Queens of the Stone Age

I had no idea we were getting new music from Queens of the Stone Age this year.  Admittedly, i haven't been paying attention, but new tune "Emotion Sickness" is a catchy little banger.  Check it out below and pre-order the upcoming "In Times New Roman..." here from Matador.

Algiers w/ Billy Woods & Backxwash

Atlanta band Algiers has been making interesting music for a number of years, be it their soul meets post punk beginning or the weirder sonic territories they explored as part of the Nun Gun project last year.  They continue to push forward with new track "Bite Back," featuring New York rapper Billy Woods and Canadian rapper Backxwash.  This one feels kind of like a mix of everything they've been up to this point.  It's awesome.  Listen below and download it here from Matador.

Belle and Sebastian

I've gotta admit, i was not expecting to like the new Belle and Sebastian single as much as i do.  I was a huge fan of the band back in the late '90s / early '00s, but kind of moved on sometime after the "Storytelling" soundtrack.  That being said, "Unnecessary Drama" is kind of a banger, and manages to sound both exactly like Belle and Sebastian and something new.  Check it out below and pre-order May's upcoming "A Bit of Previous" LP here from Matador.

Horsegirl

Everything old is new again.  Chicago trio Horsegirl find that sweet spot mix of shoegaze and early '90s alt-rock crunch on their latest single "Billy."  And they sound right at home on their new label Matador.  Check the track out below, download it here, and pre-order the 7" here.

The Goon Sax

Here's a new track from Brisbane, Australia band The Goon Sax.  Sing-songy boy/girl vocals abound on "In the Stone," along with indie-pop flourishes and a new wave groove.  Check it out below and pre-order the upcoming "Mirror II" LP here digitally or here physically from Matador.

Darkside

Darkside, the project of producers/musicians Nicolas Jaar and Dave Harrington just dropped a new track a couple days back, "Liberty Bell."  New album "Spiral" is due sometime in the spring on Matador.  Check out the track below and get it here.

Yo La Tengo

Back in April, which seems like so very, very long ago, the indie rock stalwarts of Yo La Tengo recorded an improvisational session of ambient, droney, pysch-tinged explorations.  In the past, they've used these kinds of sessions to work out new songs, and that could still happen here, but they decided to just release it all anyway.  Listen to "We Have Amnesia Sometimes" below in its entirety below and order the LP here from Matador.

Algiers

I totally forgot we were getting a new record from Algiers tomorrow.  Lead off single "Dispossession" finds the post punk band really leaning into their protest soul tendencies, and i'm digging it.  Check it out below and get the "There Is No Year" LP here from Matador.

Desert Sessions 11 & 12

I love Josh Homme's Desert Sessions series, and it's been a very long time since we last had one.  Yesterday, the artist dropped Volumes 11 and 12, this time around featuring another array collaborators like Billy Gibbons and Les Claypool.  Check out the video for Vol. 12's "Crucifier" below and get the LP here from Matador.

Kim Gordon - Sketch Artist

Kim Gordon has kept busy over the last several years since Sonic Youth's breakup (a breakup of which i am very much still upset about), and now she's got a new solo effort heading our way in October on Matador.  Check out the video for the noisy and eerie "Sketch Artist" below and pre-order the album here.

Also, it looks like the record is going to include Gordon's 2016 track "Murdered Out."  That song kicked ass, so its inclusion is a bonus.

Stephen Malkmus - Viktor Borgia

So, Stephen Malkmus has an electronic album coming out in March, a prospect i would swear was some kind of joke until hearing first single "Viktor Borgia."  The upcoming "Groove Denied" is not so much a boom-chigga-boom kind of thing as it is an homage to the early electronic music coming out of Germany in the 1970s.  Analog synthesizers, drum machines, and modulators make for a veritable motorik krautrock affair, and weirdly, it suits Malkmus, mixing that sound with his penchant for quirky hooks and sardonic wit.  Watch the video for "Viktor Borgia" below and get the LP from Matador in March.

Iceage - Broken Hours

Danish punks Iceage appear to not be quite through with us yet in 2018, dropping another new tune with the bleak and moody "Broken Hours."  Listen below, and if you haven't be sure to grab the band's "Beyondless" LP that came out earlier this year on Matador.

Steve Gunn

Singer songwriter Steve Gunn has a new album headed our way in January via Matador.  Check out the video for the folky, psych pop-tinged "New Moon" below and pre-order the album here.

Body/Head

You can pretty much sign me up for any and everything Kim Gordon does, and her post Sonic Youth work is no different.  Her project with Bill Nace, Body/Head, has a new record out next month on Matador.  Listen to the droning, noisy fuzz of "You Don't Need" below and pre-order "The Switch" record here.

Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks

Unfortunately, i never got to see Pavement perform.  Like so many other groups i grew up listening to and being influenced by, they called it quits before i ever got to attend a concert.  And that sucks, BUT, i did get to see Stephen Malkmus perform with The Jicks way way back in 2001 when the artist released his first post-Pavement record.  And he was fantastic, as sardonic and insightful as he's always been...and continues to be.  Malkmus's latest record with The Jicks, "Sparkle Hard," came out a couple of days ago, and is another excellent addition to his ever expanding catalog.  Get it from Matador and watch the video of a stripped down, solo acoustic take of the record's first single "Middle America."

Iceage - The Day the Music Dies

"Beyondless," the latest LP from Danish post punk band Iceage came out yesterday, and it's really damn good.  These guys have had a very steady track record since their inception, and each subsequent release seems to make their sound bigger and bigger, more expansive with this kind of brooding fire burning beneath.  Watch the video for the band's "The Day the Music Dies" below and get the record from Matador.

Iceage feat. Sky Ferreira

Earlier this year, we got to hear a brand new tune from Denmark post punk band Iceage, "Catch It," and it seemed some album news would be following.  And now it has.  The band's new record "Beyondless" is due in May on Matador.  While we're waiting for that to drop, listen to new single "Pain Killer" featuring some guest vocals by Sky Ferreira.  The two artists play well together, as do those intro horns, and i hope we can maybe get some further collaborations in the future.  Listen to it below.

Algiers - Cleveland

Soulful, industrial, gospel, post punk band Algiers released their latest album, "The Underside of Power" last month, but now they've got a biting and political new video about police brutality for the single "Cleveland."  It's as angry and anguished as it should be, and should be considered required viewing.  Watch below and get the record from Matador.

Algiers - The Underside of Power

Algiers' self-titled debut of gospel-tinged post punk was one of my favorite albums of 2015, so i'm stoked to find out that the band's follow up is due in June on Matador.  "The Underside of Power" was produced by Portishead's Adrian Utley (cool!), mixed by Sunn O)))'s Randall Dunn (cool!), and features additional post production work from The Men's Ben Greenberg (cool!), and should take us all to a very soulful, haunted place.  Watch the video for the title track below.

Kim Gordon - Murdered Out

Still lamenting the end of Sonic Youth all these years later, but today we get a new solo single from Kim Gordon to make us feel better for a fleeting moment.  "Murdered Out" features production from Justin Raisen who has worked with Sky Ferreira and Charli XCX in the past, and has Warpaint's Stella Mozgawa on the drums.  It's also an awesome, crunchy and anxious little noise nugget.  Listen below and download it from Matador.