News
Plus Jane Weaver, Still Corners, Sleaford Mods, and a Wrap-up of the Week’s Other Notable New Tracks
Jan 15, 2021
By Mark Redfern (with Joey Arnone)
Welcome to the second Songs of the Week of 2021. It was a little less trying than last week, but Donald Trump did earn the dubious honor of being the first ever president to be impeached twice. It was a fantastic week for new songs; after a slow week last week with only a Top 6, this week we present double the songs with a Top 12. More
Painting the Roses Due Out This Friday via Jagjaguwar
Jan 13, 2021
By Christopher Roberts
Midnight Sister, the Los Angeles-based duo of Juliana Giraffe and Ari Balouzian, are releasing a new album, Painting the Roses, this Friday via Jagjaguwar. Now they have shared another song from it, “Satellite,” which has a minimalist funk sound, via a trippy video for the single directed by Giraffe. More
Plus U.S. Girls, Arab Strap, Bernice, and a Wrap-up of the Week’s Other Notable New Tracks
Dec 04, 2020
By Christopher Roberts (with Joey Arnone)
Welcome to the 44th Songs of the Week of 2020. We didn’t do a Songs of the Week last week because of the Thanksgiving holiday, so this week’s list covers the last two weeks and thus it’s a Top 12 rather than a Top 10.
More
Painting the Roses Due Out January 15, 2021 via Jagjaguwar
Dec 03, 2020
By Christopher Roberts
Midnight Sister, the Los Angeles-based duo of Juliana Giraffe and Ari Balouzian, are releasing a new album, Painting the Roses, on January 15, 2021 via Jagjaguwar. Now they have shared another song from it, the glam-sounding “Foxes,” via a video for the single. More
Plus Badge Époque Ensemble, Julien Baker, Ela Minus, and a Wrap-up of the Week’s Other Notable New Tracks
Oct 23, 2020
By Christopher Roberts
Welcome to the 41st Songs of the Week of 2020. This week there was a second and final presidential debate that, unlike the first one, was an actual debate. More
Painting the Roses Due Out January 15, 2021 via Jagjaguwar
Oct 22, 2020
By Christopher Roberts
Midnight Sister, the Los Angeles-based duo of Juliana Giraffe and Ari Balouzian, have announced a new album, Painting the Roses, and shared a new song from it, “Doctor Says,” via a video for it. More
Plus Jesse Kivel, Lost Horizons, Midnight Sister, TRAAMS, and a Wrap-up of the Last Two Weeks’ Other Notable New Tracks
Oct 09, 2020
By Christopher Roberts
Welcome to the 39th Songs of the Week of 2020. We skipped Songs of the Week last week because we had other plans last Friday, so this week’s list covers two weeks worth of songs. More
First Taste of New Album on Jagjaguwar
Oct 05, 2020
By Christopher Roberts
Midnight Sister, the Los Angeles-based duo of Juliana Giraffe and Ari Balouzian, have shared a new song, “Wednesday Baby,” via a video for it. It is said to be the first single from the band’s forthcoming album on Jagjaguwar. More
Our Favorite First Full-Lengths From the Last Year
Dec 31, 2017
By Mark Redfern
The majority of 2017’s best debut albums came from female artists or bands fronted by women, from London-based all-female indie-pop teenaged trio Girl Ray and Syria-born singer/songwriter Bedouine (aka Azniv Korkejian) to Australian indie rocker Alex Lahey and New Zealand bedroom pop artist Fazerdaze (aka Amelia Murray). Midnight Sister, Priests, and Charly Bliss are all female-fronted bands as well, on top of other women solo artists on our Top 15 Debut Albums of 2017 list. More
Plus Alex Lahey, Jessie Ware, Mathew Dear + Tegan and Sara, Ted Leo, and a Wrap-up of the Week's Other Notable New Tracks
Sep 01, 2017
By Christopher Roberts
What a packed week for great new tracks. We could have easily done a Top 15. Some artists that almost made the cut include A. Savage, Bully, John Maus, Father John Misty (remixed by The Haxan Cloak), Tricky, Wolf Parade, and Zola Jesus. More
Saturn Over Sunset Due Out September 8 via Jagjaguwar
Aug 28, 2017
By Christopher Roberts
Midnight Sister, the promising new Los Angeles-based duo of Juliana Giraffe and Ari Balouzian, are releasing their debut album, Saturn Over Sunset, on September 8 via Jagjaguwar. Previously they have shared videos for their first two singles, “Leave You” and “Blue Cigar,” as well as the audio for “Daddy Long Legs.” Now they have shared another song from the album, “Clown,” via its video. More
Plus Everything Everything, Deerhoof, and a Wrap-up of the Week's Other Notable New Tracks
Aug 04, 2017
By Christopher Roberts
The War on Drugs’ last album, Lost in the Dream, was our #1 album of 2014 and a lot of other people agreed with us too. Based on the four singles shared thus far from their forthcoming new album, A Deeper Understanding, the band is already in strong Album of the Year waters for 2017. More
Issue 61 Also Includes Interviews with The War on Drugs, The National, Broken Social Scene, Slowdive vs. Ariel Pink, Phoenix, Beach House, and Much More
Jul 18, 2017
By Christopher Roberts
Under the Radar is excited to announce the full details of our Summer 2017 Issue, which is out now digitally via Under the Radar’s app and the magazine app Readly. The print version has shipped out to subscribers and stores and will be on all newsstands soon (as well as available soon digitally via the magazine app Zinio). The issue features Grizzly Bear on the cover. More
Plus The National, Temples, Widowspeak, Deerhoof, Girl Ray, EMA, and a Wrap-up of the Week's Other Notable New Tracks
Jun 30, 2017
By Christopher Roberts
Despite leading up to a long holiday weekend, it was a packed week for great new songs. Quite a few notable artists shared new songs this week, including Arcade Fire, St. Vincent, The National, Liam Gallagher, Neil Young, Mogwai, Weezer, Broken Social Scene, Toro Y Moi, and more. More
Saturn Over Sunset Due Out September 8 via Jagjaguwar
Jun 29, 2017
By Christopher Roberts
Midnight Sister is the promising new Los Angeles-based duo of Juliana Giraffe and Ari Balouzian. Their art-pop would appeal to fans of Broadcast, influential ‘60s pioneers such as The United States of America and The Free Design, and Charlie Hilton. More
Interviews
Jun 16, 2021
By Jasper Willems
Midnight Sister’s Juliana Giraffe and Ari Balouzian met while making a low budget film called El Camino Real, a surrealistic tale of starry-eyed Hollywood dreams that inevitably ends in some kind of nightmare scenario. Its shoestring budget suggests it could have been made somewhere during cinema’s silver age, if not for the mischievously hammy performance of Giraffe. Peculiarly enough, El Camino Real also borrows elements of Terry Gilliam’s dystopian masterpiece Brazil, another film in which the protagonist escapes into an unattainable fantasy. More
Sep 06, 2017
By John Everhart
Midnight Sister, on their debut LP Saturn Over Sunset, are emblematic of the analog swell of early Broadcast, The Free Design, and The United States of America. They also convey a cinematic sweep on tunes such as the opener “Canary,” evocative of the ethereal leanings of the score of Rosemary’s Baby. More
Reviews
Mar 09, 2021
By Caleb Campbell
Although they are best known for their music, the talents of LA duo Midnight Sister lie in film as well. Vocalist Juliana Giraffe also works as filmmaker and visual artist, while producer and multi-instrumentalist Ari Balouzian also composes for film. It is no surprise then how deftly the pair crafts new worlds in their music, drawing their listeners along into a glitzy retro nightlife. More
Sep 21, 2017
By Stephen Mayne
Midnight Sister sound like a lot of things, but the one constant is their swagger. The debut collaboration between singer and lyricist Juliana Giraffe, and classically trained composer Ari Bazoulian is a kaleidoscope of colors pulled off with a beautifully baroque strut. It’s experimental art-pop that doesn’t forget to entertain along the way. More