Indie music has grown to include so much. It’s not just music that is released on independent labels but speaks to an aesthetic that deviates from the norm and follows its own weirdo heart. It can come in the form of rock music, pop, or folk. In a sense, it says as much about the people that are drawn to it as it does about the people that make it.
Every week, Uproxx is rounding up the best new indie music from the past seven days. This week we got new music from Field Medic, Wild Pink, Blink-182, and more.
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Field Medic — Grow Your Hair Long If You’re Wanting To See Something That You Can Change
Field Medic’s new album with a very long (but beautiful) title was first previewed with the attention-grabbing lead single, “I Had A Dream That You Died,” which proved that he could hold humor and pain in the same hand by reckoning with feelings of despair while still providing levity: “I feel like a chia pet / The way my hair looks dumb / And my heart is made of stone.” The rest of the album dives deeper into the gloom but Kevin Patrick Sullivan has mastered the art of making the listener feel seen and comforted instead of burdened.
Enumclaw — Save The Baby
Washington’s Enumclaw proved themselves last year with the ridiculously infectious EP Jimbo Demo which showcased their knack for groovy basslines and nonchalant vocals that exude a feeling of effortless coolness. Save The Baby immediately kicks off with both of those things on the title track, but the entire album has much more; it goes from being catchy to taking things slower, bringing the listener into moments of vulnerability that can be surprising and impactful.
The 1975 — Being Funny In A Foreign Language
The 1975’s singles were promising, like “Part Of The Band” — which contained the line, “I like my men like I like my coffee / Full of soy milk and so sweet / It won’t offend anybody” — and the exuberant “I’m In Love With You.” Being Funny In A Foreign Language has that irresistible groove that their music has always had — whether it was “Girls” on their debut or “Love Me” off their 2016 LP. They’re as consistent as possible and only getting funnier and more unhinged.
Wild Pink — ILYSM
Last year, Wild Pink swept the indie-folk community off their feet with A Billion Little Lights and they’re already back with a strong, new album called ILYSM. It’s light and tender, moving with delicacy and meaning. Every sound and line feels intentional and poignant; Wild Pink have a way of giving small, soft things a feeling of enormity.
Bill Callahan — Reality
Bill Callahan’s Reality is anything but background music. The 56-year-old indie-rock veteran takes his storytelling very seriously, packing his songs with poetic, striking characters and lines; he opens “Lily” by singing, “I started writing,” leaving space before the powerful next words: “your death song.” To make it even more visceral, he continues: “Long before you were gone.”
Modern Color — “Greener Grass”
California-based quartet Modern Color have a knack for dark, unsettling textures that especially shined through on their last album, 2020’s From The Leaves Of Your Garden. The new “Greener Grass” is a brooding, grungy track with off-kilter, distorted riffs and tired vocals, immersing the listener into a haunted four-minute journey.
Blink-182 — “Edging”
Considering the years of Blink-182 fans begging for the return of original vocalist and guitarist Tom Delonge, the stakes were high for this comeback. However, when they announced the new song title was “Edging,” that probably comforted people, proving to them that their childish humor is still intact. Aside from that, the track is anthemic and catchy, Delonge’s vocals are very distinctly Delonge’s vocals that we all missed, and it’s certainly better than the music they’ve released since Delonge left.
Runnner — “I Only Sing About Food”
Runnner is the indie-folk project of Noah Weinman who released the 2021 masterpiece Always Repeating, a stunning, memorable collection of songs that grappled with love, loss, and self instead of trying send any specific message. “I Only Sing About Food” comes from his forthcoming album Like Dying Stars, We’re Reaching Out. The opening line immediately shows the way he, like Field Medic, is able to weave together pain and humor in a magnetically disarming fashion: “I’m an idiot, I cried in your car / When I couldn’t find the words I was looking for / I overanalyze, I never let it feel good / I only think about death / I only sing about food.”
Black Belt Eagle Scout — “Don’t Give Up”
Black Belt Eagle Scout is the project of Katherine Paul. She had a track featured in the 2019 TV show Trinkets, an incredibly endearing series reckoning with the complexities of youth. This new Black Belt Eagle Scout song does the same, though it seems to focus more on growing up and learning and trying to find strength, especially in the enormity of nature: “The land, the water, the sky,” she repeats at the end, possessed by the endlessness.
Bleached — “Flip It”
LA punk duo Bleached like to have fun, which is why their hit “Think Of You,” from 2011, persists as a great, surfy anthem over a decade later. Their new track “Flip It” watches them only increasing the energy and relatable comedy: “Monday, woke up late / Tuesday, headache.” Their harmonizing vocals are hypnotizing, the riffs are invigorating, and the melody is addictive.
