Atwood Journal is worked up to share our Editor’s Picks column, written and curated by Editor-in-Chief Mitch Mosk. Each week, Mitch will share a set of songs, albums, and artists who’ve caught his ears, eyes, and coronary heart. There’s a lot unimaginable music on the market simply ready to be heard, and all it takes from us is an open thoughts and a willingness to hear. By way of our Editor’s Picks, we hope to shine a lightweight on our personal music discoveries and showcase a various array of latest and up to date releases.
This week’s Editor’s Picks options Bleach Lab, Soda Blonde, Mara Connor, Witch Submit, Arny Margret, and Fright Years!
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Bleach Lab’s subsequent chapter opens with a rush of uncooked, pressing vitality. “You look so fairly whenever you cry,” Jenna Kyle sings sizzling on the mic, ever the beacon of unfiltered, uncompromising emotion. “Makes them wanna break your coronary heart to observe you die inside.” Reverb-drenched guitars glisten and roar round her as driving drums pound out a heavy beat, filling the air with a hazy rigidity that goes far past the bodily spectrum.
you look so fairly whenever you cry
makes them wanna break your coronary heart
to observe you die inside
you’ve been working all of your life
late evening talks and smoking
within the shadow of the evening
he mentioned he needs you
but it surely’s an excessive amount of
he loves you
but it surely’s not sufficient
In lots of respects, that is Bleach Lab doing what Bleach Lab do greatest. The South London-based band channel ache into ardour on “Drown,” an angsty, achingly intimate eruption from hauntingly darkish depths. Independently launched November 13th, their first single since final yr’s debut album Misplaced in a Rush of Vacancy is as intense as it’s totally all-consuming: A sonically and emotionally charged launch dripping with warmth, heartache, and that breathtaking vulnerability that has made Bleach Lab considered one of my favourite teams from day one.
“It’s about being caught in a poisonous cycle of going again to the identical particular person, or at all times ending up with the identical particular person although they is probably not that good for you,” Kyle tells Atwood Journal. “It’s attempting to interrupt out of that cycle and discover the arrogance to maneuver on.”
The band hit their excessive in a gut-wrenching, soul-baring refrain – pouring gasoline on the metaphorical hearth in a fascinating, dramatic climax:
you damage your self to really feel alive
holding up the entire weight of the sky
whenever you need one thing you let it rule your life
holding onto issues that don’t really feel proper
Not solely is that this Bleach Lab’s first launch since their LP, but it surely’s additionally their first self-produced single, with guitarist Louis Takooree and drummer Kieran Weston sharing the credit.
“We needed to problem ourselves to write down one thing a bit grungier with this one,” Weston explains. “On the time of scripting this, we had been eager to discover a heavier sound. So we went into the studio, listened to a load of early The Remedy and Nirvana, and got here out with the grungy guitar. From there, all of it fell collectively fairly shortly. Now we’re self-producing, we had been in a position to take it from writing stage to a fully-fledged tune inside a matter of days.”
Takooree agrees, noting how he feels “Drown” is “authentically ‘us’” – an sincere and real expression of the band’s artistry. Bleach Lab spent loads of time writing and attempting to good and progress their sound over this previous yr, “making an attempt to introduce newer parts while additionally staying true to what we love,” provides bassist Josh Longman.
whenever you maintain me such as you do
sitting by your window
morning lights simply coming via
inform me i used to be made for you
i neglect the rationale i used to be getting over you
he mentioned he needs you, but it surely’s an excessive amount of
he loves you, but it surely’s not sufficient
The consequence, not less than so far as “Drown” is worried, is a powerful, soul-stirring success that finds them pushing ahead, all whereas staying true to these issues which have lengthy made their music particular and distinctive amongst their different cohorts. A longtime Atwood Journal artist-to-watch and six-time Editor’s Choose, Bleach Lab are one of many UK’s most enjoyable indie acts – with a heavy, lush shoegaze-y sonic identification and soul-stirring lyrics stuffed with depth, unfiltered emotion, and substance.
In naming their debut considered one of 2023’s greatest albums, I praised them for delivering an expertise that’s directly wondrous and wistful, thought-provoking and deeply evocative: “As enchanting as it’s achingly intimate, Misplaced in a Rush of Vacancy is an immersive assortment of internal reckonings and soul-stirring reflections on what it means to be alive,” I wrote. “Wave after wave of shiver-inducing shoegaze, glistening indie rock, and dream pop wash over the ears as Bleach Lab drench their viewers not simply in breathtaking sound, however in visceral emotion.”
I would as effectively have been writing about “Drown” as effectively, contemplating how catchy and cathartic this tune is. By no means earlier than have the phrases “you damage your self to really feel alive” given rise to such blended emotions of disappointment and euphoria.
you damage your self to really feel alive
holding up the entire weight of the sky
whenever you need one thing you let it rule your life
holding onto issues that don’t really feel proper
After all, the magic of an awesome tune lies in its capacity to repeatedly spark highly effective emotions in a listener – one thing “Drown” does all too effortlessly, as a result of that is, with no shadow of a doubt, a very nice tune.
oh the lights are approaching
and also you’re nonetheless hanging round
why don’t you simply go residence and go away me right here to drown
or you might lie and inform me child i’m the one
within the morning when i get up
we each know you’ll be gone
you damage your self to really feel alive
holding up the entire weight of the sky
whenever you need one thing you let it rule your life
holding onto issues that don’t really feel proper
“The Saddest Factor”
by Soda Blonde
I suppose I can now say that “The Saddest Factor” brings me immense pleasure. That’s, supplied the ‘factor’ in query is Soda Blonde’s newest, intoxicating single. The Irish indie pop band’s second tune of the yr continues the place its predecessor “Bully” left off, dwelling in an intimate rabbit of gap of unrequited love, self-deception, and “the melancholy of imagined connections as a technique to fill an emotional void.”
It’s all about you
I’m solely going out in the event you’ll be there
I’m hiding all my disgrace
With one thing good to put on
I haven’t met you but
Isn’t that the saddest factor about it
It’s for the very best
I do know and you realize it
“It’s a mirrored image on the tender elements of ourselves that always stay unseen,” lead singer Faye O’Rourke says. Her lyrics, as blunt as they’re brooding, echo these sentiments, sending shivers down the backbone as collectively, she and her bandmates Adam O’Regan, Donagh Seaver-O’Leary, and Dylan Lynch ship a haunting, harmony-soaked reckoning.
Thanks very a lot
For the books that you’ll lend me
However I solely like them as a result of I such as you
Thanks very a lot
For the songs that you just’re displaying
However I solely like them as a result of I such as you
Born within the aftermath of Little Inexperienced Vehicles’ dissolution, Soda Blonde have shortly turn out to be considered one of my all-time favourite bands since their debut in 2019, persistently profitable me over with spellbinding songs stuffed with uncooked humanity and seductively catchy melodies. And whereas tracks like “Don’t Thoughts Them,” “Small Discuss,” “Dangerous Machine,” and “Horrible Palms” are my present most-listened-to tracks out of their discography, I wouldn’t be stunned is “The Saddest Factor” makes the listing come this time subsequent yr; for out of angst and aching, Soda Blonde have as soon as once more spun sonic gold.
I don’t imagine there aren’t any regrets
I can’t get it out of my head now
If somebody says that to you they’re a liar
I don’t give a rattling I do know it’s true
I want a egocentric distraction
That’s the saddest factor about it
It’s for the very best
So I focus to search out you
Thanks very a lot
For the books that you’ll lend me
However I solely like them as a result of I such as you
Thanks very a lot
For the songs that you just’re displaying
However I solely like them as a result of I such as you
Thanks for the years
That I’ve already imagined
However I solely dreamt them as a distraction
And every little thing about myself
That I may by no means deal with
However I solely such as you as a result of I have to
“American Dream”
by Mara Connor
I think about the ‘American Dream’ will probably be analyzed, reanalyzed, scrutinized, and reassessed nonstop over these subsequent 4 years. For these of us so-called “progressives,” it’s a darkish time in American life; a wannabe fascist ideologue has risen, as soon as once more, to the very best ranges of energy, inflicting a nationwide reckoning with our nation’s identification and place on the planet.
The outcomes of the presidential election had been nonetheless sinking in when Mara Connor dropped a revamped model of her newest single, “American Dream” (initially launched in early October). Titled “American Dream (Hometown Heroes & Magnificence Queens),” the softer, acoustic remake of her Springsteen-esque anthem brings out the ache, the sorrow, and the biting social commentary on the coronary heart of her music, very similar to slowed-down variations of “Born in the united statesA.” do for that ’80s basic.
Rosie works a double on the diner
Can’t afford the weekends off
Since she bought the slip final December
From her secretary job
Her oldest son’s again within the service
She hopes he’ll make it residence for Christmas
Some individuals get what they need
The remaining they only get by
Some individuals they get to stay
The remaining simply attempt to keep alive
And hometown heroes and sweetness queens
Their hopes are blown to smithereens
They go on chasing
The American Dream
That is really a brutal, no-holds-barred reflection on the so-called ‘American Dream’ that thousands and thousands spend their lives chasing however by no means attain – thanks, not less than to a point, on these voters who “positioned their bets on the unsuitable group,” as she places it.
“This tune is my worst concern coming true in actual time,” Connor tells Atwood Journal. “Life imitating artwork. Watching individuals get conned into voting for a so-called ‘American Dream’ that doesn’t embrace them and electing a cartoon villain to our nation’s highest workplace.”
“The historical past books will keep in mind this darkish second when America selected a pathologically egocentric, sexual predator and convicted felon over an achieved lady of colour to our nation’s highest workplace. For years ‘we the individuals’ have watched him spew his toxic rhetoric, sow concern and bigotry in an already divided nation, defy democracy, promise to strip us of our elementary rights and healthcare, pillage our surroundings, subjugate ladies and oppress minorities, make the wealthy richer and the poor poorer… and now America invitations him to return to the White Home like a wounded sufferer asking its perpetrator to stay the knife in deeper. In occasions of nice upheaval and ethical decay, we want artwork and music greater than ever.”
Billy slips some liquor in his espresso
As he opens up the bar
It’s been six years since he was sober
Was a soccer star
Now he simply watches it on TV
Reliving it and reminiscing
Clutching his cup of joe and whiskey
Some individuals get what they need
The remaining they only get by
Some individuals they get to stay
The remaining simply attempt to keep alive
And hometown heroes and sweetness queens
Their hopes get blown to smithereens
However they’ll die chasing
The American Dream
“American Dream (Hometown Heroes & Magnificence Queens)” aches in and out as Mara Connor sings about a couple of hometown heroes and sweetness queens – all actual, relatable individuals, with actual, relatable issues. Feelings run excessive as she sings, softly and soulfully, first about Rosie, who’s been working double shifts on the diner ever since she misplaced her secretary job; subsequent about Billy, the ex-football participant who slipped into alcoholism over these previous six years; and lastly about Julie, the mom who takes her youngsters to the rally of her favourite presidential candidate – “one other billionaire who swears he’s for the Proletariat.”
Julie takes her kids to the rally
Of her favourite candidate
One other billionaire who swears he’s
For the Proletariat
He guarantees to assist the miners,
Troopers and mothers who work at diners
In the end, it’s the poignant, bittersweet reality of Connor’s refrain that stings probably the most: “And hometown heroes and sweetness queens, their hopes get blown to smithereens. However they’ll die chasing the American Dream.” It hurts to assume {that a} majority of hardworking People simply voted towards their very own pursuits, and whereas solely time will inform simply how true that assertion seems to be, the occasions of this previous month already counsel a darkish future stuffed with political retribution, corruption, and cuts to vital social companies.
After all, nobody is aware of what the following 4 years have in retailer, and whereas I’m hoping for the very best – that these of us like Rosie and Billy get the assistance and assist they want – I’m additionally bracing for the worst. Mara Connor’s “American Dream (Hometown Heroes & Magnificence Queens)” – with its prescient lyrics and heartrending, emotionally uncooked vocal efficiency – is an ideal, if not particularly highly effective soundtrack for this second in time.
Some individuals get what they need
The remaining they only get by
Some individuals they get to stay
The remaining simply attempt to survive
‘Trigger hometown heroes and sweetness queens
They positioned their bets on the unsuitable group
All within the title of the American Dream
All within the title of the American Dream
“Chill Out”
by Witch Submit
Witch Submit are tough, they’re uncooked, and they’re indubitably an artist to observe in 2025. The brand-new duo of Scottish musician Dylan Fraser and American singer/songwriter (and two-time Atwood Editor’s Choose) Alaska Reid have burst onto the scene with “Chill Out,” a feverish indie rock eruption that feels prefer it was born within the storage and refined in a bed room studio.
It’s churning and charged, callous and composed suddenly – a sleazy seduction yelling at us all to ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-chill out!
Gob stuffed with shit
Drink in your mouth
I’m tryna hear what you say
I couldn’t determine it out
Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-chill out
Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-chill out
Ah ah ah ah ah ah ahhhh
Come on simply give it up now
And as soon as once more my coronary heart broke
whilst you sat there consuming
And only for as soon as
Only for as soon as I couldn’t
give a rattling what you’re pondering
“‘Chill Out’ is a crooked tooth, sweaty bar dialog of a tune,” Fraser and Reid inform Atwood Journal. “We needed to attract parts from bands such because the Pixies, Sonic Youth, Gap to create this tough spherical the perimeters monitor.”
“It’s blood pumping via the veins and outbursts of emotional confusion that circulate all through this tune. Diving into the venomous tongue that comes with a relationship breaking down.”
I’ll purchase you a drink
I’ll spin you round
Come on you gotta admit
You’re solely bringing it down
Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-chill out
I don’t wanna be down
I offer you every little thing that you really want
Come on simply give it up now
Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-chill out
Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-chill out
And as soon as once more my coronary heart broke
whilst you sat there consuming
And only for as soon as
Only for as soon as I couldn’t
give a rattling what you’re pondering
Dramatic and dreamy, unapologetic and unrelenting, “Chill Out” is sonic adrenaline: An invigorating catalyst right here to energise and ignite the flames flicker deep down inside.
Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-chill out
Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-chill out
“I Miss You, I Do”
by Arny Margret
Árný Margret’s heavy, aching soul is uncovered on “I Miss You, I Do” as she dwells in an area of blue, brooding nostalgia and unfiltered longing, burdened by the load of a not-so-distant previous and the bittersweet ache of her current. “Twenty-three and a midlife disaster,” the Icelandic singer/songwriter sings softly over a heat blanket of acoustic and electrical sound. “Will you sing me to sleep? You’re up to now and I’m bored with calling, dreaming of the day we meet.” Her voice is wealthy, tender, and hauntingly delicate, the feelings she places into each phrase as highly effective because the feelings she withholds.
For as everyone knows, it’s each what you say, and what you permit unsaid, that finally lingers in our hearts.
However I miss you, I do
And I hope you do
Launched October 16th, 2024 by way of One Little Impartial Data, “I Miss You, I Do” is each Árný Margret’s first tune of the yr and the title monitor off her upcoming sophomore album (set to drop March 7th, 2025). Made with a who’s-who of producers that features Brad Cook dinner (Bon Iver, Waxahatchee, Hurray For The Riff Raff), Andrew Berlin (Gregory Alan Isakov, Rise In opposition to), and Josh Kaufman (Bonny Mild Horseman, Bob Weir, The Nationwide), the follow-up to 2022’s debut album they solely discuss concerning the climate has been billed as a report of development, maturity, motion, and alter.
“The principle factor I needed for this album was for it to be completely different,” Margret shares. “Once I take heed to the final one, I really feel prefer it’s primarily about me and the guitar. It’s very stripped again. I needed to do extra – I really like the banjo, the fuller sound, I really like the American sound, so recording it throughout there made an enormous distinction.”
“I’ve at all times labored with the identical individuals in the identical locations, so I by no means thought I may do that – work with all these individuals who report with a few of my favorite musicians. I actually admire everybody on this. And pushing myself out of my consolation zone, that’s fairly rewarding.”
Discuss within the morning or so very late within the night
You’re a tough one to catch
I assume I’m the identical, to you in any case
It’s the way in which it lasts
Oh, I miss you, I do
And I hope you do
Oh, I miss you, I do
And I do know you do
In the end, it’s that sheer distance that may come between two hearts that hits the toughest on “I Miss You, I Do,” slicing deeply as a result of it’s a lot greater than a bodily wedge, however an emotional one as effectively. As she repeats the phrases, “I miss you, I do,” Margret doesn’t simply lengthy to be with her love as soon as once more; she needs that metaphysical connection that makes two souls intertwine, turning into one.
At some point we’ll meet like nothing ever occurred
Discuss concerning the bruises on our toes
And we’ll consider the time
we shared as soon as upon a time
Linking arms on the road
Oh, I miss you, I do
And I hope you do
Oh, I miss you, I do
And I do know you do
“Stars”
by Fright Years
In a lot the identical spirit as discovering hope in a hopeless place, Fright Years’ cinematic “Stars” embraces freedom within the face of sickness, loss, and their enduring, crippling weight. Launched October 9th, the Edinburgh band’s third single of the yr (following January’s tantalizing and taunting “Evil” and March’s messy, sweaty “Blue”) captures the red-hot ardour and deep emotional wherewithal I’ve come to like of their songs. Produced by Theo Verney (English Instructor, Lime Backyard), “Stars” finds frontwoman Jules Kelly reckoning in actual time along with her father’s terminal most cancers prognosis and his inspiring response to it.
You noticed life as a heavy seashore
100 miles in a gentle line
So whenever you discover that you just’re going nowhere
You face the ocean and also you let it shine
You mentioned ‘I can’t imagine that I’ve been so fortunate
To have all of it and all of it for good’
So I’ll go ‘until my legs cease working
To see the world in the way in which you might
‘Trigger now I do know that
oh it’ll by no means be sufficient
To really feel want in a race for nothing
I see stars now, I want stars out
To maintain me going
“I wasn’t attempting to write down about it, and to be sincere it felt fairly bizarre that I used to be,” Jules Kelly shared upon the monitor’s launch. “However when you’ve got ever skilled one thing like that, you’ll perceive that it consumes completely every little thing. I requested my dad why he wasn’t angrier; I simply thought he was the unluckiest particular person on the planet. However he mentioned he nonetheless thought-about himself a really fortunate particular person.”
“Actually, he couldn’t imagine simply how fortunate he had been to have had such an incredible life and to have been so blissful. I simply discovered it unbelievable that he may have that perspective. ‘Stars’ is about shedding religion in your individual energy, after which discovering new freedom in precisely that – ‘I see stars now, I want stars out to maintain me going.’”
Most of us would anticipate to satisfy such horrible information with an infinite parade of anger, irritating, and so forth – absolutely something aside from happiness. No matter it’s that made Mr. Kelly discover pleasure via ache, I’d like to discover a little bit of that myself: For there’s nothing extra highly effective, and nothing extra profound, than the ability to lookup when all indicators level down. Impressed by a very inspirational human second, “Stars” is an indie rock anthem of discovering – and turning into – the sunshine in our personal darkness. Maybe we, too, can see the celebrities – with just a little assist from the ever-enchanting Fright Years.
You would paint me an actual exhausting time
So I image you as just a little boy
Feeling all that I do tonight
But you continue to discovered love and you continue to had pleasure
Trigger now I do know that
oh it’ll by no means be sufficient
To really feel want in a race for nothing
I see stars now, I want stars out
To maintain me going
— — — —
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