Top8 - 09/29/25

Welcome back to Top8. It's already 10pm on Sunday as I write these words, so we are going to be short and sweet this week. Or short anyway. Send whatever you want to wtsq.org/contact. Except nudes. Consent is key. 

Charlotte Gainsbourg - Blurry Moon

Holy goddamned fucking shit. There's a new Charlotte Gainsbourg track. This lady is kind of a big deal to me. Probably to a lot of people. I'd have been happy if someone recorded her whistling the theme to Green Acres, but here we have a wholeass song. It's called "Blurry" and it's great. Slow and sorta hazy like a Lana Del Rey track. Feels like Hollywood, which makes sense given that the video for it is her driving around in LA. There's no one as cool as Charlotte Gainsbourg and she never seems like she's trying to be cool. She's just Charlotte Gainsbourg.

Fine - Portal

Speaking of LDR, there's a fair bit of her cadence and vocal affectation on this track from Fine. "Portal". This song feels like getting lost at the beach and forgetting where your towel is. Just how far did the tide pull us down anyway. Blah blah music blog metaphor. Like share and subscribe. 

BRNDA - Everyone Chicago

These crazy bastards in BRNDA really put a jazz flute out here on a postpunk track. This shouldn't work. This should be so dumb. But it's really kinda great. Like that scene in Anchorman but if a moshpit got set off. Whatever the hell "Everyone Chicago" is, make me a double.

Sleepazoid - 3AM

Band names to matter. I wasn't really drawn in by "Sleepazoid", but I let it play anyway and I am really glad I did because this is fucking gas. This is a slowburn post-punkish track that travels between an intoxicated dance in the living room and noisy Bully-esque choruses. The other song on this single is also great – look for it in the bonus playlist this week.

Thundercat - Children of the Baked Potato (ft. Remi Wolf)

Thundercat is a dude you should know about. He's one of the best bass players of his generation who plays wildly across genres from jazz to funk and hiphop. He was one of the genius minds behind the production of Kenrick Lamar's iconic "To Pimp a Butterfly". He was also, apparently, in the band Suicidal Tendancies for five minutes. The new track has a distinct jazz fusion sound. And a lot of the time, I hate jazz fusion. But I don't hate "Children of the Baked Potato". Thundercat is one of these jazz geniuses who can play a mess of confusing notes and somehow still bring it together into something that both makes sense and also really grooves. The whole band here is generating an absolute blizzard of music, but all of it is held together and propelled by Thundercat's almighty bass. This would have already been a stone cold banger, but then he went and threw Remi Wolf in. 

NewDad - Misery

NewDad is a Galway band that has been playing since around 2020. "Misery" is off their second album, "Alter". This is a band that combines frequently gloomy songs with a bit of the 90s grunge sound of bands like Veruca Salt. I really like this. Check out last year's "Madra" while you're at it. I completely missed that one. 

Sprints - Need

Another Irish band here. Sprints is more straight ahead punk with riotgrrrl elements. "Need" has a frantic element that grabs you by the throat and thrashes you a bit. Sprints shows have got to be complete pandemonium.

Colter Wall - 1800 Miles

Colter Wall is a modern country artist out of Canada. He's well known for music that doesn't go with the flow. In a world of people lining up to be the next Jelly Roll or Morgan Wallen, Colter Wall decided to be Colter Wall. The decision is a conscious one, and songs like "1800 Miles" shows it. Wall sings about being that far away from Music Row. He's not completely alone. There are a lot of modern artists who have played real music that they cared about instead of merely cashing a paycheck. Wall sounds more like something out of the 50s or 60's than anything out of the last few decades of pop country bullshit, but this isn't just a retro sound – it's Wall playing what he wants and the rest of us realizing it's what we were missing. Something a little rough around the edges, and from the soul of a real live person. I am really proud to have been playing this cat on the Crows Nest for the better part of a decade. Always check out Colter Wall.

And this week's extra innings – just a few other things that I've been listening to. To be honest, I have had Wednesday's new album "Bleeds" on repeat. 

Wednesday - Townies

Bill Evans - Young and Foolish

Jeff Rosenstock - Doubt 

And a playlist with everything. 

PLUS!!!! just because I love you (and because I need to clear out the distressed merchandise), here's a whole other playlist of new music that didn't make it into this week's Top8. You're welcome. 

Thank you for listening and reading. 

-emily.