NEW INDIE MUSIC - WEEK 41

Hello, everyone! How was your weekend? Did you go to see A Star Is Born? Did you sing along to the “HAAAAAAAA AH AH AH AHHHHH AHHHHHH HAAA AHH HAAA” song? Anyways, as tempting as it is to listen to nothing but the ASIB soundtrack for the rest of the week, I actually have a far better proposition for you: The latest edition of We Are: The Guard's New Indie Music! While they may lack in that Lady Gaga-Bradley Cooper sparkle, the following tracks from Courtney Barnett, Mikky Ekko, Young Rising Sons, Rationale, LANY, and five other favorites are certain to see you through the next seven days in superstar style!

-

TENDER – HANDMADE EGO

TENDER are cranking up the heat on their latest single “Handmade Ego.” Clocking in at just over five minutes, it's a darkly alluring piece of R&B that quite frankly oozes with sexual tension, with the London duo calling to mind those nights spent alone and staring up at the ceiling, when the mind is racing with all kinds of dirty thoughts.

FREEDOM FRY – ZOMBIE LOVE

Just in time for my favorite holiday of the year, Halloween, Freedom Fry return with “Zombie Love.” The follow-up to the Beatles-esque lullaby “Easy Street” hears this husband-and-wife duo continuing to hone their infectiously golden breed of psychedelic pop, with the catchy-as-hell chorus calling to mind Peter Bjorn and John's “Young Folks” thanks to its use of whistles beckoning us all to the Monsters Ball.

MOLLY BURCH – CANDY

Austin's Molly Burch is a 1950s daydream on her new single. Marrying her old-school Hollywood lilt with surf guitars, “Candy” is nothing short of a retro reverie that, lyrically, actually touches on a very contemporary problem: Anxiety. “It may sound like I'm talking to a past love, but it's really meant for that voice in my head that tells me a negative narrative,” says Molly. Listen.

COURTNEY BARNETT – SMALL TALK

In May, Courtney Barnett released Tell Me How You Really Feel, and this month, the Melbourne poet laureate returns with “Small Talk.” If you're like me and hate all of those inconsequential, mindless little conversations that tend to take place throughout the day, then you're sure to relate to this sprawling five-and-a-half-minute live jam – a number of the lyrics for which Courtney reveals that she improvised while recording.

MIKKY EKKO – CHERISH YOU

Mikky Ekko professes his love for someone special on the latest single to be unveiled from his forthcoming album FAME. “Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah/I wanna cherish you,” declares the Rihanna collaborator throughout the aching slice of electronic soul, which places Mikky's bleeding heart vocals front and center in order to have full emotional impact.

YOUNG RISING SONS – SAD (CLAP YOUR HANDS)

It's around this time of year that I tend to come down with a little SAD – short for Seasonal Affective Disorder – and while getting rid of it is sadly not as easy as clapping my hands together – or, in the case of this video, wearing a laughing emoji mask – Young Rising Sons are most definitely helping to cheer me up and bring a smile to my face with their latest single. With its infectious rock energy and tongue-in-cheek lyrics, “SAD (Clap Your Hands)” is nothing short of an essential addition to your feel-good playlist this fall.

RATIONALE – ONE BY ONE

It's been a while, but Rationale is back and showcasing a more danceable side to his sound on his latest single. Described by the London soulster as “a song about all too familiar regret and remorse in love and loss,” “One by One” finds Rationale experimenting with Afrobeat vibes in order to deliver a certified bop that'll make you want to shake it off and let loose this Monday morning.

DD WALKER – DO YOU MISS IT

When it come to pop music, it doesn't get much more perfectly nostalgic than “Do You Miss It” by New York City's DD WALKER. Clocking in at just under three minutes, this synth-speckled, 80s-indebted gem is a song that'll get everyone's feet moving and hearts racing, with DD's vocals sounding like they walked straight off a John Hughes movie set.

JODIE ABACUS – HARD WORK

He recently split up with his girlfriend of five years and had a near-death experience with pneumonia, but Jodie Abacus is sounding stronger than ever on his latest single “Hard Work.” Pairing the Londoner's powerhouse croon with stomping work song-like rhythms, “Hard Work” is a track that, in the words of Jodie, will drive you to “take shit and grow flowers,” and stay motivated no matter what life tries to throw your way.

LANY – MALIBU NIGHTS

If you've ever wondered what it feels like to have your heart broken by Dua Lipa, then wonder no more, as Paul Klein is wearing it on his sleeve for all to see on “Malibu Nights.” The devastating piano ballad was inspired by the LANY frontman's well-documented split from the “New Rules” star, with the lyrics giving us some insight into just how lost Paul felt after the pair went their separate ways: “I drive, chasing Malibu nights/Nothing seems to heal my mind/I can't forget.”

-

Until next week, why not follow We Are: The Guard's Best Indie Daily! on Spotify for more? x

Photo by Joshua Rawson-Harris on Unsplash

Jess Grant is a frustrated writer hailing from London, England. When she isn't tasked with disentangling her thoughts from her brain and putting them on paper, Jess can generally be found listening to The Beatles, or cooking vegetarian food.