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 by Beabadoobee, Arcade Fire, Toro Y Moi, and more.
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Toro Y Moi — Mahal
Toro Y Moi, the musical project of musician, visual artist, and chillwave pioneer Chaz Bear, shared his seventh studio album Mahal this week. Armed with chilled-out electro-pop beats and distorted psych-rock chords, much of the album is covertly inspired by his Filipino culture and uncovers the complexities of modern life.
Girlpool — Forgiveness
Girlpool may have started out as an acoustic duo in the mid-2010’s, but with their latest LP Forgiveness, the group venture into an electro-twinged sound. The confessional 12-track effort dives into fantasies, past relationships, and newfound personal truths with electro-pop catharsis.
Kelly Lee Owens — LP.8
Prolific producer Kelly Lee Owens is back with LP.8, an experimental follow-up to 2020’s Inner Song. The avant-pop project is a dizzying combination of spoken-word prose and a compelling blend of beats resulting in a raw and poetic effort as a whole.
Faye Webster — Car Therapy Sessions
It hasn’t been long since Faye Webster released her 2021 favorite I Know I’m Funny Haha. This week, the singer re-imagined a handful of the album’s tracks with a full orchestra for the 5-track project Car Therapy Sessions. The angelic collection also features two brand-new tracks, “Car Therapy” and “Suite: Johnny,” which are aching ballads underscored by a heart-tugging string section.
Tomberlin — I Don’t Know Who Needs To Hear This
Tomberlin burst onto the indie music scene with her revered 2018 debut effort At Weddings. Now, the singer shares her ambitious sophomore album I Don’t Know Who Needs To Hear This, a collection of 11 personal and tenderly minimalist tracks encapsulating a range of emotions from confinement to self-growth, and everything in between.
Melody’s Echo Chamber — Emotional Eternal
Neo-psychedelia trendsetter Melody’s Echo Chamber returned with her latest album since 2018’s acclaimed Bon Voyage. The album explores a different side to the singer; A new mother, Melody has a renewed since of bliss and childlike wonder. She remains playful over nine tracks, combining fuzzy, comforting vocals with groovy compositions and cascading chords.
Beabadoobee — “See You Soon”
Giving another look at her upcoming album Beatopia, Beabadoobee drops the healing track “See You Soon.” Giving a contrast to some of her recent rocking tracks, “See You Soon” is on the softer side, reflecting on aimlessness over a laid-back beat. “I want it to sound like a breath of fresh air, like a realization of some sort,” Bea said in a statement. “I wrote it during a time where I was away a lot and making a lot of mistakes and doing a lot of things to help me figure a lot of stuff out.”
Arcade Fire — “Unconditonal I (Lookout Kid)”
Arcade Fire is just a few days away from their comeback album We, which they have previewed with a few singles and a Coachella performance. Their new track “Unconditional I (Lookout Kid)” is another inspiring anthem from Arcade Fire, issuing a hopeful reminder of our power within. “‘Lookout Kid’ is a reminder, a lullaby for the end times, sung to my son, but for everyone… Trust your heart, trust your mind, trust your body, trust your soul,” Win Butler said of the latest single.
Tegan & Sara — “F*cking Up What Matters”
Fresh off their newly inked deal with Mom+Pop, Tegan And Sara offer the propulsive power-pop single “F*cking Up What Matters.” Despite their successful past two years (see: their book, album, and upcoming TV show), the song takes a witty approach to all the ways their lives haven’t gone according to plan. Playful and upbeat, “F*cking Up What Matters” is a buoyant preview of their new era of music.
The Black Keys — “It Ain’t Over”
The Black Keys’ new single “It Ain’t Over” is special in more ways than one. Not only does the rhythmic and fuzzy track point to their upcoming album Dropout Boogie, but it was built around a special instrument inspired by drummer Patrick Carney’s late uncle. They used an Optigan, also known as an Orchestron, which is a keyboard the uses pre-programmed dics (kind of like CDs).
Angel Olsen — “Big Time”
Angel Olsen is about a month away from the release of her album Big Time, and she just unveiled the title track. Wispy and twangy, “Big Time” points to a return to Olsen’s stripped-down roots. Unlike her synth-laden 2019 All Mirrors, “Big Time” is an Appalachian-inspired ballad accompanied by a slide guitar and Olsen’s room-filling vocals.
Muna — “Kind Of Girl”
Stand-out trio Muna have been making waves since they signed to Phoebe Bridgers’ label and released the smash-hit single “Silk Chiffon.” Now pointing to an official LP, the band shares the single “Kind Of Girl.” The new track contrasts last year’s pop-leaning “Silk Chiffon,” instead taking a more country-inspired approach. “This song is the album’s country moment, and in some ways we feel it is the heart of the record,” says member Katie Gavin. “This song explores the power of language and the words we use to describe who we are and who we want to be.”
Dehd — “Empty In My Mind”
Muna wasn’t the only indie-rock trio to drop music this week. Chicago-based band Dehd shared the rhythmic single “Empty In My Mind,” previewing their upcoming effort Blue Skies. Detailing the feeling of being dumbstruck by a crush, the track features clean and sparse instrumentation — reflecting its title.
Some of the artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.