10) Fontaines D.C. – “Romance” (2024)

This Dublin-based post-punk band formed in college over a shared love of all things poetic. In 2018 the group began self-releasing their songs and performing live, to the point of gaining the attention of Partisan Records. Since then the band’s albums have been met with critical acclaim and even a Grammy nomination for Best Rock Album in 2021 with “A Hero’s Death”.

The release of “Romance” came in late August of this year to chart in several countries including the UK, Belgium, Ireland, the Netherlands, and the USA.
Our highlighted track, “Romance”, has an ominous yet laid back opening that keeps the listener intrigued.

9) Xiu Xiu – “13” Frank Beltrame Italian Stiletto with Bison Horn Grips” (2024)

Hailing from San Jose, California, experimental group Xiu Xiu (pronounced shoo-shoo) have been releasing music since 2002. Pulling inspiration from an expansive collection of influences, from Indigenous instrumentation to jazz legend Nina Simone and then synth-pop groups of the 80s. The undefinable group has seen many personnel over its two decades in the scene and is currently a trio consisting of Jamie Stewart, Angela Seo, and David Kendrick.
Their most recent album, “13” Frank Beltrame Italian Stiletto with Bison Horn Grips” was released on September 27th of this year. The album leans into the genre of noise-pop
The highlighted track of this week, “All We Ever Wanted Was Everything”, has a somber feeling with the simplicity of plucked guitar accompanied by gravely vocals.

8) Kishi Bashi – “Kantos” (2024)

Since 2012, singer-songwriter Kishi Bashi has orchestrated extensive and complex arrangements, often utilizing gentle vocals and rising strings. Having worked with artists like of Montreal and Regina Spektor, Bashi has been an active figure in the realm of indie rock and electronic music.
His most recent release, Kantos, brings bright instrumentation and upbeat melodies to showcase the beauty of human-created art in an increasingly artificially-intelligent world. Rife with textures of 70s funk and Japanese city pop of the 80s, this album is a danceable and groovy sonic experience.
This week’s highlighted track, “Escape from Knossos” is uptempo with high energy violins and synths.

7) Crumb – “AMAMA” (2024)

Back with their third album, Brooklyn-based psychedelic-rock band Crumb brings a lighthearted vibe to “AMAMA”. The band consists of Lila Ramani, Bri Aronow, Jesse Brotter, and Jonathan Gilad. With poetic lyrics written by Ramani, and hypnotic instrumental, this album is full of bright spots.

The title of the album, “AMAMA”, is the word for ‘grandmother’ in many Dravidian languages, including Malayalam, which is reflective of Ramani’s Indian heritage. The title makes more sense when you dive into the title track which opens with a sample of Ramani’s grandmother singing in Malayalam.

This week we’re highlighting the track “Sleep Talk”, which has a relaxing vibe with drowned out vocals and melodic drumming.

6) Hippo Campus – “Flood” (2024)

Hailing from St. Paul, Minnesota, bedroom pop band Hippo Campus is back with the release of their 4th full-length album, “Flood”. On this album the band attempts to step away from any preconceived notions of how their music ‘should’ sound, instead deciding to start creating this album from a clean slate.
With themes of vulnerability across the record, the group aimed to capture a universal feeling that everyone can relate to. This new set of songs demonstrates what can be made when you have a tight-knit group that has been growing together both musically and personally, strengthening their bond with their art and their fans.
The highlighted track, “Slipping Away”, is sad in lyrics but has a beachy sound to balance out the song.

5) Bay Ledges – “Rivers” (2024)

Bay Ledges is the musical project created by Zach Hurd out of his home in 2015. The goal was always to make music that embraced fun and didn’t rely on expectations. This approach earned Bay Ledges it’s first widespread success with the release of “Safe” in 2016 which charted at #3 on the Spotify Global Viral Chart.
This success was just the start as Bay Ledges have amassed nearly a million monthly listeners. The new album offers a mix of upbeat and lo-fi tracks. Some of the tracks also explore themes of freedom and romance to create a project with some introspection infused throughout.
The highlighted track, “Kids” features a mix of spoken word and sung vocal delivery and relaxed guitar loops.

4) Jamie XX – “In Waves” (2024)

Since 2006, James Thomas Smith has been a part of the musical world. Beginning with the band The xx, Smith honed his talent for sampling and remixing before going out under the name Jamie xx to release solo work. He received acclaim for remixes of a Gil Scott-Heron album, “I’m New Here”, entitled “We’re New Here”. Most notably his remix of the song “I’ll Take Care of You” was used as the base of Drake and Rihanna’s 2011 hit “Take Care”.
In this new album, Jamie xx uses the staple sounds of house music with some R&B samples to create an irresistibly danceable set of songs. The use of horn also adds a lot of flare to the album on tracks like “Baddy On The Floor” and “Life”. “In Waves” also features many of the artist’s longtime collaborators like The Avalanches, and Romy who was also a member of The xx.
The highlighted track this week, “Daffodil” features Kelsey Lu, John Glacier, and Panda Bear. The sample makes the song instantly memorable.

3)Suki Waterhouse – Memoir Of A Sparklemuffin” (2024)

Starting out as a model and actress, Suki Waterhouse began releasing music in 2016 with her single, “Brutally”. Some of the works Waterhouse is most recognizable for are her roles in “Love, Rosie”, “Detective Pikachu”, and “Daisy Jones & the Six”.

As she continued balancing her acting and singing careers, her first full-length album, “I Can’t Let Go” wasn’t released until 2022. This latest release, “Memoir Of A Sparklemuffin” comes after the artist opened for Taylor Swift’s “The Eras Tour” at Wembley Stadium.

This week’s highlighted track, “Big Love”, speaks about having intense emotions and how trying to contain them can end up ugly.

2) beabadoobee – “This Is How Tomorrow Moves” (2024)

British singer/songwriter beabadoobee comes from the Philippines and takes inspiration from Pinoy vocalists as well as indie rock artists like the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Alex G. The singer first gained notoriety when placed on a list with other rising acts, like Billie Eilish, and led to beabadoobee touring with Clairo to support her Immunity tour.

Her song, “Coffee” was sampled for a TikTok song, “Death Bed” by Powfu, which is when the singer really made her way into the public spotlight. This last fall she performed at Tyler, the Creator’s music festival, Camp Flog Gnaw, at the event’s biggest stage drawing an audience excited to hear the musician’s live vocals as well as her bass skills.

The highlighted track this week, “Ever Seen” is a hopeful love song that grapples with taking risks versus protecting yourself.

1)Magdalena Bay – “Imaginal Disk” (2024)

Pop duo Magdalena Bay is back with their 3rd studio album, “Imaginal Disk”. Following the release of “Mercurial World” (2021), fans of Magdalena Bay have been waiting to see what the synth-pop duo had in store for their next album. Expanding on themes previously explored, the new album offers both more personal themes lyrically and a much richer sound on the instrumental side.

Both of us on the music team got to see the duo bring the songs to life on the Denver stop of their “Imaginal Mystery” tour. With elaborate staging, lighting, decor, and costuming the show was truly unforgettable. The album is full of bright spots making it hard to pick just one song to spotlight.

The highlighted track, “Love Is Everywhere” has a chilled bass line and drawn out vocals. It is also used as a sample in Lil Yachty’s 2023 song “running out of time”.