Déjà Vu: New The Smile, Waxahatchee, and Faye Webster (Again) and Other Songs of the Week

The post Déjà Vu: New The Smile, Waxahatchee, and Faye Webster (Again) and Other Songs of the Week appeared first on Consequence .

Every week, Consequence’ s Songs of the Week column looks at great new tunes from the last seven days and analyzes notable releases. Find our new favorites and more on our Spotify Top Songs playlist, and for other great songs from emerging artists, check out our Spotify New Sounds playlist. This week, The Smile, Faye Webster, and Waxahatchee all return just months after dropping their respective albums.

Some artists are known for their prolific nature, like those Ohio rockers Guided by Voices or the BasedGod himself Lil B. Others are known for their elusiveness and increasingly empty release schedules, like Frank Ocean or (here’s the setup) Radiohead. Conventional wisdom, however, suggests a modest but consistent two-to-three-year album cycle, giving LPs enough time to settle in and allowing time for a support tour or two. Well, somebody tell that to Faye Webster , Waxahatchee , The Smile (and here’s the punchline), who are all back with new material just months after dropping their respective records.

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Out of the three, The Smile are perhaps the most noteworthy, as today marks the release of their second full-length album of 2024. Following the excellent Wall of Eyes , the band’s new effort, Cutouts, offers listeners a different side of the Radiohead offshoot. Whereas the former found the band taking influences from jazz, post-rock, and avant-garde/contemporary classical, Cutouts presents an icier, more electronically-bent sonic world — just take single “Don’t Get Me Started” or “Bodies Laughing.” Put together, the records are a one-two punch from a trio that’s as eclectic as they are bursting with ideas.

Webster and Waxahatchee, for their part, aren’t so crazy, merely returning with brand new singles rather than a whole-mother-effing-album. Webster, who was the subject of a Consequence cover story in February, is still touring off the back of her most recent release, Underdressed at the Symphony , but that hasn’t stopped her from pulling together a new lush, love-sick little ditty. “She got me callin’ her wife after the first kiss,” she sings as strings glisten around her. It’s as Websteronian as it comes.

Similarly, Waxahatchee is back with a new cut, “Much Ado About Nothing,” less than seven months after dropping our favorite album of the first half of the year , Tigers Blood . Though not a leftover from the Tigers Blood sessions, the tune is just as piercing, well-constructed, and wonderfully twangy as any track from the album. There are soaring but understated melodies, tasteful banjo licks, and the type of harmonies that make you believe in a higher power. Speaking of higher powers, with her consistently quality output, it’s becoming increasingly obvious that songwriter Katie Crutchfield has sold her soul to some sort of countrified, indie rock devil. Nothing else explains her 2020s run.

Multiple releases in a year can sometimes result in diminishing returns, as it did last year with The National’s First Two Pages of Frankenstein and Laugh Track . On the other hand, if you have the material and are proud of it, why the hell wouldn’t you put it out? As far as more music from The Smile, Faye Webster, and Waxahatchee, we’re certainly not complaining. If anything, we’re turning into spoiled brats, hoping for even more before the year wraps up.

— Jonah Krueger
Editorial Coordinator

Staff Picks: Best Songs of the Week September 28th – October 4th

2hollis — “gold”

After dropping his excellent new full-length boy earlier this year, 2hollis is back with “gold,” his first release on Interscope. It’s a glitchy, shivering rager from the auteur, but as usual, every one of his pop-forward impulses gets warped and mashed into something dangerous. On “gold,” that manifests in explosive amounts of bass, Hollis groaning “I feel disgusting, ” and an absolutely absurd electroclash outro that serves as a shock to the senses. He may not be for the faint of heart, but 2hollis is flying in his own lane. — Paolo Ragusa

A Place to Bury Strangers — “Fear of Transformation”

A Place to Bury Strangers built a custom synthesizer for their new album (the aptly-named Synthesizer, out today via Dedstrange), and on “Fear of Transformation,” you get to hear the beast in all of its glory. Built off a driving and ever-evolving arpeggio, the song sounds like the band’s fucked up, noisy, shoegaze version of a club banger. It’s propulsive, surprisingly easy to dance to, and an absolute riot. — J. Krueger

Erick the Architect — “Beverly Drive”

Erick the Architect has shared “Beverly Drive,” a contemplative, mid-tempo gem that will appear on the deluxe version of his 2024 album I’ve Never Been Here Before . “Beverly Drive” serves as Erick’s moment to stop and survey; he was inspired by Beverly Road in Flatbush, Brooklyn, where he grew up, and the glitzy Beverly Drive, where he lives now. The Flatbush Zombies member gets unapologetically earnest about where he came from and where he feels he’s destined to be, noting the trauma and victories that have marked his path along the way. Keeping the vibe nostalgic, Erick debuted the song in a retro-style video game — so if you get too bogged down by reality, plug in, stream “Beverly Road,” and take yourself back in time.  — P. Ragusa

Florist — “This Was a Gift”

There’s something so heartbreakingly, breathtakingly simple about Florist’s new song, “This Was a Gift.” “I just want music in my life/ I just want us to sing along,” songwriter and vocalist Emily Sprague sings in an almost whisper. With softly plucked acoustic guitar chords and gracefully played piano notes supporting her lead melody, the resulting tune is enough to water the eyes of even the most stoic of listeners. — J. Krueger

Michael Kiwanuka — “The Rest of Me”

Michael Kiwanuka’s new album, Small Changes , is set to arrive November 15th via Geffen Records. Ahead of the full LP, he’s shared “The Rest of Me,” a sun-soaked slice of nostalgia that shows off Kiwanuka’s rich vocals. The song feels pulled from another time in all the best ways, and particularly in the way it luxuriates in a lengthy musical intro. Slow down for a moment with this song while we wait for the rest of the project to land next month. — Mary Siroky

Mount Eerie — “I Saw Another Bird”

Mount Eerie songwriter Phil Eleverum is back to his eclectic ways, as proven by the latest single from the upcoming Night Palace , “I Saw Another Bird.” Mixing unconventional, shuffling percussion with crescendoing distorted guitars, the song brings to mind the work of Eleverum’s past, like moments from It Was Hot, We Stayed in the Water or The Glow Pt. 2 . And much like the songs from those records, “I Saw Another Bird” is idiosyncratic and oh-so-excellent. — J. Krueger

Nitefire — “Saturday”

The LA band’s new single “Saturday” is so ‘early 2000s movie soundtrack’ that it’s shocking to hear it was released this week. The chord structure is simple and the song’s concept is even more so (“God only knows that I’m itching for Saturday” is the central refrain) — but “Saturday” rips so hard because of its chintzy, throwback production and vocalist Nico Geyer’s bratty sneer. It’s unabashedly confident and cool, while also sounding like a more adult revamp of Jive Jones’ “Me Myself & I.” “Saturday” is indeed as hype as its namesake. — P. Ragusa

Thee Sacred Souls — “Price I’ll Pay”

After a recent cosign from Beyoncé herself, it’s safe to assume that soul band Thee Sacred Souls are riding high. Their lovely new album, Got a Story to Tell , is further proof that a recent viral moment — a TikTok burst for their song “Can I Call You Rose” — is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to their capabilities as a band. It’s hard to identify just one standout from the warm, inviting project, but the particularly timeless “Price I’ll Pay” is an enchanting place to start. — M. Siroky

thûy — “watcha gotta say”

Fans of Ariana Grande should get vocalist thûy on their radar if she hasn’t made it onto a playlist already. Her new EP, wings , is a bouncy nine-track offering (anchored by lead single “fairy godmother”). And while there’s fun pop offerings around every corner of the project, one standout arrives with “whatcha gotta say” where thûy introduces herself as the life of the party. It’s the perfect song to ensure that the vibes stay up. — M. Siroky

Song of the Week Artwork:

Florist "This Was a Gift" Artwork Mount Eerie "I Saw Another Bird" Artwork A Place to Bury Strangers Synthesizer album artwork Waxahatchee "Much Ado About Nothing" artwork The Smile Cutouts artwork Faye Webster "After the First Kiss" artwork Michael Kiwanuka's "The Rest of Me" artwork Thee Sacred Souls' Got a Story to Tell artwork thûy's wings artwork 2hollis' "gold" single artwork Erick the Architect's "Beverly Drive" Single Artwork Nitefire's "Saturday" Single Artwork

Song of the Week Playlist:

Déjà Vu: New The Smile, Waxahatchee, and Faye Webster (Again) and Other Songs of the Week
Consequence Staff and Jonah Krueger