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THIS WEEK’S INDIE FOLK BOPS

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Warm, honest and quietly devastating in places: this week’s indie folk bops are the kind of songs that make you stop what you’re doing and actually listen.

Foxy Leopard – Same Old Sermon

Foxy Leopard’s “Same Old Sermon” is a stunning piece of cinematic alt-country: raw resonator guitar, sparse instrumentation and wonderfully well-observed lyrics

“Same Old Sermon” is part of the concept album Before, a prequel project exploring how ordinary lives drift apart before conflict makes the division official. The track is built around a single lyric: “North heard mercy, South heard wrong,” an observation about how the same message produces completely different convictions depending on who is listening. The production is deliberately stripped back: raw resonator guitar with metal cone, sparse harmonica and banjo and intimate vocals. It is Americana that earns the word cinematic through it’s atmosphere, grit and groove.

Foxy Leopard is a cinematic alt-country project from Quebec, Canada, building a narrative world set against the emotional backdrop of the American Civil War. Rather than focusing on battles or politics, the project explores what comes before: the quiet shifts in belief and identity that lead people toward irreversible division. The sound sits somewhere between 1860s folk, modern outlaw storytelling and minimalist alt-country. It’s a compelling mix, and definitely worth of your ears this month.

Kitty O’Neal – Headspace

Kitty O’Neal serves up a gorgeous piano-led indie folk stunner: contemplative, unhurried and perfect to sit with

“Headspace” is built on piano and sparse, thoughtful instrumentation that keeps the emotional weight in the vocal and the lyric rather than the production. The subject is emotional numbness and self-observation, the feeling of watching your own life from a slight remove. It’s a compelling subject matter, and the song delivers it in style. The chorus is great, and it really soars, in a kind of ‘The National’-esque way. Kitty’s vocal is my fave though, it’s beautiful.

O’Neal is a London-based singer-songwriter who received Help Musicians funding in 2025 to record her debut album. She has played over 75 venues across the UK and Ireland including Glastonbury Festival, and has supported Rae Morris, Rozi Plain and Band of Skulls. Her 2024 EP Cross St Demos launched with sold-out shows and radio support from BBC 5 Live, Times Radio, BBC Ulster, BBC Introducing and Soho Radio. It’s an impressive CV, but the best thing here is this song. A really great single, and I can’t wait to hear more.

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Goldschatz – We Got Love

Goldschatz deliver a brilliant piece of groovy Swiss-Canadian Americana: honest, warm and recorded beautifully

“We Got Love” was produced and recorded by Eric Nielsen in Vancouver, whose credits include Frazey Ford and The Deep Dark Woods, and the production carries that West Coast warmth and attention to live feel. It’s got a tasty mix of Americana, 60s soul and uplifting harmonies, and the result is just lovely. Smooth like butter, vocally tight and best of all? The song at the heart of this is a real triumph.

Goldschatz are Rykka and Timothy Jaromir, a Swiss-Canadian duo who have been travelling the world and making music together for over a decade. Rykka began busking in Vancouver at 15 and won the Canadian Peak Performance Project award in 2013; Jaromir released his debut album in 2010 and has played Gurten Festival and the Montreux Jazz Festival. Impressive CVs, but the main event here is this song; it’s a stunner and we can’t wait for more.

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Jonathan Lobo – Hero

Jonathan Lobo gives us a standout piano-led ballad about legacy and memory: warm, thoughtful and with bags of character

“Hero” is a reflective track about how we hope to be remembered by the people we love, and the arrangement matches the weight of that subject: intimate piano at the foundation, with live drums, slide guitar, mellotron and layered harmonies building the emotional scale without overloading it. The production is really, really lovely and it grooves along in style. Since release the track has found listeners through Spotify Radio, Release Radar, Daylist and independent playlist support, and we’re not surprised at all.

Lobo is a Dubai-born and raised lawyer and independent singer-songwriter whose music functions, by his own description, as therapy for himself first and for anyone else who needs it. His songwriting circles real-life questions that do not resolve neatly: memory, regret, growing older, and the strange ways people make sense of their lives. He draws from John Mayer, Elton John, the Beatles and Tom Odell, and the influence of all four is audible without any of them crowding the track. This is a beauty, and should go on every sunday afternoon playlist out there.

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THIS WEEK’S ROCK BOPS

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Soulful, dramatic and emotionally serious: this week’s rock bops run from blues-soaked swagger to symphonic crescendos to a Pride Month courtroom Americana single, all of them built to last.

Sarah Brunner – Miss Kentucky

Sarah Brunner’s “Miss Kentucky” is a brilliant queer Americana single: a voiceover from Justice Kennedy’s Obergefell ruling, Bear Creek Studio production, and a songwriter who has been performing for fifteen years and knows exactly how to land this.

“Miss Kentucky” exists because Kim Davis filed a 2025 petition to the Supreme Court to overturn Obergefell v. Hodges, the ruling that legalised same-sex marriage in the United States. It’s an impressive and important backdrop, to a song that’s delivers that message fantastically. There’s a quiver in the vocal which I love, and it’s a rolls along in real style. “Loving her is my freedom” is the line that gets me every time. Fantastic.

Brunner is a Michigan native based in Seattle who has been performing solo and with The Hipocrats for over fifteen years. Her songwriting moves between acoustic Americana, folk and country through a queer lens, and the depth of her live experience gives “Miss Kentucky” the authority of a performer who knows what a room feels when a song is doing something real. A brilliant, important single.

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Midnight Miles – Call on Me

Midnight Miles serve up a gorgeously gritty, open road, Montréal blues-rock anthem

“Call on Me” was recorded with live-band energy and the sonic vocabulary of The Black Crowes and The Faces clearly in mind: blues-soaked guitars, a vocal performance that earns the classic rock comparison rather than simply invoking it, and a chorus constructed for maximum memorability. It’s one of those tracks that reminds you why rock, with a great band, and an even better vocal, is the best. There’s a touch of the vintage, placed carefully alongside modern textures.

Midnight Miles are a Montréal-based rock band who have built a growing following across Québec through festivals, clubs and independent releases, developing the live-band tightness that gives “Call on Me” its authority. The result is a project committed to authenticity and real musicianship rather than production gloss. We really love this single, and will keeping a close ear on what they get up to this year.

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Neil Valmonte – Down on the River

Neil Valmonte’s “Down on the River” is a big-hearted arena rock anthem built that deserves to be sung by crowds of people

“Down on the River” began as a melody and lyrics captured on a phone with a single acoustic guitar, then expanded into a full live instrumentation arrangement in Valmonte’s home studio. The results are genuinely epic, and it’s got the energy of a huge Queen track, with a chorus that soars high into the clouds. The subject is personal and introspective but the arrangement is deliberately outward-facing, designed to make the individual feeling collective. By the time of that last chorus, it’s lighters in the air territory.

Valmonte is a solo producer, songwriter and musician from Westport, Connecticut, working entirely independently from his basement studio. He views his releases as starting points rather than finished products, actively inviting covers and remixes that allow other artists to reshape the material: the collaboration the song calls for in its lyric is the same collaboration he is extending to anyone who wants to take it somewhere new. “Down on the River” is fantastic, and I’m really excited to hear what Valmonte does next.

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Roan Grevel – Anna

Roan Grevel’ delivers an epic and excellent alternative rock debut: written on Réunion Island twenty years ago, refined across two decades, and worth every year of waiting.

“Anna” is the song Roan Grevel always knew his solo career had to begin with, written twenty years ago on Réunion Island and refined over the decades into its definitive version. The track jumps in and moves between delicate melodic instrumental passages and heavy distorted walls of sound, drawing the emotional biography of a specific person: a woman disillusioned by betrayal and emotional exhaustion, who longs to resist but cannot find the weight to lift. The vocal has a touch of that genuine grunge spirit, unpredictable and tense, and the production builds with a touch of Nirvana, which we really love. By the time the chorus hits, we’re soaring.

Grevel is a French singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from Réunion Island who spent twenty years as a lead vocalist and multi-instrumentalist across multiple rock outfits in his local scene before stepping out into a solo career in 2026. That accumulated stage experience runs through “Anna” as a quality of earned conviction: this is not the work of someone discovering what they want to say, but of someone who has been working toward exactly this for a long time. A great single.

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THIS WEEK’S ALT POP BOPS

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Some shimmering alt-pop this week, perfect for the ‘almost but not quite summer’ vibes. Basically my fave genre at my fave time of year. So let’s dive right in. Enjoy!

Cas du Pree – Prism

Cas du Pree’s “Prism” is a brilliant alt-pop single: danceable, sharp, and built around a metaphor that builds into an incredible chorus.

“Prism” is the most upbeat and danceable thing Cas du Pree has released, which makes sense given that its central idea is about opening up rather than closing down. The title is cool: the idea being that light through a prism refracts into something warm and colourful when conditions are right, and darkens when they are not. Lyrics co-written by Cas and Hugh Webber carry that logic through to the refrain, “Let me take control,” which lands beautifully. It’s all very bright, buzzy and incredibly infectious.

Cas du Pree is based in Brummen in the Netherlands and has been building a catalogue in collaboration with Webber and Storey since a debut single in 2020. That Dutch-British creative axis gives the project a particular character: directness on the lyrical side, a melodic instinct on the production side, the two pulling against each other in ways that keep the songs interesting. It’s a fantastic single and we’re definitely keeping an eye on him this year.

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Tori Lord – Conman

Tori Lord’s “Conman” is a stunning alt-pop debut: polished, lyrically precise, and one of the sharpest character studies we’ve heard in the genre this year

“Conman” is produced by Marty Martino of Down With Webster, and the production carries his fingerprints: wonderfully crisp pop architecture with a darker undercurrent that stops it from sitting too comfortably. The track is written with Theo Tams, Canadian Idol winner and experienced co-writer, and the collaboration shows in the lyrical specificity. Tori’s delivery is the real standout here, understated and plaintive in the verses, before things explode into the chorus. Conceptually, it’s about what happens when someone performs a version of themselves that isn’t real, doing it purely to protect their access to status and proximity.

Lord grew up moving through Canada’s top choirs and musical theatre before joining Celine Dion’s Let’s Talk About Love tour. Now based in New York, she has developed her pop direction under the mentorship of Rob Wells, the co-writer behind Justin Bieber’s “Baby,” working alongside Martino and Tams to build a sound rooted in layered vocals and piano-driven production. “Conman” is her debut single, and it arrives with a lot of excitement. We can’t wait for whatever’s next.

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50mething – O oh it’s AI

50mething’s “O oh it’s AI” is a brilliant piece of alt pop provocation: the first track to tackle AI’s social consequences while also being a real synth-indie banger

“O oh it’s AI” focuses on the parts of artificial intelligence that celebratory tech coverage tends to skip past: job displacement, the exploitation of vulnerable people, the way a technology marketed as progress distributes its costs unevenly. The track acknowledges that AI has legitimate applications while refusing to let that acknowledgement soften the critique. It is a pop song about a subject that dominates the news cycle but rarely makes it into music with this kind of directness, and the production keeps the message moving rather than any sort of lecture. It’s clever stuff.

50mething is the project of a 58-year-old Ealing-based songwriter and former dancer and garden builder who came to releasing music after a cancer diagnosis in 2024. We’ve been enjoying his work this year, and we’re excited to hear there’s a substantial back catalogue to see the light of the day, with inspiration from social and political events. 50mething shows it doesn’t matter when you start, it’s all about what you do. And this is great.

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THIS WEEK’S INDIE ROCK BOPS

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This week’s indie rock bops run from brooding Glasgow post-punk to Bolton pop-punk to Boston alt-pop confessionals: loud in different ways, honest in all of them.

Easy Thieves – Situations

Easy Thieves’ “Situations” is a brilliant piece of Dallas alt-rock: a song about someone drifting back into your life after years away, and you’ll be glad this song drifted into yours

“Situations” was written by Jeff Rood about losing someone to life rather than death: the slow drift that ends a connection, followed by the gratitude and terror of crossing paths again during Covid years later. Recorded with Grammy-nominated engineer Bryan David, the track builds through push-pull dynamics toward a release that earns the tension preceding it. It’s smooth as butter this one, has a hint of a Del Amitri classic or maybe The 1975, but the lads are definitely in their own lane. Best of all is the song at the heart of this, it’s great and was an immediate addition to my road trip playlists.

Easy Thieves are a four-piece from Dallas: Marc Vega, Jeff Rood, Rick Colclasure and Jim Pawloski, a collective of seasoned songwriters who describe their sound as Romantic Survival Rock. They draw from the melodic alt-rock of the late 1990s and early 2000s with a Texas soul undercurrent, and play with equal conviction in acoustic settings and full-band electric ones. Excitingly, there’s a bunch of tracks recorded in recent sessions, so we’re expecting a follow up to ‘Situations’ pretty quickly. That’s a great situation for us to be in, because this band are great.

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https://open.spotify.com/track/4XIuWHZayfYwm4IzCujUuE?si=8X5dNlxBQIq5z07GeDKD0w

The Radio Addicts – Let’s Party Like It’s The 90s

The Radio Addicts’ “Let’s Party Like It’s The 90s” is an absolute vibe-fest of Bolton pop-punk and a teenage band already operating at a level most adults never reach.

“Let’s Party Like It’s The 90s” had its first public airing to around 25,500 people at the Bolton Wanderers v Luton Town match, then again at the play-off match against Bradford the following week, before its official release on 12 June 2026. Not a bad start for a young bunch of lads, and This Feeling have already named it their Track of the Day . Musically, it’s right to the heart guitar pop punk, with a hook that won’t leave your brain until the World Cup is done, and if we’re honest? We can’t get enough.

The Radio Addicts are Luke Cardwell, Daniel Wayland, Vincent Sanderson and Jonathan Wayland, a Bolton teenage four-piece formed in 2024. In their first year they sold out every show including the QMU, sold out their debut vinyl EP MMXXV four months before release, played a secret set at Kendal Calling that filled the tent, appeared on the front pages of both The Manchester Evening News and The Bolton News, and had Luke invited backstage to meet Bruce Springsteen at the Co-op Arena. Thankfully, it’s not just an exciting list of achievement, but an actual banger of a tune. More of this please lads.

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Arn-Identified Flying Objects and Alien Friends – The Hag

Arn-Identified Flying Objects and Alien Friends’ “The Hag” is a stunning Stockholm indie-rock reconstruction: a woman burned for witchcraft in 1834, explosive drums and soaring guitar work that make the whole thing feel wonderful

“The Hag” is built around a middle section written in 1834 by Swedish writer and composer Carl Jonas Love Almqvist, whose original text tells the story of a woman burned at the stake on an accusation of witchcraft. Not your average sticky dancefloor indie tune then, but definitely all the better for it. The narrative is compelling, and musically there’s a huge amount to love here; vibey AF drums from Andreas Quincy Dahlbäck and lovely, spiky guitar work from Daniel Lagerlöf transform this into a psychedelic folk-rock beauty.

Arn-Identified Flying Objects and Alien Friends is the solo project of ALIEN FRIEND, who previously played guitar and sang in Swedish band REDMOON. They’ve released a few bangers this year, and i love how the project glides elegantly across indie rock, shoegaze, psychedelia and folk rock with a consistent interest in source material that carries genuine historical and emotional weight. Thankfully, it’s part of an album, ‘The King and The Sparrow’ that I’ll be listening to this weekend. On the strength of this stunner, I don’t expect to be disappointed.

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heavyskint – He Says, She Says

heavyskint’s “He Says, She Says” is a superb Glasgow post-punk single: true crime sleaze, found-footage dread, and a band that deserve to be heard very, very widely

“He Says, She Says” takes its cues from true crime storytelling and found-footage horror, building a brooding, dark atmosphere that pushes beyond the controlled intensity of heavyskint’s previous two singles. Which were great, to be honest. But this one should send the soaring, it’s fantastic. The production has a touch of contemporary stuff like Fontaines, but it also has a delicious hint of the 90s. It’s the melodic craft here that stands out for me, it’s all weight and momentum, and definitely feels like their most expansive single yet.

heavyskint formed in Glasgow in 2024 as a bedroom side project and arrived at their current lineup in early 2025, selling out every show since including King Tuts and the QMU. Fronted by Jacob Hunter, the band have built a growing following across Glasgow through the raw, unpredictable energy of their live performances. We’ve been keeping an eye on these lads for a few singles now, and on the strength of this one, we’ll be watching them even closer. It’s great.

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Oscar Hall – Cancer

Oscar Hall’s “Cancer” is a gorgeously raw alt-pop anthem: over 450,000 streams into his career, and this is the one where things deserve to lift off.

“Cancer” was written by Oscar Hall and produced by Charlie Dahlke and Tyler DeTulleo, and it marks a deliberate shift from the softer register of his previous work into something grittier and more exposed. The subject is coming to terms with being the villain in someone else’s story, a position that requires the kind of unsentimental self-examination most songs avoid. Musically it’s in the world of pop, but on the slightly off kilter or edgier side, and we’re all for it. Oscar’s vocal sits squarely in the spotlight, and deservedly so, beacuse it’s genuinely stunning. It’s emotionally direct, unsparing, and we can’t get enough.

Oscar Hall is a Boston-based queer alt-pop artist originally from Arlington, Virginia, and a student of music therapy at Berklee, where he won the Career Jam Songwriting Award in 2024. His debut EP and album accumulated over 450,000 streams and earned coverage from queer media platforms including The Out Loud Podcast and The Property Brothers Blog. An impressive backdrop, but it’s this single that does the talking. It’s a beautiful, compelling piece and we can’t wait for more.

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THIS WEK’S INDIE FOLK BOPS

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A San Francisco psychology doctorate dropout, a London singer-songwriter who took Help Musicians funding and turned it into a debut album, a Sydney lawyer who changed lanes, a deeply personal Irish acoustic song about nonverbal autism, and a sparse piano-led track that simply lets the melody do the work: indie folk this week is five songwriters who arrived at music from somewhere unexpected.

Alana Silver – Patio Door

Alana Silver’s “Patio Door” is a stunning debut: the first song she ever wrote, recorded with just two guitar chords and it’s completely compelling

“Patio Door” was written before Alana Silver had any connection to musicians or collaborators, before she identified as an artist at all. It’s not your regular backstory; she was preparing to start a doctorate in psychology, and the song came from the specific vulnerability of that moment. The results are beautiful, it’s produced like a dream, and Alana’s vocal and songcraft defintely standout. it building somewhere genuinely beautiful into the second verse and chorus. Extra points for a zinger of a middle eight.

Silver is a San Francisco-based singer-songwriter and clinical psychology doctoral student who came to music sideways, through the kind of life disruption that tends to produce genuine songs rather than performed ones. Her band Tomboy gave her the musical infrastructure to develop her instincts, and her solo material strips that back to what the song requires. “Patio Door” is her debut solo single and the beginning of a catalogue that we can’t wait to hear. A fantastic single.

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William Walsh – So Many Things

William Walsh’s “So Many Things” is an lovely piece of Sydney country-folk: late-blooming, honest, and proof that twenty years practising law does not stop a good melody from finding its way out.

“So Many Things” was written about the feeling of a Monday morning and the weight of a working week arriving again: a modest, specific subject handled with the directness that comes from someone who is writing for himself and other people who will recognise the feeling. And we’ve all been there, right? I get the sunday scaries a bit less these days, but it’s nice to reflect with Mr Walsh. His songwriting sits in the smart country tradition, melodic and unpretentious, and the track’s honesty is its strength.

William Walsh is a Sydney-based singer-songwriter who spent most of his working life as a lawyer before turning seriously to original music. He draws from country folk and the singer-songwriter tradition, working with the instinct of someone who has been writing for himself for years and is only recently presenting those songs to the world. I love ‘So Many Things’ and here’s hoping we get to hear more from this artist in 2026.

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Patrick Quinn – Silent Voices

Patrick Quinn’s “Silent Voices” is a gorgeous piece of cinematic folk: a song about his 13-year-old nonverbal autistic son, building from quiet acoustic intimacy into something genuinely overwhelming.

“Silent Voices” was written about the emotional reality of parenting a 13-year-old nonverbal autistic child: the love, fear, hope, exhaustion and deep connection that exist entirely beyond words. And as someone with a child on the way, it’s struck something that few songs have done this year. The arrangement matches that subject structurally, beginning as a spare acoustic piece and building gradually into a cinematic, orchestral finale that very much earns its scale. Musically, it’s a bit folky, a bit orchestral and a touch ballad-y, but it does what it needs to; getting the message across in style. Early responses from autism and special needs communities have been particularly strong, and we’re not surprised.

Patrick Quinn is an Irish singer-songwriter whose previous work includes a Eurovision entry representing Ireland in 1993 alongside Niamh Kavanagh, who won that year with “In Your Eyes.” He is also known as a classical tenor, which gives “Silent Voices” an unusual quality: a voice trained in the operatic tradition applied to deeply personal acoustic material, and the combination is incredibly striking. This one’s a stunner, and its definitely reached the heart of this listener.

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Tale of Giants – somewhere

Tale of Giants’ “somewhere” is a brilliant piece of El Paso acoustic folk: honest, unhurried, and a beautiful observation on loneliness and travel

“somewhere” is built around the specific fear of missing the moments that matter while in motion: the tension between the drive to keep moving and the suspicion that life is happening somewhere you are not. Damn, we’ve all been there, and the song captures the vibe expertly. It’s produced brilliantly, rolls along in real style and then starts to really kick off half way through. I love the vocals here, and the background vocals add tension at all the right times.

Tale of Giants is the solo acoustic project of El Paso-based singer-songwriter Javier Martinez, who has refined his craft across years of US touring and international dates, building audiences through direct, emotionally honest performance. You can tell there’s live experience here, it’s clear that this banger is all the better for it. Our verdict? An essential indie folk listen for 2026, we love it.

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Every Other Weekend – Resolution

Every Other Weekend’s “Resolution” is a beautiful piano-led indie folk single: sparse, deliberate, and straight to heart in all the best ways

“Resolution” was written on piano and kept spare by design: the production exists to let every element breathe rather than to fill space. I love indie that knows exactly when to pull back, just as much to push forward. . The vocal melody and guitar motif are the clear standouts here, both driving things forward wonderfully. The subject? The universal anxiety of connection and the effort of not taking life too seriously. It is the latest release from a forthcoming album, which is very, very exciting to hear.

Every Other Weekend is the solo project of a songwriter whose music centres on the ordinary difficulty of being alive and present with other people. The project takes its name from a feeling of intermittent access, in relationships, in the self, in the effort of showing up consistently, and the songs reflect that theme without dramatising it. We’re glad this music exists in the world, and I can’t wait for the album. Give this track a go this week.

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THIS WEEK’S HIP HOP BOPS

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A Lawrenceville bedroom, a PG County basement during a snowstorm, a Chicago birthday reintroduction, and a San Diego apartment tribute to Nas: hip-hop this week is four artists working entirely on their own terms.

BXMBI – Too Much

BXMBI’s “Too Much” is a brilliant piece of hypnotic trap-R&B: hard-hitting production, an angelic hook from Bovell, and a stunningly intimate bedroom recording

“Too Much” explores the particular burden of seeing through situations and recognising people’s true feelings: the discomfort of knowing too much in a world that prefers comfortable illusions. The production has the wavy, hypnotic quality that keeps thing compelling, and the touch of grit combined with Bovell’s soft, angelic hook is the track’s defining move. BXMBI found Bovell at a showcase hosted by a close friend and immediately knew the original hook needed replacing. It was a great call, cos the place this has ended up in is great. Recorded entirely in BXMBI’s own room, it’s a compelling peice.

BXMBI is an emerging artist from Lawrenceville whose music is built on the philosophy that life is 5% what happens to you and 95% how you react to it. That framing runs through “Too Much” as a structural principle: the song is not about the situations themselves but about the weight of awareness. He is currently building both online and local presence with live performances planned. “Too Much” is a great single, and we can’t wait for more. Keep an eye on BXMBI.

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Dem Boyz from Gorgeous ft. Somos Animales – PG Bama (The Go-go Anthem)

Dem Boyz from gorgeous turn a snowstorm basement tribute and 50 years of go-go into a proper stunner for summer 2026

“PG Bama (The Go-go Anthem)” was recorded in a PG County basement during a snowstorm and released a musical vow fulfilled to the duo’s late sister, DJ K-la. The track channels the ancestral pulse of go-go music, propelling things very much into the 21st century to mark the genre’s 50th anniversary. Best of all, the track is huge, a genuine vibe. It’s unapologetically fun, full of pride and musically has a load of groove and character. These guys have got some new fans over here at BOPS.

Dem Boyz from Gorgeous are Frank Cisco “STEEL” Anderson and Lavell “Magnus” Copeland, both rooted in Prince George’s County, Maryland. STEEL is an Amazon bestselling author, disabled Naval officer veteran and creator of the Amerisoca music genre, serving as the project’s executive producer and conceptual architect. It’s quite the line up, and they’re joined by Magnus; an award-winning performer, producer and engineer whose live-band instincts give the duo’s sound its rhythmic foundation. Together, they’ve build a real banger here, and we hope there’s more on the way.

Joey P. – Walked In

Joey P.’s “Walked In” is an excellent lo-fi astral R&B track: the fan-favourite that defined his signature sound, reintroduced as he turns 25 and proves it has lost none of its pull.

“Walked In” was originally released in August 2021 and has been a fan-favourite since, defining what Joey P. describes as his signature lo-fi astral R&B style. It’s a lovely combination of words, and even better when it reaches your ears. And with thousands of new listeners finding his music in the years since, he is reintroducing the track as a milestone marker: he turns 25 on 30 June 2026, and “Walked In” is where the journey started. The track very much holds up, and if you are coming to Joey P. for the first time, this is the right place to begin. Vocally it’s great, produced all right, and builds gloriously. A real head-nodder over here.

Joey P. is a singer-songwriter and guitarist from Chicago, Illinois, who plays across lo-fi, R&B and alternative registers with a fluid ease that makes genre categories feel beside the point. He has been building his audience steadily since his teens, and “Walked In” remains the clearest single statement of what he does and why it works. This guy’s just getting started, and I honestly can’t wait for more. It’s great.

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Ray Gibbz – If I Ruled

Ray Gibbz turns solo apartment production and a deep Nas obsession into a proper hip-hop beauty

“If I Ruled” pays direct homage to Nas’s “If I Ruled the World,” one of Ray Gibbz’s primary creative touchstones, and was produced entirely by him in his San Diego apartment without formal schooling or traditional production infrastructure. What the track lacks in polish, it makes up for in heart, landing as both a tribute and an original statement too. It’s got a real vibe and I’d much prefer that then overproduced stuff. It’s wavy, hazy and lyrically great. So there’s definitely promise here, and the way my head my won’t stop nodding is all the evidence we need.

Ray Gibbz is a songwriter and rapper from San Diego who handles every element of his music independently, building a sound rooted in classic hip-hop influences while developing his own voice through relentless self-directed practice. He is actively seeking live performance opportunities and building his audience on his own terms. More of this please Ray, it’s great.

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THIS WEEK’S INDIE ROCK BOPS

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A County Meath glam-pop celestial ride, a Melbourne songwriter asking what Australia has become, a Berlin band featuring longstanding members of Nina Hagen’s group, a Gothenburg studio recorded in two weekends, and a Hell’s Kitchen neo-grunge tribute to a Greek folk instrument: indie rock this week arrives from five very different rooms.

Barry J Walsh – Star Ride

Barry J Walsh’s “Star Ride” is a brilliant celestial glam-pop single: jangly guitars, soaring harmonies, and the sound of a home studio doing something the major labels clearly missed.

“Star Ride” is Walsh’s fourth single since 2024, recorded and produced in his son’s home studio in Trim, Co. Meath, with all instrumentation handled between the two of them. Let’s not mess around here, it’s fantastic. All jangly, glammed-up guitar riffage, giant beach boys harmonies and a kind of celestial pop construction that navigates the tension between two people orbiting each other without quite connecting. We’ve all been there, but Walsh captures this vibe incredibly, describing it as a song about taking a chance and reaching for the stars without guarantee of catching them. It’s produced like a dream, and should honestly be all over radio. Thankfully there’s an album on the way for early 2027.

Walsh was previously the lead singer and songwriter with Irish powerpop band The Fireflys in the early 1990s, and “Star Ride” marks the reopening of a creative chapter that had been on hold for decades. The fact that it was made entirely in a family home studio in County Meath, without label support or outside production, makes it one of the more quietly impressive debut single sequences in Irish indie rock right now. It’s beautiful, and we can’t wait for the album.

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Paul Louis Villani – Who Do You Belong to Now? (Great Southern Land)

Paul Louis Villani’s “Who Do You Belong to Now? (Great Southern Land)” is a dark Melbourne alt-rock stunner: no sides, no agenda, just a songwriter born and raised here asking an honest question about what this country has become.

“Who Do You Belong to Now? (Great Southern Land)” was written from the inside out: no names, no political positioning, just Villani processing what he describes as a persistent feeling that something is off. I’ve always enjoyed songs that lean into that uneasy feeling, and this one sits in a dark wave and post-rock space, spanning several genres with care. It really is pretty compelling stuff, and interestingly Villani’s been explicit that this is not a polemic. He’s not asking listeners to agree with him, and that the request is simply to sit with the music long enough to feel what it was trying to express. Musically the results are brilliant and this single is genuinely a dark alt-rock stunner.

Villani is a Melbourne-based songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer who builds from instinct rather than genre formula, moving between whatever territory a song requires and maintaining a deliberate resistance to fixed lanes. He records independently and has built his catalogue across rock, blues, folk, metal and experimental territory over many years. It’s an important song, and we’re really excited to see where Villani goes next.

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Ghost Moon Echo – Black Is the New Black

Ghost Moon Echo serve up a superb piece of Berlin indie rock, with strong melodic songwriting and with genuine roots in the indie heyday that knows exactly how to deploy them.

“Black Is the New Black” showcases the melodic instinct and arrangement confidence that comes from a band with deep roots in the classic indie-guitar tradition. This one’s genuinely groovy, with tasteful nods to Happy Mondays, and hint of INXS in the vocal, but it’s very clear that Ghost Moon Echo are definitely in their own lane. The guitar work is standout in this, and worth hitting play again for it alone. And excitingly, there’s an album on the way, which – on the strength of this single – will definitely be awaited by this blog.

Ghost Moon Echo are a Berlin-based indie guitar band whose members include longstanding players from Nina Hagen’s band, one of the more distinctive markers of German cultural rock history. Their sound harks back to the 80s and 90s heyday of indie-rock without being trapped by it, applying those instincts to new material with the confidence of a band that knows where the reference points are and when to depart from them. “Black Is the New Black” is a banger, and I’d love to see it live.

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They Owe Us – Frank

They Owe Us’ “Frank” is a cinematic alternative rock banger, with a compelling blend of polish and cracks to make it utterly compelling

“Frank” was recorded at Lüxfällan, a small analogue studio in Kungälv that Kristoffer Ragnstam runs as his primary laboratory, with longtime collaborator Klabbe Hörngren on keyboards and Rick Hellgren on electric guitar. It’s got the vibe of an alt-indie classic, produced beautifully and vocally it really stands out. And wow these drums sound incredible. Interestingly, many of the scratch vocal and acoustic guitar takes made the final versions, which gives the record its particular quality of barely-controlled spontaneity. I love the middle eight, and it’s got that late night blur of all the best indie.

They Owe Us is the project of Kristoffer Ragnstam, a Gothenburg-based musician who has been part of the alternative infrastructure since the early 2000s, sharing stages with Debbie Harry, Mumford and Sons and Zander Hawley, and reaching number 1 on the Billboard charts in Japan and Top 30 on US college radio. It’s an impressive CV, but the main draw here is the song; it’s a fantastic single, and it should do very well. More of this please, guys!

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YACOVELLI – Since Emilia

YACOVELLI’s deliver a simply gorgeous neo-grunge tribute: a Greek baglama opening into the sludgy, heavy riff isn’t your typical combination but we absolutely love it

“Since Emilia” opens with the baglama, a Greek folk instrument that is a miniature version of the bouzouki natively tuned in D-A-D, before dropping into the heaviest rhythm guitar hook. It’s not your classic opening combination, but we are hooked right away. Things get kinda sludgy in the best possible way, while there’s a genuine craft to the song, with some pretty serious dynamic shifts . The song is described as a poetic riddle, lyrically deliberately unresolved, and the track was recorded and produced by Alex Yacovelli himself, accompanied by a music video shot across Liverpool and Manhattan’s West Side.

Alex Yacovelli has been a fixture in the New York underground since the late 2000s, sharing the stage with Weezer at their legendary Madison Square Garden debut and earning an Honorable Mention in the John Lennon Songwriting Competition alongside Meghan Trainor. He recorded a live version of his tune “Songbird” at Jacaranda Records’ 1947 Voice-O-Graph direct-to-vinyl booth in Liverpool, at the club where The Beatles started. An impressive CV, but surely this ‘Since Emilia’ has to be up there with the highlights. A great single.

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THIS WEEK’S ROCK BOPS

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Amsterdam folk grunge, Brussels metalcore, a Perth blues-rock supergroup forged on a European tour, a Larnaca one-man philosophical metal project, and a Seattle Americana songwriter responding to the Supreme Court during Pride Month: rock this week covers a lot of ground.

Subterranean Street Society – Thomas Matthew Crooks

Subterranean Street Society’s “Thomas Matthew Crooks” is an excellent piece of swampy grunge: a slow-building groove and a whole lot of character and heart

“Thomas Matthew Crooks” grew from two events arriving on the same day: a depressed flatmate blaming vocalist Louis for his suicidal thoughts, and the news breaking of the assassination attempt on Donald Trump. A pretty heady mix that one, and compellingly, the track makes no clean argument about either. Instead, it builds a pretty tasty, swampy groove that just doesn’t quit. Produced brilliantly and with bags of character, it’s a fantastic single, well worthy of your time this week.

Subterranean Street Society are a Danish-Dutch trio based in Amsterdam, blending folk storytelling with raw grunge energy in a space somewhere between Nirvana and Mumford and Sons. I love the former and dislike the latter, but these guys land somewhere great. Their songs move between fragile, confessional passages and explosive dynamics, and their catalogue is built on the principle that the most honest position is sometimes the most uncomfortable one. Come to London, guys. Would be great to see you live.

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Karma Noir – This Is Her Time

Karma Noir’s “This Is Her Time” is a stunning metalcore track: recorded at Noise Factory Studio in Brussels with the visceral, unpolished mix that modern production almost never allows, and it sounds all the better for it.

“This Is Her Time” was recorded at Noise Factory Studio in Belgium, where the producer has previously worked with Channel Zero, and the production is a deliberate rejection of the clean, clinical finish that dominates contemporary metal. This really, really slaps and comes in hard and then goes even harder. There’s minimal guitar overlays keep the arrangement open, giving the emotional brutality of the subject space to land: a relationship that moves from love into manipulation and control. The vocals are great, with a combination of harsher vocals and clean singing that kind of commit to the paradox of the subject. It’s got some fantastic hooks too.

Karma Noir are a Brussels collective whose creative philosophy centres on fate, destiny and the invisible forces that shape human lives, a thematic framework the band draws from W.H. Auden: “We are lived by powers we pretend to understand.” Every member contributes their own influences to the writing process, which is what keeps the compositions shifting atmospherically rather than settling into a single register. It’s a brilliant single and I can’t wait for more.

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Michael Vdelli And The Art Of Dysfunction – You And The Blues

Michael Vdelli And The Art Of Dysfunction’s “You And The Blues” is a brilliant blues-rock statement: spacious, brooding, and built around guitar playing that prioritises tone and heart over flash.

“You And The Blues” sits in the cinematic, restrained end of modern blues-rock: the arrangement breathes, the guitar bends and lingers rather than showing off, and the whole thing moves with the deliberate weight of musicians who know restraint is harder to pull off than speed. Honestly, it’s the space in this tune which makes it soar, and I just love how sparse it sounds, at all the right moments. There’s a clear chemistry between these guys, and we love how things grew from an opening slot, a tour together into shared stage time. It’s well earned, and the results are brilliant.

Michael Vdelli And The Art Of Dysfunction brings together veteran guitarist and vocalist Michael Vdelli with Perth-based band Art Of Dysfunction: Michael Menna on guitar and vocals, Kelly McCarthy on bass and Royce Mack on drums. Vdelli brings decades of experience and a command of blues tone; Menna contributes melodic range and technical precision; McCarthy a formally trained groove; Mack maximum power and feel. It’s the blues combo we’ve been waiting for, and we’ll be keeping a very close eye on what they do next. A brilliant single.

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Watch Me Die Inside – Die Gestalt der Fügung verharrt unverrückt

Watch Me Die Inside’s “Die Gestalt der Fügung verharrt unverrückt” is a cold and ambitiously urgent banger; exactly the kind of post-metal we love

Watch Me Die Inside are here with a stunner of a single here. The title translates roughly as “the shape of providence remains unmoved,” and it builds that philosophical position into its architecture: cold atmospheres, a whole bunch of intensity, and a persistent sense that the listener is being watched rather than watching. It’s big, bold and brash, and also wonderfully ambitious in scope. Vocally it’s great, and it genuinely keeps you hooked. Conceptually it’s interesting too; each release is considered a ‘fragment’, and together they add up to an “autopsy of the modern human condition”. This one’s all about the idea that every decision and every act of rebellion already belongs to a design far older than the self. I agree with that, but the real treat is the single. It’s great.

Watch Me Die Inside is the artistic universe of Aleph, based in Larnaca, Cyprus. The project documents the modern human in a state of internal collapse, working through states suspended between identity loss, emptiness and resistance. Listeners are positioned as Witnesses rather than passive consumers, asked to observe a condition that is not softened, only made visible. We can’t wait to hear the next in this series, cos this one’s a banger.

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THIS WEEK’S INDIE POP BOPS

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Pontypridd to Lausanne via Chicago, Anaheim and Tampere: three indie pop songs this week from three songwriters with very specific things on their minds and the craft to make them land.

Curtis Hicks – Catching Feelings

Curtis Hicks’ “Catching Feelings” is a brilliant piece of bedroom pop: bright and hook-driven on the surface with a touch of the quietly devastating underneath

“Catching Feelings” was recorded in Curtis’s own creative space and it carries that intimacy throughout: instinct-led production that keeps the emotional rawness intact rather than smoothing it into something more presentable. Vocally it’s great, and it grows with a lot of melodic skill and the chorus lands somewhere stunning with that soaring chorus. The subject is self-sabotage and the way destructive internal patterns disrupt connection with other people. It’s great.

Curtis Hicks is from Pontypridd, the Welsh town that also gave the world Tom Jones and the Welsh national anthem, and his sound draws from modern Americana with a Welsh sensibility that sits distinctively apart from most UK pop. He signed a record deal at 16 with the first song he ever wrote and has since worked with Grammy-nominated writers and number one hit songwriters. He is currently releasing a new track every six weeks across a year-long project, building a community around his music that he describes as a place where “lonely souls collide.” We’re colliding with this hard, and can’t wait for the next one.

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Laura Moisio – Jotain muuta

Laura Moisio’s “Jotain muuta” is a gorgeous Finnish-language indie pop single: produced like a dream and the kind of opening statement that makes a sixth album feel like a genuine new chapter

“Jotain muuta” is the first single from Moisio’s upcoming sixth studio album, due September 2026, and it blends warm synths with shimmering indie-folk textures and a subtle rhythmic pulse that keeps the track grounded while the melody floats. This is put together beautifully, it sounds like a dream and was an instant save for me. The subject is the fragile, inexpressible quality of closeness between two people, the feeling that resists direct description. It suits Moisio’s compositional approach, which really works, and has such a genuine groove to it.

Moisio is a Tampere-based singer-songwriter whose second album Ikuinen valo was nominated for both the Teosto Prize and the Critics’ Choice Emma Award in 2016. Her breathy vocal tone and resistance to conventional narrative songwriting give her a singular place in Finnish music, and her membership of folk band Ne Lintuizet runs alongside a solo career now spanning six albums. “Jotain muuta” is the sound of a songwriter who knows precisely what she is doing and we absolutely love it. We’ll be digging into her back catalogue immediately.

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YaYa Whatever – Kickback

YaYa Whatever’s “Kickback” is an excellent alt-pop love letter to Chicago: CTA sample, dark wave synths, and a vocal performance that makes teenage freedom sound enormous.

“Kickback” opens on a sample from the Chicago Transit Authority, one of the city’s most recognisable ambient textures, and builds from there into a song about the specific euphoria of being a teenager in Chicago and feeling, for the first time, genuinely free. It’s quite the vibe, and it wastes no time in dropping into a banger of a chorus. Sitting carefully between electro-pop and dark wave, it’s a curious mix that keeps my attention throughout. YaYa has described it as a snapshot of what being alive feels like before experience begins to accumulate weight, and the arrangement delivers exactly that: immediate, physical, and over too way fast. It’s great.

YaYa Whatever is a singer-songwriter and performer born in Chicago and now based in Los Angeles, who began on piano and developed into an alt-pop performer working with a live band. Her songwriting is built on the specific and the fleeting: individual moments rendered with enough precision that they stop belonging only to her. Rock and roll instinct, electro-pop texture, and a vocal range that moves between intimate and anthemic are the consistent elements across her catalogue. Kickback is an indie pop stunner, and we absolutely love it.

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Michael Chap Edward – I Don’t Know Your Name

Michael Chap Edward’s “I Don’t Know Your Name” is our favourite slice of cinematic indie pop we’ve heard this year so far: poolside, late-night, hypnotic, and built with the kind of layered patience that Ennio Morricone would have loved.

“I Don’t Know Your Name” was recorded partly at Cypress College, where Edward also tracked previous single “Mary’s in Love,” and partly at a home studio in Laguna Niguel. The track began as MIDI compositions on iPad before being developed into a full studio production with longtime collaborator Marcus McMillan, and the methodology shows in the result: a song with detailed, emotionally restrained layers that reward close listening. It’s as smooth as butter, and drifts along in the most careful, thoughtful way. And if it’s the anonymous desire that’s the inspiration, we’re glad it happened because it’s a great track.

Edward is an Anaheim-based artist and professional live musician who performs regularly across Orange County and Los Angeles, from Downtown Disney to wineries and entertainment districts throughout the region. His influences span Björk, Radiohead, The Beatles and Ennio Morricone, a range that maps onto the cinematic, mood-first quality of his recorded work. His creative process balances electronic production with live instrumentation, and it’s a heady combo. We’re really into this, and hope there’s more in the pipeline.

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Moon Construction Kit – Down the West Coast

Moon Construction Kit’s “Down the West Coast” is a brilliant piece of indie psych-pop: jazz woodwinds, late-1960s harmonic warmth, and a melodic hook that will stay with you all summer

“Down the West Coast” is built on warm acoustic guitars, lush vocal harmonies and jazz-tinged woodwinds that add a cinematic depth unusual for the format. The late-1960s pop sensibility is wonderfully precise, but also the track itself isn’t a homage; it’s a real banger in itself. The analogue warmth give us the style, but the song gives it the vibe. It’s fantastic, and I love the vocals, drum arrangement and chords. Wrapped up in a groovy little package, the whole thing like a triumph to me. And anyone who’s into Tame Impala’s older stuff would love this.

Moon Construction Kit is the solo project of Olivier, based in Lausanne, Switzerland. He introduced the project with a debut EP in 2022 and has been developing his sound through a series of singles since, building toward what he describes as rich, organic studio arrangements at the intersection of melodic indie pop, sun-drenched psychedelia and late-60s influence. It’s a beautiful single, and it would fabulous to hear a whole album of this.

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THIS WEEK’S DREAM POP BOPS

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A Dutch music therapist turned Mexico City-based songwriter with a mellotron and a decade of debt to Bowie, and a Scottish bedroom pop artist stepping into the light with a debut album nine years in the making: dream pop this week is about the distance between where you started and where you’ve arrived.

Harry Kappen – Distant Shore

Harry Kappen’s “Distant Shore” is an expansive, stunning tribute to Bowie and to the courage of people who cross borders without the privilege of choosing to

“Distant Shore” sits at the heart of After the Crossing, Kappen’s fifth album since Covid and his first since relocating from the Netherlands to Mexico City. It’s a big move but it seems like an inspiring one for Kappen. The mellotron at the track’s centre is a deliberate nod to “Space Oddity,” written as a tribute to Bowie a decade after his death, and that sonic choice gives the song a quality of yearning and distance that suits its subject perfectly. Kappen has spoken about the contrast between his own voluntary crossing and the desperate journeys of refugees forced to flee war, poverty and threat, and the song holds that moral weight without becoming didactic. Musically it’s a really impressive piece, getting across that spacey rock vibe incredibly well, with a brilliant vocal performance.

Kappen was born in Groningen and spent his working life across music and music therapy, training as a therapist after extensive studio and performance experience in Dutch rock bands, and going on to work in youth care for over twenty years. He became a multi-instrumentalist through the demands of therapeutic practice, developing the ability to connect musically with clients individually and in families. It’s a rounded musical CV, and one that’s led to an impressive place. A brilliant single, and well worth your ears this week.

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Finlay Birch – Inside Your Mind

Finlay Birch’s “Inside Your Mind” is a gorgeous Isle of Mull debut: wonderfully warm, unhurried, and the sound of a exciting new songwriter’s arrival

“Inside Your Mind” is the lead single from Weight Will Unwind, due 12 June, an album that gathers material written across nearly a decade into a single, cohesive statement. On the strength of this single, it’s gonna be a fantastic one. The production, handled with producer and long-time best friend Dylan Cooper, moves Birch decisively beyond the lo-fi bedroom recordings he began releasing during Covid into something warmer and more open. It’s got a genuine atmosphere this one, a Pixies-esque feel at times, but a twinkly, spacey texture that I can’t quite put my finger on, and that I love. Best of all, there’s a great song at the heart of ‘Inside Your Mind’.

Birch’s early independent releases were a deliberate exercise in finding his voice under minimal conditions: bedroom-recorded, lo-fi, built on the instinct that the song mattered more than the production. Working with Cooper has allowed him to test whether those songs hold up when given more space to breathe, and Weight Will Unwind is the answer. The album draws on alternative folk, indie and soft rock, shaped by a writing style that returns consistently to emotional weight and stillness. It’s a zinger of a single and we can’t wait for the album.

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JK Jerome – Any Moment Now

JK Jerome’s “Any Moment Now” is a gorgeous piece of folktronica, diving into that suspended silence before a relationship ends to excellent effect

“Any Moment Now” is only the second single from JK Jerome, which is impressive, given it’s clarity and completeness. Fingerpicked electric guitar and bold percussive production choices give it a kinda glitchy feel at times, and the whole thing drifts somewhere between acoustic intimacy and electronica. The vocal is in the standout here, and it gets the message across in style. I’m not surprised BBC introducing are picking this one up.

Jerome is originally from Shropshire, now based in Horsell, Surrey, and his route to this project includes a previous band with over one million Spotify streams, live appearances at Boardmasters, BST Hyde Park and Isle of Wight Festival, a support slot for Goldfrapp, a Mahogany Session, and a live performance on BBC Radio 2 with Dermot O’Leary. That’s a pretty good CV, but it’s “Any Moment Now” that we’re most excited about. It’s a banger with restraint in spades, but you won’t be able to stop yourself hitting replay. Great stuff.

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