BY: JOEY REAMS
On Fridays, the world is blessed with new music from a handful of artists. To help you find your next favorite album, we’ve discovered what new alternative and indie albums have been released. This week’s notable artists include Lord Huron and Twenty One Pilots. Check out the list below:
Dayglow – Harmony House
Dayglow, born Sloan Struble, has released his third studio album, Harmony House, the second album under this stage name. The Texas native began his musical career as Kindred and released an album under that same name. In between that and now, Struble released Fuzzybrain and changed his stage name to Dayglow. It’s worth noting this is the band’s first album under a new label, Very Nice Records. The upbeat indie artist will go on tour in the U.S. starting in September, with Nashville Native Arlie opening.
“It’s been a while since I released Fuzzybrain,” Struble told The Pitch KC. “It’s kind of just a collection of my songs from being like 19 to 21. A lot of change naturally happens in those ages of life. But I had an interesting past couple of years, having Dayglow become a career and all these things. Naturally, I just was writing a lot about change and how to deal with like the sudden viral fame.”
Gruff Rhys – Seeking New Gods
Gruff Rhys, the talented Welsh musician who fronted Super Furry Animals, has released his seventh studio album, Seeking New Gods. This is his first album since 2019’s Pang! Rhys came to fame in 1990 as the frontman of Super Furry Animals, plus a few others. He and his bands were considered a figurehead for Cool Cymru culture in Wales.
“The album is about people and the civilizations, and the spaces people inhabit over periods of time,” Rhys said in a statement. “How people come and go, but the geology sticks around and changes more slowly. I think it’s about memory and time. It’s still a biography of a mountain, but it’s now a Mount Paektu of the mind. You won’t learn much about the real mountain from listening to this record, but you will feel something, hopefully.”
Lord Huron – Long Lost
Lord Huron has released their fourth studio album, Long Lost, via Republic Records. The band previously released “Mine Forever” before the album was released. Throughout the pandemic, the band has played a few unreleased songs through their live stream series Alive from Whispering Pines. They played “Mine Forever” there as well as another new song, “Not Dead Yet.” Both songs were released today, along with a lengthy letter from Mr. Tubbs Tarbell (a character from their live stream series) explaining the process of creating “Mine Forever.”
“I gave the boys a good round of applause before they launched into a real sunset of a song they called ‘Mine Forever,’ a swingin’, full-on heart-renderer with a bubbly sound,” the letter read. “All of a sudden I heard handclaps and female voices—I swear those ladies must have risen up outta the floorboards! Never saw ’em come in, and didn’t see ’em leave. That’s just the magic of the Pines, I suppose. Door knockin’s for strangers.”
Matt Kearney – January Flower
Matt Kearney has released his seventh studio album, January Flower, via Tomorrow Music. This is his second album from this label, the first coming from 2018’s Crazytalk, his last studio album. Although Kearney’s style often incorporates hip hop and folk elements, there’s a sense of alternative at the foundation of his music. Thus far in his career, his most well-remembered song is most likely “Nothing Left to Lose,” the debut single from his 2006 debut album under the same name.
“It was about digging down and finding the innocence that comes with wanting to make music solely for the love and passion of doing it,” Kearney said. “I wanted to stay true to that voice.”
Reigning Sound – A Little More Time with Reigning Sound
Memphis-based rock band Reigning Sound has released its eighth studio album, A Little More Time with Reigning Sound. The rock and roll band is celebrating its 20th anniversary, despite some lineup changes. True fans will be excited to learn Gret Cartwright reformed the original lineup in 2020 and are playing shows together once again. This is the first time in 15 years the original lineup released a new album.
Twenty One Pilots – Scaled and Icy
Last but not least, we have the rock duo from Columbus, OH, Twenty One Pilots, with their sixth studio album, Scaled and Icy, via Fueled by Ramen and Elektra. The band previously released “Shy Away” earlier this year, their first new music since their Christmas single, “Christmas Saves the Year.”
“Written and largely produced by Joseph in isolation over the course of the past year at his home studio, with Dun engineering the album’s drums from across the country, Scaled and Icy is the product of long-distance virtual sessions and finds the duo processing their upended routines along with the prevailing emotions of 2020 — anxiety, loneliness, boredom, and doubt,” reads the press release. “The duo had to forgo their normal studio sessions but reached a new level of introspection in the process, adopting a more imaginative and bold approach to their songwriting. The result is a collection of songs that push forward through setbacks and focus on the possibilities worth remembering.”