On this edition of LITM Rock Picks, the tracks take on an intense, quick-paced tone that builds. Some songs explore the questions that play on the mind, while others reflect on the questionable ethos that forms the basis of the world we live in—featuring West Friends, Velvet Sun, Tantrum Zentrum and more!
Read MoreLITM Rock Picks features Matt C. White, Johnny Barr, Girona City Boy, and other talented musicians
This edition of LITM Rock Picks brings riveting releases from artists Matt C. White, RAAR Trio, Johnny Barr, Arn-Identified Flying Objects and Alien Friends, and Girona City Boy.
Read MoreLITM Rock Picks Tunes That Are Just Perfect For You Featuring M. Spano, Camryn Quinlan, Vanderwolf and more!
LITM Rock Picks Tunes Brought to You By M. Spano, Camryn Quinlan, Vanderwolf, Milk Buttons and Sehore
M. Spano - Long Time Comin’
With the first strum, M. Spano's Long Time Comin' draws you into a world of nostalgia, love, and long-awaited realization. With warm guitar melodies and heartbeat drumbeats, the song is like golden-hour light streaming through car windows—hopeful, exciting, and deeply personal. Spano's voice is silk-smooth, with quiet confidence, as though someone finally embracing the love they've always dreamed of.
The chorus erupts with sizzling guitars and heart-thumping rhythm, and the lyrics express the sense of hesitant uncertainty giving way to certainty. And just as you'd think things can't get any more thrilling, Spano breaks into a soaring guitar solo that transports the song to anthemic heights.
By the end, Long Time Comin' leaves you breathless, wrapped up in the glow of a long-awaited romance. Spano blends nostalgia and new energy with ease, and you can be certain he's resurrecting early 2000s love.
2. Camryn Quinlan – ex box
Camryn Quinlan’s ex box transforms a simple breakup relic into a powerful pop anthem. With sleek electronic beats and warm organic instrumentation, the song feels cinematic, like a late-night reflection with old love letters scattered across the bed. Quinlan’s honey-smooth vocals make the heartbreak feel deeply personal yet universally relatable.
Directed by Baldvin Hlynsson, ex box was penned as a freshman by Quinlan, who drew inspiration from the nostalgic pieces of a former love. Years later, the song now bears the burden of time, resonating with the bitter sweet pain of release. "Keeping those physical memories almost kept the person in my life," she says—a feeling that rings true for anyone who's ever clung to an ex box of their own.
With inspirations such as Taylor Swift and Kacey Musgraves, Quinlan writes a song that's painfully authentic but irresistibly catchy. It's the ideal soundtrack for that final trip down memory lane.
3. Vanderwolf – A Time To Die
Vanderwolf's A Time To Die is a hazy, ethereal song that converts existential questions into musical verse. Spurred on by an unsettled plane ride to Amsterdam, the tune glides across sparkling tones, soft brass, and an unnerving melody incorporating pop, R&B, and psychedelic rock.
Lyrically, Vanderwolf conveys the fear of death, as he sings, "Can it make much sense / Tossed in turbulence / With the ones you love so far behind?" His ethereal vocals float on top of a dreamy soundscape, presenting introspection as well as refuge. The production, courtesy of Chris Cordoba and Sam Sallon, imbues the tune with depth and texture, rendering the song to feel like an instant frozen in time.
With a career that has run the gamut from New York to London to L.A., Vanderwolf still stretches musical boundaries. A Time To Die is a hypnotic, introspective track-one that plays over and over again in your head long after the last note sounds.
4. Milk Buttons – Love and War
Milk Buttons' Love and War is stunningly complex mixing of jazz, indie, Americana, and psychedelic rock. It begins with a hypnotic contrast—spattered drums and peaceful, Eastern-inflected piano melodies—before slowly building in layers of harmonies, strings, and textural instrumentation to create a lush sound world.
In spite of the complexity, each piece of music has a place, interweaving effortlessly into the canvas of the song. There's no jockeying for room; rather, the music ebbs and grows, sounding closer to a precision-crafted composition than a live jam session.
With influences ranging from new wave to alt-folk, Love and War is impossible to categorize but flourishes in its individuality. Milk Buttons creates a track that doesn't beg for attention but repays those who listen intently. A hypnotic, immersive experience, this is music that refuses to be pigeonholed—giving something new with each repeat listen.
5. Sehore – Safari
Spanish alternative rock project Sehore makes a strong statement with Safari, an experimental song that marries outside composition with socially profound commentary. Constructed on the seldom-employed whole-tone scale, the song is atmospherically eerie and otherworldly yet somehow still radio-friendly.
Lyrically, Safari addresses aporophobia—the aversion or fear of poverty—challenging listeners to consider societal prejudices. As part of Sehore's debut album Ladencia, the song emphasizes their trademark blend of kitschy visuals and raw, natural textures. Recorded at Paco Loco Studio and mastered by Mario G. Alberni, Safari features a precise production that balances complexity with emotional impact.
Sehore's distinctive musicianship isn't going unnoticed—the project received a Silver Medal at the Global Music Awards for Pesadilla, showing their forward-thinking sound is getting picked up. With Safari, Sehore keeps pushing what alternative rock sounds like, creating music that's both cerebral and sonically bold.
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LITM Rock Picks Featuring Hotel Mira, Chantal Acda, Cleo Handler and More!
On this edition of LITM Rock Picks, songs play with guitar-led melodies to flit from sarcastic indifference and deep heartache to settling realisation that helps with moving on and along. The list features artists like Hotel Mira, Chantal Acda, Cleo Handler and more!
Read MoreLITM Singer-Songwriter Picks features Claudio Olachea, dr.rift, Hybrid Kid, and other exquisite artists
In this edition of LITM Singer-Songwriter Picks, experience absorbing themes and hard-to-forget tunes from artists Claudio Olachea, dr.rift, Hybrid Kid, Caitty, and Bailey Perrie.
Read MoreLITM Rock Picks featuring Aluminum Boys, Michellar, Spinafex and More!
In this edition of LITM Rock Picks, the tracks balance bright swells with dark edges, while celebrating every twist and turn that comes with being human. Each track feels as though it builds and blooms into something expansive. Featuring Aluminum Boys, Michellar, Spinafex and more!
Read MoreLITM Pop Picks featuring River Toussaint, Evelí Ray, Majka_hp and More!
In this edition of LITM Pop Picks, each track uses different elements across genres, each taking on unique characteristics. From seductive commitment to empowering optimism, each song tells a story rooted in pop’s cross-genre cross-pollination. Featuring River Toussaint, Evelí Ray, Majka_hp and more!
Read MoreLITM Pop Picks features Amy-Lin Slezak, Richard Tyler Epperson, Cinnamon Rayne, and other remarkable artists
This edition of LITM Pop Picks brings a mosaic of genres and stories woven into riveting soundscapes from artists Amy-Lin Slezak, Richard Tyler Epperson, Cinnamon Rayne, Besides, and LUNA & The Gents.
Read MoreLITM Singer-Songwriter Picks featuring Brooke Moriber, E.W. Harris, Dee Armstrong and More!
On this edition of LITM Singer-Songwriter Picks, guitars and strings mingle to create songs that move down towards melancholy. Each song holds in them melodies that feel chill-inducing and movingly familiar. Features artists Brooke Moriber, E.W. Harris, Dee Armstrong and more!
Read MoreLITM Rock Picks Tunes That'll Burn Into Your Mind Brought To You Pilots, The Sundials, Lemon and More!
LITM Rock Picks Tunes Featuring Pilots, The Sundials, Lemon, Under Starling and SANSOM.
Pilots - Leave Someone
"Pilots' ' Leave Someone' is a five-minute alt-rock behemoth that fuses Brit-rock throwback and contemporary heft. From the introduction sequence, the song holds the listener in a firm, vice-like grip through a dense, propulsive bassline that resonates tantalizingly with gorgeous, melodic guitar playing. Drawing influences from Muse, Biffy Clyro, and even the anthemic energy of Oasis, Pilots create something at once recognisable and energising.".The manner in which the chorus builds and explodes is near cinematic- as though the helicopter is lifting off into the sky- providing chills. It's one of those songs that you want to turn up loud and envelop yourself with waves of emotion and adrenaline. With "Leave Someone," Pilots show that they're so much more than just another alt-rock outfit; they're a mission-band, a band with a cause that is just beginning to leave their mark.
2. The Sundials - Finally Free
"The Sundials' 'Finally Free' is a triumphant return for the Adelaide band, a soulful, cathartic anthem born from personal as well as professional struggles. Blending old-school rock swagger with sunshine harmonies redolent of '70s folk-rock, the track recalls a fusion of Sam & Dave's gospel fervor and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young's poignantly bittersweet words.".
Frontman Dieter Horvat leads the way with a reading of raw, emotional vocals, and saxman Daisy Davidson injecting shots of heat into the fray. Toby Johnson's drumwork and Paddy Maddern's bass drive the song to its galvanizing climax, a chorus of emancipation and new birth. "Finally Free" is no simply a breakup song, but an anthem—a band exorcism of tragedy and a bold move into what is next.
3. Lemon - Gimme Something True
Lemon's "Gimme Something True," featuring Cath Coffey, is a ballad that gently tests the limits of exposure in indie rock. Its delicate, piano-and-guitar construction is warm, settled, like a gentle pleading for truth from a relationship.
The language- delivered with a poise of restraint and desire—is underscored with the worth of emotional exposure. The song's melody builds steadily, like the spread arms of two hands in peaceful comfort. At the final build of the chorus, the song achieves a point of resolution, wrapping the listener in a coating of comforting consideration. "Gimme Something True" isn't just a song; it's a comfort invitation to drop your guard and seek sincerity.
4. Under Starling - Birdwatching
"Birdwatching" by Under Starling is a beautiful mix of alt-rock and folktronica with richly embedded Irish southeast seaboard scenery. The track narrates two lovers luxuriating in their final moments together before they must be parted—echoed in the short flight of birds on a puff of wind.
The track blooms from a whispered, indie-guitar introduction to a sweeping, cinematic peak that so aptly catches the vastness of the Irish sky and the poignant pang of departure. Molly Robb's softly rendered vocals glide beautifully along with the lead, creating an unearthly texture that gives depth to the song's emotional impact. "birdwatching" is a poignant journey through love, nature, and the irreversible passage of time—a tune that lingers in the mind long after the last note falls.
5. SANSOM - Burn The Bridges
SANSOM's "Burn the Bridges" is a firecracker of a rock anthem loaded with raw energy and emotive dynamite. The CD was recorded at Brighton Electric Studios, and the song has the unrelenting energy of Queens of the Stone Age and Foo Fighters, combined with heavy riffs and anthemic melodic hooks.
From the very first pounding drumbeat, the song keeps the listener in a state of tension that will not let go. The soaring vocals ride atop a sea of massive instrumentation, and there is a dynamic struggle between control and chaos. The standout lyric—"Burn the bridges to light the way"—isn't just a hook; it's a mantra for anyone who desires to leave the past behind and forge a new path forward.
The recording is unpolished but polished, with a spotless balance of melody and rage. "Burn the Bridges" is a mission statement, a threat that SANSOM is a rock band ready to shake the very foundations of the genre. With this being the inaugural of four releases in the pipeline, it's clear they're only getting started—and they're bringing fire with them.
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LITM Pop Picks features Francesca Pichierri, Jessenation, Eleri Ward, and other refreshing artists
This edition of LITM Pop Picks brings vibrant, charged, and stirring soundscapes from Francesca Pichierri, Jessenation, Eleri Ward, In The Afterglow, and LTB.
Read MoreLITM Rock Picks featuring David Bell, Aderyn, The Domi and More!
In this edition of LITM Rock Picks, a sense of bright calm and deep intensity that draws the listener in. This list of songs takes on emotions ranging from light optimism to deep, guarded intensity, and everything in between. Featuring artists David Bell, Aderyn, The Domi, and more!
Read MoreLITM Singer-Songwriter Picks features talented musicians Michellar, Aaron Wylder, Kete Bowers, and others
This edition of LITM Singer-Songwriter Picks showcases timeless atmospheres with contemporary wonder from artists Collaborations, Michellar, Aaron Wylder, Kete Bowers, and Ethan Loke.
Read MoreLITM Rock Picks featuring The Amber Bugs, Harpa, TJ Howlett and More!
On this edition of LITM Rock Picks, artists use their melodies and soundscapes to build on their song’s lyrical and narrative themes. Featuring The Amber Bugs, Harpa, TJ Howlett and more!
Read MoreLITM Singer-Songwriter Picks featuring Oaken Lee, Earl Patrick, Robin James Hurt and More!
This edition of LITM Singer-Songwriter Picks takes on all that is lost, longing to be found, and broken featuring Oaken Lee, Earl Patrick, Robin James Hurt and more!
Read MoreLITM Pop Picks features artists Dan Wilkie, Greg Hoy, Simeon Kirkegaard, and others
This edition of LITM Pop Picks brims with energy, emotion, and enigma showcasing gripping soundscapes from artists Dan Wilkie, Greg Hoy, Simeon Kirkegaard, Kevin McClure, and SEHORE.
Read MoreLITM Rock Picks showcases remarkable releases from artists The Bateleurs, ettie, SEHORE, and others
This edition of LITM Rock Picks brings passion, power, and perfection from artists The Bateleurs, ettie, SEHORE, Rosetta West, and The Transits.
Read MoreLITM Pop Picks Tunes That You Can Chill With Brought To You By Farbod, Trey Ewald, Claudia Balla and More!
LITM Pop picks tunes for you to chill with featuring Farbod, Trey Ewald, Claudia Balla, Larry Karpenko and Xy Gala!
Farbod - Brother
Farbod's "Brother" is an emotionally devastating pop ballad of hope, family, and childhood. The tune begins with a gentle piano melody, creating nostalgia and gentle power. Acoustic guitars and gentle percussion build up the instrumentation gradually, conjuring Avicii-esque emotional peaks, and the incorporation of lush strings and harmonies only makes it more emotionally impactful. Farbod's lyrics are inspirational and personal, recounting a story that is both universal and close at hand.The initial drop is held back, building up to the anthemic climax that comes afterwards. The change in the final chorus brings the song to a strangulation point of emotional climax, representing victory over vulnerability. "Brother" is a sincere oath to power and love, something anyone who keeps the unconquerable ties of family close to their heart will be able to relate to.
2. Trey Ewald - Every Other Month
"Trey Ewald's 'Every Other Month' is a slyly knowing pop sing-along about the spin on the merry-go-round of dating today. The song starts with a catchy, hooky theme that sets up the lighthearted but emotional question right away. Ewald's lyrics—honest and accessible—grapple with the irony of falling in love too frequently and too rapidly, just to experience some “heartache.".
The recording leans towards taut indie-pop textures, with skeletal rhythms and gummed-up vocal textures clinging to a fizzy atmosphere even when the lyrical charm is downbeat. The bare bridge of naked exposure adds gravity to what is otherwise frivolous material. Ewald walks a good tightrope between self-deprecating humor and actual heartfelt feeling, shaping "Every Other Month" into a song which has something for hopelessly romanticized and cynically predisposed listeners.
3. Claudia Balla - Imaginary Boyfriend
Claudia Balla's "Imaginary Boyfriend" is a rich and reflective pop song that unites contemporary electronic texture with age-old emotional reality. Through the otherworldly opening chords to the reflective lyrics, Balla leads listeners through the labyrinth of contemporary relationships. The song's story, constructing an imaginary relationship as a means of navigating the hurt of actual dating, is poignant and relatable.
Balla's classical background quietly informs in the arrangement of the song, with harmonies stacked and melodic richness elevating it above formula pop. The production is tastefully blended between modern pop beat and old-school undertones so that "Imaginary Boyfriend" is both modern and timeless. The song is an exemplary case of the quest for connection these days in the age of the internet, a combination of emotional appeal and catchy hook.
4. Larry Karpenko - Fare Thee Well
Larry Karpenko's "Fare Thee Well" is a peaceful and deeply emotive song that blends Christian contemporary values with worldwide notions of love and spirituality in harmony. The song begins with soothing piano chords setting a reflective mood, Karpenko's soft, ethereal voice. Production is deliberately understated, so the bare emotion of lyrics takes center stage.
Through the song, quiet rhythmic information and layered harmonies provide depth, generating a feeling of stagnated momentum. Arpeggiated chords and shimmering background textures provide a feeling of calm transcendence. The excellent performance by Karpenko, complemented by the song's positive message, makes "Fare Thee Well" a calming but deep experience that inspires reflection and hope.
5. Xy Gala - Lifeless Life
Xy Gala's "Lifeless Life" is an exhilarating mix of rock, contemporary trap, and alt-pop that captures the turmoil of balancing jobs, dreams, and relationships. The track starts with the dark, cinematic atmosphere and takes you along and the emotional journey continues. The gritty desperation and anthemic choruses that mount is the icing on the cake that lingers.
The production is lean and refined, every component—drum pounding, ambient synth, and fiery guitar solo—guiding along in collusion to produce a wraparound listen. Xy Gala's lyrics are introspective but otherworldly, a journalism of the neurosis of contemporary living. "Lifeless Life" is a testament to the artist's capability to produce clever and retrograde but irresistibly catchy music.
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Dawid Bestry, River Fury, JFT, and other compelling artists feature on LITM Rock Picks
This edition of LITM Rock Picks showcases striking soundscapes from artists Dawid Bestry, River Fury, JFT, Tim Camrose, and TOSPACEWEGO.
Read MoreLITM Rock Pick Tunes That Will Set The Vibe For You Featuring Here’s Your Martyr, Bureau De Change, Rough Born Legends and More!
LITM Rock picks tunes brought to you by Here’s Your Martyr, Bureau De Change, Rough Born Legends, Pascal & The Shades and Zachary Mason
Paid By Cash -Here’s Your Martyr
Your West Yorkshire shoegazers Paid By Cash is a maelstrom noise that draws you into its whirlpool centre. The song rages like a frenzy, brooding and inescapable, propelled by Ollie Carter's heavy vocals over the maelstrom quicksand of fizzing guitars and thudding drums. Carter's vocals veer between hold-back and sheer emotion, dancing atop the maelstrom soundscape like an ethereal spectre that can't be silenced.The combination of brooding basslines, strangling drumbeats, and wild guitars is claustrophobic yet strangely intimate. It's a sonic struggle between sanity and precision, perfectly choreographed to suspend ears on the brink. In its orchestral texture, the song develops as a slow-motion tempest, every beat drawing you into its emotional maelstrom.
Here's Your Martyr is an ode to Paid By Cash's skill in making songs linger, ask questions, and make one think. New listener or old, the track is a spellbinding entrance to the band's high-voltage world.
2. Bureau De Change - Dumb Men (Radio Edit)
Bureau De Change's Dumb Men is a scathing, unforgiving call to arms that wrestles with catcalling, rape culture, and toxic masculinity with moral indignation. Frontwoman Flora draws on lived experience in a bid to release a seething denunciation of social etiquette, converting anger into provocation. The phrase "Why don't you just get fucked?" growled with raw, poisoned venom, is as cathartic as it is provocative, cutting through the din on sheer anger.
Musically, the song is a whirlpool of anarchy—seething guitars, pounding bass, and furious drums all joining together to form a storm of sound. Avoiding accepted root chords is all it does, and it works in its defiant appeal, exactly capturing Flora's angry indignation. The entire song simply sounds like revolt, from its structurally disorganized nature to self-consciously blasphemous lyrics.
Dumb Men is more than a song, it's a call to freedom and responsibility. Bureau De Change releases a dirty and shameless message that cannot be overlooked, cementing them again as a band to keep an eye on in 2025.
3. Rough Born Legends - Bright Star
London's Rough Born Legends sparkles with Bright Star, a sparkling single that marries ancient rock roots with modern flash. Released at the start of 2025, the single distills the spontaneous chemistry between lead guitarist Riki Andov and bassist Paul Bown. Their music chemistry created out of Bandmix projects has treated the world to a song that is classic but original.
Taped in Andov's studio shed, Bright Star preserves the magic of middle-of-the-night jamming. The propulsive bass and classic guitar motifs open up a roomy, earthy space simultaneously. Lyrics, composed of astral metaphor and love poetry, create an atmosphere of wonder, inviting listeners to reflect on relationships and harmony.
Taking cues from such legends as David Bowie and Led Zeppelin, Rough Born Legends employs contemporary aspects to give meaning to their music so that it becomes more enticing in the contemporary era. Bright Star is thus a radio-friendly, emotionally engaging single. The track puts them squarely in the realm of rock music and with a rosy future ahead.
4. Pascal & The Shades - Danger Moon
Danger Moon by Pascal & The Shades is a psychedelic ride on psychedelic rock and experimental folk. Composed by Paschalis Kalogeroudis, the song conjures an extraterrestrial magic through reflective verses accompanied by intergalactic melodies. The worlds of the song are expansive in scope, blending filigree guitar textures with inescapable rhythms to present an experiential experience.
The music explores emotion and transcendence, leading the listener to a realm of introspection where fantasy and reality cannot be separated from one another. Kalogeroudis' singing, backed by the band's virtuoso musicianship, creates an atmosphere that is both haunting and comforting. Danger Moon is an auditory journey into the unknown, a trip to the bottom of human relationships and self-awareness.
Pascal & The Shades will not be bound by the trappings of their genre, making music that lingers in the head hours after the last note. Danger Moon is a creative vision, providing music from another world that needs to be heard again and again.
5. Zachary Mason - I Wish Humans Were Made In A Factory
Zachary Mason's I Wish Humans Were Made In A Factory is a free-form, mind-stretching adventure into the nuts and bolts of humanity. Starting from disillusion public and private, the song meshes scorching lyrics with a catchy indie rock rhythm to become a song both as captivating and unsettling.
Mason's vocal inflection is drenched in desperation, fluctuating between reporter-like matter-of-factness and the occasional spasms of zealotry. Phrases such as "Bitter glances. Angry eyes. Messed-up minds in messed-up lives!" summarize the angst and irony of his accounts of the flaws of life. Using the human-being-as-factory-product cliche ridiculed the sloppiness of life and taunts the fallacy of perfectionism.
Musically, the album is a raw, gritty indie rock gem. Gritty grungy guitar riffing, hyperkinetic keyboard textures, and pounding rhythm section are exactly the right attitude for Mason's thoughtful rambles. Its raw-around-the-edges accessibility and in-your-face lyricism, I Wish Humans Were Made In A Factory is a classic record that has a field day with Mason's unapologetic creativity.
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