There’s so much music coming out all the time that it’s hard to keep track. On those days when the influx of new tracks is particularly overwhelming, we sift through the noise to bring you a curated list of the most interesting new releases (the best of which will be added to our Best New Songs playlist). Below, check out our track roundup for Tuesday, April 21, 2026.
Modest Mouse – ‘Picking Dragons’ Pockets’
Modest Mouse are back. After releasing ‘Look How Far’ in March, the band has today announced their first album in half a decade, An Eraser and a Maze, their first release on Glacial Pace Recordings. The frenetically jaunty opener ‘Picking Dragons’ Pockets’ is out now, and it finds Isaac Brock proclaiming, “I’m not crazy ’bout what they’re so crazy ’bout now.”
Friko – ‘Something Worth Waiting For’
In my track-by-track review of Something Worth Waiting For, Friko’s imminent new album, I made light of the fact that I was writing about it just as the new Modest Mouse album was announced. There’s a clear thread between their revered records and what Friko are doing on the new album, which is why I’m placing the new songs side by side. But ‘Something Worth Waiting For’ is striking all its own and a fantastic climax on the record. Talking about it, vocalist Niko Kapetan said: “Referencing lyrics from our first record, ‘Something Worth Waiting For’ became the band’s mission statement for our second LP. Later taking on the album name as well, this song pedals, drives, runs, bolts, and barrels forward without ever looking back over its shoulder. Ending with the only big distorted guitar build on the record, just like its title, it never quite reaches that climax. Leaning into the idea that the pace is everlasting, and the destination just seconds away, always.”
Beck – ‘Ride Lonesome’
Beck has returned with a new song, ‘Ride Lonesome’. The laid-back tune reunites the musician with Nigel Godrich, who mixed it and produced several of his albums.
Failure – ‘The Rising Skyline’ [feat. Hayley Williams]
Hayley Williams has joined Failure on ‘The Rising Skyline’, the final single ahead of the release of their new album Location Lost on Friday. It’s surprisingly tender, which frontman Ken Andrews touched on in his statement about the collab: “Failure doesn’t do a lot of collaborations, but my friendship with Hayley, and her long standing support of the band, turned this song into a very satisfying duet. It’s probably the most delicate song we’ve ever done and her vocal approach really brought that out.”
mary in the junkyard – ‘Candelabra’
mary in the junkyard have unveiled a strikingly vulnerable track off their upcoming debut LP Role Model Hermit. ‘Candelabra’ follows the much more ostentatious lead single ‘Crash Landing’. “It has all of my teenage angst written into it,” bandleader Clari Freeman-Taylor remarked.
Show Me the Body – ‘Dance in the USA’
Show Me the Body have unleashed a new song, ‘Dance in the USA’. It’s a monster of a song, and it’s also worth reading into the credits: Kenneth Blume (fka Kenny Beats) produced it with Robyn collaborator Klas Åhlund. “‘Dance In The USA’ is about how we employ style to survive in this reality,” frontman Julian Cashwan Pratt explained. “It’s how we embrace the struggle of ourselves, our families, and those around you. It’s the dance that we all do — how we hustle, the good and the bad things we do — just to get through it.”
Emily A. Sprague – ‘Double Moon’
Outside of Florist, Emily A. Sprague’s solo material has mostly leaned into ambient instrumentation. That’s still the vibe of her just-announced Double Moon EP, but she’s singing on it (with backing vocals by V Haddad), adding an interesting layer to her vaporous electronics. The EP will arrive via RVNG Intl. on May 29.
Pouty – ‘My Own Beauty’
Pouty has returned with a new song, ‘My Own Beauty’, the first we’ve heard from Rachel Gagliardi since 2024’s Forgot About Me. The soaring, reclamatory track was written and recorded between Los Angeles and Philadelphia with the Superweaks’ Evan Bernard and Chris Baglivo. “Dedicated to the bimbos and sluts,” per a press release.
Basement – ‘Head Alight’
That exceptional Friko record was produced by John Congleton, who also helmed Basement’s first new album in over eight years, WIRED, coming out May 8. The new single ‘Head Alight’ is especially catchy. “What started out as a love song quickly evolved into something a lot more ethereal,” vocalist Andrew Fisher recalled. “Alex was picking up on what I was saying in a far broader and otherworldly way. He saw it less in a romantic way – a more universal look at the idea of someone’s soul or essence being so powerful and beautiful you can’t look away. This really excited me because it allowed me to get out of my head and focus on something way more abstract and therefore, hopefully more expansive.” Fisher continues, “I hadn’t really approached songwriting like this before and I found it really fulfilling. We were really stuck with this sound – focusing on the guitar leading it, in a very indie rock early 2000s thing. It just never felt right. The more we added, the less I liked it. John stripped everything back and it became so much more powerful.”
mui zyu – ‘パラレリズム (Parallelisme)’ (Miharu Koshi Cover)
mui zuy has offered a mesmerizing take on Miharu Koshi’s 1984 cult classic ”パラレリズム (Parallelisme)’. “I was blown away when I first heard this album because of its perfect mix of sweet melodies alongside otherworldly textures.. presented in this kinda super slick pop way,” the artist explained. “I was studying Japanese at the time and thought the title track would be a special song to record. The process of diving into the original production to rearrange the parts was so educational too and only made me love the song more. I haven’t been able to find much information about the record online, or in stores, but I managed to find it on vinyl when we toured in Japan a year ago, it was like finding a precious treasure.”
Swapmeet – ‘Sand’
Swapmeet, a four-piece band from Adelaide, Australia, have announced their debut LP, Mount Zero, arriving July 17 on Winspear. “‘Sand’ is about wasting your own time, then being so, so mad at yourself,” the band’s Jack Medlyn explained. “And a little bit mad at the people who make apps and phones so addictive.” It’s a sweet, languid song you wouldn’t mind wasting a little time on.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source ourculturemag.com ’
