Yo La Tengo, Liturgy, Philip Selway, King Tuff & more

So many artists, so many songs, so little time. Each week we review a handful of new albums (of all genres), round up even more new music that we’d call “indie,” and talk about what metal is coming out. We post music news, track premieres, and more all day. We update a playlist weekly of some of our current favorite tracks. Here’s a daily roundup with a bunch of interesting, newly released songs in one place.

YO LA TENGO – “ASELESTINE”

Yo La Tengo are especially good at Warm & Pretty, and the atmospheric “Aselestine,” from their upcoming This Stupid World, has that in spades.

JOHN CALE – “NOISE OF YOU”

“Yep, it’s a love song,” says John Cale of “Noise of You,” which he said he originally imagined sounding like something on 1960s radio. “I don’t tend to romanticize the idea of love. It represents ‘need’ and that’s not something I’m particularly comfortable with. When it gets ahold of you though – don’t let go – no matter how many times you mess it up!” Cale’s first album in a decade, Mercy, is out next week via Double Six / Domino.

LITURGY – “ANGEL OF SOVEREIGNTY”

The first single of black metal band Liturgy’s upcoming double album 93696 was the ambitious 15-minute title track, and this new single is two minutes of wordless choir singing.

SUNNY WAR – “NEW DAY”

Sunny War has shared another very promising taste of her anticipated new album Anarchist Gospel, and this one shows off more of a bare-bones, melancholic side.

MICK HARVEY – “A SUITCASE IN BERLIN”

Mick Harvey, the former Bad Seeds and Birthday Party member, has just shared his first new recording in a decade with this English language cover of Marlene Deitrich’s “‘Ich Hab’ Noch Einen Koffer in Berlin.” While the chorus has been directly translated, the changing nature of Berlin itself had Harvey reinventing the verses. “So many of the locations cited no longer exist. And, as we emerge from a couple of weird years and the associated losses and anxiety, I felt this song wherein a longing and connection with places long not visited, was both fitting and emotionally resonant.”

PHILIP SELWAY (RADIOHEAD) – “PICKING UP PIECES”

“Picking Up Pieces is a song about the masking that we do when we’re young adults,” says Radiohead drummer Philip Selway of this latest track from his upcoming solo album. “It’s a time of life when your sense of identity can feel shaky, you can feel anxious about making the grade, and life can feel that it’s spinning out of control, but you try to hide this from everyone.” Strange Dance is out February 24 via Bella Union.

FLY ANAKIN – “BLICKY BOP”

The prolific underground rapper Fly Anakin has announced a new two-part project, Skinemaxxx, produced by longtime collaborator Foisey. Side A is due on April 5 via Lex Records, and first single “Blicky Bop” pairs tongue-twisters from Fly Anakin over glistening production from Foisey.

JADASEA & LARON – “MIDDLE OF IT”

London rapper Jadasea just recently appeared on MIKE’s new album and then put out a collaborative EP with King Krule and Pretty V, and now he has announced a new album, The Corner Vol. 1, produced entirely by Laron, who provides Jadasea with some lush chipmunk soul on lead single “Middle of it.” The album comes out on February 8 via MIKE’s 10k label.

BIZZY BANKS – “OK OK OK”

New York drill star Bizzy Banks is gearing up for a hometown show on January 25 at Gramercy Theater with Shawny BinLaden, and ahead of that comes this instantly-satisfying new single.

GAZ COOMBES – “FEEL LOOP (LIZARD DREAM)”

Supergrass frontman Gaz Coombes releases his new album Turn the Car Around on Friday and here’s one last preview.

ANDREW MCMAHON IN THE WILDERNESS – “LYING ON THE HOOD OF YOUR CAR”

Andrew McMahon in the Wildnerness announced a new album, Tilt At The Wind No More, due out March 31 via Nettwerk. He also shared a new single, “Lying On The Hood Of Your Car,” about which he says, “For me, this song is pure nostalgia. I made a conscious decision when I was writing it to imagine a whole world of important figures in my life lying next to me on the hood of that imagined vehicle. In one breath it’s a song about young love and in another it’s about those nights out with friends. Nights that ended in parking lot conversations about lives you might lead one day and places you might escape to if you could. I rarely build imagined worlds when I write songs but something about this one feels very much like a memory to me.”

PARANNOUL – “WE SHINE AT NIGHT”

South Korean shoegazer Parannoul is back with a soaring, six-and-a-half minute new single called “We Shine At Night.”

VIEW FROM THE SOYUZ – “WHEN MY WORLD COLLAPSE”

Tokyo’s View From The Soyuz toe the line between metalcore and melodic death metal, as you can hear on the riffy brutality of “When My World Collapse,” which features Senta of Tokyo hardcore band NUMB. It’s the lead single of VFTS’ upcoming EP Immaculate, due February 10 via DAZE.

DADDY LONG LEGS – “STREET SERMON”

Brooklyn punk-blues crew Daddy Long Legs will release their new album, Street Sermons, on March 17 via Yep Roc, and here’s the title(ish) track. Vocalist/harmonicist Brian Hurd says, “We were upset about a lot of things when we wrote this song and one thing that struck me was that there was a real lack of meaningful protest songs being written at the time so we decided to take matters into our own hands.”

EL TEN ELEVEN – “NOT EVEN ALMOST”

Post-rock duo El Ten Eleven have announced a new album, Valley of Fire, due February 10 via Joyful Noise. The album was inspired by a visit to Valley Of Fire State Park in Nevada, as bassist Kristian Dunn explains: “Overwhelmed by the beauty and surreal nature of the place, I found myself in the rare state of actually living in the moment and feeling awash in true tranquility. There was a sense of not getting close to something transcendent but actually experiencing it, thus the title.” And about the title of this first single, Kristian adds that the experience “wasn’t almost transcendent, it WAS.”

PRONG – “BREAKING POINT”

New York groove metal vets Prong have been teasing a new album for this year on Napalm Records, and while most details are TBA, they did just share new single “Breaking Point.” “It’s a ‘general frustration in the world’ type song,” Tommy Victor says.

MIS SUEÑOS DE TU ADIÓS + BURIAL ETIQUETTE SPLIT

Argentina’s Mis Sueños De Tu Adiós and Canada’s Burial Etiquette offer up two very different takes on ’90s-style screamo, with the former going for something furious and abrasive that also flirts with chiptune, and the latter going for something more melodic and atmospheric, and they pair together well on this new split.

KING TUFF – “TELL ME”

“Almost every song in the world is about love, yet somehow there’s still not enough love songs,” says Kyle Thomas, aka King Tuff. “And if you took all the love songs in the world and added them to all the love songs that haven’t been written yet, well, there still wouldn’t be enough. There’s always room for more love and there’s always room for more love songs. Love is an endless well, you can do love songs about people, nature, passion, frustration, animals, joy, madness. Most of my songs are love songs, and I like it that way. But I’m still not satisfied! I want more! I want more love! And I want you to have more love! So here’s ‘Tell Me,’ a love song.” King Tuff’s Smalltown Stardust is out January 27 via Sub Pop.

JACKIE MENDOZA – “LET’S GET MAUI’D”

Jackie Mendoza’s debut album, Galaxia de Emociones, is out in March, and the latest single is the playful “Let’s Get Maui’d,” which blends ukulele and electronics with pitch-shifted vocals. “I thought about an episode of 90 Day Fiancé, a show I was binge-watching in quarantine, where a couple got married in Maui and the woman exclaimed, ‘We got Maui’d!,’” Mendoza says. “That line made me laugh and I thought it was really cheesy and that’s where the energy for the song came from.”

TELEMAN – “GOOD TIME/HARD TIME”

UK trio Teleman will release their fourth album, Good Time/Hard Time, in April and they’ve just shared the bouncing, poppy title track. “It’s a retrospective look at something that you can only achieve once you’ve passed through the storm,” says frontman Thomas Sanders. “‘Dark clouds gathered round but I grew so tall my head came out, now trouble seems far away’. Sometimes relationships are like addictions – they are compulsive and we get tangled up in them and keep doing it even though we know they are harmful. But the chorus is actually a celebration of the experience, because it’s best to remember the good times.”

LARAAJI – “KOTO”

Ambient icon Laraaji has a new compilation on the way, titled Segue To Infinity, that’s out February 10 via The Numero Group. The 4-LP box set features his earliest known recordings, with three discs worth of unreleased material alongside 1978’s Celestial Vibration which was released under his birth name, Edward Larry Gordon.
“Koto” is one of the many unearthed gems.

THE MEN – “ANYWAY I FIND YOU”

The Men’s ninth album, New York City, is out in two weeks and here’s another grungy rocker from it. “‘Anyway I Find You’ was written in a kitchen,” says The Men’s Nick Chiericozzi. “The album take is a bit louder and looser than the track’s original intent. It’s akin to the Bo Diddley line, ‘If I get to heaven before you do, I’m gonna make a hole and pull you through.’”

DEATH VALLEY GIRLS – “SUNDAY”

“Recently I realized I have been numbing, medicating, intellectualizing, and avoiding my pain and feelings for most of my life,” says Death Valley Girls leader Bonnie Bloomgarden of the group’s new song. “Over the past few years I learned you have to feel and move through your feelings or they get stuck, and then you become a vessel or container for all the feelings you are trying to avoid! If you acknowledge, feel, and process them, you get to release and move them out of you! This song is to honor that process! Feel your feelings, be so sad you wanna cry forever, and then move on, you gotta keep moving!” Islands in the Sky is out February 24 via Suicide Squeeze.

BABA ALI – “BURN ME OUT”

Anglo/American duo Baba Ali will release their second album, Laugh Like a Bomb, on April 21 via Memphis Industries. They made the record at the studio run by Al Doyle of Hot Chip, who produced their debut, and produced this one themselves. “Burn Me Out” is a terrific first taste, dark and danceable and rippling with synths.

KATE BOLLINGER – “J’AIME LES FILLES” (JACQUES DUTRONC COVER)

Kate Bollinger’s first single of 2023 is a jazzy cover of Jacques Dutronc’s classic 1967 track “J’aime les filles.” “I love Jacques Dutronc and wanted to sing this song for a while,” Kate says. “The band sounds so classic and sophisticated, but the lyrics are silly. Normally I like for cover songs to stray far from the original, but I felt differently here. I wanted to stay pretty true to the Jacques version.”

LICHEN SLOW (MALCOLM MIDDLETON & JOEL HARRIES) – “PICK OVER THE BONES”

Lichen Slow is the new duo of Malcolm Middleton (Arab Strap) and Joel Harries (Team Leader and 72%) who will release their debut album, Rest Lurks, on March 10 via Rock Action. “We just clicked and had a good chat about Bolt Thrower,” Middleton says. “I sent Joel an acoustic guitar bit and he immediately came back with a complete song. That’s when we thought we might be onto something. We just started writing songs and couldn’t stop.” Harries says “Pick Over the Bones’ started “as just an acoustic guitar and vocal but after sending it over to Malcolm it came back a very different beast. It was really exciting to me to see such a simple little song become something much more expansive.” Middleton adds, “I may have used the phrase ‘Make it go all MBV before the Rage Against The Machine bit at the end!’. Or maybe I didn’t.”

ZIGGY KATZ (FINN WOLFHARD) & EMILE MOSSERI – “PIECES OF GOLD”

Actor Jesse Eisenberg is making his directorial debut with When You Finish Saving the World which stars Finn Wolfhard and Julianne Moore, and is out January 20. Wolfhard plays an aspiring singer-songwriter and songs were co-written with composer Emile Mosseri who did the score. Here’s one of those, “Pieces of Gold.”

DOUGIE POOLE – “NOTHING ON THIS EARTH CAN MAKE ME SMILE”

Dougie Poole‘s ‘The Rainbow Wheel of Death‘ is out February 24 via Wharf Cat and here’s another early taste.

JAD FAIR & SAMUEL LOCKE WARD – ‘HAPPY HEARTS’

”’Happy Hearts’ is a very positive album,” says Jad. ”It’s good to stay positive.” The album is out in February via Kill Rock Stars, and you can check the whole thing out early in animated video form now.

SHANA CLEVELAND (LA LUZ) – “FACES IN THE FIRELIGHT”

La Luz’s Shana Cleveland has announced her second solo album, Manzanita, which will be out March 10 via Hardly Art. (Her first was 2019’s great Night of the Worm Moon.) “This is a supernatural love album set in the California wilderness,” says Cleveland.

TEMPLES – “GAMMA RAYS”

Temples new album Exotico was produced by Sean Ono Lennon and mixed by Flaming Lips collaborator Dave Fridmann. It’s out April 14 and this is the first single.

ALTIN GÜN – “RAKIYA SU KATAMAM”

Amsterdam-based Turkish psych band Altin Gün have announced a new album, Aşk, which is due on March 10 via ATO Records. After a couple synthy records, the album is a return to the band’s psych-folk roots and features their takes on 10 Turkish folk standards. The new single is “Rakıya Su Katamam,” originally by Turkish writer/theologian Mustafa Öztürk.

FUCKED UP – “I MIGHT BE WEIRD”

The latest single from Fucked Up’s One Day is the anthemic, violin-fueled “I Might Be Weird,” which feels like one of the most instantly-infectious songs we’ve heard from this album yet. Read more here.

DOM FLEMONS – “SLOW DANCE WITH YOU”

“The American Songster” (and former Carolina Chocolate Drops member) Dom Flemons has announced a new album, Traveling Wildfire, due 3/24 via Smithsonian Folkways Recordings. The album was produced by Ted Hutt (Lucero, Flogging Molly), who also played guitar and bass on it, and the first single is “Slow Dance With You.” Read more about it here.

SHALOM – “HAPPENSTANCE”

Shalom worked on her debut LP for Saddle Creek with producer Ryan Hemsworth, and she’s shared the first single, “Happenstance,” which you can read more about here.

BLACK THOUGHT & EL MICHELS AFFAIR – “GRATEFUL”

The Roots frontman Black Thought continues his prolific solo career with Glorious Game, a new 12-song collaborative album with retro-soul group El Michels Affair. Read more about the album and lead single “Grateful” here.

LONNIE HOLLEY – “OH ME, OH MY” FT. MICHAEL STIPE

Lonnie Holley announced a collaboration-filled new album, Oh Me Oh My, and shared the title track, which features Michael Stipe.

LANNDS – “BLUEPRINT”

LAANDS announced their debut LP for Run for Cover and shared a dreamy new single, which you can read more about here.

DRAYTON FARLEY – “NORFOLK BLUES”

Having put out one of 2022’s best country music releases with the solo acoustic EP Walk Home, Drayton Farley has now announced his sophomore full-length album, Twenty On High. It was produced by Sadler Vaden of Jason Isbell’s band the 400 Unit, and it also features Waxahatchee, the 400 Unit’s rhythm section, and more. Read about lead single “Norfolk Blues” here.

ZULU – “WHERE I’M FROM” (ft. SOUL GLO’S PIERCE JORDAN & PLAYYTIME’S OBIOMA UGONNA)

LA hardcore band Zulu have shared “Where I’m From,” the second single off their anticipated debut album A New Tomorrow, and this one features Soul Glo’s Pierce Jordan and Playytime’s Obioma Ugonna. The video features Eric Andre and pays tribute to A Tribe Called Quest’s “Scenario” video. Read more here and pick up the album on limited transparent yellow vinyl.

U2 – “PRIDE (IN THE NAME OF LOVE) (SONGS OF SURRENDER VERSION)

U2 shared the first single off new collection Songs of Surrender, which they reimagined and re-recorded 40 songs from throughout their discography for.

Looking for even more new songs? Browse the New Songs archive.