Last Week’s Jams (11.11 – 11.15)
After a fairly slow week, we hit it hard this week, bringing you a nice collection of great tunes, as we’re focused on that side while everyone else is scrambling to wrap up their year end lists. There was a heavy Austin contingent, particularly as we announced we’ll be dropping the new EP from Fantastic Purple Spots; Austin also brought us new stuff from Variety, Burgess Meredith, David Israel, and Being Dead. The Laughing Chimes made us realize that there’s still time left in 2024 for brilliant pop music, while Feeling Figures popped in with a video to remind us how great their last LP was. And, all of it kicks off with a great introduction to Lone Striker. Little bit of this, little bit of that, little bit of Dwight Yoakam.
I apologize for taking Friday off, but had to head out of town with my old lady to celebrate her birthday. But, wanted to run a Last Week’s Jams post as there were some super rad tunes sneaking under the radar of the masses. I can’t get enough of this Cistern track that kicks this playlist off; it’s matched up with the most energetic tune from the Green Child‘s new LP. Plus, old ATX songwriter Matthew Squires made an appearance, which always warrants a celebration. Cool new stuff from Ryli got us started off in the week, not to mention the great slow burners we get from the latest Constant Follower and Wussy records. Press play and thank me later.
Just when we thought the year was dragging to a close, we managed to find enough hits to fall in love with and make you a proper playlist! We even have a few of the tracks we covered from Maneater and Boyracer missing, so be sure to check those out. I loved the opening song from Prism Shores; it’s definitely a bright spot on last week, along with the reemergence of Mogwai on the scene. We managed to get in some Austin love for Whalers and Gus Baldwin and the Sketch, not to mentioned representing for the local festival with Levitation interviews from Hello Mary and the Strange Lot. Plus, our pal Michael Maly was able to swing some coverage for Air‘s 25th Anniversary performance of Moon Safari, giving me a chance to slide “Sexy Boy” into yet another playlist. Check it all out below.
It seems like the year is grinding to a slow halt, as there are fewer and fewer trickles of new tracks coming our way, though I’ll admittedly hope that that’s the end of the year preparations not the musical end of times. Still, I fell in love with a lot of great songs, like a new single from the last Mope Grooves LP, which just came out on 12XU. Also, 12XU adjacent is a new single from Austin’s Quin Galavis, which I was digging too. There was a brand new single from The Gentle Spring, which hopefully got you Field Mice fans excited. Plus, RayRay has been busting his ass on getting coverage out for Levitation this week, with new posts up on Pissed Jeans and Acid Mothers Temple.
There was so much new music dropping last week that it was hard to keep track of it all, but I think with 22 new songs out there, we managed to do our part. Greg Mendez was a big winner, with a brand new EP we loved; I also definitely didn’t turn away from the fresh Innocence Mission, which maybe one of my favorite they’ve ever concocted. We had a premiere of a new Sunnsetter tune, and also hit up the latest from The Great Divides, so we’re kind of all over the place musically, making this playlist a journey of sorts. You can’t go wrong by pressing play below!
We crushed the coverage last week; we had some ACL coverage as well as some Sigur Ros notes from their Austin show. But, we also covered a solid 28 tracks, 26 of which made the cut on our Last Week’s Jams (the new Boyracer and Rocky Lorelei can only be found on the site). A new track from the Serfs is still living rent-free in my brain, while I discovered just how much I’m enjoying Kim Deal‘s new solo stuff. That doesn’t even scratch the surface, as there were several Texas’ acts like Pets and Trauma Ray getting some new jams out. I will admit, perhaps I overdid it, but eh, you love the new stuff right? Cool. Stream it then.
It’s always strange when I feel like I didn’t do a good job covering new jams, yet I end the week with 20 or more new tunes we’ve tried to get you to crank up…and last week was definitely one of those…feel like I barely dipped my toes in the pond of goodness. Alas, there were some great tunes for you, particularly if you’re into the Australian scene, with new stuff from both Pop Filter and Skegss, not to mention the Oceanic adjacent Jim Nothing. Naked Roommate threw down an end of Summer block party, while Austin’s Cast of Thousands let us say hello to some old friends. Tons of stuff to indulge upon here, so feel free to let me know what I might have missed along the way.
We’re drawing towards the end of the year, and while that means arbitrary musical lists of things, what it also means is that we’ve got a few more records hanging out to enjoy before the year is up. Personally, there were some great new songs from trauma ray, EggS and the Wickies, which indicated that these acts have a lot of promise to deliver. Best Bets dropped their latest LP, which was on our radar, not to mention the new release from Being Dead and Feeling Figures. Loved the introduction to Coldwave, and it never hurts to wrap up the end of the week with new music from Constant Follower!
A ton of new music dropped this past week, and as usual, we were on-hand to cover the stuff sliding under the radar of the cognoscenti. We had a few premieres, like the latest from UVTV, which finds the band slowing things down and exploring the shadowy tones of dreampop. I made sure to hype one of my favorite releases of the month, Mo Dotti, which I’m hoping is on the way to my doorstep any day. Still, some of our favorite labels Meritorio and Bobo Integral dropped new tunes from Slack Times and The Psych Fis, and we filled in the gaps with popular favorites like 2nd Grade and Greg Mendez, among many others. Just press play and send a thank you letter.
Seemed like a strange week for some reason, but there were some definitely tunes that just broke my heart, in the best way possible. I continue to be impressed by Merce Lemon‘s new stuff, and “Crow” was just a beast. Porridge Radio, too, offered up a song that just wanted to shatter spirits, though if that’s the case, I won’t mind one bit. Alas, there was some pop in the week, like the new record from Young Scum and new single from Jim Nothing. Plus, old favorites the New Tigers are back, as is Germany’s Roller Derby. Indulge yourselves by pressing play below, but be sure to start with the powerhouse hit from The Wickies.