Kevin Bronson on October 25th, 2024

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Jump into Greatest Hits … This Week (Vol. 313), featuring fresh songs from Big Black Delta, Miya Folick, Katie Gavin, Cold War Kids, Speed of Light, Tangerine, Fashion Club, Vaquita, Jagged Baptist Club, Cary Brothers, Heaven Proper, Gold Star, Luther Russell, the Tulips, Magic Bronson, the Altons and a bunch more. See here for Buzz Bands LA’s voluminous past playlists, and see below for background on the artists and their tunes.

Note: Anita Wills contributed to today’s roundup.

■ Big Black Delta, “Uncertainty Is Delight” — New Big Black Delta releases are like the UFOs that so fascinate songwriter-producer Jonathan Bates: things of wonder and beauty. Bates meets existential dilemmas with industrial-strength synth-pop, and the title of his new rager, “Uncertainty Is Delight,” could almost serve as BBD’s mantra. The song is the introduction to Big Black Delta’s fifth album, “Adonai” (out Feb. 28). “I cant explain in words what that means,” Bates says of the title, “but its intention is that of service. I included higher beings, so to say. Its the most ancient greeting I could find.”

■ Tangerine, “You’re Still The Only One” — The follow-up to “Theives”, “You’re Still The Only One” is the title track from indie duo Tangerine’s (Marika Justad and Toby Kuhn) debut album, “You’re Still the Only One,” out today. The track’s guitar melody seems to be weightless and effortlessly grooves to Justad’s hearty vocals. You can watch the freak show-themed music video, just in time for Halloween, here.

■ Jagged Baptist Club, “Blow Dry Nation” — Jagged Baptist Club, the L.A. quartet that makes every song sound like an insurgency, march toward the Nov. 15 release of their new album, “Physical Surveillance.” Live Oct. 31 at Gold-Diggers.

■ Speed of Light, “Séance” — Santa Monica’s Speed of Light have been teenage terrors for seven-plus years, testing sound systems all over Southern California with their screamalicious neo-metal and paying their dues like few young bands do these days. “Séance” is actually the first-ever studio recording from the Christensen trio (Riley, 17; Tyler, 19; and Cameron, 21). The song was produced by AFI’s Jade Puget. Speed of Light is on the bill as part of L7’s Fast and Frightening Takeover at the Belasco on Nov. 23.

■ Cold War Kids, “Meditations” — Almost a year since the release of their 10th full-length, veteran indie-rockers Cold War Kids are in the middle of celebrating their two-decade history (they wrap their “20 Year Tour” on Nov. 16 at the Observatory). But they’re living staunchly in the present, too. “We went into the studio with Jonathan Rado on Sept. 30 and today (Oct. 23), the song is yours,” Nathan Willett says of “Meditations,” their new high-energy single that marks the first-ever independent release.

■ Katie Gavin, “As Good As It Gets” (feat. Mitski) — “What a Relief,” the debut solo album from MUNA’s Kate Gavin, is out today, packed with potent lyrics and pliable melodies, not to mention some sharp singles (such as “Inconsolable,” “Casual Drug Use” and “Aftertaste”). Mitski guests on the genteel “As Good As It Gets.” Gavin’s shows Nov. 25, 26 and 27 at the Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever are sold out.

■ Great Good Fine Ok & Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness, “Let’s Talk” — Synth-pop duo Great Good Fine Ok (who decamped to L.A. from Brooklyn a couple of years ago) team up with Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness on a track from GGFO’s forthcoming EP, “Seven” (out Jan. 14).

■ Miya Folick, “Alaska” — The follow-up to “La Da Da,” “Alaska” is the second single from Miya Folick since her 2023 album “Roach.” The singer-songwriter explains that it’s inspired by the line “desire is a buffalo standing on my chest” from the poem “Dear Sal” by Jeremy Radin. Folick adds: “The song is me exploring the weight of my fear of losing my relationship, but also finding comfort in the fact that if I did, things would be OK. The line ‘I could lose you’ is a double entendré. When we translated it into Japanese for the cover art, we used the verb for ‘I am able to” and the verb for ‘It is possible [to lose you].’ This song is both a coming to terms with how much my relationship matters to me, and how much I value my relationship to myself. I would be so sad if I lost this person in my life, but it would be equally as sad if I lost myself.”

■ Fashion Club, “Ghost” (feat. Jay Som) — Jay Som’s Melina Duterte joins Pascal Stevenson on the glitchy apparition “Ghost,” the final single from Fashion Club’s new album “A Love You Cannot Shake,” out today. Along with singles “Confusion,” “Forget” and “Rotten Mind,” it offers a snapshot of the sprawling pop on Fashion Club’s sophomore full-length. Live Dec. 9 at Zebulon.

■ Tyler, the Creator, “Noid” — Parse what you will from Tyler, the Creator’s the dark video for “St. Chroma” last week, or his new album’s first proper single, “Noid” (video), released this week. But his new album, “Chromakopia,” is out Oct. 28, and, yes, that’s this coming Monday. Live Feb. 14, Feb. 17 and Feb. 20 at Crypto.com Arena.

■ Vaquita, “On Her Side” — Looks like the Linda Lindas have company in the ranks of teenaged riot grrrls. Vaquita consists of Edie Anderson, Liza Davitaia and Clara Mothersbaugh. Switching back and forth from breezy to suddenly aggressive, “On Her Side,” is a tongue-in-cheek banger off of the trio’s debut LP “Secrets,” out today. You can watch the music video for “On Her Side” that does not do the song justice here.

■ Gold Star, “Fentanyl” — Marlon Rabenreither’s third single of 2024 is “Fentanyl” (video), a heart-rending take on the opioid crisis that serves as an introduction to “How to Shoot the Moon” (out Nov. 15), Gold Star’s fifth album. “The song isn’t about any one person or narrative really; I have personally overdosed on Fentanyl and know just how terrifying that can be, but I also know many more that weren’t as lucky as I was,” Rabenreither says. “I don’t want to make this song purely about my experiences, as this about something much vaster and bigger than me. I simply wanted to illustrate the helplessness I felt, and the wider scope of this issue, and how personal and devastating it is. … So this one is for Chuck, a great man, whose daughter misses him very much and who inspired a lot of the lyrics.” Live Nov. 20 at El Cid.

■ The Tulips, “Stars Dream of You” — Indie duo the Tulips (Jared Petrich and Dana Rogge) introduce their fourth full-length with the whispery, spacious and gorgeously unadorned single “Stars Dream of You.” The LP, “Halcyon Beach,” will be out early next year. Live Nov. 8 at the Vine in Long Beach.

■ Luther Russell, “Downtown Girls” — With the cloudburst of jangling guitar in his new single “Downtown Girls,” Luther Russell announces that his seventh full-length, “Happiness for Beginners,” will be out Jan. 17 via Curation Records. Jason Falkner, Sarabeth Tucek and Chris Joyner are among the guests on the record.

■ Magic Bronson, “Get ’Em Kid” — GThe follow-up to “We Used to Settle” and “Good Time,” “Get ’Em Kid” is the third single from L.A. duo Magic Bronson’s new album “Good Dogs.” The bulletin here is that the album release has been pushed back to Feb. 5.

■ Loyal Lobos, “Museo” — This week brought the release of Loyal Lobos’ new EP, “Loba Vol. 2,” a magnetic mini-album that sees Andrea Silva frolicking through “Summer En Paris” and bopping into some Brazilian funk on the release-week single “Museo.” Live Nov. 18 at SoHo Warehouse.

■ The Altons, “Waiting” — “Waiting” is an intoxicating and slow-groovin’ love song by retro-soul group the Altons. It will appear on their forthcoming debut album, “Heartache in Room 14,” out Feb. 14 and produced by Bosco Mann of Daptone Records.

■ Heaven Proper, “I Don’t Listen to Anyone (But You)” — Songwriter Lexie Papilion has closed the books on her Bloodboy persona and is taking a slightly different tack with her new project Heaven Proper. The powerful confessional “I Don’t Listen to Anyone (But You)” is the first single from the EP “Natural Born Machine,” produced by Sonny Diperri (DIIV, Julie, Protomartyr).

■ Cary Brothers, “Everything” — Whether he’s writing for TV/film or for his solo releases, Cary Brothers has the Midas touch. “Everything” is the astral new single from the singer-songwriter who will be among the performers on March 29 at the Greek Theatre for “Garden State: The 20th Anniversary Concert.”.

■ The Strike, “American Dream” — All that’s missing from The Strike’s third album, “A Dream Through Open Eyes,” is that distinctive mall smell. The L.A.-based trio — David Maemone, Jay Tibbitts and Chris Crabb — craft gleaming, sugary synth-rock on the LP, produced by Jon Fields (Jonas Brothers, Miley Cyrus, Switchfoot), and “American Dream” is the album opener. As good a place as any to start.

■ The Struts, “Can’t Stop Talking” — The Struts, the L.A.-based Brits with swagger to spare, return with “Can’t Stop Talking,” a throwback rocker that’s their third single since last year’s album, “Pretty Vicious.”

■ Rose Betts, “Running” — London-born singer-songwriter Rose Betts first found success in 2021 working on soundtracks with film director Zack Snyder, and she recently finished a mostly sold-out American tour. “Running” is the fourth single from her sophomore album, “There Is No Ship,” out March 7. “Running” chugs along with a Western feel paired with strong and angelic vocals.

■ La Poré, “Edge of the Hill” — Nick Samson returns with a new dose of warm synth-pop; “Edge of the Hill” is the latest from his solo project La Poré, whom you can catch live Nov. 2 at the Virgil.

■ Ricky Montgomery, “Superfan” — “Even though the internet as we know it feels like it’s dying, we don’t have to go down with it,” Ricky Montgomery says of “Superfan,” the newly released ode to fans (and a gentle takedown of “TikTok-obsessive culture that has held the music industry hostage since 2020”).

■ Zane Carney, “Is Anybody Else Out Here” — Zane Carney has worked with Joe Jonas, Avril Lavigne, Justin Timberlake, Thundercat, Jon Batiste and Evan Rachel Wood and has woven his solo career around touring gigs (he’s currently out with Foster the People). The properly yearning “Is Anybody Out Here” is his first solo single in more than two years.

■ Jei-Rynn, “I’m An Octopus” — A follow-up to “OK, You Got Me,” indie-popper Jei-Rynn (aka Jason Ledesma) is back with “I’m An Octopus.” A dark song with rich vocals leading the way, it appears on Jei-Rynn’s new four-track EP “Viole(n)t Dreams” out Nov. 15. you Moroccan Lounge on Nov. 13.

■ Cayo Coco, “Gloria” —  The rocker “Gloria” appeared on “Gone the Mirage,” the latest album from Cayo Coco, aka multi-instrumentalist Blake Harman. The recently released music video follows a 1950s Hollywood actor searching for a lost love across multiple lifetimes.

■ Gunnar, “This Is Now”— After having found success with his debut album “Best Mistake,” country rocker Gunnar (Gunnar Gehl) is back with a new stand-alone single “This Is Now.” The track was co-produced by Sam Farrar and KThrash (Machine Gun Kelly, Jelly Roll, blink-182), and features James Valentine of Maroon 5. “We we made a soulful, roots-influenced sound and song that encapsulates what I love most about songwriting — genuine storytelling with an Americana tone,” he says. Gunnar will be performing at the Echo on Apr. 1.

■ The Hellp, “Colorado” — Friendly reminder that electronic duo the Hellp (Noah Dillon and Chandler Ransom Lucy) today released their new album “LL.” The track “Colorado” is glitchy pop-punk song worthy of a dance party. Live at the Fonda on Nov. 21.