12 Finest Songs of the Week: Wolf Alice, Nation of Language, Coach Celebration, King Gizzard, and Extra
Plus Luvcat, Tune-Yards, Coral Grief, and a Wrap-up of the Week’s Different Notable New Tracks
Could 16, 2025
Welcome to the sixteenth Songs of the Week of 2025. This week Andy Von Pip, Caleb Campbell, Matt the Raven, Scotty Dransfield, and Stephen Humphries helped me determine what ought to make the listing. We thought of over 25 songs and narrowed it right down to a High 12.
Challenge 74, The Protest Challenge, is out now. It options Kathleen Hannah and Bartees Unusual on the 2 covers and may be purchased from us immediately right here.
In current weeks we posted interviews with Supergrass (in honor of the thirtieth anniversary of their debut album), Windser, Lael Neale, Samia, Sunflower Bean, Beirut (a digital cowl story), Miki Berenyi Trio, Florist, SPELLLING, Craig Finn, Djo (a digital cowl story), and extra.
Within the final week we reviewed some albums.
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That can assist you type by the multitude of recent songs launched within the final week, we have now picked the 12 greatest the final seven days needed to provide, adopted by some honorable mentions. Try the complete listing beneath.
1. Wolf Alice: “Bloom Child Bloom”
Yesterday, British four-piece Wolf Alice introduced a brand new album, The Clearing, and shared its first single, “Bloom Child Bloom,” by way of a music video. The Clearing is due out August 29 by way of RCA.
In the present day the band additionally introduced an in depth tour of North America, the UK, and the EU.
The Clearing is the band’s fourth album and follows Blue Weekend, which was #2 on our High 100 Albums of 2021 listing. The band wrote the album in Seven Sisters, North London, England and recorded it final yr in Los Angeles with Grammy successful producer Greg Kurstin.
Wolf Alice’s singer Ellie Rowsell had this to say about “Bloom Child Bloom” in a press launch: “I wished a rock tune, to give attention to the efficiency ingredient of a rock tune and sing like Axl Rose, however to be singing a tune about being a lady. I’ve used the guitar as a defend up to now, enjoying it has maybe been some technique to reject the ‘woman singer in band’ trope, however I wished to give attention to my voice as a rock instrument so it’s been liberating to place the guitar down and attain a degree the place I don’t really feel like I have to show that I’m a musician.”
Colin Solal Cardo (Charli XCX, Robyn, Christine & The Queens, Phoenix) directed the tune’s video, which a press launch says “deconstructs a traditional rock efficiency by drawing on Bob Fosse and All That Jazz.” Emmy Award-winning choreographer Ryan Heffington (Euphoria, Sia, Kenzo + Margaret Qualley) choreographed the video.
The press launch says The Clearing was influenced by ’70s traditional rock and is akin to Fleetwood Mac making an album in North London in 2025.
Learn our interview with Wolf Alice on Blue Weekend. By Mark Redfern
2. Nation of Language: “Inept Apollo”
Synth-pop trio Nation of Language have signed to Sub Pop and in honor of this thrilling information this week they launched a brand new single, “Inept Apollo,” and introduced some tour dates in North America, the EU, and the UK.
The Brooklyn-based band options Ian Richard Devaney (lead vocals, guitar), Aidan Noell (synthesizer), and Alex MacKay (bass guitar).
“Work is a respite from ache. Whether or not it’s a paying job or simply the factor you pour your self into, having a route to maneuver in, discovering a circulation state, it could transfer focus away from the heaviness of the center. So after life’s losses, in moments of despair, we resolve time and time once more to dive headfirst into the work as greatest we will. However the creative course of additionally tends to be when imposter syndrome rears its ugly head—once I discover my inside monologue spiraling: ‘that is one of the best coping mechanism I’ve at my disposal and I’m not even certified to be doing it.’
“Accompanying the tune is a killer music video by our buddy and brother John MacKay: it’s an homage to artistic pursuits, and in some methods got here to signify the sensation of dwelling in a metropolis as an artist. The video appears like strolling by an previous warehouse in Brooklyn, stuffed with follow areas and studios, every room occupied by artists striving to specific and perceive themselves and their place on the planet. Regardless of how weird the act could seem or how a lot self-doubt or ache runs by the thoughts of the creator, the gorgeous factor is the striving and persevering with on, slightly than the ultimate product or any notion of ‘success.’ The ability of creation belongs to all of us; requires the approval of none.”
Nation of Language launched a brand new album, Unusual Disciple, in 2023 by way of [PIAS]. It was one in all our High 100 Albums of 2023. Unusual Disciple was the band’s third album and the follow-up to 2021’s A Approach Ahead and 2020’s Introduction, Presence.
Learn our interview with Nation of Language on A Approach Ahead.
Nation of Language additionally took half in our twentieth anniversary Covers of Covers album, the place they coated Damaged Social Scene’s “Stars and Sons.” By Mark Redfern
3. Coach Celebration: “Ladies!”
Coach Celebration are again. This week the Isle of Wight four-piece introduced particulars of their second album Caramel, set for launch on September 26 by way of Chess Membership Information. The brand new LP follows their acclaimed 2023 debut KILLJOY and sees the band take the reins on manufacturing for a uncooked, high-voltage snapshot of recent emotional life.
Throughout its 10 tracks, Caramel tackles the loneliness, rage and catharsis of present in a hyper-online, burnout-heavy world, whereas celebrating the individuals who pull us again from the brink. The band describe it as a file rooted in actual connection, trustworthy, annoyed, however in the end life-affirming.
To mark the album announcement, Coach Celebration launched new single “Ladies!,” a fiery call-to-arms with frontwoman Jess Eastwood rallying listeners with the road “the place the fuck are my women?,” the monitor leans into group and collective launch, constructed round a call-and-response refrain designed to shake the room.
“It’s a mosh-inciting, reside hype tune,” Eastwood says. “Alongside the traces of: for the following three minutes, whoever you might be, you’re all my women and also you’re all gonna fucking mosh. When it’s over, you possibly can return to being whoever you normally are, however for proper now, let free and have enjoyable.”
Caramel marks a step ahead for the band, Jess Eastwood (vocals, bass), Steph Norris (guitar), Joe Perry (guitar), and Man Web page (drums), who all grew up within the Isle of Wight’s tight-knit music scene. For the reason that launch of KILLJOY, they’ve toured with Queens of the Stone Age and Moist Leg, stormed Glastonbury and SXSW, and performed packed headline exhibits throughout the UK, US and Europe. By Andy Von Pip
4. King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard: “Develop Wings and Fly”
Melbourne-based psych-rock group King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard are releasing a brand new album, Phantom Island, on June 13 on the band’s personal p(doom) label. This week the band launched its third single, “Develop Wings and Fly,” by way of a music video. Hayden Somerville directed the video.
In a press launch, Somerville had this to say about directing the video: “There are such a lot of unusual and exquisite methods to develop wings and fly. We had a really particular time down the coast with the band and our crew, releasing our sea creature—who by some means makes me really feel just a little in poor health and utterly stuffed with pleasure on the similar time.”
Final October King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard launched the album’s title monitor, which was one in all our Songs of the Week. When the album was introduced in April the band launched its subsequent single, “Deadstick,” by way of a music video. “Deadstick” was additionally one in all our Songs of the Week.
Phantom Island follows Flight b741, a brand new album King Gizzard launched in 2024. The preliminary tracks for the brand new album had been recorded concurrently the classes for Flight b741, however nonetheless wanted extra work. In a press launch, the band’s Stu Mackenzie says they “had been more durable to complete. Musically, they wanted just a little extra time and area and thought.”
“The songs felt like they wanted this different power and shade, that we would have liked to splash some completely different paint on the canvas,” Mackenzie provides.
And they also enlisted their buddy Chad Kelly, who’s a British historic keyboardist, conductor and arranger. “He brings this wealth of musical consciousness to his chameleon-like preparations,” Mackenzie says. “We come from such completely different worlds—he performs Mozart and Bach and makes use of the identical harpsichords they did, and tunes them the very same approach. However he’s obsessive about microtonal music, too, and all this nerdy stuff like me.”
Summing up his change of strategy to music as of late, Mackenzie says: “Once I was youthful, I used to be simply fascinated about freaking individuals out, however as I become older, I’m way more fascinated about connecting with individuals.”
In 2023 the band launched a brand new album, The Silver Twine, by way of KGLW. There have been two variations of The Silver Twine, an prolonged one and a model with shorter tracks. The Silver Twine adopted the elaborately titled PetroDragonic Apocalypse; or, Daybreak of Everlasting Night time: An Annihilation of Planet Earth and the Starting of Cruel Damnation, which additionally got here out in 2023. By Mark Redfern
5. Luvcat: “Lipstick”
6. Tune-Yards: “How Large is the Rainbow”
7. Coral Grief: “Rockhounds”
8. Alan Sparhawk with Trampled By Turtles: “Not Damaged”
9. Jamie Lidell: “The Middle”
10. The Bug Membership: “Acceptable Feelings”
11. Put up Animal: “Pie within the Sky”
12. Patrick Wolf: “Jupiter”
Honorable Mentions:
These songs nearly made the High 12.
Folks Bitch Trio: “Cathode Ray”
Good Seems to be: “I Don’t Wish to Die”
Steve Queralt: “Messengers” (Feat. Verity Susman)
Elias Rønnenfelt: “Carry-On Bag”
SunYears: “Final Night time on the Mountain” (Feat. Lisa Hannigan & Sam Genders)
Wavves: “Spun”
Right here’s a useful Spotify playlist that includes the High 12 so as, adopted by all of the honorable mentions:
