'Skint' by The Dead Bolts

 

First time for everything. 

'Skint' is a new release by the Chicago group, The Dead Bolts from their upcoming, as yet unnamed new album, here available on YouTube only. 

The song will be on streaming platforms from 20 February, 2026, so the next 'New Music Friday'.

As I said on social media:

"Too good, and the video's cool! 

And to friends 'video is deliberately 'amateur' but actually great!'.

Enjoy.

'Tearing the Ticket' by The Paranoid Style

 

 

From the album 'Known Associates' released February 13, 2026.

Another band that has been around for a while that I have only just come across with the release of this the new album.

The Paranoid Style is a Washington, D.C. indie/garage rock band built around songwriter and vocalist Elizabeth Nelson and guitarist husband Timothy Bracy.

The guitar work is fine, although there is a great sax sola towards the end.

For those interested in the lyrics, which can be found via Bandchamp, here is Perplexity AI's interpretation, for what it's worth, which sounds about right.

"Taken as a whole, “Tearing the Ticket” is:

A tribute to fallen guitar heroes and the people who still carry their influence.

A self‑portrait of a lifer in music and politics who refuses to sell out or cross lines, despite fatigue and doubt.

A meditation on commitment: “tearing the ticket” is both the moment you sign on for a ride you can’t fully control and the act of rejecting the easy out, deciding to keep the flame alive when it would be simpler to go home."

'Thrill' by CHEEKY LEASH

 

 

 A single released February 4 2026.

Great lively upbeat song from this Australian Surf Rock group, who are from Wollongong, New South Wales, which is an hour south of Sydney on what is called the South Coast.

Always liked Surf Rock.

I Ran (So Far Away) a Cover by The Beaches

 

A single released on January 16, 2026.

It takes a few opening bars of this song to realise it's a cover of classic '80's song from the Liverpool group "A Flock Of Seagulls", which was eventually released as on the album of the same name as the group on April 30, 1982.

The song was great, only the MTV video of the band, a low‑budget, early‑MTV sci‑fi performance piece (the band miming in a tiny room covered in aluminum foil and mirrors) caused a sensation on it's realease, propelling the hit higher in the charts.

And by the way, The Beaches are from Toronto, Canada.

Cool cover!

'Whatever' by High Hi

 

 

Released as a single on 7 January 2026.

Let's start the New Year with something different.

A great song from this Belgium group. Say what?! Where?

A Belgium group, and from Antwerp of all places, and so Flemish.

Turns out they have been around producing Indie Rock like this since 2014, only the all enveloping English language music scene means it takes a while to show, at least for me.

Cool song.