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New Music Friday – January 17, 2025

Happy New Music Friday. Superstar singers and songwriters shared new singles this week. There’s also a new posthumous release from Mac Miller, recorded over a decade ago. Keep reading to see our top picks in new music. Here’s a look at the best music out now.

The Best of New Music Friday:

Lucy Dacus – “Ankles” and “Limerence”

Lucy Dacus released two new singles this week. She also announced her new record Forever Is A Feeling is due out March 28. “Ankles” is accompanied by a music video that was shot on the streets of Paris and in a museum. Dacus runs away from a security guard and causes a hijinx.

It’s already clear in these two songs that the lushness of the album’s sound will be matched by a new frankness in Dacus’s approach to sexuality and romance. The love displayed on “Ankles” is fantasy-filled. Like many of Dacus’s releases, love doesn’t come easy and desire has to be resisted. It’s her willingness to talk about it which shows a new forthrightness, a new and brave willingness to express desire.

Perfume Genius – “It’s a Mirror”

Perfume Genius returned this week with a strummingly-rugged tune called “It’s a Mirror.” The single begins the long rollout for a new Perfume Genius album called Glory coming out March 28.

Perfume Genius (AKA Mike Hadreas) gave a glimpse into the new track and his upcoming LP. “I wake up overwhelmed even when nothing is going on,” he said in a release this week. “I spend the rest of the day trying to regulate, which I prefer to do at home alone with my thoughts. But why? They are mostly bad. They also haven’t really changed for decades. I wrote “It’s a Mirror” while stuck in one of these isolating loops, seeing that something different and maybe even beautiful is out there but not quite knowing how to venture out. I have a lot more practice keeping the door closed.”

All the tracks on Glory were produced alongside Blake Mills. “It’s a Mirror” is a grungy yet sweet sneak-peak at another anticipated Perfume Genius album.

New Music Friday Top Picks:

Babe Rainbow – “Like cleopatra” [p(doom) records]

Bdrmm – “Infinity Peaking” [Rock Island Records]

Frank Black – Teenager of the Year (30th Anniversary Edition) [4AD]

Jasmine.4.T – You Are the Morning [Saddest Factory]

Mac Miller – Balloonerism [Warner]

Samantha Crain – “Dart” [Real Kind Records]

The Weather Station – Humanhood [Fat Possum]

Which of these tracks from New Music Friday will you add to your favorite playlists today? Any we missed? Let us know in the comments or on Instagram!

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Ben Pagani

Music Projects Manager at Beyond The Stage Magazine

Ben is a music journalist living and working in Chicago. They joined Beyond The Stage as an intern and have stayed on the staff for several years. Now serving on the editorial board, Ben is proud to be BTS' Music Projects Manager, coordinating coverage between international record labels and our staff. Ben has interviewed, photographed and written about bands from across the world. Ben has lived all over the United States working in television and media. They are an Emmy Award-winning writer. Ben can be found spinning records as 'DJ Wearing Sunglasses' in clubs and basements across the US.