You’ve heard of an embarrassment of riches? Well, next week’s releases could be called a predicament of adequacy. Along with the titles below, I found at least 20 more that caught my ear, but didn’t quite make the grade for one reason or another. Maybe I’ll change my mind when I hear more. It’s been known to happen. But for now at least, here are your plays of the week:
Bad//Dreems
Ultra Dundee
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Bad//Dreems’ fifth studio album Ultra Dundee is a crystallization and extension of the vision that began with their seminal debut album Dogs At Bay, and has continued over all their subsequent releases. It was recorded earlier this year and produced in conjunction with Dan Luscombe (Amyl And The Sniffers, Courtney Barnett) at Mixmasters Studios in Adelaide. “Who is Ultra Dundee?” they ask rhetorically. “I’m the old man in the heat. I’m the banker on dialysis. I’m the roo shooter with the golden eye. I’m the highway at Daly Waters. I’m the last of Abe Saffron’s dancing girls. I’m the Russian hermit, living up north. Ultra Dundee is you. Ultra Dundee is me.”
Leah Blevins
All Dressed Up
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Out of the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains of eastern Kentucky, Leah Blevins makes her stunning Easy Eye Sound debut with her sophomore album All Dressed Up. Produced by Dan Auerbach and recorded in Nashville, the album seamlessly blends Blevins’ timeless vocals and songwriting with the enchanting spirit of the South and contemporary storytelling. With influences ranging from gritty country to graceful gospel, Leah’s creative spirit continues to evolve. Her heartfelt songs explore themes of fear, self-discovery, and leaving the past behind, resonating with stories of life, love, and loss.”
Damaged Bug
Zuzax
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Forty or so Damaged Bug tunes from the past seven years were orphaned / unfinished, which is pretty rare for me,” says singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist John Dwyer, best known as the prolific leader of psychedelic garage-punks Oh Sees. “I just kept having other things going on and life kept getting in the way. And frankly, the songs were all over the place so I didn’t see a thread in there, but in light of current events in the world, I feel like It’s every artist’s calling to construct personal messages cloaked in moments of escapism. That’s what this record is for me — something to clear the decks a little bit in my studio, relax my mind, and keep the wolf from the door. It’s a bit of a joyous/sad record dealing with hope and forgiveness, two things which I hope end up more in my life. It’s abstract and poppy, fried and sugary. It’s exactly how I feel at the moment fried and skewed. Good luck out there and I hope this turns off the torrent for you, for a moment.”
The Dandy Warhols
Pin Ups
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “We’ve been talking for years now about getting as many of the covers we’ve done for specific territories together and releasing them for all to hear. It’s finally happening,” says Zia McCabe of Portland’s Dandy Warhols. Indeed it is: Pin Ups, their new album, is packed with covers from such legendary and venerable artists as The Cure, Gang Of Four, The Clash, Bob Dylan and The Beatles. “These are some of our favorite songs, or songs by our favorite bands, or just songs we admired,” explains Peter G. Holmström about their eclectic collection. While some are unreleased gems such as Ripple (Grateful Dead) and Jet Boy (New York Dolls), others are collected from various tribute records, bonus tracks, and B-sides. As much as a tribute to the songs they love, it also serves as a loveletter to many of the artists who are not only peers but friends as well. “Nearly every band we cover on here are friends of ours or artists we have had a meaningful experience with,” Courtney Taylor-Taylor says. “Looking over all the songs again however, I am noticing that we never met the artists from the ’60s. Weird.”
Footballhead
Weight Of The Truth
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “It would be easy to pigeonhole Footballhead’s unapologetically butt rock-inspired record Weight Of The Truth as simple nostalgia bait. Why wouldn’t millennials lust for the days of Halo and energy drinks in carpeted basements they’re not convinced they’ll ever be able to afford for themselves? Beyond that, why would the zoomers that now intently follow not try and chase the high of hyperreality in a bygone world that looks, to them, downright utopian when compared to the present? What sets Footballhead’s capital-R Rock sound apart from contemporaries is — in addition to just sounding better — a desire and an ability to thread the needle between paying homage to a quasi-idyllic past and pursuing an earnest future. Footballhead wear their 2000s-era influences on their waffle-knit longsleeves, with power chord drives and pummeling choruses, all sequenced together like the teeth of a skeleton key able to unlock core memories for people who’ve either been there or people who simply wonder what being there was like.”
Inara George
Songs Of Douglass & Littell
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Inara George’s new album Songs Of Douglass And Littell is a collaboration with longtime friends Eliot Douglass and Philip Littell, showcasing reimagined songs first written more than 30 years ago. Though best known for her work in folk-pop and indie pop, Inara has always been a musical shape-shifter with this album exploring a jazzier side. “I think the idea of making this album sprung from me just wanting to create something soothing,” she says. “Lately, that is the kind of music I want to listen to. The world seems so chaotic, I liked the idea of creating some moment of serenity. And not to say that this music is without friction. The poetry of the words and the complexity of the music, to me, pulls it out of just being pretty. Beneath the warmer surface there’s something darker and deeper.”
Girl Scout
Brink
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Following a trilogy of introductory EPs, a buzzed-about tour with Alvvays, and a mountain of global acclaim since they first emerged in 2022, Stockholm trio Girl Scout teamed with Alex Farrar (Wednesday, Snail Mail) for their first full-length record. A sun-drenched prism of guitar-driven indie rock, Brink refracts with a new glow from each song to the next. Towering anthems intersecting with hushed tenderness. Nostalgia with momentary living. Doubt with joy. Comprised of 13 tracks caught between apocalyptic anxiety and wistful escapism, the album captures the all-too-familiar crossroads of feeling stuck, yearning for change, and standing on the edge of something unknown.”
KillerStar
The Afterglow
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “After earning four-star reviews and glowing comparisons to David Bowie, Suede and prime ’70s art rock for their self-titled debut album, KillerStar return with their electrifying second album The Afterglow. The core duo — Rob Fleming (vocals, guitar, synths) and James Sedge (drums) — are reunited with the Bowie band alumni Mike Garson (piano), Earl Slick (guitar) and Mark Plati (bass). Backing vocals are provided by The Webb Sisters, Charley and Hattie, who have worked with David Gilmour, Tom Petty and Leonard Cohen. The record also features guest appearances on select tracks from Gerry Leonard (musical director and guitarist for Bowie’s Heathen tour), Alfio Annibali (Alex Lifeson’s Envy Of None), Carey Frank (Bruce Springsteen), Dom Beken (Nick Mason’s Saucerful of Secrets), and regular collaborator Emm Gryner.”
Son Little
Cityfolk
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Curiosity about his ancestry has led songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Son Little on a journey throughout the American South that has resulted in his new album, simply titled Cityfolk. The West coast born, Northeast-bred musician finetunes his craft here and speaks for those enduring tribulations about finding their place in the world. Now living outside of Atlanta, the artist — real name: Aaron Livingston — attributes the development of Cityfolk to going even further south to record in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, in January 2025. It was there that Little connected with Grammy-winning musician and Alabama Shakes band member Ben Tanner to flesh out sketches of songs that he’d crafted through epiphanies about his family’s roots. Already having an understanding of his father’s side, Little views his maternal line as a “mystery unfolding,” but it was in Shoals that the stars aligned, both through retracing his history and formulating an organic chemistry with Tanner.”