This week belongs to Chance the Rapper. He’s on such a roll that when he announced a mysterious event surrounding the release of his excellent new project, Coloring Book, a few of us at the CoS office leapt at the opportunity to buy tickets. But what did we pay for? Will it be a Chance performance? The tape playing over speakers while you play mini-golf? A pizza party? We’re as curious as you are. Until then, we’ve been finding just enough room in our day to spin a fresh batch of excellent tunes beyond spinning Chano’s tunes on repeat.
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10. Charly Bliss – “Ruby”
One of the biggest trends of the last few years is, undoubtedly, a return to the ’90s. In a sea of bands mimicking Stephen Malkmus, Kurt Cobain, and Rivers Cuomo, few have been able to stand out, injecting their own style into an otherwise easy format. Brooklyn up-and-comers Charly Bliss are well on their way to being one of those few. On “Ruby”, the four-piece romp through pure bubblegum grunge, creating the type of unashamed hooks and thick guitars that saw Veruca Salt and Kim Deal gaining attention. Frontwoman Eva Hendricks wields her nasally vocals with the skill of someone twice her age, sliding down scales and rasping on falsettos with an endearing tone. It’s two minutes of deja-vu goodness where you’ll swear you felt yourself in jellies again. –Nina Corcoran
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09. BadBadNotGood feat. Sam Herring (of Future Islands) – “Time Moves Slow”
The last time we heard from the relatively obscure BADBADBADNOTGOOD was last year on the collaborative project Sour Soul with Ghostface Killah. Since then, the quartet have added a new member, Leland Whitty, who will be assuming string and saxophone responsibilities. Now the jazz outfit are gearing up for their new album, IV (out July 8th), which will feature Kaytranada, Charlotte Day Wilson, Arcade Fire collaborator Colin Stetson, and Mick Jenkins. In support of the album, they released a new track entitled “Time Moves Slow”, featuring Future Islands’ frontman Sam Herring. The song is a languid and melancholic number with Herring’s deep baritone contemplating solemn ruminations. –Alejandra Ramirez
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08. Brand New – “I Am a Nightmare”
Releasing one song a year may not be their goal, but Brand New carry out the act as if it’s the only way they could share music with the world. Out of nowhere, the pop-punk staples dropped “I Am a Nightmare”, a standalone single presumably off their upcoming (whenever that may be) fifth album. And yet, it almost seems necessary for them to do so. Surprise releases from a band retching with angst pushes listeners to debate the worth of a track — an odd, uncomfortable thing to ask here with a song that screams major label while being released on their own Procrastinate! Music Traitors label. The devil and god keep raging inside Jesse Lacey, only now there’s fear holstered at his side. “Do I have to die to see the other side?” he sings. “I am a nightmare and you are a miracle/ Coming out of the ground, it’s kind of freaking me out.” His words speed over the most articulate hook Lacey’s written in easily over a decade, recalling the simplicity of Your Favorite Weapon without the lo-fi feed. If “Mene” was an extension of Daisy, then “I Am a Nightmare” is an extension of every fan’s shout for “Seventy Times 7” at their shows. Brand New know their career owes a lot to its starting point, and, finally, they’re willing to cater to that. –Nina Corcoran
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07. Hanni El Khatib – “Paralyzed”
Fans pack “selling out” into their slingshot and rocket it far, far away whenever one of their near-and-dear musicians drops music fit for a commercial. When pristine hooks are tailor-made to sell products, it shouldn’t be seen as a negative, but as a gain for listeners, and Hanni El Khatib unfolds in a similar way. The groove-heavy “Paralyzed” wastes no time laying down guitar licks over an inching bassline and disco drums. Khatib plays every instrument on the track himself. That explains the urge to dance in a wall of circling beats, a song caught up in vintage funk to the point where it feels like a hit written because Khatib himself needed it. “When I made it, I thought I actually don’t feel like screaming. I feel like dancing,” he told Zane Lowe. Yeah, dude. We hear it. –Nina Corcoran
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06. Okkervil River – “Okkervil River R.I.P.”
The three years since Okkervil River released the lauded The Silver Gymnasium were an especially trying time for band leader Will Sheff. As divulged this week around the release of “Okkervil River R.I.P”, the soon-to-be 40-year-old weathered many of life’s unavoidable obstacles: the death of a loved one, the dissolution of friendships, and the subsequent feelings of abandonment. Just when Okkervil River was set to be put down, Sheff surrounded himself with a new roster of talented musicians and utilized that dismay to cultivate a new path of artistic freedom throughout the forthcoming Away. For those still reeling from their own loss, anticipate a flow of massive tears as Sheff leans into his acoustic guitar and the soul-searching moments. Explore the project’s spiritual rebirth September 9th when Away lands via ATO. –Derek Staples
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05. Big Business – “Father’s Day”
For nearly 10 years, the boys of Big Business, Jared Warren and Coady Willis, have rotated in and out of tours with legendary metal outfit the Melvins, opening shows and filling out the headliner’s lineup in a formation known lovingly to some as Big Melvins. But anybody that’s only known them as “the Melvins’ friends” are doing themselves a major disservice: Big Business make their own big racket. Fans of Buzzo’s wild vocals will likely latch easily onto Warren’s steely cries on new cut “Father’s Day”, as well as his tar-black bass riffs that roll out in typhoon waves. Willis, meanwhile, crushes his drum kit, providing tight-cropped harmonies along the way. It’s hard to believe a duo could be producing this big of an oozy head-banging jam, but this is Big Business after all. “Father’s Day” is the first preview of the duo’s upcoming Command Your Weather, out July 8th via Joyful Noise Recordings. –Adam Kivel
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