Earlier this month, Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker began to tease new music via the project’s website and social media, including a caption reading “been busy” and a wild hidden message on the web, “iwaitedtiltheendofsummerandiranoutoftime.”
Today, Tame Impala dropped off a video for a new song, “End Of Summer,” which explains that run-on sentence above. After previously teasing the track at Primavera in June, the full version has arrived, bringing with it a thumping four-on-the-floor beat and dreamy synths. This has become a recurring theme of 2025, which … probably says something about the state of current events, right?
It’s certainly a new direction for Tame Impala, stepping away from the psychedelic synth pop of past projects and getting into some looser dance stuff (this is cool, as far as I’m concerned). Of course, this shouldn’t come as a surprise to any longtime fans of Parker, who’s been leaning in this direction for a while.
Back in November 2023, Parker produced on Dua Lipa’s single “Houdini” presaging a dip into dance-pop, and linked up with EDM giants Justice on “Neverender” last April, showing a new disposal for upbeat dance floor attractors. It ain’t Currents, but then again, who says it had to be?
For the past few months, Tyla has really made herself hypervisible in the music world algorithms. Back in May, she released “Bliss,” her first new single of 2025, following up with an appearance on Lisa’s “When I’m With You” and “Everything Goes With Blue” from the Smurfs soundtrack. “Is It” arrived earlier this month with a flashy music video, and today, Tyla dropped a surprise EP, WWP, featuring both “Bliss” and “Is It.”
Also included on the EP’s tracklist is “Dynamite,” a collaboration with Afropop pioneer Wizkid. Appearing on Capital XTRA Breakfast, she revealed that the song had been recorded in 2022, but there were doubts it would ever be released.
“We made ‘Dynamite,’ and I was sitting on that demo for three years, like playing it and dancing in my room and just praying to God,” she recalled. “Like, ‘God, one day the song is going to come out,’ and it’s coming out!” The reason for the delay, she explained, was “we, like, just didn’t end up finishing it. Like, we would talk about here and there, but it just didn’t happen. You know how things are. We both are very busy, and we have a lot of things that we are doing.”
Thank goodness the stars aligned and the two African music ambassadors were able to get everything done. Check it out.
Listen to Tyla’s new song “Dynamite” featuring Wizkid above.
WWP is out now via FAX Records and Epic Records. You can find more info here.
Today would’ve been William Larue Weller’s 200th birthday, and Buffalo Trace is celebrating it with two new additions to the Weller whiskey lineup.
First, let’s back up. The Weller lineup is one of the most coveted lineups in the bourbon world for one simple reason: They’re damn good. The longstanding core of Weller Special Reserve, Weller Antique, and Weller 12 has ballooned to include a bevy of new releases bearing William Larue’s last name. To get you up to speed, Weller C.Y.P.B. debuted in 2018, Weller Full Proof was added in 2019, and 2020 —the year that shall not be named— welcomed Weller Single Barrel into the fold. Since then, they’ve been joined by Daniel Weller (2023) and Weller Millennium (2024).
Now the Weller lineup has two new expressions joining its ranks: the second batch of Weller Millennium and the all-new Weller 18.
Weller Millennium is one we covered last year, but this new batch features a fresh blend of components that were distilled at Buffalo Trace Distillery in 2001 (2.9%), 2003 (46.5%), and 2006 (50.6%). Weller Millennium deux, like the inaugural batch, is notably a blend that includes both wheated bourbon, the lineup’s bread and butter, as well as wheat whiskey, which is a spirit that made its debut in the lineup with this expression last year. Eagle-eyed observers will discern the differences between batches 1 and 2 thanks to an updated label that now features a gold-plated info card as opposed to last year’s white label.
Weller 18 is the lineup’s oldest ever age-stated product and marks the first time a full-on wheat whiskey joins the party. This hyper-aged expression is housed in a similar bottle to Weller Millennium, albeit without the fancy box, and will be available via Global Travel Retail at airports including Los Angeles International (LAX), John F. Kennedy International (JFK), and London Heathrow (LHR). This is notable because it will be the first travel-exclusive bottle ever released by Buffalo Trace, and as such, it will come in the 700ml bottle size.
I was among the first in the world to try both of these brand-new expressions when I got a taste of them late last month, and now that they’re officially hitting the market, it’s the perfect time not just to review them, but to review them alongside every other member of the Weller family.
So let’s dive right into our full review of the entire Weller lineup, now updated with two brand-new whiskeys!
Weller Special Reserve is the entry-level offering in the highly sought-after Weller lineup. Like all others in the Weller lineup, Weller Special Reserve showcases Buffalo Trace’s wheated mash bill.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose is effusive with honeysuckle and corn-laden sweetness for a mellow and inviting initial pop of aroma. However, there isn’t much underneath those notes on the nose, with only a gentle vanilla aroma and a slightly artificial floral aspect coming through on return visits.
Palate: That floral aspect, which was relegated to being a background player on the nose, comes through with gusto on the palate while clover honey and faint vanilla notes do their best to contend with it from the sidelines. The flavors are speciously rich, but the whiskey’s thin texture prevents them from coming anywhere close to their full potential.
Finish: The finish is where this bourbon gains a few extra points, as the flavors of honeysuckle and vanilla manage to survive the watery mouthfeel and cling to the back of the palate for a satisfying send-off.
Bottom Line:
Weller Special Reserve has never been my cup of tea, even as a last-ditch replacement for the genuinely remarkable Weller Antique. That said, if you squint, there’s just enough flavor in every sip to give you glimpses of just how good Buffalo Trace’s wheated bourbon mash bill can be with additional aging, higher proof, and selective blending. As the least-impressive wheated bourbon on offer from the brand, Weller Special Reserve is reliably average sipper.
Daniel Weller, one of the newer additions to the Weller lineup, debuted in 2023. This expression is unique because it incorporates an entirely new grain, Emmer wheat, an ancient Egyptian grain, in its mash bill — something that no other Weller product uses.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose comes across as significantly grain-forward, with wheat toast aromas emanating from the glass, along with a pleasant strawberry jam note coupling up with herbal tea, nutmeg, and burnt caramel.
Palate: On the palate, Daniel Weller begins a bit grain forward before becoming delightfully sweet, with fruit bursting. It’s also surprisingly lively, with the strawberry jam from the nose becoming more like a plum on the palate and welcoming the addition of some faint citrus notes with a quotidian mouthfeel.
Finish: The finish is surprisingly drying despite the liveliness of the liquid on the palate, but it also has a moderate length which begs for repeat sips.
Bottom Line:
Daniel Weller was initially launched with much fanfare and intrigue, but now, a few years removed from its release, it has become an afterthought, with Weller Millennium replacing it at the top of the Weller pyramid. Despite that, Daniel Weller is still a perfectly fine bourbon, and one that I had hoped to see return in 2025. However, given its extremely limited bottle count (and the effort it would take to secure one), I wouldn’t suggest breaking your back or your bank to give it a try.
Weller 18 is the lineup’s oldest ever age-stated product and marks the first time a full-on wheat whiskey joins the party. This hyper-aged expression is housed in a similar bottle to Weller Millennium, albeit without the fancy box, and will be available via Global Travel Retail at airports including Los Angeles International (LAX), John F. Kennedy International (JFK), and London Heathrow (LHR). This is notable because it will be the first travel-exclusive bottle ever released by Buffalo Trace, and as such, it will come in the 700ml bottle size.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose on this whiskey opens with fresh hazelnuts and cherry cordials for a pleasant introduction that draws you deeper into the glass. From there, one can pick up elements of eucalyptus, peanut brittle, and faint clove notes, with dates, tootsie rolls, vanilla, and brown sugar gently blossoming in the background.
Palate: Once in the mouth, the flavors of dates, clove, and peanut brittle lead the way. Once your palate becomes acclimated to this subtle sipper, the flavors of nougat, brown sugar, and hazelnuts really start to shine. The distinct flavor of “wheat funk” gently drums in the background of each sip. The texture is smooth and elegant, albeit a bit austere throughout.
Finish: The medium-length finish on Weller 18 is heavy on peppercorn, vanilla bean, and wheat toast notes with a little drop of honey sweetness to round it all out.
Bottom Line:
Weller 18 is really interesting. That’s not to say that it’s mind-blowing or a must-try, as I found less well-rounded offerings in the lineup to be more dynamic. That said, this one is distinctly different from the rest thanks to its wheat whiskey heritage and a flavor profile that elegantly exhibits that category’s finest qualities.
It’s likely to be bourbon fans who most passionately seek this one out, and to them I say be forewarned. Wheat whiskey is a distinctly different animal, with a noticeably more restrained mouthfeel and moderate complexity. If neither of those notices gives you pause, then you’re definitely going to love this one.
When it comes to bottles that sport Weller’s instantly recognizable colored label, Weller Single Barrel is the most recently launched member of the extremely allocated core lineup. This expression is the only purely single-barrel wheated bourbon in Buffalo Trace’s entire portfolio.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Crisp red apples give way to a slightly savory barbeque sauce note with a bit of honey, vanilla, and oak on top.
Palate: On the palate, there’s the familiar balance of red apples and red berries that Weller is known for, but the fruit notes are more nondescript. There’s a moderate bit of nuance, but overall, this is a pleasant and straightforward bourbon marked by juicy orange notes playing off of the red berries and modest oak tones, melding well with vanilla ice cream flavors with a fairly viscous mouthfeel.
Finish: The finish finds caramel sweetness covering the crisp red apples from the palate and a rising oak prominence joining black pepper spice to balance those sweeter notes.
Bottom Line:
Typical of single-barrel bourbons, each one will be different, but Weller Single Barrel delivers a fairly full-bodied and nuanced sipping experience despite clocking in at a fairly low proof. While it doesn’t do enough to differentiate itself significantly from the rest of the lineup (particularly when one considers the fact that Weller Antique is offered in single barrel format), that doesn’t detract from the fact that it’s a rock-solid wheated bourbon.
Weller Full Proof was officially launched in June 2019. This expression is called “Full Proof” because it isn’t bottled at cask strength but blended and bottled at the ABV point the liquid entered the barrel, which is 114 proof.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose of Weller Full Proof features some of the brand’s hallmark cherry notes but also a bit of Tobasco, sticky toffee, and green tomatoes to go with a touch of caramel sweetness.
Palate: When tasting Weller Full Proof, those disparate and well-developed flavors from the nose hit you all at once, with green tomatoes and some cayenne pepper coming across the palate in lockstep with brown sugar sweetness, toffee, and black cherry pie notes. The texture is robust but a bit prickly, as the ABV can be felt along the edges of the tongue, forming a ring around the sweeter and more savory notes at the tip of the tongue and midpalate.
Finish: The finish is lengthy, albeit a bit drying, and that allows plenty of space for the density of those flavors to reveal themselves as the alcohol blows off and your palate becomes acclimated to its brash texture.
Bottom Line:
Weller Full Proof is a bit imbalanced, but overall, it lives up to its name in that it’s full of flavor. That lack of balance, with assertiveness and absence on the palate coming in fits and starts, makes for a slightly disjointed sipping experience, but one that will be a flavorful challenge for high-proof lovers looking for a rocky ride with atypical sights to see regarding Weller’s more mellow profile.
Weller 12 is one of only two age-stated wheated bourbons in Buffalo Trace’s Weller lineup. The popular expression first debuted in 2001.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Weller 12 boasts an intriguing aroma bouquet of brown sugar, honeyed black tea, and hazelnut spread, complemented by notes of clove cigarettes and gentle oak tones.
Palate: On the palate is where Weller 12 becomes worth savoring, as its rich flavor notes find a way to prevail despite its relatively thin texture. Look for all of the notes from the nose to return to the palate with brown sugar, clove, and tobacco leaf, claiming the reins before ceding control to hazelnut spread, maple candy, oak, and black tea before the transition to the finish.
Finish: The finish of Weller 12 is where the oak is dialed up a notch, drying the mouth a bit and curtailing the development of some of those rich flavors. Still, before it peters out, each pour leaves plenty of space to appreciate the depth of those earthy and darkly sweet flavors.
Bottom Line:
Weller 12 is both enjoyable and frustrating in that it displays a great depth of flavor, some promising potential, and a forestalled finish. It’s impressively rich, given the proof it’s bottled at, and deftly shows off what maturity can bring to a well-made bourbon. However, with a little more oomph in the proof department and slightly more runway on the back end, it’s easy to see this bourbon being even more awesome.
Weller C.Y.P.B., which is shorthand for “Choose Your Perfect Bourbon,” was first introduced in 2018. Prior to its launch, Buffalo Trace had an interactive feature on its website that encouraged consumers to input their ideal conditions for bourbon, including age, mash bill, and rickhouse location, as options. The brand has stated that this bourbon was created to reflect the site visitors’ most popular input choices.
Fun fact: The website still features the same customization tool to this day, and brand representatives noted that they continue to gather data from fans, which has helped shape new releases, such as those seen in the 1792 portfolio.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose on CYPB is full of white chocolate, vanilla, and Rainier cherries with some accenting notes of milk chocolate, allspice, and nougat.
Palate: On the palate is where those Rainier cherries and the white chocolate from the nose come out in full force, but those notes are also joined by some black pepper, honey, and vanilla cone. Overall, the texture is robust, and the flavors themselves are highly refined and dialed in.
Finish: The finish is just barely medium length, but thanks to the depth of the flavors, you’re only left wanting a little more length but a lot more sips.
Bottom Line:
While it isn’t quite the perfect bourbon, Weller C.Y.P.B. is actually a really high-quality representation of the Weller lineup. It’s as crowd-pleasing as good old Weller Antique, but with a bit less nuance and fewer rough edges.
Old Weller Antique, or Weller 107 as it’s commonly called, is the second expression in Buffalo Trace’s Weller lineup. With an estimated age range of about seven years, it shares a grain recipe, warehouse location, and proof point with Old Rip Van Winkle.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose on Old Weller Antique is befitting of its packaging as candied red apples and honey combine with soft pastry notes, a touch of honey, allspice, and butterscotch.
Palate: On the palate, those candied apple notes achieve an impressive depth, almost mimicking the flavor of apple cider as waves of caramel, mellow oak, and milk chocolate come crashing in. The well-balanced whiskey is aided by a viscous mouthfeel underlined by a prickly infusion of ethanol, black pepper, and tart apple cider vinegar.
Finish: For its closing word, Weller Antique offers a fresher note of stone fruit and Rainier cherries, dipped in milk chocolate and closing with vanilla ice cream. The finish is medium-length but substantive, allowing enough space for each flavor note to have its say before tapering away.
Bottom Line:
Good old Weller Antique is highly sought after for existing under the halo of its big brother from the Buffalo Trace Antique lineup and for being the best readily available option in the core group once upon a time. Truthfully, this might be the most versatile and underrated whiskey in the Weller portfolio, despite having become just as hard to find as the rest of them. It remains an incredible mid-shelf bourbon capable of besting far more expensive wheated bourbons in blind tastings — provided you can find it at a reasonable price.
This blend of wheat whiskey and wheated bourbon marks the first time the Weller lineup has showcased a wheat whiskey. It’s a blend of straight bourbon and wheat whiskeys distilled in 2000 (3%), 2003 (50%), 2005 (40%), and 2006 (7%), and it’s housed in an elegant decanter, which itself is held in an equally showy display case that features 99 sunbursts surrounding the bottle — representative of the whiskey’s 99 proof points.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Full of ebullient wheat notes and showing a pleasantly fruit-forward bouquet, this nose immediately reads like a wheated American whiskey. Prominent aromas include the likes of black cherry, apple slices, and honey. There’s also an impressive vanilla undertone, which is accented by graham crackers, celery seed, and leather.
Palate: When sipping this whiskey, you’ll taste a strong foundation of honey and graham cracker notes with the flavor of black cherries claiming center stage. Overall, the mouthfeel is incredibly rich and viscous, which is a benefit to the flavor profile, as it allows those sweet, fruit-forward notes to coat your tongue and blossom to their full potential. There’s also caramel and a robust oak presence that undergirds it all, indicating that this whiskey is well-aged while remaining true to wheated bourbon’s core flavor profile, despite the undisclosed amount of wheat whiskey in the blend.
Finish: The finish is satisfyingly prolonged, as the viscous mouthfeel leads to a tongue-coating experience that helps extend the length of those well-developed sweet notes. Vanilla ice cream and white pepper join the medley of flavors on the back end, and while the viscousness does taper off, the caramel-drizzled fruit notes remain long after your last sip.
Bottom Line:
If you want to sip whiskey like it’s 1999, that is to say, if you want an ultra-aged expression that delivers a rich vintage profile, then you’ve found the Weller for you. The price may give you pause, but Weller Millennium offers a more mature take on the prototypical Weller profile, displaying slight tweaks on the periphery that serve to elevate it as a whole. With a deft balance of flavors, an impressively distinct texture, and a deceptively lengthy finish, Weller Millennium is seemingly bottled at the perfect proof. Millennium’s decadence is only rivaled by William Larue in Buffalo Trace’s Weller stable, and it easily outpaces Daniel Weller as a sumptuous sipping experience.
As Buffalo Trace continues to push the boundaries of ultra-aged American whiskey and extend the upper limits of premium-priced American whiskey, Weller Millennium is an expression that comfortably fits into both categories, despite being regretfully out of reach for most consumers.
This new batch from the Weller Millennium label features a fresh blend of components that were distilled at Buffalo Trace Distillery in 2001 (2.9%), 2003 (46.5%), and 2006 (50.6%). This year’s blend doesn’t include the liquid component from 2000 used in 2024’s blend because the remaining barrels of that whiskey were exhausted in the original blend. Weller Millennium deux, like the inaugural batch, is notably a blend that includes both wheated bourbon, the lineup’s bread and butter, as well as wheat whiskey, which is a spirit that made its debut in the Weller lineup with this brand last year. You can visually distinguish between batches 1 and 2 thanks to an updated label that now features a gold-plated information card, as opposed to last year’s white label.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose begins with a very similar profile to the 2024 batch, though the richness is dialed up a tad as its equally fruit-forward aroma profile finds ripe cherries, Manuka honey, lush vanilla tones, and fresh apples effusing out of the glass. Those accenting notes of celery seed are still present, with a bit more of a peppercorn spice kick, and pie crust propping it all up.
Palate: On the palate, this whiskey’s sweetness is undeniable as layers of vanilla custard, ripe black cherries, and cinnamon sable cookies come in waves over the tongue. The mouthfeel is generous and buttery, allowing the whiskey to effectively coat your tongue and rewarding repeat sips or chewing.
Finish: The medium-to-long finish is where some of that spice kick emerges in lockstep with the silky honey flavors. That means black pepper and nutmeg hit the spot as the fruity, honey-laden sweetness slowly recedes from your palate as the liquid leaves.
Bottom Line:
Wow! I was a big fan of Weller Millennium’s inaugural batch, but it almost felt a bit…safe. For such an exorbitantly priced bourbon, it lacked the pop or originality to truly command your attention while drinking it. For those who have doubts about trying it, I’d say it tastes like the best Weller Antique Single Barrel you’ve ever had, but even better.
Weller Millennium Batch #2 easily outdoes the banal excellence of its predecessor with a richer and overall more dynamic tasting experience that pushes the spice forward for added balance while retaining the lush sweetness of its maiden voyage. Cast aside any concerns about its modest proof-point, Weller Millennium Batch #2 is an exquisite whiskey that bears all the refinement you expect at its asking price.
Aged on the lower floor of an undisclosed Buffalo Trace warehouse, last year’s William Larue Weller offering was matured for 12 years before being bottled at full cask strength. While the barrel entry proof of this liquid was a modest 114 proof, the 2024 edition of the vaunted William Larue Weller, through the process of aging, crept all the way up to 125.8 proof.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nosing notes on this one open with dense caramel, rich cherries, and an alluring splash of milk chocolate. The aromas of sweet oak, clove cigarettes, and honey-drizzled mint sprigs also come wafting out of the glass after a few waves of the hand.
Palate: The impressiveness of this bourbon begins with the dense texture, which efficiently coats your palate with brown sugar, black pepper, apple leather, and candied walnuts. Each of those notes is really rich and well-developed, leading to you sucking your teeth and mining your tastebuds to see just how deep those flavors will seep into your palate.
Finish: Cinnamon, red pepper flakes, and honeyed black tea mark the lengthy finish. As the oak begins to encroach on each of those sweet notes, some brown sugar also curtails the drying and leaves you drooling for more.
Bottom Line:
Look, if you come at the king, you best not miss. The 2024 William Larue Weller is a triumph that carries the mantle well and continues the brand’s reputation as being one of the finest bourbons on the market today. Despite how impressed I was with Buffalo Trace’s brand-new batch of Weller Millennium, given its bold proof point and full-bodied layers of flavor, it’s damn near impossible to knock William Larue Weller off its perch as the best bourbon in the Weller lineup.
While the rest of the group bears his surname, the bottle that sports William Larue Weller’s full name is appropriately the one he should be most proud of. If you’re raising a glass to the late/great bourbon innovator, then this is definitely the finest choice of them all.
Afrobeats star Asake has had a relatively quiet 2025 so far. Aside from the release of “Why Love” back in February, he hasn’t put out much else since the calendar flipped, perhaps still recovering from his Lungu Boy World Tour last year.
It looks like his output will be picking up from here on out, though. Today, he’s released the video for a new single, “Badman Gangsta,” featuring French rapper Tiakola. Over a sample of Amerie’s iconic 2005 hit “1 Thing,” Asake redefines the “badman” lifestyle; visually, the clip follows him documentary style as he lives his life, vacationing in the tropics, recording his music, and flexing alongside a classic DeLorean (yay!) and a Cybertruck (boo!). The whole thing is filmed in tasteful black-and-white, giving it the luxurious air of a really long designer fragrance ad.
While Asake hasn’t put out too much new music this year, he’s still remained visible stateside thanks to a strong performance at Hot97’s Summer Jam last month and the launch of his own label, Giran Republic, in partnership with Gamma. Meanwhile, adding Tiakola to his latest (taking a page from Wizkid) also expands his international appeal; just about every comment under that video is in French, meaning Asake’s got at least three countries looking to see what he does next.
Watch Asake’s “Badman Gangsta” video featuring Tiakola above.
You know what got lost in all the noise surrounding Drake and Kendrick Lamar’s battle of wits last year? That Kendrick admitted he actually likes Drake — when Drake is actually being Drake. The out-of-character version that has gotten progressively paranoid and delusional since 2018’s Scorpion is no fun; Kenny is just one of many that wanted to see him return to the lighthearted guy from More Life, delivering upbeat bops for nights out with the mandem, on the prowl for some bad tings to spend time with.
Drake’s latest single, “Which One?” featuring Central Cee, is a big step in the right direction. Dropping the mobster pretensions and wounded incel-isms of his last few projects, Drake instead adopts the Afroswing embraced by English adherents like J Hus (and himself, back in 2017 — think “Passionfruit” or “Blem”) to narrate a club walkthrough with one of London’s rising stars, as they pick out baddies (or “peng gyals,” if you’re feeling particularly British) for conversation, dancing, and maybe even a shared Uber home. Being in Britain seems to have done wonders for Drake, questionable statements comparing the quality of rap on either end of the Pond aside.
This is the Drake most of us enjoyed the most — emphasis on “most of us” — the version of Aubrey that sold all those records and had a death grip on the culture, before getting his ass handed to him by Pusha T. Perhaps, instead of doubling down on the persona that got him in all this trouble to begin with, he should keep it up.
Insurgent indie-pop star Sombr has put himself on the map in a big way, first with his March single “Undressed,” then with the announcement of his first headlining tour. He should continue to grab eyes, ears, and hearts with his latest single, “12 To 12,” thanks to its glitzy video co-starring fellow Gen-Z upstart, Addison Rae.
The “12 To 12” video gives serious Studio 54 vibes, from its funky, toe-tapping beat to its discotheque theming, as Addison and Sombr slither and strut across a light-up dance floor. Sombr also plays dual roles as a late-night TV host — kind of insane timing for that one — and his own guest, while Rae shows off her moves both solo and with the rising singer.
Sombr’s not the only one going on tour this year; Rae announced her own tour is kicking off in August last month, supporting her own debut album, Addison, which is out now via Columbia Records.
Watch the video for Sombr’s “12 To 12” featuring Addison Rae above. See below for his tour dates.
Sombr’s 2025 Tour Dates: The Late Nights & Young Romance Tour
09/30 — St. Paul, MN @ Amsterdam Bar & Hall
10/02 — Chicago, IL @ Outset
10/03 — Columbus, OH @ A&R Music Bar
10/05 — Pittsburgh, PA @ Spirit Hall
10/06 — Toronto, ON @ The Axis Club
10/08 — Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall
10/09 — New York, NY @ Gramercy Theatre
10/12 — Philadelphia, PA @ The Foundry
10/13 — Washington, D.C. @ The Atlantis
10/15 — Atlanta, GA @ The Loft @ Center Stage
10/17 — Dallas, TX @ Cambridge Room at House of Blues
10/18 — Austin, TX @ Empire Control Room
10/20 — Denver, CO @ Globe Hall
10/21 — Salt Lake City, UT @ Soundwell
10/24 — Seattle, WA @ Madame Lou’s
10/25 — Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theatre
10/27 — San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Shop
10/28 — Los Angeles, CA @ El Rey Theatre
Hey, with Steven out of town this week, the guys planned a banked episode featuring emails from you, the Indiecast listener. Topics include the growing instances of AI songs showing up under the names of real bands (including Uncle Tupelo), the biggest “jaw dropper” moments when listening to albums for the first time, the best musician biopics, and the surprisingly decline (maybe?) of phones at concerts.
In Recommendation Corner, Ian talks about the latest from ambient band Disiniblud and Steven goes for the indie-country act Ryan Davis And The Roadhouse Band.
New episodes of Indiecast drop every Friday. Listen to Episode 249 here and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can submit questions for Steve and Ian at [email protected], and make sure to follow us on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) for all the latest news. We also recently launched a visualizer for our favorite Indiecast moments. Check those out here.
In the video for “To Be Free,” the euphoric new single from Sam Smith, the singer leads what can only be described as an exuberant revolution. While Sam sings on stage in an empty theater, the lobby is suddenly filled with high-spirited youths who dance across the bar on their way to filling the auditorium. As Sam’s voice is joined by a powerful chorus, the audience is seen singing along with expressions of ecstatic joy as they loose their inhibitions.
In the song’s press release, Smith says, “I’ve never had a recording experience like I did making this song. It’s one vocal and guitar take from start to finish – one live performance of me and my friend Simon Aldred in a pure state of music and expression. I wrote it five years ago while writing my last album Gloria and then parked it because I knew it was not a song for that album. It was created during a time in my life where I became free within myself.”
While Sam has yet to announce a longer project attached to the single, their first solo song since the Barbie soundtrack, they do have a 12-date residency at historic Brooklyn venue Warsaw. Tickets go on sale on Friday, August 1, at 10 am local time. You can find more info here.
Sam Smith – “To Be Free: New York City” 2025 Warsaw Residency Dates
Alt band Wednesday has been gearing up for the release of their new album, Bleeds, in September, releasing its first single, “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On),” with the announcement in June. Today, they followed up with another new single, “Pick Up That Knife,” along with a lo-fi music video featuring the band’s members wandering in the woods by a lake.
In the press release, their seeming spokesperson Karly Hatzman said, “’Pick Up That Knife’ is a song that revolves around feelings of helplessness, when every minor inconvenience hurts double ’cause you’re close to giving up. It’s also about when our pedal steel player Xandy threw up in the mosh pit during the Death Grips set at Primavera Sound in 2023.”
Bleeds was described by Hatzman as “the spiritual successor to Rat Saw God, and I think the quintessential ‘Wednesday Creek Rock’ album. This is what Wednesday songs are supposed to sound like. We’ve devoted a lot of our lives to figuring this out — and I feel like we did.”
The band also announced the dates for their 2025 tour, beginning with a performance at Project Pabst festival this weekend, and starting in earnest after a few more festival slots in October.
Watch Wednesday’s “Pick Up That Knife” video above.
Bleeds is out 9/19 via Dead Oceans. Find more information here.
What do Camden markets, California beaches, and Nashville sashimi have in common? They’re all stops on Myles Smith’s My Dream Tour, a new travel collab between the rising British sensation, Uproxx, and Priceline that remixes adventure with music in mind. Smith is hitting the road for his highly-anticipated global tour and he’s inviting fans along for the ride. Along with the opportunity to see him perform at the historic Ryman Auditorium later this summer — fans can now enter for a chance to win a free trip to his show, courtesy of Priceline — Smith is also mapping out his dream itinerary of three cities that have inspired and shaped his sound: London, Los Angeles, and Nashville.
In the kickoff video above, Smith previews his perfect day in each city, sharing the must-dos, can’t-miss eats, and hidden gems that define the vibe of each destination — all powered by Priceline’s travel tools. From finding choice hotels in the center of London’s busy scene to renting a car so he can easily navigate LA’s star-studded streets and tapping Priceline’s Neighborhood Navigator tool to find cool scenes in Music City, the app helps him do it all. And the chart-topper’s got plenty on his to do list.
Fans wanting to recreate his city-by-city adventure guide should expect pit stops in Camden town and recs for good “munch” in London, stargazing dates at Griffith Observatory and Santa Monica views in LA, and Grand Ole Opry tours in Nashville. Wherever you’re headed, Smith’s got some quality tips for getting the most out of your trip.
Check out the full video above and stay tuned here for more from Smith and his road to the Ryman.
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