NEW ADDS: Samia, Sarah Kinsley, Westerman, June McDoom, and Wild Pink
Samia - Kill Her Freak Out
Genre: Indie Pop
RIYL: Phoebe Bridgers, Snail Mail, Julia Jacklin
An early morning cocktail. The hands of an elderly neighbor. A lost ID. Listening to a Samia song is like painting by numbers: the 25-year-old singer-songwriter tells stories in vignettes, mapping out a canvas in pieces and asking you to fill in the whole picture. On “Kill Her Freak Out,” the lead single from her upcoming sophomore album Honey, Samia dials back the theatrics and cranks up the intimacy, singing delicately over a minimalist synth arrangement. “I hope you marry the girl from your hometown / and I’ll fucking kill her and I’ll fucking freak out,” she sings on the chorus, calm and matter-of-fact. Upon first listen, I mistook the song’s restraint for anticlimax, but the contrast of its hushed production feels intentional. “Kill Her Freak Out” captures a bottled-up emotion, a desperate sadness-turned-rage, a film reel of all the straws that fall before the camel’s back breaks.
- Fitz Cain
Westerman - Idol; RE-run
Genre: Alt / Indie
RIYL: Local Natives, Broken Bells, Sjowgren
Looking for a new but nostalgic-sounding add to your new November playlist? Make sure to check out this new track by Westerman. With a tone that sounds reminiscent of the 90s, "Idol; RE-run" pushes the listener outside of their normal listening comfort zone all while embracing them with a familiar guitar strumming in the background. The relaxed vocals make this a perfect track to listen to through headphones on a walk while wistfully looking around at the changing leaf colors, or as background music for a study session.
-Mia
June McDoom - June McDoom
Genre: Folk / Reggae / Early Soul
RIYL: PACKS, Bedouine
June McDoom’s new released EP is filled with dark and dreamy slow burners for late nights. Eponymously titled June McDoom, this EP is reminiscent of the work of Laufey, Bedouine, and PACKS, while integrating elements of early soul, reggae, and vintage experimental sounds. June McDoom is based out of New York City and has a unique approach to songwriting and sound production that is absolutely worth listening to.
-Michaela
Wild Pink - ILYSM
Genre: Indie Rock
RIYL: Tomberlin, The Lone Bellow, St Lucia
The title track of Wild Pink’s fourth full-length album, ILYSM, takes us on a shimmering atmospheric journey. The track consists of relatively simple lyrics—a chanted “I love you so much” reverberates throughout its entirety. The track mirror’s the album’s closing track “ICLYM” which takes a more acoustic route and with spoken word as a contrast to upbeat chants, but still focusing on the themes of affection and lingering remembrance.
-Hannah