If you’re anything like us, you’re probably overwhelmed by the sheer number of albums being released on a weekly basis.
Popdust’s weekly column, Indie Roundup, finds the five best albums coming out each week so that you don’t have to. Every Friday, we’ll tell you what’s worth listening to that might not already be on your radar.
Harmony Woods, Graceful Rage
Following up her 2019 record Make Yourself At Home, Sofia Verbilla — a.k.a. Harmony Woods — has surprise-released Graceful Rage, her latest record full of sprawling, poignant rock. Produced entirely by recent indie breakout Bartees Strange, Graceful Rage sees Verbilla at her most self-assured, pairing her crystalline vocals and evocative lyrics with bold guitars and sweeping instrumentation.
Really From, Really From
Boston band Really From blend math rock, punk, and jazz into a surprisingly cohesive hodgepodge of textures and melodies. On their self-titled third album, these inspirations culminate into one boundless project that meditates on topics like cultural identity and generational trauma (the band’s name is a jab at the often-heard, covertly racist question: “Where are you really from?”). Really From uses vibrant soundscapes to connect political environments with personal stories.
Closer, Within One Stem
Within One Stem is the latest record from east coast hardcore band Closer. The band’s sound is easily identified by vocalist/drummer Ryann Slauson, whose blistering vocals and tight beats layer seamlessly over the band’s soaring melodies; as a result, Within One Stem feels more post-rock than the typical hardcore sound. Still, the album feels cathartic, channeling rage into music that is, at times, actually very beautiful.
Future Teens, Deliberately Alive EP
The latest EP from Boston indie quartet Future Teens acts as a timely ode to maintaining one’s mental health. Deliberately Alive is a compact handful of breezy, pop-punk numbers inspired by the choice to continue living in spite of damning circumstances — there’s even a reimagination of “Believe” by Cher.
Baby Boys, Threesome
An offshoot project of Minnesota indie pop veterans Hippo Campus, Baby Boys make their full-length debut with Threesome. Building off the experimentation of Hippo Campus’s last record, 2018’s Bambi, Threesome sounds like if you took the bedroom pop of Gen Z favorites like Gus Dapperton and Still Woozy and put it in a paper shredder; the result is disjointed, unexpected, and exciting.
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