New album: The Greenberry Woods || It’s All Good, Sugar

Power pop veterans pick up where they left off three decades ago.

By / / Power Pop / Leave a Comment

Big Stir Records is steadily building a reputation as one of the great caretakers of guitar pop and power pop. Their roster doesn’t just feature excellent newer acts like Crossword Smiles and Popular Creeps, but also new releases from veterans such as 20/20, Spongetones, Sorrows, Graham Parker, and sparkle*jets u.k.

Even so, the label must have known it had something special when The Greenberry Woods resurfaced with a batch of new songs. After all, this is a band that hadn’t released new music since the mid-’90s. Songs like Trampoline, Super Geek and Love Songs remain fixtures on plenty of power pop playlists from that era. I know I was curious. As it turns out, It’s All Good, Sugar is more than a welcome return. It’s a genuinely strong guitar pop record.

Much of the album lands in that sweet spot where ’90s alternative guitar pop and power pop overlap. Thirty years ago I probably would have called this modern power pop, invoking names like Teenage Fanclub and Fountains of Wayne. In 2026, “modern” may no longer be the right word, but the songs still hit the same pleasure centers.

The Greenberry Woods aren’t content to stay in one lane, either. That Girl has more than a little of ’80s Elvis Costello in its DNA, while Waiting Round For Something To Go Wrong sounds like something Evan Dando might have scribbled down during the Come On Feel the Lemonheads years.

For a band returning after three decades, The Greenberry Woods sound remarkably unconcerned with reliving the past. We all benefit. LP and CD available on Big Stir



Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Love, Burns || Pavement Drawings

Jangling melodies greet bittersweet memories

By / / Indie Pop, Jangle Pop / Leave a Comment

With Pavement Drawings, Phil Sutton (Comet Gain, Velocette, Pale Lights) returns with his third album as Love, Burns. Backed by a stellar cast of musicians, he delivers another twelve classic indie pop songs that will make sunshine radiate from your speakers. Beneath the melancholic melodies and summery arrangements lie poetic lyrics on the things we struggle to leave behind, like lost loves, old wounds, fading memories, and the versions of ourselves we can never quite escape: “She hopes that he will never see // The things she saw today // Some days are soon forgotten // But they don’t go away // She will feel the pain” (from the title track). It’s intriguing storytelling, caught between yesterday’s thoughts and tomorrow’s possibilities, but it works especially well in conjunction with the jangling guitars, smooth organ ornaments, and warm vocal harmonies.



Pavement Drawings is out digitally, on CD and vinyl LP, through Calico Cat records, Jigsaw Records, and Spinout Nuggets. Featuring Philip Sutton (vocals), Kyle Forester (guitars, bass, keyboards, saxophone), Hannes Mueller (drums), Jo Roman (vocals), and Alicia Hyman (violin).

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Jigsaw || Spinout ||

New single: New Capital || Highschool/Girls

By / / Alternative Rock, Indie Pop / Leave a Comment

There is a new hypeworthy label in town. Well, not our town exactly, but somewhere in West Java (Indonesia), the folks behind sundaysnacks seem determined to conquer the airwaves one catchy underground pop release at a time. New Capital’s Highschool/Girls is only the label’s second release (and yes, you should check out the first one too), but it already feels like they’re onto something.

These two songs tick all my boxes: catchy, energetic, uncomplicated, super short and delightfully fuzzy. Call it noise pop, alt-pop, indie pop, or whatever tag makes you happy. I’m not interested in arguing genres when the songs are this much fun. I’d rather just play them to death.

In fact, these tracks are so effortlessly effective that they almost make me want to pick up a guitar and try writing something similar myself. Almost. The difference is New Capital actually pulls it off.


Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Zuffalo || Flock of the Town

Psychedelic grooves for wandering hearts

By / / Country & Folk, Funk & Soul, Psych / Leave a Comment

Flock of the Town, the third full-length album by Toronto eight-piece Zuffalo, comes across as a vibrant live show full of magical spirit and playful fun. Its eleven original songs are bursting with funky basslines, soulful keys, warm harmonies, and exploratory guitar work, drawing from psychedelic rock, retro soul, and rootsy jam-band traditions—a unique combination, grooving and colorful.

Tight songwriting explores the tension between modern anxieties and the desire to break free from them, whether through self-discovery, human connection, or simply stepping outside the daily grind. Nevertheless, an optimistic thread of growth prevails, reminding us that even in uncertain times we can embrace life’s strange beauty: “You’re either stuck in a bird cage or you’re flying// Into the morning light.”

Even more striking are the sun-drenched melodies, commanding vocals, and spacious production that lift the whole record into an effortlessly good mood. It’s on the two longest cuts, Tension (06:47) and Bloom (07:21), that this amazing band really stretches out and shows the full depth of what they are capable of.



Flock of the Town—produced by Mackenzie Jordan and Zuffalo—is out digitally, on CD and vinyl LP (self-released). Featuring Kim Manning )piano, rhodes, organ, vocals), Mikey Vukovich (bass, guitar, vocals), Mackenzie Jordan (guitar, backing vocals), Sean Steele (guitar, vocals), David Celia (guitar), Daniel Honsberger (guitar), Steve Lavery (synth, organ), and Eric Vanier (drums).

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New single: Coeur à l’Index || Fatiguée b/w Mes Héros

Gone too soon, catchy until the end

By / / Indie Pop, Power Pop / Leave a Comment

There is no shortage of great bands right now, but it still stings when one of the truly special ones decides to call it a day. Sadly, that’s the case with Brussels trio Coeur à l’Index.

Before bowing out, however, they’ve left us with one final 7″. The band first won us over with Adieu Minette, and these two farewell songs capture everything that made them so easy to love. Sung in French and overflowing with melody, they once again hit that sweet spot between indie pop and power pop, sounding effortlessly catchy and endlessly charming.

Years from now, people digging through the underground pop archives of the 2020s will wonder why Coeur à l’Index weren’t around longer. At least they leave behind one last reminder of how good they were.

Out now on La Vida Es Un Mus.


Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: The Jack Cades || Fade In

Jangling guitars, soaring harmonies, and timeless pop craft

By / / Garage Rock, Jangle Pop / Leave a Comment

Three years and two days after their year-end list-worthy Something New LP, The Jack Cades return with their fourth full-length album, Fade In. The British garage pop band, led by Elsa and Mike Whittaker, features a refreshed rhythm section and has been expanded with keyboards, but it is still the characteristic jangly guitars and warm harmonies that take center stage.

The twelve new, original songs are packed with sun-drenched melodies and rich vintage textures, wrapped in effortless style and timeless charm. What keeps the record so compelling is its steady stream of fresh ideas, delivered with a familiar touch that’s tough and tender in equal measure.



Fade In—engineered by Ed Deegan—is out digitally and vinyl LP through Beluga Records and Dangerhouse Skylab. Featuring Mike Whittaker (vocals, lead guitar), Elsa Whittaker (vocals, rhythm guitar), Dan Rowe (bass), Hayden O’Dell (mellotron, organ), and Nathan Sandford (drums).

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New EP: Anna McClellan || Space, You Big Cloud

The indie folk of Anna McClellan hits just a little harder

By / / Country & Folk / Leave a Comment

In a crowded indie folk landscape, Anna McClellan continues to stand out as one of the most compelling songwriters around. I became a fan through 2024’s Electric Bouquet, and Space, You Big Cloud adds five more songs to the growing pile of reasons why.

What makes McClellan special is the absence of pretense. These songs come from a real and deeply personal place, delivered with a vulnerability that never comes across as performative. She uses her voice in fascinating ways too, especially on Restless, stretching and layering it fearlessly. McClellan doesn’t seem interested in perfection so much as finding the exact sound a song needs to tell its story.

A captivating EP that rewards close listening. Out now on cassette through Father/Daughter Records.


Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Taste || 1/2 Fantasy

14 lo-fi gems waiting to be discovered

By / / Alternative Rock, Power Pop, Psych / Leave a Comment

Compiled from two previously self-released tapes, 1/2 Fantasy is the solo debut full-length from Taste aka Oli Lipton (Now, Cindy). The Oakland, California-based singer-songwriter filters energetic power-pop romanticism, ragged glam swagger, and psychedelic art-punk whimsy into 14 lo-fi songs that shimmer with equal parts wit and longing.

Everyday details drift through a haze of jangly guitars, distinctive vocals, and tape hiss, grounded by home-recorded intimacy, sharp songwriting, and an enigmatic smile. It’s pure and ramshackle at once, but listen closer and you’ll find a trove of clever concepts and addictive hooks buried in the noise. Idiosyncratic and restless as it is, it possesses a strangely hypnotic magnetism comparable to the solo work of Alan Vega.



1/2 Fantasy is out digitally and on vinyl LP through Tough Love Records.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

Dusted || The Best New Cover Songs Of May 2026

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

Not all new music is really new, as many artists cover songs. Sometimes these are songs by their favorite artists, e.g. as a tribute to such a musical hero for a special reason, or they simply feel that a song deserves to be dusted and polished to reacquaint fans with great songs from the past. Other times, bands cover songs as a parody. Regardless of intent, some of those cover versions are so good or so much fun, we’d like to put a spotlight on them. Chosen from a wide range, here are—in a kind of random order—a bunch of successful covers from last month—links to pages where you can add them to your wantlist included.

The compilation Where The Willow And The Dogwood Grow – Words And Music By Tom Waits And Kathleen Brennan was probably the biggest cover release of this period, but we are leaving it out of this overview due to its longer-existing inclusions—there is more than enough brand-new material to choose from.

I’m A Man (The Spencer Davis Group) by Datura4 — from I’m A Man 7″ (Rogue Records)

Song 2 (Blur) by Monk — from No Gods EP (Dine Alone Records)

I’m Waiting For The Man (The Velvet Underground) by The Routes — from Play 10″ [Chaputa! Records / Ghost Highway Recordings]

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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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