Today's Top Tune

Beloved LA singer-songwriter Dre Babinski, aka Steady Holiday, returns with a breezy meditation on the whiplash of new parenthood. Written after becoming a mother, this new single balances tender hopes for a safe world for her child with the exhaustion and upheaval of letting go of her old self. It's a taste of her new album It's Your Trip, due Nov. 6th. 

The Melbourne instrumental funk collective Karate Boogaloo draws their inspiration from the timeless tunes of Booker T. & the M.G.'s, The Meters, and the J.B.'s, among others. The quartet's latest single, out today, is Down Home, a sultry mid-tempo, bass-driven excursion and it's Today's Top Tune. 

LA-based Indian-American artist and composer Telemakus turns adversity into invention. After being diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a rare connective tissue disorder, he learned new ways of creating. The resulting album is a hero's journey called Eight Ring Revival, due Oct. 20, and features Flying Lotus, Sparklmami, Miguel Atwood-Ferguson and more.

Australian siblings Angus & Julia Stone have spent two decades creating intimate, dreamy folk-pop. Their seventh album, Karaoke Bar, was inspired by a night out on the Greek island of Hydra, not far from Leonard Cohen’s former home. Written between late-night sessions and days by the water, the title song captures the creative energy of their surroundings. 

This new song from Australia's Gang of Youths is currently in heavy rotation at the station. Reassuring from the first note, "Things Take Time" is a dreamy amalgam of timeless production and soaring vocals that give us Todd Rundgren vibes. It's a feel-good piece full of rich, melodic optimism that makes us swoon, and it's Today's Top Tune. 

Indianapolis five-piece Wishy bring welcome Breeders-style '90s grunge to their shimmering latest single, a banger called "Sensational". Shredding guitars, jubilant vocals, and even a cowbell take the front seat on the way to a very satisfying chorus. It's all just a taste of what's to come from the band's new album, Nature’s Pill - and it's Today's Top Tune.

The Brighton-based folk duo Memorial is Jack Watts and Oliver Spalding. Recorded live in the dead of winter at composer Ólafur Arnalds' studio in the heart of Reykjavík, this gently beautiful piece turns up as the closing track on the band's new album Jera, and is co-written by pianist and KCRW favorite Dustin O’Halloran.

Boston folk-pop trio Tiny Habits formed during COVID-19 while in school at Berklee. Cinya Khan, Maya Rae, and Judah Mayowa's lush three-part harmonies have won cross-generational praise online and from musical icons such as David Crosby, Phoebe Bridgers, Gracie Abrams and James Taylor. Today's Top Tune is from their brand new album Keepers.

Wyclef Jean rose to fame in the hip-hop collective Fugees, named for his Haitian refugee background. He's had a wildly successful solo career ever since, and his sound remains forever cool. He's just released his first-ever jazz album, dedicated to Quincy Jones. This track is inspired by the spirit of Brazil’s most iconic favela and it's Today's Top Tune.

Berlin-based British producer Blossom Hill’s new mini-LP Growing Pains is a meditation on the inevitability of change. Written with longtime collaborator Wilson Bradbury during a seven-day retreat in the Polish mountains, the infectious track "Dancing With the Unknown" declares there is something liberating about uncertainty, and it's Today's Top Tune.