Art pop quartet Sure Sure first caught our attention with songs like "New Biome" and "The Expert," both of which brought a slick pop sound with an inventive stroke. A year later, the band is expanding their reach with their latest single, "Hands Up Head Down," where they let their funky selves free with a slinky groove that recalls the sumptuous prog-pop of Genesis and Steely Dan. The track benefits from these odd sonic contrivances that add to its overall playfulness, but never do they lose sight of a catchy, earworm chorus that might just place them on commercial rock radio. Even if they light the room with a breezy and easygoing disposition, their careful attention to detail on "Hands Up Head Down" proves they’re intent on writing songs that are flat-out fun without undermining their own intelligence.

Sure Sure are playing The Fonda on January 28, 2018 supporting Hippo Campus.

Caroline Kingsbury has dropped a single from her upcoming LP with Northern Transmissions, “Alone Again”. Fresh from Nashville, this emerging artist is creating a brand new name for herself in her new home of Los Angeles. Kingsbury has a similar aesthetic to Lana Del Ray but creates her own dreamy pop chords, smooth vocal transitions, and catchy drumbeats. Her poptastic sound creates the perfect mood for any lazy day drinking by yourself, long night drives with your best friend or dancing when no one is looking. Kingsbury’s heart bleeds through her music; she speaks volumes to those struggling through a changing period in their life. Fighting alone through every situation you find yourself in, and figuring it out alone. Not only an inspiration to me, but anyone who travels and moves a lot, picking up and leaving everything behind you is a lot harder than people think. This song is our anthem, and I thank her for that. Sometimes it takes a few falls in order to pick yourself back up. – Kayla Hay

Pair of Arrows recently released their latest single, "Walls," an explicit meditation into the changing dynamics of love expressed in a lush and ominous downtempo groove. Taken from their upcoming debut EP of the same name, the electronic art pop trio modernize the chilling sounds of 4AD-informed goth pop with a seductive, spine-tingling allure.

WALLS comes out on September 29 via Blank City Records.

Sun Colony have been fortunate enough to acquire one hell of a press release tagline. Just recently, the psych rock-leaning quartet received an unexpected ringing endorsement from none other than Slowdive’s Neil Halsted. Even if Halsted may know a thing or two about a genre he helped pioneer, the question remains: is it really any good? Well, the good news about the Topanga Canyon band’s self-titled EP is that it doesn’t try to reproduce a tired facsimile of Slowdive’s incandescent melancholy. They approach a more sunburned form of post-rock with just a taste of classic Britpop, which is fitting given that their EP was mixed in the U.K. after rising local producer Kyle Mullarky gave their ascending, yet oblique structures a hypnotic aura.

Sun Colony’s debut EP is out now via all streaming platforms. A 12’’ release will follow in the next 1-2 months via their official website.

Dinner, the synth pop project of Danish producer/vocalist Anders Rhedin, is a suave wanderer on the video for his latest single, "Siren Song." The Copenhagen via L.A. transplant gallivants to the night’s natural rhythm with a coquettish demeanor, thinking about his pleasure-filled day as he flirts straight into the camera with his boyish, yet penetrating eyes. Rhedin is simply having fun with it, taking cues from the New Romantics who made the boys and girls swoon back in the golden age of MTV. 

"Siren Song" is taken from Dinner’s recent second effort, New Work, which is out now via Captured Tracks. Get lost in his dreamy vision when he plays The Bootleg Theatre on October 1st. 

Cones, the songwriting duo of brothers Jonathan and Michael Rosen, first caught our attention earlier this year with the winding, Laurel Canyon-informed single “Echoes on.” Since then, they’ve aimed to buck that convention with their latest, “Whatever You’re Into,” a mellow, romantic soft-rock jam that leans towards a more cosmopolitan sound. The Rosens may have taken a slightly new direction, but they’re still committed to the groove, further stretching their musical ideas rather than sticking to a fixed format.

Watch Cones perform at the Bootleg on September 28.

A feeling of impending dread surrounds Raener’s latest single, "No Sun." The four piece (Daniel Fox, Willem Erin, Zachary Bilson, Daniel Vanchieri) fabricate intricate synth textures that repel like molecules, navigating through a vast, empty soundscape that slowly intensifies. It becomes increasingly discordant, yet never loses its rhythmic footing, as it transforms into a morass of sonic chaos that produces a dynamic aural experience.

"No Sun" is taken from Raener’s upcoming EP, EP 1, which is due on October 6 via Danger Collective Records.

Phoebe Bridgers has just released her newest music video for “Motion Sickness”, and it is artistically phenomenal. Lyrically, this single has me shook with the way Bridgers adequately describes her emotions through a nostalgic story. The simplicity of her voice quiets your mind as you watch and listen to an honest depiction of her life. This single resonates a lot with me, coming from a place where you don’t feel whole: “There are no words in the English language, I could use to drown you out.” I don’t know what I love more: the creativity of Justin Mitchell’s music video, pinpointing the child-like references and intertwining them with adult problems, or Bridgers’s true self coming through in her lyrics. Either way, they are both beautifully revitalizing.

“Motion Sickness” is just one single off of Bridgers’s debut album, Stranger In The Alps, which is out on September 22 via Dead Oceans. Catch her play a headline show on September 21 at Highland Park Ebell. – Kayla Hay

The Great Escape brings on the funk on "Let Me Go Wild." Fronted by Ingrid Andersson’s chirpy yet commanding vocals, the Venice-based band feed from a miscellany of influences ranging from classic soul to sleek pop rock. "Wild" takes many stylistic shifts during its lively three minutes, touching on some neo-soul licks and brass band theatrics worthy of a grand romp. The trio wholly embraces the old in the new without resorting to shameless parody, and really, when you’re basing your song’s structure off of Tommy James & the Shondells’ classic "Mony Mony" you can’t do no wrong.

BAUM documents a moment of genuine self-discovery on "Hot Water." The buoyant electro-pop track gives us a glimpse into young adulthood with truthful insight, especially that moment when innocence begins to crumble without any warning. She makes a pithy observation with utmost confidence when it leads into the chorus: "You think of sex when I / spin in this dress / but I’ve never done much at all," she sings, adorned with a gruff yet sweet vocal style that could develop into a potential powerhouse.

BAUM is scheduled to perform at The Satellite on September 8.

Wait. Think. Fast. reach a transcendent state on their latest single, "Count No Count." The husband-and-wife duo of Matthew Beighley and Jacqueline Santillan Beighley captivate with a slow-building rocker that aims for an emotional apex. Santillan Beighley repeatedly mutters "Higher and higher and higher" with sheer delight, with a haunting voice that accentuates each measure as Beighley’s prickly guitar creates a spacious, meditative soundscape.

"Count No Count" is the first single off of Wait. Think. Fast.’s forthcoming full-length, Dale Tiempo, which is due out on October 20. Catch them play a hometown show at the Echo on September 9.

Kate Clover, front-runner and official ‘bad-ass’ of Ex Sage, will be releasing her newest EP, Total Devotion, on September 22. The EP’s first single, “Under Your Spell”, is a balanced blend of the sweet soulful melodies of Stevie Nicks and the dirty garage rock of The Strokes. Clover’s talent is unparalleled to other rockers in her genre, as she fearlessly taught herself to play every instrument you hear (minus the drums). Her eccentric lifestyle and abnormal influences has landed her on a spark that is just waiting to ignite.

ExSage will be playing at The Bootleg Theater on August 27, followed by an EP release at Moroccan Lounge on September 24. – Kayla Hay