The planet may be on fire, but the same can’t be said for your taste in music. In fact, the last time you DJ’d a party, your friend said it felt like someone dumped a vat of water on everyone. While having a mass amount of freezing water splashed on you may sound like a great thing right now, your friend meant it in a negative sense. We can’t stand to see you drop the ball like that time and time again. To help ease you into a life of elevating social functions instead of destroying them, we’ve crafted a list of new songs and classic jams for your perusal. You can thank us when people start inviting you to things again.
Mitski “Bug Like An Angel”
Much to the chagrin of therapists nationwide, Mitski has announced that she has renegotiated her label contract and canceled her planned retirement from the music world. With a newfound optimism and lust for life, her forthcoming album ‘The Land Is Inhospitable And So Are We’ is sure to be the feel-good hit of the summer. The lead single ‘Bug Like An Angel’ presents a more stripped back version of the songwriter than we’ve been used to hearing as of late. An aesthetic choice that holds until a massive choir comes in to underline some of her more important lyrics.
OSEES “Stunner”
Now here’s a song you can fry an egg on the sidewalk to. If the summer heat hasn’t already melted your face, this track should do the trick. The latest single, presented here as a live performance, from the band’s forthcoming LP ‘Intercepted Message’ is a certified ripper. Blending ‘80s power-pop synth with Jon Dwyer’s signature psych-garage arrangement style, ‘Stunner’ is nothing less than its namesake. We’re still waiting on the poppier sound Dwyer promised us this Spring, though we would be remiss not to suspect that this is just what pop music sounds like in his surely chaotic brain.
Soccer Mommy “Soak Up The Sun (Sheryl Crow Cover)”
While it may seem a bit cruel for Sophia Regina Allison’s project, Soccer Mommy, to release a cover of Sheryl Crow’s ‘Soak Up The Sun’ while the giant ball of fire in the sky is actively trying to kill us, we have to admit it’s an incredible effort. Featuring guitars that sound woozier than we felt while doing yard work the other day, the band’s rendition adds an element of chaotic shoegaze without sacrificing the catchy-as-hell attributes of the original. You may want to wait to put this one on until you’re in air conditioning, as you’ll likely get so excited that you might pass out in hotter conditions. Stay hydrated, friends.
Worriers “Top 5”
Worriers’ Lauren Denitzio is experiencing a bit of a renaissance as they prepare their second album to be released this year, and sixth overall, ‘Trust Your Gut.’ Self-produced and featuring a backing band of all-stars and old friends alike, Atom Willard, Franz Nicolay, and Allegra Anka (Against Me!, The Hold Steady and Cayetana, respectively), ‘Trust Your Gut’ is destined to be an indie-punk highlight of the year. The latest single, ‘Top 5,’ details life during the pandemic while promising to dance on the grave of a certain political figure who largely brushed off the seriousness of the event before it largely disrupted everyone’s lives.
The Menzingers “There’s No Place In This World For Me”
For a few months now, The Menzingers have been teasing a follow-up to 2019’s excellent album, ‘Hello Exile.’ While they’ve been uncharacteristically vague about the upcoming full-length, they’ve been steadily releasing new material to tide us over. ‘There’s No Place In This World For Me’ came out a couple of weeks ago, and if it’s any indication of the record’s content, we’re looking toward more of the anthemic, guitar-driven, and catchy-as-hell craftsmanship we’ve come to expect from the Scranton, Pennsylvania quartet.
In case you haven’t already assumed, most of our staff actually listens to music pretty frequently. Granted, a lot of it is absolutely unbearable, but it still technically counts as music. Here are a few of the classic songs we’ve heard in the writer’s room this week that didn’t make our editor’s ears bleed and stomach churn.
Angel Olsen “Forgiven/Forgotten”
Our managing editor was so impressed to hear this one blaring out of the house BlueTooth speaker that she briefly considered giving the writer playing it a raise. As with all things, it’s the thought that counts, so if you see the writer in question, try not to mention he briefly could have afforded that apartment he’s been looking at for a while now. In our editor’s defense, he immediately put on Meshuggah after this song, so it’s technically his fault for the change of heart.
Blink-182 “Aliens Exist”
Unless you’ve been living under a rock this week (and if you have been, we sincerely hope things get better for you soon) you’ve probably heard that UFO whistleblower David Grusch whistleblew his entire load at a Congressional hearing regarding UAPs this week. Grusch claimed, under oath mind you, that not only are aliens fucking real, but that the US Military has been in possession of ‘non-human’ aircraft and bodies since at least the 1930s. Tom DeLonge’s work in raising awareness of the UAP phenomenon played no small part in these hearings becoming a possibility. Pretty impressive for a guy who wrote a song called ‘Dick Lips.‘ Needless to say, we’ve been blasting ‘Aliens Exist’ on repeat over here.
The Presidents of The United States of America “Volcano”
We’ll be honest, we kind of forgot this band existed until an intern put on their sophomore record ‘II’ and played it in its entirety at full volume. While everyone was rightfully very annoyed, it was nice to be reminded that the band had more songs to offer than ‘Lump’ or ‘Peaches.’ Of all the songs on the album ‘Volcano’ is probably the catchiest, though we wish we wouldn’t have told the intern who proceeded to play the song on repeat for an hour. Some people are just too eager to please.