Melody on Music is Pop Heist's regular roundup of new releases from across the spectrum of recorded sound. Here, music critic Melody Esme singles out the most noteworthy drops, from major releases to hidden gems. Consider adding these to your rotation — and if you give them a spin, let us know what you think on Bluesky.
M(h)aol: Something Soft [Merge]
A queer and intersectionally feminist four-piece from Dublin whose post-punk is so legit that they have two bassists. I quite liked their 2023 debut Attachment Styles — check out the 41-second "Kim is a Punk Type Dog." But this is a major step up, a breezy and tuneful — yet unnerving and often discordant — listen that offers up the sorts of feminist diatribes you'd hope for. "DM:AM" puts on blast creeps who slide into random women's DMs, "Pursuit" features the haunting inner monologue of a woman walking home alone at night, and "E8/N16" is just a list of generic masculine names (taken from Hinge, apparently). Particularly special for me, however, is the heartbreaking "I Miss My Dog," about losing a pet. A
Model/Actriz: Pirouette [True Panther]
Imagine if Butthole Surfers were homo enough to embrace disco, and you're pretty much here. Trading the abrasive assault of 2023's Dogsbody in for more focus on groove, this is a celebration of gay awakening that, like any good coming out story, is a confusing mix of exhilaration and pain. On one of the best songs of the year, an instrumental akin to an industrial "I Feel Love" backs a lyric that encapsulates the euphoria of discovery: "I zip into my platforms/I slide into my skirt/Pull the straps around my shoulders/Pull the rouge out of my purse/Can I be the one to be embodied?" A-
FACS: Wish Defense [Trouble in Mind]
The last album engineered by Steve Albini before he passed, and fittingly edgy. But also fittingly electrifying, such that these seven songs in 30 minutes might put you in a trance even if you hone in on the words these depressive Chicagoans tie their rhythms to. "The detail/Terrifying/Abject self/Your grief/A public/Performance?" "Clueless/From privilege/Wasted/And content?" Fellas, we've all played Mad Libs while on benzos but please calm down. B+
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