-Together in Dust

After the lull in new releases last week, we are back with a regular edition of Tuned In, highlighting some of the best and brightest of new music. We’ve got pop, rock, sad-dad, metal, and even some folk-punk. There’s more than enough to make a great soundtrack to your weekend. What here strikes your fancy? What are you listening to this weekend? And what did we miss?

Indigo De Souza–All Of This Will End

Asheville North Carolina’s Indigo De Souza has released her third full-length album, All Of This Will End. Although given the moniker of ‘singer-songwriter,’ this is more of a functional descriptor than a genre indicator (she is neither Joan Baez nor Phoebe Bridgers). De Souza’s music has elements of indie-rock and pop overlayed by her intimate and brutally honest lyrics. Take single “You Can Be Mean,” which describes a relationship gone wrong. Indigo takes no prisoners laying out how she was hurt and how she feels about it: “I’d like to think you got a good heart, and your dad was just an asshole growing up, but I don’t see you trying that hard to be better than he is,” Bam, roasted. I don’t know who this guy is, but she took him down hard. And it sounds like he absolutely deserved it. Coupled with an intriguing album cover, All of This Will End seems is an emotional tell-all worth investigating. Stream the album HERE.

Spotlights–Alchemy For The Dead

Spotlights follow up Seance EP, released in March, with their third full length album. They repurpose two tracks from the EP and expand the record out to nine songs of crushing metal in the loud-quiet-loud tradition. The melodic softness of the vocals balances out the brutality of the music which recalls some of the great metallic shoegaze bands from the 90’s. Read our full review HERE. Stream Alchemy for the Dead HERE.

The National–First Two Pages Of Frankenstein

Sad Dad Rock forerunners The National return on their follow up to 2019’s I Am Easy To Find. The band kept plenty busy during the four-year hiatus. Singer Matt Berninger released an excellent solo album Serpentine Prison. And guitarist Aaron Dessner co-wrote and co-produced Taylor Swift’s surprise album Folklore. So, in return, Swift makes an appearance on this record. In fact, the guest list is STACKED, with Phoebe Bridgers and Sufjan Stevens also making appearances. Four singles were released in anticipation of Frankenstein. And these indicate that Frankenstein continues the softer musical direction set on I Am Easy To Find. Stream The First Two Pages Of Frankenstein HERE.

Braids–Euphoric Recall

Braids newest album retains the artful nature of the band while expanding into sweeping pop melodies over electronic orchestration that is both beautiful and breathtaking. The Montreal-based three piece manage to sound much bigger than their member count would suggest. And the rhythms of the songs ebb and flow into massive swells of sound that create a moving listening experience. Read our full review HERE. Stream Euphoric Recall HERE.

Joseph–The Sun

It’s hard not to compare Joseph to HAIM, as they are both sister-trios. But that’s about where the comparison ends. All three sisters display their singing chops, and they build beautiful three-part harmonies. Musically, the band blends indie-pop, rock, and folk sensibilities over the 10 tracks on The Sun. Stream the full album HERE.

Dave Hause–Drive It Like It’s Stolen

I don’t know why I’ve never listened to Dave Hause before. His name has come across my radar, but for some reason I never followed up on it. Turns out, he’s in the same vein of punk rockers crossing over to good old American singer-songwriter Rock and Roll. Which is a genre I adore. His storytelling travels the same weathered roads as artists like Brian Fallon of The Gaslight Anthem, Tim Barry of Avail, Jason Isbell, and even Frank Turner (I know he’s a brit). The track “chainsaweyes” reminds me so much of the challenges my three-year-old son is going through right now that I’m trying not to cry about it. Drive It Like It’s Stolen is an American classic, and you should definitely listen to it right now. Stream the album HERE.

Together in Dust-“Fire & Embers”

“Fire and Embers” is Together In Dust’s first new music in 6 years and reflects the angular math-rock tendencies of the midwest-emo genre. Staff writer has compared the vocalist to Aaron Weiss, which is beyond high praise. Read his review of the track HERE. Stream the track now and let us know if you think the comparison is deserved.