Effie Zilch - Wynona Bleach - Interstella Boy - Temp Wishes

Photo -  Scott Witt

Effie Zilch - Lover Boy.

San Francisco duo Effie Zilch unveils “Lover Boy,” the latest single and video from their forthcoming LP Higher Calling, out July 10 via Redtone Records. The tongue-in-cheek, Motown-infused track finds the pair leaning fully into their playful side, pairing irresistible grooves with effortless swagger. 

Featuring a Benny Benjamin-inspired backbeat, a prominent bass riff, and Vandellas-style background vocals, “Lover Boy” began as something of an inside joke. It quickly evolved into one of the album’s most infectious standouts. “Sometimes songs don’t have to say anything deep or important.  Some of our favorite music is playful and lighthearted.”  “What is serious about the track is its composition, arrangement and style. It’s a fresh take on an old, familiar sound.”

Sticky-sweet and swaggering, “Lover Boy” brings classic soul revue energy into focus through Effie Zilch’s distinctly Bay Area lens. The accompanying video leans into the song’s vintage charm - shot at historic Sacramento locations once used as filming sites for silent-era icons like Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton, it pays homage to California’s cinematic history. “We knew we wanted to make a silent film, but how to capture the fun and whimsy of the song eluded us until we fully leaned into the ridiculous,” the band explains. ‘Our video team, Station to Station Creative, didn’t bat an eye at our bizarre treatment.  Instead, they went out and found the dapper duck costume the following day. A Flapper, Amelia Earhart, and a proper damsel dame set their eyes agaze on Mr. Gentleman Duck.  Cat and mouse chases, train track mishaps, and old-timey title cards tell the silent tale of this strange love story.”

“Lover Boy” follows lead single “Easy,” a restrained and deeply felt meditation built on gospel piano and a melodic bass line. Written as a message to a daughter, the track unfolds like a Sunday sermon before slipping into a subtle current of Bay Area funk reminiscent of Sly Stone, carrying both tenderness and urgency. Together, the two singles reveal the wide emotional and sonic range of Higher Calling, a record shaped by reflection, connection, and craft, drawing equally from gospel, Bay Area funk, deconstructed blues, and classic soul through the duo’s deeply intuitive approach to songwriting. 

============================================================================

Wynona Bleach - Animal Style (Album).

The new Wynona Bleach album Animal Style is officially out now everywhere via Propeller Sound Recordings (US) & Fierce Panda (UK). The Belfast band’s long-awaited sophomore album delivers towering guitars, sharp hooks, and the kind of emotional intensity that’s already making serious noise with press on both sides of the Atlantic. Wynona Bleach will be hitting the road in support of Animal Style, bringing the album’s massive guitars and high-energy live show to audiences across the UK. 

Formed in 2018, Wynona Bleach quickly gained momentum on the live circuit, including performances at Reading & Leeds Festival, a headline 12-date Russian tour, and high-profile support slots with Feeder, Slow Readers Club and rock icons Alice in Chains on their sold-out Irish dates. Their debut album Moonsoake (2022), recorded in an abandoned Portuguese factory with Bill Ryder-Jones and mixed by Bradfield & Mackintosh, garnered both critical acclaim and industry attention, leading to Northern Ireland Music Prize nominations for Album of the Year and Live Act.
 
The creation of Animal Style was a deeply collaborative journey, tracked partly in a retro Belfast ballroom-studio and refined across sessions with Bradfield & Mackintosh in London. Following 10 showcases at SXSW 2025, New Colossus NYC, Nashville festival appearances, and a personal invite to Bob Clearmountain’s Apogee Studios in Los Angeles, Wynona Bleach secured their U.S. deal with Propeller Sound Recordings, strengthening their transatlantic profile. Animal Style marks a reinvigoration of the band’s core sonic identity: an unapologetically guitar-driven album with depth, punch and wide-ranging emotional resonance. Wynona Bleach continues to expand their reach as one of Northern Ireland’s most compelling rock exports.

============================================================================

Interstella Boy - Underpass.

Interstella Boy, the creative project of songwriter Richard "Dil" Williams, is proud to announce the release of its new single, "Underpass". For more than a decade, Williams has been living with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF), a progressive and incurable lung disease that causes irreversible scarring of the lungs. Diagnosed 10 years ago, he was given a prognosis that typically sees patients survive between three and five years. Despite the ongoing decline in his lung function and the need for oxygen therapy for up to 15 hours each day, Williams continues to embrace life with determination, creativity, and optimism.

Throughout his journey, songwriting and music have provided a powerful source of therapy and personal expression. However, as the disease has increasingly affected his ability to sing, Williams has made the difficult decision to step back from lead vocal duties.

Taking the microphone for Interstella Boy's latest release is long-time collaborator Phil "Barney" Jones, who delivers the lead vocals on "Underpass". The new single marks an exciting chapter for the project while maintaining the songwriting vision and spirit that have defined Interstella Boy from the beginning. As Williams continues to live life one day at a time, "Underpass" stands as a testament to resilience, friendship, and the enduring power of music in the face of life's greatest challenges.

============================================================================

Temp Wishes - Flash Fantasy.

Temp Wishes is the new project from Josh Chicoine (The M's, Cloudbirds, Cult Canyon), Edward Anderson (1900s, Mazes), Colby Starck (Mar Caribe, Bobby Conn), and Glenn Rischke (AM Slingers, Bora Bora, Arks).  

It is lo-fi psych pop, and songs are concise with sticky melodies, harmonies, and grooves. Flash Fantasy is the first single released from their forthcoming LP. They quietly released a single entitled "Flash Fantasy" a couple weeks, however the accompanying video was released last Friday.

The band's first-ever show will be at the Hungry Brain in Chicago on Friday, June 5. The song itself has a gentle laid back feel where the mood shifts from dark to light vibes without unsettling the listener, and the arrangement could be from an early seventies folk rock band with above average gritty determination.  

============================================================================

Lala Hayden - Veronica D’Souza - Dateline - Dalinda - Fragile Animals - Dea Doyle - Ellie Heath

Photo - Bella Howard

Lala Hayden - Queen of Midnight (EP).

London/Barcelona-based pop artist Lala Hayden today releases her new EP 'Queen of Midnight' via Goldun Egg. The EP release arrives alongside news of new UK / EU tour dates supporting Kita Alexander in October, along with a headline show confirmed for 18th November in London. Written across pregnancy and into early motherhood, Lala Hayden's new EP captures a period of identity shifts and emotional recalibration, pairing sleek, hook-led alt-pop with moments of stark vulnerability - shifting between confession and full-bodied release.

Speaking on the release of the EP, LALA said: "I’ve always felt like postpartum has been treated as a “women’s issue”, something quietly endured rather than fully expressed. And because of that, it’s been largely absent from the pop culture I grew up with. For a long time, that made motherhood feel like something that would consume me completely. Like I would disappear into it and not come back. When I found out I was pregnant last year - and that I was having a girl, something shifted. I decided to explore it instead of fear it. To document it in real time, in the studio. The love, but also the crashes. The fear.

"So many of the most intense moments happen in the middle of the night. And in that loneliness, I kept thinking about all the other women awake at the same time: holding babies, holding themselves, singing, dancing, trying to make something, trying to make a living. I started writing this EP in my first trimester, and I’ve been writing and recording throughout every stage since. Releasing it now, around eight months postpartum, feels like a kind of full circle." 

============================================================================

Veronica D’Souza - No One Is A River.

Veronica D’Souza is an Indian/East African/Danish independent producer and songwriter, with a feminist, multicultural, and artistic approach to music and the world. With her new single ‘No One Is A River’, Veronica D’Souza turns her attention to endings, not as something to mourn, but as something to move through.

“I think celebrating endings is just as important as celebrating beginnings,” she says. “For me, the song is about practising letting go with joy, more than with grief. There is so much to be sorrowful about in the world right now, and that’s exactly why I believe the best things have to be built from a place of joy.”

At its core, ‘No One Is A River’ holds a simple insistence: letting go does not have to mean letting go of the dream. “I needed that,” she adds. “To be able to release something without closing myself off. To keep dreaming, even as something ends.” Rather than framing loss as absence, ‘No One Is A River’ offers a counterpoint, where endings can be marked, honoured, even danced through. Through crystalline synths and stunning soaring harmonies, Veronica captures this juxtaposition with poignancy and grace as her melancholic reflections coalesce with joyous surrender, framed in a huge moment of epic alt-pop.

============================================================================

Photo - Kate Glasson

Dateline - Meltdown.

New Zealand born and based alt-indie band Dateline revealed their brand new single ‘Meltdown’, serving fans with an enticing teaser ahead of their UK tour later this year. Meltdown was recorded on Karangahape road, in Auckland at Jon Pearce (The Beths) studio. Recorded by Jon Pearce & MIchael Howell. Produced and mixed by Pip Brown AKA Ladyhawke and Mastered by Tom Healy.

 Honest and punchy, ‘Meltdown’ emerges from the beautifully chaotic and conflicting reality of being a mother. Through building guitars and cathartic percussion, Katie Everingham’s effortless vocals capture the complete upheaval that occurs the moment you  decide to bring a new life into the world. Sharing more, Katie explained: “Not a day goes by where I am not so grateful for my daughter and so aware of how lucky I am to be her mum; however , in the last 4 years I have also experienced some really significant personal challenges that arose from parenting. 

There is immense pressure to get it right and this little person exists who knows exactly how to push your buttons and the combination lead me to some pretty tricky places from a mental health perspective. I wouldn't have things any other way but trying to be a good parent really does impact and change everything.”

============================================================================

Dalinda - The Nile.

Born to Bosnian parents, raised in Libya, and based in the UK, Dalinda’s multicultural heritage is the beating heart of her musical identity. Her breakout debut album, Turquoise (ARC Music), was produced by the legendary late Hossam Ramzy (Shakira, Peter Gabriel, Page & Plant) and immediately captured a dedicated global audience, featuring on major radio stations and world music charts. She followed this with massive crossover success in the Middle East alongside Hamid AlShairi; their collaboration, "Leish", dominated the Arabic Top Ten Charts for 17 consecutive weeks, won the ‘Best Song’ and became the region's most downloaded ringtone.

Now, Dalinda returns with a new single, "The Nile" (released May 29th). Marking a striking stylistic departure into melancholic indie, the track is a deeply personal exploration of love and loss. Produced alongside Pete Murray using authentic live instrumentation and zero samples, the track's emotional core transcends language; upon hearing it, Dalinda’s non-English-speaking mother, whose portrait graces the single's cover art and who inspired the track, was moved to tears. Anchored by a sweeping, world-infused bridge, "The Nile" perfectly merges Dalinda's musical legacy with contemporary indie-pop textures.

Crossing genres, Dalinda has secured several sync placements, including MTV’s The Sarah Silverman Show and delivered electronic / tribal collaborations with Phil Thornton and Simon Williams (Mandragora / Earthdance). Her collaborative spirit continued with the simultaneous release of her independent crossover album, Waternixie, and the traditional Songs from Libya (ARC / Hossam Ramzy). Produced by Pete Murray, Waternixie showcased her songs performed in English, Arabic, and Serbian.

============================================================================

Photo - Kelsey Doyle

Fragile Animals - Dead Stop (EP).

Brisbane shoegaze risers Fragile Animals just shared their new six track EP, Dead Stop (May 29th). Produced by Elliot Heinrich, the new EP Dead Stop was written in the aftermath of the band’s breakthrough 2025 EP Tourist and their first UK and European tour - a 14-date run across Germany, Poland, Ireland, England, and Scotland, including sold-out shows and festival appearances. That period marked both a creative high and an emotional unravelling. The EP reflects the disorientation of coming down from momentum, the cost of ambition, and the fragile determination required to keep pushing forward.

Victoria Jenkins explains: “I think this record means something slightly different to each of us, but there’s also a commonality there that relates to us all making the commitment to take another step forward. Personally, I actually find it hard to articulate what this record is about and what it means to me. I think that’s because, truthfully, it was written in a profound state of confusion and the tangled mess of feelings that it carries are just as confusing now as they were then.

We started writing this EP immediately after we wrapped up touring Tourist last year. We’d just lived a dream. I’d never loved doing anything so much or felt more like my true self. At the same time I’d never felt so frayed or fragile. The risks and sacrifices it took to make that record and tour happen really shook me, and it wasn’t until it was all over and we were sitting in a hotel in Manchester trying to write a new record that I kind of fell apart. 

Anyone walking around near John Rylands Library last August might have actually seen me crying in the street. Haha. The weird part is that when I wasn’t waking up in a panic or crying in public I felt insanely happy. I was really proud of what we’d just pulled off as an independent band and I loved the music we were writing. I felt like if we could just keep ourselves moving, and cross our fingers hard enough to prevent the world falling apart around us, we might actually get everything we wanted. If I’m honest, I’ve spent the last year trying to keep my terror in a box so that I can keep moving. That’s what this record is for me.”

Fragile Animals · Dead Stop

============================================================================

Dea Doyle - Marina.

Dea Doyle is a West London-born singer-songwriter stepping into a new chapter with her deeply personal return single, “Marina.” After taking time away from music, the track marks a shift in both her sound and her storytelling, introducing what she describes as “the most honest version of this project so far.”
Rooted in indie-pop with touches of folk, soul and classic singer-songwriter influences, Dea’s music has always carried a sharp sense of observation.

Growing up in a musical household and writing her first song at nine, she built her early releases around witty reflections on relationships. Now, her perspective has widened. “As I’ve got older, my writing has become less centred on love and a bit more varied,” she explains. “I’m writing about more real, difficult experiences that have shaped me.”

“Marina” sits at the heart of that evolution. Written in memory of her aunt, who passed away from cancer, the song is a moving portrait of grief, love and legacy. “She was my favourite person, my biggest inspiration, and honestly, all the best bits of me are her,” Dea says. “Everything I do is for her, but this track especially.” Balancing warmth and loss, the song captures how even joyful moments are coloured by absence, held together by lines like, “What I’d give to tell you all that you’ve missed since you’ve been gone.”

============================================================================

Ellie Heath - Pushing Forty (Album).

Canadian singer-songwriter Ellie Heath shares her debut album Pushing Forty alongside its bright and empowering lead single “That Sunshine’s Mine.” Rooted in joyful reflection and forward momentum, Pushing Forty captures a pivotal chapter in Ellie’s life; standing at the edge of change while embracing both the excitement and uncertainty that come with it. Blending pop, synth, indie, and rock textures, the record radiates with an effervescent energy that celebrates growth, transformation, and the beauty of stepping into something new.

“Pushing Forty began as a way to document a specific season of life,” Ellie explains. “I was entering the final year of my thirties, moving in with my partner, settling into a home and just about to welcome a dog into our lives. It felt like I was closing certain doors while opening others and I wanted to capture that emotional crossroads; the excitement and the nerves!”

At the heart of the record’s uplifting spirit is “That Sunshine’s Mine,” a playful yet powerful anthem about protecting your joy. What began as a lighthearted challenge in the studio quickly evolved into something more personal and resonant. “We joked that writing a sunshine song was basically a guaranteed hit,” she says. “From there, it evolved into something more personal about protecting your joy and not letting others dim your light.”

Driven by punchy, high-energy production and a sense of uninhibited fun, “That Sunshine’s Mine” leans into a bright, confident pop-rock sound. Its fast-paced momentum and communal gang vocals create a feeling of spontaneity and release, tapping into a kind of childlike freedom. “It makes me feel like a kid in the best possible way,” Ellie notes. “It feels fun, empowered, mischievous and free!”


============================================================================

Robert Gugliuzza - The Greenberry Woods - GrooveGalore MuziK - 37 Houses - James Keith - Zoe Jean Fowler

Robert Gugliuzza - Scrolling.

Award-winning multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter Robert Gugliuzza has long been one of indie music’s best-kept secrets—a true underdog with a deep catalog and a refusal to follow the conventional path.

His musical journey spans decades, from early work with AOR band Laden (“Politics of Life,” 1995) to Ordinary Life, a collection of rock and singer-songwriter tracks with undeniable commercial appeal. His ambitious concept project, “The Tenth Symphony: A Rock ‘n’ Roll Musical Adventure,” channels the spirit of Pink Floyd’s The Wall and aims for the масштаб of Trans-Siberian Orchestra.

“Scrolling” his brand new single is written, performed, and produced by Robert Gugliuzza (born 1963), “Scrolling” is a sharp, relatable take on modern digital addiction. Recorded at Big Chair Music Studio in West Palm Beach, FL, with lead vocals tracked at Sanderford Sound (engineered, mixed, and produced by James “Bubba” Sanderford), the track blends humor with commentary.

Driven by a Tom Petty–style groove, “Scrolling” builds from a steady, infectious rhythm into a chaotic, guitar-driven climax—mirroring the endless loop of social media consumption. Beneath its playful tone lies a real message: the hidden dangers of losing yourself in your screen.

============================================================================

The Greenberry Woods - It's All Good, Sugar... (Album).

We have the first album from power pop and alternative rock heroes The Greenberry Woods in over 30 years. It's All Good, Sugar..., the long-awaited follow-up to the band's two beloved albums on Sire Records in the mid-'90s, sees release on Vinyl, CD and Streaming worldwide on May 29, previewed by the advance singles “Whenever You Want Me Too” and “The One That Makes You Happy.” The new album finds all three founding singer-songwriters picking up right where they left of to deliver twelve new tracks bristling with hooks and harmonies that easily equal their vintage classics, adding up to what may be their best work yet.

“Let’s rewind... Can we go back in time?” Those are the first words heard on It's All Good, Sugar... and they speak volumes. Coming in on the downbeat of the first track “Summer Song” accompanied by brash, bright, open guitar chords, the yearning proclamation is immediately followed by the band crashing in with an amped-up mid tempo groove that carries us directly to the first of the album's many gorgeous choruses. The focus on the past is no accident: the band is fully aware that the tune instantly telegraphs that the band who brought you “Trampoline,” the 1994 college radio hit from their widely revered debut album Rapple Dapple, is back. 

It's a twofold callback, not just to their own heyday on the robust power pop underground that encompassed peers like Matthew Sweet, Jellyfish and Fountains Of Wayne, but also to the decades-earlier inspiration of Big Star, Badfinger, The Beach Boys, and of course The Beatles. But while the album is informed by nostalgia, it's not defined by it. On an indie pop landscape where young bands like The Lemon Twigs are making those sounds fresh again, The Greenberry Woods step back into place as masters of the form with remarkable grace, erasing the intervening decades to bring us a simply stellar, timeless collection.

============================================================================

GrooveGalore MuziK - Wandering Stranger,” (ft. Kastick & Chizzy)

GrooveGalore MuziK continues the rollout of My Reggae Rocking Journey Vol. 2 with a fresh reggae-rock interpretation of Lionel Richie’s “Wandering Stranger,” (ft. Kastick & Chizzy) released yesterday May 29.

The track features Jamaican vocalist Kastick (Big Mountain, Maxi Priest, Diana King, Kymani Marley, Enigma, Tessanne Chin) alongside the vibrant acoustic guitar stylings of Audley “Chizzy” Chisholm, Lead Guitarist for Big Mountain (Maxi Priest, The Wailers), weaving together roots reggae rhythms, soulful contemporary production, and sun-soaked island-rock energy into a fresh reinterpretation of the Lionel Richie classic.

Singles will roll-out this summer, leading to the full release of My Reggae Rocking Journey Vol 2 on August 28, 2026. With each release, GrooveGalore MuziK respectfully honors the legacy of the original artists, reimagining their timeless work through the universal language of reggae and rock n' roll. My Reggae Rocking Journey Vol 2, a tribute series helmed by a globally touring reggae heavyweight dedicated to connecting audiences across musical genres.  

============================================================================

37 Houses - When and How It Happened (Album).

San Francisco’s 37 Houses return with When and How It Happened, a fearless second album chronicling the couple-led band’s journey through love, polyamory, and the emotional fallout in between. Erin Sydney and Jeremy Rosenblum turn their marriage into music — raw, reflective, and unexpectedly full of warmth.

The SF based indie punk quartet was begun as a sort of journal by newlyweds, singer/bassist Erin Sydney and guitarist/songwriter Jeremy Rosenblum in quarantine after just 4 months of marriage. Since then, the music has become a running expression of the love and pain they experience together. When and How it Happened is the next chapter in that story: written over 18 months about the process of learning to be, and not be, polyamorous in a developing marriage. 

There’s a lot of raw emotion, and raw musicality to the album, and their bopping rhythms, swooning and warbling guitars, and Erin’s soaring vocals take things into the stratosphere. The songs were written as the events transpired and they capture the raw emotions of deeply personal moments. Neither person knew how this would end while it was being written. Helium, about a few days spent with a girlfriend, and a few months dealing with the feelings it created, captures that angst and grief. 

Album opener Shadow Puppets sings an apology, an acknowledgement, and a resignation of hope, while maintaining the fierce undercurrent of unconditional love. Acoustic tracks Unloveable and Love Song contrast each other; one song about the darkest moments, and the other an expression of neverending love to hold onto when things feel overwhelming. This album also represents the first time Erin Sydney composed songs on the album, with Event Horizon and Only a Smile Remains giving voice to her struggle, her pain, and her ability to grow through it all.

============================================================================

James Keith - Cruel Game.

Australian country-rock artist James Keith leans into the realities of long-distance love on his new single 'Cruel Game', out yesterday Friday, May 29, a country-rock anthem about choosing devotion in the face of doubt. Arriving alongside the announcement of his forthcoming album, 'I Call It Magic When I’m With You' (out October 2), the track finds him reflecting on the risks of loving deeply and why some things are still worth holding onto.
 
Since the release of his ARIA Country Albums Chart-topping debut 'Life Is Good Today' in 2024, James Keith has continued to build on his grounded brand of country-rock storytelling. Following a Top 10 placing in the prestigious Toyota Star Maker competition in 2025, Keith now formally announces his forthcoming album, 'I Call It Magic When I’m With You'.
 
Set for release this October, the 14-track project explores new love, distance and choosing joy through life’s challenges, building on the themes introduced across his recent run of singles.
  
Sparked by a comment questioning the sincerity of his relationship, his next single explores what it means to stand by love when circumstances make things harder. Honest and defiant, the 'Cruel Game' traces the tension between fear and faith, grounding itself in trust, patience and the belief that some connections are worth fighting for.

James Keith · Cruel Game

============================================================================

Zoe Jean Fowler - Fireflies. 

Country newcomer Zoe Jean Fowler releases her nostalgic new single, “Fireflies,” available everywhere now. Alongside the release, Fowler announces her upcoming EP, Written By A Woman, due out July 10th, 2026. The new single is the second song she's unveiled from the forthcoming project and further introduces the emotional storytelling and female-driven creative vision at the heart of Written By A Woman. “Fireflies' is an anthem for summer love and the perfect way to kick off the announcement of my all-female penned EP, Written By A Woman,” shares Fowler.
 
Written by Zoe Jean Fowler alongside Emma Place and Kiersten Rae Lasley and produced by Kendall Fowler, “Fireflies” captures the fleeting magic of young summer romance through vivid storytelling and warm country nostalgia. Filled with imagery of beach sunsets, bonfires, cheap red wine, and late-night coastal drives, the track reflects on a love that burned brightly, even if it wasn't meant to last.
 
Driven by breezy production and reflective lyricism, “Fireflies” embraces the beauty of temporary moments and the memories that linger long after they're gone. With lines like, “Can't keep fireflies in a jar, just like time they flew,” Fowler delivers a coming-of-age anthem that feels both deeply personal and universally relatable.
 
Known for her honest songwriting and fiercely loyal fanbase, Zoe Jean Fowler is quickly carving out her place as one of independent country music's rising voices. Her deluxe album, Cry Baby, earned 28 editorial playlist adds, premiered on WSM at the Grand Ole Opry, and led to a feature with CMT. Zoe has also shared the stage with artists including Kix Brooks, Randy Houser, Flatland Cavalry, and Sam Barber.

============================================================================

Babe Rainbow - Cassady Southern - Pilote - Run Remedy - Chris Pierce - Lottie McLeod

Photo by Jordan Malane

Babe Rainbow - Polymuscalsaccharide.

Australia’s psych rainbow rockers Babe Rainbow return with the lead single from their seventh studio album, “Polymuscalsaccharide”. Much like the track’s name entails, the sugary sweet new tune blends together retro synths and hazy guitars with the band’s beachy vocals, creating a perfect soundtrack for early summer nights.

Taken from Babe Rainbow’s forthcoming seventh studio album Acid And Honey, “Polymuscalsaccharide” began its production as an acoustic recording on an Amsterdam houseboat. With mastering and production completed by Kyle Mullarky at his Malibu ranch, the track leans heavily into a country-pop beat that is garnished with notes of funk, hip-hop, and stoner rock.

Known for their boogie psychedelia and throwback surf cult imagery, Babe Rainbow are an Australian stoner pop band. The group was formed in 2015 by Jack Crowther (aka Cool Breez), Angus Dowling, and Elliot O'Reilly, who lurked at the kiosks around Rainbow Bay. The three of them worked for John Cutts, a local grower near Tropical Fruit World in Duranbah, NSW. The guys at John's farm were churning out kale long before it became trendy.  

While Babe Rainbow's musical style was originally rooted in 60's psych and 70's French surf-pop, it has evolved throughout its career to incorporate woodland bop and folk disco, dub, dance, and international grooves while maintaining an Aquarian quality through Dowling's musical spacemen singing style and Cool Breez's chiming guitar sounds. Beehive Candy would also like to point out 'Babe Rainbow' is a beautiful song by Melanie Safka...

============================================================================

Cassady Southern - Need someone.

Ok lets go with the detail for this gorgeous new song on Beehive Candy - ‘Need someone’ was written by Cassady Southern with contributions by Tom Goodridge, Frank Doerges, Rob Drummond, John Montgomery, JD Douglas and Dai Nettle. It was recorded at Studios 301 Sydney with Jack Garzonio and Brad Hasiuk at the helm, mixed by Luke Payne (Luke Payne Sound) and mastered by Darren Ziesing (Millennium Mastering). It features Tom Goodridge on lead guitar, Rob Drummond on rhythm guitar, John Montgomery on bass, JD Douglas on drums, Dai Nettle on keys and Amelia du Randt (Diva Amelia) on backing vocals.

Cassady Southern is an accomplished singer-songwriter with a rich catalogue of music that spans multiple genres: Blending the raw edge of rock, the heart of country, the soul of blues, and the energy of pop into one authentic sound.

Cassady grew up in a musical household, where band rehearsals were a regular feature and music was encouraged. She learned piano and saxophone and later guitar. Cassady began writing and releasing songs and has since developed a body of music which is characterised by its authenticity, heartfelt storytelling and broad appeal.

============================================================================

Pilote - Sous les Oliviers.

We are delighted to feature Pilote "the solo project of Christelle Armenio, a genre-defying artist whose pop music infused with new wave influences blends poetry with melancholy." The title track is a gorgeous introduction for Beehive Candy (we are partial to some French language music that resonates with us) so anyway here is the background. Through airy and introspective production, Pilote draws listeners into a sensory universe where every note feels suspended in time. On stage, she embodies her compositions with a “wild softness,” carried by a delicately sensual and vibrant voice.

Her intimate musical world invites escape, like a waking dream. Behind this stage name stands a sincere creator with a minimalist aesthetic, refusing compromise. Christelle draws inspiration from British pop culture and iconic French singer-songwriters. Her music is an ode to life, love, and the complexity of human emotions. To place her within an artistic constellation, one might evoke the musicality of Air, the dreamlike atmosphere of Kate Bush, and the lyrical richness of Serge Gainsbourg — all carried by refined electronic production.

An artist with a singular profile, Christelle stands out through her background as an engineer, her love of literature, her traveler’s soul, and her constant search for meaning. Her art reflects this duality: profound fragility in her lyrics balanced by the power of her orchestrations. She is currently preparing a new album scheduled for release in July 2026, titled Sous les Oliviers. 

============================================================================

Run Remedy - Big Nothing.

Run Remedy returns with Not at the Table out September 11th, a strikingly intimate and conceptually ambitious EP that blurs the line between indie pop, lo-fi experimentation and alternative storytelling. Written in solitude and brought to life in a shipping container studio in Manchester, the project captures something raw and immediate: a body of work built on instinct, trust, and an unfiltered emotional core.

The EP moves through a sequence of physical and emotional spaces, unfolding like a 24-hour cycle. Each track occupies its own sonic landscape, shifting from hushed, acoustic vulnerability to cinematic swells and fractured, experimental textures, all tied together by Run Remedy’s precise, confessional lyricism.

Sonically, Not at the Table pushes further into genre-bending territory than ever before. Drawing on influences ranging from Elliott Smith and The Smiths to Mitski, Adrianne Lenker and St. Vincent, the EP balances delicate folk intimacy with art-pop edge, post-rock builds and moments of off-kilter humour. There’s a constant interplay between sincerity and theatricality - a refusal to settle into one tone for too long.

“The title came first: a house, a dinner table, and the idea of everything that can’t be said in that shared space. The artwork, painted by artist Lili Holland-Fricke, shows that house, with different tensions playing out in each room. Each section zooms in on a different part of what’s happening inside, almost like moving through the house and getting closer to the different conversations (or non-conversations) happening in it.” 

============================================================================

Chris Pierce - This Sunlit Morning.

Chris Pierce announces his new album Songs for the Heavy Hearted, due out August 21. Produced by frequent collaborators David Resnik and Niko Bolas (Neil Young, The Mavericks), Songs for the Heavy Hearted captures moments in the lives of everyday people as they struggle with crisis and encapsulates everything that has been so emotionally resonant about Pierce’s music for more than two decades. Along with the news, he shares his new single “This Sunlit Morning,” a tender testament to resilience.

“‘This Sunlit Morning’ came from holding the weight of the times we're living in,” shares Pierce. “Every day, we're staring into some new kind of chaos, division, or corruption, and if we're not careful, it can start to pull us away from what is right in front of us. This song is about remembering to pause and reflect on what we’ve been blessed with. The simple things that can keep us rooted when the world starts feeling unsteady. We still have to get out there and fight for a better world. We still have to speak up for people whose voices are ignored or silenced. Sometimes, we need to pause just long enough to remember what we're fighting for in the first place.”

At its core, Songs for the Heavy Hearted is a diary of — and love letter to — freedom fighters everywhere; its constant refrain is that love, joy, hope and softness are not things we need to sacrifice to fight the good fight. Featuring stellar performances from Allison Russell, Steve Earle, Grey DeLisle and Garrison Starr, the new album embodies the belief that “we shall overcome,” and this sentiment has never sounded more uplifting and within reach.

============================================================================

Photo by Carrie McLeod

Lottie McLeod - Sunburnt.

Magan-djin/Brisbane-based singer-songwriter Lottie McLeod has just announced her forthcoming The Boat House EP - an intimate coming-of-age "for people who love to feel deeply" drawing from indie, alt-pop, folk and beyond, signalling a young artist coming out of her shell, stepping into the confidence to follow her own path and express herself openly, making McLeod's much-praised ability to make the personal feel universal stronger than ever. 

Alongside the announcement, Lottie McLeod shares searing new single 'Sunburnt' about a fleeting relationship, featuring tongue-in-cheek peppiness paired with some of her "most disgusting - and/or devastating - lyrics yet". The Boat House EP - which will include 'Important To You' and 'Sunburnt' - is out Friday 25 September.

Lottie McLeod says, "'Sunburnt' is about a person I was seeing for not even a month; I felt such a strong connection with this person but I also hardly knew him. I had just gotten back from a beach day with my mum, a little sunburnt - I'm a sucker for metaphor. I liked this guy. A LOT. Talking everyday, dates, future planning, dinner with the parents. Our last date was the closest I had ever felt to him - I spent the night and the next morning he asked to go to breakfast that weekend, where he ended things. 

I was so disappointed and confused, I really wanted to know him on a deeper level, see his ugly side, have some sort of future with him. He never gave me a chance to show him how beautiful it could’ve been, but I knew it was something I just had to let go because there was nothing to hold on to. There was this self reflection at the time, asking myself “why would I try to win back a stranger…  That would be silly!” - I wrote this song instead."

Lottie McLeod · Sunburnt

============================================================================

Lynn Hollyfield - Big Little Lions - Penny Lane Pickets - Michael Kelly - Mama's Broke - Strange Plants - 64 Funnycars

Lynn Hollyfield - Blindspot.

We have the new folk single and music video “Blindspot” from award-winning singer-songwriter Lynn Hollyfield. The poignant song, “Blindspot” was written after losing a family member and a friend to the fentanyl crisis. She shares, “Afterwards, I couldn’t help but wonder if I had been truly open and caring when I was with them. Was there anything I could have done to help them? I’ll never know and it’s one of those hard life lessons - too little too late." The single was produced by Grammy-nominated Seth Glier. 

Blend a beautiful alto voice, crisp acoustic guitar, and a heartfelt perspective on the world, and you have Lynn Hollyfield. Known for her warm stage presence and emotionally rich songs, she connects effortlessly with audiences. Writing in a contemporary folk style, Lynn weaves in jazz-influenced chords and bluesy guitar alongside passionate vocals, think Mary Chapin Carpenter meets Bonnie Raitt with a touch of George Gershwin. The result is her own distinctive voice, witty, soulful, and reflective.

Lynn has been writing songs since her teenage years, growing up on Staten Island, NY, surrounded by a wide range of musical influences, from jazz greats like Ella Fitzgerald and Frank Sinatra to artists like The Beatles and Neil Young. She began performing locally at a young age and later gained recognition as part of the duo Hollyfield & Spruill, appearing at festivals such as the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival.

After launching her solo career, Lynn released several acclaimed albums, including LAYERS (2010), IN THE BALANCE (2014), and LOOK UP (2024), earning national and international airplay along with multiple songwriting awards including being listed in the Top Artists/ Top Albums for the International Folk Alliance. During the pandemic, she also published a children’s book, The Tree, The Ship and Me, with its accompanying song recognized as a finalist in the Mid-Atlantic Songwriting Contest.

============================================================================

Big Little Lions - They Say It Builds Character.

As multi award winning cross border duo, Big Little Lions are going to be releasing monthly singles this year Beehive Candy who are genuine fans of their sumptuous music will just rinse and repeat their background again this month. Big Little Lions are a duo who were born out of a collaboration that won them a JUNO Award in 2014. Since then they have been cranking out infectious folk pop songs that are jam-packed with emotion and tight harmonies that sound like the product of two people working side-by-side instead of living in different countries. 

They have released 7 albums to date, which have garnered them awards and nominations including the CFMA Ensemble of the Year, Independent Music Awards Americana Sing of the Year and John Lennon Songwriting Competition Song of the Year. Their critically acclaimed music has appeared on the CBC’s Top 20 and featured on shows like q and Vinyl Cafe. The duo consists of Paul Otten and Helen Austin, both hugely prolific songwriters - their music has been placed in hundreds of movie trailers, ads, network TV shows.

Their live show is quite the spectacle with Paul playing drums, bass and keyboard all while singing lead vocals. Helen, who is no slacker either, sings, plays guitar and foot percussion. They use every limb, and then some, to make two people sound like a full band.

============================================================================

Penny Lane Pickets - Penny Lane Pickets / The Dawning (feat. The Rocksteady Crackers).

What if The Beatles grew up in the 90s California punk scene? Meet the Penny Lane Pickets. Straight out of Santa Cruz, the Penny Lane Pickets are here to bridge the gap between a 184 BPM moshpit and a 60s pop melody. Led by the grit of Jax Miller and the driving, distorted walking bass of Sky Bennett, this four-piece is fulfilling their lifelong dream: crashing the legendary Epitaph/Hellcat Records sound head-first into the timeless songwriting of Lennon & McCartney.

Produced and mixed by Sam Dekker, their sound is a high-energy explosion. It’s got the frantic, distorted soul of Rancid and The Suicide Machines, the brass-heavy punch of The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, melodic hooks of Goldfinger and the soaring infectious energy of The Interrupters.

But look closer, and you’ll hear the "secret sauce": psych-rock textures and 60s pop-inspired choruses that refuse to leave your head. With a powerhouse brass section (featuring the Rocksteady Crackers) providing the fire, the Pickets deliver a sound that is as much about the "Penny Lane" harmonies as it is about the "Ruby Soho" attitude. This debut single serves as a high-octane prelude to their upcoming full-length album, Copper & Chrome, set to drop on December 18th.

Penny Lane Pickets · Penny Lane Pickets

============================================================================

Michael Kelly - Anyway (Album).

Michael Kelly is a singer, songwriter, picker and performer. His new album, Anyway, encompasses a wide range of musical influences expressed from a well-honed folk, blues and bluegrass sensibility. He worked the D.C. club circuit early in his career and at one point, took a job at a celebrated Georgetown music venue where he would take money at the door, run inside to re-stock the bar, change clothes to perform a short opening set, then re-stock the bar and head back out to the door. 

He recalls, “Oddly enough, the change of clothes threw people off and only rarely did anyone recognize me as the opening act, although the bands and the regulars were always super supportive.” On-line lessons with Nashville icon Russ Barenberg helped develop a more melodic guitar approach and led to a deeper dive into bluegrass, which included workshops, festivals and wide-ranging cadre of mentors. 

Songs on Anyway include One Good Friend and Joseph, which placed first at the New Song Festival in Winfield, Kansas, in 2024 and 2025, respectively, and Chesapeake Waterman, which placed first at the Common Ground on the Hill Acoustic Roots 2024 songwriting competition. 

============================================================================

Mama's Broke - The Nameless.

Mama’s Broke, the Nova Scotian duo of Amy Lou Keeler and Lisa Maria announce their new album, Reunion, out August 28 via Free Dirt Records and Forward Music Group and share the latest single, “The Nameless.” Building on their JUNO-nominated album Narrow Line (2022), which saw the pair invited to perform on the legendary NPR Tiny Desk, Reunion reflects a world coming apart in plain sight, tracing fractured communities, the erosion of shared ground, and the growing awareness that the systems we were taught to trust no longer hold or deliver the promises they were meant to keep. The songs don’t preach or prescribe; they reflect, holding up a mirror and leaving space for something else to take shape.

“The Nameless” are the women who are often reduced, in memory and history, to narrow, simplified roles,” explains the band, “their complexity stripped away in favour of labels they are expected to embody, whether flawlessly or tragically.” 

“The Nameless” presents four archetypes: the “scorned lover”, defined only by the man who left her rather than her own life; the “callous mother” judged by her perceived failures without regard for her struggles; the victim of domestic violence, absorbed into statistics while attention and sympathy lingers on the perpetrator; and the missing daughter, whose story evokes a place like the Highway of Tears, where many women, disproportionately Indigenous, have vanished. The headlines, demographic headings and acronyms will never convey the full story of a life, or the true weight of the violence that women face every day.

============================================================================

Strange Plants - Time Killing.

Continuing upon this year’s previous releases, “Lay Your Mind” and “Ground Falls Away,” Strange Plants share “Time Killing,” a contemplative and expansive psych-rock single that blends atmospheric textures with a sense of quiet, underlying tension. Wistful and immersive, the track leans into themes of existential reflection and the slow passage of time, capturing the feeling of moving through life’s routines while something deeper simmers beneath the surface.

The song’s origin traces back to a period of heavy literary influence. “At the risk of sounding absurdly pretentious, I was reading a lot of Charles Bukowski at the time,” explains songwriter Matt Brannon. “So it created a sort of temporary supercharged nihilism.” That perspective shaped the song’s core idea; a meditation on time, purpose, and the subtle weight of existence.

Built around a rich, retro-psychedelic sound palette, “Time Killing” unfolds with layered instrumentation and tonal contrast. Trippy string arrangements intertwine with shimmering lap steel, creating a unique sonic blend that sets the track apart within the band’s catalogue. The result is a sound that feels both expansive and grounded; classic in influence yet exploratory in execution.

The recording process brought together a striking group of collaborators. Loel Campbell (Wintersleep, Billy Talent) contributed drums, while Christine Bougie (Bahamas) added lap steel and Drew Jurecka (Dua Lipa) arranged the song’s sweeping strings. The track was mixed by Chris Shaw and co-produced alongside JUNO Award-winning producer Michael Phillip Wojewoda, further elevating its textured, cinematic feel.

============================================================================

64 Funnycars - Happy Go Lucky (Album)

After decades out of print, 64 Funnycars’ cult college rock debut Happy Go Lucky finally returned May 27 through 604 Records. Originally released at the tail end of Canada’s late 80s campus radio boom, the record captured a band that never aimed for cool detachment or punk orthodoxy, instead leaning hard into melody, momentum and the simple thrill of making people move. Nearly four decades later, Happy Go Lucky still sounds remarkably alive in its looseness and charm.

The band formed in 1987 through UVic campus radio circles, bonded by a shared love of groups like Young Fresh Fellows, Hoodoo Gurus, Buzzcocks and The Replacements, bands where hooks and personality mattered just as much as volume. While much of Victoria’s reputation at the time centered around heavier and more abrasive acts, 64 Funnycars carved out their own space, blending power pop, melodic punk and jangly college rock into something energetic, playful and unpretentious. Songs moved fast, choruses arrived early and the energy always felt slightly on the verge of tipping over.

That unpredictability became central to the band’s identity at Harpo’s, the legendary Victoria venue that helped define the Pacific Northwest underground touring circuit through the 80s and early 90s. Long before they became festival headliners, bands like Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, Blind Melon and No Doubt came through the room, and the Funnycars quickly became part of that same ecosystem. Their sets thrived on joyful chaos: no fixed setlists, rotating lead vocals and an anything-can-happen atmosphere that made even local shows feel electric. The band later joked that they were “the chess club on tour,” a line that captured both their self-awareness and total lack of rock-star pretension.


============================================================================