Glam Rock

The Loose Ends || May 2026

By / / Alternative Rock, Blues & Roots, Country & Folk, Funk & Soul, Garage Rock, Glam Rock, Indie Pop, Indie Rock, Jangle Pop, Power Pop, Psych, Punk, Surf / Leave a Comment

There are more wantlist-worthy releases than time to cover them all. Starting this year, Loose Ends is our monthly fix for the great records that slipped through the cracks. Expect a key track and quick take on each release (40+ this month!), and a link to add it to your shelves.

Above Me || Soften The Blows
Debut LP on Dandy Boy Records from this non average dream pop project by Rick Altieri (Blue Ocean, Aluminum).

Big Nothing || Big Nothing
The third album from this indie punk/alt country/guitar pop/classic rock a-bit-of-everything band from Philadelphia just dropped their third album (with a new lineup) on Dead Broke Records. It is another fine slice of warmblooded, bighearted basement pop.

Blitzer || The New Conspiracy
Ten fierce blasts of post-punk on this exciting debut LP from Berlin trio Blitzer. Urgent, tense, and full of forward momentum. Out now through Mangel Records.


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Album review: The Escape Society || The Escape Society

Fuzzed-out hooks and glam-soaked optimism on a psychedelic joyride

By / / Alternative Rock, Glam Rock, Psych / Leave a Comment

The Teletubbies are hardly the poster children for hazardous riffs and hard-hitting drums, although after a few mind-altering substances, those wide-eyed colors might start making a strange kind of sense. Still, the toddler’s icons take center stage in the video for Derelicts in the Fungus Shed, a 2024 single from The Escape Society. The track appears on the Ottawa band’s self-titled debut full-length, a nine-song collection that now gathers the standout singles from the past three years into something that plays less like an introduction and more like a greatest hits set.

Bandcamp lists The Escape Society as progressive rock, alternative rock, garage rock, glam, power pop, and psychedelic rock, and miraculously the band lives up to all those tags, turning big hooks and crazy ideas into kaleidoscopic dancefloor-ready anthems with genuine heart. Theatrical and over-the-top, surreal and infectious? Yes, actually, but it is anything but childish, with fun above all.



The Escape Society’s eponymous debut album—produced by Troy Huizinga and Dean Watson—is out digitally (self-released), Featuring Troy Huizinga (vocals, guitars, bass, synths, drum machine, percussion, handclaps, toy guns), Scott Norris (guitar, bass, backing vocals), Dean Watson (bass, backing vocals, drum machine, percussion, handclaps), and Jay Watts (drums, bass, percussion, backing vocals), with Jacob Elgin (guitar) and Stacy DuBois (backing vocals) guesting on select tracks.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Weird Bloom || Wrong Time Wrong Place

Road-worn glam rock with bubblegum-pink grease under its fingernails

By / / Glam Rock / Leave a Comment

The nice folks at Wild Honey have been on a roll lately, and their latest release is wantlist-worthy once again. Weird Bloom’s new long-player Wrong Time Wrong Place is all swagger, grit, and gloriously blown-out edges. The collective from Rome hits glam rock’s sweet spot right on the bullseye with big riffs, stomping rhythms, and just enough sleaze to keep things cool. It feels road-tested (it goes without saying that you really have to experience this kind of music live), and as it should be, it’s messy, loud, and undeniably fun.

There’s a loose, junk-shop appeal in the ten songs, where boogie grooves crash into fuzzed-out noise and bubblegum-poppy hooks emerge like neon signs through the haze. As you might expect, this is really about impact over intricacy, carried by repetition, volume, and attitude, exactly what you want when glam gets dragged through the gutter and comes out grinning. You know what to do: put on your platform boots and good mood, and let the next ballroom blitz begin.




Wrong Time Wrong Place—recorded by Edoardo Elia, produced by Luca Di Cataldo and David Comanducci—is out digitally and on vinyl LP through Wild Honey Records. Featuring Luca Di Cataldo, Adriano Bartoccini, David Comanducci, Mattia Micalich, Lorenzo Masini, and Edoardo Elia.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Drakulas || Midnight City

Third installment of this Rise Against & Riverboat Gamblers sideshow is another fun one!

By / / Alternative Rock, Garage Rock, Glam Rock, Punk / Leave a Comment

A co-release between Dirtnap and Wild Honey is always good news. And a return of Drakulas, the concept band featuring Rise Against’s Zach Blair and Riverboat Gamblers’ Mike Wiebe, Rob Marchant, and Ian Walling, is one to greet with ears wide open. What started as a concept clearly took on a life of its own. On Midnight City, their third album, the band sound like a punk outfit dipping into early new wave, like they got a new haircut and picked up a few turtlenecks.

There’s a smoothness to the sound that goes beyond the usual scrappy feel of their labels’ rosters. Sure, there are straight-up pop punk hits here, like Singin’ With My Tongue Cut Out, Is It Enough?, and Guys Like Me, Girls Like You. But there’s also a groove and a slightly angular edge running through the record, like the band is nudging you toward the dancefloor if you dare. And if you don’t, that’s fine too, this thing still lands.

Midnight City might not click with everyone, but it’s easy to see people latching onto this hard. Worth diving into.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Dirtnap

New album: Crocodiles || Greetings From Hell

Nine albums in, Charles Rowell and Brandon Welchez are still blasting catchy awesomeness

By / / Alternative Rock, Garage Rock, Glam Rock, Punk / 1 Comment

I bet that when Charles Rowell and Brandon Welchez met twenty years ago, they didn’t expect to still be writing and recording music together in 2026, but here we are. Album number nine, Greetings From Hell. Not every Crocodiles record has stuck with me, but my fondness definitely kicked back in with 2023’s Upside Down In Heaven. Welchez’s throwback punk project Psychic Pigs from last year was another sign of particularly good form and morale.

Greetings From Hell keeps that momentum going. It’s a strong set of accessible garage pop and straight-up rock ’n roll. Crocodiles have always had a knack for writing songs that feel arena-sized, even if we’re lucky enough to catch them in much smaller rooms. Still Kids leans into the glam side, while I Dream of Genet dials up the melody even higher, both sticking fast.

Twenty years in and they still sound like they’re having a blast. Hard not to get pulled along with that.

LP out now on Wild Honey Records. Hey hey hey!


Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Wild Honey

New album: Loosey || A Retrospective: 2023-2025

Compiling the band's first two EP's, TKO Records make it super easy to jump on the Loosey hypetrain

By / / Garage Rock, Glam Rock, Power Pop / Leave a Comment

I had to fire up the search function after spinning this, because I was sure we’d covered Loosey before. Turns out we hadn’t, which feels like a miss on our end. Loosey (NYC) play the kind of seventies rock ’n roll we’re always chasing: part garage power pop, part glam, part bovver rock. Or, as TKO Records’ Mark Rainey puts it: “This is music that will make you want to shake your ass and punch someone in the face at the same time.”

While we were asleep, Loosey were busy rolling out their master plan to conquer the airwaves. Their two EPs now land together as A Retrospective: 2023-2025. All good. Easy does it. Better late than never. Let’s rock!

LP out on TKO Records May 8. Pre-order now.


Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

Gimme 5! Matt Julian Shares the Five Records that Made him Want to Start The Speedways

By / / Garage Rock, Glam Rock, Indie Pop, Power Pop, Punk / Leave a Comment

With ‘Gimme 5!’ we take a peek into the collections of artists we admire. The premise is simple: artists WE like share five records THEY love. Photo credit: James Douglas 

Here’s the down low. We asked Speedways frontman Matt Julian to drop a Gimme 5 feature onto our doorstep. It turned out he (and the rest of the band) had a lot more to say, which quickly snowballed into an interview. So we split things up: last week we ran the interview, and this week we’re stoked to share Matt’s list.

In it, he picks five albums that helped spark The Speedways into life in the first place. Make sure to also check Matt’s interview at Faster and Louder for even more background on what’s been going on with him and the band.

By the time I’d made it through all the Speedways content, I was fully fired up for new material from the band. Good news: the wait shouldn’t be long. For now, dive in and enjoy the read and the (classic!) records.

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New single: Matthew Melton || Gaining on You

A renewed connection with the analog spark of Matthew Melton (Bare Wires, Warm Soda & Pleasers)

By / / Garage Rock, Glam Rock, Power Pop, Psych / 2 Comments

My favorite Matthew Melton memory is him kicking in the bathroom door at EKKO (a venue in Utrecht), strolling in like a total rock star, that weirdly shaped guitar slung over his shoulder like it never leaves his side. I had just washed my hands, and witnessed what felt like an absurdistic movie scene. Minutes later, I saw Warm Soda hit the stage, already halfway obsessed. That show made things worse, in the best way.

Side note, this was also the night Add To Wantlist head honcho Dennis beat me to the last limited vinyl copy in a move I still consider morally questionable. The scars remain.

On-topic! I lost track of Melton’s output a bit when Warm Soda went on hiatus and he shifted into Dream Machine, a more psych-leaning project with his then wife Doris. Now he’s back under his own name with a new two-song single on Trust Fund Records, and it feels like a reset in all the right ways. The psych haze is still there in the rearview, but front and center is that vintage garage power pop he does so well. It’s unmistakably Melton, tapping into the spirit of Warm Soda, Bare Wires, and Pleasers without just rerunning the tape.

The A-side Gaining on You kicks in immediately, a classic Melton move, hook and groove arriving at the exact same second. No warm-up, no filler. It sounds effortless, all warm tones and sugar-sweet melody, but there’s real craft tucked underneath. The B-side Something to Give leans a bit rougher, with a touch more bite and a hint of old school psych creeping back in.

A more than solid return from Melton. If this is him getting back in the groove, you’ll want to keep an eye on what comes next.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

The Loose Ends || March 2026

By / / Alternative Rock, Blues & Roots, Country & Folk, Garage Rock, Glam Rock, Indie Pop, Indie Rock, Jangle Pop, Power Pop, Psych, Punk / 1 Comment

There are more wantlist-worthy releases than time to cover them all. Starting this year, Loose Ends is our monthly fix for the great records that slipped through the cracks. Expect a key track and quick take on each release, and a link to add it to your shelves.

Aswan Dam || In the Playpen of the Damned
Cool new band featuring Harry Wohl of Uranium Club. Jangly guitars, post punk wireness and pop sensibilities complement each other well on their 10-song debut album.

Atlanter || Clock
The pioneers of “viddeblues” sound revitalized, blending their signature Norwegian folk-desert blues fusion with renewed chemistry, intuitive interplay, and a confident push into fresh sonic territory.

Bait Bag || Cut Fruit
Punky garage pop trio Bait Bag (North Haven, Carolina) can sing, really sing well, and while they play their songs with a punk urgency, it is the POP that lingers.

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New album: Uni Boys || Uni Boys

Uni Boys have us eating out of the palm of their hands with their latest hit fest

By / / Glam Rock, Power Pop / Leave a Comment

Uni Boys prove once again they’re today’s answer to yesterday’s finest power pop acts. When I first stumbled on the band in their early days, I got siked right away, but I didn’t anticipate them still being around six years later, a band true to their style but with increasingly better material and execution. Their self-titled record (out this week on Curation Records) is stacked with sharp hooks, honey-sweet melodies, and the warmest vocals. Add an analog experience courtesy of the D’Addario Brothers behind the turns and knobs, and you get very happy fans.

Uni Boys have us eating out of their hands with fast burners like Victim of Myself, You’ll Curse His Name Again, Want You Back, and Look on the Bright Side. Then there’s You’re So (Phisticated), a song whose chorus (aaahh ooohhh) is so wonderfully dumb it loops back around to genius. This is music that takes you back to simpler times when your biggest worries were whether your crush noticed you and whether the record store had the new Shoes LP in stock.

But Uni Boys aren’t just rehashing the best parts of ’70s power pop. They’re broadening their scope. Abra leans into romantic glam pop. Genevieve channels sunshine pop. No Need To Serve a Purpose goes psych-y. Ambition and urgency come together most on the timeless pop hit Maybe I’m Wrong, in which Uni Boys come eerily close to morphing into The Lemon Twigs.

Look, I know gas prices are insane right now, but have you tried being a fan of throwback power pop and rock ‘n’ roll in 2026? We’ve already thrown cash at Mod Lang, Josephine Network, Daniel Romano’s Outfit, Sparrowhawk, Music City, and others. Now Uni Boys drop another AOTY contender and it’s not even April. At this rate, we’ll all be eating ramen by summer, but at least we’ll have killer record collections.


Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Discogs

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