[MadhattanJack]

Sometimes I wish I liked metal bands more than I do... it seems like it would all be much easier, somehow. 🫠

Anwyay, this week started out looking pretty bad, without much appreciable shoegaze, dreampop, XTC-influenced, or avant-garde stuff — Tap's anticipation list has the new Wet Tuna (not Wet Leg!) album listed, which is kind of cool-sounding with an almost David Lynchian vibe to it, though I prefer tuna that's been well-drained — assuming it comes from a can. If it comes directly from the sea, well obviously that's a different story... but moving right along, there's also the new Colin Self album, respite ∞ levity for the nameless ghost in crisis, which is also interesting but definitely not in my personal "wheelhouse" or even in my personal backyard shed or basement storage-bin area.

There are, however, at least half-a-dozen more conventional indie-rock-with-female-singers albums coming out tomorrow that I'll probably like, including new ones from PONY and Remember Sports. All of which I'll try to listen to over the next few days, but right now the leading candidate is this one:


Howling Bells with Juanita Stein
Strange Life (2026)

This is their fifth album, though the last one was back in 2014. I won't say it's significantly better than their previous stuff because I haven't heard much of it, and what I have heard strongly suggests that I'd like that too, but according to their PR they started out as a kind of Americana-influenced punk-type band and were moving steadily towards a more straight-ahead post-punk sound with "atmospherics," sort of like the Throwing Muses but more with Tanya Donnelly singing than Kristin Hersh, I guess, and more melodic really. Anyway, I like it, and I really like Juanita Stein's voice, so I ranked it at #3 for the year so far.

[Tap]

The big one this week is The Tomeka Reid Quartet - dance! skip! hop!

https://outofyourheadrecords.bandcamp.com/album/dance-skip-hop

Only a few tracks on here but its on streamers in full. It's jazz with cello, bass, guitar, and drums, very friendly without being fearful of adventure and character. Really loving it!!

I imagine there will also be a lot of interest in the new ones from Bruno Pernadas, Jill Scott, and femtanyl. And this new artist hemlocke springs seems very cool!!

And I'm certainly interested in that Wet Tuna (I remember hearing some of the old MV + EE stuff back in the day) and that Colin Self album as well!

Oh also the Momoko Gill and Otro albums seem like they could hit with some folks here

[MadhattanJack]

I really liked this one too:


Katzin
Buckaroo (2026) (BC)

This is actually a Southwestern-style indie folk-rock album that occasionally throws in some momentary tripgazer-style electronics, without veering too much into experimentalism. Not what you'd expect based on the album cover, anyway (though it does have track titles like "Cowboy," "Wild Horses," and "All Hat, No Cattle"). It doesn't seem to be getting much marketing/promotion at the moment, but there's some hit potential here if it gets some.

[Tap]

Oh yeah that Katzin is very nice, had a listen last night and really enjoyed it!

Also found out I missed a big one! From some people involved in that Princ€ss album from a little while ago. Wonderful dream pop right here!

Nashpaints - Everyone Good Is Called Molly
https://nashpaints.bandcamp.com/album/everyone-good-is-called-molly

[Repo]

[MadhattanJack]

[Repo]

[Tap]

Aw thanks!!

Yeah looks like there's an attempt to be unbiased but there's still a bias against some stuff, like club oriented releases. Like this one that's coming on Friday

LWS - Gubbins
https://lwslwslws.bandcamp.com/album/gubbins

Listen to the preview track here, the vocal bits are so fucking weird. Can't imagine this playing in a club all loud and everyone going "yeah, we're into this, we're having a good time and dancing about it" like what?? It's so weird. I think it's cool.

Still need to update all my links today, there's a few others that need to be added. Like

Brandon Seabrook - Hellbent Daydream
https://brandonseabrook.bandcamp.com/album/hellbent-daydream

This seems really different from what I know of this guy!

The big one I'm most excited for is probably this one

Chantal Michelle - All Things Might Spill
https://chantalmichelle.bandcamp.com/album/all-things-might-spill

Shelter Press always has the good ambient type of stuff, love em.

Oh btw you all won't see me next week because I'm getting skeleton change surgery, and it's like the worst timing because there's so much good shit coming. I got to hear Shane Parish - Autechre Guitar earlier this week and it was INCREDIBLE. And then there's also Booker Stardrum, Heavenly, Bill Callahan, Caterina Barbieri & Bendik Giske, vic bang, Mitski, Nondi_, and Flaccid Mojo (aka Black Dice without Eric Copeland), like FUCK I am missing out on a big one here.

[Repo]

[Tap]

Traditionally it would be called facial feminization surgery but I'm not able to get my jaw done and I don't want to get anything changed about my nose, so I'm calling it facial thxxinization surgery and taking the opportunity to go she/they on the pronouns, but I feel like if I say that it'll raise so many questions, like there's not even a single result on google for the term and so I feel like people would be really confused and go "tap what the fuck are you talking about" and I'd go "you know, like she 💁‍♀️ / they 👽" and then people would go "that doesn't help at all and just raises more questions!!", so I've also been calling it skeleton change surgery to bypass all that. I guess it'd be clearer if I said skull change surgery but skeleton is just such a cooler word. But yeah that'll have me out of it for a bit while I heal.

Oh also I should note I feel like this is the big one for wider audiences

Hen Ogledd - DISCOMBOBULATED
https://henogledd.bandcamp.com/album/discombobulated

Like it sounds crazy and will probably be widely hated but I think ppl will be interested

Oh shit boomkat is putting this out rn as well!!

Dntel - Enya Mixes
https://boomkat.com/products/enya-mixes