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Blond:ish x Notre Dame x Black Circle – “Higher (Notre Dame Remix)”

October 25, 2025

Blond:ish, Notre Dame, & Black Circle teamed up for a slice of progressive house they’re collectively calling “Higher.” If this isn’t already a dancefloor anthem, it’s only a matter of time. With it’s accessible repetitiveness, jittery synth play, and overall hypnotic pulse, “Higher” is a song meant to be danced to. Let the drop wash over you, take in the earworm refrain, and remember 2012 when you were still able to drink your ass off until 4am at the club. Good times.   “Higher” is embedded below (YouTube), but you can also find it on Spotify and Apple Music.  

Kaia Müller – “The best of me”

October 25, 2025

Sometimes it’s all about the bassline – ask Oregon-based Kaia Müller on her latest single, “The best of me.” “The best of me is yet to come / if it ever does” Kaia muses existentially, with a sassy, sprechgesang – echoing a sentiment we all have at times… Are we ever going to be the best version of ourselves? Who knows. But Kaia’s gotta be close… I repeat – that bassline.   “The best of me” is embedded below – enjoy.  

Fool Nelson – “Forget It”

October 25, 2025

Perth’s Fool Nelson have been filling a The Get Up Kids-sized hole in our hearts – one listen to “Forget It” might help you understand why. They’re already popping off in Australia, and we’re betting they’re gonna connect with audiences worldwide with their ready-made hooks, crunchy guitar, and accessible emo punk vibes. The trio of brothers/best friend have an undeniable chemistry, writing songs that reflect their upbringing in 90s/00s surf/skate culture down under… If you know us, that’s right up our alley. Check it out – you’re gonna love it.   Check out “Forget It” via the forbidden YouTube embed below, or, click this link to get to their Spotify.  

Ian McFarland – “Every Days a Saturday”

October 25, 2025

Pop punk has a funny way of bridging existential dread and breezy joy – take Ian McFarland‘s latest offering for example. “Every Days a Saturday” is a unique take on burnout (which we’re all feeling on some level, let’s be honest) – but it’s explored with upbeat, jangly guitars; quirky Motion City Soundtrack-esque lyrics; and McFarland’s uplifting vocals. If you want to harken back to the late 90s when SR-71 was ruling the airwaves, this might be a good place to start.   “Every Days a Saturday” is the first track on McFarland’s latest EP, Midnight Surgery, out now, (October 17th, 2025). Check out the forbidden YouTube embed below, or, peep it on Spotify.  

CERULEAN SAPPHIRE – soft attention

October 21, 2025

CERULEAN SAPPHIRE (CS) appear out of a blue-hued aether with their latest, self-produced album, soft attention. Based around a self-proclaimed concept they’re calling “Mediterranean Melancholy,” CS was created by a Finn who grew up in south Spain, surrounded by a suite of different cultures. Like its creator, soft attention lives in the spaces in between – a liminal, escapist, and dreamlike offering that harkens back to the ’90s in a Pure Moods type of way while keeping its finger on the pulse of modern day synthpop.   Songs like “orientate in paris” are archetypal CS. The music here is some holy mixture of synthpop, ambiance, and shoegaze – equal parts Cocteau Twins, Everything But The Girl, and Slowdive. Ghostly, otherworldly vocals float heavenly above Casio-tone keyboard tones – buzzing, bubbling basslines; machine-like percussion; and gauzy synth pads create a sleepy haze. This is music to meditate to – or at[...]

H_ngm_n – “Three Hours Sleep”

October 21, 2025

Listen. Emo isn’t dead. Emo will never die. And, despite their name, H_ngm_n are one of the many bands keeping the genre alive and well. “Three Hours Sleep” is sharp, emotional, and strikes the perfect balance between dirty and polished. Fans of mid-aughts style emo will love the readily-accessible hooks, while fans of deeper cuts can appreciate that well-constructed emo is still being made. With lyrics that touch on anxiety and guilt, this one’s a dead ringer for all us steadfast emos.   Check out the band’s most recent LP, Paper Street, upon which “Three Hours Sleep” resides, via the Bandcamp embed below. You can also find it on Spotify and Apple Music. Paper Street by H_ngm_n

The Tin Can Collective – “Knot With Threads”

October 20, 2025

The Tin Can Collective specialize in beer-soaked indie/emo that your older brother probably loved, specifically the good stuff from the late 90s. We’re talking Rainer Maria, The Get Up Kids… Even Tigers Jaw. You get the idea. Throw “Knot With Threads” on your favorite, sweaty basement show emo playlist. The big, guitar-forward energy here would be perfect for a DIY venue or a VFW hall, with a particularly sweet vocal performance from singer/guitarist Jess Warren.   Check out “Knot With Threads” via the Bandcamp embed below – Spotify too. If you like what you hear, they have a whole album called The Thrill Is Gone And I Can’t Get It Back   The Thrill Is Gone And I Can’t Get It Back by The Tin Can Collective

Kitty Coen – Conversations with the Moon

October 19, 2025

When you think of country music, images of gothic, alt-country songstresses don’t typically conjure up… But that’s Kitty Coen. Landing somewhere “between a saloon and a séance,” Kitty’s take on country doesn’t fully eschew the “dirt road, big truck, cold beer” aesthetic… But expect to hear some glassy-eyed songs about cocaine and dancing on graves too. The result is the stunning, 12 song offering, Conversations with the Moon, an eclectic, but ultimately super-listenable record that has enough country appeal to vibe with regular listeners; an equal amount of old-school country badassery to impress your parents; and enough angst to get indie rockers like me to pay attention. Like Stevie before her, Kitty fancies herself sorta witchy – check out a little bit more about what this album means to her below:   “This record came from those nights when you feel like the only thing listening back is the moon… It’s[...]

WaterPenny – Buttons For People

October 15, 2025

WaterPenny defy classification… But if we had to quantify, we’d peg them as Western-tinged, blues-influenced rock n roll. Lane (lead guitar & vocals), Wes (guitar & vocals), Cihan (bass), and Sean (drums) are the quartet of musicians that comprise this enigmatic and unique act from Washington, whose latest album, the nine-song Buttons For People bridges the gap between classic rock fervor; sweaty, emotional blues; and modern day indie rock   The album kicks off with “Not Yours or Mine” that highlights exactly what this group succeeds at. Swampy slide guitar moans and groans in a mid-tempo meditation before the group explodes into a jammy outro, melting faces with a stanky rhythm and blistering lead guitar. Elsewhere, they channel Led Zeppelin (or maybe Cage the Elephant) on “Iteration” and album closer “Undone,” sounding like a perfect mix of the aformentioned bands. The band has no problem spreading their wings either – lead[...]

Aatocaster – superstition (studio works ’23-’25)

October 14, 2025

From the underground corners of Los Angeles, the enigmatic Aatocaster rises from the shadows. In the pursuit of a cult-following as opposed to mainstream hubris, Aatocaster forms jagged soundscapes of crystalline digitalization, where post-punk rhythms and shoegaze ambiance collide with glass-shattered electronica. The result is the mind-bending superstition (studio works ’23-’25), an abrasive but eye-opening dance through fields of data compiled together into some sort of experimental world. Even the artwork surrounding this release is noisy and degraded. Intentionally unsettling, superstition challenges us to push our boundaries past surface level – a deeper dive into this album will reward the listener with a mysterious, but cerebral lyrical presence.   superstition opens with “the mirror,” a song that floats into your sub-conscious like a half-remembered memory. “the mirror” is a perfect title, because alongside a spooky vocal presence, this song sounds a lot like a mirror shattering. Glinting keyboards ding like shards[...]

Stephen Babcock – “Hockey Town”

October 14, 2025

The Bab-man strikes yet again – the latest in a series of Buffalo-adjacent singles, “Hockey Town” trades Buffalo Bills mania for the quiet and stoic life of a Buffalo Sabres fan. Sure, the Sabes have become a long-struggling team that are now essentially a farm team for the rest of the league (e.g. Eichel, O’Reilly, Okposo, Reinhart etc.)… Bit I digress – if you were around in the late aughts, the Sabres were an absolutely electrifying team that brought honor and glory to our Rust Belt locale. Babcock brings a similar prestige with his understated, almost folksy approach to “Hockey Town,” evoking small-town nostalgia with an approach not unlike Sam Fender or Catfish and the Bottlemen a la his signature twang and ultra-clean production.   Check out “Hockey Town” via the YouTube embed below. Spotify and Apple Music exist too.  

flycatcher – “Down”

October 14, 2025

Flycatcher has a vice-like, Venus-fly-trap-grip on who they are:   “… Twangy indie-rock, worn-in emo revival, and road ready anthems.”   Case in point, “Down,” the latest single from their upcoming release, due out October 24th. “Down” echoes the noisy, guitar-driven approach of contemporaries like Hotline TNT or Microwave while nodding to ’90s greats like Nada Surf. Slamming chords at a mid-tempo grind while repeating a catchy refrain always does wonders to make a song singleworthy, and the band doesn’t alter that tried-and-true formula here… Expect big emotions with misty-eyed sentimentality which makes sense given the song’s subject matter – here’s a little bit more from them about the song’s meaning:   “It’s a nod to past friends and watching them slip into their old ways.”   “Down” is available everywhere. Soundcloud is embedded below, but you can find it on Spotify and Apple Music too.   flycatcher · Down

Son of Jacob – “Friends”

October 14, 2025

Montclair, NJ-based act Son of Jacob, brainchild of singer/songwriter Will Jacobson, is here with his latest single, “Friends.” A warm-and-fuzzy throwback jam that recalls Pavement, Built to Spill, or what Heatmiser would have probably sounded like if Elliott Smith never went solo, “Friends” is laced with jangly guitars and squiggly keyboards in that iconic, ’90s way. A song about “the joys of awkward happy hours,” “Friends” will make you smile with its charming mix, but also make you nod your head in approval – see the pleasantly symphonic outro.   This one appears to be a Spotify exclusive – check it out below.  

Loser Demon – EP2

October 9, 2025

The only constant in life is change, and Loser Demon seem to have embraced that with fervor on their most recent release, EP2. It’s often a bigger leap than people realize to go from a raw, lo-fi energy to something that feels produced and intentional; in fact, you’re almost putting yourself in a much harsher spotlight because you don’t have the “well, it’s supposed to sound raw” defense to fall back on anymore. Luckily for Loser Demon, they don’t have to ponder on their self-worth too much – their new six-song release is a master class in growing as a band, full of powerful, self-propelled indie punk that feels explosive, powerful, and poignant in all the right ways.   Rather than start with the album opener, we’re going to highlight “Reliance,” one of the album’s most blood-pumping songs. Get used to the hallmarks found here – buzzsaw guitars grind with a guttural[...]

Ole Anders Winge Walseth – Borodino 1812

October 9, 2025

Ole Anders Winge Walseth (OAWW).   An epic name tied to an epic new EP – Borodino 1812, a six-song offering that feels like a clarion call for war. Even just the mention of “1812” evokes images and feelings of a battle long since past, and OAWW brings it to life with a passionate blend of alt rock and metal. Written over the course of 8 years (2017-2025), Anders Winge Walseth and Erlend Naalsund teamed up to write the majority of this Norwegian rock EP, with the exception of “Death on the Horizon” and “Ocean Liners,” which come straight from OAWW’s brain.   We’d be remiss without starting with the title-track and opening track, “Borodino 1812.” Through epic guitars, snarling vocals, and a 5+ minute runtime, the band delves into a powerful soundscape that copes with themes of conflict, valor, and what it truly means to be “human.” These themes[...]