NEW INDIE MUSIC: THE 10 BEST SONGS OF THE WEEK

Photo by Johanna Hvidtved

Between Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers and Harry's House, there's been lots of new music to keep us busy over the last couple of weeks. They aren't the only two releases currently on heavy rotation around these parts, however, as we're about to find out in this Monday's bumper edition of We Are: The Guard's New Indie Music. Just pull on some headphones and enjoy the following songs from Liss, Jordana, flipturn, and more!

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LISS & NILÜFER YANYA – BOYS IN MOVIES

Just under a year on from Søren Holm's untimely passing, Liss is sharing "Boys in Movies." Featured on the Danish band's forthcoming debut album, I Guess Nothing Will Be the Same – as released with the blessing of Søren's family – "Boys in Movies" is a gauzy grunge collaboration with British star Nilüfer Yanya. "Breathe easy/Don't worry/I'm sorry I'm under construction," sings Søren, his sweetly sheer voice exposing the harsh realities of love. "Breathe easy/Don't worry/You know boys in the movies are better."

JORDANA – GO SLOW

The music of Jordana is all about glowing in the face of adversity, with the New York City-based artist once again reminding us to keep on keeping on with "Go Slow." Lifted from her recent sophomore album, Face the Wall – alongside the previously featured "Catch My Drift," "Pressure Point," and "To the Ground" – "Go Slow" is a hope-filled guitar swirl that hears Jordana radiating from the inside out. "I know/Eventually I'll be alright," sings the 21-year-old in the chorus. "Never been too late to change my mind."

FLIPTURN – BROOKLYN BABY

We recently profiled them as part of our Featured Find series, and today, Florida's flipturn continues their meteoric rise through the indie-rock ranks with "Brooklyn Baby." Produced alongside Jon Gilbert, "Brooklyn Baby" is a vibrant bit of heartland-pop that hears big keys and even bigger drums backing a sparkling Dillon Basse as he considers how dependence can cause us to cling to toxic relationships: "Ooh, Brooklyn baby/I'm a fool/Thinking you could save me/Now I don't care/If you love or hate me."

FANCLUBWALLET – YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME

There's no artist capturing the human experience in all of its awkwardly embarrassing glory quite like fanclubwallet, with the Canadian musician continuing to be a voice for self-deprecating souls everywhere on "You Have Got To Be Kidding Me." Coming after "Trying To Be Nice," "You Have Got to be Kidding Me" is a low-slung chugger that hears fanclubwallet singing about the end of a friendship with a touch of tongue-in-cheek: "So now you've seen me twice/Once when I wasn't very kind/Kinda sucks to be nice."

HAZEL ENGLISH (FEAT. DAY WAVE) – ALL DRESSED UP

They previously collaborated on a cover of Interpol's "PDA," and today, Hazel English and Day Wave are reuniting on "All Dressed Up." Featured on Hazel's forthcoming EP, Summer Nights, "All Dressed Up" is a sun-bleached dream-pop reverie that has all of the nostalgic melancholy of a faded polaroid of a lost lover. Hazel: "I think the pandemic and time at home got me thinking a lot about my past and remembering high school experiences and those kinds of feelings that were so vivid at that time." Listen.

LIVING HOUR (FEAT. JAY SOM) – FEELINGS MEETING

Living Hour is set to release their third album, Someday Is Today, in September, but before then, the Canadian act is sharing the lead single, "Feelings Meeting." Produced by Jay Som, "Feelings Meeting" is a staggering piece of shoegaze that gradually consumes its listeners in a tsunami wave of emotive fuzz over four minutes. "The song is about struggling with internal worlds, habits, and daily circumstances," adds Sam Sarty of the enormous "Feelings Meeting" – one of the first cuts she ever wrote on bass.

GRACE IVES – ANGEL OF BUSINESS

Ahead of the release of her sophomore album, Janky Star, in June, Grace Ives is sharing "Angel of Business." The follow-up to "Loose" and "Lullaby," "Angel of Business" is a mangled piece of electro-pop that hears Grace singing about her early experiences in the music industry atop beats that spark and sputter like loose circuitry. "Uncomfortable meetings, overdrafted account, and sleazy suits. This is my message to myself to have a little faith in the future," adds Grace of cut – a twisted synth treasure.

SOCCER MOMMY – BONES

The countdown to Sometimes, Forever, Soccer Mommy's forthcoming third album as produced by Daniel Lopatin, continues today with "Bones." Coming after "Shotgun" and "Unholy Affliction," it's a sugary chug that Sophie Allison originally wrote for a rom-com, before deciding to keep it for herself. "'Bones' is a song about struggling with the parts of yourself that you don't like in a relationship," says Sophie. "It's about wanting to become better for someone and feeling like you're standing in your own way."

IAN SWEET – FIGHT

In March 2021, IAN SWEET released her critically acclaimed third album, Show Me How You Disappear. Since then, she's unveiled a cover of Coldplay and a one-off single, "f*ckthat," and today, Jilian Medford is back with "FIGHT." A heartbreakingly dreamy listen that Jilian wrote after the collapse of her relationship, "FIGHT" strikes a sparkling blow to the chest: "I get high in my car/Gonna cry all night/Dance in the headlights/We could drive, drive real far/Or we could crash this car/Fuck and fight."

SPILL TAB – SPLINTER

She recently performed sell-out shows in Paris and London, and today, spill tab's Claire Chicha is back with "Splinter." Coming after the Solomonophonic-produced "Sunburn," "Splinter" is a gargantuan guitar anthem that spill tab describes as having "a bit of an early 2000s rom-com end credits vibe." "It's a bit depressing lyrically but I love having those visuals layered over the crunchy drums and guitars," adds Claire of the cut – a mammoth stomp that hears her assuming her place as one of the freshest faces in rock.

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Jess Grant is a frustrated writer hailing from London, England. When she isn't tasked with disentangling her thoughts from her brain and putting them on paper, Jess can generally be found listening to The Beatles, or cooking vegetarian food.