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UK Hard Rockers Molly Karloff Drop Groove-Heavy New Single “Faceless”

Eric Alper
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UK Hard Rockers Molly Karloff Drop Groove-Heavy New Single “Faceless”

Molly Karloff aren’t interested in excess. “Faceless,” their new single out now, makes that clear from the first riff. Built around thick, hypnotic guitars and a relentless vocal hook, the track sits squarely in the space between modern grunge and desert rock, muscular and focused, letting groove and atmosphere carry the weight rather than reaching for polish or production gloss. It sounds like Queens of the Stone Age and Royal Blood left in a room together with something to prove.

Vocalist Simon Gee is direct about where the song comes from: “The song is about that feeling of being used, dismissed or talked over, when people try to put you down and keep you small. ‘Faceless’ is the moment you decide you’re done being pushed around and written off.” That defiance runs through every bar of the track, and the delivery backs it up with real conviction.

The single arrives with a stark, film-noir style monochrome performance video that mirrors the track’s tension and stripped-back aesthetic perfectly. No distractions. Just the song and the attitude it carries.

For a band operating in one of rock’s most competitive spaces, “Faceless” is a confident, well-aimed statement. Heavy without excess, grooved without losing its edge, and built to move in a live room.

Melbourne-Based Indie Folk Artist MUKI Makes a Quietly Stunning Debut With “Gasoline”

Eric Alper
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Melbourne-Based Indie Folk Artist MUKI Makes a Quietly Stunning Debut With “Gasoline”

Mukul Jiwnani has been building toward this moment for years, and “Gasoline,” his debut single under the MUKI moniker, arrives with the kind of quiet confidence that only comes from an artist who knows exactly what he’s doing. Born in Dubai with Indian roots and now based in Melbourne, MUKI has spent his career as a full-time performer, writing, refining, and waiting for the right moment. “Gasoline” makes clear the wait was worth it. Listen here.

The track unfolds with deliberate restraint, finger-picked electric guitar sitting against a spacious kick drum and hypnotic echoed snare, with piano drifting through the arrangement and warm bass lines adding colour without crowding the song. MUKI’s vocals do something genuinely impressive, moving from wispy intimacy through impassioned cries and airy falsetto before opening into a chorus lifted by layered, choir-like harmonies that wrap the whole thing in warmth. It’s emotionally immersive in a way that draws you in and holds you there.

Lyrically, “Gasoline” sits in the tender, complicated space between acceptance and lingering feeling. “I wanted to capture the tension of a relationship that wouldn’t survive despite every effort,” MUKI says. “It’s a breakup song, but one about acceptance and moving on.” That emotional precision runs through every production choice on the track, nothing is there by accident.

As debuts go, “Gasoline” sets a high bar. It’s the work of an artist with a fully formed point of view stepping out for the first time, and it signals plenty more to come.

Essex-Suffolk Indie Pop Singer-Songwriter Grace Calver Shares Witty New Single “twenty-six days”

Eric Alper
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Essex-Suffolk Indie Pop Singer-Songwriter Grace Calver Shares Witty New Single “twenty-six days”

Grace Calver has a gift for turning personal chaos into sharply observed indie pop, and “twenty-six days” is the clearest demonstration yet of exactly what makes her tick. Out now on all streaming platforms, the single tells the story of 26 days of nonstop texting and FaceTime with someone who turned out to be considerably less single than advertised. The red flags were there. The lyrics make sure you know she saw them. She just chose to ignore them anyway.

The track is loaded with specific, lived-in detail, including a reference to Catfish and the Bottlemen’s “Soundcheck,” which the person in question actually sent to Calver. “Something positive came from the experience after all,” she’s noted, which is exactly the kind of wry self-awareness that makes her songwriting land. The guitar solo is the work of producer Jos Shepherd, Alfie Templeman’s guitarist, who recorded, mixed, and mastered the whole track. Calver is happy to credit him as the far superior guitarist.

Influences like Lily Allen, Kate Nash, Beabadoobee, and Britpop staples Sleeper, Pulp, and Suede give you a clear sense of the sonic world Calver operates in, tongue-in-cheek indie pop with a rock edge and lyrics that reward close listening. BBC Introducing’s Jess Iszatt played her previous single “Milk” on Radio 1 as part of a For Fans Of Lily Allen feature, her first-ever Radio 1 play, and the comparison is one Calver has earned.

“twenty-six days” was originally released on a limited run of 200 CDs in November 2025, available exclusively in physical form. Around half of those have already found homes. Now the rest of the world gets to hear it.

Buckcherry Hit the Road This Spring Behind Their 11th Album ‘Roar Like Thunder’

Eric Alper
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Buckcherry Hit the Road This Spring Behind Their 11th Album ‘Roar Like Thunder’

Buckcherry have been one of hard rock’s most dependable live acts for decades, and their spring 2026 run makes a strong case for why that reputation holds. The tour kicks off May 2nd at the M3 Festival in Columbia, Maryland and runs through May 31st in Oklahoma City, hitting 21 dates across the South, Northeast, and Midwest along the way.

The run includes Buckcherry’s first-ever appearances at both Welcome To Rockville in Daytona Beach and Sonic Temple in Columbus, 2 festival slots that put them in front of some of the biggest hard rock audiences on the continent. Alongside those marquee moments are stops at landmark rooms including the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom, and the Orange Peel in Asheville.

The tour continues to support ‘Roar Like Thunder,’ their 11th studio album, which has kept the band firmly in the conversation as one of hard rock’s most consistent outfits. The band has also just released a live concert video for the album’s title track, filmed during their 2025 tour, giving fans a taste of what this live show delivers.

Tickets are on sale now for all dates across the monthlong run.

Buckcherry 2026 Tour Dates:

May 2 – Columbia, MD @ M3 Fest

May 3 – Charlotte, NC @ Amo’s

May 5 – Savannah, GA @ Victory North

May 7 – Daytona Beach, FL @ Welcome to Rockville

May 8 – Columbia, SC @ Ground Zero

May 9 – Myrtle Beach, SC @ Suck Bang Blow

May 11 – Asheville, NC @ Orange Peel

May 12 – Gainesville, GA @ The Hall At Bourbon Brothers

May 14 – Salem, VA @ Salem Civic Center

May 15 – Columbus, OH @ Sonic Temple

May 16 – Lexington, KY @ Manchester Music Hall

May 18 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Jergel’s

May 19 – Allentown, PA @ Archer

May 21 – Hampton Beach, NH @ Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom

May 22 – Portland, ME @ Aura

May 23 – Springfield, MA @ Symphony Hall

May 26 – Fort Wayne, IN @ Piere’s

May 27 – Lansing, MI @ Grewall Hall

May 29 – Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium

May 30 – Little Rock, AR @ The Hall

May 31 – Oklahoma City, OK @ Diamond Ballroom

Dutch Punk Four-Piece Real Farmer Drop Spellbinding New Single “Run By Animals” Ahead of Sophomore Album

Eric Alper
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Dutch Punk Four-Piece Real Farmer Drop Spellbinding New Single “Run By Animals” Ahead of Sophomore Album

Real Farmer have been one of Europe’s most compelling punk acts in the making, and “Run By Animals” is the clearest signal yet of where their sophomore album is headed. The new single is out now via Strap Originals, and it arrives with a twist. Bassist Marrit Meinema steps to the front, taking full vocal duties while frontman Jeroen Klootsema steps back, revealing a slower, more ethereal side of the band that’s just as arresting as their rip-roaring punk output.

Recorded entirely analog to a 16-track tape machine at Far Out Sound Studios in Rotterdam and mastered by Mikey Young (Amyl and the Sniffers, The Chats), the track is driven by hypnotic bass and angular guitar, with Meinema’s lyrics cutting directly to the heart of societal indifference toward victims of violence and oppression. “Run By Animals is about society not listening to victims of violence, oppression, femicide,” she says. “Comfort is only afforded to those who are distanced far from these things. It’s hard to get people to listen, because it involves unlearning many wrong ‘truths’ that are deeply ingrained in the western world.” The video, directed by the band and Dylan Hayes, sees Meinema set fire to a handcrafted anarchist symbol in a cloak. It’s exactly as striking as it sounds.

The single is the 2nd preview of their upcoming album ‘Two Wrongs Don’t Make A Right,’ due spring 2026 via Strap Originals. Previous single “Missing Link” earned spins from Craig Charles and Steve Lamacq on BBC 6 Music, John Kennedy on Radio X, and Matt Wilkinson on Apple Music 1. Pan M 360 has already compared frontman Klootsema to Joe Talbot, Grian Chatten, and Amy Taylor. Louder Than War called him “a revelation, raw and powerful.”

Real Farmer spent 2025 tearing through Europe with headline tours and festival slots at Primavera Sound, Pitchfork Paris, The Great Escape, and The Libertines’ Gunnersbury Park festival, alongside support slots with Babyshambles and Protomartyr. Their signing to Peter Doherty’s Strap Originals says everything about the calibre of people paying attention.

Carly Rae Jepsen Finally Gives Fans the Official Release of Fan-Favourite “Disco Darling” for Record Store Day 2026

Eric Alper
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Carly Rae Jepsen Finally Gives Fans the Official Release of Fan-Favourite “Disco Darling” for Record Store Day 2026

Carly Rae Jepsen’s fans have been asking for this one for years. “Disco Darling,” the beloved outtake from the ‘Dedicated’ sessions, gets its official release on April 18th as an exclusive Record Store Day 2026 vinyl single, pressed on baby blue 7″ with a disco ball etching on Side B, limited to 2,000 copies at independent record stores.

The song has a history worth knowing. Originally written with Tavish Crowe in 2016 and later rewritten and produced by Mike Wise for ‘Dedicated,’ it was cut from the album twice, missing both the original release and ‘Dedicated Side B.’ A demo leaked online in December 2020, and the full track surfaced in February 2021, turning “Disco Darling” into one of the most requested unreleased tracks in Jepsen’s catalogue. Earlier this year, Jepsen sent a cryptic newsletter teasing the song’s lyrics before confirming the release with characteristic wit: “Thank you for bullying me into this.”

The track is pure Jepsen at her most effervescent, a shimmering, disco-inflected pop song built around the kind of chorus that lodges itself immediately and refuses to leave. “Disco Darling” rewards the years fans spent campaigning for it.

Singer-Songwriter Dove Ellis Brings His Acclaimed Debut Album ‘Blizzard’ to New York, Los Angeles, Dublin and Manchester

Eric Alper
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Singer-Songwriter Dove Ellis Brings His Acclaimed Debut Album ‘Blizzard’ to New York, Los Angeles, Dublin and Manchester

Dove Ellis announced a run of Spring headline shows spanning Dublin, Manchester, Los Angeles, and New York, and it’s the next logical step for an artist who arrived seemingly out of nowhere with one of last year’s most quietly impressive debut albums. ‘Blizzard’ was self-produced and recorded in London and Liverpool, with mixing by Sophie Ellis and Andrew Sarlo (Big Thief, Dijon, Mk.Gee, Bon Iver), and it drew broad acclaim on the strength of a single preview single. The shows follow his North American debut opening for Geese. Tickets are on sale now.

2026 Tour Dates:

May 18, The Workman’s Club, Dublin, Ireland

May 20, Band On The Wall, Manchester, UK

May 28, Hollywood Forever Cemetery, Los Angeles, CA

May 30, Bowery Ballroom, New York, NY

K-Pop Meets Brit-Pop Hitmaker Shao Hao Turns His Dating Chronicles Into the Euphoric New Single “Thursday”

Eric Alper
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K-Pop Meets Brit-Pop Hitmaker Shao Hao Turns His Dating Chronicles Into the Euphoric New Single “Thursday”

Shao Hao has spent years writing hits for some of East Asia’s biggest artists. Now he’s putting that same craft to work on his own story, and “Thursday” makes a strong case for why that’s worth paying attention to. Listen here.

The new single fuses K-pop’s forward-thinking melodic energy with hints of 80s Brit-pop instrumentation. Sparkling synths and propulsive beats drive a chorus built to linger, while the lyrics bottle the excitement and vulnerability of falling for someone new. It’s bright, energising, and effortlessly catchy, the kind of track that feels like a late-night confession wrapped in neon. “Thursday” was written and produced with a team from BLACKPINK’s label YG and recorded in Seoul, where Shao also took K-pop performance classes ahead of the release.

The video leans into the fun, setting Shao inside a fictional retro TV dating show called Thursday Night, where he plays three different alter egos navigating a love quest. Drag icon Bitchtrice hosts the whole thing, a deliberate and celebratory nod to self-expression and freedom. “‘Thursday’ reflects a new way of loving,” Shao says, “one that’s more honest, playful, and unafraid of being seen.”

The backstory here is considerable. Shao broke through as a songwriter after winning a competition at London’s Roundhouse, which led to a publishing deal in Taiwan. Since then, he’s crafted number ones across China, Malaysia, Singapore, and Taiwan, written for Mandopop superstar Stefanie Sun (whose latest Asia tour used his song as its theme, reaching half a million audiences), and scored anime and Netflix series across Japan and Taiwan. He was also nominated for Best Original Song at Taiwan’s Golden Bell Awards.

“Thursday” is a taste of a forthcoming EP arriving this spring, and it signals an artist stepping confidently into his own spotlight after years of defining other people’s.

Van Halen Celebrate the 40th Anniversary of ‘5150’ With a Massive Super Deluxe Edition

Eric Alper
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Van Halen Celebrate the 40th Anniversary of ‘5150’ With a Massive Super Deluxe Edition

Forty years on, ‘5150’ still hits like a freight train. Van Halen’s landmark 1986 album, the first recorded with lead singer Sammy Hagar, is getting the full Super Deluxe treatment from Rhino, and the package is substantial.

At its core is a 2023 remaster of the original album, home to “Why Can’t This Be Love,” “Dreams,” “Love Walks In,” and “Best of Both Worlds,” tracks that defined a new era for the band and proved the Hagar lineup had nothing to apologize for. Alongside the remaster comes a disc of rare singles edits, extended versions, and B-sides that hardcore fans have been hunting for years.

The third disc is the real discovery: a previously unreleased live performance recorded on August 27, 1986, pulling from the full ‘5150’ tour setlist. Twelve tracks, including “Panama,” “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love,” and “Wild Thing,” captured at full throttle. The Blu-ray rounds things out with the first HD release of the band’s classic 1986 live video Live Without a Net, plus the promo video for “Dreams.”

The physical package follows the template set by the For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge and Balance reissues, with a book featuring band photography, backstage passes, promotional items, tape boxes, and tour dates from the period. It’s a proper archival document, not just a reissue.

‘5150’ 40th Anniversary Edition Track Listing:

CD 1: Original Album (2023 Remaster)

  1. Good Enough
  2. Why Can’t This Be Love
  3. Get Up
  4. Dreams
  5. Summer Nights
  6. Best of Both Worlds
  7. Love Walks In
  8. 5150
  9. Inside

CD 2: Rarities

  1. Best of Both Worlds (Edit)
  2. Dreams (Edit)
  3. Love Walks In (Edit)
  4. Why Can’t This Be Love (Extended Version)
  5. Dreams (Extended Version)
  6. Best of Both Worlds (Live)
  7. Rock and Roll (Live)
  8. Love Walks In (Live)

CD 3: Live in New Haven, CT 1986

  1. There’s Only One Way to Rock
  2. Summer Nights
  3. 5150
  4. Panama
  5. Best of Both Worlds
  6. Love Walks In
  7. Guitar Solo
  8. I Can’t Drive 55
  9. Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love
  10. Wild Thing
  11. Why Can’t This Be Love
  12. Rock and Roll

Blu-ray:

Live Without a Net (HD Upgrade)

Dreams (Promo Video)

Singer-Songwriter Lecx Stacy Collides Emo and Electronic Chaos on “With You, I’d Be Closer to God”

Eric Alper
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Singer-Songwriter Lecx Stacy Collides Emo and Electronic Chaos on “With You, I’d Be Closer to God”

Lecx Stacy makes music that doesn’t sit still. The Los Angeles-based, first-generation Filipino American artist has released his new single “With You, I’d Be Closer to God,” and it’s the kind of track that shifts beneath you as you listen.

The song opens with finger-picked guitar, intimate and exposed, before unraveling into something far stranger. Electronic textures, glitching elements, and a fast, repetitive beat collide with emo melodies and dramatic lyricism, building a soundscape that’s volatile and cathartic in equal measure. Stacy describes it as equal parts Hawthorne Heights and Crystal Castles, and that tension holds throughout. Written after touring with Sega Bodega and Eartheater, the track channels a newfound Catholic devotion alongside a deep pull toward electronic dance music, and the collision between those two forces gives it real charge.

Where his previous single “Winter, A Wilted Flower” leaned into stillness, “With You, I’d Be Closer to God” pushes forward with urgency. Distortion, repetition, and pressure become tools for emotional release rather than obstacles to it. Stacy’s instinct has always been to process grief, longing, and belief through sound, a practice rooted in the beat-making equipment his older brother left behind after his passing.

The single is part of a larger body of work that draws on his father’s stories of Filipino “folkhouses,” bars where men sang American folk songs after long nights, and maps them onto Stacy’s own upbringing in Ramona, California. The result is music suspended between landscapes, generations, and identities, Americana filtered through Filipino ritual, emo-folk, folktronica, noise, and ambient texture.

Stacy has shared stages with Eartheater, Jean Dawson, and Sega Bodega. His live performances are tense, devotional, and unflinching, and they mirror exactly what his recordings are doing.

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That Eric Alper

Eric Alper is a 6-time nominee for Publicist of the Year during Canadian Music Week and has overseen the publicity campaigns for over 183 JUNO Award-nominated albums (and 16 in 2025), 45 Grammy-nominated albums, including 47 JUNO Award, 58 Canadian Folk Music Award, 126 Maple Blues Award-winning albums and is also truly honoured to work with some of the biggest and most important artists of our time.

Contact me: eric@thatericalper.com

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