After our quick holiday break, 2024 is back where it left off with another fantastic New Music Friday. We here at Caustic hope you enjoyed your long weekend, but it’s back to business. This week, we have a selection of triumphant returns marked by unforgettable singles, albums that expand legacies, and full-length releases that could make you shift your Album of the Year List. It is a bountiful new music Friday with every genre and their sub-genres participating.
Check out Glide’s picks for the week’s best new music below.
Deer Tick – “On Fire”
Contractual Obligations – EP
Just over a year after the release of their Emotional Contracts LP, Deer Tick returns with eight new songs initially recorded during the sessions for their last album. The band strung together a wide-ranging tracklist, with Deer Tick blending their pop tendencies with piano balladry and throat-scratching rock. “On Fire” is the latter. Along with a blazing guitar solo, a searing vocal performance delivers hazy tones to accent the heavy distortion of the arrangement.
Phish – “Ether Edge”
Evolve
One of the hardest-working jam bands to emerge from the scene returns with a sprawling new album of psychedelic rock bliss. Evolve is 12 tracks of hazy rock with the stadium-ready melodies Phish has coined during their decades of dominance. “Ether Edge” is the bright stand-out from the album, employing rolling guitars and cascading drums to create an ethereal atmosphere.
Remi Wolf – “Cherries & Cream”
Big Ideas
An expansive funk-pop icon for modern times, Remi Wolf releases her sophomore studio effort in a flurry of infectious, grandiose pop. Big Ideas has the genre-bending artist creating left-field pop-fusion that will appeal to fans of neo-soul and alt-rock ballads alike. “Cherries & Cream” put Wolf’s sprawling vocal talents on full display as an avalanche of stunning harmonies drenches a psychedelic soul-style instrumental with sugary pop.
Cigarettes After Sex – “Dreams From Bunker Hill”
X’s
Cigarettes After Sex takes the time to create its albums. Much like the tempos they find solace in while making their lush shoegaze-tinged pop records, the slow nature of their creative process allows their hazy croons to hit even harder once they arrive. Such is the case with X’s, the band’s third album and first since 2019’s Cry. The consistently dark album still finds time for subtle danceability with catchy pop melodies and thudding drum patterns. “Dreams From Bunker Hill” emerges from a fog with surf rock-tinged guitar tones and cloud-like vocals.
Johnny Blue Skies (Sturgill Simpson) – “If The Sun Never Rises Again”
Passage Du Desir
After vowing to release only five albums under the name Sturgill Simpson, the country artist known for pushing the limits of the genre returns with a new creative endeavor: meet Johnny Blue Skies. Passage Du Desir is the debut album from the artist’s new persona, and it has the artist continuing to toy with country tropes and finding new ways to reimagine his twangy tendencies. “If The Sun Never Rises Again” has the artist setting vulnerable poetry to slow-burning guitars to create a twangy love ballad.
Donovan Woods – “Living Well”
Things Were Never Good If They’re Not Good Now
The folksy softness of Donovan Woods’s music has always been innocent and quaint, but time continues to add more wisdom and vulnerability to the artist’s songwriting. Things Were Never Good If They’re Not Good Now is the eighth studio album from Woods, and it crawls with ambient acoustics that elevate the sentimental value of Woods’s carefully chosen words. “Living Well” delivers a somber whimsy as Woods explores the downfall of a relationship that was presumed to be everlasting.
HYUKOH & Sunset Rollercoaster – “Kite War”
AAA
The new collaborative album from HYUKOH and Sunset Rollercoaster, two equally daring fusion bands who scoff at the idea of a convention, is a masterclass in rock-jazz fusion. AAA has HYUKOH blending their guitar-driven alt-rock into Sunset Rollercoaster’s plush world of soulful melodies. “Kite War” is the intro to AAA and a proper way to prepare yourself for the colorful journey that this album guides you through. Soaring solos deliver head-spinning performances and add bursts of meditative bliss to the sweeping vocals.
Action Bronson – “Citrus Wahoo” (Feat. Mayhem Lauren)
Johann Sebastian Bachlava the Doctor
New York wordsmith Action Bronson returns with another example of his restless creativity and witty songwriting. Johann Sebastian Bachlava the Doctor sees the artist continuing to explore the artsy instrumentals and off-kilter flows to deliver his visions of grandeur and imaginative bragging. “Citrus Wahoo” sees Bronson reuniting with longtime collaborator Mayhem Lauren as the duo’s booming voices and dominating presence playfully juxtapose the twinkling keys.
Jeremie Albino – “Rolling Down The 405”
Our Time In The Sun
The bluesy rock of Jeremie Albino finds a new home at Easy Eye Sound, and the relationship is already proving fruitful. Albino’s new album, Our Time In The Sun, will be released on November 1, and our lead single is a distorted country anthem. “Rolling Down The 405” harkens back to the heyday of blues-inspired rock, while Albino puts his undeniable twist on the genre via unforgettable songwriting and an acrobatic vocal performance.
Sunset Rubdown – “Reappearing Rat”
Always Happy to Explore
It has been 15 years since we last heard from alt-rock darlings Sunset Rubdown, but that only makes their return feel all the more triumphant. The Spencer Krug-led project is set to drop their first album since 2009, Always Happy To Explore, on September 20, and the lead single “Reappearing Rat” has the band picking up right where they left off. Eerie yet inviting vocals are set against joyous guitars for an emo-tinged indie outing.
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard – “Le Risque”
Flight b741
You can never guess what the prolific and mighty King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard may do next. You can only wait and see what they deliver next. On “Le Risque,” the lead single for their new album Flight b741, is a honky tonk two-stepper with country influences galore. The song has the band creating blues-tinged danceability for another shocking sonic direction shift from a band that thrives on unpredictability. Flight b741 will arrive on August 9.
Ty Segall – “The Dance (Edit)”
Love Rudiments
After releasing an early contender for album of the year with the psychedelic rock of Three Bells, Ty Segall returns with a percussion-led instrumental album. Love Rudiments is set to be released on August 30 and promises to be a groove-filled outing, with Segall taking a break from vocals. “The Dance (Edit)” hits you in the chest with a rainbow of slick percussion styles that combine for challenging yet warm rhythms.
Dave Guy – “I’ll Follow You”
Ruby
Dave Guy’s debut solo album is already shaping up to be a landmark release for an artist finally ready to enter the spotlight. Ruby is set to be released on September 20 and will mark the artist’s first solo effort after lending his talents to bands like The Roots and The Dap-Kings. “I’ll Follow You” is the latest single and features more of Guy’s silky smooth horn work as he creates a soulful ballad with cloud-like textures.
Toro Y Moi, Kevin Abstract & Lev – “Heaven”
Hole Erth
Toro Y Moi is preparing to drop what promises to be another creative landmark for an artist who refuses to repeat themselves. Hole Erth will be released on September 6, and the Kevin Abstract and Lev-assisted “Heaven” is our second single after the pop-punk-tinged “Tuesday.” Our latest single has Toro Y Moi crooning over a lo-fi hip-hop instrumental that evokes the feeling of levitation.
Michael Kiwanuka – “Floating Parade”
Single
It is not every day we hear from the modern soul giant Michael Kiwanuka, but that makes his dominant presence in the genre all the more captivating. The artist is heading out on a co-headlining tour with fellow soul powerhouse Brittany Howard this fall, and before he hits the road, Kiwanuka gives us a song we can look forward to hearing live. “Floating Parade” is a minimalistic single with loose melodies that swirl around the room as Kiwanuka puts on a mesmerizing performance.
