Posted: by The Editor
The Alternative Weekly Roundup is a column where our staff plugs a variety of new releases in a concise, streamlined format. Albums, singles, videos, and live sets. Check back each Monday to see what we were jamming the week prior.
Cursejar – Framed in Sequence
Cursejar burst onto the emo scene earlier this year with the stellar, raw single “Nora,” and now they’re back with their debut EP Framed in Sequence. “Nora” isn’t on here, but the three songs that do appear continue in that vein; expect thick, chugging riffs, bright melodies, and passionate performances all the way through. It’s getting a physical release through rising indie label Armageddon, run by Josh Howell of The Arrival Note, a fitting home for the Charlotte emo band.
Zac Djamoos | @gr8whitebison
Willow Avalon, Runnner – “Drivin (Runnner Remix)”
Willow Avalon previously released a “Drivin” remix with Run For Cover artist Field Medic and is now recruiting another Run For Cover artist, Runnner, for round two. Runnner also released one of our favorite albums of 2023, like dying stars, we’re reaching out. While Run For Cover was once regarded as one of the top labels for punk and emo bands, they have relinquished that title and are now shining the spotlight on newer indie artists. We hope these two remixes bring further attention to the Massachusetts native label.
Kyle Musser | @godvfwine
Wrong Man – “Wait”
Belgian post-hardcore band Wrong Man’s newest single “Wait,” from their upcoming EP Big Plans, is their most melodic release yet and steers them in a direction more akin to the vigor of Rollins Band. Building on their previous release Who Are You? last December, which saw more noise rock and hints of heavy metal grooves from the band, “Wait” is their strongest song to date with a concentrated aggression that intensifies as it moves along but never veers off course. The new video directed and animated by Boy Tillekens visualizes the concept of never being able to outrun the darkness as singer Bjorn Dossche’s last words ring out “I’ve got so much love in this world I hate / I can’t expect you to relate / I tried to run but the feeling stays / It stays.”
Loan Pham | @senseofexile
Charlie Kaplan – “Gas Station Bathroom”
“Gas Station Bathroom” is the latest single from Charlie Kaplan’s upcoming album. It’s a pretty ramble of a song about feeling lost while roaming around in his Dad’s ’97 CRV. Loss can make you feel like you’ve lost your map, but in the process of trying to find it Kaplan has created an Americana gem.
Jami Fowler | @audiocurio
Best Ex – “I Promise to Ruin Your Life”
“I Promise to Ruin Your Life,” the first single off Best Ex’s upcoming debut LP With a Smile, is the same kind of bright, cheery pop-punk Mariel Loveland made her name on in Candy Hearts. Being that this is her solo project, the music feels appropriately more intimate; “I Promise to Ruin Your Life” is as sugary and catchy as anything Candy Hearts ever put out, but it’s warmer, with more homespun production.
Zac Djamoos | @gr8whitebison
hunter & wolfe – I deserve this
Almost a decade after the release of their first full-length album, Days and Works, indie rock duo hunter & wolfe are back with their second LP, I deserve this. With compelling high-low dynamics, multilayered instrumental swells, and vulnerable, poignant lyrics, Michael Maffei (vocals, guitar, piano) and Sundeep Kapur (lead guitar) have perfected their sound. In 2023, with power pop and EDM dominating the charts, indie rock is something of an endangered species, but hunter & wolfe have imbued the space with a refreshing sound that’s never predictable. Check out “Go For It” and “Famous Friends.”
Michelle Bruton | @MichelleBruton
Comet – “One”
“One,” the second single off the upcoming Two-Winged EP from New York based artist Comet, is a tantalizing revival of grunge that leans heavily towards gritty art / hard rock recalling a late ’90s / early 2000s sound. Comet Candler’s tempered and gravelly voice is mesmerizing as she flows through the track with a cadence that merges Kim Gordon’s rasp with Courtney Love’s intensity. The latest video for the single depicts a fallen angel stripped of her wings and adds to the atmosphere of the song with a haunting pervasiveness.
Loan Pham | @senseofexile
Arms Length – “Up in Smoke”
Arms Length do not miss. “Up in Smoke” is the band’s first release since they dropped their stellar debut LP Never Before Seen, Never Again Found last fall, and it keeps up the frantic energy that made that record such a standout. Like the band’s best songs, “Up in Smoke” feels like a perfect distillation of all Arms Length’s strengths in one place: it’s heavy, it’s catchy, it’s pretty. And most of all, it feels like a song only they could write.
Zac Djamoos | @gr8whitebison
The Alternative’s ‘New Music Friday’ playlist
Each week our editor Lindsy Carrasquillo compiles a playlist of songs our staff has been jamming. We post it on Fridays on Twitter and then include it in each edition of the Weekly Roundup to make sure you don’t miss any of the great music we’re recommending.
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