming that she’ll be heading out on a headline mini-tour of the UK this Autumn in support of the record. “‘Million Dollar Baby’ was born from a conversation I had with a girl in LA who was desperate for notoriety,” she has said of her new song. “The track is satirical at its heart, narrating the absurdity of chasing fame and sugar-coated ambition. It reflects a lot of truths I realised while writing the album. The performative nature of the music industry often peddles illusions, and real fulfilment comes from writing the music itself.” [via DIY]

Frances Forever has announced the release of their debut full-length album Lockjaw, set to drop on June 28. The news comes alongside the unveiling of their new single and video, ‘Troll’. Reflecting on the project, Frances explained: “I’m so excited to announce my debut album, Lockjaw. This project contains my favourite songs I’ve ever written, and I’ve never put so much of my heart into something. It feels like my baby, and I’ve spent the past two years perfecting it,” adding, “It’s a dream come true to share this with you. Lockjaw era baby!!!” The newly released single ‘Troll’ is “an anthem for the socially anxious that I initially wrote as a joke after blowing off going to a friend’s party, because sometimes I want to hermit inside forever and become a little monster no one wants to talk to. It feels so good to cancel plans, to make friends with the snails and never wear pants. I created a little world I want to live in when I don’t feel like a person.” [via Dork]

In 2022, Isabella Lovestory unveiled her debut album Amor Hardcore. Now, the Honduran pop and reggaeton singer is sharing the new song ‘Botoxxx,’ and teasing a new LP coming this fall. ‘Botoxxx’ is accompanied by a music video directed by Ariel Poupart and conceived by Lovestory, who explains it is “an exaggerated fantasy of the desire to be beautiful,” she said. “The tension and fear of losing that beauty, and surrendering to the antidote. A contrast between beauty and monstrosity and how they both ultimately need each other. Decadence turned into a horrific fever dream.” [via Stereogum]

Dimmer live bandmate with Shayne P. Carter and fourth member of Mermaidens for their summer album launch tour, it’s time for in-demand Tāmaki Makaurau songwriter Louisa Nicklin to saunter back into the solo spotlight. She’s announced her second album The Big Sulk, produced by the aforementioned Carter and releasing in full on August 23, heralded by hauntingly powerful lead single ‘Thick’. Nicklin’s startling vocal talents will make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up straight, as ‘Thick’ lyrically and sonically considers “the concept of leaning into a situation as a means of escaping thoughts” via muscular rhythms and crypt-like, deeply reverberant atmospherics. Directed by Ali Burns and made with support from NZ on Air, the accompanying video for ‘Thick’ is like a fading polaroid of a distant Aotearoa, the morose-looking Nicklin’s loud fashion and gelatinous food feels alien yet queasily familiar when set against her spine-tingling track. She says, “‘Thick’ was an opportunity to play around with strange sounds and fun little riffs, incorporating lots of Shayne Carter-inspired guitar moments. The video was inspired by 70s food and style. We wanted to lean into some of the strangeness of the food from this era — it’s mildly unsettling but you can’t quite put your finger on why.” [via Under The Radar]

Genre-defying duo SOFI TUKKER have formally announced their anticipated third album Bread set to arrive on August 23. It’s preceded by the lead single ‘Throw Some Ass,’ which seems poised to become a booty-shaking anthem—though the provocative song’s subject matter was actually based on a more serious concern: Hawley-Weld’s journey to seek a cure for her chronic back pain. “When the brain is anticipating pain, it creates more pain,” she revealed. “Eventually my neural pathway of pain got so strong that, even when there was no structural reason for it, I became chronically in pain. The inverse was true too. When I told my body that it’s safe and free, I was able to re-write the neural pathway. I was so mentally happy and free in the moments of throwing ass that my brain re-wired itself.” “The song started where I was working on some Brazilian funk-inspired drumbeats,” added Tucker on the track’s instrumental. “This was right after we had spent some time in Brazil at Carnaval last year. At 6:00 a.m., we went into this nightclub under the parade. Someone was playing a baile funk set, and I was blown away. The song really gives the vibe of that club, Carnaval, and Brazil.” The single arrives with a wild video directed by Aerin Moreno, filmed at Palácio das Laranjeiras, the staggering residence of the governor of Rio de Janeiro. [via Flood]

The emergence of Raven Numan as the next crossover hope from the gothic scene gathered traction with her recent single ‘Here For Me’. That combined with her debut track ‘My Reflection’ lured newcomers into her dark creative universe. There’s much more to come from the 20-year-old, starting with the release of her new single ‘Going Down’. ‘Going Down’ adds a thrillingly more visceral twist on Raven’s recent singles. Appealing to fans of the current dark pop scene, its grittier edge, razorblade riffs and clattering rhythms also echoes the greats of the ‘90s industrial scene such as Nine Inch Nails and Front 242. Yet for all its forceful angst and vehement influences, Raven brings a beguiling femininity that gives the track its own distinct identity. Her lyrics further encapsulate her heart of darkness, recognising – and warning against – the temptation to surrender to the one impulsion that you can’t reverse. ‘Going Down’ was written solely by Raven, with production from her regular collaborator Ade Fenton. Raven says, “I wrote ‘Going Down’ during an extremely dark period of my life. I was incredibly suicidal and it was very difficult for me to control my emotions and I ended up hurting a lot of the people close to me. I felt this immense amount of guilt and writing was the only way I could express my frustrations and sadness since it was hard for me to actually talk about it. So that’s what I did, I sat down and wrote exactly what I was feeling. It was a very intense and upsetting process but I felt this relief after I wrote this song, like weight had been lifted off of my shoulders. I pray that no one relates to this song but if you do, just know that you’re not alone and these feelings are temporary, life’s an incredible gift.” The ‘Going Down’ video also presents something fresh to the visuals for Raven’s previous tracks. Captured in a blood red filter, it sees Raven’s enigmatic aura at the forefront of her band – part of her artistry that will be fully unveiled with future live shows.

Kobra Paige is known for her diverse musical talents and emotionally charged lyrics, which have helped her build a dedicated fanbase. As she prepares to release her second project, focused on themes of social change, Kobra encourages listeners to seek self-liberation without losing touch with the world around them. Continuing this message, Kobra has released her latest video and track, ‘HOTT.’ ‘HOTT.’ is a high-energy rock-pop song with a dreamy, nostalgic vibe that grabs your attention from the opening guitar riff. The lyrics are intriguingly enigmatic, and Kobra’s vocals shift from soaring above the driving instrumentation to becoming gentle and intimate when the arrangement transitions to a more minimal sound. The track’s dynamic shifts and emotional intensity reflect Kobra’s commitment to exploring a wide range of musical and lyrical landscapes. As the music ebbs and flows, listeners are taken on a journey that is both exhilarating and thought-provoking. ‘HOTT.’ stands as a powerful testament to Kobra Paige’s ability to blend energetic rock with introspective pop, creating a sound that is both bold and deeply personal. Reflecting on her latest single, Kobra explains, “I have been waiting to light a fire under some asses with this song for 2 years. ‘HOTT.’ is about navigating our sense of self-worth in an extraordinarily, convoluted era of social media domination. The lines are getting blurred and we don’t have the mental hardware to separate reality from distortion. Crippling anxiety, increasing levels of low self-esteem, next-level bullying, body dysmorphia, compare and despair culture, amplified narcissistic behaviors, and competition for validation…..These are all parts of human nature but not the parts that were ever meant to be the loudest. Now we let those dark, subconscious beliefs run rampant and dictate who we are and the love/goodness we are worthy of receiving. I am personally still working on figuring out how to engage in SM in a healthy way and not let it disempower me or challenge my sense of self. It’s been a sick, rocky road and possibly the hardest mental hurdle as an introverted, music artist. Time for change, time to shake this shit up, and time to have more conversations about it. Let’s re-anchor in our own authentic truth. I invite you to come with me, in my new music video for ‘HOTT.’, as I check myself into ‘Dr. Worthlove’s Center for Self-Confidence’ , a medical clinic that is truly one of a kind. Dr. Worthlove said he could fix me and make me lovable from the outside in but turns out that isn’t how self-worth works!!” [via Wonderland]

Up-and-coming Anglo-American band Sunday (1994) have dropped their self-titled debut EP. They have also shared a video for the EP’s new single, ‘Blonde.’ Sunday (1994) craft songs inspired by the everyday magic found in the mundanity of modern life. Their music may evoke a nostalgic 90s cinematic film aesthetic, but their lyrics are laced with an acerbic self-aware wit and a dark sense of humor. Composed entirely within their one-bedroom apartment by the songwriting duo of Paige Turner and Lee Newell, alongside their drummer known simply as “X,” their debut EP is a love letter to the universal experience of love, separation and all the associated drama, beauty, and heartbreak that comes with it. The Latest single ‘Blonde’ sets the mood with its swaying tempo, chiming guitars, soft arpeggios, and emotive, evocative vocals. The band describes the track as “a song about reclaiming yourself and finding freedom after heartbreak.” [via Under the Radar]

While holed up in their family’s home in rural Vermont during the throes of the pandemic, Miles and Winter Donnelly AKA Muo Duo developed their unique sound – and recorded their first songs – in a sound booth they constructed by leaning two mattresses together. The rest, as they say, is history. Or perhaps, it was history in the making. Combining elements of alt-pop, indie, and hip-hop, Miles and Winter have received well-deserved fanfare not just for their genre-defying music, but also for their innovative videos and multi-media live performances. Now, the immensely talented siblings have released, ’20th Century Girl,’ the third single from their forthcoming EP, The Muo Theory. “This song showcases versatile production and storytelling, with an emphasis on our vocals,” shares Miles. “We tell the story of a girl watching the world go by from her cell phone. People were not made for this world run by the internet and social media. When your personality is split in so many mirrors it is hard to keep track of who you really are. For the song, Winter does her best impression of Ariana Grande in true vocal pop decadence. It’s pure drama.” The video for ’20th Century Girl,’ which was shot by Trevor Parenteau and edited by Rebecca Chiafullo, juxtaposes a Great Gatsby-esque aesthetic with a story that could only take place in the modern era.

Rita Mae has released her first single of the year, ‘Kiss the Sky’. Co-written with The Naked and Famous’ award-winning artist Alisa Xayalith, ‘Kiss the Sky’ takes listeners between grungy, stadium-ready noise and acoustic, mellow lines. Described as greedy, indulgent, and unapologetic, Mae’s reason behind the punchy lyrics is a want for everything – especially love and power. “This song was extremely liberating to write, because I ask for the impossible, I scream it at the top of my lungs, and while I sing those lyrics it somehow doesn’t seem quite so crazy,” she says. Written and recorded in Xayalith’s home studio in LA, and with Harry Charles on production, Mae says the track came together so quick it basically wrote itself. “It was an amazing song to write,” Mae adds. “One of those magical days where the song just pours out of you and makes sense straight away.” Accompanying the release is an enigmatic music video, directed by Oscar Keys. The clip shows Mae as an ass-kicking femme fatale hungry for love and power in a world of dark villainy and rockstar stardom. But instead of Mae earning these achievements truthfully, she gets it through brainwashing her victims. Filmed in a studio in Auckland, it was all hands on deck as Mae and her dancers went through high energy choreography to perfect the villainous energy her lyrics depict. “A very dear friend organised the dancers and choreography; which was fairly doable in rehearsal – and then suddenly much more difficult under bright flashing lights with contact lenses in!” Mae shares. According to Mae, her new release is the start of her “entering a new era.” [via Rolling Stone Aus]

Irish indie-folk duo Lemoncello are making power moves. The pair’s strident songwriting cuts through the noise, with their refreshing, organic sound gaining a cult following. Self-titled, Lemoncello’s riveting debut album was constructed at Analogue Catalogue Studios, where they both recorded and mixed the album to two-inch tape with producer Julie McLarnon at the helm. Album highlight ‘Dopamine’ is an immediate fan-favourite, a tale of modern life that feels as old as time itself. Lemoncello discuss the endless scroll of social media, being sucked into a tiny screen while the world outside passes you by. We’re able to share the video, directed by film-maker Sophie O Donovan. The pair comment… “The lyrics of ‘Dopamine’ are sort of up-front and in your face and so with the video we wanted to lean into the attitude but also not take the idea too seriously. The amazing team that worked on this with us – with director Sophie O Donovan at the helm – created a world that’s a mixture between bored housewives from the 1950s and some dystopian future where people never leave their homes. The concept for this music video was around nearly since the song itself – we thought it would be funny, the idea of the people we scroll past every day on our news feeds actually appearing in the room – a physical representation of the overwhelming feeling of mental space becoming more and more cluttered. As Claire and I scroll, watching curated versions of other people’s lives, our physical space fills up with the people we are watching. We had such a hilarious time on set with the crew and all the characters who had a gif style action to repeat over and over again.” [via Clash]

Kacy Hill has enlisted Nourished by Time for the new song ‘My Day Off.’ Hill and Sadie Wilking directed the pastoral video, in which Hill and some friends dance semi-nude in a field while Nourished by Time peers toward them through a magnifying glass. [via Pitchfork]

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LA’s resident femme-punk royalty The Aquadolls release the official video for their latest single ‘Burn Baby Burn.’ Directed by longtime creative collaborator Jenna Houchin, the video is a seductive whirlwind of excess and indie sleaze. Leaning into the song’s meaning of relying on your girl gang when you need to be reminded of your worth, the video features the band in a sea of debaucherous fun alongside their friends.

After making her explosive debut with her first single, ‘Fantasy,’ rlyblonde – the project of Brooklyn-based multidisciplinary artist Carina Allen – returns with ‘Spiltmilk,’ the second single off her forthcoming debut EP. rlyblonde is no stranger to the music industry. The New York-based twenty-something has long been the go-to photographer, videographer and creative director for numerous musicians. After years of supporting other artists and friends’ visions, she decided to put down the camera and pick up the guitar for a change. With her new track, ‘Spiltmilk,’ rlyblonde seamlessly combines alt-rock instrumentation, catchy pop melodies, and tongue-in-cheek lyrics (“Wait why the fuck is there a line? / I’m freezing in this dress / My makeup is a mess / I need a drink before I lose my mind”). She elaborates on the inspiration behind her newest single: “I’ve always been quite sensitive, even though I put on a tough face most of the time. For a long period of my life I felt like I was always one parking ticket away from a mental breakdown. Plus, living in New York City is pretty relentless. Everything is expensive and you’re exhausted every day just from walking around. Writing ‘Spiltmilk’ also let me laugh at myself in a way that was really comforting. Now when I’m having a bad day, I’ll just text my friends, ‘it’s a spiltmilk type of day’ and we just get it. It’s okay to cry, but also… you’re gonna be fine.” ‘Spiltmilk’ is also released with a new music video, which was directed by rlyblonde herself via her new creative production company, HOT CREATIVE. In contrast to the more narrative-driven ‘Fantasy’ video, she took on a more campy and freeform approach when it came to the ‘Spiltmilk’ visual. She pokes fun at the song’s subject matter with various little easter eggs like a child’s prop car, white clown-inspired make-up, and her selfie on the side of a milk carton with the words ‘CRYBABY WANTED.’

Suzie True, the DIY pop-punk trio from Los Angeles, came out with their debut LP Saddest Girl At The Party a couple of years ago, and they’re now getting ready to follow it with a new album called Sentimental Scum. Singer/bassist Lexie McCoy says that the new record is “inspired by artists like Babes In Toyland, The Muffs, Jeff Rosenstock, Josie & The Pussycats, and anime theme music,” which is a fun combination. The band shared opening track ‘Backburner’ as a stand-alone single last year, and now they’ve also released another one. The new song ‘Keep In Touch’ is a bright, fuzzy jam with homespun hooks and fuzzy, twinkly riffs. This band is good at conveying warm, charismatic headrush feelings, and that’s what they do on this one. The Rae Mystic-directed video is sunny and frilly, and it communicates a whole aesthetic. [via Stereogum]

Discover Berlin-based singer K.ZIA’s latest single, ‘Rise’, a moving and anthemic song that features her powerful vocals and outstanding production. ‘Rise’ is an emotionally-charged anthem that permeates solace in its poignant yet uplifting themes. The heart of the track lies in K.ZIA’s deep, emotive vocals. With a textured voice that maneuvers seamlessly through the well-arranged instrumentals, K.ZIA’s soulful tone evokes emotions of melancholy and upliftment. As the track progresses, her powerful voice builds from a slow, haunting intro to an inspiring and anthemic climax, capturing the listener’s heart with every note. The production on ‘Rise’ is nothing short of impressive, and the skillfully arranged instrumentals perfectly complement K.ZIA’s voice, creating an immersive soundscape that invites listeners to get lost in the music. Drawing inspiration from R&B, soul, pop, and Afrobeats, ‘Rise’ showcases K.ZIA’s ability to craft a contemporary yet timeless sound. K.ZIA’s ‘Rise’ is more than just a beautifully-produced track – it’s an anthem for overcoming adversity. As the artist herself explains, the song is about “finding that inner strength to overcome. We may be beaten down, by life, by people, but still like dust, we will RISE.” This powerful message resonates with listeners, offering hope and encouragement to those facing life’s challenges. [via Neon Music]

Colleen Green is sharing an awesome new stop-motion video for ‘Posi Vibes,’ a single from her acclaimed 2021 album, COOL, out now on Hardly Art. The video was directed and produced by John Murphy. [via Northern Transmissions]

For Brooklyn trio A Very Special Episode, the band’s second album was reason enough to push their sound to its extremes. The noise pop elements got noisier and poppier, the punk has been upped, and the art rock touches are… more artistic. That record, Freak Me Out, will be released on June 23 via EWEL Records (The Black Black, Kissed By An Animal) and Hidden Home Records (Dain Griffin, Shrug Dealer), a collection of songs both personal and abstract, with their core built on the melodic shouts and passionate delivery of Kasey Heisler. There’s a sense of community but also a sense of tension. Not everything will work out, but things just might be okay, and the band’s grungy tunes remind us we’re in this together. ‘$5 Cover,’ the record’s third single isn’t the Fugazi tribute you might be hoping for, but rather a loving homage to band’s own musical community forged around the DIY space East Williamsburg Econolodge. The song is pulsing with dirgy bass and punchy vocal melodies, seething in the shadows one moment but vibrant and hooky the next. It’s dense and immediate, crunchy with overdriven chaos but resoundingly “pop” at the seams. The video – directed, produced, written, and edited by Greg Hanson (King Pizza Records) – brings a retro aesthetic to the otherwise very modern ode to EWEL nights. Capturing the 60’s ideals of dinner parties and adult reverie, the band pair the vivid imagery together with lyrics that embrace a night at the “rock show,” an escape void of concern and the overt polite. [via Post Trash]

Xylø is not afraid of embracing her body in order to share her art. On Friday, the singer released the pop-perfect single ‘Super Sex Mona Lisa,’ in which she unapologetically reflects on starting OnlyFans to help fund her music career. Doing so, she says, has given her a “newfound confidence.” “I’ve entered a new chapter in my life where I’m not afraid to be vulnerable and I’m ready to completely express myself as an artist,” she says as she premieres the track’s video with Rolling Stone. “I wanted the video to show how I’ve grown since my last album. How my body, nude or not, can be art.” “If my last album was about hiding from myself in the shadows of America, then this album is about celebrating myself despite the darkness,” she adds, referring to last year’s Unamerican Beauty. “It’s colorful and dangerous and the most expressive music I’ve ever made.” The video for ‘Super Sex Mona Lisa’ explores all sides of Xylø — how she can go from filming sexy content in her bedroom as art to sharing a beer with her dad and his friends. “The stereotypical gender roles are swapped as all the mechanics are female and wearing Queens Park Rangers jerseys,” she explains, referring to her favorite soccer team. “Ultimately, it’s about being confident in yourself and your sexuality.” “I used to be shy/Now you’re purchasing my body,” she sings as she flashes an ATM in the video as she’s handed a wad of cash. “I’m a pop star/And I’m clickbait Barbie. I do it for the thrill/And I do it for the money.” The video splices clips of her posing topless, playing a Hello Kitty-themed guitar, and doing choreography in a mechanic’s lot with two other girls. “You want it/Come get it/Subscribe to me,” she sings in the chorus. [via Rolling Stone]

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Singer-songwriter OLI is back with lush soundscapes and feel-good pop songwriting on the new single, ‘Float’. The London based artist’s powerful vocals pierce through the melancholic piano backing, forming a dancing melody that puts the layers of OLI’s incredible voice front and centre. ‘Float’ is the first new music to arrive from OLI since her acclaimed duet with Depeche Mode’s Dave Gahan ‘Does That Hurt’, which was released earlier this year. The song begins with intensity, the keys echoing as it progresses, swelling to an outburst of falsetto backing and peaceful rhythmic textures on the chorus. Lyrics filled with emotion and longing on “If I could float up I would see it all how I know I should” tackle the dreamlike aspect of the song as OLI incorporates themes of satisfaction, positivity, space, and wonder on the downbeat pop track. “My dad actually came up with the lead melody, he was playing around on guitar and sent me the idea.” Says OLI, who started her alt-pop songwriting journey as a child growing up in a musical family. “It made me think of all those feel-good Disney songs that leave you really happy and satisfied at the end. The idea of Floating up above everything and everyone fit so perfectly with it too. I think it’s something many people imagine. We are pretty small in the grand scheme of things so it’s easy to feel existential from time to time. I just wanted the song to paint that emotion in a more positive way. I personally take a lot of comfort in knowing how much there is out there.” The new single is also released alongside a visually remarkable Heini Susanne directed music video, which sees the contrast of childlike wonder and summer days with pensive nights by the water in the stunning wilderness settings: “I am extremely proud of the video. It was filmed in Finland by the production company Cocoa. We wanted it to seem slightly dreamy but also darker. Heini and I took inspiration from ‘where the wild things are’ which I think really shows in the end product.”

Taylor Swift has released a new video for ‘Bejeweled’. It follows the video for ‘Anti-Hero’ which dropped last week. Swift shared her 10th studio album Midnights last Friday, October 21. In usual form, the Cinderella-style visual has Taylor joined by famous friends including Danielle, Alana and Este Haim, Laura Dern, Jack Antonoff, Pat McGrath and Dita Von Teese. Eagle eyed fans have spotted that in a previous trailer for the Midnights visuals, imagery appears that we have not yet seen in the videos released so far, so it’s likely that at least one more will be on the way. In a still from the video, where differently coloured buttons in a lift reflect her discography, fans have also noted that the 13th button shares the colour with ‘Speak Now’, increasing speculation that Taylor’s Version of her 2010 album will be next re-record to arrive. [via Dork]

New York-based trio, Tchotchke releases the ‘50s-inspired music video for their single ‘Wish You Were a Girl,’ following the release of their self-titled debut album. The video, which stars band members Anastasia, Eva, and Emily as distraught runaway-brides and housewives, is a statement on rejecting traditional feminine ideologies. “The entire video plays with this fictitious smokey dollhouse world where the band runs away from all feminine responsibilities and forced ideologies,” director Ambar Navarro shares. Throughout ‘Wish You Were a Girl,’ we see the trio trapped within the confines of heteronormativity, and as it progresses, we see them grow increasingly frustrated, leading to their eventual escape from these age-old ideologies. [via FLOOD]

ella jane has spent the last few months teasing her sophomore EP Marginalia with a string of sugary, heart-pounding pop songs about chasing love and trying to hold onto it. But on ‘Warhol,’ the LA-based singer isn’t searching for a partner—she’s searching for herself. “I’ve been waiting forever to be noticed,” jane sings on the track, “I’ll keep twisting the image ’til I’m not myself at all.” The final cut on the EP is a tender but confident piano number about shapeshifting into someone new and then trying to figure out which version of yourself fits best. “I originally planned for it to be a song about this guy who told me I reminded him of his girlfriend—something kind of fun and stupid,” she shares. “But soon the line ‘’Cause lately I don’t have a shape / I’m blurry lines without a face’ spilled out, and it quickly became obvious that I was writing about myself. I’ve always been a big believer in ‘fake it ’til’ you make it, but the acceptance of my public persona—a much more confident, self-assured girl—as me has made me question who the real ‘me’ actually is. So in short, this song is an exploration of that.” [via FLOOD]

Last fall, Adele returned with 30. The formidable piece of work revealed the singer at her most vulnerable and human, sharing intimate recordings about regrets, panic, and familial love. Now, she’s reminded us that it’s nearly been a year since the release of her most personal album by dropping a video for the Eltonian ballad ‘I Drink Wine’ that was directed by Joe Talbot. Here, in a fairytale forest, Adele lives out one of my dreams: Floating down a lazy river in a couture gown with bottomless rosé at the snap of a finger. And even though it sounds perfect, there’s a sense that this fantasy is too good to be true. “They say to play hard, you work hard / Find balance in the sacrifice / Yet I don’t know anybody / Who’s truly satisfied,” she sings as she passes a charming fisherman who catches her eye. Later, he swims to her and is pushed away by the synchronized swimmers guarding Adele with libations in hand. By the end, Adele wants out of this adult version of the boozy It’s a Small World ride, rejecting the delusion of ego. Heavy stuff. [via FLOOD]

Seattle-based songwriter Puck is among a unique category of artists whose musical career has unfolded in a particularly non-linear fashion. Their debut record Best Friend is set to arrive next month, yet they’ve already performed on SNL and toured the country performing massive headlining gigs playing keyboard and contributing backing vocals to an impressive list of artists most notably including SZA and Maggie Rogers. Yet with Best Friend, Puck is free to follow their own path, with new single ‘Trapped’ demonstrating just how raw and out-there their songwriting instincts can be. The opening track and second single from the collection sets the scene for the record both by spotlighting Puck’s vocal talents and intriguing synth palette while introducing a lyrical “Shakespearean chorus” narrating the full lifespan of a doomed toxic relationship. “I wrote chords that are reminiscent of Michael McDonald,” Puck shares, citing influences on the new single. “Thundercat’s first record, The Golden Age of the Apocalypse, is one of my favorites of all time and was a huge influence for me. The drums are sampled from drum machines lent to Lily Wen and I by Gotye, whose studio was upstairs from Figure 8 where we were recording.” Watch the Devin Gant–directed video for the track, which weaves together reality, fantasy, and horror elements over the course of the track’s five minutes as Puck is seen getting lost in thought as the ice cream slowly drips off their cone and down their hand. [via FLOOD]

Electro-pop powerhouse artist Dragonette, aka songwriter/producer Martina Sorbara, returns with the final focus track ‘T-Shirt’, lifted from the new full-length album Twennies out now through BMG. Regarding ‘T-Shirt’ she added, “This song came together so fast that I can barely remember the process of writing it. Every songwriter has had the experience of leaving the studio to get a drink or take a pee and inadvertently coming back with one of the missing keys to the song. I have a strong memory of that with the chorus of this song. But I literally have no memory of writing the verses. It’s like they pre-existed the session. Every song writer has that experience as well. The result is feeling like you just got given a present, out of nowhere, and it’s not even your birthday. I love this song for its lush cuddle of warmness while lyrically it most definitely does not want to cuddle.”

London indie pop songwriter Eaves Wilder returns with new melter ‘I Stole Your Jumper’. 2022 ends with a bang for the London artist, who has just inked a deal with independent powerhouse Secretly Canadian. It follows a string of impeccable singles, fusing indie rock tropes with pop to create a raucous yet melodic sound. A full EP is slated to land in January, with Eaves opting to kick off her new era with ‘I Stole Your Jumper’. A rabid, three-minute cruncher, it’s a song about the pettiness of a break-up, and learning to re-assert yourself in fresh ways. Thirsting for revenge, ‘I Stole Your Jumper’ amplifies her early charms, laying down a marker for what could follow. As she puts it, “it’s a very British and passive aggressive revenge fantasy.” [via Clash]

A couple years back, the Los Angeles band Suzie True released their charming debut album, Saddest Girl At The Party. Now, they’re back with their first new track since then, the fuzzy and bright ‘Backburner.’ “I wanna get drunk on the metro/ Yeah, I wanna cause a scene/ Want you to kiss me in the rain/ Like some romantic comedy,” goes one of its punchy, ramshackle verses. “I wanted ‘Backburner’ to feel really sentimental both lyrically and musically,” the band’s Lexi McCoy said in a statement. “The song is about being in love with someone who keeps you on the ‘backburner’ instead of prioritizing you. You would do anything for them, but they don’t really care about you, they’re just having fun and toying with your emotions in the process.” McCoy continued: “Once all the instruments come in, the song feels like it takes off running, like how your imagination might run wild with dreams of being with this person in the song. The choruses slow down to feel sad and melancholy, coming to terms with the fact that you’re being used by this person. We wanted the instrumentation to sound angsty but wistful—wistfully angsty!! The way it ends feels unsure and sad because that’s how the situation has led you to feel.” [via Stereogum]

SZA has finally released ‘Shirt,’ a single that she first teased on Instagram in early 2021; that snippet ended up going viral with an accompanying dance on TikTok, and SZA preformed the track for the first time in a livestream later that year. The track was also teased in the music video for SZA’s last proper single, ‘Good Days,’ a song that came out nearly two years ago. ‘Shirt’ is the latest (maybe) dispatch from SZA’s sophomore album, the long-awaited followup to 2017’s CTRL, which marked its 5th anniversary earlier this year with some bonus tracks. The song’s Dave Meyers-directed video, co-starring LaKeith Stanfield, ends with a lengthy tease of another new song called ‘Blind.’ There’s also a license plate with a “DEC” sticker in the corner, which has some fans speculating that a new SZA album called NO CTRL could be dropping in December. [via Stereogum]

After dates in New York, Boston, and Atlanta, Automatic have shared a new video for ‘Teen Beat’, taken from their new album Excess (out now via Stones Throw), On the song, the band explain “The title was taken from a preset on a dinky drum machine, and the song is about the chaos of climate change descending upon Gen Z.” [via Northern Transmissions]

Charlotte Adigéry & Bolis Pupul are closing out the year with a gauzy video for Topical Dancer track ‘Mantra.’ In a press release about the song, Adigéry and Pupul said, “’Mantra’ is a reworked version of our Yin Yang Self-Meditation, the audiovisual meditation tape which we released back in 2019. We used elements from this original recording in ‘Mantra’ such as the stream of consciousness and the the heartbeat which we sped up to use as one of the bass drums in ‘Mantra.’ Whereas Yin Yang Self-Meditation invites you to look inward, we invite you to express yourselves with ‘Mantra.’” [via Pitchfork]

There’s something breezy and refreshingly uncomplicated about the indie-pop sounds of Daisy the Great—even when the subject matter of their music delves into the complex realms of causality and relativity raised by the hypothetical existence of time travel. With their sophomore record All You Need Is Time out now, the pair are sharing one last single with the swooning sci-fi anthem ‘Time Machine,’ which Kelley Nicole Dugan and Mina Walker wrote alongside Coyle Girelli and Carter Matschullat—and which they call their favorite song they’ve ever written. “As we were all talking at the beginning of the session, Coyle brought up an article that he’d read that morning about a group of physicists who were researching the potential for electrons to move backwards into the recent past, which was being billed as evidence that time travel might be possible,” they recall. “We got so locked on that idea and we all kept talking for a really long time about time travel, fate, regret, second chances, loss, love… “Eventually,” they continue, “we started to imagine writing this giant song, set at the end of the world. Kel sat down at the piano and started playing these really epic, crunchy chords and Min started yelling ‘Are you listening to the clocks in this house / They are growling at me saying, how can it be that the whole world is falling apart.’ That became the intro, and then the rest quickly spilled out of us. After that day, the song became an immediate favorite in our tour set and we could not be more excited to be releasing it.” [via FLOOD]

Bad Waitress have released a video for their new song ‘Racket Stimulator’. The video was directed by Danny Alexander. The song appears to be a standalone single and is out now via Royal Mountain Records. Bad Waitress released No Taste in 2021. [via Punk News]

Dropping a string of singles throughout the year, Derbyshire-born but London-based singer and songwriter Sophie Kilburn releases her new EP Not Bitter, Just Bored via Luna Sky Recordings. A five-track collection detailing her journey through the stages of overcoming heartache, from the initial pain to rebuilding her self-worth and confidence, it’s a body of work that showcases Sophie’s best work to date. Listing influences through the decades including 70s rock icons Fleetwood Mac, 80s pop frontrunners Blondie and Kate Bush, and modern songwriters Haim and Lucy Dacus, Sophie’s stellar alt-pop-slash-rock makes for a thrilling listen – and this EP is solid proof of that. Rife with addictive pop melodies, the EP explores heartache in all its forms. Touching on heavy themes by diving into gender conditioning and internalising pressures that transform into harmful behaviours during adulthood, Not Bitter, Just Bored investigates unlearning these early behaviours to enable us to have healthy relationships in the future. The EP’s lead single, ‘Love Condition’ [produced by Lloyd Hinhelswood (Mabel, Liz Dawson, San Soucis)], takes the form of a raucous blend of guitars and hearty bass patterns that showcases the light-hearted side to Sophie’s songwriting. Wrapped in warm synths and punchy percussion, the single aims to empower those who are finding themselves. Watch the Blind Date-inspired video above. “I wanted to find the funny side of frustration of heartache because it gets to a point particularly with selfish or toxic behaviour that it is just so predictable,” Sophie explains. “We all want to be loved but all have habits that suggest otherwise.”

NYC-based singer, poet, and musician Stella Rose is making her official debut with an electrifying, yet haunting single entitled ‘Muddled Man,’ released alongside a theatrical accompanying video. Wrote Stella Rose of her debut single: “With anger as it’s mother and disorder begging on its knees, Muddled man, Is grease in a comb, Cowboy killers in the left jacket pocket, A murder of your most precious possession.” ‘Muddled Man’ was produced by Yves Rothman (Yves Tumor, Girlpool, Blondshell). Stay tuned for more music from Stella Rose, out via KRO Records.

Hamburg based artist and producer Deniz Çiçek aka Kraków Loves Adana and former Chromatics members Ruth Radelet & Adam Miller have shared their collaborative track ‘When The Storm Comes’. The song is the first single off Kraków Loves Adana’s upcoming 7th album Oceanflower, out February 14, which Çiçek wrote between the winter of 2020 and 2021 in her home studio. The announcement comes with a Wesley Doloris directed music video for ‘When The Storm Comes’, where the musicians filmed contributing scenes in Los Angeles and Hamburg. While exchanging several song ideas for the new record with Adam Miller the demo for ‘When The Storm Comes’ especially stood out. “I came up with the title and the chorus almost 10 years ago but never managed to build a proper song around it. When I showed the demo to Adam it immediately struck a chord with the both of us”, Çiçek remembers. Both melancholic and anthemic, the song is about overcoming hardships and looking optimistic into the future. Ruth Radelet shares on the collaboration: “I became friends with Krakow Loves Adana after playing some shows with them in 2019. I am a big fan of their music and they are fantastic people as well, so I was excited when Deniz asked me to contribute guest vocals on ‘When The Storm Comes’. Filming the video was a fun project too – Adam and I had a great time running around LA together, and I love how Wesley Doloris’ shots of us work so well with Deniz’s footage from Germany.”

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