Anna McClellan has announced a new album, Electric Bouquet, which is slated for release on October 25 via Father/Daughter. Along with the announcement, she’s released the single ‘Endlessly’, which follows the recently shared ‘Jam the Phones’, ‘Hold You Close’, and ‘Like a Painting’. Check it out and find the album cover and tracklist below.
“‘Endlessly’ is definitely a mile marker song for me,” McClellan said in a statement. “I think it retains all of the common traits of my songwriting while reaching a new level of maturity. It feels important and urgent to express this idea that we are each other’s truths. We can’t look to the supposed leaders of our system or the media for truth. They only lie and cause further destruction. ‘The truth is in knowing you/ Let it all come through.’ I wrote this song from the gut and I live my life off of my gut and I think in this time of such chaos and death, tapping into intuition and moving toward what it is telling us is the only way forward. I think God may be just another word for the gut.”
Electric Bouquet Cover Artwork:
Electric Bouquet Tracklist:
1. Jam the Phones
2. Paper Alley
3. Like a Painting
4. I’m Lyin
5. Hold You Close
6. Omaha
7. Endlessly
8. Co-Stars
9. Speechless Hills
10. Like a Swan
11. Dawson’s Creek
Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Ariella has released a new single called ‘Call Me Your Angel’. It’s taken from her debut album, CryBaby, which is set to arrive on October 11 via Lauren Records. Listen to it below.
Omaha indie rock band Neva Dinova is back with a new single ‘Lonely Heart’, which features bassist Megan Siebe on lead vocals for the first time. It’s set to appear on Canary, the group’s first new album in 16 years, which arrives on September 27 via Saddle Creek. Check out its Tony Bonacci-directed video below.
“Distracted and oppressed by tragedy and the superficial nature of finding love, a disfigured young lady doubts her ability to be loved,” Jake Bellows said in a statement. “Her shame wants to keep her isolated. But deep down she believes in love and resolves to try.”
“Although I didn’t write ‘Lonely Heart,’ I feel thankful that I was able to sing the lead vocals for the record,” Siebe added. “My connection to the song is strong. Whether the scar, internal or external, you want to avoid eye contact and the shame that it holds. However, we’re all capable of love and not in it alone; don’t hide it, embrace it all.”
Trace Mountains, the solo project of LVL UP’s Dave Benton, has dropped a new song called ‘Hard to Accept’. It’s taken from the upcoming record The Burning Blue, following earlier singles ‘In a Dream’ and ‘Friend’. Check it out via the accompanying video, directed by Alyx and Sam Soard, below.
Speaking about the song, Benton said:
[“Hard to Accept”] reflects on those moments when communication breaks down in a relationship and we’re left to piece everything together. When I brought the song to Craig, I was excited to collaborate with him because of his impressive work on the Japanese Breakfast records. I thought his arranging instincts would be a good match, and we quickly got to work crafting the rhythm section arrangement. In our first recording session together, munching on dried mango and blueberries, Craig and I breathed new life into “Hard to Accept” with a vibrant, danceable quality while being careful to maintain its emotionality. He really took his time with my vocal, capturing breath and air in the recording that made the performance sound more intimate. I think we were able to strike a balance between the heavy feelings and a more upbeat, cathartic vibe—combining tears, laughter, and a sort of defiant, night-drive-blasting-music, “No, really… I’m good” attitude.
Alyx and Sam Soard added: “In the quiet moments before everything falls apart, there’s a strange kind of peace, a calm as we face the finality of an ending. Often, it’s the refusal to listen—miscommunication and stubbornness—that drive us apart, whether in a relationship or on a global scale. We beg each other to change, but neither side can hear the other, and this breakdown is the crux of the problem. Just as personal missteps can end relationships, our collective unwillingness to address climate change mirrors this larger failure to act. In both cases, we cling to fleeting moments of joy, even as the bigger picture crumbles, finding some kind of meaning in the chaos while grappling with what we couldn’t change.”
Into the Burning Blue is set to arrive September 27 via Lame-O.
Pharmakon has released a new track, ‘METHANAL DOLL’, from her upcoming album Maggot Mass. Following lead single ‘WITHER AND WARP’, the track arrives with a music video directed by Max Rooney and Hank Allen. Check it out below.
Discussing the new song, Margaret Chardiet shared:
This song represents the violent and sobering awakening from that suspended state. I looked down to see my flesh and remembered that “I” was… not the moss on a stone, or the worm in the dirt or the pollen in the wind. I am Margaret, not maggot. I wanted to reassure myself that I could die with dignity and purpose, not to be wasted. So I began to research… the highly concentrated area of organically rich soil which is left behind as a body rots is called a “Cadaver Decomposition Island.” On this island oasis, the nematodes and worms become more abundant, as do an increasingly diverse selection of plant life. The stage of this miraculous transfiguration can be measured by the “Maggot Mass.” But this only happens, I learned, during a so-called “green burial” — meaning without embalming, without concrete vault or casket, without cremation, … where all the critters that need to feed can access you… the way of chaotic creation.
Of course the clutches of capitalism reach for us, even beyond the grave. Those with means are preserved like monuments. But if you’re poor and live in the filthy concrete, steel and glass of artifice “you will burn, down to ash, in a city morgue, to a plastic bag.” The stark reality of death in America is that our dust does not return to dust. We deprive the universe of the energy we took from it. We hoard it inside our toxic graves of chemical sludge, all pickled and carved into stone. In our attempt to preserve our bodies that we may live eternally, we remove ourselves from the very chain of life and death that all else on earth adheres to. If the energy we inherit remains forever trapped in our lumps of matter, stolen away from the wider universe, are we incrementally draining and wasting all the available force of life?
Max Rooney and Hank Allen added: “The ideas arose naturally when all three of us discussed the themes of the album and our influences. We wanted to make something that was grotesque but also pastoral and somber. Margaret is super devoted to her craft and is keen on filling every moment with meaning. It’s been a truly exciting collaboration and seeing all of our visions come to life has been transformative.”
Eunice Yunjeong Lee, a spatial designer, is a rising star in the field of exhibition design, particularly through her work at the Museum of Sex in New York City. Her previous project, “RADICAL PERVERTS: Ecstasy and Activism in Queer Public Space, 1975-2000,” running from October 12, 2023, to April 14, 2024, exemplified her ability to combine spatial design with cultural narratives. Curated by Alexis Heller, this exhibition explored the intersections of ecstasy and activism in queer public spaces, offering visitors an immersive journey through a pivotal era in LGBTQ+ history.
As the exhibition designer, Lee’s role was pivotal in bringing the radical spirit of the 1975-2000 queer movement to life within the museum’s walls. Her design approach aimed to craft a chronological narrative that not only guides visitors through the history of queer activism but also immerses them in the emotional and social landscapes of the time. To achieve this, she utilized urban elements that evoke the public spaces where much of this activism unfolded. These spaces were crucial sites of resistance and community-building, and Lee’s design pays homage to their significance.
An important moment in the design process was her decision to use real tiles for a wall meant to evoke the atmosphere of a public bathroom—an essential thematic element in the exhibition. Despite the higher costs and longer installation time, Lee believed that the tactile quality and visual depth of real tiles were necessary to fully convey the exhibition’s message.
(Photo: Jules Slutsky; Courtesy of the Museum of Sex)
In designing the exhibition, Lee was deeply aware of the messages she wanted to convey to the audience. She emphasized the importance of aligning her work with the intentions of the curator and artists, ensuring that their messages were communicated with the respect and sensitivity they deserved. Lee’s design choices were carefully made to honor the essence of the work while being mindful of the contemporary social climate. This balance is crucial in exhibitions that tackle complex and sensitive issues, and Lee’s ability to navigate these challenges speaks to her skill and thoughtfulness as a designer.
Through her design, Lee highlights her exceptional talent for creating spaces that are not only visually striking but also deeply connected to the cultural and historical contexts they represent.
She invites visitors to engage with the past in a way that is both immersive and reflective, providing a powerful platform for dialogue and understanding.
Eunice also announced that her upcoming exhibition designs will be featured in “Hajime Sorayama: Desire Machines” and “Modern Sex: 100 Years of Design and Decency,” both part of the grand opening at the Museum of Sex Miami.
Additionally, her latest works include “Looking at Andy Looking,” curated by Greg Pierce. This exhibition features a collaboration with Pittsburgh’s Andy Warhol Museum to present a selection of Warhol’s early films. Furthermore, “I Licked It, It’s Mine,” curated by Ariel Plotek and Amanda Assaf, is also currently on view at the Museum of Sex. Both exhibitions will remain open until early 2025.
Following the first debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, Taylor Swift released a statement on Instagram giving her endorsement to Harris. “I’m voting for @kamalaharris because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them,” Swift wrote. “I think she is a steady-handed, gifted leader and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos.”
“I was so heartened and impressed by her selection of running mate @timwalz, who has been standing up for LGBTQ+ rights, IVF, and a woman’s right to her own body for decades,” she added. Read the full statement below.
Swift’s endorsement comes after months of speculation about whether the star would publicly throw her support behind a candidate in the 2024 US presidential race. In her statement, Swift also addressed fake AI posts of her endorsing Trump. “Recently I was made aware that AI of ‘me’ falsely endorsing Donald Trump’s presidential run was posted to his site,” she said. “It really conjured up my fears around AI, and the dangers of spreading misinformation. It brought me to the conclusion that I need to be very transparent about my actual plans for this election as a voter. The simplest way to combat misinformation is with the truth.”
Swift signed her post on Instagram – where she has over 283 million followers – as “Taylor Swift” and “Childless Cat Lady,” a reference to viral comments made by Trump’s running mate, Senator JD Vance of Ohio, about women without children.
Tim Walz told MSNBC on that he was “incredibly grateful” for Swift’s endorsement, adding, “I say that also as a cat owner, a fellow cat owner. That was eloquent and it was clear, and that’s the type of courage we need in America, to stand up.”
He continued: “We’ve seen it out of those Republicans who were at the DNC, we’ve seen it out of women who would like to have their own personal lives kept personal, but are forced to go out there cause they nearly died because they can’t get abortion services in a pregnancy. And now you have somebody like Taylor Swift, coming out and making that very clear.”
Walz then gave shoutout to Swift’s fans: “This will be the opportunity, Swifties — KamalaHarris.com — get on over there, give us a hand, get things going.”
“I wrote this song in a sort of fever dream state – inspired by some abrupt life changes & a walk through Queens down Roosevelt Ave,” Krieger explained in a statement. “During this time in my life, everything felt very vivid, fragile, and temporary.”
“Every year the crows migrate over Pittsburgh,” Lemon explained in a press release. “I wrote this song after sitting on my roof in 2019, watching the sky turn black with fluttering wings, flying in mass towards the blue water tower planted on the hill in the distance.”
Watch Me Drive Them Dogs Wild is due September 27 on Darling.
Joan Shelley has announced a new EP, Mood Ring, which is out October 4 via No Quarter. Today, the Kentucky singer-songwriter has previewed it with the opening title track, which you can hear below.
‘Mood Ring’ was inspired by “the idea that heat and time are interlinked,” according to Shelley. “That they tug and warp each other in space. I had read about block universe theory and it bothered me—if it were true, how do we really change anything? The song wove its own little message in response: this sense that all of us, our web of connections and the friction of our relationships, are the fuel that propels us through time… and that inevitably we are consumed by it. But what a spectacular thing to get a chance to ignite this vast, incomprehensible space with our lives. To have gotten an invitation to be here at all.”
The EP came together after Shelley gave birth to her daughter and moved from the place she was raised in rural Kentucky. The first time she listened to the mixes of the new songs was reportedly on the drive to the new family home in Louisville. “I listened with my daughter on the drive and she wanted ‘I Look After You’ over and over,” Shelley recalled, continuing:
She asked, ‘Is this to me?’ And I said yes, while also knowing that I wrote it before she was born, and that it’s for lovers too, as well as grieving mothers. I looked at her in the rearview mirror as she mouthed the words in her carseat. When we reached the end of our drive I lost service, so I played the songs again off my phone and rolled the windows down, hearing the lyrics again ‘just seven steps… all you need to know for your journey’ and I wished it were that simple.
Shelley released her latest album, The Spur, in 2022.
Mood Ring EP Cover Artwork:
Mood Ring EP Tracklist:
1. Mood Ring
2. Singing To You
3. Fire of the Morning
4. Seven Steps
5. I Look After You
