Local artists ratchet up the heat

May and June’s new music releases teem with scorching confidence.

Over the years, the end of spring and start of summer has proven to be a perfect window for new music releases. An unmatched sense of anticipation emerges for, well, everything. Something that’s elevated even further in a state with brutal, barren winters. As the life around us begins to bloom, it’s hard not to be at least a little smitten with the concept of creation. While this holds true for most everyone, it has especially applied to songwriters, who have historically seized this exact window of time to dream up and/or deliver new works.

We’ve seen this effect play out time and again in Madison, and 2025 is no different. Each artist represented on this list has crafted a release that seems bound for a good bit of listener replays throughout the ensuing months. A few may even find themselves in “song of the summer” debates, and that consideration will have been earned. It doesn’t matter if it’s traditionally seasonal (to my mind: peppy, upbeat, and/or optimistic) or if it takes an entirely different tack. Every release on this list is worth celebrating, whether it’s an early release or a tour de force from an established veteran presence. (It could be argued that at least one song here counts as both.) Summer is officially here, and Madison acts have already offered up plenty of potential seasonal soundtracks. Give them all a spin, and support the artist(s) with a purchase.

If you have a new or upcoming local release you believe we should hear, feel free to send it to steven@tonemadison.com. While we can’t cover everything we receive, we’ll at least give each submission a listen to make sure it doesn’t go unheard.

Graham Hunt, Timeless World Forever

Graham Hunt‘s Timeless World Forever is inarguably one of the highest-profile releases from a Madison-based musician this year. Hunt’s first album for Run For Cover notched the songwriter his second consecutive “Album Of The Week” feature writeup from Stereogum and solidified his status as one of the city’s most notable songwriters. Timeless World Forever takes more stylistic risks than any of Hunt’s previous records, and those efforts pay off in a consistently engaging album that demands listeners’ rapt attention. Over 10 tracks, the album plays up a range of ’90s and early 2000s college radio influences, while taking cues from alt-pop acts of that era to create something that feels hazily familiar while still cutting through with enough fresh ideas to avoid overindulging nostalgia.

Singles “I Just Need Enough”—a mid-tempo, acoustic-forward rocker that evokes early Beck—and the hard-charging “East Side Screamer” open the album’s floodgates, ushering in a torrent of smartly-crafted slacker punk. Every track on the album has at least one standout moment: the larger-than-life choruses of “Spiritual Problems” and “Frog In The Shower,” the R&B-inspired lead riff of “Been There Done That,” and the subtly atmospheric production work of “CRC” all serve as examples of excellence. (And the latter’s inclusion of a Thax Douglas poem extends Hunt’s knack for emphasizing local references, while constituting another standout moment in its own right.) Hunt’s lyricism is adept as ever on Timeless World Forever, which—for all its stylistic flourishes—still comes across as highly personal.

The Mail Manipulators, The Mail Manipulators

From 2022 to 2024, The Mail Manipulators—a brash punk power trio made up of guitarist/vocalist Calem Pocernich, bassist Shelby Len, and drummer Luis Acosta Jr.—released two singles. The trio’s debut EP, The Mail Manipulators, features both of those singles (“We Vote” and “Jets Too Loud!!“) alongside four new tracks. None of these songs exceed the 2:20 mark, and each track bristles with an impassioned proto-punk energy. (More than a few tracks here bring to mind The Clash’s self-titled.) Disq‘s Shannon Connor—the EP’s audio engineer—fleshes out a few of these tracks with additional guitar work, adding a level of instrumental depth.

All six tracks here feel lean, but they also bare sharp teeth. Most of the tracks on the EP are explicitly political in nature, and make no bones about being confrontational. When the trio veers away from that focus, as they do on the penultimate “Unholy Love Hexagon,” the subversion yields dividends. While the progressive political missives that dominate the EP’s first half come teeming with justifiable frustration and have plenty of inherent worth, the brief glimpse that “Unholy Love Hexagon” offers into something more personal and vulnerable can’t help but stand out amidst the mid-fi punk chaos. In slowing down and sweeping through the wreckage, The Mail Manipulators unearth something truly striking.

Pretty Pretty Please, “Until It Moves Me (feat. The Spine Stealers)“

One thing that never gets old is seeing—and hearing—artists find natural collaborative fits. Minneapolis-based indie-folk duo Pretty Pretty Please and Madison indie-folk darlings The Spine Stealers recently teamed up on “Until It Moves Me,” and proved a perfect complement. Both acts favor lilting, easygoing melodies, and are prone to a bit of foul-mouthed bitterness. When the vocal exchanges hit in “Until It Moves Me,” shifting from one act to the other, it feels so well-honed that listeners could be forgiven for thinking this was the work of an established band, rather than a collaborative effort..

When they join together for the chorus, the effect is akin to a soft euphoria. “Hey hey hey hey / I can kiss your bruises,” sings a member of Pretty Pretty Please near the song’s close, before being answered “And hey hey hey hey / I can hear the music” by The Spine Stealers’ Emma O’Shea. Like a good bit of The Spine Stealers’ best work thus far, “Until It Moves Me” is unsparingly tender, even in the song’s more cutting opening verses. Those early stanzas detail a near-spiteful interpersonal relationship, with the involved parties taking stock of a series shortcomings. In extending the blame of failure both inwards and out, the central narrators of “Until It Moves Me” still provide measures of grace. Throughout that rolling exchange, there is a subtextual strengthening of community that further underlines the inherent nature of collaboration. It’s beautiful.

Sigra, “banner year“

Sigra—the mononymic solo project of Sigra DeWeese—excels in playing with form, and “banner year” is no exception. Through exacting minimalism, the atmosphere of “banner year” is awash in a haunted, foreboding sense of dread. A plodding bass line, impeccably-executed piano figures, a hushed vocal delivery, and an electric guitar that starts clean before descending into distorted filth constitute the majority of the track’s instrumental makeup. A bit of well-placed synth and an exceedingly brief instance of drums ratchet up the slow-burn of tension, as Sigra hammers home the hook of “had a banner year.”

“If there’s one thing I’ve learned / It’s that laurels wilt fast / And you’re not on their minds / In a way that will last” intones Sigra at the halfway point, underscoring a series of wry observations. Everything in “banner year” carries and extends a sense of discomfort. Intakes of breath are amplified, further heightening the horror-leaning aspects of “banner year,” all while Sigra contends with one of life’s small injustices: if someone achieves a modicum of success, the demand for their time and talent is incessant, stacking on a pressure that often nullifies any real sense of personal accomplishment. Easily one of Sigra’s most gripping—and most disquieting—solo tracks to date.

Sister Agnes, Faith, Hope, And Chastity

Former Proud Parent—and occasional Tone Madison contributor—C Nelson-Lifson’s latest project, the nun-themed Sister Agnes, showed plenty of promise on debut single “Sister Julia.” That 2023 track provided a window into what Sister Agnes would eventually become: a best-in-class post-punk act shot through with new wave and goth styling. Faith, Hope, And Chastity is the project’s debut album, and boasts guest contributions from contemporary Graham Hunt (who recorded and mixed the album), and Cult Of Lip‘s Hannah Porter and Ronnie Lee. Each of them ably accentuate Nelson-Lifson’s clear-eyed paeans, each of which are addressed to, and named for, a “Sister.” (The album’s first and final tracks are the notable exceptions.)

Nelson-Lifson excerpts Jewelle Gomez’s The Gilda Stories on “Sister Gilda,” and closes the album with a cover of the Artie Glenn-penned “Crying in the Chapel.” Each of which further contextualize the influences imbuing their original sets of lyrics and demonstrate Nelson-Lifson’s growing confidence. “There’s a choreography / To contemporary beings / That is lost on me / The earth is waking from a long, deep slumber / With demons crawling from the grave,” Nelson-Lifson sings on the spry, Rocky Horror-esque chorus of “Sister Elizabeth,” toying with a number of analogies for a feeling of displacement. But there’s a resolve buried within that comes across as remarkably assured, while still speaking to that overall position. It’s a remarkably delicate balancing act pulled off with panache, highlighting an appeal that seems set to last.

Spectaculous, “Bite (ft. Kxnny and Tony Barba)“

Dequadray White—best known by the mononym Dequadray—and the members of jazz trio Mr. Chair joined forces this year to form Spectaculous. In January, the band released their debut single, “Tempo.” They recently followed it up with “Bite,” which features additional contributions from rapper Kxnny and former Madisonian—and saxophone extraordinaire—Tony Barba. All the musicians on “Bite” feel at ease. Each is fully enveloped by the groove, while still managing to impact the song’s overall texture in meaningful ways. Dequadray’s rich vocals add a bit of color, Kxnny‘s rapping adds a twinge of venom, Barba’s sax adds punch, and the members of Mr. Chair provide a good deal of bounce. Somehow, it all blends perfectly.

“I bite any hand that comes too close / To my mouth or jaws / Been looking to sink my teeth in / To something much more raw” sings Dequadray through a smattering of auto-tune, as the assembled band punctuates the silky vocal delivery with bursts of brass and emphatic, punchy drumming. “Bite” quickly erupts into frantic jazz fusion that pulls from modern influences while still feeling classic. Audio engineers Justin Hind, Tom Volpicelli, and Mark Whitcomb do astounding work on “Bite,” elevating the material at hand by allowing everything to shine in equal measure. “I’m like a alchemist / Turning pennies to gold” sneers a boastful Kxnny in the song’s final stanza, injecting the track with a welcome bit of menace. For most, this track’s single bite won’t be enough. I’m already looking forward to seconds.