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The Catenary Wires (photo: Alison Wonderland)

22 New Songs Out Today

The Catenary Wires (photo: Alison Wonderland)
The Catenary Wires (photo: Alison Wonderland)

So many artists, so little time. Each week we review five 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, show recaps, track premieres, and more all day. That includes a lot of tour announcements, a list of tonight’s NYC shows, and NY shows that just went on sale. We publish a monthly playlist of some of our favorite tracks. Here’s a daily roundup with a bunch of interesting, newly released songs in one place…

ANDERSON .PAAK – “MAKE IT BETTER” (ft. SMOKEY ROBINSON)

Anderson .Paak has shared a second single from his anticipated new album Ventura, and this one features the legendary Smokey Robinson. It’s also the kind of throwback soul that fans of Smokey Robinson will probably like, and Paak is a natural at this kind of thing. The accompanying video was directed by Andy Hines, who’s also done videos for Rae Sremmurd, Jim James, Kali Uchis, and more.

CATENARY WIRES (ex Tallulah Gosh / Heavenly) – “DREAM TOWN”

Rob Pursey and Amelia Fletcher are UK indiepop royalty, having been in Tallulah Gosh, Heavenly, Marine Research, Tender Trap, and currently make music as Catenary Wires. Their new album, Til The Morning, is out June 14 via Tapete. The first single is this lovely, dreamy duet.

BART – “PINK SYMPHONY”

Toronto’s Bart are gearing up to release their new album Today, Tomorrow, & The Next Day on May 10 via Idee Fixe. The album features sax by Destroyer collaborator Joseph Shabason and string arrangements by Michael Olsen (Arcade Fire’s Funeral, Drake’s Views, etc), and we’re premiering new single “Pink Symphony” which is a gorgeous dose of ’60s-style psychedelic pop. The band’s Christopher Shannon tells us, “‘Pink Symphony’ is about how life can change without our expressed permission. Often in these situations we will fight or put off that change without first trying to appreciate the consequences, and in those moments we may be holding ourselves back from growing and feeling at ease with reality.”

MARISSA NADLER & STEPHEN BRODSKY – “ESTRANGED” (GUNS N’ ROSES COVER)

Marissa Nadler & Stephen Brodsky’s new album Droneflower will be out at the end of the month and here’s a beautiful cover of Guns N’ Roses “Estranged” (from Use Your Illusion II). They take it, naturally, into darker, more ethereal territory — and shorten it just a little.

GLEN HANSARD – THIS WILD WILLING (ALBUM STREAM)

Glen Hansard’s new solo album is out next week and incorporates electronic and more orchestral arrangements than you may associate with the Once star. Listen to the whole thing now via NPR.

SCHOOLBOY Q – “CHOPSTIX” (ft. TRAVIS SCOTT)

Schoolboy Q is gearing up to release his anticipated new album, and a second single was released today. Following the short, fast, and to-the-point “Numb Numb Juice,” “Chopstix” is a little poppier with an auto-tuned hook from Travis Scott. As ever, Q is in fine form.

CURREN$Y, TRADEMARK DA SKYDIVER & YOUNG RODDY – “NO HOOK”

Curren$y teams with his Jet Life pals Trademark Da Skydiver and Young Roddy for the new song “No Hook.” As the title implies, there’s no hook, just bars, and the trio pay tribute to the late Nipsey Hussle on this one.

PALEHOUND – “AARON”

Palehound have announced their third album, Black Friday, due out June 7 via Polyvinyl. About their first single, “Aaron,” songwriter Ellen Kempner says, “Aaron is a character that represents my partner, who is trans. It’s not specific to his experience though, the song is about change in relation to our bodies in general. It’s about learning to be comfortable in our skins, whether that means changing our bodies or mindsets. Robert Kolodny directed the video and captured this theme perfectly through portraying physical insecurity as living in an unruly, amorphous body and gradually shedding it.”

RINGWORM – “ACQUIESCE”

Metallic hardcore greats Ringworm have shared a second single from their anticipated new album Death Becomes My Voice. While the lead single/title track started out as a slow burner before really kicking in, this one starts off with a bang and stays on a high the whole time. As for the video, frontman Human Furnace says: “The Acquiesce video is a sequel to the Shades of Blue video, and actually a third act of an ongoing story, that started with our very first video for 2005’s Justice Replaced by Revenge. It’s another small piece of a larger story, that we’re planning on telling in its entirety, soon, as its own stand-alone short film, this fall. We’ll have a longer directors cut of the video, shortly. It’ll let you in on more of the story told over the course of the 3 videos, complete with storyboard to scene side-by-side comparisons, and a brief outline of the story.”

BLACKPINK – “KILL THIS LOVE”

Ridiculously popular K-pop/hip hop group BLACKPINK, who are gearing up for a North American tour surrounding Coachella, have unleashed “Kill This Love,” the title track of their new EP coming tomorrow via YG Entertainment/Interscope. It’s over the top, bombastic, and effortlessly catchy.

CHRIS FORSYTH – ALL TIME PRESENT (ALBUM STREAM)

Chris Forsyth has a jammy style that finds the middle ground between Television and the Grateful Dead, and he explores the depths of that middle ground on his new 74 minute double album, All Time Present. It features contributions from Ryan Jewell (drums), Peter Kerlin (bass), Jeff Zeigler (synthesizer) and multi-instrumentalist Shawn Edward Hansen, plus guest vocals from Rosali Middleman on on “Dream Song” and Chris’ own vocals on “Mystic Mountain,” while the rest of the album is instrumental. Stream the whole thing at NPR.

KNOCKED LOOSE – “MISTAKES LIKE FRACTURES”

Oldham County, Kentucky metallic hardcore crew Knocked Loose are releasing the Mistakes Like Fractures 7″ on May 10 via Pure Noise, and the title track is out, along with its Max Moore-directed video. This thing is total mosh bait, and they’ve released it just in time for their tour with Harms Way which starts tonight.

PICAPICA – “SUCKER PUNCH”

Led by songwriters Samantha Whates and Josienne Clarke, London-based band PicaPica will release their debut album, Together & Apart, via Rough Trade on June 7. Get an early taste with this pretty, folky single.

THE NINTH WAVE – “USED TO BE YOURS”

Glasgow’s The Ninth Wave are releasing their debut album Infancy later this year on Distiller Records, and they’ve shared its new single “Used To Be Yours” which is a moody but glistening dose of indie rock.

HARBORLIGHTS – “HOLD THE DARK”

Boston-area band HarborLights have a few EPs out, and they’ve now signed to Deathwish who will release their debut album later this year. The first single is “Hold The Dark,” an atmospheric, post-rocky song with soaring clean vocals. You can hear it below and catch HarborLights on tour.

PILE – “THE SOFT HANDS OF STEPHEN MILLER”

Pile have followed “Bruxist Grin” with a second single from their upcoming album Green and Gray. Compared to the catchy alt-rock of the first single, “The Soft Hands of Stephen Miller” is more in the sarcastic, pissed-off post-hardcore realm.

HOT CHIP – “HUNGRY CHILD”

Hot Chip worked with outside producers — Philippe Zdar and Rodaidh McDonald — for the first time on their upcoming album A Bathful of Ecstasy, and first single “Hungry Child” has a late-’90s house feel (think Everything But the Girl’s Walking Wounded). The song’s video, starring Martin Starr (Freaks & Geeks) and Milana Vayntrub (This is Us) is amazing.

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VAMPIRE WEEKEND – “THIS LIFE” & “UNBEARABLY WHITE”

Vampire Weekend released two more songs from their upcoming first album in six years, and you can read more about them here.

THE NATIONAL – “LIGHT YEARS”

The National released a second single from their anticipated new album I Am Easy To Find, and the video features scenes from the album’s accompanying short film. Read more here.

GERONIMO – “OBSOLETE”

Noise trio Geronimo (ex-Bastard Noise, Sleestak, etc) are releasing their first full-length since their 2007 debut this year, and you can read more about title track “Obsolete” here.

ISOTOPE – ISOTOPE (ALBUM STREAM)

Bay Area hardcore crew Isotope feature former members of Acts of Sedition, Stormcrow, Sanctum, and more, and their debut LP is now streaming. Read more here.

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