Fall is inching closer and closer and winter will be soon behind. You’ve spent the last few months trying to stay figuratively and literally cool. One problem, though, you’ve forgotten to stock up on new music to get you through the trying times ahead. Normally, we would judge you and make fun of you relentlessly, but new sounds are as nourishing and important as food. It would be cruel of us to watch you metaphorically starve. With that in mind, here are a few of our favorite new jams paired with some classic seasonings to help you through.
Petey “The Freedom To Fuck Off”
Social media is a strange thing these days. Performers can go from absolute nobodies to major label signees in a matter of a few short months if the algorithm deems them worthy enough for success. While some of these newly emerged superstars are hardly worth their weight in gold, occasionally an exception one sneaks through to break the mold. This is the case for Petey, who’s comedic TikToks have spread faster than a global plague and landed him a fresh deal with Capitol Records. While still funny, you might be surprised to know that outside of his bizarre short-form humor, he is a surprisingly earnest and adept singer/songwriter. His newest album, ‘USA,’ is set to come out next month. In the meantime, you can prep yourself with his excellent new single “The Freedom To Fuck Off,” which is a concept we doubt any of our readers are unfamiliar with.
Ratboys “Making Noise for the Ones You Love”
ICYMI, Chicago’s beloved Ratboys released their fifth LP, ‘The Window,’ a couple of weeks ago. Produced by Chris Walla and featuring the first batch of songs collaboratively written by the whole band, the record marks a fresher and sleeker sound for the indie rockers. The opener, “Making Noise for the Ones You Love” sets the tone for the gigantic sounds that permeate the entire outing, and makes for the perfect windows-down soundtrack as autumn rears its head. While this track won’t fully cure your impending seasonal depression, it will help you forget it’s coming as you strangle the last gasps of summer air and sunshine from the slowly dying carcass of the season.
Geese “Jesse”
Brooklyn’s Geese are wrapping up a whirlwind summer. Having just released their excellent and highly anticipated sophomore effort “3D Country,” they are dead set on cementing their place within the hallowed halls of New York’s legendary rock scene. To make sure their application is taken seriously, the band has announced their next release, ‘4D Country,’ a follow-up EP containing five outtakes that didn’t quite fit into the massive conceptual square of the preceding LP. The first of these five songs to be released, entitled ‘Jesse,’ plays out as if it were your first mushroom trip. It’s pleasant until some freaky shit catches your ear and rips you into an ever-escalating cacophony of massive grooves before eventually winding down as you ponder your entire life and relationship history. Needless to say, it rips.
Electric Six “Hot Numbers On the Telephone”
Put the kids to bed and bust out the rubber sheets, because Electric Six IS BACK BABY! The Detroit rock outfit just released ‘Turquoise,’ their first new album of all original material in nearly six years. If you’re worried that age has softened their acerbic and virile demeanor, rest assured that they are as horny if not hornier than ever before. No doubt about it, these guys fuck. Take the album highlight ‘Hot Numbers On the Telephone’ as an example. On the track, Dick Valentine sings in his signature baritone: ‘It’s all about the placement of the tower when you’re talkin’ through fiber optic lines.’ We’re no scholars here, but we’re pretty sure ‘tower’ is a metaphor for his dick. We’re not sure to which fiber optic lines are in reference, but we imagine it’s some new sex act that involves hooking your junk up to the internet. Either way, proceed with caution if you’re feeling inspired.
‘68 “Removed Their Hooks”
It’s been almost an entire decade since Josh Scogin’s band the Chariot called it quits, leaving him to form the two-piece from Hell, ‘68. Combining elements of blues, punk, hardcore, and noise, the band is still as fresh and wildly inventive ten years into the game as they were on their debut. Imagine that the Black Keys never started sucking or that Royal Blood was ever good in the first place, and you still wouldn’t get anywhere close to the insanity that is ‘68’s signature sound. The latest single ‘Removed Their Hooks’ from their upcoming album ‘Yes, And…’ is a mini-epic, weaving through peaks and valleys of fuzzed-out guitars nestled in mountains of feedback. As echoed by Scogin’s lyrical outro, it just might be one of our ‘favorite things.’
With Honor “Open Hands”
You probably won’t believe this, but did you know that there’s a good kind of metalcore? It’s rooted in ‘90s thrash and not that generic 2010’s era Warped Tour bullshit. Connecticut’s With Honor know and they, erm, honor that sound while adding a bit more melody. Their latest album ‘‘Boundless,’ which is their first in 18 years, just dropped last week. It offers a crisper, more melodic, and tighter version of the band than fans have previously heard, but don’t worry: the chugging guitars and breakneck drums on tracks like ‘Open Hands’ will still make you want to dropkick the nearest stranger as you scream along to all the excellent hooks.
We love hipping you to the latest and greatest tracks, but sometimes you need some familiar favorites to keep you from jumping off a bridge. We get it. These may not be your favorite old tracks, but you’re desperate and we’re all you have left. Here are a few of our comfort listens that might just give you the kick you need to survive.
The Postal Service “The District Sleeps Alone Tonight”
If you hear about unusual flooding in Rhode Island over the next few days, it’s probably due to one of our writers still crying from seeing the twentieth-anniversary tour of The Postal Service’s ‘Give Up’ and Death Cab For Cutie’s ‘Transatlanticism.’ Fortunately for us – and weirdly for him – he doesn’t really fuck with the latter, otherwise the entire East Coast would be submerged.
Rush “Roll the Bones”
Recently, our managing editor has been punishing writers who have late drafts by making them listen to really terrible Symphonic Metal bands. That’s just what it takes to run an efficient publication. Unfortunately, the staff has gotten so desensitized to this tactic that drastic ’90s Rush measures have been taken. One of newer writers was unsure what our editor meant this week when she asked him if he ‘wanted to turn his fucking article in or just roll the bones?’ He hasn’t been heard from in days.
Cap’n Jazz “Forget Who We Are”
One of our writers was recently hit with the Herculean task of deciphering Cap’n Jazz’s lyrical content. We’re pretty sure it broke his brain as most of their tracks are absolutely unlistenable if not just plainly incoherent. Still, as he struggles with his identity, literally forgetting who he is, the whole office has been low-key loving when this one hits the communal Bluetooth speaker.