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

New tracks take the spotlight this week as album releases this late in year are limited.

By Jen Lennon  |  December 20, 2024 | 1:00pm
Image: Julien Baker & TORRES, "Sugar In The Tank" (Matador); Ben Kweller "Optimystic" (The Noise Company)
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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?

Julien Baker & TORRES, “Sugar In The Tank”

“Sugar In The Tank” is notable enough just for uniting Julien Baker and TORRES, but it wouldn’t be quite as special without the moments when they sing together rather than trading off vocal duties. Their voices are a dream together, giving this country tune an emotional heft that it wouldn’t otherwise have. And though Baker and TORRES haven’t announced a full collaboration album yet, we’ve got our fingers crossed for more.

Guided By Voices, “The Great Man”

There is perhaps no working band more prolific than Guided By Voices. Since their inception 41 years ago, they’ve released 40 studio albums—and they broke up for a few years somewhere in the middle of that, too. Next year’s Universe Room will be their 41st album, and “The Great Man” is the second track we’ve heard from it so far. It’s a politically charged scorcher that comes in at just over two minutes, long enough to get its message across but not overstay its welcome.

Ben Kweller, “Optimystic”

The title of Ben Kweller’s new single, coupled with its upbeat sound, belies a devastating pain at the center of the lyrics. “Optimystic” tackles Kweller’s grief over the 2023 death of his 16-year-old son, a trauma he’s still trying to process. “This is the most personal, emotionally raw project I’ve ever worked on,” Kweller said in a press release. The track comes from his upcoming album, Cover The Mirrors, which is set for release in May 2025.

SZA, Lana

Two years after dropping her sophomore album, SOS, SZA is back with Lana. Don’t let the title fool you, though—Lana is just the deluxe version of SOS. In the lead-up to the release of Lana, SZA was cagey about the tracklist, and the different titles only made things more confusing. It was unclear whether Lana would be an album of outtakes, remixes, or some combination of both, but that only made us even more excited to get our hands on it.

Katy Perry, 1432

It’s the week before the holidays and most artists aren’t dropping whole new albums right now, but re-releases are apparently still fair game. 1432 is the deluxe edition of Perry’s most recent album, 143, which was not particularly well-received. Hopefully, the four new bonus tracks on 1432 are actually fun and not just a random assortment of songs that were deemed not even good enough for inclusion on 143.

Subway To Sally, Post Mortem

If SZA and Katy Perry are very much not your vibe, maybe you’ll enjoy Post Mortem, the latest record from German folk metal band Subway To Sally. Though they’ve never achieved a massive international audience, the band has been going strong in Germany for over 30 years. Post Mortem is the follow-up to their well-received 2023 album, Himmelfahrt. The success of their previous record sped up the creative process on Post Mortem. The band members seem to be having a great time getting drunk with a bunch of skeletons in the “Post Mortem” music video, and honestly, it’s a cool festive vibe for those who don’t enjoy traditional holiday celebrations.

 
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