It’s a gloomy pre-Summer New Music Friday, the perfect weather for a long day of music consumption. As we get deeper into 2025 and near the halfway point, these New Music Fridays seem to be getting better and better, and this week is no exception. This sprawling array of new releases features soulful crooning, refreshing pop balladry, and modern jazz bliss as we navigate a packed release schedule to bring you the best of the bunch.
Check out Glide’s picks for the week’s best new releases and follow our Spotify account for all things Caustic and Glide.
Mononeon – “You’re The One That I Like”
You Had Your Chance… Bad Attitude
The prolific and mysterious modern funk master Mononeon emerges in 2025 with a new LP brimming with technicolored balladry. You Had Your Chance… Bad Attitude is an eight-track exploration of the artist’s creative limits as he trades in his lo-fi recordings for eight soulful, pop-leaning tunes with heartfelt songwriting. “You’re The One That I Like” is an early favorite from Mononeon’s latest that finds the artist crooning over nostalgic soul simplicity for a quaint love song that is undoubtedly his take on the modern genre.
Friendship – “Wildwood in January”
Caveman Wakes Up
Friendship’s twangy lo-fi aesthetic is back with their first LP in three years, and it is an emotional journey through the band’s singular sound. Caveman Wakes Up is a warm, welcoming, sincere outing from the young legends that leans on minimalism, emphasizing the album’s vivid storytelling and palpable emotions. “Wildwood in January” takes you on a cold trip to a ghostly shore town and captures the sad bliss of walking in the mist, brisk morning on the New Jersey shoreline.
Béla Fleck, Edmar Castañeda, & Antonio Sánchez – “Whispers of Resilience”
BEATrio
Legendary fusion expert Béla Fleck teams up with fellow modern icons Edmar Castañeda and Antonio Sánchez to form BEATrio, and the wait for their new collaborative album is finally over. The self-titled effort is a sprawling one, filled with masterful fusion work that combines Fleck’s bluegrass roots with freeing jazz experimentation. “Whispers of Resilience” is a stormy highlight that slowly evolves into something bigger than itself. With whimsical melodies and colorful textures, “Whispers of Resilience” only begins to touch on the clinic put on by BEATrio on their new LP.
Yuno – “Perfect Pear”
Blest
The long-awaited debut album from DIY pop hopeful Yuno is here in all its glory. Blest arrives via Sub Pop in an explosion of hard-hitting yet sugary pop anthems that stretch the limits of Yuno’s artistry, as the artist croons of longing over plush instrumentation. “Perfect Pear” features dark undertones that elevate the emotional depth of the vocal performance, hinting at Yuno’s refreshing take on the modern pop landscape.
Cautious Clay – “Promises (9am)”
The Hours: Morning
Acclaimed singer/songwriter/producer Cautious Clay marks his return with a glistening example of his genre-shifting ability. After the freewheeling jazz of his 2023 LP, KARPEH, The Hours: Morning is a tight and bright set of eight pop-laden anthems that have Clay’s soaring vocals and poetic songwriting navigating colorful anthems. “Promises” is an early highlight with a stunning chorus accented by emotional verses and subtle, twinkling acoustics.
Chuck D – “Slight Story Style Sound” (Feat. Donald D & Jazzy Jay)
Chuck D Presents Enemy Radio: Radio Armageddon
Renowned Hip-hop pioneer and Public Enemy mastermind Chuck D is back with a distorted new LP of unpredictable proportions. Chuck D Presents Enemy Radio: Radio Armageddon is an apocalyptic concept record based around Chuck D’s roots as a radio DJ. The 14-song effort is collaborative, with Chuck D tapping fellow genre heroes like Schoolly D and DJ Too Tuff. “Slight Story Style Sound” is an early favorite with a simplistic bounce that acts as the perfect backdrop for the head-spinning Hip-hop prowess displayed in the verses.
Tune-Yards – “Perpetual Motion”
Better Dreaming
Merrill Garbus and Nate Brenner are back with another sterling pop outing as Tune-Yards. The duo’s new album, Better Dreaming, is a jangly and focused effort consisting of 11 invigorating, off-kilter, acrobatic examples of Tune-Yards’s stunning individuality. “Perpetual Motion” features loose acoustics that bend and twist around the gentle, ethereal vocals, with everything being juxtaposed by murky, neck-breaking drums.
Mourning [A] BLKstar – “Can We?”
Flowers For The Living
Coming off the critical acclaim of their 2024 LP, the wonderfully funky and ever-evolving Mourning [A] BLKstar returns with a honed and freeing effort. Flowers For The Living is a low-pressure, jazzy, funky, soulful journey through the band’s nuanced fusion work, which creates vivid visions of emotional journeys and honest writing. “Can We?” is an early favorite, with rugged vocals and jazzy simplicity that combine for a stadium-sized effort with swaying drums and soul-touching vocals.
The Coral Gables – “If It Matters To You”
Fire at The Water Factory
After a string of wildly impressive singles, the youthful twangy rockers The Coral Gables release their stellar debut album. Fire at The Water Factory introduces the band as sentimental songwriters and subtle fusion experts, able to craft pop-laden melodies and set them to their hectic, expansive instrumentation. “If It Matters To You” features searing guitars and thudding drums, creating a jagged wall for the passionate vocals and poetic songwriting to scale.
Thee Sacred Souls – “We Don’t Have to Be Alone”
Single
Thee Sacred Souls have dominated the soul world since their landmark 2022 debut, and their latest single continues the band’s winning streak. “We Don’t Have to Be Alone” is another example of the band’s ability to toe the line between nostalgic tropes and modern urgency. Accentuated by a palpable longing, “We Don’t Have To Be Alone” is a criminally smooth love ballad sent to the lonely yet hopeful. This single marks the band’s first release since their 2024 LP.
Nxworries – “Everybody Gets Down”
Single
The duo of Anderson .Paak and Knxwledge are heading out on their first North American tour as Nxworries, and they are celebrating the occasion with a funky new single. “Everybody Gets Down” is overflowing with grooves and danceability as .Paak’s raspy yet smooth vocals skate over bouncing drums. Nxworries’ first trek across North America begins on September 10 in Portland.
Sunking – “Bam Bam” (Feat. Takoda)
I Don’t Like My Telephone
The experimental electro-jazz band Sunking is back with a new LP and an infectious new single. I Don’t Like My Telephone will be released on July 11, marking the band’s first album since their stellar 2022 release, Smug. Our first preview of the album, the Takoda-assisted “Bam Bam,” is a quick yet jam-packed single with rapid-fire mood shifts, robotic vocals, and searing guitars, hinting at an LP that is shaping up to be a sonic leap for Sunking.
Theo Croker – “Crystal Waterfalls”
Dream Manifest
Modern jazz pioneer Theo Croker is gearing up to release Dream Manifest, his bold new LP. With the release date set for June 13, Croker drops off the third single, “Crystal Waterfalls,” which sounds just as the name suggests. The new single features cascading horns that hit the ear gently but undeniably, the same way rain hits a window. Subtly blaring horns drip around nimble drums for a nostalgic jazz single that should have everyone running to hear the rest of the LP upon release.
Pile – “Born At Night”
Sunshine and Balance Beams
Boston’s own Pile took time this week to announce their ninth LP and release its lead single. Sunshine and Balance Beams will be released on August 15, and the modern DIY heroes gave us our first preview of the album in the form of the warping “Born At Night.” The album’s lead single is an undeniable onslaught of veteran prowess that manifests into a nearly six-minute odyssey with drastic mood shifts and throat-scratching vocals.
The Lemonheads – “Deep End”
Single
With their first album of new material in nearly twenty years set to be released in the Fall, the iconic Lemonheads release the album’s first two singles. “Deep End” and “Sad Conversations” show two sides of the band’s maturity, with the latter being an acoustic ballad, and “Deep End” coming in like a comet entering orbit. “Deep End” is a hectic single with crashing drums and fireworks-style melodies for the legendary band’s unpredictable welcome home parade.
