June 2025 Recs

Nana, Korea Girl, live from JP :D

Happy Summer Solstice! Happy half birthday to me! :D I am writing to you delightfully from Japan with Bella and my family. This was an amazing month for music, especially in the realm of singles, which I didn’t review but I will list here some of the best: new Alex G (album out next month), Teethe, Ivy, bar italia, Wednesday, Jejune (beginning to be reissued/stream-able by Numero Group), Soup Dreams, to name just a few. In other news, with Spotify CEO investing in AI Military Startup, bands like Deerhoof are taking their music off the platform. I have been debating switching music platforms for a while but am not sure what is the best alternative (besides Bandcamp which is probably ideal but a dif kind of platform). Any thoughts from any of my friends?

Favorite Album That Came Out This Month: “Raspberry Moon” by Hotline TNT

Hotline TNT released their first album written as a full band this month, and I was really impressed! The sound is much bigger and more cohesive and less pure guitar noise (which I love but can start to sound the same). I was debating choosing Ben Kweller’s “Cover the Mirrors” which I was also really impressed by, but this “Raspberry Moon” is probably more to my taste of alt. rock.

Full review here.

Favorite Album That Didn’t Come Out This Month: “Korea Girl (Renovated)” by Korea Girl

Found this album through a video of Julie making recs. A local San Jose 90’s dream pop album!! “Korea Girl (Renovated)” I’m pretty sure is a remaster of their 1997 self-titled album. If you like Life Without Buildings or Mad Planets or Camera Obscura, I would highly recommend this album (or the original). I was blown away and shocked I’d never heard of them.

Favorite Live Performance I Saw This Month: bottombunk at Bottom of the Hill

Okay I’ll stop posting about bottombunk, but this was the only live music I got to see this month as I left for Japan pretty early, and it was awesome as always. They’ve got their sophomore LP coming out next month which is miles above their debut and just stellar, and I’m so excited. Stream the single “First to Know” and get stoked for that release.

Favorite Book I Read This Month: Nana, Volume 1 by Ai Yazawa

Okay if you didn’t know this about me, Nana is one of my favorite anime and is perhaps one of the pieces of media (books, film, tv, music) that has most influenced me in my entire life. Being in Japan, I was able to secure the first volume of the manga in English, and I think it might be even better than the anime! Truly, Nana has shaped so much of the way I dress and my love of punk and underground music scenes, and being Japanese, it means even more. If you can’t get your hands on the manga, I would still recommend the anime except spoiler warning it gets unbearably depressing at the end, but you kind of just have to ignore that. But I mean look at that art…! and the writing is so good.

Monthly Reviews Wrap Up

Never Enough, Turnstile (7/10), melodic hardcore, alt. rock

Cover the Mirrors, Ben Kweller (7/10), indie folk, indie pop

Ripped and Torn, Lifeguard (6/10), art rock, noise rock

Lotus, Little Simz (5/10), rap, r&b

etc. (EP), Strange Ranger (7/10), indie folk

Was sick and traveling this month, so didn’t get to put up as many reviews, but I promise I’ll be on it going forward!

Monthly Playlist!!! A short but very good one imo

Xoxo, SW