Posted: by The Alt Editing Staff
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The Alternative Weekly Roundup is a column where our staff plugs a variety of new releases in a concise, streamlined format: albums, singles, videos, live sets. Check back every other Monday to see what we were jamming the week prior.
Lip Critic – “Legs in a Snare”
Digital hardcore band Lip Critic are masters of originality, with each new release being a capricious spasm of sound, a vicious ride with zero restraints. That streak continues on “Legs in a Snare,” the cataclysmic lead single from their upcoming album Theft World. Directed by Colter Fellows, the accompanying video renders New York—Lip Critic’s home city—as a feverish, unpredictable nightmare. You can practically smell the Wall Street sewer smog through the screen.
Jules Kelly | @snaiImaiI
Lowertown – “I Like You a Lot”
Having a crush is worse than 9/11. “I Like You a Lot,” the first single off Ugly Duckling Union, Lowertown’s first album in four years, explores the sensations of realizing you like someone a whole lot while desperately trying not to embarrass yourself and not even knowing if they actually feel the same way about you. Olivia Osby’s vocals are small and innocent, sweet without being corny, floating over scrappy lo-fi guitars to create an intimate, dreamy feel. The unapologetically honest “I Like You a Lot” is the sonic equivalent of hitting send and immediately throwing your phone across the room.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=To4DnQOPkWg
Jules Kelly | @snaiImaiI
Ratboys – “Burn It Down”
On their debut release for New West Records, Ratboys return with Singin’ to an Empty Chair, an album that shows them at their most inspired and most radically honest. The songs are portrayed as having an impossible conversation with someone who isn’t there to hear it, and they are full of vivid lyrics, guitar-rock jams, and tender vocals that pack a punch. “Burn It Down” is a personal favorite off the record, with its fuzzy drawl that seems to expand into a different realm.
Ryleigh Wann
Ekko Astral – “lil xan goes to washington”
Ekko Astral did the impossible on their latest single: they made Lil Xan cool. The Washington D.C. noisemakers offer controlled post-punk chaos on “lil xan goes to washington,” the latest single off their upcoming album the beltway is burning. The mention of the California-based internet rapper is no gimmick; Lil Xan is the star of the single’s music video, dancing in an empty room in a large suit as lead singer Jael Holzman speaks-sings about pressing political issues with a snide sincerity. Who knew Lil Xan was chill like that?
Jules Kelly | @snaiImaiI
Angine de Poitrine – “Fabienk”
French-Canadian psychedelic duo Angine de Poitrine blew minds this week when their bizarre, undeniably impressive KEXP session went viral on Twitter. Their latest single, “Fabienk,” is a slinky jam you can’t help but nod along to, a half groove experiment, half fever dream, with rubbery bass and guitar lines that coil tighter with every push forward. It’s funky, it’s weird, and it commands attention with every electric second.
Jules Kelly | @snaiImaiI
Knocked Loose ft. Denzel Curry – “Hive Mind”
Combining metal and rap without making it horribly embarrassing is an intricate dance that’s a lot harder than it may seem—a fine, thin line separates you from being a Show Me the Body type to a Machine Gun Kelly ripoff. Thankfully, Knocked Loose and Denzel Curry know how to walk that line, creating a vicious nu-metal track with a hardcore rap edge on “Hive Mind.” Curry offers his best Jonathon Davis impression as he rides out Knocked Loose’s aggressive, trilling guitar riffs with reckless abandon.
Jules Kelly | @snaiImaiI
Billy Gartrell – “Reminders”
Owner of the label nothing to exist, Brooklyn-based Billy Gartrell ditched the streaming services and released a song on a fresh website. “Reminders” is a lofi bedroom-gaze track, and all about honoring the micro moments that make you miss someone—a glimpse in a mirror, a familiar scent, or a faraway voice.
Ryleigh Wann
Asian Glow – “A Portrait to Be Taken”
South Korea’s Shin Gyeongwon, releasing music as Asian Glow, has been an unstoppable force in the emo scene since the release of 2021’s Cull Ficle, quietly building a devoted fanbase that now stretches well beyond Seoul. His latest single, “A Portrait to Be Taken,” is slacker shoegaze at its most devastating: a melancholy daydream anchored by the strongest guitar riff he’s put to tape yet.
Jules Kelly | @snaiImaiI
Chat Pile – “Masks”
Chat Pile’s “Masks” (not to be confused with their other songs “Masc,” “The Mask,” or “Mask”) is everything great about Chat Pile rolled into one song. The ‘90s-inspired, down-tempo bass, and guitar riffs morph into monstrous waves that crash against Raygun Busch’s distinctively erratic vocals, building to a climax of guttural cries and a fast-paced breakdown that feels like a lion circling its prey. “Masks” is a slow crawl toward disaster, and somehow you can’t stop leaning closer.
Jules Kelly | @snaiImaiI
The Alternative’s ‘New Music Friday’ playlist
Each week we compile a playlist of songs our staff has been jamming. We post it on Fridays and then include it in each edition of the Weekly Roundup to make sure you don’t miss any of the great music we’re recommending.
