The fragmented shards from the history of punk rock are still being sourced! Thanks to the rediscovery of a long-lost cache of cassette tapes, Bag People can now be counted: the sounds of their feral stink sitting perfectly in the grime-streaked canon of NYC’s early-‘80s post-punk/no-wave era. Forty-some years later, Drag City unwraps Bag People’s brief but blistering run with a self-titled archival release coming out March 28.

Bag People were Chicagoans who outgrew their home in the maelstrom of the early 80s NYC... (read more)

In Space, out February 28, is Edith Frost's first album in two decades, breaking the silence with a way-out country soul expression charting a heartening renewal of commitment and form. Today, Edith releases the second single off In Space, "Nothing Comes Around".

Ruefully emoting from the confines of her introvert’s heart on "Nothing Comes Around", Edith traverses the frozen tundras of inertia that she encountered entirely too often during her isolation. At turns frustrated, resigned and afraid, Edith builds strength with... (read more)

Mess Esque is an Australian duo who sound like they literally dreamed themselves into being, made up of Helen Franzmann (McKisko) and Mick Turner (Dirty Three, Tren Brothers). The two enjoy moving at an unhurried pace, but what: here’s their third album in less than five years! Jay Marie, Comfort Me releases March 28, 2025 — the lead single “Take Me To Your Infinite Garden” is out today with a music video by Charlie Hillhouse.

On “Take Me... (read more)

On Geologist & D.S.’s forthcoming record A Shaw Deal, out January 31, Animal Collective’s Brian Weitz works a variety of loops and edits through his modular system to lovingly reorder a few short minutes of fine folk guitar chops and magic vibe from Sleepy Doug Shaw. A mesmerizing pool of new pleasing shapes resulted from this process, all sampled from a handful of videos Doug posted online — no additives. Ahead of the release, “Loose Gravel” comes trickling out today with a crushed-up visualizer.

Loops... (read more)