10 new albums streaming right now for Phoenix music fans (Feb. 21, 2025)

We're back again with more new albums to share. So far, we've tried to accompany these suggestions with important observations, including this thread of how music is becoming increasingly strange in all the very best ways.

But in the post-Valentine's Day, pre-Innings Fest haze, we've decided to just let this latest smattering of selections stand on its own. No matter what you take away from this week's list — and there's everything from thoughtful roots rock to TikTok-friendly indie pop — we just hope it gets you where you need to be (emotionally, physically, spiritually, etc.)

Until next week, just let these tunes ride and ride.

Baths, ‘Gut’

As Baths, Los Angeles' Will Wiesenfeld has spent the last 15 years making really interesting and textured electronic music. However, we haven't had a proper full-length from him since 2017's excellent "Romaplasm." With the 11-track "Gut," Wiesenfeld proves that the wait was more than worth it as he continues to craft these extra compelling soundscapes. Case in point: "Sea of Men," where a swing toward alt rock and pop finds Wiesenfeld practically humming with newfound joy, grace and intention. It’s not exactly "classic" Baths, but it does feel like a well-deserved evolution for the singer-producer. Let's just not wait another eight-ish years for a new LP, shall we?

Fairy Bones, ‘0% Fun (Worse)’

In February 2018, local faves Fairy Bones released "0% Fun." The nine-track LP seemed to crystalize the band's own brand of mischievous, super cathartic indie rock and pop. Now, in honor of the album's six-year anniversary (does that math actually math for everyone?), they're releasing "0% Fun (Worse)," which features remixes and demos, including a re-spin of "Futurekind." Is it so markedly different that you must hear this new version posthaste? Maybe not. However, it's proof of Fairy Bone's true prowess and skill, and any chance to listen to "new" music from the band makes for a great day. Even if we technically have to wait till Sunday, Feb. 23 for the project to drop.

Youth Lagoon, ‘Rarely Do I Dream’

For his fifth album as Youth Lagoon, Trevor Powers finds himself feeling especially nostalgic. As he explains in press for the record, "Rarely Do I Dream" is about life's simple treasures, like a "dog at the backdoor, or a speeding car off in the distance." Those deeply sentimental feelings permeate much of the 12-track album. Whether it's the odd but comforting "Speed Freak," the hazy, expertly-named "Gumshoe (Dracula From Arkansas)" or the decidedly earnest "My Beautiful Girl," Powers has found a way to balance the strange and peculiar with the downright familiar. The end result? A record worth truly savoring for its own myriad of pleasures.

AJJ, ‘Good Luck Everybody’ (Demos)

Once again, we're allowing ourselves to cheat by looking back at an album that dropped last week (Feb. 13). As you may have already guessed from the title, AJJ have assembled a handful of demos taken from 2020's exciting "Good Luck Everybody." Are these tracks markedly different? Not really. "Normalization Blues," for instance, sounds a bit more muddy, which works thematically for the track. Meanwhile, "Loudmouth" is a bit more tame, and that feels like an interesting choice. However, much like with the Fairy Bones release, it's just nice to see the inner workings of a local favorite play out over an album proper. Be it demo or a completed song, AJJ continue to be masters of their craft.

Porridge Radio, ‘The Machine Starts to Sing’ EP

In October 2024, Porridge Radio released the excellent "Clouds in the Sky They Will Always Be There for Me." As it turns out, that would be their final full-length release, as the U.K. indie rockers announced this past January that they intended to break up after tour dates later this year. Luckily, they're not leaving us empty-handed as the band's unveiled a companion EP in "Machine Starts To Sing." It's very much in line with "Clouds...," and songs like "Don't Want To Dance" are as lush and gorgeous as you'd want from what's effectively a four-song break up letter. Whether you heard of the band or not before this release, this is one goodbye you must experience in full.

Tim Hecker, ‘Shards’

Ambient music isn't for everybody, but Tim Hecker does a damn fine job making it sound really fun and interesting. With "Shards," he's collected seven pieces originally recorded for a slate of TV and film soundtracks, including "La Tour," "Luzifer" and "The North Water." As such, songs like "Morning (Piano Version)" have a cinematic quality (even as the dominant emotional theme is really much more haunting and claustrophobic). And "Sunset Key Melt" could easily be featured in the soundtrack to some intense "Breaking Bad" spinoff. Hecker's music still won't be for everyone, but whoever gets it will find themselves moved in some strange and powerful ways.

PISSGRAVE, ‘Malignant Worthlessness’

Did we pick this Philadelphia death metal band because of their (wonderful, all caps) name? We cannot tell a lie: heck yes. And in the name of further transparency, an album title like "Malignant Worthlessness" did even more work to
win us over. Super cool names aside, PISSGRAVE (hehe) actual prove that they're quite the talented bunch across the nine-track effort (which completes a trilogy started by 2015's "Suicide Euphoria" and 2019's "Posthumous Humiliation"). Maybe the pulverizing "In Heretic Blood Christened" will scare off some less adventurous folks, but true metal fans will find something profoundly interesting. All hail PISSGRAVE.

Basia Bulat, ‘Basia’s Palace’

Basia Bulat has been called the "autoharp-plucking folk phenom of the mid-2000s Montreal indie explosion." If you have no idea what that means, or you don't fully care, you should still give the nine-track "Basia's Palace" the ol' college try. "My Angel," for instance, is equal parts funky and evocative, a ballad made for dancing slowly and mourning even more intently. Meanwhile, "Baby" follows a similar path, and "Disco Polo" channels the warmth and magic of Stevie Nicks. So, yeah, Bulat is the queen of Montreal or whatever. Mostly, though, she's a dang siren that demands your full attention.

Sam Fender, ‘People Watching’

If you were on TikTok enough circa 2021 (don't be ashamed, FYI), you may recall Sam Fender's "Seventeen Going Under" as something of a viral hit. That was effectively a lifetime ago in internet time, and Fender has since moved on to write and release his third studio album, "People Watching." In the title track, Fender tackles the craziness of the last few years, trying to reconcile who he is as an artist with the mass of humanity and fame he's had to face. While the full album also explores other, less heady ideas, "People Watching" finds Fender at the top of his game in terms of wit, charm and emotional honesty. Fame can't sway the sheer brilliance of this young crooner.

Patterson Hood, ‘Exploding Trees & Airplane Scream’

You may know Patterson Hood best as the cofounder of beloved Southern rock band Drive-By Truckers. Outside the group, he's also released three of his own solo records, most recently 2012's rather entertaining "Heat Lightning Rumbles in the Distance." With the 11-track "Exploding Trees & Airplane Screams," Hood further crafts the same kind of roots-driven rock. There's the searing ballad "Werewolf and a Girl"; the excellent, Waxahatchee-featuring "The Forks of Cypress"; and the extra theatrical "The Pool House." Each album track proves that Hood's best work, solo or with his fellow Truckers, is marked by soulful vocals, a deep wit and lyricism and earthly magic that knows few competitors.