Though Becca Harvey rose to alt-pop fame with her 2022 debut album, *When I’m Alone*, she felt as if she were working in the shadow of her collaborators, writing along to their melodies. For its follow-up, the Atlanta singer-songwriter rethought her creative approach, trusting her own lyrical and melodic instincts. The resulting songs are bittersweet and raw (despite the album’s deceptively sweet title), telling the story of a four-year relationship and its aftermath in bleary vignettes. On “I Just Do!” she draws the blackout curtains and sleeps through a flight in the arms of a new crush; next thing you know, she’s looking at old photo-booth strips, wondering how it all went wrong. The 26-year-old’s lyrics are wide-open and bemused, countering her grief with a shrug or a wink; on “Windows,” she slips in a knowing reference to Fleetwood Mac’s iconic breakup banger: “You are my silver spring/No matter what you do/You will always hear me sing.”
For an artist who hadn’t released a new album of original material in seven years, Richard Ashcroft couldn’t have asked for a better reintroduction to the masses than opening for his old mates Oasis on their 2025 reunion-tour stadium takeover. But the former Verve singer didn’t just turn up to peddle ’90s nostalgia. He opened his sets with “Lover,” a joyous, R&B-inspired bop that sets the uplifting, genre-bending tone for *Lovin’ You*, a collection of life-affirming anthems, unabashedly romantic serenades, and playful dance detours that showcase Britpop’s most soulful voice in all its ageless wonder. It’s the work of a rock veteran who’s got an ear tuned in to the contemporary pop conversation: “I’m a Rebel” is a slinky, French touched workout (courtesy of guest collaborator Mirwais) that sees the singer push his falsetto to ecstatic new heights, while the title track suggests his stormy solo signature “A Song for the Lovers” given a rap remix. But we also get Ashcroft in familiar *Urban Hymns* acoustic-troubadour mode on late-night reveries like “Find Another Reason” and “Live with Hope,” which aim for the symphonic splendor and gospel grandeur of classic early-’70s Stones ballads. Whether Ashcroft is playing to the club or the church, *Lovin’ You* is unified in its mission to make life feel a little less bitter and a lot more sweet.
Ruston Kelly has never shied from the spiritual in his music, but this fourth album finds the Nashville-based singer-songwriter in an especially metaphysical mindset. Following his 2023 album *The Weakness*, *Pale, Through the Window* comes after a pivotal time for Kelly, who chronicles a period of reflection, healing, and blossoming love in these 13 new tracks. Kelly recorded the album live in Nashville alongside his touring band and longtime collaborator/producer Jarrad K (Morgan Wade, Tommy Prine), and there’s a subtle looseness in the music that comes from this intimate setup. The opening title track is built atop reverbed vocal harmonies, stacked for a gently mesmerizing effect that mimics being in the same room as Kelly and his crew. Lyrically, that song finds Kelly yearning hopelessly for a lost love, finding only himself instead. “Wayside” laments society “shouting from their phone” and highlights Kelly’s prowess as a melody writer, with a driving, sticky verse hook that breaks open at the chorus, while on “Waiting to Love You” he dips back into the rootsy pop rock of earlier fan favorites like “Mockingbird.” Kelly closes the LP with “All In,” a deeply confessional love song about fully committing oneself to another person, no matter how scary the prospect.
Sarah McLachlan’s first album of originals in 11 years fortuitously arrives in the same month as the premiere of *Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery*, a documentary that celebrates the trailblazing legacy of her all-women festival. And in many respects, *Better Broken* serves the same function in 2025 as Lilith Fair did in the ’90s, by providing a safe space for fans to gather and wallow in all the feels. With boygenius producer Tony Berg behind the boards, *Better Broken* sees McLachlan effortlessly integrate herself into a contemporary singer-songwriter landscape she helped create, with the title track reintroducing us to the folk-schooled storytelling, trip-hoppy textures, and hair-raising vocal turns that made her an adult-alternative icon. As ever, McLachlan masterfully distills relationships to the most intimate details (“I want to feel the shiver/Your fingers writing poetry on my skin,” she sings on the dustbowl devotional “Long Road Home”), while delving into their messy aftermaths with unflinching resolve: The post-breakup piano ballad “Wilderness” just might be the most elegant “fuck you” to an ex ever written. But while its songs take the form of deeply personal heart-to-heart conversations, *Better Broken* is very much tuned into the socio-political tumult weighing on all our lives—the tender piano serenade “Only Human” is the musical equivalent of a shoulder to cry on, with McLachlan offering words of encouragement to beaten-down souls like the world’s most sympathetic life coach. And if McLachlan is several decades removed from her Lilith Fair mobilization efforts, uplifting self-empowerment anthems like “One in a Long Line” and “Rise” show the festival’s feminist fuse still burns brightly inside her.
On their 2023 debut, *To Learn*, Winnipeg indie-folk raconteur Leith Ross proved they needed nothing more than an acoustic and their daydreamy yet emotionally direct voice to completely captivate you. But with alt-pop superproducer Rostam at their side, Ross embraces the opportunity to color their songs with a broader and brighter musical palette on *I Can See the Future*. The difference is immediately apparent on the opening track “Grieving,” where Ross shares their sobering observations on love and death, but delivers them in a lively, luminous melange of fiddles, mandolins, and foot-stomping beats. Where you could once measure Ross’ confidence through the sheer honesty of their storytelling, here, it’s gauged by their eagerness to break free of singer-songwriter convention: With its beautiful blur of acoustic guitars, tremulous textures, and propulsive rhythm, “Terrified” suggests a dream-team meeting of Big Thief and the Cocteau Twins, as Ross’ vocal incantations float above the swirl like they were having an out-of-body experience. “Alone,” meanwhile, feels like a metaphor for Ross’ career up to this point: Beginning in lo-fi Liz Phair mode, the song builds to a gloriously over-the-top, brass-blasted finale—the sound of a bedroom-pop phenom bulldozing the walls around them to seek communal connection.
California singer-songwriter Jensen McRae’s cut an impressive figure over the last few years, from her striking breakout single “Wolves” and her debut LP *Are You Happy Now?* to a profile-raising stint opening for Noah Kahan on 2024’s Stick Season tour. Her sophomore bow *I Don’t Know How But They Found Me!* finds the 27-year-old taking her confessional folk-rock style—equally influenced by Tracy Chapman’s raw lyrical expressionism and Taylor Swift’s melodic grandeur—and blowing it up on the widest screen possible. Over bell-clear production courtesy of studio wiz Brad Cook (Bon Iver, Waxahatchee), McRae’s songwriting breathes like never before, from the countrified and Phoebe Bridgers-esque “Savannah” to the closely-mic’d piano ballad “Tuesday,” which features McRae leaning into her sturdy lower vocal register and spinning the type of quietly devastating lyrical gestures she’s become renowned for: “If you spent a day in my shoes/You’d know how it feels to be used.”
Josh Ritter has an unusual name for his artistic muse: “Honeydew.” Determined to reconnect with the ever-elusive creative spark that felt more accessible in his younger years, the 48-year-old singer-songwriter wrote this collection of songs addressed to his muse, recording the collection with producer Sam Kassirer (Craig Finn, Walter Martin) and Ritter’s own Royal City Band. The resulting album is kaleidoscopic in sound and subject, with trippy song titles like “Truth Is a Dimension (Both Invisible and Blinding)” and “The Wreckage of One Vision of You” hinting at the expansive kind of introspection Ritter called forth. Opening track “You Won’t Dig My Grave,” with its chiming piano and rootsy production, doesn’t reinvent Ritter’s sonic wheel, but there’s a new wildness in his voice as he considers the trials and tribulations that have marked his life thus far. “Honeydew (No Light)” lets Ritter get a little weird, as he writes mythical figures like Prometheus into his own personal history while a mandolin, accordion, and synthesizer find oddball harmony in the margins of his tall tales. Other highlights include “Kudzu Vines,” a sludgy, begrudging ode to the “vine that ate the South,” and closing track “The Throne,” a frank and compassionate acknowledgment of the “burdens never meant to be shouldered” that accompany modern life.
Nostalgia has always been at the heart of Kaarl’s music, ever since the release of his debut single, “Amor Viejo,” in 2018. While his Mexican roots are deeply embedded in his work, the Chihuahua-born singer seamlessly weaves in elements reminiscent of dream pop and folk-rock bands like Beach House and The Lumineers—bittersweet keyboard solos and evocative nocturnal moods. Following the global success of *Paris Texas* in 2022, Kaarl embarks on an even more ambitious journey with *ULTRA SODADE*, which balances the folk austerity of acoustic guitars with the lush indie textures of atmospheric keyboards. On “recuérdame x siempre.,” the yearning for a love that lingers in memory unfolds over a sweeping orchestral arrangement, ambient night sounds, and the steady pulse of a beating heart. Meanwhile, on “dime,” Kaarl reflects on intimate moments from the past, asking his lover if she still wants to be by his side. His voice is delicate, imbued with raw sincerity. *ULTRA SODADE* once again reaffirms his creative synergy with his brother, producer, and longtime collaborator Bryan—a partnership that has never felt sharper, marking one of their most inspired creative peaks yet. In Kevin Kaarl’s existential universe, introspection and the beauty of music become our allies in healing old wounds. The journey’s end may be painful, but it is also transformative. Kevin and Bryan Kaarl walked Apple Music through some of their favorite tracks on the record. **“dime”** Bryan Kaarl: “We used a tambourine to give it a richer rhythm, something people could dance to with their partner. And the bass—I feel like it’s the most important part of this song. It’s vital.” Kevin Kaarl: “It’s a slow song that you can dance to with someone you love. When I wrote it, I wasn’t really sure what to do with it. I wrote it for a girl—I had the melody and the guitar, but Bryan, my brother and producer, was the one who gave it that essential touch with the percussion. That folkier feel. This song reminds me of what love really is. I want to hear people sing along to the final ‘la-la-la-la.’ That’s the intention. It’s the only love song on the album—a love letter.” **“ULTRA SODADE”** KK: “Every instrument you hear on this song was played by Bryan—except for my voice and guitar. It’s beautiful. You can hear Cesária Évora singing with her stunning voice. I have immense artistic respect for her. The sample is something I absolutely love.” BK: “The producer of this track is Nsqk. I sent him the song, and he sent it back like this—fully finished. We believe this is the most unique track on the album. It stands apart from the rest, and that’s thanks to Nsqk’s production. He’s an artist we truly admire, and we love having him on the album.” **“ya no me llames”** BK: “It’s like a release—letting go of frustration. It’s not really a sad song; it’s more of a special track. It has a lot of movement and a more uplifting energy. Through the production and the music, we wanted to amplify that feeling. That was the goal. If you listen to the song and read the lyrics, you might think it’s a sad song. But what I love about it is that, while the lyrics carry sadness, the rhythm and melody are bright and upbeat. It’s a blend of both emotions.” KK: “Bryan really understood the vision for this album’s production and the style I wanted to achieve.”
