Edgar Road: Hold On
A common story in the past year: This five-member indie band from the north of Scotland has "a passion for live music and travel, both which have been destroyed over the last year." But the group continued to make music and has just released three singles in quick succession. Our pick for the new music bin is, according to the band, "a song about the end of a long term relationship, something we can all relate to either from our own experiences or from picking up the pieces of somebody else's turmoil." The other singles, "Everything Has Changed" and "Photograph," will pop up in our big mix, too.
Selwyn Birchwood: You Can't Steal My Shine
This Florida-based contemporary blues artist has just released his third album, Living in a Burning House. The electric-guitar and lap-steel player calls his original music “electric swamp funkin’ blues.” Rock and Blues Muse praises the LP as "a career-making record that moves Birchwood and the blues as a whole forward in a remarkable way." His band's unique sound is due in part to the prominent role of baritone saxophonist Regi Oliver.
Shayla McDaniel: Take My Words
We've featured this Knoxville, Tennessee-based singer-songwriter before, and are happy to be among the first to present her latest single. A multi-instrumentalist with a distinctive voice (lyrically and vocally), she tells us this song "was inspired by my parents and encourages us to treasure the wisdom collected over time, especially from loved ones." From the refrain: "So take my words, don’t write them down / but don’t let them fall to the ground /catch them in your mind and hide them in your heart."
Middle Kids: Questions
This is the second single to spin out ahead of the Sydney indie-rock band's upcoming album, Today We're The Greatest. It starts out quietly, but as Stereogum puts it, "By the time Hannah Joy is ripping into the chorus a second and third time, the soundtrack has become a raging inferno of distorted guitars and orchestral brass." In today's climate, one might think the opening lyric is directed at a politician - "How am I supposed to trust you when you are lying all the time?" - but no, it's a song of a strained personal relationship.
Still Corners: Last Exit
Formed in London, the duo of Greg Hughes and Tessa Murray relocated to the U.S. Southwest a couple of years ago and developed a sound described as "shimmering desert noir." We're featuring the title track from their just-released fifth album, Last Exit. AllMusic says on this collection, Still Corners "embellish on the sunbaked dream-pop they introduced on [2018's] Slow Air ... The album's abundant use of slide guitar and pedal steel suggests a rustic version of shoegaze ... a fitting soundtrack for getting lost on the open road."