Watch the accompanying music video for Irish duo Rezo’s new single, “Nothing Else.” Produced by David Odlum, the track follows their critically acclaimed 2024 album, The Age of Self-Help. Featuring the poignant lyrics and heartfelt melodies of Colm O’Connell and Rory McDaid, “Nothing Else” captures “the abject tragedies of life and the power of love,” cementing Rezo’s status as a key alternative Irish act.

Another Monthly Subscriber playlist featuring the artists we’ve been enjoying over the past month, including: Junior Brother, The Little Unsaid, Ron Sexsmith, Eve Adams, JJJJJErome Ellis, Lucrecia Dalt, Jens Kuross, Iona Zajac, James Yorkston, Gwenifer Raymond, Steve Gunn, Buck Curran, Saul Williams, Carson McHone, Big Thief, claire rousay, Joan Shelley, Fruit Bats, Kathryn Williams, Trond Kallevåg, Patrick Shiroishi, M. Sage, Smote, SML, Sir Richard Bishop, Katie Spencer, Michael Hurley & …

Following the release of her fourth album, Enter Now Brightness, in February, New Zealander Nadia Reid delves into the familial and folk shadows of one of music’s most mythologised figures. Reid has released a digital double A-side that goes beyond mere tribute to intergenerational conversation: a cover of Nick Drake’s “Poor Boy” paired, strikingly, with his mother Molly Drake’s spectral retort, “Poor Mum.”

Following the release of her debut album, Rift, Clara Mann has just announced Rift (Extended Edition), which includes two new covers and two French-language versions of standout tracks from the original album. Accompanied by Owen Spafford on fiddle, and released today as a double A-side single, listen to her performing “500 Miles,” a traditional song inspired by Hedy West’s version and “My Life,” by Iris DeMent.

Mason Lindahl’s meticulous dual-release presents a captivating study of ambient texture and place. Recorded in California (Joshua) and Iceland (Same Day Walking), the albums’ distinct sonic palettes—one “woolier and warmer,” the other starker—are inseparable from their locales. Lindahl’s singular nylon string guitar style, with its complex picking and judicious synth/organ touches, finds both intimacy and an otherworldly feel in an album of outstanding guitar music.

Joan Shelley’s new album, ‘Real Warmth,’ is an intimate and urgent collection of songs. With a unique, collaborative sound, the music explores profound themes of human connection, global divisions, and our fragile planet. It’s a beautiful example of American folk that stands as the finest offering from her esteemed career so far.

In an echo of the past, Rafael Toral unveils a new single, “Solitude,” from his upcoming album, Traveling Light. The track revisits the Duke Ellington standard, a piece that has long served as a canvas for improvisers from Thelonious Monk to Mary Halvorson. Yet, Toral’s interpretation channels the profound, almost sacred vulnerability of Billie Holiday’s classic take.

Katie Spencer is the perfect case study of an artist’s maturation. Her journey from the acclaimed debut ‘Weather Beaten’ to her stunning latest album, What Love Is, is a testament to her growth. This album sees her pushing boundaries, inviting listeners into intimate spaces, and exploring love in its many forms. It’s a mature, confident release that affirms her status as an artist deserving of the broadest exposure and audience.

Another Monday Morning Brew Playlist featuring Ganavya, Frantz Casseus, Flaer, Leyla McCalla, She Keeps Bees, The Memory Band, Cerys Hafana, Colleen, Jesca Hoop, Olenka and the Autumn Lovers, Fiona Soe Paing, Emily Wittbrodt, Hurray for the Riff Raff, Bob Frank, Mike Cooper & Steve Gunn, Cheri Knight, Ivor Cutler, Gruff Rhys, Dirty Projectors, A Hawk and a Hacksaw, Gregory and the Hawk, deførmed.

Watch the video for ‘Sailing Away’, the new single from The General Store, a melodic alt-country pop project fronted by multi-instrumentalist, producer and songwriter, Tam Johnstone. The song is inspired by and in tribute to Dave Morrison (who also wrote for KLOF Mag for many years), who was a friend, flatmate of and a musical mentor to Tam.

Michael Hurley’s final album, Broken Homes and Gardens, finds him in essential form: digressive, surreal, jokey, ultimately moving. A folk prankster with a poet’s soul. A fitting way to cap a thirty-odd album legacy that is as important as practically any songwriter you care to mention. He sounds like he had a whole lot more up his sleeve. He always did. 

John Elliott of The Little Unsaid has a way of drawing listeners in with universal truths presented in the most personal – and often poetic – of ways. On Stay Fragile All Across This Cold Frontier, the album moves from intimate piano ballads to raw blues-rock and stately meditations, confirming The Little Unsaid as one of the best-kept secrets in contemporary music.