New Music Friday - 8/5/2022

It’s New Music Friday and it’s too hot to do anything outside - so stay inside and listen to some tasty tunes. Here’s what I’m digging this week.

Singles of the Week:

“Boy” by The Killers

I’m a big fan of The Killers and loved their last album, Pressure Machine. Their new track was written leading up to Machine, shortly after their tour was canceled due to the pandemic. A return to their anthemic sound, it reminds me of songs like “Human” and other early hits. It’s a song lead singer Brandon Flowers wrote not only for his son, but also for Flowers himself when he was sixteen. The message is simple - don’t overthink it.

“Exile” by Bonny Light Horseman

The latest single from the “folk supergroup” is a nod to country side with a dose of subdued banjo and just enough indie sounds backing the beautiful voice of Anaïs Mitchell, who them harmonizes so well with the other members (Eric D. Johnson and Josh Kaufman). It’s a warm song that touches on fears both big and small.

Album of the Week:

In The Wild by The Interrupters

It’s always tough to follow up a release that has critics and fans alike in love with your music. But that’s what The Interrupters had to do. Coming off of their fantastic 2018 release Fight the Good Fight, the pop-punk/ska band dove back into recording and found a more polished sound to go hand-in-hand with their fearless, defiant songs. Lead singer Aimee Interrupter (born Aimee Allen) is a mix of her heroes, Joan Jett and Rancid’s Tim Armstrong, singing about personal turmoil and trauma with a big old “fuck you”. Kicking things off with “Anything Was Better” the song builds to a fever pace that’ll have you tapping your foot and raising your fist. Speaking of Tim Armstrong, he makes an appearance on the ska track “As We Live”. “Jailbird” tracks more new wave with Aimee being candid in her lyrics about her struggles with anxiety and depression. You may think, wow this is some tough stuff, but that’s the beauty of the album. This is the sound of defiance, the acknowledgement of her scars, but also a celebration of her survival.