Kevin Bronson on July 25th, 2025

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Greatest Hits … This Week (Vol. 348) arrives with a splash, because Buzz Bands LA bylaws dictate that everything that arrives in the heat of July and August should land with a splash.

Press play to hear new songs from Livingmore, Automatic, Tyler Ballgame, Butch Bastard, Wargirl, Bardo, Runnner, Tin Angel, Hunx and His Punx, Chrissy, Ozomatli, Evangeline, Fitz and the Tantrums, Cold Gawd, Quinnie, Harmless, Windows, Julia Jade, Caroline Kingsbury and more.

Past and future playlists may be found here, complete with hastily penned liner notes.

Note: Anita Mills contributed to this roundup.

■ Wargirl, “Lost Inside My Brain” — Five years after their COVID calamity and more than six since their dynamite debut, Long Beach’s Wargirl are kicking again. The sextet’s third LP, “Good Things,” comes out Aug. 22, and they’ve rolled out three singles so far. Analog warriors and mashers extraordinaire of genres such as garage-rock, post-punk, Afro-beat, dance-pop and funk, Wargirl take a somewhat surprising turn toward ’80s music, especially on new jams “Lost Inside My Brain” and “Good Thing.” If any band can turn homage into subversive, danceable bliss, it’s Wargirl.

■ Butch Bastard, “Green Figurines” — Turns out Ian Murray did not empty the cupboard in March when he released “Death Valley,” his third Butch Bastard album. The rocker “Green Figurines” did not make the record, as Murray explains here, because one song had to be cut for him to fit the songs on vinyl, and because it was “stylistically a little outside the album’s aesthetic.” You should really hear it, though. “It’s a song about police brutality and resistance to it,” Murray says. “And as I watch ICE arresting taco vendors within half a mile of my house, I’m reminded that, sadly, abuse of power and harassment by law enforcement are about as timeless as it gets.”

■ Livingmore, “Not That Nice” — Spencer Livingston and Alex Moore, dba Livingmore, have moved deftly between pop, folk, new wave and dream-pop over their four full-lengths, including last year’s dreamy “The Garden.” Their first since since that LP, “Not That Nice” immediately moves to the head of the class as their rocking-est rocker, with Moore’s furtive speaking of the verses raising the pulse rate.

■ Bandie, “Empty” — Brian Hill laments and he’s running on empty on Bandie’s new single “Empty,” but this garage-rock rager has plenty of gas in the tank. It’s Bandie’s first single since “Undone” in May.

■ Automatic, “Mercury” — Automatic (Izzy Glaudini, Halle Saxon and Lola Dompé) are working toward the Sept. 26 arrival of their third album, “Is It Now?” and this week they released the new single “Mercury,” a song that Glaudini says feel like a “dark lullaby.” Live Oct. 11 at the Novo, along with Sextile.

■ Harmless, “What’s Another Year?” — L.A.-based Mexican singer-songwriter Nacho Cano makes music in the under the name Harmless, and his new album, “By Them, By You, By Me,” is out Oct. 17. Of his new single, he says: “Sometimes you talk to your peers for comfort, and they end up leaving you worse than before. I had a meeting with an A&R representative about my album, and they discussed trends with me. I thought, well — I don’t fit in. I got home with nothing left to lose and wrote this. I’m a musician in his 30s, albeit making indie rock. I’m ancient. What’s another year?” Live Oct. 17 at the Constellation Room and Nov. 2 at the Echo, both dates with Yungatita.

■ Quinnie, “Angel Song” — Friendly reminder that New Jersey native Quinnie (Quinn Barnitt) this week released her sophomore album, “Paper Doll,” a collection of introspective indie-rock and dreamy pop made with longtime collaborators Jake Weinberg and Gabe Wax. See also: “Hate F*ck” and the title track. Live Nov. 14 at the Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever.

■ Tyler Ballgame, “Got a New Car” — Ahead of his appearance at this weekend’s Newport Folk Fest, L.A.-based Rhode Island native Tyler D. Perry, aka Tyler Ballgame, today released a new single, “Got a New Car” (video here), his first since “Help Me Out” augured his signing to Rough Trade Records. Jonathan Rado and Ryan Pollie are credited as producers on the new single. Live Sept. 28 at the Greek Theatre, supporting the Head and the Heart.

■ Tin Angel, “Feel It” — “Feel It” follows “Couch Song” as the latest single from rising folk trio Tin Angel (Daisy Abrams, Grace Freeman and Taylor Sackson). Jon O’Brien is producing.

■ Windows, “Light in the Dark” — Windows (singer-guitarist Matteo Arias, joined by Nick Dehmlow, Mikey Whiteside, Marissa Yardley Clifford and Julian Ducatenzeiler) return with “Light in the Dark,” featuring a head-bobbing groove that seems to drain all the stress from your body.

■ Evangeline, “Rooting for You” — Last spring, Evangeline (fka Eva B. Ross) released an EP titled “When Demigods Go …,” and now the singer-songwriter is rolling out singles for her debut LP, “Cherry,” arriving this fall. Her effortlessly cool vocals shine on the Max Schrager-produced single “Rooting for You,” which sums up our feeling exactly.

■ Bardo, “Funky People” — Following the introspective single “Sad Boy,” “Funky People” is a fun and joyful track from singer-keyboardist Bardo Martinez (Chicano Batman), off his solo album “Transformation Time,” out Aug. 22 via Stones Throw Records. Bardo says: “I thought about Bob Marley and the way his music channels high frequencies that inspire movement; but I also wanted something for the dance floor.”

■ MyVeronica, “Sacred Heart” — MyVeronica’s cathartic indie-rocker “Sacred Heart” introduces “Farewell Skylines” (out Aug. 8), a four-track split EP features MyVeronica and Friend’s House. Myveronica is the solo project of singer-guitarist Mia Lin, joined by guitarist Tristin Souvannarath, bassist Hovhannes Tamrazyan and drummer Rah Kanan. Friend’s House is the the solo project of Souvannarath, once of San Diego surf-rockers T. Rexico. MyVeronica plays tonight at Non Plus Ultra as part of the Cut Fruits Fest and Aug. 8 at the Forge.

■ Runnner, “Split” — “Split” is the 1-2-3-4-5-6 … 7th single from “A Welcome Kind of Weakness,” Noah Weinman’s sophomore album as Runnner, out Aug. 29. It’s cinematic 2000s-styled indie-rock, and if you cue up the singles released so far on your streaming service of choice, it’s already a pretty great album, with a handful of tracks still to hear. Live Sept. 25 at the Lodge Room.

■ Molly Horses, “Family Meal” — Molly Horses’ sharply observant, slightly acerbic noise-punk is highlighted by frontman Harry James’ speak-singing over stinging riffs, and punctuated by blasts of distortion serving as the songs’ exclamation points. We can’t wait to hear more, actually. The L.A. quartet (James, along with Cormac Shirer Brown, Tim Wright and Malcolm Watts) today released their debut EP, “Clang Clang.” Live tonight at Gold-Diggers.

■ Holy Wars, “Crucify” — Holy Wars, the metal ministrations of Kat Leon and Nicolas Perez, return with a rager they laconically call “the revenge song of the summer.” Thrash to “Crucify.”

■ Cold Gawd, “Golden Postcard” — Rancho Cucamonga sextet Cold Gawd (Arturo Ramirez, Brandon Aviles, Cameron Burris, Cameron Fonacier, Devin Trott and Matthew Wright) do shoegaze writ large, with big, beautiful walls of sound in the vein of artists such as Bailterspace and Hum. Last year brought the full-length “I’ll Drown on This Earth” via Dais Records, and now they’re back with the new single “Golden Postcard.” Live Sept. 27 at the Regent Theater, supporting High Vis.

■ Ozomatli, “Red Line” — L.A. legends Ozomatli are celebrating 30 years with a big tour, and today they officially released “Red Line,” a song they performed from atop a flatbed truck in DTLA during the No Kings protest. Live Aug. 2 at Burton Chace Park in Marina Del Rey (free show) and Aug. 3 at the O.C. Fair, along with X and Los Lobos.

■ Small Shake, “Lucky” — “Lucky,” the follow-up to last month’s “Still Too Soon,” is the second single Small Shake’s forthcoming EP, “Platonics,” out Aug. 22. “It’s for sprinting through fields and airports and train stations barefoot and messy haired to tell someone you love them, even if only in your head,” songwriter Aarin Wright says. Cue the trombone (there is one).

■ Ryan Lerman, “Emily” — Friendly reminder that Ryan Lerman (background here) today released his solo album, “Self Defense.”

■ Maddy Davis, “Sweet Christopher” — Singer-songwriter Maddy Davis’ third in as many months “Sweet Christopher,” is a song of heartache and longing and unrequited love. Forgiveness is offered, but …? Here’s the video, filmed in Vermont.

■ Gabriel Bernini, “Photography Class” — Massachusetts-born, L.A.-based Gabriel Bernini is a musician and filmmaker who will release a new album, “Ride Rodeo,” on Aug. 1. Fans of Elvis Costello, Tom Petty and Paul Westerberg might find a home in some of the singles that Bernini, formerly of LuxDeluxe and touring keyboardist for Deer Tick, released so far, including this month’s single, “Photography Class.” Live Aug. 4 at Zebulon, along with Night Shop and Sunday Mourners.  

■ Chrissy, “Slight Turn” — Chrissy (Christina Brennan) returns with a new pop delicacy, “Slight Turn,” co-written with Charley Damski and Jackson Phillips and her first release since the February release of her debut album, “Heaven Is in You.”

■ Hunx and His Punx, “Wild Boys” — Sounding like a party that’s just starting to go off, “Wild Boys” is the third single from Hunz and His Punx’s comeback album, “Walk Out on This World,” out Aug. 22. See also: “No Way Out.” Live Sept. 27 at the Belasco.

■ Oog Bogo, “Cowgirls” — Friendly reminder that alt-rockers Oog Bogo (Kevin Boog, Gabe Flores, Julian Betts and Grant Snyder) today released their new album “Cowgirls” via In the Red Records. The title track, produced by Eric Bauer, flaunts a busy guitar and harmonized vocals. Watch the band frolic in a park in the music video here. Live Aug. 10 at Gold-Diggers.

■ MEGG, “IDC” — Since hitting the music scene in 2011, powerhouse rocker MEGG (Meghan Mahowald) has proven to be a versatile musician, singing everything from piano ballads to pop-punk. As a follow-up to “Get Over It,” “IDC” is an in-your-face rock anthem, co-written by Brian Wight and Sophia Ruggiero, produced by Rob Nagelhout. Catch Megg at Vans Warped Tour in Long Beach July 26 & 27.

■ Fitz and the Tantrums, “Young Days” — Friendly reminder that “Man on the Moon,” the new album from Fitz and the Tantrums is out today. Live tonight at the O.C. Fair, along with Aloe Blacc.

■ Maisy Kay, “Somebody You Never Touched” — Maisy Kay Kendrick (just Maisy Kay when she’s releasing music) is a transplanted Englishwoman making bold pop as found on her 2024 EP and her breakout single, “The Storm.” Mike Avenaim produced her new single, “Somebody You Never Touched,” a song, she says, “based off of the concept that every seven years, your skin cells completely renew, so in theory, you could be a completely different person, or someone that your ex never touched.” Live Sept. 18 at the Moroccan Lounge.

■ Waverly Drive, “Lazy Day” — Following the title track, “Lazy Day” is an ’80s pop-inspired track from Waverly Drive’s new album “Decadence,” out Sept. 16. Waverly Drive’s Phil Galloni says: “The inspiration for ‘Lazy Day’ was pretty mundane … just feeling lazy on a day in the studio and wanted to create something that feels classic Waverly.”

■ Caroline Kingsbury, “Chocolate” — “Chocolate,” a follow-up to the title track, is a deeply personal pop song from Caroline Kingsbury’s forthcoming EP “Shock Treatment,” out Sept. 26 via Seeker Music. Kingsbury trades her signature style for a hospital gown in the music video that takes place entirely in one corner of a padded cell. Catch Kingsbury Oct. 15 at the Echoplex.

■ Sweet Gloom, “Loudmouths” — Sweet Gloom (Jaake Margo, Chris Clark and Moris Carrillo) describe their 2023 debut LP “Reverie” as “crooner-punk.” Produced by Paul Miner, their new single “Loudmouths” (Pretty Boy Records) continues that high-energy punk rock in a song about heartache: “Are we a match made in heaven / Or are we doomed.”

■ Able Machines, “Help Me (I’m Falling in Love)” — Pop duo Tay Côlieé and Linus Dotson, dba Able Machines, get ably vocoded on their lovelorn new single “Help Me (I’m Falling in Love).” Blame it on the machines.

■ Dream Bodies, “Circle of Light” — Dream bodies, the solo project of Steven Fleet, have released their debut EP, “Circle of Light.” Featuring singles such as “Eclipse,” its gothic dream-pop finds inspiration in the heavens.

■ Origami Ghosts, “Virtual Reality Boy” — Twee freak-folk group Origami Ghosts (JP Scesniak, Cassandra Wulff, Ben Kendall and Jacob Leavitt) share “Virtual Reality Boy,” the fifth single (following “Heaven’s Gate”) from their upcoming album, “A Fine Time to Talk About Nothing,” out Aug. 8. “Virtual Reality Boy” is a psychedelic song about the lure of advanced technology. Origami Ghosts play The Harmony Room in Eagle Rock on Aug.23.

■ Julia Jade, “Missin’ Out” — Julia Jade (Julia Jade Hollander) is back with another delicately twee single, “Missin’ Out,” following, “Actually I Have Time.” Jade says: “The song is a reminder that courage isn’t the absence of fear, but the ability to push through it.”  

■ Photo Ops, “The Waiting” — We’ll bring this playlist in for a scenic landing with the new single from Terry Price, aka Photo Ops, whose fifth LP, “Opening Up to Strangers” (out Sept. 19) is a collection of covers. Price’s song selection is, well, fascinating — has there been a covers album that includes Rodgers and Hammerstein and Madonna? Beethoven and the Kinks? The Smiths and Shania Twain? Let us know. The new single is Tom Petty’s of course.