Listening to “Breakfast for 2” feels like a Sunday morning in Long Beach, waking up to the sea breeze and overcast skies with the victorious partiers from the long night before—it’s the perfect accompaniment to a stroll through the neighborhood to the diner at 11:30 AM. ►

Used to Yesterday is darker than most pop-informed records, offering a nuanced take on the form that celebrates its cracks and inner connections, and suggesting directions the genre could potentially visit. They’re like the West Coast cousins of Galaxie 500 or even Luna, and yeah, I know, Dean Wareham, but this could be Smokescreens' Penthouse. ►

I’m writing in the middle of a heat wave while trapped in the hottest room in the house without AC, and Here Lies Man has become more than metaphor. It’s the essential state of suffering—the very reality of being!—and You Will Know Nothing becomes the soundtrack to said suffering, comprehensively embodying the sweltering undulating rhythm of pure heat. ►

What I want now more often than anything is an expert songwriter’s understanding of hooks and melody that can get to the center of my brain and make me feel like life could be OK, if only for the short time I’m listening. Not everything has to be Brechtian alienation. Some things just make you feel better, and that’s what the Blank Tapes do best. ►

“Hello Kitty Knife” is the first track of Peach Kelli Pop’s new Gentle Leader and the most accurate description of the sound the band has sharpened the last few years. It’s cute but fierce and delightful yet dangerous, and it’s some of Peach Kelli Pop’s most propulsive pop punk yet. ►

It’s more a natural continuation of the sounds the Underground Railroad To Candyland was exploring, rather than the more aggressive Toys That Kill material. More than anything, Preacher Maker sounds fresh, passionate, and exciting. The songs—even when they’re dealing with darker themes±are vibrant and captivating, and add even more to Todd’s already impressive body of songwriting. ►