16 Best Songs of the Week: Michael Kiwanuka, Future Islands, Soccer Mommy, MJ Lenderman, and More
Plus Nilüfer Yanya, Wild Pink, Kelly Lee Owens, and a Wrap-up of the Week’s Other Notable New Tracks
Sep 13, 2024
Welcome to the 29th Songs of the Week of 2024. This week Andy Von Pip, Caleb Campbell, Jim Scott, and Scotty Dransfield helped me decide what should make the list. We considered over 50 songs and narrowed it down to a Top 16.
This week’s Songs of the Week covers the last two weeks. We didn’t do a Songs of the Week last week because we were too busy announcing our new print issue.
Issue 73 is out now. It features Maya Hawke and Nilüfer Yanya on the two covers and can be bought from us directly here.
In recent weeks we posted interviews with Nada Surf, Hinds, Oceanator, La Luz, Hamish Hawk, “Weird Al” Yankovic, and more.
In the last week we reviewed some albums.
To help you sort through the multitude of fresh songs released in the last two weeks, we have picked the 12 best the last 14 days had to offer, followed by some honorable mentions. Check out the full list below.
1. Michael Kiwanuka: “Lowdown (part i)” and “Lowdown (part ii)”
This week, British singer Micheal Kiwanuka announced a new album, Small Changes, and shared two new interconnected songs from it, “Lowdown (part i)” and “Lowdown (part ii),” via a joint music video. Small Changes is due out November 15 via Geffen.
Small Changes is Kiwanuka’s fourth album and the long-awaited follow-up to 2019’s Kiwanuka, which won the 2020 Mercury Prize and was also nominated for a Grammy for Best Rock Album.
Danger Mouse and Inflo produced the album, as they did with Kiwanuka’s last two albums.
Small Changes includes “Floating Parade,” a new song Kiwanuka shared in July that was one of our Songs of the Week. By Mark Redfern
2. Future Islands: “Glimpse”
Future Islands released a new album, People Who Aren’t There Anymore, in January via 4AD. Last week they returned with a one-off single, “Glimpse,” shared via a music video. Jayla Smith directed the animated video.
A press release says “Glimpse” focuses on “a family home burning down and coming to terms with the physical and emotional losses and coming to terms with the erasure of a collective history.”
Read our review of People Who Aren’t There Anymore here.
Future Islands co-produced People Who Aren’t There Anymore with Steve Wright, who also mixed the album with Chris Coady. Future Islands is Samuel T. Herring (vocals, lyrics), William Cashion (bass, guitars), Gerrit Welmers (keyboards, programming), and Michael Lowry (drums).
People Who Aren’t There Anymore includes three previously shared singles. “Peach” was released in 2021. “King of Sweden” came out in 2022 and the band performed it on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. “Deep in the Night” was shared in August via a music video and it was one of our Songs of the Week. When the album was announced they shared another new song from it, “The Tower,” via a music video. “The Tower” was one of our Songs of the Week. Then in November they shared another song from it, “The Fight,” via an animated music video (it was also one of our Songs of the Week). In January they shared the album’s final pre-release single, “Say Goodbye,” via an animated music video. Then they shared a video for “The Thief” and performed “The Tower” on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
The band’s previous album was 2020’s As Long As You Are, which made it to #17 on our Top 100 Albums of 2020 list.
Read our interview with Future Islands on As Long As You Are.
In 2022 the band also shared a cover of Wham!’s “Last Christmas.”
Read our 2014 cover story article on Future Islands. By Mark Redfern
3. Soccer Mommy: “Driver”
This week, Soccer Mommy, the indie project of Nashville-based singer/songwriter Sophie Allison, released a new single titled “Driver” from her forthcoming album, Evergreen, set to drop on October 25th via Loma Vista Recordings. “Driver” showcases a rockier side of Soccer Mommy, blending addictive melodies with lyrics that explore Allison’s characteristic introspection and emotional complexity. The song reflects on flaws and the acceptance of them within a relationship, adding a cheeky twist to the theme.
Allison’s new album marks a return to more organic production, highlighting her songwriting talents. Written in the wake of a personal loss, Evergreen features a stripped-back, honest approach, reminiscent of her earlier work. By Andy Von Pip
4. MJ Lenderman: “Wristwatch”
Last week North Carolina singer/songwriter and musician, MJ Lenderman released a new album, Manning Fireworks, via ANTI-. Earlier in that week he shared one final single from the album, “Wristwatch.”
Read our review of Manning Fireworks here. By Mark Redfern
5. Nilüfer Yanya: “Made of Memory”
Nilüfer Yanya released a new album, My Method Actor, today via Ninja Tune. Last week she shared its fifth single, “Made of Memory.”
The album features “Like I Say (I runaway),” a new song Yanya shared in April via a music video in which she is a runaway bride. Yanya’s sister, Molly Daniel, directed the video. “Like I Say (I runaway)” was #1 on our Songs of the Week list. When the album was announced, Yanya shared its almost title track “Method Actor.” It was also #1 on our Songs of the Week list. Then she shared its third single, “Call It Love,” which also landed on Songs of the Week. The album’s fourth single, “Mutations,” also landed on Songs of the Week.
My Method Actor is Yanya’s third album and follows her 2022 album, PAINLESS, and her 2019 debut album, Miss Universe, (both released on ATO).
Yanya worked on the album with her regular creative partner, Wilma Archer, in isolation. “This is the most intense album, in that respect,” Yanya said in a previous press release. “Because it’s only been us two. We didn’t let anyone else into the bubble.”
When writing this album, Yanya was grappling with hitting her late 20s and dealing with the pressures of being an established musician. “For me, writing is definitely problem solving—in the way they say that dreaming is like problem solving,” she said. “You’re like, ‘Oh, that sounds good. That looks good. That makes sense.’ But you don’t really know why. You’re kind of using that part of your creative brain that doesn’t have to make sense.”
Yanya also announced some fall tour dates in North America, the United Kingdom, and Europe.
Read our in-depth interview with Yanya about PAINLESS here.
Read our rave review of the album here.
Yanya was also one of the artists on the cover of our 20th Anniversary print issue. By Mark Redfern
6. Wild Pink: “Eating the Egg Whole”
7. Kelly Lee Owens: “Higher”
8. Porridge Radio: “A Hole in the Ground”
9. Franz Ferdinand: “Audacious”
10. Lunar Vacation: “Fantasy”
11. Naima Bock: “Feed My Release”
12. Cursive: “Bloodbather”
13. Field Music: “The Waitress of St Louis’”
14. Nilüfer Yanya: “Just a Western”
15. The Hard Quartet: “Our Hometown Boy”
16. deary: “The Drift”
Honorable Mentions:
These songs almost made the Top 16.
Hinds: “Stranger” (Feat. Grian Chatten)
Mount Eerie: “I Walk”
Pom Pom Squad: “Street Fighter”
Dawn Richard and Spencer Zahn: “Diets”
Thus Love: “On the Floor”
Trace Mountains: “Hard to Accept”
Wand: “The Leap”
Wussy: “Cellar Door”
Here’s a handy Spotify playlist featuring the Top 16 in order, followed by all the honorable mentions:
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