Here’s my latest listening session with a nice mix of new
and established bands to update any music collection. Listen to newcomers Lo
Moon, DeClan McKenna and Geowulf while checking out the latest from indie
mainstays of Montreal, STRFKR, and Death Cab for Cutie. Plus returning veterans
Grandaddy, The Avalanches and The Flaming Lips have all been busy in the
studio, releasing songs to eager fans. All that and more on Spotify or as a
YouTube playlist.
1. “Ladies Don’t Play
Guitar” – Tennis
Denver couple Patrick Riley and Alaina Moore are working on
their fourth album as the indie pop duo Tennis since 2010, releasing this saucy
teaser single of self-empowerment. With her tongue planted firmly in her cheek,
Moore’s sultry singing rips lyrically into preconceived notions of women
musicians.
2. “Colours” – The
Avalanches
Aussie electronic band The Avalanches just released its
first album in sixteen years, Wildflower,
with only two original members (Robbie Chater and Tony DiBlasi) since the
group was formed in 1997. “Colours”
features honeyed vocals by Mercury Rev’s Jonathan Donahue who also receives a
songwriting credit for the mesmerizing tune.
3. “let’s relate” –
of Montreal
Athens experimental pop group of Montreal, formed by Kevin
Barnes in 1996, recently released its fourteenth studio album, Innocence Reaches. The tune “let’s
relate” boasts EDM-inspired sounds embedded in the band’s psych rock leanings.
4. “Saltwater” –
Geowulf
New beach pop duo Geowulf is the combination of Star
Kendrick and Toma, who moved from their native Australia to London with
sun drenched music in tow. The dreamy
single “Saltwater” is already making waves on the music scene, with plans for a
full release soon.
5. “New Song” –
Warpaint
L.A. indie gal group Warpaint released a third studio album
since 2004, Heads Up. The single “New
Song” led the way with the band’s signature combo of dream pop and psych rock.
6. “Tape Machine” –
STRFKR
Portland’s indie rockers STRFKR released “Tape Machine” as
the single for its fifth album, Being No
One, Going Nowhere. Originally a solo project by Joshua Hodges in 2007, the
band’s danceable electronica credo remains strong in this quirky new tune.
7. “Are You Lost in
the World Like Me?” – Moby, The Void Pacific Choir
Moby indulges his rave dance party side with “Are You Lost in
the World Like Me?” It is off the
electronic titan's thirteenth studio album (but his first with new musical
project The Void Pacific Choir) called These
Systems are Failing.
8. “Million Dollar
Loan” – Death Cab for Cutie
“Million Dollar Loan” is the first song in the “30 Days 30
Songs” venture by writer Dave Eggers with new music written and recorded by
artists for a Trump-Free America. Death
Cab for Cutie’s trademark sound sweetly intones the campaign moment when Trump
referred to receiving such a loan from his father.
9. “Isobard” – Declan
McKenna
Young English singer/songwriter Declan McKenna became a buzz-worthy
artist at this year’s SXSW on the strength of his debut EP Liar, and just released
this soaring single “Isobard.” McKenna is a talented musician with charismatic
voice who usually performs all his own instruments.
10. “Way We Won’t” –
Grandaddy
Californian indie rock masters Grandaddy are back after a
hiatus with new material after four studio albums from 1992 to 2006. “Way We
Won’t” is the endearing single to announce the end of the band’s decade-long
absence.
11. “Modern Act” – Cloud
Nothings
Cleveland singer/songwriter Dylan Baldi founded the band Cloud
Nothings in 2009 and will soon release a fifth album, Life Without Sound. The
confident single “Modern Act” offers a glimpse of the new collection.
12. “Certainty” – Temples
English psych rock quartet Temples recently dropped this
catchy single “Certainty,” which will be part of the follow-up album to the
band’s debut in 2014.
13. “Some Sunsick
Day” – Morgan Delt
L.A. musician Morgan Delt creates gauzy tunes with a home-fi
approach in his second album, Phase Zero,
as evident in the closer “Some Sunsick Day.”
13. “The Castle” –
The Flaming Lips
Oklahoma City’s veteran psych rockers The Flaming Lips announced
that its sixteenth studio album since 1983 will drop in January 2017; it is
titled Oczy Mlody (a rough
translation of a Polish expression meaning eyes of the young). Until then, this single “The Castle” provides
fans something new with frontman Wayne Coyne’s floating plaintive vocals.
14. “Loveless” – Lo
Moon
“Loveless” is the single debut by new L.A. band Lo Moon, a
seven-minute meditation with synths and wafting vocals.
15. “Ambo” – The
Album Leaf
What once was the solo music project of San Diego’s Jimmy
LaValle since 1998, The Album Leaf is now a live quartet performing music from
a sixth full-length album, Between Waves.
The chill intentions remain mostly intact, as in the lilting tune “Ambo.”