Quick Spins takes a quick look at recently released albums to make certain you're listening to all the quality music being released these days. And with today being Bandcamp Friday, I'm hoping some of the words below will spur you to actually listen to, and then buy, these excellent new releases today while all the dough goes directly to the artists!
When I first listened to Lavalove's Tan Lines I hadn't read the press release or looked at the photos that it came with and had no idea what to expect. From the opening moments this album sheared off my eyebrows and resulted in uncontrollable and joyous bouncing around. Huge crunchy riffs, clear productions, vocals that won't be ignored bolstered by waves of backing vocals that keep crashing over you. Lavalove is based on the West Coast, and every song on this album sounds like a day at the beach (or at the party at the bar after the beach). A run through Lavalove's previous albums does show the throughline as they developed from a more noodly, indie singer-songwriter construct and then gradually morphed into the current incarnation of boisterous rawk and/or rollers. Discovering this album was one of the more delightful experiences thus far this year. May it have the same effect on you.
Looking through their past tour dates it appears they've stuck mostly to the West Coast and have never played Chicago, but I'm crossing my fingers that changes soon because I need to see this band live.
Tan Lines by Lavalove
Gladie
No Need To Be Lonely
I'll be upfront with you. I was really, really anticipating the new album from Gladie. 2022's Don't Know What You're In Until You're Out was one of my favorites of that year, and when I learned No Need To Be Lonely was coming out I pre-ordered it months in advance. And when it arrived in March it was one of those few albums that you not only get unreasonably excited about, but is well worth the wait. Augusta Koch is the kind of artist who writes lyrics that sound like they're coming from inside your own head. There's an authorial clarity that immediately makes you feel like you're listening to a good friend, but your good friend's soliloquy is backed by some of the tightest, most energetic music you could imagine. It creates a weird headspace where you can rock the fuck out to this, or you can get lost in your thoughts pondering the emotionality in a more singular manner. No matter what headspace this creates for you though, I think you'll walk away agreeing with me this will end up being recognized as one of the best albums of 2026.
No Need To Be Lonely by gladie
Sub*T's Grace Bennett and Jade Alcantara met on Twitter and turned their shared fandom of pop groups into an IRL friendship, leading to them creating a band that has nothing in common with the sound of those pop groups they loved together, but with a heart and immediacy many of those glossier combos never attain due to the needs of the more massive mega-pop machines. Which is to say Bennett and Alcantara picked up some guitars and channeled their twin passion into a sound of their own. Yes, Sub*T shares many sonic similarities with the melodic indie guitar rock that really surged in the late '90s or so, but they've taken those ancient guideposts and made it into something truly their own. I'm looking forward to seeing where they go from here, but for now here is the perfect place to be for these two.
How My Own Voice Sounds by Sub*T
The Pretty Flowers
Never Felt Better
The Pretty Flowers are based on the West Coast, but their sound has a real Midwestern edge. Perhaps their singer's recent-ish move from Koreatown to the more sedate Sierra Madre area explains that? But this is really enjoyable hard power-pop with a three day’s growth of sonic scruff to keep things from feeling too slick. This is the sound of the sustained heights of a rambunctious house party stretched over 2 sides of vinyl (or a couple digital files, whichever you prefer). Feel like bouncing around today? This has you covered. Feel like crying in your beer illuminated by a dust covered bar window doing it's best to keep the sun from fighting its way into the room in the late afternoon? This has you covered there too.
Never Felt Bitter by The Pretty Flowers
Family Worship Center
Only Visiting
Do you remember the episode of The Leftovers with the cold open of a bygone doomsday religious community gone wrong? Family Worship Center is the sound of that community gone right. Though I strongly suspect that Family Worship Center has their collective tongues nearly bursting through their collective cheek. But think '70s easy soft rock with a horn-driven bite and vocals that lead, intertwine and then blend into a cushiony pillow of layered group harmonies always threading through the background. Opening track "Malibu By Midnight" is an excellent introduction to the group, and you like that tune, you will want the entire album.
Only Visiting by Family Worship Center
This feels more like a public service message for the one or two of you that might have missed Robyn releasing a new album after too long a break. On Sexistential Robyn returns as a single mom who still wants to work out her problems on the dance floor, even with the condition that the "club" is a state of mind and no longer such a dependable location. If this is what dance pop sounds like when it grows up, I can't wait for more artists to grow up.
Obviously if you like fun, feelings, and a phalanx of grooves that will merge with essential parts of your being without you even knowing it, then you should probably check out Sexistential.
Sexistential by Robyn