For such a pretty song, OWEL’s “I Saw Red” is as tense as they come. The choruses soar with an orchestral beauty not often paired with the suspense of the quietly haunting verses, showing off the New Jersey band’s versatility and mastery of emotional expression. Singer Jay Sakong uses colors to represent clearly delineated absolutes — the blue of sadness, the color draining altogether from a horrified face or the stark black-and-white contrast of finality and hope, how a goodbye can be loaded with the context of either “Nice to know you” or “Hope to see you soon.” “It’s the most honest and straight forward song I've ever written, and I think there's a real honesty and innocence in that simplicity,” says Sakong. But it is still full of surprises, as he worries that things are not so cut and dry after all. “I found / That this certain shade / I used to see as grey would fade,” he sings, and this realization is a jarring one. The gorgeous orchestration enters the uncanny valley of digital sound, not quite real as the instruments are pulled menacingly out of key. Even through the sepia-toned lens and rose-colored shades, those tans and reds are all just shades of grey.

It's been a big year for England's indie-folk songwriter Fenne Lily. After a handful of releases on Spotify, she released her first full-length album On Hold and is already singing to sold out crowds. Although the album came out in April, it's one we still find ourselves going back to and "Bud" is the perfect of why. Both delicate and universal, Fenne Lily captures us in this gorgeous three minute song and makes us feel everything she's singing. "You're on my mind / And I'd like to talk things through / You're on my mind and I know I'll never do." The waters of words unsaid are often murky and treading through them means having to decipher between what is necessary, risky, or both. With just an acoustic guitar and a voice that is at times so soft it seems angelic, Fenne Lily sings bravely into the face of uncertainty with her armor down. Be sure to catch her on tour with Lucy Dacus and also Andy Shauf this fall!

Nearly five months after the initial release of her second album, Kadhja Bonet has put out into the world a collection of outtakes from the making of Childqueen. “The Watch” — a soft spoken ballad of questions — is apart of the Childqueen Outtakes EP, a set of songs that the California-based singer/songwriter believed “deserved to have a life of their own.” Bonet’s voice sails along a subtle, but undeniably psychedelic-pop undercurrent, “Bring on the sun / bring on the sun.” And as the temperature shifts, fall progressing into winter, “The Watch” has a timing that could not be better. But, we have a feeling that the song is speaking to more than a change in weather, but to the way life passes us by season to season, year to year. Bonet asks us, “Does anybody know what happened to yesterday? / It was gone before I noticed” and we relate, we understand exactly what she is asking — even if we don’t know the answer ourselves. A song that carries itself with grace through a sea of existential uncertainty, “The Watch” exists in a space of its own, ringing with emotional resonance.

Los Angeles native Worn-Tin is back with his latest single "Cycles." Warner Hiatt's lyrics seem to be indicative of the twenty-somethings way of living in 2018. Our new passions take the place of old ones, though consistently losing the desire to make them work, cycle after cycle. Despite the lackdasical vibes the song gives and even Hiatt's description of himself as a 24 year-old gamer who likes to swim, there's no hiding that the talent that goes behind the music. The beginning starts off sunny and bright and as Hiatt's lo-fi vocals come in they contrast the hopeful music behind it, exposing just how emotionally confusing it is to be in this cycle. The words of the chorus seem like the honest version of what you would say to any grown-up who asks the dreaded "what you're doing with your life." "I'm looking for a new obsession / The spirits gone / Just working on a new idea / Its next to none." It's an honesty that's refreshing, relevant, and jovial all-in-one. While this song belongs in your chill-lofi playlist, maybe its also an anthem of sorts.

“I like taking breaks from ambiguity to really just tell a story,” Ryan Lindsey told Spin. “Keep It In Line” is not one of those breaks. Instead, this standout track from BRONCHO’s latest album, Bad Behavior, has Lindsey wading through the depths of ambiguity, trying to sort out all of the different versions of the same stories. Even the song’s harmonies embody these varying perspectives, as the final prechorus places Lindsey’s voice squarely in the middle of two opposing guitar lines — one high, one low; one left, one right; one dreamy, one firmly grounded. Shrugging his shoulders, he sings, “I got my version, they got theirs.” While others might accept that impossible obstacle with a sigh, it’s hard to imagine Lindsey is too broken up about it behind the cheer of BRONCHO’s carefree earworms. Clocking in at just over two minutes with all of the groovy reverb of The Cure’s most upbeat efforts, but with none of the gloom, “Keep It In Line” is simply a joy.

“Tenderness” by folk singer-songwriter Laura Gibson is the first single released from her forthcoming album. Before we even hear Gibson’s, voice there is a picture painted, by the depth of the drums and the vibrant bass riff. Meanwhile, the piano pulses subtly with a gentle touch. That really is what this song is about, the contrast of digesting grief and darkness while learning to embrace distant tenderness. When Gibson begins to sing, her voice cuts like glass and just for a moment it’s the only thing you can hear. “I met you / the year I stopped fearing my body / the sky split open above me / it was a pleasure to meet your pain”. She was able to craft lyrics that share an extremely personal story within the verses, paired with a ubiquitous chorus that listeners will find themselves singing along to. There is something very controlled about her delivery throughout the song, like speaking almost factually will help keep her composure. But if you listen closely there are brief moments of release where her vibrato cry’s out. Those are the moments that are truly soul-stirring. Be on the lookout for Laura Gibson’s fifth studio album, Goners, set to release October 26 on Barsuk Records.

Twenty-eighteen has been quite a year for Seattle indie-pop band Cumulus. From recently wrapping up tour with indie-rock sensations, Bad Bad Hats, to releasing their critically acclaimed #metoo anthem single, “Retreat” this past June. Frontwoman, Alexandra Niedzialkowski continues to deliver a very strong personal narrative with the latest release on Comfort World. The undeniable stand out from the record is the ninth track, “Lighter.”

“Lighter” takes on a tone different from any other song on the record and that's what we love most. There is precision in the guitar riffs and clarity in Niedzialkowski’s lyrics. The story of constantly being pushed away in a relationship and the strength it takes to finally walk away on your own terms is something that resonates universally. The tune begins with a slide that is inherently Americana and as the song progresses there is consistent nods to the indie-pop structure that Cumulus fans adore.

If you concentrate too hard on counting the guitars as they come in and out of “Bike,” you’ll surely lose track. Each one are like the faintest stars that materialize in the periphery but seem to disappear if you try to stare straight at them. The first verse’s E.T. images of “moon-high bike rides” come as no surprise. As It Looks Sad. uses their countless instrumental layers to texture their ultimatum and movie script ending, "Bike" becomes the kind of song that makes a simple question seem like life or death. In asking simply, “Do you want to go for a ride?” singer Jimmy Turner evokes both the melancholy character and vocal style of The Decemberists’ Colin Meloy. Turner pens lines with a cruelly jagged sense of ambivalence, asking, “Do you want to feel the night / Wrap around you?” This line is an almost unfair show of emotional whiplash, first promising the opportunities of the vast expanse of night but then settling for the solitude that the darkness also threatens. But this is a movie after all, and we were promised a happy ending. The song fades out, the credits roll, and we know there are two people on that bicycle.

Even if you've never been, you've probably seen Salzburg before. It's the beautiful Austrian city where The Sound of Music takes place and it's known for having gorgeous summers. This ethereal song by Lowland Hum has everything, from practical advice like "silencing your phone and but still using it" and letting you know that "rosé goes with everything" to the pretty and intricate echoes that create its full and haunting landscape. But maybe haunting isn't the right word, like most European buildings full of history and artifacts, "Salzburg Summer" carries an overarching reverence to it. You use your quietest voice in the cathedrals and museums and try not to make any loud sounds. That's what you'll hear in this song, you can see the bike riding through the streets and the drinking of lemonade but without the American noise that usually accompanies the season. "Salzburg Summer" beautifully captures the idea of quiet, peaceful enjoyment and makes you long for the next chance to experience it, whether it be this weekend or next summer. Be sure to also catch the beautiful new music video for "Salzburg Summer" and stay tuned for the band's fourth full length album out soon.

Look out world, Molly Burch is here. First Flower released by Captured Tracks on October 5 is a comprehensive, exquisitely executed, leave on repeat and never get it sick of it type of record. The first song, “Candy” is the perfect introduction of what is to come. There is an effortlessly dynamic quality about Burch’s voice. “Candy” showcases her ability to reach sultry rich low notes and then swell right back to a crystal clear falsetto. This track encapsulates Burch’s jazz background paired with instrumentation that never overpowers her voice. Her lyrics are clever and introspective. “Why do I like how you look / You look like candy.” The dreamy surf rock guitar tendencies pop just when appropriate and complement her silky intonation. Molly Burch is reinventing the 21st century crooner as she whisks listeners away to another time and a different place. Catch Molly on tour in a city near you this fall! 

Using sweeping orchestral brushstrokes, Henry Jamison’s “Gloria” paints pictures of the purest goodness covered in the dust of hatred. The song grows and grows, with each instrument banging down the door through sheer repetition, until it can barely be contained. The most beautiful moments, though, are the most restrained. The vibrant choruses are preceded by bare, matter-of-fact descriptions of daily events, lent credence by undeniably specific descriptions of “the Dairy Queen drive-through down by the highway” and “the progress of our three-letter names” scrolling down arcade machine screens. Tragic but hopeful, the verses describe innocence in the face of ignorance — the natural beauty of a flower resting in one’s hair juxtaposed with the ignorance of homophobia, or childlike wonder tainted by perpetual exposure to violence. In reassuring us that there is worth and there is innocence beneath the vitriol, “Gloria” refuses to surrender its beauty to the way things are. Things don’t have to be this way. We made them this way. We just need to be better.