Spencer Griffin's New Music Mondays

 here they are: "Coast" by Snocaps:  With Waxahatchee, Katie Crutchfield focused mostly on roots-y, country-ish sounds. With Snocaps, she seems more intent on bringing back the sounds of women from '90s alt-rock! Snocaps latest song, "Coast," gives off vibes of Liz Phair, PJ Harvey, The Breeders, Garbage, Cardigans, Luscious Jackson, and more. Fitting to its alt-rock spirit, "Coast" also has a minimalist lyrical approach (no chorus, 2 and a half minutes, less than 20 lines, repeating chord sequence throughout). The title of the song also seems like it has a double meaning, referring to both location and to its verbal use as a slangy synonym for "relax" ("I never could just coast"). Dry-witted, frustrated angst takes center stage here! "Future Soul" by The Tedeschi-Trucks Band:  As a blues-based band, it's only natural that Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks would have some rock and roll chops, but they've never rocked...

 here they are: "A Perfect Storm" by Jose Gonzalez:  "A Perfect Storm" IS a perfect storm - a perfect storm of melancholia, intensity, and calm in a single song! And it doesn't take that many instruments to do it either! In typical Jose style, acoustic guitar is the dominant instrument in this song, but he uses it in such a powerful way that I can't help but be drawn in. Jose's storm, lyrically, is a force of nature in more ways than one! The song is an eerily self-aware meditation and lament on how we are to blame for being the victims of our own impending doom. Phrases like "race against time" and "gambling with our common fate" indicate how Jose realizes that the human race has put itself in imminent danger. At least we get a good song out of it! "Back in Love" Suki Waterhouse:  One of the most insanely catchy songs of summer 2024 was Suki Waterhouse's indie-pop anthem, "Supersad"! Though her next single, ...

 here they are: "Beautiful" by Linda Perry (4 Non Blondes):  In the early days of the new millennium, this song became famous from Christina Aguilera's rendition of it. This version of the song (which is technically the original version, even though it got released much later) is pretty much the same as Christina's version, but with Linda Perry's vocals. Some might know Linda as the "What's Up?" singer (or more accurately, the "HEEY-YEEHH-YEH-EEEY, I SAID HEY! WHAT'S GOING ON?!" singer, since the phrase "What's Up?" is not said in the song itself), but after her brief glory days in 4 Non Blondes, she went quietly behind the scenes and started composing songs for major pop stars like Christina Aguilera, Pink, Gwen Stefani, and many others. Although I'm not too big on pop music, I still know what a major impact "Beautiful" had on post-millennial pop culture. The song's vulnerable tone and honest, soul-barin...

 here they are: "Mary Singletary" by Deer Tick:  If The Replacements did a song with satirical lyrics aimed at religious culture, it might sound a bit like Deer Tick's latest song, "Mary Singletary." The "Mary" in question is not a person, but a reference to the concept of "Hail Marys." Anyone who knows Deer Tick's music knows they're far from religious! Yet there are plenty of references to religion, perhaps specifically Catholicism, in "Mary Singletary." John McCauley sings of lust, drinking, and violence (albeit slapstick violence, even referencing Warner Brothers cartoons by name in the first verse) as he wrestles with his inner demons. I'm not sure if McCauley was raised Catholic, but if this song is anything to go by, I wouldn't be surprised if that were the case! "Riptides" by Death Cab for Cutie:  Not to be confused with "Riptide" by Vance Joy, Death Cab's newest song in about four yea...

 here they are: "All I Did Was Dream of You" by beabadoobee:  beabadoobee has already had some pretty dreamy tracks in her career, but this might just be the dreamiest (fitting to its title). "All I Did Was Dream of You" has the 2020's indie-pop sensation singing one of the most icy yet hypnotic tracks she has ever released. Most of the lyrics fit the mood of the song, but there is one part where she sings "Nightmares always feel like this/They swallow me, but I let it go/Doesn't feel like I can breathe/But they follow me and I let it go." There's also a brief part in the song where its dream-pop-y vibe briefly gets a bit grungy, albeit not in an extreme way. This song is a bit like "6 Underground" by Sneaker Pimps if Garbage decided to cover it. "Doctrine of Love" by Jalen Ngonda:  Hot on the heels of neo-soul sensations of the 2010's and 2020's like Curtis Harding, Leon Bridges, and Devon Gilfillian, Jalen Ngonda i...

 here they are: "God's Lonely Man" by Anna Calvi (featuring Iggy Pop):  As one might expect from a song that features the Godfather of Punk, there's a charging, swaggering vibe in this song! Even the opening drum riff sounds like "Howlin' for You" by The Black Keys (which itself apes the drum riff of "Rock and Roll Part 2" by Gary Glitter). Iggy actually opens this song! Anna only joins in later. This is not the Iggy of "I Wanna Be Your Dog" or "Lust for Life," though. The song instead seems to take on more of a post-punk flavor (I could easily see this song being done by a group like Yeah Yeah Yeahs or Metric), but it still has this streetwise strut that's unmistakably Iggy! He's one old dog that CAN learn new tricks, and he really does so in this song! "Hold On (Hourglass)" by Devon Gilfillian:  Is "country-soul" a thing?! If so, Devon Gilfillian pulls it off pretty well here! His latest song, ...