#NewMusicFriday: July 4th 2025

It seems a noteworthy festival or major stadium show is happening every weekend at the moment. While Oasis‘ reunion kicks off this weekend and we bid farewell to Black Sabbath for the final, there is still the small matter of #NewMusicFriday.

Although there isn’t an extensive list of releases out today, that doesn’t mean there’s nothing to ignore. In fact, as you can see from the round-up below, there’s a handful of new releases that are worth checking out. Whether that be the debut album from the genre-fusing mob Jools, the return of emo/math favourites Lakes, or the simply stunning new album from post-rock specialists We Lost The Sea. There are also my brief thoughts on new EPs from Scottish alt-metallers Sixth Wonder and ethereal doom band Leonov.

Elsewhere, West Midlands duo Big Special surprise release their second album, ‘National Average.’ It sees Joe Hicklin and Callum Moloney ruminate on how their lives are changing, wrestling with guilt while still being depressed, all in their usual poetic tongue. US Celtic punks Dropkick Murphys mark America’s Day of Independence with their outspoken 13th album, ‘For The People’.

Earlier this week, American Football digitally released a live album. Recorded over two nights in Los Angeles, it captures last year’s  25th-anniversary tour for their self-titled debut. You can also watch the concert film, which includes interviews with Ethel Cain, Yvette Young, and M.A.G.S..

There are also releases from UK-based Brazilian street-ghetto punk band Fantazmaz, Scarlxrd, Gaupa, Merpire, Dads on Couches, and more.

Jools – Violent Delights

There is an assured confidence that oozes through Jools‘ debut album, ‘Violent Delights’. Led by co-vocalists Kate Price and Mitch Gordon, the Leicester/London sextet fuses elements of punk, metal, rap, post-hardcore, post-punk, and hip-hop into tales of addiction, identity, ambition, and more. Songs like ‘Cardinal’ charge with lyrical defiance, wrapped in an affective spoken-sung, post-punk style.

Previous single, ‘Mother Monica’, sharply rides a punk-fuelled train of sin before ‘Live Deliciously’ swaggers with bloodthirsty lust. Gordon’s words are feral and bruising, before Price’s verses flip typical gender tropes, providing a biting, commanding, and unapologetically provocative narrative. ‘Limerence’ blurs the lines of desire and desperation, maintaining the lyrically enticing theme that threads its web throughout ‘Violent Delights’. Away from its lustful spine, songs like ‘Knee Injury’ are introspective. Expressing creative frustration, it bounces between self-loathing and determination, allowing Price and Gordon to be equally confrontational and vulnerable.

Read our full review here

Lakes – Slow Fade

Ever since being introduced to Lakes through their ‘Constance’ LP in 2019, there’s a pleasing earnestness to what the Watford collective has served up. Having treaded their toes in post-rock on 2023’s ‘Elysian Skies,’ their fourth album is a culmination of everything they’ve done so far. On the surface, ‘Slow Fade’ utilises and blends elements of post-rock, math rock, and emo, yet simultaneously expands their abilities. In turn, it moulds itself into becoming Lakes‘ most concise album.

‘Annecy’ opens proceedings with sepia-toned acoustics and midwestern swoons before seguing into a rising chord progression, providing a familiar warmth that Lakes so often produce. The strong momentum is aided by ‘Trouble’s colourful percussion and playful guitar melodies, allowing the six-piece to showcase their anthemic capabilities (‘Edge of Reason’ also achieves this later on). ‘Peach Fuzz’ continues to be a twinkling rush of indie-emo goodness, aided by its sturdy rhythm section.

Read our full review here.

We Lost The Sea – A Single Flower

If you’re a fan of post-rock, then you will be aware of the cult-like status We Lost The Sea‘s 2015 album, ‘Departure Songs’ has. Hearlded as a modern classic, it captured everything great about the genre; cinematic storytelling that allowed listeners to be enveloped by its emotion without a single word being sung. While the Aussie outfit will be marking ‘Departure Songs’ 10th anniversary at ArcTanGent next month, they’re also looking forward.  ‘A Single Flower’ is the band’s first full-length since 2019’s ‘Triumph & Disaster’. Although it has been quite some time since the sextet delivered new music, it’s certainly be worth the wait.

With track titles such as ‘A Dance with Death,’ ‘Everything Here Is Black and Blinding,’ and ‘The Gloaming,’ ‘A Single Flower’ suggests We Lost The Sea are heading into bleak territory. However, they once again show a proven ability to balance the darkness with the light, constantly constructing compelling numbers.  At an hour and 11 minutes, ‘A Single Flower’ requires patience, yet when it delivers its stunning.

Take ‘A Dance with Death’ for example. With its chugging, intense bass intro, shimmering guitars, and towering chord progression, it builds a mental image of growing panic. As sharp distortion guitars briefly piece through, we’re left with a dystopian aftermath of baron guitars. Its finale builds to a superb, majestic crescendo that sees We Lost The Sea truly flourish. Meanwhile, ‘Everything Here is Black and Blinding’ billows with trepidation, utilising a polyrhythmic guitar to create an uneasy atmosphere. While its pulsating bass drum merely adds to the emotional intensity that WLTS pull off so well (and so often).

Read our full review here.

Sixth Wonder – Prologue

Glasgow’s Sixth Wonder are picking up momentum. With major radio airplay and notable support slots under their belt, the quartet have delivered their debut EP, ‘Prologue’. Having released a handful of singles since forming, ‘Prologue’ sounds like a band who have settled on an identity. It has potential, yet isn’t entirely original.

Nevertheless, ‘Ropeburn’ and ‘Thorn’ set the template with a favourable mix of atmospheric metalcore and djent. Meanwhile, Rebekah Kirk demonstrates her vocal range with soaring melodies and throat-shredding growls. Dylan McVey and Nathan McDowall trade heavy, frenzied riffs with drummer Sean Love adding to the hefty weight provided. The former (‘Thorns’) makes good use of building suspense towards a blistering breakdown. It’s countered by ‘Guts’ urgency with Kirk’s barking vocals and nu-metal stomp. Closing track, ‘Death Departed’ achieves what Sixth Wonder aim to do. Blending towering cinematic hooks with big, heavy guitars and penetrative drums, it sees the quartet end the EP on a strong note.

As a collective, Sixth Wonder musically has the ideas and skills to stand out from others at their level, especially with the powerful and versatile vocals of Kirk at their disposal. As its title suggests, this is just the beginning for them. While their next chapter has plenty of promise, it’ll be interesting to see if they can flesh out ideas to continue the momentum they’ve gained.

Leonov – Shape of Ash

With summer in full swing, a bit of celestial doom metal isn’t exactly the soundtrack you want as you deal with the heat. Nevertheless, there is something magnetic about Leonov‘s latest offering, ‘Shape of Ash’. Its four songs prove to be an entrancing collection, taking on themes of helplessness, uncertainty, conflict and resolution. Threaded by a cavernous production, it ebbs and flows with a fitting mystique.

The comparisons to the likes of Cult of Luna, Julie Christmas, and Chelsea Wolfe are easy yet understandable. Tåran Reindal’s haunting vocals provide a contrast to the post- and doom metal provided by her bandmates. From the outset, ‘Samaritan’ sets the tone with its brooding pacing, utilising drone elements as smoky guitars drift in with Reindal’s beguiling voice. Even when the heaviness arrives, her voice glides over. Meanwhile, Tåran bandmates, guitarists Rune Gilje and Ole Jørgen Reindal, drummer Jon-Vetle Lunden, and bassist Morten Kjelling, constantly build tension through dark, drawn-out instrumentation. ‘Auld Ashok’ ideally follows with its cold tempo, tip-toeing along spaciously, restricting Leonov from steering off the icy path.

The sense of trepidation is threaded throughout these four songs. ‘Bygg en menneskekropp’ sees Reindal be joined by Norwegian folk singer Syvert Feed (Jake Ziah), dueting on an equally bleak and tender number. Lunden’s low-end drums anchor the track’s earthly tone, making it a haunting highlight. Whereas its title track closes the outing with a sense of finality. Thematically serving as a cleansing, Reindal’s fragile and spacious words ruminate alongside a dark, pensive build that leaves you hanging, waiting to throw you into the fire. As the stirring guitars unravel themselves, Reindal’s harmonious tongue serves as a cathartic release.

Although Leonov has been a band for 15 years, ‘Shape of Ash’ feels like a good entry point to what they’re about. The aforementioned comparisons are on point, and are aided by a slow-burning approach that is equally tender and heavy.

What is out on #NewMusicFriday?

BIG SPECIAL – National Average
Dropkick Murphys – For The People (Digital only)
American Football – American Football (Live in Los Angeles)
Lakes – Slow Fade
We Lost The Sea – A Single Flower
Jools – Violent Delights
Sixth Wonder – Prologue
Leonov – Shape of Ash
Fantazmaz – Fantazmaz
Scarlxrd – Penance
Gaupa – FYR
Oceanica – Try Not To Dwell On It
Merpire – Milk Pool
Joe Stump’s Tower of Babel – Days of Thunder
Dads on Couches – After Two Years Of Grinding, All We Have Are These Measly Demos
A November Morning – In The Shadows Of Absence
Our North – Everyone For Themselves
Warkings – Armageddon
House Of Anxiety – Fear // Life
Backstabbed – Self-Fulfilling Tragedy
Various Artists – Pop Goes Hardcore: Volume 3

If you think I’ve missed something or have a new album/EP/song to tell us about, tell us about it here.

If you’re looking for the latest tracks focusing on rock, punk, hardcore, metal, emo, and everything in between, then check out our ‘Newish Music’ playlist on Spotify or Apple Music.