3 new songs and 3 new albums to check out this weekend

Bruce Springsteen's "Rain In The River" is just a drop in the bucket of Tracks II: The Lost Albums.

By Jen Lennon  |  April 4, 2025 | 4:00pm
Images from left: Wet Leg, moisturizer (Domino); Bruce Springsteen, Tracks II: The Lost Albums (Sony); Momma (Avery Norman)
Music Features 3 new songs and 3 new albums
3 new songs and 3 new albums to check out this weekend
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Welcome to our weekly music post, where we spotlight our favorite new songs and albums. Hop in the comments and tell us: What new music are you listening to?

Bruce Springsteen, “Rain In The River”

What a gift it is every time Bruce Springsteen graces us with a new song, and this time, we’re getting a lot more than just one. Springsteen’s upcoming Tracks II: The Lost Albums (out June 27) is a collection of seven previously unreleased albums, containing 83 songs in total. The recordings span from 1983 to 2018, covering a wide range of Springsteen’s distinctive eras. “Rain In The River,” the first single from the collection, comes from the E Street Band-backed arena-ready rock record Perfect World, and it reads a bit like Springsteen’s take on Rutger Hauer’s “tears in rain” speech from Blade Runner, which, to be clear, is a compliment of the highest order. “Down at the water, I heard my Marie / She said, ‘Now Johnny, your love mean no more to me / Than rain in the river,'” Springsteen sings. If “Rain In The River” is any indication, we’re in for something truly special with this collection.

7SECONDS, “Change In My Head”

If the Youth Of Today and the early 7SECONDS taught you some of life’s most valuable lessons, this one’s for you. 7SECONDS is back with Change In My Head, a new version of their classic album New Wind that’s been remastered by hardcore legend Ian MacKaye. The full album releases on May 23, but the band dropped the previously unreleased title track, which was recorded during the original 1985 album recording sessions, as a teaser this week. It’s transportive, taking the listener back to a time that singer Kevin Seconds describes like this in a press release: “The whole time period, between the winter of 1985 and all throughout 1986, was arguably the most important and life-changing period for 7SECONDS. We all were starting to feel like the adults that we fought so rigorously to never become.”

Wet Leg, “catch these fists”

Wet Leg is back to butter our muffins with a new album, moisturizer (out July 11), and a new single, “catch these fists.” In comparison to their chart-topping 2022 self-titled debut album, “moisturizer brings the bite: brash guitars, heavy beats, and a fearless devotion to feeling everything—all at once,” according to an album note on Bandcamp. That definitely plays out on “Catch these fists,” a post-punk bruiser about wanting to throw hands with gross, pushy dudes in clubs. 

Smoking Popes, Lovely Stuff

It’s been seven long years since we’ve gotten a new album from Chicago pop-punk pioneers Smoking Popes, but they’re finally back with Lovely Stuff, their first album since 2018’s Into The Agony. “Calling this album Lovely Stuff felt right because it says something about where our heads are at right now. I wouldn’t exactly say we’re optimistic, but we’re at least determined to keep moving forward, to keep finding what is lovely in an unlovely world,” singer and guitarist Josh Caterer said in a press release. We’ll take any glimmer of hope we can get right now, but it’s particularly special when it comes from Smoking Popes.

Craig Finn, Always Been

Always Been sees Hold Steady frontman Craig Finn doing what he does best: telling stories. Finn’s knack for crafting intricate narratives within the framework of three-minute rock songs is on full display here, as the album follows the rise, fall, and redemption of a faithless priest. The frankness on display in Finn’s lyrics also extends to the album’s title: “I’ve always been Craig Finn,” he explained in a press release.

Momma, Welcome To My Blue Sky

Welcome To My Blue Sky is an aural record of Momma’s 2022 tour, which they embarked on in support of their critically acclaimed third album, Household Name. This time around, the band was less focused on creating a cool rock ‘n roll sound and more concerned with the feelings the songs evoke. “This record came from a very formative time for us—there was a lot of change that felt so fun and exciting, but also a lot of instability and heartbreak,” Momma co-founder Allegra Weingarten said in a press release.

 
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