New Music
Iggy Pop Covers Elvis Costello’s “No Flag” in French
Punk Renaissance man Iggy Pop has shared a French rendition of Elvis Costello’s “No Flag,” a single from Costello’s Hey Clockface album. The en Français cover is accompanied by an animated music video hand-drawn by Arlo McFurlow and Eamon Singer. The legendary musicians, who first met in 1977, recently reminisced via Zoom about the past, present and future for Rolling Stone. Costello mentioned that “No Flag” was one of the first songs recorded for his album, which dropped on Oct. 30: “It shared one word and one letter with a famous song of yours [“No Fun”],” he said, “but nobody spotted where it was drawing from, because nobody expects me to take a cue from you.” Pop recalls the first time he heard Costello: “When I heard your music, I felt like you were the only thing comi...
The Cure’s Robert Smith Remixes Deftones ‘Teenager’ for Upcoming Black Stallion LP
The Deftones’ beloved White Pony LP is being remixed by a strong group of artists and will transform into Black Stallion next week. The latest remix comes from none other than The Cure’s Robert Smith, who lent his flair to the Deftones track “Teenager.” “It’s amazing to hear Robert rework one of our songs and sneak his voice in there,” Deftones’ Chino Moreno said in an interview with NME. “If you’d have told me that when I was 15 years old, I would have lost my fucking mind and not believed a word you were saying. It was a dream.” Black Stallion also boasts new remixes by Linkin Park’s Mike Shinoda, which you can check out here, Squarepusher, Purity Ring, Phantogram and others. The 11-song album of reimagined White Pony songs drops on Dec. 11. Check out Smith’...
Britney Spears Celebrates Birthday by Sharing Unreleased Song “Swimming in the Stars”: Stream
Looks like Britney Spears fans have been granted their Christmas wish this year. In celebration of her 39th birthday, the pop icon has unearthed a previously unreleased song called “Swimming in the Stars”. Out through RCA Records, “Swimming” is a leftover track that was originally recorded during sessions for Spears’ 2016 album Glory. Despite having been shelved all these years, its positive lyrics — about briefly forgetting our worries and holding onto joy — actually make for a refreshing and relevant remedy for this hellish 2020. “Head first, all the way down/ In gravity’s arms we’ll drown/ The world is ours/ When we’re swimming in the stars,” sings Spears. Stream it down below. Editors’ Picks The newly revealed song will be included on the deluxe vinyl edition of Glory, which...
Jenny Lewis and Seregenti Team for ‘Unblu’
Surprise! Jenny Lewis and Serengeti have teamed up for a new song just in time for the holidays. Titled “Unblu,” the quiet, downtempo number is out now on Lewis’ Loves Way label and was produced by Lewis and Andrew Broder. Though it may seem like a strange pairing on the surface, the two have actually been pals for quite a while, and they trace their friendship and how the song came to be in the statement that you can read below: Jenny met Dave down a long hallway in a former Communist Media Center in East Berlin during the People Festival of 2018. Dave asked Jenny to sing on a song about Tom Selleck passing on the part of Indiana Jones. Can you imagine a world where Tom Selleck is Indiana Jones? A fast friendship was born as they skulked about, cracking jokes and chatting about thei...
The Hold Steady Announce New Album Open Door Policy, Share “Family Farm”: Stream
The Hold Steady have announced their eighth studio album, Open Door Policy. The follow-up to last year’s Thrashing Thru the Passion is due out on February 19th via the group’s own Positive Jams label and Thirty Tigers. The new full-length was almost entirely written and recorded prior to the pandemic. However, “the songs and stories explore power, wealth, mental health, technology, capitalism, consumerism, and survival – issues which have compounded in 2020,” according to frontman Craig Finn. Recording took place at The Clubhouse in Rhinebeck, New York with assistance from producer Josh Kaufman and engineer D. James Goodwin. The album is The Hold Steady’s second to feature their current six-piece lineup, which has been described by Finn as the band’s “best” iteration. Editors’ P...
Sylvan Esso Drops Surprise With Love EP: Stream
Sylvan Esso has dropped a surprise new EP titled With Love. Take a listen below via Spotify, and also watch a live performance video of “Numb”. It doesn’t get any fresher than this: The six-track EP was recorded on Tuesday night — mere hours ago as of publication — as part of the final installment of their virtual concert series “From the Satellite”. The epic performance saw bandmates Nick Sanborn and Amelia Meath rework tracks off their latest album — this past September’s Free Love — alongside a 10-piece “dream team” band. Said “dream team” includes members of Bon Iver, Wye Oak, Hiss Golden Messenger, Mr. Twin Sister, Hand Habits, Mountain Man and Mandolin Orange. This is the very same band they toured with last year. Editors’ Picks The EP caps off an epic year for Sylvan...
Viagra Boys Release New Song “Creatures”: Stream
Viagra Boys are back with another new post-punk banger called “Creatures”. It’s the second offering from their forthcoming sophomore record Welfare Jazz, and it comes paired with an amazing music video. Back in October, the Swedish group kicked off their album cycle with the asshole anthem “Ain’t Nice”, which was a cheeky tune about proudly being a dumpy mooch with no manners. It was the sort of crude scumbaggery that you might expect from a band called Viagra Boys, but “Creatures” takes a more nuanced look at the life of a seedy miscreant. The synth-based track is a commentary on the absurdism of the class disparity that compares the lifestyle vocalist Sebastian Murphy groaned about on “Ain’t Nice” to that of the ocean’s bottom feeders. “We are the creatures that steal your copper/ We don...
Beabadoobee and Arlo Parks Release Christmas Covers: Stream
Beabadoobee and Arlo Parks are getting into the holiday spirit. The UK bedroom pop musicians have each contributed festive covers to Apple Music’s Christmas singles series. For her contribution, our former Artist of the Month Bea Kristi (aka Beabadoobee) performed a rendition of the yuletide classic “Winter Wonderland”. Although you might expect either ukulele strums or gnarled jazzmaster riffs from the Fake It Flowers star, the 20-year-old actually tries her hand at singing wistfully over ornate strings, resulting in a surprisingly classy take on the snowy staple. Arlo Parks, on the other hand, puts a completely new spin on the incredibly ’80s Wham! hit “Last Christmas”. Rather than leaning into the track’s kinetic energy and creating something you can jump around to next to the...
Your Old Droog Reveals the Origins of New Track “Krygyzstan”: Stream
Origins is our recurring new music feature in which artists dare to dig deep into the stories behind their latest track. Today, Your Old Droog takes us on a trip to “Krygyzstan”. Recent years have put a different vibe on the life of the American immigrant. Never mind that the entire country was established by expatriates, it feels like there’s never been a more tenuous time for outsiders. Yet that also makes it the perfect time for those with diverse background to embrace those differences, something Your Old Droog does thoroughly on his new album, Dump YOD: Krutoy Edition. Due out December 4th, the effort finds the Ukraine-born, Brooklyn-raised rap musician channeling his Eastern European and Central Asian heritage. He showed us what that sounds like on the lead single “Pravda”, and now h...
Briston Maroney Covers Samia’s “Is There Something in the Movies?”: Stream
Rising indie pop artist Samia broke into the music scene this past August with her debut album, The Baby. Now, she’s announced The Baby Reimagined, a companion collection that sees other musicians cover and remix her original songs. Due out January 15th via Grand Jury, the upcoming effort includes reworks helmed by The Districts, Palehound, and Bartees Strange. There is also an update of “Waverly” from Anjimile, a former Consequence of Sound Artist of the Month. As a teaser of The Baby Reimagined, Samia is sharing a new version of “Is There Something in the Movies” from folk songwriter Briston Maroney. The Nashville-based Maroney here turns “Is There Something in the Movies?” into a whispery, emotional, acoustic anthem that gathers strength as it progresses. By the time he reaches the chor...
The Hold Steady Announce ‘OPEN DOOR POLICY,’ Share ‘Family Farm’
The Hold Steady had grand plans for 2020, with tour dates that would have taken place during the summer and whatnot. And, again, you know, 2020. Singer Craig Finn released some new solo music and they’re reissuing Heaven Is Whenever. It definitely appears the band has been using their time wisely: The Hold Steady will release their eighth studio album, OPEN DOOR POLICY, on Feb. 19, 2021. It was recorded in upstate New York with producer Josh Kaufman and engineer D. James Goodwin. It’s the second album with this itineration of The Hold Steady. From it comes the stomping rocker “Family Farm,” which you can hear below. Here’s what Finn had to say about it all: “Songs are created a bunch of different ways in The Hold Steady, but to me, our most classic songs are driving rock son...
Beach Bunny Announce New EP Blame Game, Share “Good Girls (Don’t Get Used)”: Stream
Fresh off the success of their debut album Honeymoon, Beach Bunny are back to announce a new EP, Blame Game. It’s out January 15th on Mom+Pop Music, and the band is today offering a preview with lead single “Good Girls (Don’t Get Used)”. Our former Artist of the Month went from underground rockers to TikTok sensation on the strength of endlessly catchy hooks. Led by songwriter Lili Trifilio, the band returns with a four-track look at toxic masculinity and laborious relationships. The EP was recorded in Chicago in August, and produced by Joe Reinhart (Hop Along, Joyce Manor, Modern Baseball). As “Good Girls (Don’t Get Used)” can testify, Beach Bunny haven’t lost their gift for earworms. Trifilio warns a trifling partner that while, “I still think that you’re cute/ Good girls don’t get ...
