INDISPENSABLE NEW MUSIC PICKS
August 2026
by Kristine England
Aug 31, 2026
Elephant Stone
Asha
Elephant Stone's latest album themes of grief as well as societal and cultural unrest. The first single, "Everything Evil," finds frontman/founder Rishi Dhar confronting current societal rot. "I look around; all I see is everything evil, those same old lies. My oh my, have we heard this before?" All is not bleak, however. Though mourning the loss of his mother, for whom the album is named, we see glimpses of hope at bookending the songs, with "Here Comes the Rising Sun," a psychedelic tour-de-force, and the closer, "Spirit, Take Me Away," is a beautiful farewell.
FEATURED TRACK: "Everything Evil"
Sawyer Hill
Everybody’s Home, Nobody’s Happy
Sawyer Hill's voice and songcraft belie his age. At just 27, he sounds like a veteran singer-songwriter from days of old. Through his bluesy Americana tunes, the Arkansas native tells tales of the disillusioned and disenfranchised, like "Ghost Town" and "Jimmy's Gone Numb," with lyrics like "Jimmy grew up just down the street. Raised on corn and amphetamines. And he had dreams. Big ol' American." A rising star, he's one to watch.
FEATURED TRACK: "Jimmy's Gone Numb"
William Shatner
Love & Other Mysteries
As an ardent Trekkie, I can't let a new release from Shatner pass without comment. His latest album, another spoken word outing, is a collaboration with friend, country star Brad Paisley. Unlike the campier work he's been known for from his early outings, on this album Shatner gets both personal and philosophical. He muses, "And when the sun finally goes down, you should see with the eyes of a curious child, and the great mystery." The accompaniment is at times country and other times a bit jazzy. It's not "Mr. Tambourine Man," that's for sure. Shatner is also hard a work on a metal album. That's going to be interesting.
FEATURED TRACK: "The Great Mystery"
Tagua Tagua
B-Sides, Singles & Forgotten Gems
The irresistible Brazilian grooves get me every time. Tagua Tagua channels 70s vibes, with psychedelic, pop, and a little bit of funk melded into a hypnotic brew harkening back to the work of giants like Jorge Ben and Cassiano. A preview into his next release, this single will tide me over for now.
FEATURED TRACK: "Fez A Minha Onda Bater"
Kelly Finnigan
B-Sides, Singles & Forgotten Gems
Speaking of grooves, this album is full of them. Kicking off the record is "Freedom," which settles into a dirty funk pocket, courtesy of the current Monophonic keyboardist, Finnigan, working with his old band, Destruments. An archive of Finnigan's experimentation and evolution, the tracks are replete with sounds that would have been familiar throughout the late 60s and 70s in the best sould and funk bands of the time. Good stuff.
FEATURED TRACK: "Freedom"