New Track Jukebox – 9/27/21

A jukebox themed weekly recap of notable new releases

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CONTRIBUTIONS FROM: John Peterson, Will Kirkpatrick, Samantha Sullivan, and Daphne Wong

Add to Queue:

A nice end of summer jam. Well-produced with a groovy reggaeton beat. Nao and Gold’s voices blend in an honest and natural way that elevates what would otherwise be a mediocre song. – John Peterson

You can’t help but feel a little bit jealous while listening to this. Kurt’s rough vocals and the thrashing guitars will make you wish you could time travel back to 1991. There’s a vague violence behind Cobain’s “I don’t care attitude” that makes the track even more intense when played live. – Samantha Sullivan

Catherine Moan delivers internet-age longing on her debut album Chain Reaction, released via Born Losers Records. A digital daze, she incorporates dark-wave elements into her silky synth-pop that make it feel dystopian. – Samantha Sullivan

As you might have noticed, I never miss an opportunity to talk about Wednesday. The North Carolina based band dropped their Audiotree Live session this week, and it felt like the pain of every break-up, “I miss you” phone call, SEPTA cry session, and Radiohead black out hitting you all at once. It almost knocked me off my feet to hear Karly Hartzman hit the soaring high notes in “Cody’s Only” and then delicately deliver the country track “How Can You Live If You Can’t Love.” – Samantha Sullivan

Georgia’s effortless range and confessional writing dominate this sad bop. Veering towards Julia Michael’s pop simplicity, what the song lacks in her typical full acoustic sound it makes up for in raw conciseness. – Daphne Wong

Godcaster goes feral on their new single, “Hecky Skelters.” The first release from their upcoming EP, Saltergasp, out November 5 via Ramp Local. With crashing percussion and David Mcfaul and Kolk’s dueling vocals, it sounds like apocalyptic cacophony. – Samantha Sullivan

The Velvet Underground are absolutely stunning. There is a level of intimacy and vulnerability in the live recording that is completely captivating. Even experiencing the performance after the fact is exhilarating. – Samantha Sullivan

Joyer’s Duster-esque slow core will make you want to disappear for a little while. With sparse percussion and gauzy guitars, their muted percussion feels like pressing on a bruise. The lyrics suggest this dull sadness that makes you want to go completely numb. I’d suggest putting this one in your back pocket for when the seasonal depression hits. – Samantha Sullivan

Clarence has such a ridiculous control over his music, every moment tantalizes and excites. I guess I might call what he does hyper-anti-pop, but genres truly elude him. “Obsessed (With My Shadow Self)” takes many a sonic detour, but ultimately grounds itself in a strong drum and bass combo with a catchy chorus. – John Peterson

Considering how much I love the solo work of both of these artists, I was expecting a collaboration for the ages. Unfortunately, the result was pretty tame. Still, with tracks like “Olympus” and “Back To Oz,” this is a can’t miss album. – John Peterson

This track is chaotic in all the best ways. The constant arpeggios from the guitar during the verse turns into white noise behind the charming vocals. The song is great, and the sensory overload is great. Deerhoof is a hidden gem. – Will Kirkpatrick

It’s hard to describe the sonic atmosphere of alt-J’s newest single. Imagine a slow-motion music video following a group as they move through a city—but like in a good way. With percussion made from objects from the lost-and-found and spacious organs/choir vocals, the vibes are strong with this one. – John Peterson

Up for Debate:

Steady chugging along, Parquet Courts gives us another solid modern rock track. But the song feels dragged out despite being just under 3 minutes long. The lyrics and instrumentals are fine, but it leaves you waiting for the band to step on the gas. If this is the worst their next album offers that is completely okay. – Will Kirkpatrick

This album was made up of songs that were cut from Shauf’s previous LP, The Neon Skyline, and it shows a bit. His music is so unoffensive that it really relies on stellar songwriting to stand out. Apart from a few decent stories, this isn’t his best work to date. – John Peterson

With a name like The Regrettes, I was almost fooled that this song would be punky and raw. Even though I was disappointed by how firmly situated in pop this song is, anyone who liked “brutal” by girlboss legend Olivia Rodrigo should be able to get something out of this one. – John Peterson

You can take or leave the instrumental, but the vocal performance on this song is strong enough to put any future releases from Amber Mark on your radar. – John Peterson

Get off the Aux:

whoever wrote this song has either never heard “Wonderwall” or was listening to “Wonderwall” as they wrote it. Either option is bad, which brings me to my larger point—this song is bad. – John Peterson

This album is utterly bland. She’s reaching for an in-demand indie pop aesthetic but has removed all of the actual charm that artists like Lawrence offer in their music. The lyrics are pretty unbearable, as well, with cringe-inducing lines like, “I don’t like boys, but I do. I just hate it when they make me cry.” The feature from CHIKA is suave, with clever and cute wordplay that Alessia really should have been taking notes from. – John Peterson

Listening to music like this is always tough. Like a slot machine lining up in a perfect combination, you can feel the money being made as the song progresses. With vaguely Daft Punk-esque throwback production and the most generic hook to ever exist, this song should have been taken out of the casino. – John Peterson

Yeesh. Not good Mr. Eazy. Macklemore meets Logic in the most abhorrent of ways. Without a major stylistic overhaul, G-Eazy should probably just stop releasing music. – John Peterson