The Couriers have arrived with “Smooth Skin,” and the Toronto indie folk trio make an immediate impression. Lifted from their self-titled debut album, the track is acoustic-leaning, intimate, and quietly romantic, built on finger-picked guitar, hushed dynamics, and harmonies that stack with real warmth. It’s the kind of song that doesn’t announce itself loudly but stays with you long after it’s done.
The origin story is genuinely unexpected. “Smooth Skin” was inspired by a line from a video game character who mistakenly believed he was a ghoul. Vocalist and guitarist Stephen Edwards explains: “Once the title was cemented, the song quickly evolved into a story about a love interest lost to time.” That shift from absurdist source material to tender romantic reflection says a lot about how The Couriers work, finding the emotional truth in unlikely places and letting it breathe.
The song carries extra weight as a landmark moment for the band. “This was the first ever song written to be played by The Couriers,” Edwards shares. “Hence, it seemed fitting that it should appear as the first track on our debut album.” As an opening statement, it does exactly what a first track should, establishing the band’s voice clearly and confidently without overreaching.
Stephen Edwards on guitar and vocals, Mateja Lasan on drums, and Bronson Aguiar on bass bring a decade-long creative partnership to every note of the record. That history is audible in how naturally the three voices and instruments move together. The restraint here is a choice, not a limitation, and it’s the right one. The harmonies carry the emotional weight of the song without the arrangement ever pushing too hard.
“Smooth Skin” is a quietly captivating introduction to a band that understands the power of understatement. The Couriers’ self-titled debut album is out now on all major streaming platforms.
Michael Shuman has been quietly building something that demands full attention. GLU, his genre-blending solo project, is out now with a bold reimagining of Jennifer Paige’s 1998 pop hit “Crush,” and it’s a genuine statement. Darker, more cinematic, and planted firmly in GLU’s modern sonic landscape, the cover preserves the original’s vulnerability while pulling it somewhere entirely new.
Shuman is direct about why “Crush” made sense. “The music side is the fun part, where you augment it to a completely different landscape, giving a totally different perspective to the original,” he explains. “Crush is an amazing pop song, but was produced at a time where I don’t think it got its due.” The reimagining gives the song room it never had, and the video delivers on every promise the audio makes.
The release also comes with significant news. GLU has signed a brand new recording deal with FLG (Skunk Anansie, Corella, As It Is), adding serious infrastructure to a project that’s already proven it can move without it. This is a year of momentum for Shuman, and the pieces are falling into place fast.
GLU first surfaced in early 2023 with debut EP ‘My Demons’, a raw excavation of struggle, addiction, loss, and childhood trauma. The project found Shuman writing outside his comfort zone from the start, building from beats, synths, and lyrics rather than guitar riffs. “I wanted to do something that scared me,” he’s said. “Something that felt fresh, and fully on my own terms.” That instinct paid off immediately.
The 2025 single “Boogie Man” pushed things further. An infectious, dance-forward track drawing comparisons to Jamiroquai, Gorillaz, and Mac Miller, it landed a major sync placement in MLB The Show ’25 alongside Kendrick Lamar and De La Soul, and pushed GLU past three million global streams. BBC Radio 1 and 6 Music both came on board, with press from NME and Rolling Stone cementing the project as something operating well beyond side-project territory.
GLU has toured with The Kills, Blood Red Shoes, and Miles Kane, and has headlined its own UK dates. With a new record deal, a striking new single, and a full year of activity ahead, GLU is running at full speed. “Crush” is out now, and it’s only the beginning.
Scarlett Macfarlane has a new single out, and “Winter’s Whisper” is exactly the kind of track that refuses to sit still. The New York alt-pop artist blends rockabilly-tinged energy with pop immediacy and a surrealist edge drawn straight from Lewis Carroll, creating something playful, eerie, and genuinely hard to categorize. Produced by Grammy-winning Scott Jacoby, it sounds like nothing else in her lane right now.
The song started simply enough, a magical winter walk as the initial image, but Macfarlane let the concept pull her somewhere stranger. “Words like ‘magic’ and ‘wonderland’ took me down a not-so-proverbial rabbit hole,” she explains. What emerged is a commentary on reality itself, how bizarre and uncontrollable and occasionally wonderful life actually is. “This world, life itself, is filled with fantasy,” she says. “It can be all at once transformed by the cast of characters you encounter throughout your own zany story.”
Production details make “Winter’s Whisper” work on multiple levels. Eerie Halloween-adjacent synth textures give the track its off-kilter atmosphere, while layered call-and-response vocals, subtly panned left and right, create a genuine sense of internal dialogue. The bridge in particular rewards a good pair of headphones. Macfarlane put it simply: “I’ve tried to sit still through it. I can’t. I haven’t met anyone who can.”
The single belongs to a 15-song collection written and recorded in a single creative burst, each track standing independently while sharing a common emotional thread. After years of performing other people’s words, from glossy pop to fronting a rock band, Macfarlane writes entirely from her own perspective now. That shift is audible in every second of “Winter’s Whisper.”
This is an artist fully in command of her own voice, and “Winter’s Whisper” makes a compelling case for paying close attention to whatever comes next.
Dealer’s Choice have made their entrance, and it’s a confident one. The Liverpool-based duo of cousins Joe McHugh and Barry Mullaney release their debut single “Some Kind Of Way” now, a dreamy, trip-hop-tinged introduction that signals something genuinely worth watching. Lush instrumentation, introspective lyrics, and a sound that sits comfortably between alternative and electronic without belonging entirely to either.
The pair bring complementary backgrounds to the project. McHugh has spent nearly a decade as a prominent DJ in Liverpool’s music scene under the name Jack Trades, holding down regular spots at Motel and Teddy’s. Mullaney comes in as an accomplished musician and producer, previously releasing music as Deadbeat Drew to national press attention in Ireland, with Hot Press calling him “one of the more exciting up-and-coming producers in Ireland.” Together, the chemistry is immediate.
Both originally from County Mayo in the west of Ireland, the duo’s perspective on Irish identity from inside the UK gives their writing a distinctive layered quality. Barry puts it plainly: “A lot of the lyrics used so far have been from before I made the move to Liverpool from Ireland, that I could never really find a way of completing. So, working with Joe, the songs were given a fresh pair of eyes, and this basically became the foundation for Dealer’s Choice.”
Drawing inspiration from LCD Soundsystem, Yard Act, and The Avalanches, Dealer’s Choice blend danceable nu-disco grooves with lyrics shaped by rural Irish upbringing and the particular clarity of observing home culture from a distance. “Some Kind Of Way” captures that balance with ease, a debut single that feels fully formed.
A five-track EP arrives this summer. Dealer’s Choice are only getting started.
Jim Jones All Stars don’t make polite records. ‘Cat Fight’ is out now via Silver Arrow Records, and it arrives exactly as advertised, twelve tracks of claws-out, feral rock and roll that sounds like it was recorded in a room that didn’t have enough exits. Produced by Chris Robinson of The Black Crowes, this is the band operating at full, glorious intensity. Listen here.
The album pulls from a rich and rowdy lineage. Little Richard’s primal energy, the straight-up fury of MC5 and The Stooges, Stones-y leather-clad grooves, and Bond-theme brass all collide across these twelve tracks with complete conviction. “Make It Rain” opens the set like a detonation. “Born 2 Ride” mows down John Barry sophistication with a Steppenwolf biker boot. “Cat Fight,” the title track, struts like Tom Jones getting loud with Booker T & The MG’s.
The guest list is equally serious. Chris Robinson contributes vocals, Chuck Prophet adds guitar, and Gloria Jones brings her own iconic presence to the record. Robinson’s wife Camille designed the artwork. Recorded at Bakerland Studios in Leeds and West Eleven Studios in London, the album was mixed by Jim Jones himself and mastered by Nick Page at Forking Paths Mastering in Los Angeles.
Classic Rock called their previous work “filthier than a mechanic’s rag, sleazier than a Soho spiv.” Rolling Stone compared the band to “the blow of a hammer on the fingers.” ‘Cat Fight’ gives both publications even more to work with. This is the kind of rock and roll record that doesn’t ask permission and doesn’t need to.
‘Cat Fight’ is out now on CD, limited edition red vinyl, and digital download via Silver Arrow Records. The band hits the road with remaining UK dates this spring and summer.
‘Cat Fight’ Tracklist:
Make It Rain
Exiled
Born 2 Ride
I’m On Fire
Goin’ Higher
Bekolah
Cat Fight
Gashman
Drink Me
Chubby
Luv U
Let U Go
2026 Tour Dates:
April 23 – Norwich, UK – The Waterfront Studio
Grade 2 have a lot to say, and ‘Talk About It’ is where they say all of it. The Isle of Wight punk trio, Sid Ryan, Jack Chatfield, and Jacob Hull, deliver their fourth album via Hellcat Records, a twelve-track chronicle of love, loss, and the grinding work of growing up inside a band. This is their most direct and emotionally honest record yet, and it lands hard.
The lead single “Standing In The Downpour” sets the tone immediately. Written like a conversation between old friends, it traces the arc from rowdy seaside-town adolescence to the harder work of finding your footing as an adult. It’s defiant without being cheap about it, a punk track with real texture and a hook that sticks. Grade 2 have always had the energy. Here, they’ve matched it with genuine songwriting depth.
The album title says everything. “It became ‘Talk About It,’ which sums up the whole album,” frontman Sid Ryan explains, “touching on every emotion that you feel while being in a band, from love to loss to personal turmoil to ambition. It’s a coming-of-age story about Grade 2 entering adulthood.” Twelve years since they first cranked amps as schoolkids, they’ve earned every word of it.
The band’s resume backs up the confidence. Festival slots at Rock am Ring, shared stages with Rancid and Slipknot, and a self-titled 2023 LP that announced them as one of modern punk’s most compelling acts. ‘Talk About It’ doesn’t rest on any of that. It pushes forward, harder and more focused than anything they’ve done before.
‘Talk About It’ is out now via Hellcat Records. Grade 2 hits Europe this spring, with dates running through June.
TOMORA has arrived, and the debut album ‘Come Closer’ is everything the mystery surrounding this project promised. Tom Rowlands of The Chemical Brothers and Norwegian artist AURORA have made something genuinely singular here, twelve tracks that pull from wigged-out 1960s psychedelia and push toward sounds that feel built for decades that haven’t happened yet. The title track video is out now, and it delivers.
The duo didn’t exactly announce themselves quietly. TOMORA’s name appeared on the Coachella 2026 lineup with zero context, triggering immediate speculation. Then came “Ring The Alarm” in December, and the conversation shifted fast. SPIN, Brooklyn Vegan, and Stereogum all took notice, with Stereogum calling it “a high-octane build… urgent vocal swirls… seesawing between euphoria and panic.” DJ Mag flagged its “intense bass and beat oscillations capped with an infectious vocal hook.”
The album is out now via Capitol Records, available digitally and physically on CD, standard black vinyl, and a limited-edition colour vinyl LP. The duo describe ‘Come Closer’ plainly and perfectly: “We made it without obligation or expectation, just a joy in creation. It’s the sound where we meet, the landing zone of our musical escape pods.”
‘Come Closer’ doesn’t sound like a collaboration between two separate artists finding common ground. It sounds like a duo that locked into something real and chased it as far as it would go. The range across these twelve tracks is remarkable, from dancefloor-ready momentum to tender, beautifully constructed downtempo moments like “The Thing,” which surfaced early on the limited white label vinyl release.
Dancefloors and festival fields are already paying attention. ‘Come Closer’ is out now on Capitol Records.
The video for “How Can I” is out, and Micah McLaurin isn’t holding anything back. The soul-baring single now has a visual to match its emotional weight, a direct expression of what it means to hold onto yourself when the people closest to you refuse to see you clearly. This one hits differently.
Produced by Fernando Garibay (Lady Gaga, Whitney Houston, Kylie Minogue) and co-written with Poo Bear and Simon Wilcox, “How Can I” carries serious pop pedigree without losing its personal core. The track is already on Spotify’s All New Pop playlist and landed on Apple Music’s New Music Daily and New In Pop. McLaurin puts it plainly: “Being human comes in all shapes and shades, we all deserve to be happy and to walk in our own truth.”
The song builds on real momentum. McLaurin was featured in Spotify Wrapped’s Best of Fresh Finds Pop 2025, driven largely by the viral surge of his Latin-infused single “Remember Me,” which earned two official remixes from Majestic and Until Dawn, both hitting Music Week’s Pop Club Chart at number six. Before that, “Satisfied” and “Baboom” both cracked the Top 10 of the same chart.
McLaurin’s reach extends well beyond the studio. He’s collaborated with creative director Nicola Formichetti, designer Zaldy, producer duo PhD, and worked alongside brands including Dolce & Gabbana, Alexander McQueen, and Vivienne Westwood. That kind of cross-industry pull doesn’t happen by accident, it reflects an artist operating at a genuinely distinctive level.
“How Can I” lands as one of McLaurin’s most direct and affecting releases to date, a pop track with real emotional stakes and production that earns every second of its runtime. Watch the video now.
On May 8, rock ‘n’ roll icon Neil Diamond unveils Wild At Heart, a testament to his mastery and a remarkable third – and final – entry in his universally praised collaboration with producer Rick Rubin. Recorded initially at sessions for Diamond’s chart-topping Home Before Dark, this collection of ten songs features his signature passionate vocals and powerfully incisive lyrics surrounded by urgent yet stripped-down arrangements. Listen here.
Diamond initially teamed up with Rubin for 2005’s 12 Songs, hailed as “one of the most entertaining, satisfying albums Diamond has ever released.” The partnership went so well that Diamond was eager to work with Rubin again. 2008’s Home Before Dark was a tremendous popular success (his first-ever Number One album on the Billboard charts) and garnered widespread critical praise. PopMatters’ James Bassett echoed many of his colleagues’ sentiments when he hailed Home Before Dark as “an album of rare beauty, grace, and eloquence that captures Diamond in all his plain-spoken and big-hearted glory. And it is easily the most intensely personal release of his esteemed career.”
“My work with Rick was a labor of love,” Neil shares, “and I’m so gratified that these songs will finally be set free into the world to complete our trilogy of work.”
Recently revisiting this material, Diamond spent time fleshing out nine new songs to be released for the first time and closed the set with an alternate take of “Forgotten,” which initially appeared on Home Before Dark.
The unique set of songs on Wild At Heart (simultaneously archival and brand-new) will be released on CD, vinyl, and digital platforms via Capitol/UMe on May 8, 2026. Following the release of “Wild At Heart,” the album’s second track, “You’re My Favorite Song,” is out now. Listen to both tracks HERE. Limited edition colored vinyl and 2CD versions will also be available. Preorder and Listen to Wild At Heart HERE.
In anticipation of Wild At Heart’s release, digital Deluxe Editions of 12 Songs and Home Before Dark are now available and include the debut of bonus tracks previously available on limited physical releases.
Diamond immensely enjoyed collaborating with Rick Rubin and the all-star quartet he assembled for the Home Before Dark sessions: keyboardist Benmont Tench and guitarist Mike Campbell (both from Tom Petty’s Heartbreakers), along with ace session guitarist Smokey Hormel and guitarist Matt Sweeney (co-founder of the NYC indie rock group Chavez) and frequent Will Oldham cohort. “Working with these guys and having Rick’s ear made it a great deal of fun,” Diamond told Billboard in 2008. “It was magic.”
Revealing the spare but emotional resonance that are hallmarks of his work with Rick Rubin, Wild At Heart has marvelous cohesiveness drawn from material recorded over a handful of years ago. Accompanying his soul-baring lyrics and commanding yet vulnerable vocals, Diamond’s guitar, which he had rarely played on recordings, leads the unadorned arrangements, which involve mainly subdued guitars and keyboards.
Wild At Heart finds Diamond in a reflective, philosophical mood, but it is conveyed on a very human scale, so the songs come across as deeply personal. On “Shine On,” the singer advises his son to “never doubt in yourself” and “sing what you feel inside.” The terrific “You Can’t Have It All” remains presciently relevant today as Diamond asks: “What’s the matter with the world? Can’t everyone take care?”
A well-known master of love songs, Diamond adds several more to his canon with “The Secret You” and “You Still Look Good To Me,” while “Talking It To Death” and “Forgotten” explore the rockier side of love that is on the rocks. “You’re Getting To Me,” “You’re My Favorite Song,” “You Never Know,” and the title track contains classic Diamond hooks; however, the performances hold a warm intimacy that feels like he’s playing in your living room.
Neil Diamond’s illustrious career, spanning over five decades, has seen him sell over 130 million albums, placing him among the best-selling rock musicians ever. He has had 18 Top 10 albums and scored nearly 40 Top 40 singles, with ten reaching #1. His 1969 hit “Sweet Caroline” has continued its unbridled grip on pop culture and has become a permanent fixture at sporting events and a TV and film soundtrack favorite.
A GRAMMY Award-winning artist, Diamond is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He also has received two of the highest honors bestowed upon songwriters: the Johnny Mercer Award and the Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award.
Additionally, Diamond has garnered the GRAMMY Lifetime Achievement Award, NARAS’ MusiCares Person of the Year Award, and the prestigious Kennedy Center Honor for his lifetime of contributions to American culture. His achievements include a Golden Globe Award, 13 GRAMMY nominations, an American Music Award, an ASCAP Film and Television Award, and a Billboard Icon Award.
Diamond, who starred in the 1980 film The Jazz Singer, has seen his life and music turned into the hit Broadway musical A Beautiful Noise. The show debuted in New York City in 2022, and with over 650 performances and was one of the longest-running new musicals on Broadway since the pandemic. Beautiful Noise launched its first tour in 2024 and continues to tour across America with performances set to open in Australia in August, 2026.
In addition, Focus Features released Song Sung Blue on December 25th, a musical drama starring Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson. Directed by Craig Brewer and based on a true story, the film follows two down-on-their-luck musicians who form a joyous Neil Diamond tribute band. The movie has been a huge success, with Hudson receiving Oscar, SAG Actor Award, Golden Globe, and BAFTA nominations, and will be released via international streaming in late Spring.
Demi Lovato wasted no time. “Low Rise Jeans” is out now via DLG Recordings/Island Records, the first taste of ‘It’s Not That Deep (Unless You Want It To Be),’ the deluxe edition of her critically acclaimed ninth studio album, arriving April 24th with eight brand new tracks. The original ‘It’s Not That Deep’ landed with a Metacritic score of 82, making it the most critically celebrated record of her career.
The song arrived the right way. Lovato debuted “Low Rise Jeans” on the opening night of her It’s Not That Deep Tour in Orlando earlier this week, and fans at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. got the first look at the deluxe artwork on arena screens just last night. That’s how you build momentum, night by night, room by room, on a tour that already has people talking.
The track carries the same celebratory, late-night energy that made the original album connect so hard with audiences and critics alike. It’s confident, fun, and built for exactly the kind of first U.S. arena tour Lovato is running right now, her first in nearly eight years. The rooms are big, the setlist is strong, and the new music fits perfectly.
The It’s Not That Deep Tour, produced by Live Nation, continues April 18th in Philadelphia, with upcoming stops in Toronto, New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles before wrapping May 25th in Houston. Eight new tracks drop April 24th. “Low Rise Jeans” is the opening argument, and it’s a strong one.
