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2 weeks ago | 
thelineofbestfit.com | John Amen
Her last album, 2022’s self-titled release, offered a blend of engaging songs and intriguing instrumental forays, varying from solo performances to full-band renderings. With her latest project, Jellywish, she largely readopts the guitar-and-vocal MO of earlier work, particularly 2019’s Emily Alone. That said, she strikes a more equanimous bearing, even as she continues to explore some of her favorite themes: relational issues, struggles with self-esteem, and concerns about her place in the world.
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2 weeks ago | 
beatsperminute.com | John Amen
[Matador; 2025]As Perfume Genius, Michael Hadreas has long straddled the gap between pop and the avant-garde. Had he been around in the 1960s or 1970s, he would’ve probably been associated with the Warhol scene. With this in mind, it’s no surprise that he released an album such as 2022’s Ugly Season, a richly layered instrumental and textural foray with vocals that largely operated ambiently.
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2 weeks ago | 
nodepression.com | John Amen
With their latest set, Believer, Ella Coyes assumes a more aerial view than on their 2022 debut, Communion, frequently putting distance between themself and their subject matter. John Nellen’s production MO complements Coyes’ narrative style and this new, detached perspective, infusing the tracks with buoyancy, while never diluting Coyes’ pensive leanings.
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3 weeks ago | 
beatsperminute.com | John Amen
[Captured Tracks; 2025]Current postpunk still a reconfiguration of Joy Division, The Cure, Bauhaus? Yes, no. Thank god for recent pivots by The Murder Capital and Fontaines, D.C. toward a more pop-leaning sound. The Smiths are the best thing to happen to postpunk in a decade! Shoegaze still trying to free itself from the weighty templates of My Bloody Valentine and the more spacious sprawls of Slowdive? Recent Americana heroes duplicating templates forged by Son Volt, Jason Molina, and Whiskeytown?
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3 weeks ago | 
beatsperminute.com | John Amen
[Ugly Hag; 2025]Ashanti Mutinta’s first four albums as Backxwash bulge with a ferocity that tears at the listener, ripping away defenses, rationalizations and deep-seated denials. Injustice thrives, she reminds us, abuse propels the human story. The aberrant is the norm.
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4 weeks ago | 
beatsperminute.com | John Amen
[AD 93; 2025]Led by singer Zack Borzone and juggernaut drummer Sam Pickard, YHWH Nailgun release their debut, 45 Pounds. On 10 tracks that add up to around 21 minutes, the band revel in frenetic vibes, Borzone channeling unbridled id energy via truncated melodies and fragmentary lyrics. 45 Pounds puts Nailgun’s chemistry on relentless display, as they strike a fertile balance between crafting incidental cohesions and indulging in rampant deconstruction.
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1 month ago | 
nodepression.com | John Amen
One of the more prolific artists working today, Charley Crockett releases his 15th album, Lonesome Drifter today. Drawing from the artistry of earlier work, particularly last year’s $10 Cowboy, Crockett continues to advance his persona – rambling man, raconteur, philosopher – offering hooky songs about hardscrabble romance and life on the road.
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1 month ago | 
popmatters.com | John Amen
Halo on the Inside Matador With 2017’s Reaching for Indigo, Haley Fohr, aka Circuit des Yeux, showcased her compositional savvy, crossing folk and avant-garde leanings. The album also spotlighted her voice in a way that previous projects hadn’t, her emotional and technical range on glorious display. 2020’s Jacqueline (released under her Jackie Lynn moniker) captured Fohr steering a rawer sound while adopting an edgy and punk-informed swagger.
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2 months ago | 
thelineofbestfit.com | John Amen
On The Machine Starts to Sing, she still transmits a signature volatility; grief and a kind of sober resilience, however, are more pronounced and central to the project. Recorded during the Clouds in the Sky They Will Always Be There for Me sessions, the four songs included on Machine comprise a riveting coda for the band, who recently announced that this will be their final release. The title song launches with a quiet hum and strum, unfurling like a dirge.
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2 months ago | 
beatsperminute.com | John Amen
[Fat Possum; 2025]Home movies, whether they feature our own lives or the lives of others, rouse a blend of nostalgia and longing. There’s an acute sense of time passing, how we’re granted this handful of years before we too pass into the unknown. The infinite continuum is vividly conjured, as is the finite nature of a single life. We encounter the paradox of our existence: we’re brightly and importantly alive and yet, we’re destined for obscurity, inconsequence.
