Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Julia Jacklin Returns with Anthemic “The Hardest Thing”

Acclaimed Melbourne-based singer/songwriter and musician Julia Jacklin will be releasing her highly-anticipated fourth album, the Robert Muiños and Jacklin co-produced, 10-song album  The Gem through 4AD Records digitally and on CD, cassette and vinyl on September 25, 2026. Exclusive color vinyl editions with retailers will include turquoise, green opal, ruby and rose quartz. Pre-order information can be found here.

The album will include the previously released “Get Away From Me (I Think I’ll Love You),” the album’s closing track ” “I Wish” feat, Aussie folk sibling duo The Maes, and the album’s third single, “The Hardest Thing.” is a proudly heart-worn-on-sleeve anthemic ballad featuring a narrator, whose relationship on the brink, detailing a relationship at a crossroads — or about to peter out to an inevitable conclusion. Lyrically, the song is rooted in small, lived-in details that give the song a personal yet deeply universal touch.

Directed by Danny Cohen, the accompanying video was shot in one lengthy take and filmed from a helicopter winding through Melbourne’s skyline, gradually showcasing the acclaimed artist performing the song on top of skyscraper.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Shudder To Think Shares Angular and Anthemic “Who Sent You”

Back in 2024 Shudder To Think — currently Craig Wedren (vocals), Nathan Larson (guitar), Clint Walsh (guitar), Jherek Bischoff (bass) and Adam Wade (drums) — celebrated the 30th anniversary of their groundbreaking 1994 effort, Pony Express Record, their Epic Records debut, which followed several releases on Dischord Records.

After the initial release of Pony Express Record, the band dove into the world of scoring films and creating music for soundtracks with the 1998 releases of Jesse Peretz’s First Love, Last Rites, Lisa Cholodenko’s High Art and Todd Haynes’ Velvet Goldmine. Shudder to Think’s Wedren and Larson have gone to be prolific film and television with Wedren working on YELLOWJACKETS, Wet Hot American Summer, School of Rock, Laurel Canyon and more; and Larson working on Our Idiot Brother, The Skeleton Twins, Juliet, Naked, the High Fidelity TV series and a list of others.

Last year, the band made their first live performances in over a decade and released the “Thirst Walk”/”Playback” 7 inch, which drew on the band’s classic, beloved sound — melodic, unpredictable and unmistakably their own. The 7 inch vinyl sold out quickly and has been repressed and will be available for their upcoming live shows in Philadelphia, NYC, Los Angeles and at select record stories. As always, tour dates are below, y’all.

Along with the tour, Shudder to Think will be releasing the three-song Who Sent You EP on September 11, 2026 through Dischord Records. The EP is the first new project from the band from in almost 30 years. The EP’s first single, EP title track “Who Sent You” is a track that’s a blend of slinky art punk, angular post punk and 120 Minutes-era indie rock that’s anchored in deeply introspective and lived-in lyricism and catchy hooks.

The song, which the band’s Craig Wedren says “unintentionally encompasses multiple eras of Shudder to Think” is “about my teenage years in Cleveland in the 1980s, just before I moved to D.C. with my outsized emotions – young, horny, bored, It’s both a collage of memories, refracted through the prism of time, and a message back to my younger self (‘sense your way home’). Above all, it’s a nocturnal THANK YOU to all of the girls, family, friends, music, and invisible hands that lit the path, angels and devils both. Who, indeed, sent you??” 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Sour Widows Share Hypnotic and Urgent “Lucky Star”

Bay Area-based duo Sour Widows — Maia Sinaiko and Susanna Thomson — will be releasing their highly-anticipated Melina Duterte-produced sophomore album Sigil on October 23, 2026 through Julia’s War Recordings.

Not long ago, Sour Widows’ Maia Sinaiko had a nightmare that morphed into an epiphany. While they slept, Sinaiko imagined that the world was ending, that the Earth itself was about to be swallowed by a black hole. From their perch in an old bedroom in a long-ago apartment, Sinaiko saw that physics itself was rupturing — water ran in reverse, doors locked and unlocked without a touch, traffic lights hung upside down. All traces of human civilization would soon be obliterated, our collective efforts lost forever; no one would ever know, Sinaiko realized in their nocturnal terror, about the films their sister had made. Sinaiko cried to their father, who responded to this looming end-of-everything scenario with an unexpected bit of sanguine wisdom: “But it could be amazing.” 

That dream is the premise of the album’s opener a title track “Sigil,” an album that derives its name from a dream that Susanna Thomson had about making an album called Sigil. The album’s material navigates a wasteland of human cruelty, brutality and loss to emerge with a defiant, hard-won hope. Throughout the album’s runtime, terrible things happen: A genocide leaves bodies rotting in the sun. Lovers subjugate their counterparts with empty promises, emotional abuse, and physical dominance. Parents are lost, leaving behind massive chasms emotionally and psychologically that continue to grow. And yet, the conflicts and crises described throughout the album’s songs alternately produce righteous rage, welcome solidarity and revelatory freedom. Thematically, the album touches on growth and persevering through hard shit — as we are right now — and as a result, the songs reportedly feel like deep, personal breakthroughs. In life, an end is always nearby. But what comes after can be fucking amazing.

Sonically, Sigil‘s material curves in unexpected directions and is anchored in a newfound immediacy that feels as though the duo have urgent findings and thoughts to share with the listener, making the album arguably the most magnetic they’ve written and recorded to date.

Sigil‘s latest single “Lucky Star” manages to be a hypnotic yet urgent, searing yet melodic tune that alternates between dreamily melodic verses and noisy, screeching electronics-driven hooks and anthemic, mosh pit friendly choruses — and it’s all underpinned by a shimmering, looping guitar line. The song twists, turns and morphs in odd, prismatic directions. “‘Lucky Star’ is a spell for achieving your dream. Sing the chorus to yourself before bed and maybe it’ll come true,” says Maia Sinaiko.

Directed by the band’s Maia Sinaiko and Susanna Thomson, the accompanying video for “Lucky Star” was shot on VHS tape — and accurately captures 120 Minutes-era MTV alt rock vibes.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Good Health Good Wealth Shares Punchy “Susanna”

London-based duo Good Health Good Wealth — Bruce Breakey (vocals, production) and Simon Kuzmickas (guitar, production) — exploded into the national scene with 2024’s breakout track “Full Circle,” which has since amassed 1.5 million Spotify streams and lead to the pair making the runs of the national festival circuit with sets at Reading Festival, Leeds Festival, Truck Festival, Boomtown Festival and Latitude Festival.

Since “Full Circle,” subsequent releases have received airplay on BBC 6 Music, Radio X and BBC Introducing with their latest single, “Who What Where Why” landing on Spotify’s All New Punk playlist.

The London-based duos full-length debut, The Disco Never Ends is slated for an October 16, 2026 release. The album reportedly sees the rising duo documenting life as it happens: Relationships that start and end a quickly as they started, shit jobs, nights out getting older, grief, sex, friendship, arguments, strangers, drinking, dancing and all the mundane moments that somehow become the ones you remember. The album’s title comes from a rather simple idea: that time doesn’t stop, people come and go, places change and one chapter of your life tumbles into the next one and the next one and the next one . . .

The Disco Never Ends‘ latest single “Susanna” is a punchy dance punk song that seemingly channels Gang of Four and LCD Soundsystem while showcasing the duo’s deliberate attention to catchy hooks. The song’s narrator describes how infatuation and obsession can overwhelm common sense, with the narrator tacitly admitting that despite the fact they’re aware of a love interest probably being terrible for them, that they’re okay with — for now, at least. And as a result, the song is rooted in the sort of restlessness, masochism and self-flagellation of someone who’s desperate, horny and a bit stupid.

“We wanted to write a proper stomper for the new album to give us a bit of light from the shadier moments while retaining that darker mood that the album has overall,” the duo explain. “‘Susanna’ is about that girl you’ll let walk all over you, you even let her off for putting the milk in before the tea bag, putty in her hands. We played it live for the first time at Boomtown and it did exactly what we were hoping, made the tent rattle.”

Video by William Ruben Helms

Throwback: Happy 80th Birthday, Keith Moon!

JOVM’s William Ruben Helms celebrates the 80th anniversary of the birth of The Who drummer Keith Moon.

Video by William Ruben Helms

Throwback: Happy 65th Birthday, Dean DeLeo!

JOVM’s William Ruben Helms celebrates Stone Temple Pilots guitarist Dean DeLeo’s 65th birthday.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Leon Bridges Shares Strutting and Buoyant “Talk It Over”

Atlanta-born, Fort Worth, TX-raised singer/songwriter and musician Leon Bridges quickly established himself as one of America’s most exciting new artists with 2015’s platinum-certified, Grammy Award-nominated debut Coming Home, which featured breakout singles “Coming Home” and “River.” Bridges followed up with 2018’s critically applauded Good Thing, which saw him expanding upon his sonic panic while earning a Grammy Award-nomination for Best R&B Album and a Grammy Award for Best Traditional R&B Performance for “Bet Ain’t Worth the Hand.”

2021’s Gold-Diggers Sound was the acclaimed Atlanta-born, Fort Worth-based artist’s most adventurous album to date, and the album received critical applause while earning another Grammy Award-nomination for Best R&B Album. His most recent album, 2024’s Lean is an introspective effort inspired by his Texan roots and his artistic evolution.

Along with his solo work. he has collaborated with equally acclaimed act Khraungbin on two albums — 2020’s Texas Sun and 2022’s Texas Moon. Bridges who has earned six Grammy Award-nominations — three for Best R&B Album — and a Grammy Award-win, has also collaborated with an eclectic array of artists, including John Mayer, Kacey Musgraves, Robert Glasper, Terrace Martin, Gunna, The Avanlanches, Gary Clark, Jr. and Shaboozey, all of which showcase a remarkably versatile artist.

Adding to a rapidly growing profile, Bridges has a long-held reputation as a captivating live performer, who has made a run of the global concert and festival circuit, playing an increasing number of the world’s major festivals while making appearances on Saturday Night Live, NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert and Austin City Limits.

Bridges fourth album, the J Lloyd-Watson and Lydia Kitto-produced fifth album, Happiness Anytime is slated for a September 25, 2026 release through Columbia Records. Happiness Anytime reportedly sees the acclaimed Atlanta-born, Fort Worth-based artist returning to the warmth of his 2015 debut but while seeing the members of Jungle and Bridges’ signature sensibilities blending to create something entirely new — an expansive, borderless sound and approach that pushes the Grammy Award-winning artist into band new territory. The material reportedly echoes Fela Kuti, Paul Simon’s 1990 effort The Rhythm of The Saints and Jorge Ben without feeling referential. At its core, the album is reportedly boundary pushing while remaining unmistakably Leon Bridges, rooted in his imitable vocal, effortless charisma and melodic sensibilities.

The album was written and recorded across three fast and furious sessions with Lloyd-Watson and Kitto, a collaboration that can trace its origins to the trio repeatedly crossing paths across the global festival circuit. The trio decided to attempt a low-pressure writing session at Los Angeles-based Chaplin Recording Studios. Four days later, they ha come up with six songs — half of the completed album. Pino Palladino contributed bass during the sessions. The end result is a timeless body work of that feels unfussy and breezy — that they all hope will make the listener feel happiness anytime they play it.

“For me, happiness is not a feeling that you chase,” Bridges says,“I want this album to be something that lingers with people and lingers in people’s bones. There’s this feeling that we have to fix the problems of the world; you feel inadequate or it can be debilitating. My role is to be light. I hope that comes across with this album.” With Happiness Anytime, Bridges actively sets out with a desire to not only find joy but to find movement again.

Early in his career, Bridges was out in front dancing — and that was something that has wanted recently. He wanted to get back to making music to dance to, music to excise the stresses and frustrations of modern life, and to feel grounded in the rhythms of the present. Interestingly, over the summer, he has been introducing audiences to the new album with sets in Paris, Cannes, Los Angeles, Montreux Jazz Festival, London, Chicago and Outside Lands. And as he has being playing the new material live, he has unveiled “Leon Bridges Presents Happiness Anytime,” a reimagined stage production featuring a vinyl DJ, a horn section, three backing vocalists and Bridges out in front dancing and singing. Partly inspired by the communal spirt of Jamaican dancehall culture, the live set mirrors the album’s emphasis on movement — and on dancing your stresses and frustrations away for a bit.

In the meantime, Bridges recently released the second of three, 4-song EPs that will comprise the entire album. The second EP features album title track “Happiness Anytime,” “All Day All Night” feat. Lydia Kitto, “Fly Baby,” and “Talk It Over.” Featuring a strutting and jubilant, dance at the function groove beneath Bridges’ effortless, old-school soul-inspired delivery, “Talk It Over” is an ode to working things out and trying to make it all work that seemingly channels a blend of Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together,” and The Rhythm of the Saints while showcasing his unerring knack for catchy hooks.

Directed by D+Y and shot in Amsterdam, the accompanying video features Bridges and a multi-racial collection of beautiful dancers performing choreography by the Plue Agency. The video is centered around the album’s inspirations — movement, dancing and ebullient, infectious joy. And honestly, we could all use a lot more joy in our lives.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Mathis Picard Shares Gorgeous, Soulful “Portrait of Lizzy”

Born in France to a French father and a Malagasy mother, acclaimed composer, bandleader and pianist Mathis Picard began playing piano when he was four and pursued a rigorous musical education across the US, France and the UK. Currently based in New York, Picard is a Juilliard School graduate, an ASCAP Next Generation of Songwriters recipient and a member of the Montreux Jazz Artists Foundation. Adding to a growing profile, the French-born, New York-based artist has performed with Ron Carter, Lillias White, Céceile McLorin Salvant, Wynton Marsalis, Christian McBride and a lengthy list of others, while making a run of the global touring and festival circuit, playing sets at Umbria Jazz Festival, Montreux Jazz Festival and The Jazz Cruise.

Picard’s newest band The Sound Orchestra can trace its origins back to when he was 13: Back then he led a similar ensemble while studying at Chetham’s School of Music in England. The first iteration of his US-based Sound Orchestra bean as a three-horn ensemble performing the French-born composer and musician’s original work, featuring Giveton Gelin and Ruben Fox. The band continued to expand over the years into a full-fledged orchestral unit featuring a saxophone section, electric bass and an expansive percussion section providing the rhythmic foundation for Picard’s genre-bending compositions.

The project’s debut, The Sound Orchestra, which is slated for a November 6, 2026 release through La Reserve Records is the latest chapter in Picard’s career — a career that has seen him emerge as one of the most distinctive young artists and voices in contemporary jazz. Throughout the band’s debut, Picard’s arrangements draw from and musical worlds that have shaped him e rhythms from his mother’s native Madagascar meets Afro-Cuban music, 1970’s Earth, Wind & Fire-like funk, Duke Ellington and Fats Waller. “This is not your traditional Big Band record,” Picard explains. “The goal of the band was always for it to make people dance. Whether it be swing music, house, dubstep, waltz, or even a ballad, I wanted to connect with the audience through dance. Dance for me is this wonderful way to express our bodies, and for us to be together in community.”

The Sound Orchestra‘s first single “Portrait of Lizzy” is a celebration of Picard’s life through a re-imagining of the American standard “Portrait of Jennie.” Released on the couple’s third wedding anniversary, “Portrait of Lizzy” is an old-school, Big Band-styled ballad specifically meant for those deeply in love romantic couples to slow dance, cheek-to-cheek, rooted in some soulful and gorgeous performances.

Mathis and Lizzy were married at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Dizzy’s Club, an institution with a deep connection to Picard’s career and his time at The Juilliard School. Picard has also performed with The Sound Orchestra at Dizzy’s dance parties, including a night celebrating the legendary music of Earth, Wind & Fire. Continuing his relationship with Lincoln Center, Picard will play a solo set on October 9, 2026 at Lincoln Center’s Kenneth C. Griffin Sidewalk Studio to honor the musical legacy of San Juan Hill.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Rival Sons’ Scott Holiday Fuzzy and Trippy Solo Project HOL1D4Y Shares Hook-Driven “AUTONOMATIC”

Scott Holiday is a singer/songwriter and guitarist, best known for his work with rock outfit Rival Sons. For more than three decades, Holiday has built a career by following his instincts. Before the idea of […]

Video by William Ruben Helms

Throwback: Happy 109th Birthday, John Lee Hooker!

JOVM’s William Ruben Helms celebrates the 109th anniversary of the birth of John Lee Hooker.

Video by William Ruben Helms

Throwback: Happy 68th Birthday, Vernon Reid!

JOVM’s William Ruben Helms celebrates Living Colour founder and guitarist Vernon Reid.

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Throwback: Happy 59th Birthday, Layne Staley!

It’s August. We’ve somehow managed to survive 3/4s of a what has been a miserable, soul-wrenching slog of a year, full of gratuitous brutality, endless war, and a slow-burning slide into fascism. Oh and add […]

Video by William Ruben Helms

Throwback: Happy 65th Birthday, Roland Orzabal!

JOVM’s William Ruben Helms celebrates Tears for Fears co-founder Roland Orzabal’s 65th birthday.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Moon Construction Kit Returns with Breezy and Anthemic “Right Across the USA”

Olivier Cornu is a a Lausanne-based singer/songwriter, musician, producer and creative mastermind behind Moon Construction Kit, With Moon Construction Kit, Cormu specializes in a sound that draws from and blends elements of indie pop, psych pop, synth pop, late 1960s pop and film scores.

The Swiss producer, singer/songwriter and musician has had a busy year so far, with two previously released singles “Long John Silver” and the Steve Stout co-produced “Down the West Coast.” Building on the growing buzz surrounding him and his Moon Construction Kit, Cormu’s latest single “Right Across the USA” was written to feel a bit like a companion piece to “Down the West Coast” but while leaning more into punchier power pop. Seemingly nodding at The Buggles “Video Killed the Radio Star,” the song is superficially a breezy and downright summery road trip track unpinned by a bittersweet, nostalgic longing for a world that seemed simpler and less outwardly confrontational.