Essential Listening: This week’s best new music
Welcome back to Essential Listening, a place where we compile all the best new music of the week into the definitive tome of modern music: The Far Out Playlist.
A hearty congratulations to Bono this week. The U2 singer will be heading off to where all classic rock artists go to die, Las Vegas, as he and the rest of the band (minus drummer Larry Mullen, Jr.) announced a new residency in Sin City. But, more importantly, his son managed to land our Album of the Week this week as Inhaler dropped the slick and sophisticated Cuts and Bruises. It’s a big week for the Hewson household, I imagine.
I got the opportunity to review Animal Collective quasi-leader Avey Tare’s lastest offering 7s, which I happened to enjoy quite a bit as an engrossing psychedlic pop trip. New LPs from The Golden Dregs, Glüme, and Anna B Savage made for a solid week in terms of new music, and there were plenty of quality singles to go along with the full-plays as well.
Still, only eight tracks can make it onto this list. Here is all the best new music of the week, compiled into the Far Out Playlist.
Best new music, February 13th – 19th:
The Lemon Twigs – ‘Any Time of Day’
America’s favourite pair of psychedelic indie pop brothers are back with a brand new album. The Lemon Twigs, the eclectic genre-spanning duo made up of Brian and Michael D’Addario, have returned to announce their latest album, Everything Harmony. The new LP, self-produced by the brothers, is set to be released on May 5th.
To preview the new album, the duo have shared their latest single, ‘Any Time of Day’. Just like the band’s previous single, ‘Corner of My Eye’, ‘Any Time of Day’ is helmed by Brian and his high, airy vocals. Pushing the group’s twee retro-infused psychedelic pop to its most delicate breaking point, ‘Any Time of Day’ features more odd chord changes and falsetto vocal jumps than anything I’ve heard in a long time. The song’s lush and complex composition might turn off some casual listeners, but the track’s heartwarming and memorable chorus will be sure to delight die-hard fans.
Barrie – ‘Races’
Barrie has recently shared details of a new EP entitled 5K, which is due for release on March 31st via Winspear. Alongside the news, she has also released a new single ‘Races’. The Brooklyn-based musician and producer Barrie Lindsay is an artist with a passion for creating left-of-centre pop music that reflects a vivid inner world. She spends her days writing songs and tinkering with new creations collected in a vast archive of folders and hard drives.
‘Races’ is the first single from this second collection. The track incorporates baroque daydream pop set to a 12/8 time signature. In addition, there is much to excite listeners with crashing drums and stately keyboards that giddily swoon with romance. Barrie delves into her newly formed fascination with running and the experiences of physical exercise on the body. What’s more, this has clearly filtered into her music, as her songwriting feels charged with literal energy.
The Hold Steady – ‘Sixers’
New York heartland rock forefathers The Hold Steady are gearing up for the release of their ninth studio album, The Price of Progress. To preview the upcoming LP, the group has shared a brand new single from the album called ‘Sixers’.
After hearing the abrasive embrace of post-punk on their previous single ‘Sideways Skull’, ‘Sixers’ sees the band reclaiming some of their classic rock DNA. Repositioning themselves as the kings of storytelling songs, ‘Sixers’ lays out some characters that will be all-too-familiar to any of us who had to make some new friends during the earliest days of the Covid-19 lockdown.
Dry Cleaning – ‘Swampy’
Britain’s current best post-punk band Dry Cleaning don’t rest. After releasing their phenomenal debut album New Long Leg back in 2021, the quartet wasted absolutely no time by getting their sophomore album, Stumpwork, finished and ready to ship out by 2022. These guys either love working or hate sleeping because we’re getting even more new music from them.
Rather than dangling a tasty morsel in front of us, the band are cutting right to the chase by releasing the two new tracks as singles. The EP’s title track ‘Swampy’ once again finds singer Florence Shaw musing on some fairly strange yet oddly mundane imagery. Instead of disco pickles, this time Shaw has her sights set on casting concrete, PlayStations (or plant stations? It’s hard to tell), and “beanbags bingo”, whatever that means. Tom Dowse’s guitar is bright and chiming, but since this is still Dry Cleaning, there’s plenty of unsettling darkness around the edges of ‘Swampy’.
Lana Del Rey – ‘A&W’
American singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey is staring down the release of her new studio album, Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd, next month. We’ve already received our first preview of the new LP with the title track, ‘Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd’. Now, we’re getting another taste of the album with the seven-minute ‘A&W’.
A piano-led ballad that doubles down on Del Rey’s obsession with Joni Mitchell (at least at first), ‘A&W’ is another look into Del Rey’s fractured view of love. The line “this is the experience of being an American whore” sounds like quintessential Del Rey, and the pop culture references come streaming through like they always do. Shout out to Forensic Files and The Diary of a Teenage Girl, which Del Rey calls “Teenage Diary of a Girl”. Then things go a bit wild at the end, but I’ll let you experience that for yourself.
Beabadoobee – ‘Glue Song’
As a Valentine’s Day celebration, Beabadoobee, real name Beatrice Laus, has released a lovestruck new single, ‘Glue Song’. Although the track is fresh from the studio, it has been a solid fan favourite during live shows over the past few months. The tranquil ballad adds welcomed balance to Laus’ vibrant catalogue.
The pretty ballad comes with more of a ballad-like vibe than we’re used to with Laus. With an acoustic rhythm and gentle orchestral string treatment, Laus’ voice softly sings: “I’ve never known someone like you / Tangled in love, stuck by you / From the glue / Don’t forget to kiss me / Or else you’ll have to miss me.”
Teleman – ‘Trees Grow High’
Indie pop band Teleman have shared a new single entitled ‘Trees Grow High’, the second release from their upcoming album Good Time / Hard Time (scheduled to come out on April 7th). Hot on the heels of October’s ‘Short Life’, ‘Trees Grow High’ is building anticipation for the first full-length release since they shared Family of Aliens back in 2018.
‘Trees Grow High’ is an ultra-blissed-out summer anthem with a bassline that evokes the warm evenings of everyone’s favourite season. As always with Teleman, there is that reliance on a synth-heavy sonic output and vocals that capture the best moments of Metronomy. If ‘Trees Grow High’ is anything to go by, then Good Time / Hard Time will likely be a blast.
Bully – ‘Lose You’ (ft. Soccer Mommy)
American singer-songwriter Alicia Bognanno, better known as Bully, is gearing up for a brand new album set to be released later this year. To preview the new LP, Bully has shared the first taste of the upcoming album with the new single, ‘Lose You’.
Featuring fellow fuzz-rocker Sophie Allison, AKA Soccer Mommy, ‘Lose You’ is one of those tracks that is filled to the brim with pop hooks and crunchy guitar riffs. As Bully and Soccer Mommy trade harmonies, the banging backing track that supports them continuously ebbs and flows through different dynamics. The sound is always ecstatic, especially when a trippy guitar solo bubbles up from the ether.
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