Today's Top Tune

This year, indie darlings Nada Surf mark the 30th anniversary of their debut single “The Plan”/“Telescope” with a new LP, Moon Mirror, to be released in September. 

On “In Front of Me Now,” a thoughtful take on being here now, frontman Matthew Caws asked himself why he hasn’t been present, and gifts us with what sounds like a diary entry. 

Hailing from the coldest part of landlocked Canada, sister trio The Garrys named themselves after their father, Garry, and braid sibling harmonies into their signature “doom-wop,” garage-surf sound, which includes their brother on their latest track “Cakewalk.”

Lisbon-based Nathan Jenkins, the producer and songwriter working as Bullion, is an enduring cult fixture and has a new album called Affection. His brand of warm, shiny pop is as intoxicating as it gets on “World_train,” for which Bullion enlists a perfect collaborator, Charlotte Adigéry, to turn the track into a folky, meandering ditty. 

We’d cross as many ponds as needed to get to the sound of Indonesian retro funk-soul outfit Thee Marloes. Killer vocals, silky keys, airy flute, and a strong beat attract us to a vibe that is both familiar and fresh. Check out the cascading intro on “I Know” as they unveil the cracks within a love affair. 

The New York Times calls Carlos Niño “the spiritual force behind LA’s eclectic music scene,” and it’s true. A radiant being, he is also the co-producer and co-writer for André 3000’s New Blue Sun. But today, we’re focusing on his own new album, Placenta, a celebration of “the doulas, midwives, and birth workers who help bring life into this world.” The track was written around the birth of his second son, a whole 25 years after the birth of his first born Azul Niño and is also one of his regular artistic collaborators. Who knows, maybe 25 years from now, this little kid will work on dad’s music too. Let’s take a listen to “Love to All Doulas!.” 

When Brooklyn’s Big Crown Records was a nascent label, one of the first artists that founder El Michels Affair signed was The Shacks, and in fact, Shannon Wise was only 17 at the time and they had to wait until her 18th birthday to sign the contract. Along with Max Shrager the duo made a lot of music together, toured the world, were placed on impactful, global ad campaigns and released their debut album but, alas, the band broke up in 2020 before finishing their sophomore album even though they were very prolific and wrote many good songs. Thanks to the label, the new compilation Big Crown Vaults Vol. 2 offers unreleased tracks, including the very beautiful “Gentle.” 

Songwriter and storyteller Jensen McRae was born and raised in Los Angeles and thinks of herself as “one house down from the girl next door.” Her magic power is forging songs from the smallest overheard snippet or phrase that ignites a concept. Take the song “Massachusetts,” which began as a social post shared in real time before its completion. That in turn led to covers, interpretations, and even the track’s eventual title. 

We have a new song for you from the canyons of Southern California, courtesy of our old friends Beachwood Sparks, who are known to echo the cosmic fervor of The Byrds’ legendary sound. “Falling Forever” invokes a motley of melody threaded by harmonies and comes from their forthcoming album Across the River of Stars, produced by longtime fan and The Black Crowes frontman Chris Robinson. 

No one knows how many incarnations our spirits have, but we do know we’ve got one shot at this life, so it’s important to live as authentically as possible and to realize when to quit. Amsterdam singer-songwriter VanWyck takes a crack at the idea of leaving the past behind and moving into a brighter future on “Towards The Sun,” an ode recorded in one take with the drummer playing percussion on an old suitcase. It’s from the forthcoming LP Dust Chaser, out late September. 

New York psych-pop quadrivium (a place where four4 things meet) Crumb have issued their third studio album, AMAMA, a sonic excursion riddled with frenetic drumwork and oodles of shape-shifting bits. Experimental by nature, “Side By Side” takes us on a wild ride.