SALLY SHAPIRO share new single "Did You Call Tonight". Album 'Ready To Live A Lie' out May 30th via Italians Do It Better.

SALLY SHAPIRO - Share new single "Did You Call Tonight" - Album 'Ready To Live A Lie' out May 30th via Italians Do It Better

Photo credit: Mika Stjärnglinder Today Swedish italo disco / synthpop duo Sally Shapiro share new single "Did You Call Tonight" from their upcoming album 'Ready To Live A Lie', which is due May 30th via Italians Do It Better. On the track, the band said "Microcheating is the theme of this new single. Musically it's inspired by 80s electro breakbeat, a bit slower and funkier than our usual style." "Did You Call Tonight" on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=vYtgddi4xps "Did You Call Tonight" on other streaming services: https://idib.ffm.to/didyoucalltonight Made up of producer Johan Agebjörn and an anonymous female vocalist who uses the pseudonym Sally Shapiro; the duo are known for their dreamy, melancholic sound and nostalgic homage to 1980s Italo disco and gained international recognition with their debut album Disco Romance (2007), which was then followed by My Guilty Pleasure (2009), Somewhere Else (2013) and  their debut for Italians Do It Better Sad Cities (2022). The name "Sally Shapiro" has always referred to both the duo, as well as the enigmatic anonymous singer whose real name is something else. But "Sally" is also a third entity: the fictional character singing about her love stories. It's now been 18 years since Sally Shapiro's debut album Disco Romance, that took influences from italo disco and indie pop with a naive and youthful flavor, as if everything "Sally" did was to "walk in the moonshine thinking about my love affairs", as she once put it.   Ready To Live A Lie may, however, be the duo's darkest album yet. The lyrics have shifted from the euphoria of first love to exploring "Sally's" struggles in long-term relationships—love triangles, boredom, resentment, and the lingering sense of loneliness.    Ready To Live A Lie is out on Italians Do It Better on May 30th and includes the duo’s acclaimed Pet Shop Boys cover Rent. Taking inspiration from synthwave, italo disco, nudisco, indie pop and bossanova, the album becomes their fifth studio album & their second for Italians Do It Better - again mixed together with label founder Johnny Jewel (Chromatics, Glass Candy, Desire). Sally Shapiro's forthcoming album 'Ready To Live A Lie' is now available for preorder on vinyl 2LP (pink vinyl or transparent electric blue vinyl), CD and digital from their Bandcamp page. Pre-order album: https://sallyshapiro.bandcamp.com/album/ready-to-live-a-lie Pre-save album: https://idib.ffm.to/readytolivealie Ready To Live A Lie artwork: Ready To Live A Lie tracklist: 1. The Other Days (YouTube) 2. Hard To Love 3. Rent 4. Purple Colored Sky 5. Happier Somewhere Else 6. Guarding Shell 7. Hospital  8. Did You Call Tonight (YouTube) 9. Oh Carrie 10. He's Not You 11. Rain Links: Facebook Instagram

Smerz shares new single and music video for “Feisty”

SMERZ SHARE NEW SINGLE AND MUSIC VIDEO FOR  “FEISTY” Big city life Out May 23 on Escho

Big city life https://smerz.lnk.to/life (Wednesday 30th April) - Smerz return to share the final preview of their long-awaited new album Big city life, out May 23rd on Escho. “Feisty” is about partying after a breakup - letting go, almost post-heartache, free to do as you please. Offbeat disco hi-hat drama met with cool yet sweetly accented vocals, this single’s music video follows Smerz for a night out on the town in Oslo. “Feisty" WATCH HERE | LISTEN HERE The initiation into Big city life is through singles “A thousand lies,” “You got time and I got money” and “Roll the dice.” Framed by Smerz’ signature voices and the bold minimalism that defines them, Big city life is a collection of moments and feelings gathered by Henriette and Catharina over the past four years. There are stories - both lived and imagined - of apathy, loneliness, talking to yourself, love and full-blown, almost manic freedom. Together, they form a sonic rite of passage, documenting transition in many forms, through both song and production.  “Feisty” follows “A thousand lies,” “You got time and I got money” and “Roll the dice,” all of which together present the album’s multiple dimensions of love, loneliness, apathy, solitude and almost manic freedom. Listening to Big city life is to enter a friendly maze or view a familiar collage. It’s the energy of two teenagers whispering a song in their bedroom, afraid to break the moment. It’s grown, and earned too, with its extroverted and shiny energy, the kind of unhinged freedom where you abandon all caution.  On Big city life, Smerz embodies the vibrating tension, that in-between space where awkwardness and confidence crash into each other and reveal something that has always existed. Big city life is out May 23rd on Escho. Pre-order the album here and pre-save the album here.

Smerz Big city life Escho 23 May 2025  Pre-Order: Escho | Bandcamp Tracklist: Big city life But I do Roll the dice What Feisty A thousand lies Close You got time and I got money Big dreams Street style Imagine this Dreams Easy Smerz: Instagram | Assets Smerz’ critically acclaimed debut album Believer (2021) had The FACE saying “Smerz have created a lane all their own.” Always evolving, they continue shaping both underground and mainstream soundscapes—from the conceptual pop of ALLINA (2024) to their production work on NewJeans’ Get Up EP (2023). Their longtime NTS residency has served as a playground for their expansive influences, showcasing friends and music they admire while seamlessly blending everything from Schubert’s Die schöne Müllerin to footwork pioneer RP Boo. Occasionally stepping into theater, film, and museums, from their choir piece at the MUNCH Museum to fashion runway soundtracks, throughout their work, Smerz have been known for their ability to seamlessly navigate and create boundless sonic worlds. Big city life unfolds in the real world.

TOPS celebrates Ghostly International signing with new single

TOPS SHARES NEW SINGLE AND MUSIC VIDEO “ICU2” SIGNS TO GHOSTLY INTERNATIONAL

TOPS by Aabid Youssef WATCH/LISTEN: “ICU2” - https://lnk.to/TOPS-ICU2 “Near-perfect songwriting” Pitchfork “Sophisticated production, nostalgic synths and gorgeous tunes” The Guardian  (April 30, 2025) - TOPS announces their signing to Ghostly International with a new single titled “ICU2.” The release comes on the heels of their appearance at Coachella, where they debuted the track live.  TOPS — musicians David Carriere, Jane Penny, Marta Cikojevic, and Riley Fleck — write timeless music that reliably threads immediacy and depth. Emerging from Montréal's DIY scene in the early 2010s as progenitors of an indie pop sound still radiating its influence across the contemporary landscape, their secret to longevity is simple: keep the songwriting honest and open-hearted and the recording unforced yet pristine, allowing for a band dynamic deeply attuned at every level. Their glowing, grooving, self-produced songs outline the silhouettes of life, and as time goes on, TOPS have only gotten better at what they do. Their signing to Ghostly marks the start of a new chapter and their first new music since 2022’s self-released Empty Seats EP. New single "ICU2" is pure flirtation, a classic uptempo TOPS song sprung from a playful exchange between Jane Penny and Marta Cikojevic. Beneath the grooves, though, the hide-and-seek club scene hints at a hall of mirrors, "almost like a caper, fantastical, like you've been caught searching for something in the dark," says Penny, citing the art house psychedelia of the party scene in Midnight Cowboy (1969). The song arrives alongside a throwback music video; enter the world of the crate and see what magic unfolds.

"ICU2" single artwork by Robert Beatty Connect with TOPS: Instagram | TikTok | X | YouTube

PANIK FLOWER's sophomore EP 'rearview' masterfully balances delicacy and coarseness

PANIK FLOWER’S SOPHOMORE EP REARVIEW  MASTERFULLY BALANCES DELICACY AND  COARSENESS — OUT TODAY WATCH THE HORROR-TINGED OFFICIAL VIDEO FOR THE TITLE TRACK EP RELEASE SHOW AT NY’S NIGHT CLUB 101 ON MAY 21 + BAND ANNOUNCES HEADLINE TOUR DATES FOR THIS JUNE — SEE ALL SHOWS HERE

Today, NYC dreamgazers PANIK FLOWER release their sophomore EP rearview, a project deeply rooted in intentional juxtaposition. Across six tracks, the EP looks inward to explore identity; namely the double-sided nature of uncertainty and self-acceptance. It transcribes this self-exploration into a plush yet jagged soundscape. The new EP was produced, mixed, and recorded by James Duncan (Taraneh, Nara’s Room, Dead Tooth, Raavi) and mastered by Carl Saff (Drops Nineteens, Dr. Dog, Sonic Youth) — Stream.  “This EP felt like a lot of us finding ourselves as a band — our sound and how we perform,” shared bassist Max Baird. “Sage’s spoken word has become such an important part of that and we really wanted to explore it in this project. It contributes a lot to the push-pull dynamic of our music, often adding another rhythmic element on top of an already lush, sonic landscape. Many of the bones of these tracks were brought to us by our drummer Marco, who was our missing piece up until early last year.” Often drawing comparisons to Dolores O'Riordan of The Cranberries, Sage Leopold’s vocals are bolstered by the massive sound of her bandmates, but even more so by their sense of collaboration. These lines of communication are most evident in the ever-evolving wall of sound they create playing live, but also in the way each band member intimately contributes to the making of their music. Through the release of rearview, PANIK FLOWER has both cemented their identities internally and in how they connect with their listeners.

Press photo by Ivan Alexander Today’s EP release comes with an anxiety-ridden official video for the title track in tow. Directed by Harleigh Shaw with cinematography by Aji Bass, the video is dark and steeped in fear as the protagonist can’t seem to outrun herself — Watch.  Shaw said, “For the ‘rearview’ video, we wanted to capture the exhaustion and horror of being your own worst enemy and this idea of running from yourself. During the song’s chaotic and moody outro, we aimed to show Sage increasingly disheveled and tired as the video evolves. The film, ‘The Amusement Park’, was a major reference for this specific section of the video. I was also very inspired by David Lynch's films, especially because we conceptualized and shot the video right after he passed away. From an editing perspective, ‘Natural Born Killers’ was a big reference with the way it utilizes saturated colors and frenetic editing. We leaned into chaotic cuts and playing with speed, all which contributed to heightening the drama of Sage running from herself.”

Ahead of today’s EP release, PANIK FLOWER played at NYC’s New Colossus Festival and then opened for King Hannah to a sold out crowd at Elsewhere. On May 21, they will play a hometown EP release show at Night Club 101 before setting out on a headline tour in June. See all dates here and below.  UPCOMING TOUR DATES May 21 - New York, NY - Night Club 101 (EP Release Show) June 12 - Philadelphia, PA - Khyber  June 13 - Athens, OH - Smiling Skull  June 14 - Columbus, OH - Cafe Bourbon  June 15 - Detroit, MI - Parts & Labor June 16 - Indianapolis, IN - TBA June 17 Chicago, IL - Subterranean  June 19 - Milwaukee, WI - Cactus Club  June 21 - Pittsburg, PA - Haven All info here

REARVIEW TRACKLIST “symptom of paradox” “rearview” — Watch “slenderman” “alkaline” — Watch “ocd” — Watch “tower”

Press photo by Ivan Alexander  ABOUT PANIK FLOWER: PANIK FLOWER is a dream pop band that materialized within the New York music scene in 2023. Started by childhood friends Sage Leopold (vocals) and Mila Stieglitz-Courtney (guitar/vocals), PANIK FLOWER has grown through chance introductions and Craigslist posts to include co-collaborators Jordan Buzzell (guitar), Max Baird (bass) and Marco Starger (drums). With a majority of the band’s members being native New Yorkers, PANIK FLOWER’s music is deeply reflective of the push and pull of their city, pairing atmospheric soundscapes with a restrained use of well-time punchiness.  Their soundscape of soft harmonies, hard-hitting instrumentals and cutting lyricism evoke the hazy nostalgia of distant memories — ones of love, loss and identity that have found audiences first in their immediate communities, and now to friends and strangers alike across the globe. With the release of rearview, the band’s sophomore EP sees them marrying their dream pop sensibilities with post-punk undertones.  ### For more information on PANIK FLOWER, please visit: Website | Instagram | Spotify | YouTube | Apple Music | Bandcamp