Mackenzie Leighton is the friend you call up when you finally book that flight to Europe. She’ll take you down dark, cobblestoned alleyways to smoke-filled underground jazz clubs and give you that authentic Parisian experience not found in Lonely Planet guidebooks. You start to think that maybe after a week of observing the breezy elegance around you—and splurging on a bottle of expensive perfume—you’ll have acquired that coveted French elegance by osmosis. Leighton is here to tell you that’s not how it works. You can take her word for it, too. The California-born singer-songwriter moved to Paris after graduating from NYU and is still chasing that infamous je ne sais quois that Parisian women claim as their birthright. “Paris Girls” is a swinging jazz-pop number with a waltz feel in the verses. Leighton’s navigation of agile melodies makes her sound like a smoother Nellie McKay for a modern young audience. Unapologetic electric guitar remains prominent throughout the song, transporting you to the front row of that smokey Paris jazz club ‘round midnight. Until it’s safe to travel again, this track should hold you over.

Brooklyn's Cape Francis is out with a new single titled "Nobody" off of his upcoming record. The song lives in a realm that is light yet pensive giving it a special kind of power. Kevin Henthorn talks about the background of the song telling us that "living in New York City can be incredibly overwhelming, especially coming from my home state of Maine. Living here, it feels like there's always someone else in a 30 foot radius of me at all times. Even if they're in a different apartment, through the walls, someone is always there. More and more I've been feeling the need to get out, which is why  "Nobody" is a song centered around escapism." The need to feel alone whether in your thoughts or physically is universal and speaks to who we are as human beings, needing both social interactions and solitude. In a genre that Henthorn labels as post-folk, Cape Francis finds themselves giving us the reflective nature of a folk song, with the modern and intricate sounds of the indie world. Be sure to check out our Buzzsession with Cape Francis that be on the look out for more music to come! 

The members of Vern Matz are self-proclaimed Radiohead fanatics, and the influence of Thom Yorke’s softer side is evident. “Systematically Gone” lets the listener revisit the sweet dreamlike state evoked in Radiohead’s “High and Dry,” but singer Danny Belgrad himself evokes the art rock heroes of a decade prior. R.E.M. sang, “Sometimes everything is wrong / Now it’s time to sing along,” and Belgrad channels Michael Stipe (quite convincingly) to describe a character singing away the toughest moments of their life, their “factory hours.” The subject’s stubbornness has left them “stuck on shore,” and vague questions like “Is it too much? / Will you ever stop?” convey an utter bewilderment with the decisions that they have made to take them so completely off course. With “systematic” echoes and jarring drum fills, the choruses, though still sweet, are frantic in a way that suggests the whole system itself is breaking down.

Loyal Lobos' debut EP releases today with soft-rock song "Burn" as its stand-out. It’s a song you can’t help to sway to and her youthful vocals drive the somber lyrics home. The LA native’s voice carries a relatable longing felt by her words and heard in her voice. The lines "You hold me just like my mother does, it hurts like hell / You broke, so watch me burn again" evoke a particular and familiar sadness. The simple percussion and guitar push her echo-y vocals to the forefront of the track with a slightly haunting aura as they intensify into the chorus — a feeling almost like finding something you thought you’d lost. Loyal Lobos' “Burn” is a sad song well-done. 

Miya Folick’s “Premonitions” is just the song for your next self-reflective midnight drive home. Folick strikes a delicate balance between contentment and yearning on this title track off her debut LP. Posing her deepest of existential questions to her listeners, the LA artist challenges herself and the audience to be more open with each other and themselves. Over an understated bass line and some lush synths, she sings, “If you ignore the darkness/then you miss the point of life.” “Premonitions” is a call for honest introspection and self-acceptance. Folick’s raw vocal delivery could be compared to a Strange Mercy-era Annie Clark, which is reason enough to dig into this track and others on her new record. The production is careful, intricate but accessible, just like indie pop records from Mitski and Japanese Breakfast. Folick’s record is fresh, fearless and ready to soundtrack your end of fall self-reflection. Give it a try!

Dutch-Ghanaian singer-songwriter Nana Adjoa recently released new EP A Tale so Familiar, a gorgeous collection of songs, with "Simmer Down" being the closing track. As an electric guitar and a piano usher in a calming and almost lullaby-like tone the themes of stories and nostalgia flood the song. The first verse gives us the setting of a comfortable house where records are spinning while the inhabitants eat "sweet bread" and drink "ageless wine." Adjoa refers to it all as "A tale so familiar," giving us the notion that something that once good and comfortable has now ceased to exist. There is a sadness to the song that is undeniable but it's coupled with a feeling of idllyic peace, as if living in past memories somehow makes them alive again. With her enwrapping voice and well-crafted lyrics, Nana Adjoa is the exactly kind of artist that we love to shine light on. Take a listen to "Simmer Down" to see for yourself.

"Out On A Trip" is the latest single by Chicago rock & roll band, The Evening Attraction. This tune was recorded straight to analog and produced by Twin Peaks', Colin Croom. As a listener you feel the pulse and the progression of the well-crafted lyrics. "Awake in a dream / But the night's not ending / You think you're asleep / But your eyes wide open / You know who you are / But now you're forgetting." Each verse paints an abstract picture, an out of body experience. But the chorus is repetitious and clever in a way that brings you back realizing it was just a trip, and it's all in your head. The Evening Attraction is creating music lyrically that is contemporary enough to stand amongst its peers but melodically respectful of the classics. The Farfisa Organ is reminiscent of the late 60s with vocal harmonies to match. These boys are the ones to watch. Stay tuned for more new music coming in early 2019.

With every corner of its soundscape filled to the brim with dreampop’s characteristic delay effects, it’s tough to make out every word of every line of Tallies’ new single, “Beat the Heart.” But that’s not really the point. Singer Sarah Cogan’s voice proudly shows the influence of The Smiths on the whole band, echoing Morrissey’s emotive depth and long syllables. The band describes this song as a rallying cry against “the lack of empathy that exists so strongly today” and hides that message in an airy earworm, hoping that it will carry listeners through difficult elections cycles and long nights post-Daylight Savings Time. Tallies announced their arrival into the world with their first single “Mother,” another entry from their new album due in January, more surf-pop than shoegaze in both sound and imagery, Tallies show that they are able to blend and contort their many influences into modern sounds.

Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good, says Kuinka singer Miranda Zickler, albeit with a far more vibrant energy. “Wet Cement” is a bouncy tune punctuated by Rick Astley-inspired drum fills and quick guitar trills, while low-end synths blend with Jillian Walker’s growling cello. Lucius fans will appreciate the song’s subdued dance vibe and the vocal harmonies panned out wide, but the lyrics paint a darker picture of “landmines and concrete clearing out the town.” 

“Wet Cement” calls to mind things that are never finished, never good enough or always improving, worry not if those improvements are for better or for worse. “Every wall here says the phrase / ‘Heaven wants to hold me down,’” sings Zickler, with some abstract ideal of perfection preventing others from being content with anything. Based out of Seattle, the imagery most obviously alludes to the rapid growth and gentrification of the city, but Kuinka praises the good, rather than the perfect, in all its forms. The second half of the song is a wordless celebration of the present, honoring what we have now and slowly building upon itself rather than tearing down the groundwork to create something potentially shinier.

Before you even hit play, the title of "Come By Sunday" will accurately give away the essence of this song. Easy like a Sunday morning and twinged with the nostalgic sound Major Murphy has come to master, this love song bares semblance to the folk classics. "Come By Sunday" shows us a side of a slow, down-beat song that's more picturesque and loving than sad, much like Simon & Garfunkel's legendary tunes. "I think we can go a whole long way together / Remember where we've been," frontman Jacob Bullard sings. After their debut album released this year, the band decided to pay homage to their past by releasing an EP of bedroom recordings from a time where Bullard was still honing his sound and songwriting craft. Named after the house the EP was written and recorded at, the Lafayette EP holds warmth and history within it, which is beautifully seen in its first single.

"Labor Fruit" by NYC-based indie-pop duo, Birch is out today! Listening to "Labor Fruit" feels like one insanely gratifying deep breath. The etherial quality to the music production and to singer-songwriter Michelle Birsky's voice creates a very calm inquisitive approach to a very noteworthy subject matter. We've stood here once before / It didn't go so well / We stood at the door / Knocked down the door/ Let's push down the door. / The song looks back on the feminist movement of the past and reflects on where we are today. It's about coming up against adversity and questioning whether or not you can keep on fighting. Be on the look out for Birch's debut LP femme.one coming early 2019. In the meantime see Birch live with Eyal Hai & Friend Roulette at Elsewhere on 11/17!