The Big Indie Playlist: The best new music of the week
December is here, Spotify Wrapped is out, and the year of music is well and truly coming to a close. With only a few weeks left of 2023, so many artists are still releasing some great work, vying for those last-minute song of the year titles.
This week saw new deliveries from a whole host of keen up-and-comers. Devon Ross unleashed her second single, supported by Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore. Indie newbies Fake Laugh and Unflirt also shared new cuts, putting in a solid reason why eyes should be kept on them in 2024.
Established acts like The Snuts, Bill Ryder-Jones and Declan McKenna also returned with new tracks to keep Q4 rocking. Randomly, this week was also a big one for covers as Lana Del Rey, Regina Spektor, and more took on tracks by other artists to great avail.
If you’re looking for something longer, head to our weekly Alternative Album Chart to find your new favourite record. But for a quick fix of the best new hits, we’ve boiled down all the chaos of New Music Friday into one must-hear playlist of the finest new releases around for our weekly Big Indie Playlist.
The week’s best new music:
The best new indie songs:
Fake Laugh – ‘Singing For’: Fresh off the back of a tour with The Japanese House, Fake Laugh has shared ‘Singing For’. A Jeff Buckley-inspired indie ballad; the song swells from a stripped-back guitar ballad into an intricately layered, electro-detailed masterpiece. Even without all the bells and whistles, Fake Laugh’s voice is so lovely that this song is so repeatable. (3/5)
Holly Humberstone & MUNA – ‘Into Your Room’: Delivering a refreshed version of the fan favourite album track off her recent record Paint My Bedroom Black, Holly Humberstone invited MUNA to up the ante on this song. Exploded into something 10 times bigger and better, with horns, heavier synths and far more interest, you can always count on MUNA for indie pop greatness. (3.5/5)
Declan McKenna – ‘Elevator Hum’: Working towards the release of his third album, What Happened To The Beach, in February 2024, Declan McKenna is well and truly back for his indie crown. Another feel-good, infectious hit from the young genre leader, McKenna, seems to just know and understand the recipe for success when it comes to making earworms. (4/5)
Unflirt – ‘White Noise’: Sharing a new EP, April’s Nectar, Unflirt’s voice is so angelic, we immediately need a whole extended LP worth of it. Following up the beautiful singles ‘Someday’ and ‘Had Enough’, ‘White Noise’ manages to be both intimate and anthemic at once. (3.5/5)
The Snuts – ‘Deep Diving’: Another band working towards an early 2024 release, The Snuts have shared another teaser of their upcoming release. ‘Deep Diving’ feels handpicked from the indie heyday of the 2010s, with flavours of Foals or Bombay Bicycle Club mixed in for the ultimate crowdpleaser effect. (3/5)
The best new rock/alternative songs:
Devon Ross – ‘Killer’: Devon Ross is the new it-girl of rock. The daughter of Lenny Kravitz’ guitar player, the actor and model has finally put her guitar talent and natural draw towards rock and roll to good use. Following up her debut, ‘Swim’, ‘Killer’ is deliciously bluesy and punky, sounding like all of Ross’ idols boiled down into one song. Layered with her angsty vocals, Ross’ music sounds so organic and effortlessly cool, born of nothing but a lifelong love of rock. (4/5)
Nadine Shah – ‘Twenty Things’: Prepping for the release of her fifth album in 2024, Newcastle’s Nadine Shah sounds incredible on ‘Twenty Things’. Letting her accent come through loud and clear in this lyric-heavy track, Shah’s ability to inject groove into even the wordiest songs is a feat. (3.5/5)
Bill Ryder-Jones – ‘If Tomorrow Starts Without Me’: The second teaser from the upcoming album lechyd Da, Bill Ryder-Jones just keeps getting better and better. Sounding bigger than anything we’ve heard from the artist before, it’s a track of utter hopefulness despite the gloomy title. (5/5)
Katy Kirby – ‘Party Of The Century’: Delivering stunning single after stunning single, this latest one from Katy Kirby is no different. Light and bright with a distinct folkness, ‘Party Of The Century’ is a beautiful take on love, parenthood and intimacy. (4/5)
Florence Rose – ‘Isn’t Life Beautiful?’: Booming into the music world with a clear intention to take over, musician and model Florence Rose is on a mission to be an alt-pop leader. And from the sound of ‘Isn’t Life Beautiful?’ with its faultless production and catchy hook, we don’t doubt she’ll succeed. (4/5)
The best new covers of the week:
Lana Del Rey – ‘Take Me Home, Country Roads’: At her glamorous best, Lana Del Rey places herself in the lineage of the great country stars with this John Denver cover. Making something sparse and beautiful out of the crowd-pleaser anthem, she pulls the poetry out of the lyrics and serves it to you on a silver platter. (4/5)
Vashti Bunyan & Devendra Banhart – ‘How Could You Let Me Go’: Covering a beautiful track from Madelynn Von Ritz, aka Lynn Castle, the 1970s folk cult favourite Vashti Bunyan reunites with the fan that brought her back out of retirement, Devendra Banhart. Creating something unique and hypnotic, we’d never expect anything less from the duo. (3.5/5)
Regina Spektor & Jack Dishel – ‘We’re Not Supposed To Be Lovers’: As part of an album celebrating the work of The Mouldy Peaches’ Adam Green, Regina Spektor paired up with the band’s guitar player for this sweet little cover. Highlighting the tenderness and romance in the lyrics, Spektor makes this kooky track into a perfect love song. (3/5)
Lewis Watson – ‘Stay – The Morning After’: Does it count as a cover if we’re singing your own song? Currently in the middle of reworking all the tracks off his debut album The Morning, nearly 10 years on, Lewis Watson is looking at these tracks with maturity and seasoned skill. Making them sound bigger and better than ever – it’s a fascinating effort for fans and a great chance for new listeners to hear Watson’s best lyrical moments sound at their instrumental best. (3.5/5)
